The age of the Genesis may have come and gone, but Golden Axe displays what made it so appealing.

User Rating: 7.5 | Golden Axe GEN
General platform/adventure games are so plentiful, it's hard to tell which ones are worth playing, and which ones are just plain garbage. Golden Axe is one of those games but it's definitely in the worth playing column. The game debut on the arcade and eventually made it's way to the Genesis and although it wasn't exactly the same, the fun was still intact. The story goes like this; there's Death Adder, A very evil man who has threatened the land and it's up to three heroes to stop him. You can either be the dwarf, a man, or a woman. They all play pretty much the same except that there a difference in weapon capabilities and magic. The woman is weak with her sword so her range is very poor but her magic is the highest. The man is the average one with medium attack range and medium magic power while the dwarf, has awesome attack range and poor magic. Since most of the game you will be primarily be focusing on attacking, magic is not the main way to win so the dwarf is the easier character to use but all are useful.

During the levels, there are animals you can ride that shoot fire or wag their tail. They are very useful but fragile as they run away if you get hit a lot when you're riding them. Enemies vary greatly from skulking giants to heavily armored knights whose shield and sword can not be matched. There are even skeletons that can not be killed and kicking enemies off a cliff can be so enjoyable.

Music in this game is quite circular but it keeps the game going. The sounds from the weapons are fun to hear and the sounds of the enemies dying, though annoying at one level, is fun to hear on another.

The game doesn't take too long to wrap it up so you'll only play it for maybe forty minutes before you beat it. Then you can get a grade on how well you played and there's a training mode too.

The game is basic but showcases a quick, fun game but there's little reason to go back. The game is still worth it if you want to see a retro game but for most, it probably isn't worth it.