Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits for Nintendo DS Reviews by Gamers

Ok, so I grew up playing some of these games. They were great to stand in the arcade and pound on buttons. They do not work that well when you can not change the button assignment and they are all grouped together. Track & Field was especially hard when you have to hit the buttons with just two fingers.

Not worth it to own, glad I go it here and could send it back.

I don't know why, but I was really looking forward to this collection of games. I figured if anyone could get the nostalgia done right, it would be Konami. Right? Wrong. The problem with the games is that, as dated as they are, they simply remind you why you don't play them any more. Truth be told, I only wanted to play this collection for Contra and Rush 'n Attack. And, in that respect I was both disappointed and satisfied. Satisfied that they were still true to the original and disappointed in that the games are impossible to beat thanks to a "NO CONTINUES" rule that seems to apply to all of the games here. What?! NO CONTINUES?! These games were difficult as they were, but to make matters worse you have to beat them with ONE CREDIT?! Ridiculous. So, instead of having what could have been a fun romp through 80's flashback arcade land, you're stuck with one of the most frustratingly difficult and "un-fun" (I know it's not a word) collection of retro-games ever assembled for ANY system. Another thing that makes this collection weak is the games themselves. Sure, you remember Shaolin Road, Contra, and even Gradius. But Rainbow Bell? Pooyan? Roc 'n Rope? There's a reason why you might not remember them. Because they sucked then and they still suck now. And if you thought there might have been some incorporation of the stylus here, you'd be wrong. All the touch screen does is allow you to choose which game you want to get a game over in next. Instead of including some REAL old-time classics like Jackal, Q-Bert, or Castlevania, we get the worst basketball game ever made (called "basketball" ironically enough) instead of double dribble, track & field, and a bunch of no-name arcade games that wouldn't keep an autistic child happy. There's a reason why people (myself included) stopped playing these games... and Konami managed to remind me of said reason. Giving it a 3 out of 10 is a very generous score indeed. Shame on you, Konami. Shame shame shame.