Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle (Genesis) - IMPLANTgames Reviews

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Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle is a side-scrolling platformer released on the Sega Genesis in 1989. A year later, the entire franchise would essentially die, before Sonic the Hedgehog took over as Sega’s mascot. Having never played an Alex Kidd game before, this is my entry into the series, so, let’s take a look.

[@Alianger]

You have to get the necklace to see what the bosses are thinking. I agree that it's not a very fun mini-game though and it sucks to have to play it just to get items. The castle level is really good though and it's cool that you can put any item back into the inventory, such as the bike. I have some nostalgia for this one but Miracle World was better for the most part. If you're interested in that sort of thing, please check out my romhack of the first game, Alex Kidd in Radaxian Rumble.

[@implantgames]

+Alianger I did forget to mention you can put items back in inventory which is an awesome feature! Your romhack reminds me, I really need an everdrive...

[@CaptainRufus]

IIRC there is a magic item you can buy that shows you what the enemy is thinking in the RPS parts. So you can just buy it and it becomes a lot easier.

[@implantgames]

+CaptainRufus This! I knew there had to be something, but couldn't figure it out for the life of me...

[@arkdov]

One of my favorite Sega Genesis games.

[@jasonbuckenberger3122]

Another great review. And again right on the money imo. It's fun as a relatively new subscriber to see your growth, confidence and individual style emerge through the years

[@mdragarg]

I loved this as a kid

[@AirZonkWorldChamp]

what a shame, Sega could have continued the Alex Kidd series and had games in between Sonic releases.

[@implantgames]

+Ryan AirZonkWorldChamp It is a nice contrast to Sonic for sure, but I also like how Sega kept creating new IP throughout the 90's.

[@FastTquick]

Some notes about the bosses: In the previous Alex Kidd games, they could telegraph what hand they're going to play to the player, making it easy for the player to choose an opposing hand to counter him. In the Enchanted Castle, Sega for some reason removed this feature, giving players no way to tell and making the boss battles emphasize trial and error. That's why the battles were frustrating.

[@implantgames]

+FastTquick Thank you! The reason I questioned it is because I watched a longplay where they got it right on the first try, every single time. Are they not random in this game? Or would that have been a fluke?

[@FastTquick]

+implantgames I was a bit mistaken what I posted earlier. In Miracle World, some bosses do telegraph their attacks while others do not. They are not random though, so you can use the same hand(s) every time for every playthrough of the game. For example, Stonehead, the first boss, will always play scissors, then paper. In Enchanted Castle, I've read that their attacks are complex enough that they're almost random. The game does have a dirty little secret though: If you wait for the boss to end his conversation, press start, and then press start again, you can skip those sequences entirely.

[@DeadlyGamingLV]

+implantgames I would always have it scissors and then at the very end, switch to paper because the enemy would think you are choosing scissors so he will throw rock and then you can get him. I don't know if that always works but I seem to remember doing that throughout the game and it would work in my favor getting tons of items to make the game easier. It's a nice game to play. I had it back in the day and I still come back to it even to this day.

[@FantasyJared]

I personally always had a bit of a soft spot for this game, as I grew up with it as a kid. Even now, I think the music is charming and the final level, the Enchanted Castle, is a fantastic end to what is otherwise a simple, decent platformer. Nothing amazing, but it can be pretty fun on occasion! Additionally, if you want a recommendation for a criminally underrated platformer, I'd give Kid Chameleon a look, as that's one of the most difficult yet unique games I've ever played. Never could beat it, though, but I'll digress there. Great video mate!

[@diyapia]

Data shows…most dudes always throw rock…

[@goncalotordo4507]

Sadly, I would argue there are only two good Alex Kidd games: Miracle world and Shinobi World. Ignore all others

[@implantgames]

+Gonçalo Tordo Noted haha :) I don't come across SMS games much in the wild, and when I do it's always the same poor arcade ports...

[@goncalotordo4507]

+implantgames Understandable. The Master System was pretty popular in my country so it's easy to come across games for it, including rare ones. NES and SNES games on the other hand... not so much.

[@entertainer_ev2747]

3/5?! This is in my top 5 worst games I've ever played!!

[@implantgames]

I'm not even sure it's in my bottom 30. You need to play more bad games :D