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SBC #56 Dark Pit & Dark Reflections It’s Halloween! Almost! ...

2026-10-31T03:40:46Z

SBC #56 Dark Pit & Dark Reflections

It’s Halloween! Almost! And, as we cower with our loved ones at the fiends stalking our streets demanding tribute, we turn our minds to scary monsters. And what is the scariest monster of all? The dark reflection! The evil twin that looks back from the mirror that could be you, but is something… darker. Something more sinister. Something that, were you to encounter such a demon, you would surely perish from fright! Or at least pee a little!
So, to commemorate the spooky season, we are going to look at the surprisingly numerous “shadow” versions of our favorite Smash Bros.
But, like a good pedant, there must be some rules. First of all, we are not going to include any “possessed” versions of characters. Yes, Dark Ryu is big and scary, but Ryu cannot fight Dark Ryu without some manner of time travel device, and Ryu cannot even drive a car. Also, we are not going to fish out evil twins of already evil characters. Is Ganon Pigman the dark reflection of Ganondorf Thiefdude? Don’t know, don’t care. And Kazuya has committed enough genocides to count as a villain, dammit! Beyond that? Let’s get crazy with it! A shadow self doesn’t have to be literal! Let’s have some fun with the rot at the core of the human soul!
So we are starting with…
Cosmic Mario
Super Mario Galaxy
Did you think Wario was Mario’s evil twin? Well, no dice. That is more of a situation where Mario’s worse impulses (collecting coins, wearing primary colors, not one confirmed shower in 40 years) are taken to a grotesque extreme. Cosmic Mario, though? That is the true Dark Mario. He has all of Mario’s moves, but he is silent save ominous giggles. And that’s the essence of Mario! He is our beloved Jump Man, but focused only on the absurd nonsense available in some Super Mario Galaxy course. All the power, none of the purpose. A nightmare for the mushroom kingdom.
Manky Kong
Donkey Kong Country
Donkey Kong is a mute gorilla that runs around and likes bananas. There is not a lot of interiority there. So, logically, his evil twin is an orangutan that joined the Kremlings, let himself go, and tosses barrels around. Donkey Kong Jungle Beat’s Ghastly King/Final Kong might qualify as a “dark Donkey Kong”, but he is a gorilla that knows he is a king, and has royally rotten intentions. Manky Kong is a primate that forsook wearing a tie and going to the dentist. That is more on Donkey’s level.
Dark Link
The Legend of Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link
The classic! Link first fought his dark shadow back in the 80’s, and it has returned many times since. But that first appearance is still the scariest! What could top the battle against the nefarious Thunderbird? Why, only a fight against the strongest creature in Hyrule, Link! Dark Link has continued through the ages with a similar setup: he is an ongoing challenge for Link, and very rarely is a creature with its own goals. But when we are talking about the dark version of the wielder of the Triforce of Courage, do we really need something with the mental capacity to do more than toss around some pots?
For the record, every “version” of Link (Young, Toon) has had occasion to square off against a shadow opponent, but we’re not going to bother to screenshot all of those. Halloween only lasts so long!
SA-X
Metroid Fusion
You want to nominate Dark Samus? Sure. Fine. That is certainly a viable choice. But SA-X is a better “Dark Samus” because she is a bloodthirsty monster that is only doing what Samus Aran would do anyway. SA-X is (basically) a possessed version of Samus’s powersuit animated by the X Parasites. X Parasites are normally (literally) Metroid food, so they want to use Samus’s abilities to eradicate the Metroid species. And Samus Aran already did that two games back! It is literally Samus’s job across multiple adventures. So SA-X is a proper shadow of the Samus self, because it forces our heroine to face how she is already making some poor choices.
Boshi
Super Mario RPG
What if Yoshi was cool and wore shades and a collar and made everyone race for cookies but only some people (dinosaurs) could race? That is an evil Yoshi. That’s all we need him to be.
Shadow Kirby
Kirby & the Amazing Mirror
Like Dark Pit, Shadow Kirby is a literal reflection of the franchise’s titular hero. Also like Dark Pit, Shadow Kirby is initially seen as a villain, but proves to be a helpful little dude (most of the time). Also also like Dark Pit, Kirby owes an awful lot to Masahiro Sakurai, and Kirby & the Amazing Mirror not coincidentally includes the “Smash” ability. So it is possible that Kirby’s shadow self is just a prototype for Dark Pit…
Star Wolf
Star Fox 64 / Star Fox 2 if you’re nasty
You probably remember all this from kindergarten, but Star Fox reminds us that the opposite of a fox is a wolf, and the opposite of a bird is a chameleon (see also: Swan Boy). It is less relevant to Smash Bros, but we all remember the rabbit/pig, frog/ape dichotomy, too. That’s why Chrono Trigger was so good[citation needed]! The Star Wolf Team are the bad guy versions of Star Fox because they exist in a Saturday Morning cartoon. Our heroes could have a pleasant day where nothing galaxy-threatening happens, but they can’t let ‘em do that.
Waluigi
Mario Tennis
Wario is not the opposite of Mario. Waluigi is the opposite of Luigi. Why? Because Luigi has enough of a personality to hate that guy. Luigi knows he is the second banana of the Mario universe, and, as such, he knows that position is expendable. The Nintendo 64 more than proved you could make an amazing Mario “Brothers” game without Luigi. And then who should appear a couple of years later but Waluigi? You know he is gunning for you, Weeg. Your days are numbered. Fight back against the darkness, or you will be consumed in purple overalls.
Ness’s Nightmare
Earthbound
Ness has (apparently) long suppressed his own dark side, and it is haunting the world created by his own mind, Magicant. And, alright, that is a pretty traditional way for an RPG to go, so there is not much special about Ness’s Nightmare. Persona has made a whole franchise out of this malarky! But this is also the first “shadow self” for a character to have fought in their first and only adventure, so Ness gets props for appearing opposite his evil self in 100% of all appearances.
Blood Falcon
F-Zero X
Blood Falcon was created by illicit means as an evil clone of Captain Falcon. He races against his blood brother on the orders of Black Shadow, the head of an evil criminal syndicate. And it looks like the implication here is that, in the F-Zero universe, racing aptitude is just genetic. Wouldn’t it be easier to train some dude on all of Captain Falcon’s races, and compete that way? Just show him his moves? You have to create a whole clone and dress him up in different colors for the exclusive purpose of being kind of a nuisance on the track? I’m not saying you are wrong to do this, Black Shadow, just you could give this plan a second pass.
Hilda
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
The entirety of Hyrule has a mirror opposite in the dark realm of Lorule. The ruler of Lorule is Princess Hilda, the mirror opposite of Princess Zelda. Princess Hilda is smart enough to hatch a cunning plan that will allow her kingdom to save itself through Hyrule’s Triforce, but she lacks the wisdom to realize that she could have just asked. Not everything has to be a war between worlds, Hilda! Anyway, Hilda is Zelda’s shadow self, because Hilda actually does something, and we all know the real Princess Zelda never does anything.
Dark Meta Knight
Kirby and the Amazing Mirror
Another literal dark reflection, but this one maintains a generally evil baseline. Maybe this is because Meta Knight has a greater attention span, so his evil version can stay on task? We do not know much about Dark Meta Knight’s objectives, but we do know that he has gradually started to define himself more and more as the franchise goes on. He can create shadow clones! And he has bat wings! And a really gnarly sword! This is all in contrast to Shadow Dedede, who no one has been able to pin down as actually existing…
Dark Pit
