Cobra returns to life in a game that does justice to the character, we analyze for Xbox, Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening.
Take a look at these other reviews
- Review of Gears Of War Reloaded for Xbox – The king returns
- Review of Shinobi: Art of Vengeance for Xbox – Joe Musashi reaches the top in his return
- Review of Day of the Shell – A roguelite with strokes of XCOM
| Don't miss anything and follow us on Google News! |
Microids and Magic Pockets are launching Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening, a title that injects new life into the space pirate Cobra, a beloved adventurer whose anime series was one of the first of its kind to reach several countries around the world, especially in various Latin American territories.
Space Adventure Cobra was known in Spanish as Superagente Cobra, although its protagonist was never an agent of anything, just one of those extravagant marketing and localization things. The story of the anime (which the game compiles the first 12 episodes of) tells the adventures of Cobra, who is a kind of intergalactic James Bond with the same ingredients as Ian Fleming’s work: guns, action, adventure, and hundreds of women.
The mind behind the character is Japanese Buichi Terasawa, who back in 1977 began publishing the manga that came out in the already mythical Shonen Jump publication, which has given us many other great anime series. In 1982, given the popularity of the strip, the story was launched into a movie with an animated film titled “Cobra: The Movie” and that same year the anime premiered with 31 episodes.
Both the movie and the anime show two different reinterpretations of the comic’s story, the same happens with the design of some of the characters and vehicles. The anime was dubbed in Mexico (although it was never broadcast there) and was exported in 1987 to Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Uruguay, it would also arrive in Spain that same year, but with the Latin dub, which I imagine was very well received by the Spanish (note the irony).
Cobra, the protagonist, is a pirate and smuggler who enjoys tormenting space pirates, a kind of organized mafia that commits all kinds of crimes throughout the galaxy. After a series of robberies and other morally questionable actions that lead to his head having a very high price, the adventurer decides to leave his past behind, erase his memory, and radically change his entire physical appearance. It goes without saying that soon after, and due to an accident, he will recover everything that was erased.
The early stages of the game, in fact, show a Cobra with his original appearance, later, as the story progresses, the character will take on his most popular features with blonde hair, a more rounded face, but always with his inseparable cigar stuck to his mouth.
The title, as already mentioned a few paragraphs above, goes over some of the anime’s episodes, which at first seem isolated, but later take on a certain narrative thread that involves rescuing three sisters to get a treasure and a revenge in the middle of all this action and mystery arc.
We’re going to travel the galaxy in the Tortuga ship, curiously the fastest in the known universe, join Lady and Cobra himself on this journey in which I invite you to discover the good and not-so-good points of this action and adventure title based on a great classic franchise. The good thing is that on this transport, you can smoke.
Technical Section
If you’ve had the chance to see the 80s anime, I think you’ll love the game’s graphics, or at least this aspect will meet your expectations in a fairly significant way. The colors of each stage are really very vivid, and despite the action on screen, the movements of the enemies, the projectiles that come from all possible directions, etc., you never lose track of where the protagonist is, something vital for this type of title.
The cinematics that appear in the middle of the episodes are interpreted by figures that change expression slightly as the dialogue develops, but at the beginning and end of each episode, parts of the anime with the same 80s filter are shown; something that I particularly liked, but I understand that new generations who have no idea who the character is may see this detail as something negative.
As an area for improvement, I see that the enemies are very repetitive and, in general, do not have a very high level of detail, the same happens with the backgrounds, which, although beautiful, feel empty or very similar in stages where they shouldn’t be.
Before moving on to the sound, I’d like to mention that the game is not localized in Spanish, a fact that is not minor and seems really absurd to me, especially considering, as I mentioned at the beginning of the analysis, the popularity of the franchise in some Spanish-speaking countries.
Since I couldn’t test the Spanish voices due to the total absence of the language, I used the original Japanese with English subtitles, and the quality of the actors’ and actresses’ work is really excellent, despite not being the originals from the series. The rest of the effects feel very fitting and concrete for the various stages of production.
The music, on the other hand, presents a very prominent jazz and blues atmosphere, reminiscent of 80s spy movies, making it very enjoyable at all times.
Gameplay
The title takes the player from more to less, as has been done in other similar productions. By this, I mean that during the first stages, Cobra will have all his gadgets and the most life and energy of the psycho-armor (a cannon comparable to Mega Man’s for those who don’t know the character), but which he will lose after erasing his memory. In this way, as the story progresses, the player will receive different power-ups to reach other surfaces or perform other movements.
In the most basic aspect, Cobra has the psycho-armor that allows him to shoot continuously, aim, or perform a chain attack that allows him to eliminate several enemies at once. On the other hand, the renegade adventurer can also use a Colt Python 77 revolver and a thrust movement that serves to dodge, as well as a melee attack that combines punches and kicks.
As the adventure progresses, the character will receive anti-gravity boots to climb walls, a hook to climb, and even explosive cigars.
Some enemies can only be damaged by attacking them with the revolver first and then with shots, others have a shield that can only be crossed with melee attacks, and other particularities, which gives the title a fairly interesting variant that makes up for the lack of very different enemies.
The stages contain various skill fragments that can be collected to increase the power of the psycho-armor, the energy capacity of it, and even extend the energy bar. These fragments are a challenge in themselves, not only because of their difficulty in obtaining them but also because they are located in different hidden areas of the stages.
The action-platformer and shooter gameplay is constant and comes with very precise controls that make the adventure a pleasure to play. I must say that the interruptions that sometimes occur with dialogues between Cobra and Lady seemed a bit heavy to me at times; not because of their length, but because I felt that they cut off my progress, and I think they could be included as radio messages without needing to interrupt, but well, maybe I’m just getting old and everything bothers me.
The episodes are divided into stages, some have more than others, and culminate with a final boss. After completing them and recovering the Tortuga ship, the title allows the player to decorate the habitats with certain memorability of each of the stages, which is an interesting detail, although it doesn’t have a practical application or any particular effect. Cobra’s appearance can also be modified to change his suit at will.
In addition to the story, the game offers special episodes in which you can also play with other characters that are part of the adventure, such as Jane and Lady, although the movements and abilities are quite similar.
Duration
Of the three levels of difficulty, the normal level is already quite challenging, so it requires several attempts in some areas and especially with some bosses. Each episode can take around an hour, although there are shorter scenarios, so the story can be completed in around 10 hours. That said, as new abilities are acquired, you’ll have to replay certain levels to get all the collectibles that were impossible at first, which considerably extends the game’s duration.
Conclusion
Seeing Cobra again is always a pleasure, and Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening manages to portray the character and the universe that surrounds him in a very authentic and entertaining way. The title is fun, has very good controls, and doesn’t feel generic despite the framework it’s in. I won’t ever understand the fact that they decided to launch it without localizing it in Spanish, at least in its Latin American variant, but well, those are decisions outside of what we can speculate.
Cobra is back to jumping between obstacles, starring in chases, conquering hearts, and shooting his psycho-armor, and that’s why many of us are happy.
*We thank Microids for the material provided to carry out this analysis.
Translator and video game localiser with a passion for retro titles and simulators. He has never let go of a controller since he was given an Atari 2600. He collaborates with different developers in the localisation of their titles into Spanish through Camelot Translations.
Related Post
