Midnight Mutants (Atari 7800) Playthrough - NintendoComplete
278A playthrough of Atari's 1990 horror-themed action-adventure game for the Atari 7800, Midnight Mutants.
Midnight Mutants is a late-era 7800 game that prided itself on featuring the likeness of Al Lewis, better known to the world as the Dracula-like Grandpa Munster. Or maybe Grandpa Fred, if you've seen Gremlins 2 but not The Munsters.
The game is an open-world, exploration-based action game that has often been compared to The Legend of Zelda, and it is an apt comparison, though I think that Fester's Quest might be a another good point of reference thanks to its heavier focus on battle and the explicit way it directs you to your objectives.
A heretic, Dr. Evil, was burned at the stake on Halloween back in 1747. On Halloween night in 1992 he rises from the dead to wreak vengeance and "Grampa" has the misfortune of crossing his path. Dr. Evil casts a spell that traps Grampa in a pumpkin, and so Grampa's grandson Jimmy has to find and defeat Dr. Evil in order to reverse the spell and save the day.
Note: there are no hairless cats in this game.
Luckily, Pumpkin Grampa can telepathically communicate with Jimmy and provide him some much needed guidance on his quest. You're helpless until you find your first weapon, a knife, in the mansion to the north of where you start, but once that's done, you can go anywhere you like. As you explore you'll need to search for weapon and health upgrades, as well as key items that'll grant you access to initially closed-off areas.
There are a couple of bosses to fight along the way, too, including a serial killer who has turned into a skinless ram and an evil optometrist who was transformed when a pair of tainted eyeballs were put in his head. Creepy, creepy.
The game is much shorter and simpler than similar action-adventures you'll find on the NES, but the scope of the world and the gameplay is unmatched on the 7800. The controls are easy and simple, though they can be a bit awkward due to the forced perspective, and the game is challenging without being unreasonable.
The graphics are fairly good - every area has its own unique look, and tons of enemies and projectiles swarm the screen without any sign of flicker or slowdown. The low resolution can make some of the sprites look a bit awkward - your character looks like Sonny Bonds in the first Police Quest game - but the screen-filling bosses look awesome. The sound is reasonably good for the system considering that is uses the same audio hardware as the Atari 2600 did (there's actual background music!), but the PSG's harsh, raw tones aren't exactly easy on the ear.
I really liked Midnight Mutants. It's one of my favorite games for the 7800, and it has enough personality and substance to make it appealing even to people who aren't familiar with the console.
And really, let's be real: when a game's box art features the hand-painted likeness of Al Lewis with blood dribbling down his chin, you don't just dismiss it and walk away. It demands attention.
For more Halloween/horror-themed games, check out my playlist! https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3gSj_kh1fHuN8U3j4lnYxDOPIpgoQNv3
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No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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