Commodore 64 Longplay [118] Bee 52 (EU)

Channel:

World of Longplays

Subscribers:

1,290,000

Published on January 13, 2021 11:00:27 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfEzY2h5HVg

Game:

Bee 52 (1992)

Duration: 1:06:13

5,329 views

150

http://www.longplays.org

Played by: MadMatty

Bee 52, Developed and self published by Nick Taylor in 1993. A conversion from the NES originally due to be published by Code Masters but they dropped all C64 support just before the game was due to release.

From the NES version as there is no C64 inlay artwork that I can find:- “You’re about to find just what’s involved for a young bee with a day-job. Gigantic Spiders, sneaky ants and loathsome slugs are just a few of the meanies who’ll get in your way when you’re bee number 52. You’re hardly defenceless though, and with enough speed, skill and firepower you may get through the day - despite being heavily outnumbered. Let your nose, or rather proboscis, lead the way to the flowers and don’t let anyone - or anything - get in your way. B52 = You’re cleared for take off!!”

The Original NES game has 24 levels, thankfully the C64 version only has 8. The idea of the game is to grab nectar from the flowers in which you can hold upto 3 loads at a time before needing to take it back to the hive and turn it into honey. In your way are various insects including really annoying wasps spitbugs hidden inthe flowers. There are also a great number of barriers to navigate. Each flower in the level must be visited before they will open up again. Any nectar carried when being hit or losing a life will be lost and flowers remain closed if there are more to visit. You are also fighting a time limit as well as needing to fend off Swampling monster bubbles by hitting it with your stinger before they get to your hive to steal the honey.

The game is very well drawn and has the usual chearie music CodeMasters games are known for. So it all sounds simple enough until you start playing. It doesn't take long before the wasps that take more than a few shots to kill get annoying, then the spitbug thingies that fire shots at a high rate and nearly always at you. On top of that you have bubbles and flies getting in the way and it gets challenging real quick, especially with that timer ticking down. Later levels introduce frogs, fish, caterpillars and dragonflies and it all gets a bit much and frustrating especially with no password level system. There are power ups such as more firepower, bombs and invincibility which you can get by killing the firefly but it didn't seem to appear much in later levels and when it did , it was during a bad time fending off a wasp.

Overall the game looks nice and the gameplay is there, but it’s just too damn difficult to really enjoy and call a good game. This video exists due to the wonders of modern emus and save states. Maybe the NES version is better balanced but 24 levels seems a bit much. There is also a glitch where you can enter the flowers while occupied by the spitbug. I do use this a couple of times but its not without its downsides as you get a floating projectile stuck on the screen and it does get in the way! -
Disclaimer: Most videos by World of Longplays use SaveStates!