Werewolf: The Last Warrior - Angry Video Game Nerd (AVGN)

Quick Overview

The Angry Video Game Nerd (AVGN) concludes his Monster Madness review by declaring the NES game Werewolf: The Last Warrior to be a terrible experience due to its cheap design, punishing difficulty, and constant, unfair hazards like mandatory water exposure and instant death pits, ultimately smashing the cartridge in disgust.

Key Points: The AVGN rates Werewolf: The Last Warrior as a bad game, citing it as an example of frustrating game design that forces unnatural player actions. The game features unfair mechanics such as mandatory water exposure for the werewolf form, which kills the character instantly, and hidden pits that result in immediate death. The boss fights are criticized; for instance, the first boss, who resembles Juggernaut, is beaten by exploiting the game's mechanics, not skill. The game is excessively punishing, resetting the player to the start of the stage (or losing a life) upon death, with only five continues available. The AVGN points out the ironic inclusion of a sign saying "DON'T KNOCK" when the gameplay often requires actions (like jumping down holes) that contradict simple instructions. The final boss, Magneto, is defeated by exploiting a glitch involving the game's physics, requiring the player to jump diagonally into a pit to bypass the fight. The video concludes with the AVGN destroying the game cartridge after finishing his review, rating the experience as worse than other infamously bad games he has reviewed.

Context: The video is a review of the 1990 NES game Werewolf: The Last Warrior, presented by James Rolfe in his Angry Video Game Nerd (AVGN) persona, timed around Halloween. The AVGN critiques the game's design, mechanics, and overall playability, contrasting it with his expectations for a horror-themed title.

Detailed Analysis

The AVGN reviews the NES game Werewolf: The Last Warrior, labeling it a terrible game filled with cheap design choices. He highlights the game's unfairness, particularly in Stage 1 where the werewolf form is instantly killed by water, forcing the player to rely on the human form despite the game's theme. The game mechanics are criticized for frustrating trial-and-error platforming, such as mandatory leaps over pits or rappelling down broken ladders. The first boss fight, against a Juggernaut-like character, is won by exploiting the game's mechanics rather than skill. In Stage 4, the player must memorize precise jump timings to avoid instant-death laser hazards, and in Stage 5, the player is forced to use a backwards jump to avoid a pit, a counter-intuitive mechanic. The final boss fight against Magneto is won by glitching through the floor using a diagonal jump. The AVGN expresses constant frustration, noting the game gives only five continues and features arbitrary difficulty spikes, such as instant-death pits and a sign warning 'DON'T KNOCK' when knocking/entering is necessary. Concluding the review, the AVGN states that the game is worse than other famously bad games he has covered and symbolically destroys the cartridge.