Kid Icarus: Uprising
It’s our boy! The reason for the season! Dark Pit is less “evil twin” and more “what if Pit was a brat”. And that’s great! Because Pit is a baby! His dark reflection is basically Bart Simpson. Go feel bad about stealing videogames or something, Dark Pit, and then you can save the day. Don’t forget to tell us to eat your shorts, you rascal!
Liquid Snake
Metal Gear Solid
Alright, I have reviewed the Metal Gear wiki, and I am reasonably sure I can keep this to a paragraph if I just say he is Solid Snake’s brother… well… uh… clone brother? Insomuch as a clone can have a family? And he only survived to be Snake’s opponent one time… except… if we count him as a ghost… or an arm… or… a ghost arm? And… I think he wants to kiss his brother… really bad? But that might be a trick. Like, “Oh no, the arm is making me kiss you.” So maybe he is not a gay incest clone. Maybe?
Solid Snake has a complicated life. His evil twin is also complicated. Let’s call it there.
Pokémon Trainer Blue aka Gary Oak
Pokémon Green/Red
The Pokémon franchise has saved me a lot of time, as they have a lot of representatives on the Smash Bros. roster, but the only “Shadow Pokémon” in the official Pokédex are Clefairy/Gengar, Lugia that one time, and maybe Wiglett. But trainers always have rivals! And the greatest rival of all is Pokémon Trainer Blue/Gary Oak. He has all the same capabilities as you, but he chose the Pokémon starter that beats your best friend, and he’s a nepo baby. He has been granted every advantage! And is still a dick about it! He is the ultimate in modern dark reflections.
Claus
Mother 3
Lucas’s ultimate rival is his twin brother, Claus. And I don’t want to talk about it right now.
Metal Sonic
Sonic the Hedgehog CD
Sure, you could choose Shadow the Hedgehog. You know, if you are a basic bitch. Shadow the Hedgehog, like Knuckles the Echidna before him, has gained a kind of interiority over the years that can only be described as Kingdom Heartsian. Meanwhile, Metal Sonic still only has one goal: beat Sonic the Hedgehog. And he is quiet about it! Dude has to steal a speech synthesizer to so much as disparage a chili dog. And he might even be faster than Sonic! Shadow the Hedgehog is “Sonic the Hedgehog, but Batman,” Metal Sonic is Sonic’s (metal) nightmare.
Copy Mega Man
Mega Man
If I had a nickel for every time an 8-bit hero that would go on to appear in Smash Bros had to fight an evil clone summoned by a weird old man in a videogame that was released in Japan in 1987, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t much, but it is weird that it happened twice. At least this wannabe hero has all of Mega Man’s abilities, while Shadow Link cannot even master a down-stab. Dr. Wily is apparently a better old man than some anonymous elf.
Chain Chomp
Super Mario Bros. 3
The rare cross-company dark reflection! Pac-Man can go everywhere in a maze, but Chain Chomp is chained in one place. Pac-Man thinks of nothing but eating, while Chain Chomp is rarely granted so much as a strawberry. Pac-Man must avoid nefarious ghosts, but Chain Chomp turns Mario into a ghost. This is a clear matter/anti-matter situation.
Grima
Fire Emblem Awakening
We are going to allow one Fire Emblem character on a technicality. Grima is a separate fell dragon that has existed for thousands of years. Robin-Possessed-by-Grima is, by definition, a possessed version of Robin, and is mostly just Grima. But Grima wearing Robin’s skin is the source of a lot of time travel-based misunderstandings in Fire Emblem Awakening, and, thanks to that previously mentioned time travel, Robin can directly confront Robin-Possessed-by-Grima. So we are going to allow Grima on this list because challenging a version of you that incidentally killed everyone you know and care about would be pretty scary. But! We are going to ignore all the other Fire Emblem characters that have evil twins in other timelines/dimensions. You hear me, Byleth? Your jerkass Warriors version is not going to count! And since we are remembering Warriors games exist, same for your “Shadow” in Persona Strikers, Joker! That was, like, one boss fight!
Akuma
Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo
Akuma started as a weird head on Ryu’s body, so I do not want to hear a peep about Ryu’s true dark shadow being Kage or Asura or some such nonsense. And Akuma fits the shadow role so much better than “what if Ryu got super angry”. This is Ryu, a man who punches faces for a living, taken to his most violent extreme (and with an air fireball). We do not need a Ryu that gives into the darkness, we need a Ryu that is going to murder M. Bison before you even get a chance to have a nice, clean match. Oh! And his signature move is totally a random sequence of button presses, just like a Mortal Kombat fatality. Akuma is not only Ryu’s evil twin, he is the dark reflection of the entire franchise.
Violent Ken
SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos
I know I said I wasn’t going to do “possessed” evil versions of fighters, but Violent Ken is so stupid, he is the exception that proves the rule. Ooooh! Ken is so violent now! Look out! He has an afro (sometimes)! This is why we don’t do this! Kage Wolf, you lost your spot to this.
Dark Eve
Bayonetta 3
At the finale of Bayonetta 3, Bayonetta REDACTED, but REDACTED is still ready to go, so REDACTED is able to fight Dark Eve, who is secretly REDACTED. Normally, this would disqualify Dark Eve, but Dark Eve does manage to exist and influence the plot during the opening of the story. So maybe she is less of a literal REDACTED, and more of a deadly deus ex machina. And, considering how cool she is at all times, wouldn’t Bayonetta be most afraid of her dark reflection being nothing more than a silent plot device?
Doppelgänger
Castlevania Chronicles
The Belmonts fight nothing but dark monsters, and that poor family also spends like half their lifespan worrying that humanity is the true monsters. You would think they would face more nefarious mirror matches, but it looks like they mostly just deal with bats and skeletons. Trevor Belmont got a doppelgänger in his initial adventure, a side-fight on the PS2, and then a posthumous zombie clone. But Trevor’s descendant Simon only faced one doppelgänger in a remake. And we are going to count it! Mostly because this opponent is made from Simon’s reflection, and we are all about that nonsense today. We can do a roundup of “Evil Version of Simon as a Boss” critters some other time. For completion’s sake, we will note that Richter can fight his own doppelgänger in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, but that was a solid century after Richter’s death, so it is assumed to be non-canon.
Shadow Sora, AntiSora
Kingdom Hearts
What if Sora was a Heartless? Oh, that actually happens in the story. Well what if Sora let the darkness in his heart take over? Actually, that is just Anti Form from Kingdom Hearts 2. And pretty much every third guy Sora encounters is some “reflected” version of himself. Kingdom Hearts is a very all-metaphors-are-literal series! But we do get a straight up “Shadow Sora” during the introductory dream before Sora even gets his first keyblade. And then when Riku (who is like a dark reflection rival of Sora or something) gains Heartless powers, he is able to summon a series of (weak) Shadow Sora pureblood heartless, and top it off with a powerful AntiSora heartless. So point is that Sora has had to fight a small army of shadow selves.
Look, they can’t all be as cool and unique as Dark Pit.
SBC #56 Dark Pit
Dark Pit in Super Smash Bros Ultimate
He any Good? Did we cover Pit already? No? Alright, then let’s say that Dark Pit and Pit both feel “right”. Maybe it is the Sakurai bias? Regardless, Dark Pit is an excellent mirror of Pit. If you are curious, he has a different arrow and “electro punch”, but is otherwise identical. At least he gets a little variation!
That final smash work? Dark Pit shoots you with a gun. This is the other Pit-difference, and it is so Dark Pit can use his eponymous staff to shoot opponents in the face. It does more

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/30/sbc-56-dark-pit-dark-reflections/

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Sonic and His 2-D Friends 16: Silver the Hedgehog Today’s game ...

