Oldies But Goldies: Hook

Oh Hook. I will not lie, I -love- this film. It has a great soundtrack, great costumes, clever twist in the Peter Pan myth, an extremely fun performance by Dustin Hoffman and off course, a surprisingly great movie game(s). Boy oh boy this movie inspired way too many licensed games, compared to every other movie ever, maybe barring the Titanic. There is even a point and click adventure game, I mean this movie was inspiring a-f! Today however we will focus on the SNES/Sega Genesis game which is a side scrolling platformer. Based on the events of the movie, the game just glosses over the boring parts of the film and picks up the moment Peter Pan becomes Peter Pan again. You have to retake the loyalty of the Lost Boys, defeat Rufio and get your sword and then proceed to travel to the Pirate Lair and beat the shit out of Captain Hook to save your kids.

But is the game I remember as a child, as good as I remember it? Lets find out.

Lets begin with the basics: The visuals. Oddly enough there is not much to say here, this game is SO good looking in its pixel art, it can easily pass as a modern pixel game. Its animations are smooth, the graphics are pleasant, the backrounds are interesting, really guys, there is not much to say, this is everything that comes to mind when people say "Retro Pixel Goodness"

So, this game features 8-bit tunes from the movie, which in case you do not remember, is fucking awesome. The sound effects are nice, not grating or annoying at any moment. It is one of the few games that I managed to finish without needing to lower the volume or get annoyed. Unfortunately those retro games dont have much to talk about when it comes to sound design

The game is a standard platformer. You play as Peter pan, and your job is to make it to the end of the level, and occasionally fight a boss. The game feels a bit floaty, but overall the controls are simple, and the camera work is good. I never felt cheated by the camera, unless the game intentionally wanted to make something challenging. That said, the level design is pleasant, enemy variety is good, the boss fights are actually pretty interesting.

Last but not least, what is interesting is the flying mechanics that are well made, fun, and surprisingly responsive. All in all, I say that this game has gameplay that is more engaging that some modern games around.

The game does not overstay its welcome and is rather challenging for a kids game. I still had a knack playing it, even today, and I would recommend it to anyone who is up for some 90's nostalgia gaming. It has good music, fun gameplay and its well worth your while.