Ristar – Sega Genesis review

Type Ristar into YouTube, and a dozen reviews pop up. Despite this, Ristar remains a hidden gem of the Sega Genesis library. There’s been no talk of a sequel or Sonic Mania style release here, despite it being the arguably better Team Sonic developed title. Sonic’s popularity allowed the franchise to languish through mediocre and bad games for over a decade, while Ristar faded into obscurity.

Playing this Sega Genesis classic for 90 minutes was a breath of fresh air, despite being 25 years old. It feels like a modern platformer. One that could release on Steam today, and is available there for download.

Ristar is the polar opposite of Sonic the Hedgehog’s chaotic speed. Each step Ristar takes has weight. Grabbing onto barred walls and ceilings, you always know precisely where Ristar will move with a single tap of the d-pad. Precision a large part of the game design. There are moments where Ristar can turn into an invincible shooting star rocketing around the screen. This shooting star move isn’t required to complete the levels, but it provides a burst of speed for a change of pace. These are rare throughout the level. Most of the game is making careful movements to avoid hazards and defeat enemies.

Ristar’s inputs are directions, jump and grab. It’s a simple setup, but the game uses the limited input to its fullest. The whole game revolves around the grab. Ristar grabs onto enemies, and launches himself into them for a damaging attack. After the hit, Ristar bounces off the enemy. The maintained momentum allows you to reach higher areas. How and when you attack an enemy becomes part of the navigation challenge in Ristar.

Weighty controls and thoughtful gameplay helped with something I never imagined possible, I enjoyed the water level. Not tolerated. Not thought, “This was decent.” I enjoyed a water level. It might be my favorite level in the game. I’ve never felt that way about a water level in any platformer. Mario’s water levels are okay, but pale next to other great level designs. Rayman controls well underwater, but like Mario the other levels are always better. Sonic under water is a nightmare. Ristar achieved the impossible by being more fun swimming than walking.

Functionally Ristar is closer to puzzle platformers like the original Prince of Persia (but way less punishing and far more fun), than its cousin Sonic. Solving the layout of the levels and the puzzles/traps within is the challenge, not timing jumps across tricky platforms. Level designs require the precise controls to work through series of traps and enemy waves. Rushing eats up hit points and lives. Patience is rewarded in the game.

Bosses are creative encounters. Button mashing will get you killed. By the time you reach the first boss the games pace has made that clear. Review the pattern, and attack when the moment is right. The lack of attack options means you’re looking for how to grab the enemy. It’s simple, but deep gameplay. Each boss is unique. In the water level a shark dashes across the screen as you dodge, and then grab as it comes in for a deliberate attack. Each successful hit knocks a plug from the bottom of the level, lowering the water level. While I did become frustrated with some bosses, it was always my own fault. After becoming proficient at the level enemies, I would attack quickly and be punished for it. Bosses are like the levels, be patient.

Released in 1995, at the end of the Genesis life span, Ristar benefited from years of software development and it shows in the graphics. Placed beside Sonic 3 and Vectorman, Ristar holds its own. Detailed animation plays part in why the controls are so tight. Each frame of animation highlights its action. Watching Ristar you always know exactly what move he’s making through his animation. The same applies to the enemy sprites. The animation also imbues Ristar with a ton of personality. He has a unique idle animation for each world. They’re not laugh out loud funny, but they’re all amusing to watch while you ponder the level ahead.

Levels are colorful worlds filled with tons of character, but they do follow standard platformer tropes. The first three worlds are forest, water and fire levels. The themes are generic, but the way their design keeps them engaging. For example, you can weaponized fire in the fire level. At the start, you grab a switch that activates a fire and kill an enemy blocking your path forward. It’s not revolutionary, but it’s a step beyond the generic platformer. Another nice touch comes at the end of each level. Ristar uses his shooting star move to fly to the next planet/level. It ties into the character’s star design nicely.

Ristar isn’t perfect; nothing is, so I do need to address one flaw that stood out. Without a manual, the shooting star move is quite difficult to learn. Grabbing poles scattered around the levels allows Ristar to swing in a circle until you release the grab button. Ristar shoots in whatever direction his momentum is carrying him. That was easy to learn. What I missed was holding left or right increases his swing until he glows and becomes an invincible shooting star when released. This ability carries him to hidden parts of the levels and bonus content.

It’s not essential to completing the levels I played, but damn if it wasn’t a ton of fun once I learned to use the ability. I missed this, because no other grab technique requires you hold a direction for any length of time. It didn’t occur to me to try holding a direction and nothing in the game suggests it. It’s not a deal breaker, but it’s was annoying.

Ristar is a perfect example of a hidden gem. It’s a great game that released late in the Genesis life cycle and was lost among a lot of similarly styled platformers. Ristar is leaps and bounds better than Bubsy or Aero-the-Acrobat, but it got tossed into that pile of mediocrity. It’s a shame, because Ristar could have become an interesting 3D platformer. The slower pace could translate into full 3D easier than the speedy gameplay of Sonic. It’s a lost IP now, but Sega has shown interest in reviving old franchises before. They could much worse than Ristar.

Buy Ristar. The cart is affordable online if you have a Genesis. If not, download it. Ristar is on Steam and was included in the recent Sega Genesis Collection on all modern platforms. There’s no excuse, you should play this amazing retro title. It’s worth your time.