2026-10-27T03:46:46Z

Sonic and His 2-D Friends 16: Silver the Hedgehog

Today’s game is Sonic Generations, and we could feature “Classic Sonic” as our friend du jour. Sega has done the work to make small ‘n fun Sonic his own character. But Gogglebob.com does not recognize such an obvious fluke of marketing. We are going to go with the true meaning of “generations” in Sonic Generations…
Silver the Hedgehog
First Appearance: Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), 2006
Who is he? 200 years in the future, the world is a desolate place. One Hedgehog stands alone against the darkness. And fails. I guess? So our hero, Silver the Hedgehog, hops backwards through time to stop any issues that might lead to his horrible future. And he apparently does this a lot! And while he is in the past anyway, he stops by the Olympics. And plays tennis. And races cars. The present rocks, dude!
What are his powers? He is not as fast as Sonic, but he is pretty damn fast. Past (future?) that, Silver has telekinetic abilities that allow him to mentally move around stuff without additional physical animations. We have not seen an “upper limit” for Silver’s telekinesis, but we have seen him use it to block energy blasts, toss around trains, and manipulate a seemingly infinite number of chairs. Please book Silver the Hedgehog for future weddings and get-togethers.
Why is he still relevant today? He is the Trunks of the Sonic the Hedgehog universe. And “destined child from the future” is all well and good, but perpetual 15-year-old boy Sonic maybe does not need this archetype as much as Sailor Moon. So, in this case, Silver is Trunks in another way: he is inexplicably popular with random members of the fandom, so he is sticking around to keep folks happy. And, hey, all Sonic Team has to do is repaint Sonic’s model, so it is not like he is a burden.
Let’s Play 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog Games
Night 16
June 16, 2026
Random Notes:
Sonic Generations 3DS has no opening demo, but we are going to try to love it anyway. We have BEAT, fanboymaster, Chromes, and Caithness all ready to see the power of two Sonics with slightly different proportions. We have double Tails, too! That’s four tails!
“Sonic is unburdened. He is at peace with what he is.”
BEAT beat up a gang of teenagers (in Smash Bros).
“We all hate Earthworm Jim.”
Did you ever rent a Playstation (1)? It is an experience that will probably not bankrupt your entire family.
We have some Mina the Hollower discussion from around its release. Does being good at a game impact your enjoyment?
Chromes missed Alanis Morisette as a concept. We are too old.
Important gaming update: fanboymaster is playing through Tenshi no Uta, featuring the JRPG British Isles. BRPG? It has big crabs.
BEAT recalls our playthrough of Xenogears. He thinks the game is bad. It is sad to see he is still wrong after all these years.
“PC Engine is the one with… porn? Visual novels.” “No, that’s PC-FX”
Watching Sonic race Silver is elder abuse.
“Chromes, are you getting political to show off for your boyfriend?”
To answer my onstream ignorance, Egg Emperor was originally seen in Sonic Heroes, a game no one will willingly remember.
As I attempt to mop up some Chaos Emeralds, I note solemnly that Best Buy has become a mere cell phone store.
And, having given up on the special stages, we’re done for the night. Sorry! No Time Eater for you!
Next lap on Sonic’s Marathon: In the grips of mania.
Radical, man

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/26/sonic-and-his-2-d-friends-16-silver-the-hedgehog/

#sonic #sonicgenerations #classicsonic #hedgehogfirst #friends #beat #chromes #firstappearance #watchingsonic #trunks

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FGC #749 Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal When I was a wee Goggle ...

