Before the birth of Game Boy, Nintendo's Game & Watch portable games were the main source of recreation for gamers on the road. The graphics were simple, but the addictive games featured in this series quickly became popular hits. In 1997, a collection of Game & Watch titles was released for Game Boy Pocket, complete with modernised adaptations featuring improved graphics and music. This second blast from the past has chosen Game Boy Color as its platform for stepping into the modern gaming world. You can either play modernised versions of the games, or return to your roots by trying out the original classics.
Parachute: In the original game, you control an anonymous hero who must paddle his boat left and right to save an endless stream of paratroopers from the jaws of hungry sharks. The modernised version features Mario as the nervous boat captain, with Toad and Yoshi as the doomed skydivers. The play is as compulsive as ever, but the graphics have greatly improved.
Helmet: Tools are raining from the sky, and your helmet isn't all it's cracked up to be. In the classic version of Helmet, you earn one point every time you avoid three tools, and five points for entering the shed. Mario is the soft-skulled star of the modern version, and he earns bonus points by pounding P Switches to produce coins. You can't tell who's dropping the tools in the classic version, but it turns out that an angry Parakoopa is responsible for the mayhem.
Chef: Unless you like hair on your hot cakes, you'd better do your best to keep a frying pan under the flying pancakes. The original pancake flipper preferred to work solo, but in the latest version Princess Peach and Yoshi have teamed up in the kitchen. Yoshi gobbles up the breakfast delicacies, while Peach uses her frying pan to keep the food in flight. Don't let the Princess keep flipping the food without letting Yoshi eat, because the food will burn and you'll lose a turn.
Vermin: The '80s version of Vermin is very similar to 'Whack - A - Mole.' You move left and right, and try to hit each mole over the head before it can leave its hole. The '90s version stars Yoshi, who has to protect a nest of Yoshi Eggs from Shy Guys, Boos, and Parakoopa. The bad guys approach from all directions at once, so you'll have to move like the wind to protect the nest.
Donkey Kong: Even if you're dedicated to the classics, you probably missed the Game & Watch adaptation of Donkey Kong. There are only two levels to conquer, but tricky play control will test your mastery of miniature Mario. The updated version consists of three brand new levels with colourful graphics and a pumped-up soundtrack. Maybe Princess Peach will hire some bodyguards one day soon.
