By: John C. Mayberry

Originally the sixteenth season of Japan’s Super Sentai series, what American audiences know as Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was something that myself and millions of others have grown up on and still remember fondly today.  Even nearly thirty years since its premiere on the Fox Kids programming block, it still retains as big a fanbase as it always has if not more so by now.  From the explosion of their popularity would be the merchandising onslaught unleashed on the public which excited kids everywhere to the point of mania (admit it, you were just as excited too).  And as I’m sure that it brightened up our childhoods to the point of euphoria, I’m positive it gave our parents nightmares of the impending shopping experience they’d have to survive somehow, but I digress.  My point being you couldn’t go to any one store without seeing toys, coloring books, party supplies, especially VHS tapes and video games of the now legendary franchise.  The early Power Rangers based video games were some of the best games of the 16-bit generation.  But as I gradually expanded my horizons to include other gaming genres as technology advanced, it became easier to see things that some may find flawed or otherwise needed improvement, but nonetheless for the audience this game was aimed at, as well as for die-hard Power Rangers fans, I would still say the Super Nintendo adaptation succeeds on several levels too.

Showing excellent displays of consistency with the show, Rita Repulsa attacks the earth with Putties and other more powerful creatures she brings to life.  The Rangers, who appear in their civilian identities first before morphing halfway through the level, set out to destroy the creatures set loose on Angel Grove and the world.  Although most enemies you encounter are the Putty Patrol and other machines, players will see familiar faces going through the game, mainly amongst the boss characters, each with unique attacks that require some strategy to overcome (albeit a simple one, this is a kid’s game after all).  And players can rest easy knowing the Megazord has not been forgotten and is the last playable character in the game as your two final battles are against two giant creatures.  The game is short, straight to the point and easy enough for the young audience for whom it was made, but it’s also this difficulty that may affect its replay value as most experienced gamers are looking for more of a challenge and can grow bored of its simplicity.

Regardless of difficulty or other things that may be perceived as wrong with it, the Super Nintendo’s Might Morphin Power Rangers still hit its mark with its target audience and successfully so.  This is, by far, one of the best parts of Power Rangers history that is, and always will be remembered by the generation who was lucky enough to grow up with the Rangers, a great number of whom I’m sure have kept up with every incarnation of the famous team since its American premiere in the olden years of the 1990s.  And now that I have said my piece, time to go polish my collection of power coins and make sure the morpher still works.  This is going to be another busy night, and I’m anticipating some considerable bruising.  I’ll tell you guys right now, the life of a Power Ranger… not an easy one…

PROS:

Character roster – Players are treated to a diverse cast of memorable characters from the series, all of which seem to be creatures who had recently appeared in an episode. For life-long Power Rangers fans this is a definite plus for the nostalgia factor.

Megazord battles – The final two battles of the game players control the legendary Megazord against two giant creatures, the final boss being Cyclopsis in front of Rita’s Moon Palace. With special passwords you receive after completing the game, you can go back to play those battles specifically anytime you want.

Overall look and feel – The look of the game, and in some respects the feel of how it plays, is consistent with the usual style of the series itself. With a couple of minor hiccups, the character designs are for the most part top notch, from the Rangers’ civilian look to the enemy and boss characters.  It’s even consistent to the point of having you play as the Rangers in their civilian identities first before morphing, which is how most conflicts in the show began.

Sound quality – Even for a 16-bit game cartridge, the game’s sound quality is nothing short of excellent. The theme song at the title screen even sounds close to the TV theme.  The “sploosh” sound that you hear for every Putty you take down is pretty damn satisfying, too.

CONS:

Character roster – I know, uncommon to see the same category in both the Pros and Cons section, isn’t it? Anyway, for all the memorable faces you see here, there are also other fan favorites players may notice missing, such as the Green Ranger, Dragonzord, Goldar, Baboo, Squat, Finster, and others that could’ve been such great additions.

Character design – One of the few hiccups of the game’s look. Minor gripes, sure, but some I found a bit distracting, nonetheless.  Billy’s character design is far too goofy looking and not reminiscent of the Billy Cranston we all knew from the series.  Rather, we get the stereotypically awkward nerd look with overalls that make him look fat, while he also attacks by ducking his head and punching outwards.  The Ranger designs are not so much goofy looking as they are repetitive looking with a small pinch of awkwardness.  All the Rangers share the exact same character design, different colors.  And since they all appear to have a masculine appearance, it might just induce some giggles here and there when someone chooses Kimberly as their character, watch her morph, and suddenly she’s the size of a body builder.

Difficulty – The game has only one set difficulty level, which would be appealing to the younger audience, and with kids being the target demographic, the limited difficulty did succeed to an extent. To the older or more experienced gamer, there’s little challenge to keep them engaged, or for that matter playing it on a regular basis.

Gameplay – Mighty Morphin Power Rangers attempts to be a brawler, but I find does not quite measure up to other well-known titles in the genre, such as Streets of Rage or Final Fight. Although Power Rangers does have the advantage in an easier difficulty, since brawler style games were sometimes known for their being not so kind to players, it loses out in gameplay because it only allows two-dimensional movement.  Most popular brawlers allowed players to roam freely across the screen in all directions, requiring a degree of strategy to progress against small hordes of enemies.  The only thing the two-dimensional movement achieves here is limited, somewhat repetitive gameplay with a limited number of enemies allowed on the screen at a time.  The gameplay is ideal for kids but may be less appealing to the more seasoned gamer who’s looking for a challenge.

OVERALL SCORE – 7.25 out of 10

Between the developers at Natsume and the publishers at Ban Dai, they managed to release what is not only a fan favorite title for the Super Nintendo, but a favorite for the young at heart, and the young at heart showing exploits of the original Power Rangers team to their own kids.  Their fanbase still as enormous and loyal as ever, and still growing with the infinitude of spin-offs the series has had already, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, with their dominant presence in the minds and imaginations of millions, has more than earned its spot as being one of the most memorable pieces of pop culture history.