2026-10-24T03:50:38Z

FGC #749 Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal

When I was a wee Goggle Bob, I used to make videogames. That is to say, I was a child, I had zero attention span, my parents provided scrap paper and a pencil, and I would relentlessly sketch out videogame ideas. From about the ages of 8-12, I storyboarded about 12,000 different concepts for videogames. And, while I would love to claim that I was a precious and precocious child that produced nothing but the finest designs, in truth, I was not all that creative. I was more innovative than whoever established the rules for the XFL, but my big ideas were merely game concepts smooshed up against other game concepts. Mario should have a slide like Mega Man! Kirby should explore a whole planet like Metroid (née Samus). Every videogame character ever should be in Street Fighter 2. And then I would just “make” a game where Mario had to trudge through Mega Man’s Hard Man stage, or Sabin Figaro would fight Zangief.
Looking back from 2026, I must acknowledge that I was barely old enough to understand the nuances of MacGyver, so I really should not judge my child self harshly. The drive was obvious: I would play something new and exciting, and then experience a perfectly natural urge to drag all my “old friends” into the latest hotness. It is no different than preserving your Transformers so they could fight the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Party Bus (note to younger readers: there was a time before all media properties became an indivisible sludge, and the “latest fad” of the ninja turtles was considered the death kneel of transforming robots). I realize now that dropping Link into Kirby’s Dreamland would be a blunder on par with the Strait of Hormuz, but when I saw with a child’s eyes, it was my bold vision of the future.
And apparently someone else saw that future, too, as today’s game is “what if Sonic the Hedgehog was a mediocre Metroid”.
… Or maybe that one Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle game? The third Gameboy one? Whatever! Point is that it is not a good fit!
Let’s get the basics out of the way. Today we are looking at Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. This was the 2014 3DS title that was released to match Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric for the Nintendo WiiU. If, like most people, all of your memories of a world before 2016 are akin to a hazy dream you wish you could see again in your lifetime, you may dimly recall that Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric was a legendarily disparaged game. Comparatively, Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal being the portable “little brother” of Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric seemed to shield it from similar criticisms/speed-run strategies that involve Knuckles clipping through the center of the Earth. Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal has the general reputation of being a “forgotten” Sonic the Hedgehog 2-D action title that had the misfortune of following noteworthy portable releases like Sonic Colors (2010) and Sonic Generations (2011), but before Sonic Mania (2017) taught us all how to love again. “It’s there, it’s not as repugnant as its console sibling, and you could play something better,” seems to be the popular opinion of Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal.
Dear readers, let me set the record straight: Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal is so much worse than its reputation.
This is a Sonic the Hedgehog game designed by someone who watched other Sonic the Hedgehog games. You will see Sonic and his furry friends dash through levels at high speed, defy gravity through loop-the-loops, and grind on rails with a radicalness unimaginable to all but the coolest of spots. But the difference here? These continual bouts of “sonic speed” are effectively cinema scenes in Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. Whenever Sonic does things that are identifiably “Sonic-like” during gameplay, you have absolutely no control over his movement. Dash panels move you along, and, once you are through a highspeed area, a shutter closes behind you. The essence of a 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog is only smoke and mirrors! It might look good in a trailer or in a demo kiosk, but when you actually play these stages, you realize almost immediately that you will never experience the essential rush of for-real playing as Sonic.
But what has replaced it? Well, Sonic slowly and methodically meanders through a collectathon. Sonic still has his homing attack, can utilize an electric-shield-esque double jump, and his signature move (more on that in a minute) is an air-dash. All of these abilities are surprisingly slow and extremely situational. The intended gameplay appears to be a methodical “see hazard, use matching ability.” Homing attacks are for opponents (but not badniks, as they forgot to show up), double jumps are for high ledges, and the air dash is predominantly used to shatter large, blue blocks. The collectathon aspect is featured in one of two ways: sometimes there are malevolent robots positioned in such a way to encourage homing attack-based climbing, or you often find a collectible for proceeding past the obvious door (well, slingshot) to the next area. It is not quite shoving Sonic against potential invisible walls to find secrets, but it is very much a situation where nearly every checkpoint is another excuse to stop and look around for a nearby suspicious block. In short, Sonic the Hedgehog, the fastest thing alive, is encouraged at every opportunity to stop, observe his surroundings, and slowly consider his next move.
What of Sonic’s slower pals? Once everyone is unlocked (by about the fourth level), you have a full complement of Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles “Tails” Prower, Knuckles the Echidna, and Sticks the Badger, and you can switch between any of the four at any time. That’s cool! Except all you get from your team is four different ways to conquer different obstacles. Sonic has the previously mentioned air dash. Sticks has her boomerang, and that has a late-Zelda controllable property that allows her to hit switches at weird angles. Knuckles can dig through the ground at designated locations. And Tails can use his signature tails to catch drafts and “fly” whenever you see some fans. Note that Tails cannot fly without a designated draft. Additionally, Knuckles cannot glide, climb, or utilize his namesake knuckles in any capacity beyond digging. This is bad and feels bad. You will steer Knuckles into a bottomless pit because you reflexively thought he could glide a little extra distance, and you will similarly get confused every time tapping a button again for Tails only triggers a double jump. Sticks makes out the best because she has no expectations! Maybe this game would have been better if it was just Sticks.
At least then we would not have to deal with Sonic the Hedgehog: The ‘Hog with a Grappling Hook.
Everyone has a double jump, homing attack, spin dash, and signature move. Additionally, everyone gets an enerbeam that has two capabilities. Some opponents have shields, and you must remember to consume precious seconds of your life to press A and disable an enemy’s shield before utilizing your usual homing attack. And the other enerbeam potential? It is a grappling hook. A warning for readers who love grappling hooks: it is boring. There are pod-bots that hover motionlessly in many areas, and any time you see one, that means you have to use your grapple enerbeam to make some vertical/horizontal progress. It is another square peg that has to go in a square hole, and it is insulting. You can do so much with a grappling hook! Entire games have been built on this mechanic! And maybe Sonic could utilize grappling in a dynamic way in some other game. But, nope, anytime you see a grappling point, it just means you have to press A a couple of times to make progress. The designers do not even have the decency to provide one “spin all the way around a grapple point” occasion like in Super Metroid!
So strip the speed out of Sonic, and all you are left with is a crappy metroidvania. Each of the levels are (thankfully) not overtly connected, but these large, sprawling areas could be interconnected in a manner similar to Mega Man ZX or Wonder Boy. You all but need the in-game map to navigate these same-y corridors and looping, disconnected doors (still slingshots, still not explaining that). Assuming you do not get lost, once you understand your own moveset and its matching blocks, the only real challenge is collecting those collectibles. Despite the potential for such, this is not a Lost Vikings-esque puzzle game where you must intuit new and exciting ways to exploit your party’s powers; no, this is simply a challenge for preschoolers that are still working out their colors. Red animal go in dirt hole, brown animal hit switch. By the time you have your last party member (they make you earn those Knuckles), you have seen literally everything this adventure has to offer. But you still have 75% of the game to play…
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal is exactly the kind of experience I would have “invented” when I was ten. It is “what if Sonic the Hedgehog and his pals could do all these cool moves from other games I’ve enjoyed.” It is also a glowing example of why that is a bad idea, so we don’t let ten-year-olds make videogames.
FGC #749 Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal
System: This is just the 3DS version. We are not even going to try its WiiU sibling.
Number of players: Despite having four animal buddies, this is single player.
Story Time: You may have noticed that Amy Rose is not part of the playable roster. That is because she is kidnapped by the big boss, Lyric the Ancient Snake. This whole adventure is meant to be a prequel to the Sonic Boom series, and it explains why the Sonic Team is always fighting against their hated enemy, Lyric the Ancient Snake. But you knew that! Because Lyric the Ancient Snake is in every episode! Not like there is another, more prominent villain that ever appears in Sonic the Hedgehog or Sonic Boom canon.
But Shadow is there, right? Yes, Shadow the Hedgehog has been brainwashed by Lyric the Ancient Snake.
He looks like he is having a fun time.
Sonic Got a Chaos Emerald: Every world contains one “Worm Tunnel” stage that is an excuse for Sonic to run through a halfpipe. If this were a traditional Sonic the Hedgehog, these would be bonus stages triggered by flagpoles, but, because everything in this game is garbage, they are mandatory. The stages are… passable. It is not the worst halfpipe in the franchise (looking at you, Sonic the Hedgehog 2), but it feels really pointless.
And do you even get a Chaos Emerald? No. Of course not.
Beat the Boss: Boss stages have mostly been replaced by race stages similar to Sonic Rivals. Yes, that is the greatest insult one can levy against a Sonic the Hedgehog game, but at least these races are short. The downside is that they really emphasize how there is zero level design across this game, so once you have memorized a chain of “jump, grapple, jump again” actions, you will be victorious forever. Come to think of it, it is basically Mega Man 8 snowboarding, which is a different kind of terrible.
Say something nice: The cutscenes are more animated than talking heads. Given Sonic Boom was a fine little animated series, it is nice to see that personality shine through all this darkness.
Say something nice (gameplay): Pits do not cause instant death, and just act like a “hit” while returning you to safe footing. That is literally the only nice thing I can say about actually playing this game.
An End: Completing the game and finding all the doodads unlocks a dance party starring Sonic and all of his friends (including Amy!). Of course, no one put any effort into these dancing animations. It looks like what would happen if you went to a nursing home, dressed up five randos in fursuits, and told them to go wild (and they are not particularly wild). Guess this could be a fun reward if you are into that.
For the Sequel: I also played a little bit of Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice, the 3DS sequel to Shattered Crystal. It appears to be more of the same, but even more on the nose, as Sonic and Amy have to alternate to use new fire and ice powers. I suppose the designers should be lauded for doubling down on their stupid idea.
Did you know? You can “train with Knuckles” once a (real-life) day for in game currency. So someone understood enough about Sonic to realize which character the players would most want to interact with every day.
Would I play again: I am not going to dignify that question with an answer.
What’s next? The Smash Bros Challenge returns by stealing a gaze at Dark Pit. That’s right, the darkest Smash Bros[citation needed] for the spookiest season! Please look forward to it!

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/23/fgc-749-sonic-boom-shattered-crystal/

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Sonic and His 2-D Friends 15: Wisps We are going to add a little ...

