Games Database
Sega Master System
Platform
| Also for: | Game Gear | ||
| Viewed: | 2D Side-on, Scrolling | Genre: | Platform |
| Arcade origin: | No | ||
| Developer: | SEGA | Soft. Co.: | Walt Disney Company |
| Publishers: | SEGA
(GB/US/JP) |
Released: | Dec 1991
(GB) 20 Dec 1991 (US) Unknown (JP) |
| Ratings: | No rating | ||
Summary
First released in December 1991 for the Sega Master System and Game Gear, The Lucky Dime Caper was the result of a special arrangement that saw Sega developing exclusive Disney games (other examples being Mickey Mouse's Illusion series). Launched alongside Quackshot on the Mega Drive, this 8-bit adventure was really fun to control yet was a beast to master.
Make no mistake, this is as challenging today as it is engaging. The reason for this is the life system, allowing for two enemy hits before death. When you start a level, Donald has a weapon at his disposal to take out strange colourful baddies.
Get hit once, and you lose your weapon until you either die or are able to collect another one. This is a particularly crippling state as it's easy to try and rush and game and mistime enemy movement. That, and jumping on enemies makes for a significantly weaker attack on bosses.
Luckily power-ups aren't too hard to come by. For every second foe you squash, an item appears. If you're on your last legs, you'll get a weapon – either the very useful hammer with a large swinging radius, or the piss-poor frisbee that misses almost every enemy and is bog slow.
For an 8-bit game, you see some lovely colours and scenery, and despite a few screens being nothing more than a block colour Donald is taken through some very nice locations. And you'll be surprised at the variety of platforming tasks that lie in each level, making them play differently to the last. More admirable than the level gimmicks however – and perhaps the best thing about this game - is that it does little to patronise, thanks in part to its difficulty curve.
The Lucky Dime Caper is an example of Sega's impressive track record with the Disney brand during the 1990s, and all the more for it being on a console that was a generation behind the latest machines.
Make no mistake, this is as challenging today as it is engaging. The reason for this is the life system, allowing for two enemy hits before death. When you start a level, Donald has a weapon at his disposal to take out strange colourful baddies.
Get hit once, and you lose your weapon until you either die or are able to collect another one. This is a particularly crippling state as it's easy to try and rush and game and mistime enemy movement. That, and jumping on enemies makes for a significantly weaker attack on bosses.
Luckily power-ups aren't too hard to come by. For every second foe you squash, an item appears. If you're on your last legs, you'll get a weapon – either the very useful hammer with a large swinging radius, or the piss-poor frisbee that misses almost every enemy and is bog slow.
For an 8-bit game, you see some lovely colours and scenery, and despite a few screens being nothing more than a block colour Donald is taken through some very nice locations. And you'll be surprised at the variety of platforming tasks that lie in each level, making them play differently to the last. More admirable than the level gimmicks however – and perhaps the best thing about this game - is that it does little to patronise, thanks in part to its difficulty curve.
The Lucky Dime Caper is an example of Sega's impressive track record with the Disney brand during the 1990s, and all the more for it being on a console that was a generation behind the latest machines.