Review Polymega Collection Vol. 5 - Bad Dudes Review (Polymega)

Games like Bad Dudes vs. Dragon Ninja have, in recent years, become more famous for their meme-worthy quotes than the actual quality of their gameplay, and Polymega Collection Vol. 5 serves as a stark reminder of this fact.

This pack only covers two games – the titular Bad Dudes and its (semi) sequel, Two Crude – and arguably represents one of the weakest entries in the Polymega Collection series so far (in terms of pure value for money, at least).

1988's Bad Dudes vs. Dragon Ninja is perhaps the most deliberate attempt you can find of a Japanese developer leveraging the Hollywood obsessions of the '80s; not only do we have muscle-bound martial artists in track pants, but they're facing off against hordes of ninjas.

Throw Cynthia Rothrock and Jean-Claude Van Damme into the mix, and you've basically got a straight-to-VHS action flick, but in video game form.

While Bad Dudes vs. Dragon Ninja is good fun and boasts some bold and eye-catching visuals, the action becomes stale very quickly. Unlike '80s arcade brawlers like Double Dragon and Final Fight, you're locked to a single plane of horizontal movement, making it feel more akin to Sega's Shinobi.

However, the pugilistic combat is painfully limited; your attacks have a very short range, and there aren't many weapons to pick up to overcome this shortcoming.

By far the biggest problem with Bad Dudes vs. Dragon Ninja is that it was clearly designed for arcade play, and as such, it is incredibly challenging and unbalanced. Too often are you overwhelmed by hordes of enemies, leaving little room for tactical or skilful play.

It's mildly annoying when fighting your way through the various levels, but it becomes maddening when you encounter a boss character. Unlimited credits are available here, of course, but that doesn't change the fact that this isn't a game that is tuned for domestic play.

As well as the North American version of the game, you've also got the Japanese version (which has a different ending, ditching the iconic 'President Ronnie' and his offer of a post-game burger) and some other, more minor changes.

You also have the Famicom and NES ports of the game, too, but neither version has the simultaneous two-player option that made the coin-op so fun – each player takes turns in these weaker home ports. The 8-bit edition of Bad Dudes may well be where you first experienced the game, so there's some nostalgic value here – but, in the cold light of day, it's hard to claim it's a classic in any genuine sense of the word.

Two Crude (or Two Crude Dudes, if you'd prefer – it's also known as Crude Buster in Japan) might not share any of the same characters, but it's considered to be a follow-up to Bad Dudes.

In many ways, it's undoubtedly a superior experience; while the action is limited to a single horizontal plane again, the sprites are larger, the levels more visually striking, and the gameplay deeper; not only can you pick up things to hurl at enemies, you can pick up enemies as well and use them as projectiles.

In many ways, Two Crude is the highlight of this particular collection, but even then, it has that hallmark 'Data East' quality to it that means it never quite lives up to its potential. It's very cheesy at points when it comes to difficulty, with some enemies proving to be incredibly annoying to take down, even with your expanded arsenal of moves.

There are many regional differences between the Western and Japanese coin-ops, so having them both here is welcome. All three regional variants of the Mega Drive / Genesis port are also included, but, with the arcade original in place, there's very little reason to play them – outside of seeing how the game was scaled back for its only home console release.