2026-10-20T03:34:07Z

Sonic and His 2-D Friends 15: Wisps

We are going to add a little color to our world with…
The Wisps
First Appearance: Sonic Colors, 2010
Who are they? Wisps come in many shapes and sizes, but they all originate from Planet Wisp, a colorful place where Wisps… uh… Do we have confirmation on how their culture works? Like… do they export a product or something? Whatever! They frolic. They produce good vibes. And when Eggman invades to build a theme park, they get saved by a hedgehog. You do you, Wisps.
What are their powers? Wisps are composed of “Hyper-go-on”. That… is probably somewhere on the Periodic Table. But, while hyper-go-on is powerful, it is not the only thing keeping Wisps going, as Wisps drained of hyper-go-on become Nega-Wisps, which can still fly and transform and be vaguely magical. Whatever the case, Wisps are most powerful when they combine with another being (like Sonic), and whip out abilities like transforming into lasers or a benevolent Pac-Man.
Why are they still relevant today? Complete with “Planet Wisp” and your usual Zelda-companion-esque good-bye after Sonic Colors, it seemed like the Wisps were destined to be one-and-done. But someone realized that the Wisps fill a very important role in the Sonic the Hedgehog universe: they can be the living powerups Sonic has always ignored. Busting open fat TV screens is always fun, but Sonic never had a Starman or Rush the Robot Dog to be a combination powerup and living creature (and stuffed animal). Now Sonic can get speed bursts or temporary attack powers from Wisps, and they are never going anywhere. Even Minecraft Steve can stop by and borrow their powers!
Let’s Play 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog Games
Night 15
June 9, 2026
Random Notes:
BEAT has been sent to a desert island, so the rest of us will be playing Sonic Colors on the Nintendo DS. Who are the rest of us? Well, we have fanboymaster, Chromes, Cassandralyn, Caithness, Jeanie, and Morning Song. I just got back from Chicago and Cass has opinions on how I say stuff!
“We’re all the worst.”
Let’s speculate about Kingdom Hearts 4! And talk about the worst part of Kingdom Hearts 3!
Caliscrub joins just in time for movie remake discussion. Tom and Jerry and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory does not justify its existence.
And Ample Vigour joins as we recount the failures of demonstrating Nintendo Switch Sports Resort.
It’s Pride Month, so let’s talk about Metal Gear Solid.
We will not be playing any Sonic games for the Tiger R-Zone.
“I’ve heard good things, but I could not possibly care, because it is a live action He-Man movie.”
Let’s move on to games fanboymaster loves (Dragon Quest 7) and hates (Donkey Kong 64).
We get back to talking about Kingdom Hearts production again. Sorry. We all have our fixations.
“They should have called Subnautica 2 ‘Abovenautica’.”
Chromes provides a Powerup Comics update. It may involve “the devil from Blood Meridian”.
Please avoid pissing off the Problems Witch and getting everyone you know transformed into furniture.
I then give up on the final boss because (according to our audience), “I am a coward”. Hey, I almost beat it!
Next lap on Sonic’s Marathon: Next Monday, we have so much Sonic the Hedgehog. And in the meanwhile, we’ll have a bonus look at another 3DS Sonic the Hedgehog on Friday. Please look forward to hog! … no… that doesn’t work…
At least there is one skeleton present

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/19/sonic-and-his-2-d-friends-15-wisps/

#wisps #sonic #planetwisp #kingdomhearts #firstappearance #colors #hedgehog #let #like #games

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FGC #748 Mega Man X Regenesis I always wanted to be a wine guy. ...

