Shoot. Run. Jump. Switch guns. What more does a 1980s side-scrolling videogame need? How about a storyline involving a mercenary hired to rescue a biologist's daughter, incoming bad guys and robots, and a nefarious plot by an evil scientist who's determined to take over the world with cyborg soldiers? Mix that with pixelated tile-based environments, traditional boss fights, and coins locked in breakable crates, and what do you get? You get MercX, an ode to classic 1980s action titles by the retro-specialist, Alistair Maunder (alillm).
Like some of his previous offerings, MercX is a run-and-gun pixel-based game that draws on classic Castlevania elements of exploring, shooting, collecting, and upgrading. After being dropped off into a combat zone, you control your pink-haired mercenary with the [arrow] keys, and can jump and aim by pressing [up] and [down]. You carry three weapons - a machine gun, a shotgun, and a bazooka, which you fire with [Z] and switch with [X]. Each of the six missions begins with a briefing and a chance to upgrade your health and weapons using cash collected at the end of each mission. The stages are pretty lengthy, but luckily there are checkpoints along the way in case your mercenary bites the dust. Like classic home console games, most missions include a boss fight that requires you to recognize attack patterns and fire away until the enemy's health bar is depleted.
MercX is not a deep game by any means, but it offers players with straightforward retro-gaming goodness that kept us playing late on school nights back in the day. The action is simple, yet satisfying, with predictable enemies you can take down without too much trouble. The parallax-scrolling environments are nicely varied in their simplicity (with neat animated weather effects), while the old-school sounding chiptunes further set you in a classic frame of mind. The pixelly-theme does have a downside in that the text in mission briefings and tutorials can be hard to read, but it is something you get used to after a while. Besides, it's all about the action anyway, right? So channel your inner pixelated Rambo and learn what it's like to live as MercX.
Walkthrough Guide
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MercX Strategy Guide
This guide offers general strategy for beating the game, along with an overview of enemies and how to defeat the different levels and bosses.
Collecting Items
Shoot all crates you see. The X-crates contain coins, while the blank crates can reveal hidden doors or open the path for you.
Enemies
Blue soldiers with pistol - Slow, fire bullets.
Take these guys out with a single upgraded bazooka shot.
Grey floating robots - Slow, fire bullets down.
Walk under these guys and hold [down] to aim upward, then shoot one or two bazooka shots at them.
Grey turrets - Stationary, fire three shots in succession.
Wait for the turrets to fire their three shots, then get in close at take them out with bazooka or shotgun shots.
Blue soldiers with shotgun - Faster, fires shotgun blast.
Don't let these guys get too close, or they'll fire their triple shotgun blast at you. Take them out from a distance with your bazooka or machine gun.
Orange flamethrower guys - Faster, fires flame.
These guys are tough and shoot their flame from a distance. Upgrade your bazooka to take them out with a single shot.
Bomb turrets - Shoot numerous bombs.
The bomb turrets or only dangerous if you're not moving, since the bombs don't hurt you until they explode on the ground. Get in close and shoot them with bazooka or shotgun shots.
Robot Soldiers - Fast, charge attack.
Even at max bazooka power, Robot Soldiers take at least 2 shots before they go down, and they charge at you if you get anywhere close to them. Fire one shot at them, then jump over them as they charge and fire a second shot back toward them to destroy them.
Bosses
Level 1 - Shetland Islands
No boss. Collect the documents and escape to your helicopter.
Level 2 - Gobi Desert
Rescue the hostage, then face off against the Group Leader in his helicopter. Aim UP at the leader in the center of the helicopter, and pick him off with your bazooka or machine gun. Watch for his slow shotgun bullets and faster machine gun bullets, evading and jumping over them as needed. He will eventually fly to the top of the screen and begin throwing dynamite sticks - just keep moving to avoid them.
Level 3 - Siberia
No boss. Destroy all the robot soldier capsules and escape to your helicopter.
Level 4 - China
Destroy all the robot soldier capsules and face off against the Scientist in his floating death hover machine. His deadliest attack is when he hovers low with his flame exhaust, and sweeps across the screen, burning your mercenary. Run to the extreme opposite end of the screen when he hovers low, staying as far away from the machine as possible. The Scientist's other attack involves him firing a number of slow moving bullets or lobbing bombs as he slowly moves across the screen. Find openings in the bullet paths and falling bombs while firing bazooka or machine gun shots at him.
Level 5 - Sahara Desert
No boss. Take out the whole lab by placing 14 pieces of C4 on spots across the base and escape to your helicopter.
Level 6 - Antarctica
Face off against the Mechatron Daddy uber boss. Shoot his fist with your machine gun or shotgun, and jump to avoid either fist slamming on the floor. Once the Mechatron Daddy is at 75% health, the lights will turn on, revealing its skull face. Shoot the face, avoiding the slow spreading bullets. When the room starts to shake, avoid the falling boulders, shooting all the while. Once the Mechatron Daddy is at 50% health, he returns to his fist slamming attacks. At 25% health, he returns to his bullet and falling boulder attacks. Take him out, reach your helicopter, and win the game!
Posted by: J-Witz
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August 31, 2011 2:16 PM