Though there could have been more improvements, this is still a respectable remake that retains an old school NES feel.
Gameplay: 4/5
+ While this game can be classified as a platformer, it is unique in the fact that your character cannot jump. Instead, you have a bionic arm which allows you to swing like a pendulum, pull up to higher platforms, or interact with other objects. If you are used to traditional platformers where jumping is the staple element in the game, this may seem very unsettling at first. In fact, it took me quite some time to recondition my brain to approach levels without the thought of jumping. It's not easy and can be frustrating when you just want to do a little hop, but the swinging element is the primary selling point of this game so you should just learn to embrace it so that you can enjoy the game.
Another aspect of the game that you need to get used to is the default direction of your bionic arm when you shoot it. If you are standing still and use the arm, it will shoot diagonally upwards in the direction you are facing. I kept wanting it to shoot out straight in front of me but I had to learn through mistakes that this isn't what will happen. It makes sense, though, because the only way you can swing is if you shoot your arm diagonally upwards, so by making this the default action you will have a better chance of connecting and swinging. Still, you are able to shoot straight up, straight ahead of you, and also crouch and shoot straight ahead of you. All of these can be used at different times for different results.
You also have a worthy arsenal of weapons to choose from. At first you only have one gun, but as you complete levels you will unlock more. I really liked the diversity of weapons and how they each had their own role. You have a rifle good against humans, a gun good against machines, a rocket launcher, a gun that shoots diagonally, and a shotgun. The shotgun is not only useful for close combat but it also allows plays another key role (something that I did not learn until late in the game). If you attach your arm above you, you will just hang and not be able to swing. If you are hanging and you shoot the shotgun, however, you will have a knockback which causes you to start swinging. This is extremely useful in some key scenarios, but unfortunately they really don't do a good job explaining it to you.
The levels are kind of short, but they can be somewhat challenging which sort of balances that. You do have an extra life counter which diminishes every time you get killed. But you also have one save game, so even if you lose all your lives you will still keep your overall progress. I found this confusing, pointless, and unnecessarily difficult at first but I think I discovered their reasoning. In each level there are certain checkpoints when you changes screens. If you die and still have a life, you will be reset to this checkpoint. If you die and don't have any extra lives, you will lose all your progress and must restart the level from the start. If there were no life counter, you would just continually progress forward in the level and never feel any risk. Even though some of the levels can be punishing and difficult, the levels are generally short so this system works. Unfortunately, the very last level is very long (much longer than the other levels), which makes it a lot worse if you lose all your lives since you have to go all the way back to the beginning. It's really disheartening and almost made me quit the game without beating it.
The bosses are interesting and all have a distinct approach to them. One thing that is both neat yet troublesome is the hacking system. In certain rooms you can hack an enemy terminal (a simple 3D minigame). If you do, you will see a conversation between two enemies which will provide strategic hints on how to defeat the boss in that level. This is a really great way of cluing the player in to more sophisticated boss fights without directly telling them what to do. The problem is if you miss these hacking rooms you are left clueless and it can be kind of hard to figure out how to approach the boss. So it's a double edged sword. One thing that I really did not like was how each boss was reused in a later level. I liked the boss the first time I fought him, so why do I need to fight him again when only one very small thing has changed? Even if it may be from the original NES game, it seems lazy and derivative.
Overall I thought the game was quite fun. Yes, it can be very challenging but most of the levels are short so it's not that cumbersome. Still, the final level can be very strenuous and almost made me quit because if you die it sets you back really far. The diversity of enemies, weapons, and bosses are a lot of fun too. And even though the classic NES feel is retained, I kind of wish they would have included an analog control to aim where your bionic arm will shoot instead of relying on hard-coded directions.
Story/Presentation: 3.5/5
+ The game does have a certain amount of tongue-in-cheek humor to it that can be enjoyable. For instance, in one of the early rooms where you hack an enemy terminal you see a conversation where the enemies are laughing with each other at how futile an attack against them would be, and one of the enemy soldiers responds with the text "ROFL!"
Still, it's not like the game has a great, compelling story to it. You play as a soldier who has a bionic arm attached. You must go rescue Super Joe, who has been captured by the enemy. And there is also some other stuff with an enemy army capturing an ancient technology which they are trying to recreate. It's not really clear. But the story is heavily restricted to text boxes and text conversations. So there's not really a lot of depth to what's happening, but it can still be pleasant.
Graphics: 4.5/5
+ Everything looks good. The dimensions are restricted to 2D, but it's clear that the levels and models actually have three dimensions. And I really like these types of platformers that are restricted to two dimensions but still look very good. It's a beautiful connection between old technology restrictions and new graphic capabilities. I imagine if you were a big fan of the original, then it is really interesting to see a new approach to this game with all the powerful graphic possibilities of today.
Value: 4/5
+ The game took me a little over 6 hours to complete. But I mostly just ran through the levels and got to the end. I would like to reiterate that the last level is a huge pain in the ass and I came really close to just stopping and not finishing the game because it was frustrating me so much. If you aren't confident in your gaming skills, then it might take you significantly longer to beat the game because there are definitely some really hard parts.
If you like the game enough, there are over 50 challenge rooms that you can race through and get 1 to 5 stars depending on your time. It could definitely add a few more hours if you enjoy that type of stuff, but I found the challenge rooms kind of boring. There are also a number of secrets and upgrades in all the levels which I skipped. If you want to gather everything it could extend your gameplay time a little longer.
The game is $10 now on Steam, which is probably the highest I would pay for it. The game can be kind of brutal at moments, but it does have a very unique premise unlike other platformers. If you give it some time and learn how to use the bionic arm it can be quite fun. If you're into hard old-school 2D platformers then definitely pick this game up.