2026-10-17T03:04:57Z

FGC #748 Mega Man X Regenesis

I always wanted to be a wine guy. The archetype is obvious, right? You just hang out at a party or (possibly fancy) dinner, be a typical, normal version of yourself, but, when drinks arrive, you showcase this hidden superpower that no one can comprehend. “Oh, what’s in this goblet? This little thing? Well, I can tell you about its complete history from grape to glass. Do I detect a dab of the South of France in here? Let me further impress you with my robust knowledge of this vintage.” And I know it’s stupid. I know having knowledge of wines across the world, that being that guy would not help anyone in any significant way. But some part of me wants to be the expert. I do have a genuine desire to have that party trick at the ready, to astound everyone in my immediate area with this expertise hitherto unknown to such plebians. And I even know this knowledge is possible to grasp! I could become a wine guy! It would just take hours of study and testing and a copious amount of wine! It is attainable! But… No. If I desire to be a wine guy, I desire to be a wine guy with no extra effort. I want all the fame and fortune (“There’s Goggle Bob! He really knows his wine! Let us rend our garments in supplication!”), but I do not want to have to go to Wine Guy School. I just want it to happen. I want to be able to perform this complex skill, and I want to be able to do it because I effortlessly developed this power. I want to just taste wine, realize I can provide a detailed assessment, and then, there you go, yokels, Goggle Bob has got this covered.
I don’t even like wine! I don’t particularly like drinking! I am not a teetotaler, but “let’s go drinking” is not at the top of my agenda. I am never going to have wine guy powers, because that is not my thing in nearly every way! I cannot conceive how I would ever even get close to having that kind of talent!
So anyway.
I played Mega Man X Regenesis, a fan made Mega Man X game. It is a Mega Man X adventure of the Mega Man X (SNES) vintage. It is significantly influenced by the initial Mega Man X title, but contains overt hints of Mega Man 7 and Mega Man ZX. It patently eschews the later Mega Man X games, as X4 through X6 are only light influences (primarily thanks to the ranking system), and dynamics from X7 and X8 are right out. Additionally, for some collectathon and vertical gameplay elements, it seems Mega Man Zero, particularly the early titles in that tetralogy, are a noteworthy inspiration. Oh, and if I had to guess, the author of the plot was significantly involved in the Mega Man/Mega Man X fan community at the start of the 21st century, a time when there was much debate on whether or not Dr. Cain had been “wasted” across the franchise.
Oh. Oh dang. I’m a Mega Man Guy.
Well, may as well use this superpower for good.
You should play Mega Man X Regenesis. Initially, that statement was, “If you like Mega Man games, you should play Mega Man X Regenesis”, but then I remembered that I wrote a whole essay about how Mega Man X is a foundational part of gaming as a whole. So you know what? Just play Mega Man X Regenesis. It is a very good Mega Man X experience, which means it is just plain very good. Give or take if you somehow hate 2-D action titles (you monster), everyone should play Mega Man X Regenesis.
In case you think I am a liar (you are still a monster), we can elaborate on the goodness here. The greatest compliment available is that this feels like Mega Man X. After years of Mega Man on the Nintendo Entertainment System, Mega Man X was one of the few Mega Man games to come right out of the gate with a perfect control feel. Run, jump, fire, repel off walls, dash: it has always felt like a blast to go blastin’ with X. Mega Man X Regenesis nails that perfectly. And it looks good doing it! Unlike many fangames that cobble together a look that qualifies as “good enough”, this could 100% qualify as a Capcom offering from those pixel masters of the 90’s. Actually, this is better than anything that was available back on the SNES, as modern lighting effects have been implemented, and, whether you are bumping around a “haunted” space station or deep under the sea, the lighting effects are flawless. Major props to a “gimmick” that is prominent, but never overshadows the core of Mega Man X. And there is a difficulty select! If this is your first Mega Man X game, you will have an easier time with slower Mavericks and generous powerups. Or maybe you just want to have an easier time while sussing out that boss order. Whatever! Enjoy yourself! You will relish your time with Mega Man X Regenesis.
Of course, as a Mega Man Guy, I do not agree with every choice made in MMXR. There is now an X upgrade capsule per stage, so the famous X “armor upgrades” must be distributed a little oddly. “Charge faster” is an upgrade… which unfortunately makes X’s default charge seem slow and clunky until that upgrade is uncovered. There is also a downward kick that adds nothing to the experience, give or take one collapsible floor during the finale. And we somehow wind up with two ways to add verticality to X’s jumps in the same way the air dash will add horizontal space. A double jump is always welcome, but pairing it with a rising uppercut feels redundant. Couple all of this with Maverick weapon charging and the (admittedly awesome) level 3 charge shot being separate, and you should have a better understanding of why X only had four upgrades in other titles. Half of the upgrades are either redundant or pointlessly separated! And we could really use that helmet upgrade that tells me where I found my heart tanks!
But if you had less upgrades for X, then you would have less collectathon excuses across Mega Man X Regenesis. Each of X’s upgrades now require 15 chips to be found across the world. The good news is that these pickups are everywhere, so you should be able to cover your upgrade debt pretty easily. The bad news is that you are likely to encounter your first upgrade capsule before getting your first 15 chips, so there is a palpable feeling of hostility when you find the good stuff, but are told you need to come back later with more X-Bucks. Additionally, thanks to this collectathon aspect, my ADD goes into hyperdrive, and I must shove X against every wall and descend into every deadly pit in a desperate attempt to see what secrets are hidden around the corner. Mega Man as a franchise identified long ago that powerups are useless when you already have 9 lives and full energy, and has attempted to include items like big screws, data discs, and various currencies across the years. But these pickups being required to unlock other hidden pickups feels a bit like gilding the lily. Many of the capsules are hidden behind ability or maverick weapon requirements anyway, so why do I need a double jump, air dash, and 15 chips?! Let me acquire my armor in peace, dammit!
And one last complaint? There is a fine line between “homage” and “this is just Sting Chameleon’s stage”. And, yes, Bog Snapper just has Sting Chameleon’s stage.
But give or take those minor complaints, Mega Man X Regenesis is an amazing Mega Man X experience. We are easily talking about one of my favorite games of the year, and I will glowingly recommend it to anyone that can hook a decent controller to their PC.
And take that from me, a registered Mega Man Guy(/Snob).
FGC #748 Mega Man X Regenesis
System: PC. Second fangame in a row I had to break out the ol’ “I am capable of playing things not on the Switch” assertion.
Number of players: X is working with the ghost of Zero as his spotter, but he is an otherwise solitary hero.
So, how about that story: Mega Man X Regenesis takes place in an alternate timeline where the Maverick Hunters lost the Maverick Wars, X died, Sigma took over the place, and now a backup copy of X is fighting through a world that is mostly destroyed. On one hand, I am glad to say this is what the X universe would look like after a real calamity, and I want a thousand GameFAQs message board nerds to understand that the original timeline was not “post-apocalyptic”. But aside from some lovely aesthetics and X getting a healthy dosage of “what am I fighting for”, it feels like this story doesn’t particularly go anywhere. Ask any Age of Apocalypse fan what your heroes do after the bad guys win, and the answer either has to be A. save the world once and for all, or B. die horribly as the entire world is erased. You try to come back to that wasteland for any other reason and… it gets kinda pointless. At least do something silly like make Iris a homicidal general!
A Franchise Tradition: The Maverick Weapons are pointless. They probably have some really useful, really specific purposes! But for sensibly clearing out levels, they are useless. You just cannot give Mega Man X a rad laser as his default and expect him to pause to switch to a “sand shotgun” special power.
Favorite Upgrade: A double jump is the domain of Wily bots (Zero, Bass), but we will allow X to have this essential movement capability just this once.
Further Compliments: There is a space-base stage, but it is not the finale. Thank you! Do you know how often X has had to go to space for a final Sigma square off? It is so refreshing when X just walks over to some annoying base, and doesn’t need to worry about being dropped back to Earth like space trash.
Favorite Maverick: We have some generally elemental-based animals running around (“Space” is an element, right?), but many of the Maverick designs do not immediately showcase their specialty. Like Rail Raccoon is the electric guy, and nothing about him screams lightning like Spark Mandrill or Volt Catfish. So, with that plainly stated, going to have to hand it to Hydro Axolotl, as he is clearly the water baddy, and he has tentacle animations that appear to be insulting. Insulting to who? Who knows! But it makes him more threatening than Skyblade Squirrel.
This Game Also Includes Achievements: It sure does. I am more excited about the hidden hadouken.
An end: The final fight with Sigma is a bear. That is a series tradition! It is not bad, it is simply what Sigma must be. Seriously, how many Sigma battles have not been the worst thing in the game? Mega Man X2 comes to mind, and… Uh… Mega Man X6? Like, by virtue of the game being worse? The tiniest of exceptions…
Did you know? There is a memorial to the Green Biker Dude. My heart overflows with love for our fallen comrade.
Would I play again: Sure! This was a lot of fun, and the easy mode even made it easy (ha ha) to get my bearings before blasting through the more traditional normal mode. Great job, Justin Ross and crew! Include a few less vertical corridors to descend in the sequel, and I am there!
What’s next? Random ROB has more or less chosen… Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal. We are tying our Even Worse Streams Sonic coverage together with a 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog game that is not a 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog game at all! Please look forward to it!

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/16/fgc-748-mega-man-x-regenesis/

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FGC #747 The Adventures of Batman & Robin (Clockwork Tortoise ...

2026-10-16T04:22:35Z

FGC #747 The Adventures of Batman & Robin (Clockwork Tortoise Editions)

