Release Date: November 11, 1999
Developer: Sonic Team
Publisher: SEGA
I keep coming back to the SEGA Dreamcast. With all the awesome old-school games I can pick through, it’s the Dreamcast I want to go back to. For this Retro Review, my pick has more meaning to usual.
A little over a week ago, I wrote an article espousing my love for the console and my amazement at its longevity. That led to a discussion with someone from Dreamcast Live, which led me on another path. My Dreamcast is about to receive a much-needed online shot to the heart. The fanbase for the Dreamcast is very active, and they have reinvigorated the console with the return of online multiplayer!
Upon realizing how simple it is (for me) to resurrect my beloved Dreamcast’s online capabilities, I decided to revisit a game for the console that I absolutely love: Chu Chu Rocket.
For those not in the know, Chu Chu Rocket is a puzzle game. Fans of my Retro Reviews series (all three of you, not including mom), know that I love me some puzzle games. On the Dreamcast, Chu Chu Rocket is my crack! The game, developed by Yuji Naka and the legendary (at the time) Sonic Team, makes me forget everything in life the moment I play it.
The story is secondary to the game. You indirectly control a horde of mice, and your goal is to get them to safety aboard rockets. The first few levels orient you with how to get the mice to the rockets. Later levels add cats that will gobble up the horde – or their rockets! – unless you lead the cats away from them.
The levels are mazes that the mice and cats must navigate. How do you control the mice and/or the cats? You are given arrow tiles that redirect any character that steps on it. When any character, be they mice or cat, steps on the tile you place, it redirects them toward that arrow’s orientation. Each level contains enough arrow tiles to solve it. It’s up to the player to figure out how to place them.
Every time I pop this game in and fire up the Dreamcast, I lose HOURS of the day. The urge to solve the next puzzle yanks at me consistently. I’m not sure if my place of employment knows that I’m a game junkie. But they’re surprisingly forgiving when I show up 15 minutes late and looking like an overgrown raccoon.
The beauty of the game is that it now has new life. Thanks to diehard fans like Dreamcast Live, Chu Chu Rocket is back online!
Chu Chu Rocket was the first game to exploit the online capabilities of the Dreamcast and its built-in 56k modem. As fun as it is to play the game alone, competing against someone else is a blast. Each player gets his or her own set of colored tiles, and the absolute mayhem players can unleash on each other is amazing!
As fun as the game is, it’s also very simplistic. Don’t expect cutting-edge graphical capabilities here. The game is designed to enhance the puzzle elements in single-player and competitiveness in multiplayer. Any beauty you find in the graphics is coincidental. The music is also muted. It serves its purpose, which is to have something to listen to while you try your damnedest to solve the stage.
Does Chu Chu Rocket still hold up? DAMN STRAIGHT! People who are not fond of puzzle games will want to stay away from this game. For puzzle aficionados like me or folks who want a new online challenge, get in line and try not to push those ahead of you.
Fortunately, the Dreamcast is not the only way to experience Chu Chu Rocket. A Game Boy Advance port was released in 2001, and it’s also available on the Wii U virtual console. For mobile phone gamers, Android and iOS have ports ready to download.
However you choose to discover Chu Chu Rocket, do so. It may not be a game for everyone, but fans will never stop singing their praises of the game!
Note: After my talk with Dreamcast Live, I have ordered all the parts necessary to get my Dreamcast back online. I am using the DreamPi method; other methods exist. I suggest you check out Dreamcast Live if you’re interested in taking your Dreamcast online. Once I get my build done, I will post a how-to guide.
HUGE thanks to Dreamcast Live for pointing me in the right direction. You have no idea what you have done to me! I’ll see you online.
Good: Addictive gameplay; online capability with some work; multiplayer is AMAZING!!!
Bad: Plain visuals; muted soundtrack; not for action fans
Final score: 9/10
