Chuck Rock review - Sega Megadrive

Poor old Chuck Rock. There he was, watching stone age television and consuming a few bevies when along came the evil Gary Gritter, who mercilessly snatched his lady love, the fair Ophelia. Of course, Chuck isn't going to take this sitting down, so decides to rescue his beloved from Gritter's perverse clutches.

This involves the player adopting the persona of Chuck and running around a series of eight-way scrolling platform backdrops, braving the treacherous traps and hazards that Gritter has prepared for him. Luckily, Chuck isn't defenceless in his quest; his enormous beer belly can be used to repel enemy attack with just one lethal pelvic action and he can pick up rocks and boulders to chuck at his assailants.

There are five levels in Chuck Rock, each with three sub-stages, but keep an eye out for Gritter's enormous pet dinosaurs. They've been specially trained to deal with any cavemen who enter their territory, so watch out!

What the Mean Machines staff thought

The Chuck Rock character might be slow, smelly and hairy, but there's nothing slow smelly and hairy about the game! It's great fun, with the bumbling Neanderthal wandering around the beautifully-drawn, hazard-packed platform environments solving puzzles and dishing out damage to dinosaurs. The gameplay is extremely well designed - usually, the first mention of puzzles in a platform game sends me away screaming with horror, nut these ones are logical and enjoyable and don't bog down the action at all. With its excellent graphics and superb sounds, chuck rock is the best platform game seen this year and is a game that Megadrive players are thoroughly recommended to invest in.

I reviewed the Amiga version of this version when I worked at C+VG, and although I liked it quite a bit then, I think it's even better now it's made its way over to the Megadrive. It's just got so much to offer with its superlative audio/visuals and its addictive gameplay. Most platform games are just a test of your skill, but Chuck Rock is actually something of a brain teaser. Solving all of the mini-puzzles, along with making the best use of your rocks adds a new dimension to the gameplay. Most Megadrive platform games are completed very quickly, but not so Chuck Rock. Its fifteen levels are packed with challenge and I guarantee that this cart will last a long time. Overall then, I'd recommend that you invest your pounds sterling in this game immediately - It's the best platformer since Robocod!

Have your say about this review

Dan - 31 Mar 2009, 10:39 GMT

Maybe it was coz my bollocks were becoming useable and I'd other things such as fanny on my mind, or maybe it was because the graphics were getting better but the magic was disappearin from games, or maybe it was because the MM team just wanted some good MD games, but wotever the reason I remember this period of gaming churnin out overated shit like this and the reviews not reflecting their lack of real quality.

Lets face facts - Chuck Rock was boring. yawn, yawn, fucking yawn Chuck you fat bastard!

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