An obscure game, but an excellent one at that.
The graphics are above you average NES game. The overhead levels where most of the action is done by foot aren’t incredibly detailed, but it doesn’t distract from the game. The overhead shooter levels are where most of the graphic effort was but into. In my opinion, the music is the best aspect of Guardian Legend. The title music is some of the best music on an 8-bit system and even makes some 16-bit music seem lame. Game play is divided up between on foot exploration and overhead shooting. Guardian Legend is not a short game even by today’s standards. It would take many hours to sit and play through it in one sitting. The difficulty is well balanced and doesn’t get to frustrating.
I do have a habit of judging a game before I have played it. Since Guardian Legend was published by a lesser known company, I figured it would be crap. Guardian Legend did teach me not to judge a game until I have played it. It also taught me that a game doesn’t have to come from an established publisher like Capcom or Konami to be a quality product.