Heavy Nova (Genesis)

So many companies tried to cash in on the Street Fighter II craze of the early '90s that it was sometimes hard to separate the wheat from the chaff. Some games were just plain horrible, and some were great, but most fell into the gray area in between. Only a rental - or even worse, a purchase - would dispel the illusion of the few enticing screen shots from game magazines. Micronet's Heavy Nova falls into that category. The thought of upgradable robots battling to the death should have been a recipe for pure win. In reality, it was a slow, plodding game that took some serious patience to love. Unfortunately, most gamers haven't been that devoted, and Heavy Nova is sort of overlooked today. Hey, it must have sold well. It did get a Sega CD version! Take a gander at our full review of the cartridge release, and decide for yourself if it's worth tracking down.

This game is so "Amazinly Exciting" because you can perform the "hammer Knackle" move.

Seriously, this may be the game I hate the most on the cosole though other than maybe Last Action Hero. This game s ugly, sounds bad and plays horribly. The writer was way generous with the score.

Hooo boy. This one should bring about some arguing :lol:


There's a section of the review that got axed for posting (likely due to length... this review was pretty long), which is still referenced at the end with the "can turn off a couple problematic areas" comment. The other area is this from my original review...

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One last annoying issue, is with how your character takes a step back before turning around. This step was added so you can hit the d-pad briefly, and move back a step to try and get the drop on your opponent when they're too close. However, it makes turning to face opponents and obstacles slower, and can lead to unnecessary damage. But, like the platforming sections, you can turn this feature off in the options menu.

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I just wanted to point this out, so people didn't wonder if they'd missed something when they got to the end.

Excellent review Coop! I have to disagree with the score, I think it deserves a 7! And BTW, this never came out for the Sega-CD. I think Melf confused it with the Mega-CD version or the other game that deserves a 4, Blackhole Assault.

Gameuser, Do you mean this Sega CD game?

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Originally Posted by vintagegamecrazy

Gameuser, Do you mean this Sega CD game?

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That's not a Sega-CD game! :lol: The little history about this game is that it was basically a stripped down version of the original, but I don't know what exactly was taken out besides the CD-Quality music.

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Originally Posted by GameUser-16-32-128

That's not a Sega-CD game! :lol: The little history about this game is that it was basically a stripped down version of the original, but I don't know what exactly was taken out besides the CD-Quality music.

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Basically nothing. The backgrounds are the same, the animation is the same, the sound effects (what few there are) are the same, and even the intro and ending are the same. The CD music is the only difference (though the cart does a nice job on its own musically).

Was it officially released for the Sega CD? If so, then it counts.

Sega CD? No. Mega CD? Yes. It was a Japan-only CD game as far as I know. The US cart version (at 8Mb) basically reproduced it exactly, showing it really was little more than a cart game on a CD (like so many other early Sega CD and Mega CD games).

The music is really well done...BGM 09 is great.

Hit detection drove me bonkers, but the throws were a riot.

It's better than Blackhole Assault at least.

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Originally Posted by The Coop

Sega CD? No. Mega CD? Yes. It was a Japan-only CD game as far as I know. The US cart version (at 8Mb) basically reproduced it exactly, showing it really was little more than a cart game on a CD (like so many other early Sega CD and Mega CD games).

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Yeah, I meant Mega CD. It was an official release though, so it stays on the Master List.

Remarkably thorough rundown. I had no idea. Big ups. :)

....and I think the game got too low score :P

The opening and ending cutscenes, along with the music and graphical style, give this game that perfect 'lonely 16-bit' feel. Ranks right up there with Valis and Target Earth.

Beautiful looking game ,horrible execution, and gameplay.

Check out the CGR review of it. Hes a Genesis fan but pulls no punches with whatever this thing is.

Worst then Cyborg Justice. If you can believe it.

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Originally Posted by TheEdge

Beautiful looking game ,horrible execution, and gameplay.

Check out the CGR review of it. Hes a Genesis fan but pulls no punches with whatever this thing is.

Worst then Cyborg Justice. If you can believe it.

