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Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a side-scrolling action platformer that channels the golden age of classic 16-bit action games in a full-throttle quest for revenge.
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Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider Reviews
Professional reviews from gaming critics
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a fantastic game. It reminds you of how those old SNES and Genesis games were, enhanced with plenty of quality of life elements. If all your side scrolling melee retro games got together, and created a game in the lab of a maniacal government, it would be this. If you love retro 16-bit action games, you won't regret this. Cyber ninja vanish.
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider conjures the spirit of the golden age of 16-bit gaming. Everything from the graphics to the soundtrack perfectly recreates the essence of early '90s gaming, while the gameplay mechanics feel contemporary enough where it hits the sweet spot in blending modern with classic. The most important element that Moonrider recreated is making a modern 16-bit game that is just as fun and exciting as the titles that inspired it were back in their heyday. Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a retro-inspired title that shows just how fun a trip to a dystopian future can be.
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider isn’t content to just imitate the 16-bit masters, it is coming for their crowns.
If this story feels a little similar - a cybernetic soldier travelling around the world defeating evil 'robot masters' if you will - then the structure of Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider will come as no surprise. The player is able to choose from five levels in any order, much like the best from a Mega Man game, defeating the fellow super soldier at the end of the stage and gaining their signature weapon. Meanwhile, much like the Mega Man X games, there are secret upgrades to be found among the stages that the player can find, such as regenerating special weapon power or the ever-useful double ju...
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is great in a lot of ways. Even if it stays almost too close to the Mega Man X formula, it still utilizes it well. The visuals and music are definite highlights that put this game apart, but it also just feels satisfying to play. The ride is over all-too-soon, but I’m happy to have taken it. It was another good challenge and we cut up tons of machines, fascists, and fascist machines along the way. More than that, I’d love to see some speedruns of this game because it looks ripe for excellent players to learn and master. If you want a decent action platformer to kic...
While short and inconsistent in challenge, Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a fun throwback to late 90s Japanese cyberpunk spectacle.
That’s going to be subjective, though. Even if it’s not going to be renting space in my mind, Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a tight retro-inspired action game that I have very few gripes about. JoyMasher has already proven themselves with some solid titles, and Moonrider continues that trend. It doesn’t re-write the script for the games that inspired it, but it does a great job getting the mood across. If you enjoyed their previous titles, you can expect the same talent on display here. JoyMasher has stayed away from sequels so far, but if Moonrider got back on its bike, I’d happily scooch u...
If you're in the mood for an enjoyable action-packed 16-bit campaign then Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is here to scratch your itch.
Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a quick and powerful hit of retro action platformer nostalgia.
There’s nothing mind-blowing about Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider. And it perhaps doesn’t quite feel as tight or rewarding to play as JoyMasher’s previous game, the fantastic Blazing Chrome. But it’s a solid take on the classic action platformer, and is bound to entertain those who were around during the genre’s heyday, as well as newcomers keen on some challenging action.
Overall, Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider is a stellar homage to 16-bit action platformers of the 1990s. Every detail in the game successfully recreates the feeling of playing an SNES side-scroller that demands high levels of concentration and technical skill. Aside from a few boss fights, the gameplay feels quick, fast, and exciting, despite being intentionally dated mechanically. The fact that this game intentionally limits itself to an imitation of older games might bother some players, and while more effort could have gone into expanding certain areas of the game, Vengeful Guardian: Moonrider ...
Rather than being a game for people who miss the old school ninja platformers of yesteryear, Moonrider feels more like a game made for the people who miss the idea of them. The game borrows liberally from its inspirations and combines them into a game that looks and plays the part just fine. It just doesn’t push itself or the player on a level that will fully satisfy people who still regularly enjoy the games it takes from.