If you are going to open your mouth, at least know how to talk.
Batman: Caped Crusader released its second season this past Summer. For anyone that missed Amazon’s media blitz, this is a Batman animated series developed by Bruce Timm, produced by J.J. Abrams, and starring a murderers’ row of amazing acting talent. John DiMaggio! Cedric Yarbrough! Christina Ricci! The guys who played Tidus and Sora! Fryda Wolff! Kevin Michael Richardson! How could I possibly resist!? Well… Sorry to say that there is only so much space for Batman in my brain. This feels insane! I should have room in my heart for infinity Batman! But the basic premise of Batman: Caped Crusader is that, despite this series taking overt cues from Batman: The Animated Series (1992), this is a separate continuity in a distinct era. It is noir! It is some nebulous Mid-20th Century (it really wants to be the 1940’s, but everybody owns a TV…) where tommy guns and trenchcoats reign supreme. And that means I have to deal with all that damned Batman reboot nonsense! I have to live through another death of the Wayne parents! I have to sit through an episode that establishes the exact dynamic between Alfred and his idiosyncratic employer! I have to absorb a whole new quasi-origin for The Joker! Does this one involve Lady Gaga? I don’t know! I don’t want to know! Who has time for this bat guano!?
But I am part of a weak and cowardly lot… that may have recently gotten on a bit of a Pokémon kick that necessitated watching something in the “background” while farming dratini… and I decided to submit and watch Batman: Caped Crusader. I am full of Batman, but I suppose one wafer-thin mint of additional Batman content couldn’t hurt.
And it was good! It was really good! So now I am exploding with a Batman take:
I care about fictional characters.
Wait! Don’t leave! I swear this is a fresh take! This is not baby’s first encounter with pareidolia. Of course I care about fictional philanthropist Bruce Wayne, and obviously I can name the majority of his rogues’ gallery faster than I could produce my grandfather’s middle name (it is the same name as a former/infamous presidential candidate, but not the one you would expect). This is not another half-baked attempt to justify why a 40-something cares about the status of Barbara Gordon’s legs (not like that). This is something new and different and only vaguely concerning.
What I realized in watching Batman: Caped Crusader is that I not only care about continuity as a concept, but continuity is the essence of humanity.
Batman is a comic book hero. He first appeared in Detective Comics #27, initially published on March 30, 1939. “Batman” as a concept is nearly a century old. And two things are true: in those 87 years, Batman has had one solid continuity of stories, and also Batman has never not contradicted everything that came before. Batman has an entire family of supporting characters (except when he is a known loner). Batman hates guns (except when he shoots everyone from petty criminals to space gods). Batman is a fighter trained by the world’s greatest martial artists, and is currently in a life-or-death struggle with a houseplant (it is very large). But, give or take the occasional cosmic shift in (his) reality, Batman has always had one story that moved forward from month to month. Sure, in 2026, stories from 1939 no longer “count”, but that was not true in 1942. Even when an Infinite Crisis or Earth-2 enters the picture, everything is perfectly normal for a couple of years, and it is only after a long enough time has passed that Robin gets to say “Hey, didn’t you used to have a daughter with Catwoman? What was that about?” Continuity as we know it is not bound by what happened half a century back, but it is absolutely beholden to a trade paperback from earlier that year. Who cares if The Flash messed up the entire universe thanks to his Oedipus complex, Batman Inc. must reach its conclusion!
And every nerd will tell you that this is the bane of comic books. Batman, Superman, and Green Lantern are all bound by their immediate continuity, and that is distinctly bad for the audience. Are you a Sonic the Hedgehog fan, and want to read his latest crossover where he meets the heroes of the DC Universe? Well, you better know what is happening over there! There are sixty ways “this” Justice League is different from the one you last saw, so you may want to grab a pen to take some notes on Aquaman’s current number of hands (it’s two). And that is too much homework for a story where the finale is “hedgehog beat eggman”! Whether we are talking about The Avengers, The X-Men, or even the Doom Patrol, every time you are encouraged to pick up a “#1” of some relaunch or a crossover that could be interesting, you are inundated with continuity snarls that beg you to read previous issues. Sure, you can read this comic without knowing about Ms. Marvel’s sidekick’s love life. But don’t you want to know? Don’t you want the drama to be informed by what has come before? You don’t want to only see the slam-bang finish, you want to see every domino fall in its proper order.
And that is human. It is literally how our brains work.
What separates humans from the animals? Give or take some talky dolphins, we are the only species on this planet that has worked out standardized communication. We train our young to learn the dialect of the area, and we cooperate in society by utilizing shared language. We have even invented devices that exist exclusively to translate between different cultures! And when we have relationships? Those are languages, too. All the little inside jokes and references to Drunken Uncle Franny and even ongoing conversations about old episodes of Cheers contribute to what becomes the language of a relationship. Tell me your favorite group chat doesn’t have its own version of the infamous Grink meme. You absolutely talk to your boss with different speech from what you use with your buddies. And you know you still regret how you’ll never again be in a place with an ex where you can make jokes about The Shame Shawarma. We make our own languages with everyone we encounter, and the nuance of those languages only increases with the care we feel for others.
So, yeah, I speak Batman. And since I speak Batman, I care about when someone talking about Batman gets it wrong.
There were four games named The Adventures of Batman & Robin released between 1994 and 1995. The Super Nintendo version was produced by Konami, and, thanks to that pedigree, it is a competent action/platformer/adventure title. The Game Gear version was created by Novotrade (later Appaloosa), and it is… a licensed Game Gear game. It ain’t no Ren & Stimpy. The other two versions of The Adventures of Batman & Robin were designed by Clockwork Tortoise. The Sega Genesis version was an action title, and the Sega CD version was (essentially) a racing game. Neither are bad games, but they have their… quirks.
Let’s tackle The Adventures of Batman & Robin for the Sega Genesis first. Like the SNES/GG TAoBaR titles, this one can be generally described as a 2-D action title. Run, jump, attack: you know the drill. But unlike its contemporaries, it is basically Contra. Two player simultaneous play is available, and Batman and/or Robin dash through four extensive levels while pegging every moving object in Gotham with a flurry of batarangs. The gimmick here is that the longer you go without shooting, the stronger your attacks will become, but the continual onslaught of roughly half the city’s population means you will prefer rapid fire. You have a cool jump kick available, and you can throw a punch if an opponent is literally on top of your protagonist, but other than that, it is just Batman and/or Robin tossing out projectiles continually. To drive the point home, three out of four of the levels contain a straight up, Gradius-style shoot ’em up section. Fly the night skies and obliterate an airforce! I guess!
Meanwhile, the Sega CD version of The Adventures of Batman & Robin is entirely confined to the Batmobile. SCD TAoBaR contains (surprisingly awesome) cutscenes that portray Batman defeating his various foes, so your job as the player is to get Batman on set in time for his closeup. The first three challenges are driving around the streets of Gotham, but you graduate to a virtual reality world and a mad funhouse in short order. Oh! And you do eventually advance from the Batmobile to the Batplane (really, spell check? You acknowledge “Batmobile” as a proper noun, but not “Batplane”?) for the finale. It is just Batmobile racing with an added vertical axis, but it feels like something new and exciting.
However, the impact of Batman flying is lessened, because Batman has hopped into his custom flyer to pursue… Clayface. You know, the Terran-based monster man that can transform into practically any shape? He is flying away in a helicopter. And, no, the whirling blade is not made from his morphing arm or whatever. It’s just… a helicopter. Clayface: noted flying guy.
And this is where it feels like Clockwork Tortoise is getting Batman wrong. The Batmobile is cool! Everyone loves the Batmobile! But, give or take Gearhead, none of Batman’s villains are cars. You controlling the Batmobile (and, to a lesser extent, the Batplane) means you, the player, will never actually interact with any of Batman’s favorite frenemies. How will Batman defeat The Joker? Or The Riddler? Well, you just sit back and watch how that happens, because Batman sure ain’t gonna run ‘em over. It is a waste of a perfectly good mud monster to have Clayface participate in a plane race. And Poison Ivy? She summons a plant monster that is only seen in cutscenes. It would have been cool to fight that thing!
That takes us back to the Sega Genesis version for the other side of the coin: Batman villains are mostly just dudes. And that is okay! You can get a lot of mileage out of Batman and Joker punching each other. But! Once you stick Batman in a run ‘n gun game, suddenly all of Batman’s villains must be practically invincible. Acrobatic Harley Quinn gets a giant clown tank to top off the first stage. The Joker has an enormous, smile-themed hot air balloon. Notorious glass jaw Mad Hatter takes a hundred hits thanks to the excuse of a virtual world. Mr. Freeze is the final boss, and his freeze suit (?) can be physically intimidating, but he also gets a floating platform, so he winds up functioning like Dr. Wily. It is the nature of a Contra-alike that no opponent worth their salt bows out after a hit or two. Batman is tossing enough batarangs to bankrupt the Wayne family fortune, and Joker just keeps laughing. … Okay, maybe that is a bad example. Two Face has an airship! It is not even shaped like a giant silver dollar! Bro would never drive that generic trash off the lot!
I will reiterate that neither of these games are bad. For a pair of titles released in the early 90’s, they would have been more enjoyable in their era than a healthy portion of what GamePro was peddling. Not something you could hang your whole personality on like Chrono Trigger or The Ooze, but more of a justification for your Sega CD than Sewer Shark. However, these games are bad Batman games. They get Batman wrong. Or, to be precise, they get the experience of Batman battling through his foes wrong. All the pieces are there, they know all the words, but it is disjointed and confusing. The games do not fluently speak Batman. And, when the language is incorrect, everything falls apart. Car-battling Joker was never part of the phonetics, and now the whole verse is coming out criminal.
Batman: Caped Crusader is different, but it gets the language of Batman right, so it is amazing.
The Adventures of Batman & Robin for Sega Genesis and The Adventures of Batman & Robin for Sega CD are both unique, but they get the language of Batman wrong, so they are terrible.
Always understand your language before speaking.
FGC #747 The Adventures of Batman & Robin (Clockwork Tortoise Editions)
System: We are exclusively talking about the Sega Genesis and Sega CD versions today. They are totally different! But we are only talking about two games with the same name, not four.
Number of players: Two on the Sega Genesis, one on the Sega CD. Batman drives alone.
A Common Plot: You can play as Robin in the Sega Genesis version. In the Sega CD version, all of Batman’s allies (Robin, Commissioner Gordon, Batman’s ability to walk) have been kidnapped. This is exactly what happened in another DCAU adaption, Superman 64. Though it was unlikely you were ever going to get a playable Professor Hamilton in that one…
Come to think of it: Apropos of the last bullet point, Jimmy Olsen should have his own videogame. Think of the situations!
What’s in a name? So Clockwork Tortoise made two Batman games, but Batman does not fight the Clock King in either one? Boo.
Escalating difficulty: The worst/hardest part of the Sega CD version is the opening stage. In addition to dodging damage, you also must avoid bumping any civilian vehicles, lest Batman be declared a menace to society. It is so much easier in later stages when you only have to worry about Batman being exploded!
What Could Have Been: I would love to know more about the development of the Sega CD game. You have situations like Poison Ivy summoning a distinctive monster, old ‘n fat Rupert Thorne being revealed as Clayface, and Harley Quinn generally buzzing around all implying dramatic boss battles … but they come to nothing. Harley Quinn in particular is like “look at me, I’m here” and then smacks into a wall, never to be seen again. I would give Mad Hatter’s finest topper to know if these are just coincidental non sequiturs, or part of a planned (better) game.
Meanwhile, on the Sega Genesis: The first area of Level 2 of the Genesis version is an escalating elevator where you fight hordes of goons. So, technically, this is legally a beat ‘em up.
Say something nice: After the elevator, Level 2 also has a cool graphical scrolling effect for its shoot ‘em up area that I do not remember seeing anywhere else in the 16-bit era. It adds absolutely nothing to the gameplay, but it is cool to look at. That adds something! I guess!
Art Deco: All the SG stages start with a “title card” similar to Batman: The Animated Series art. Or maybe exactly the same? Regardless, they are also cool to look at.
Did you know? Batman: The Animated Series had a number of censors placed on its production. Sex and drugs were obviously right out, but they were also not allowed to show more mundane events, like a child being endangered, or glass being broken. They were technically not even allowed to show a punch connecting! So when original animation was produced for the unrestricted Sega CD…
It looks like Bruce Timm was working out some frustrations.
Would I play again: No. These are fascinating Batman games, but they are not good Batman games. I will finally get around to playing Arkham Asylum again before I ever toss a batarang with these guys.
What’s next? Random ROB has chosen… Mega Man X Regenesis! More Mega Man and fan gaming! Oh boy! Please look forward to it!
Batman saves the Mushroom Kingdom