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If it's the same one someone linked to a long time ago, it also makes me seriously question how much he played it. He didn't even know about the simple way to regain attack energy when you got knocked down, and had two red bars or less.

I like how jesus arnold wrote that it was a below average shooter on the comments below the review:)

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Originally Posted by Dirt Ball Gamer

I like how jesus arnold wrote that it was a below average shooter on the comments below the review:)

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You can actually shoot missiles when you are standing far away from your opponent and with full energy. Maybe he got confused with that assumption because it was probably the only move he could do. :lol:

Maybe he got it confused with Heavy Unit, which is indeed an average at best shmup over all.

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Originally Posted by The Coop

Maybe he got it confused with Heavy Unit, which is indeed an average at best shmup over all.

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^This, LOL, if I could remove the comment I would :(

I've never even played this game before!

I'll remove it for you. :)

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Originally Posted by Melf

I'll remove it for you. :)

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Thanks :)

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Originally Posted by The Coop

If it's the same one someone linked to a long time ago, it also makes me seriously question how much he played it. He didn't even know about the simple way to regain attack energy when you got knocked down, and had two red bars or less.

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Well he also probably only had the cart to go off of. A lot of the games he plays are donations, and naturally a lot of the things that get donated to him are cart only.

The other thing you have to keep in mind is that he is constantly reviewing games, and he probably doesn't want to spend a whole lot of time playing a game that he doesn't find very fun/appears to be broken/etc. I know that I'm not in the minority when I say that within 5 minutes of powering up this game, I could tell that there was nothing there for me.

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The other thing you have to keep in mind is that he is constantly reviewing games, and he probably doesn't want to spend a whole lot of time playing a game that he doesn't find very fun/appears to be broken/etc.

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... Not the best reviewing technique ... Quantity over quality ...

Yeah, I used to sub to CGR but his reviews were pretty watered down and unisteresting. There were very few games he didn't like and he even recommended some pretty bad games so I lost interest.

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Originally Posted by vintagegamecrazy

Yeah, I used to sub to CGR but his reviews were pretty watered down and unisteresting. There were very few games he didn't like and he even recommended some pretty bad games so I lost interest.

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Lies! Lies and rumors! :daze:

I love the CGR reviews, yes the guy is a huge Genesis fan, but still, he's good at it. Reviews by any reviewer is usually always biased on their own personal opinion anyway. A good reviewer will always give out their honest opinion on a game, peripheral, etc. and never a "jump the bandwagon" review by giving a bad rating just because other reviewers give a bad rating, alot of game review sites/magazines did/do that practice and it's ridiculous.

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Originally Posted by Genesis Knight

... Not the best reviewing technique ... Quantity over quality ...

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He has both, in my opinion. Quality games (like TFIV, Revenge of Shinobi, or MUSHA for instance) get excellent, lengthy, multi-part video reviews that go over every last aspect of the game in a great amount of detail. Crap games like Heavy Nova get shit on because they don't deserve to be played on a console that has games like, say, the ones I listed above.

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Originally Posted by jerry coeurl

He has both, in my opinion. Quality games (like TFIV, Revenge of Shinobi, or MUSHA for instance) get excellent, lengthy, multi-part video reviews that go over every last aspect of the game in a great amount of detail. Crap games like Heavy Nova get shit on because they don't deserve to be played on a console that has games like, say, the ones I listed above.

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Then what he has, is inconsistancey. One game gets loads of attention, while another gets a brief overview. If you want to review, then the good and the bad should get equal amounts of attention. You don't just skim over the stuff you don't like... especially when what you put out is misinformed like that review he made for the game we're discussing in this thread.

You guys are just trying to defend your low standards :D

But seriously, the question stands: On a system with as many gems as the Genesis/Mega Drive does, how can one justify playing low-end garbage like Heavy Nova? Dude, where's my fun factor?

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Originally Posted by jerry coeurl

But seriously, the question stands: On a system with as many gems as the Genesis/Mega Drive does, how can one justify playing low-end garbage like Heavy Nova?

