Topic: SNES platform game character ratings

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The Beast (Beaury and the Beast)
How not to build a super maneuverer.  Beast's design is a failed attempt to build a max ability character.  His jumping is great, greater then it should be, but only if he's moving.  His defense is high and his offense is usually one hit kill but he makes an easy target and his attacks miss easy.  He's got a special move that boosts his versatility but it's not often used.  All these things are poorly woven together.  Beast's maneuverability problems are kind of a hallmark of his failed hero design.  He's fast but then he has stuck to the ground syndrome.  He doesn't slide but an automatic quick step recovery move he does makes you fall off ledges more often then it saves you.  And when he quickly needs to get off a crumbling or moving platform he can't do it in time.  His other abilities also subtlety fail but with his maneuverability it's most obvious.  Maybe his game is just too hard for him but it seems like all his stats are a little askew.  Probably a bad export, maybe good for twitchies?

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Ellen Ripley (Alien 3)
Samus would be proud of Ripley.  To bad this game sucks.  Ripley's stats are great.  She's a good jumper and a solid maneuverer being able to dodge most aliens and land where you want her to.  Her offense is great too.  She starts with all her weapons and they all do a lot of damage.  They run out of ammo fast though and can be tricky to aim.  Ripley's versatility is a little better then average and is boosted somewhat further by the game giving her just what she needs when she needs.  More then anything else though her defense is spectacular.  She can take hit after hit just like Samus and even when an alien KOs her she gets up fast with little ill effect.  She only gets one life though so don't die.  She'd kick major ass in any other game, it would almost be like cheating. 

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Josephine (Kendo Rage)
Is this based on an anime?  Jo is a great character, she's fast in both movement and attack.  Her stats seem to be even for her game though but even with overall average jumping and maneuverability she moves around really quickly, faster then most characters.  Her offense is her strong point since she's got a variety of multidirectional attacks.  The only thing holding her back from max offense is her lack of screen clearing attacks.  Not counting the fact that her offense is defensive her defense is bad.  She's not very damage resistant and her HP runs out fast.  Her versatility is decent.  She can swim and chop through some objects.  With slightly better defense Jo would make for an outstanding character.  She'd be a great export to most other platform games.

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Casper (Casper)
Friendly ghosts aren't that useful, next time let's go with Beetlejuice.  This is one of those "keep your partner alive games" that gets so grating.  Casper gets max jumping since he's always floating but his maneuverability is poor and you have to work to keep him damage free.  His versatility is max since almost all his weapons are tools and he can just float right through walls.  Casper's offense is bad though.  Each of his weapons only damages a certain kind of enemy, using weapons drains health, and his accuracy is garbage.  Speaking of draining energy Casper's defense is totally bizarre.  As I said using weapons, or tools, drains his health.  Overall he can't take a lot of hits and his invincibility maneuver also drains health.  He has to consume wisps (health) all the time and items that are made to raise your score also increase your HP.  I guess it's fitting in a way since he's a ghost that his health system would be backwards.  He seems like he should be unstoppable but in the end he's just a pillow.  Finally there's Kat, whom you have to keep safe throughout the game.  She could be useful like Flute but no she's just a stone around Casper's spectral neck.  The design of this game feels rushed.  Casper sure would be a strange export and I wouldn't recommend him.

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Captain Novolin (Captain Novolin)
I think they've stopped making these diabetes games.  So this guy, to spite being dressed like Superman, is essentially Mario.  His jumping is his best stat and he even has a spinning jump.  It's also his only offense; pounding down on enemy heads.  Captain Novolin's maneuverability is about average but it's kind of hard to tell since his game is set up like a beat em up.  He has no versatility.  There's just no reason for him to have any in this game.  His defense, while decent, is wrapped around keeping him out of a diabetic coma like in other games like this.  Overall he's too vulnerable and simple to make him a good export. 

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Rex (Radical Rex)
More cute then radical.  I don't know what the designers were thinking with the radical theme, it makes as little sense as the rest of this game.  Rex is small and slow but he makes up for it with great maneuverability and defense.  He can land on a dime and withstand a ridiculous amount of punishment.  He can't jump thought and his offense is twisted.  He needs to burn enemies to char and stun them so he can kick them to kill them but if he takes damage he loses attack power.  It gets crazy.  His versatility is about average and he can swim and climb.  Oh, and he can skateboard.  Rex is a strange character who would be a dubious export.