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/09/fgc-747-the-adventures-of-batman-robin-clockwork-tortoise-editions/

Sonic and His 2-D Friends 14: Metal Sonic Sonic the Hedgehog 4 ...

2026-10-16T03:23:16Z

Sonic and His 2-D Friends 14: Metal Sonic

Sonic the Hedgehog 4 features one character we have not previously profiled…
Metal Sonic
First Appearance: Sonic the Hedgehog CD, 1993
Who is he? Even before Knuckles, we had the original Sonic the Hedgehog rival, Metal Sonic. He is fast! He is strong! He has jet boots! And he is responsible for the first official race in the whole franchise. Bro has got history! Just be aware that he is not Mecha Sonic (the robo hedgehog that is the penultimate boss of Sonic the Hedgehog 2) or Mecha Sonic Mark II (the antagonist of Sky Sanctuary Zone of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles). He was the star of the finale of Chaotix, though!
What are his powers? If Sonic has a power, Metal Sonic can mimic it. In addition to that, he can generate forcefields, shoot lasers, and utilize rocket claws. Also, like Sonic, he can utilize the Chaos Emeralds (and similar items of great power), but unlike Sonic, this usually leads to a gigantic transformation or other metal madness.
Why is he still relevant today? Metal Sonic is the one bad guy and rival that has never backed down[citation needed]. Metal Sonic is (almost always) silent, deadly, and laser-focused on obliterating his adversary. Knuckles is an outright ally. Shadow is an unwilling friend. Even Eggman occasionally works with Sonic against some manner of greater threat. But Metal Sonic? He is the greater threat (see Heroes, Sonic). No learning how to love for this robot: he was designed to hate, and he is going to hate with the fury of a million scrapped badniks.
… Also he does not appear in this stream, because some jackasses relegated him to bonus content. What the hell is wrong with Sonic the Hedgehog 4!?
Let’s Play 2-D Sonic the Hedgehog Games
Night 14
June 2, 2026
Random Notes:
You ever play Tennis for Two? We’re playing two episodes of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. Maybe we should try more games from before we were born? I don’t know, and neither does BEAT, Chromes, Caliscrub, Cassandralyn, Caithness, or Morning Song. Well, maybe Morning Song does.
“The visuals are reminding me of Braid.” “Well, that’s no good.”
“We will not misgender Eggman or Eggwoman or Eggthem, but we will destroy their machines.”
Continuing an important thread from last week, Cassandralyn explains what is now wrong with her supermarket’s cookie aisle.
“This entire chat would gladly die for Edward.”
We have fanboymaster join just in time to see the damned labyrinth stage that traps me forever. There should not be torch puzzles in a Sonic the Hedgehog game!
Deliberation on whether hotdogs, tacos, or hoagies are sandwiches is going to get us all cancelled.
This is, like, the third Sonic game in a row with minecarts. Why does that keep happening?
BEAT has an eternal gym membership. He is so much healthier than all of us.
Ample Vigour joins briefly as Sonic is facing his greatest enemy: waist deep water.
“This is a Sonic the Hedgehog boss with boss runback. This should be illegal.”
This was back when Sony had just previewed the new Wolverine game. BEAT has opinions on the stealth capability of a guy in neon spandex.
Meggie and SkeamnRedSkull are in the chat as we take shots at the penultimate boss. It is new and it is bad. The Amazing Digital Circus is neither new nor bad.
Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 is done… one way or another. Let’s switch over to Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2.
Episode 2 adds team-up mechanics and separates itself more significantly from the old stages. It is still not remotely compelling.
“Goggle Bob plays every single game like he has never played a videogame in his life.” – Obvious slander.
“Cali, who have you been talking to that gave you a membership card!?”
I am genuinely surprised by the first boss. Good job, Sonic the Hedgehog 4, you did one thing right.
You look away for five seconds, and suddenly we’re talking about Bed, Bath and Beyond.
And, having completed at least one snowy act, we have seen enough of Sonic the Hedgehog 4. Goodbye forever, wannabe mobile game!
Next lap on Sonic’s Marathon: The colors, Duke, the colors!
High five for help

https://www.gogglebob.com/2026/10/12/sonic-and-his-2-d-friends-14-metal-sonic/