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When it comes to playing the game, I think the user comments all across this site show quite clearly where one can justify playing a game others hate... because that person found it fun, or at least, more fun than others did. There are two people already who have scored HN higher than I did, so obviously it's coming down to personal taste, and how willing they are to put some time into a game that others detested. Hell, we have people here who think Sonic 2 is a mediocre game at best, so it shouldn't be shocking that others found HN to more enjoyable than you did, and find themselves going back to it from time to time.

And really, if someone's going to be reviewing games, it's their "job" to sit down, learn how to play the game, and then play all the way through it. If they can't bring themselves to do just that, then they shouldn't be reviewing. You can't just focus on the good, and pass on the bad as a reviewer. Then you go from trying to inform people, to just playing what you like and saying you like it. Not really a big stretch there. You have to step outside that comfort zone, and give the games you don't like the same level of devotion for its review. You have to be willing to plow through whatever... be it the greats like Vectorman, or garbage like Shadow Blasters.

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Originally Posted by jerry coeurl

Dude, where's my fun factor?

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Probably in the same place your car is.

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Originally Posted by The Coop

And really, if someone's going to be reviewing games, it's their "job" to sit down, learn how to play the game, and then play all the way through it. If they can't bring themselves to do just that, then they shouldn't be reviewing.

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Well, that is your opinion and you are entitled to it, but if someone is just doing reviews as a hobby I don't think there's any "reviewers code" that they have to adhere to. You might find CGR's reviews to be without merit because he doesn't sit down and go over every game with a fine-toothed comb, but I think that most of his reviews are spot on and quite entertaining, to say the least. When a guy is posting new reviews almost daily, I'm willing to cut him a little slack when it comes to games that aren't immediately accessible.

This goes both ways though. He's only doing it for a hobby; no one's forcing him to do it. Why the rush then?
If he can't devote the time needed to each game because he does reviews daily, then maybe he should scale back the updates. It's his work, so no one can complain.

Consider it this way: if you enjoy his stuff now, think about how much you'd enjoy it if he were to devote equal time to each game.

Good review. It tackles heavily on gameplay and tries to show why people are put off by it.

I personally love the gameplay here, and every once in a while I play a Heavy Nova session just to remember how awesome the game is. It might be slow (the robots are heavy, damn it) but it's fun, stylish and - contrary to what 99% of the haters say - the controls are very responsive.

It also ocurred to me that this might be the review that had the greatest number of comments in a very short time. That says something, huh? ;)

Heavy Nova FTW!

The intro of this game makes you think that you are about to play an amazing game with a lone bad ass robot................then you press start...

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Originally Posted by Thunderblaze16

The intro of this game makes you think that you are about to play an amazing game with a lone bad ass robot................then you press start...

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just watch the videos of the worst genesis games of all time and I agree with you, great intro sequence, shame about the game

I have beat the game several times. I love it.

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Originally Posted by oldskool

I have beat the game several times. I love it.

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I love to read comments like this. Especially when if goes against popular opinion! You should provide a quick run down as to what aspects of the game you really like, what are some of the game's mechanics that make the game enjoyable, and a quick run down of some of the tactics you use to get past the difficult AI in later stages.

Keep rocking on "oldskool" Heavy Nova god! :rock:

I'll have to be careful, here… The general idea of this game is nice enough: some arcade-platforming and much fighting. The platforming segments even manage to be a bit amusing, but the game itself is slow, graphics are bland, controls are unresponsive, and the collision detection is completely off. The music is nice, though.


That said, don't forget to check the options menu: you can choose levels and explore the game.

At first, I was about to compare this unfavorably to Rise of the Robots, but nope. Heavy Nova is better than ROTR.

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Originally Posted by bigladiesman

I'll have to be careful, here… The general idea of this game is nice enough: some arcade-platforming and much fighting. The platforming segments even manage to be a bit amusing, but the game itself is slow, graphics are bland, controls are unresponsive, and the collision detection is completely off. The music is nice, though.


That said, don't forget to check the options menu: you can choose levels and explore the game.

At first, I was about to compare this unfavorably to Rise of the Robots, but nope. Heavy Nova is better than ROTR.

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that title screen music is awesome