TMNT IV: Turtles in Time Retrospective

Bury my shell at wounded knee after you jump back onto the Nostalgia Train. Our next trip takes us back to one the greatest times in video game history! The Super Nintendo truly was a golden era of video games, and this month's entry is no exception. Was there a better way to spend time with your siblings or friends than punching out foot soldiers in different time periods? The answer is always no. That's when I usually pull out my cartridge of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time.

Cowabunga! Big Apple (3 Am)

TMNT: IV is such a popular game that most enthusiasts call it merely 'Turtles in Time.' It's a 'beat'em up' with a simple premise and easy game play. Players join our heroes as they track down Krang and Shredder after the villains steal the Statue of Liberty during a televised tribute. Of course, this mission isn't so simple; Shredder has his own plan to banish the turtles into a time warp. Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Donatello must bash their way through legions of baddies in the past, present, and future in order to find and return the American symbol to its rightful place and time.

Turtle Power! Turtles in Time

While the plot is nothing really to write home about, it's perfect in its simplicity.  You'd be hard-pressed to find a deep plot in any game focused on beating your enemies to a pulp. Of course, the focus of this game is the addicting game play. To start, players select their favorite turtle; each has particular strengths and weaknesses. The object is to fight through each level and conquer the end boss, ultimately reaching Super Shredder and retrieve the Statue of Liberty.

Each stage has different hazards and obstacles to overcome, such as moving platforms, falling rocks, and spaces that freeze a player dead in his/her tracks. At one point, players must throw foot soldiers at the screen in order to continue on. At the stage's end, the turtles must face the likes of the Baxter Stockman, Leatherhead, Beebop, Rocksteady and many other familiar TMNT enemies. While the game provides a fair amount of challenge with limited amount of lives and continues, it's not overly complicated and it's an easy game for just about anyone to play.

The Co-op Game of Champions

The past has given us plenty of fun and frustrating co-op games: Contra, Battletoads, Super Mario Brothers. Time has also given us some pretty interesting TMNT games - like the impossible one for the NES. Put those together, with

The cooperative play in Turtles in Time is seamless; players can fight alongside one another without attacking each other, but the game does require a bit a strategy. Health - or pizza- is limited, as are special attack hazards located in particular levels. Also, there are quite a few levels that throw out two bosses at the same time. It's times like these that it helps to have your best friend ready to punch out a mutated warthog.

Technodrome: The Final Shell Shock

After 25 years of awesome, this game is still one of the best ways to kill an afternoon. (Or an hour...depending on how good your teamwork is!) While there are certainly other amazing games out there, TMNT IV: Turtles in Time is the perfect game for endless amounts of beat'em up fun. In fact, I think it's about time I picked it up for another play-through. So what do you all think? What's your favorite co-op game? Have you picked up Turtles in Time lately? Let us know in the comments below!