Dracula Twins

Dracula Twins (NES) is a game which released by Psygnosis (also known as Nibris in the US) in the early '90s. This Game Boy Advance game is a kooky side-scrolling game and uses the Game Boy Advance's Wi-Fi capabilities to simulate playing against a friend in your town. However, you are not a maiden of your own: Instead, you are a princess who has been kidnapped by the evil Count Dracula. Instead, you play as two incarnations of Dracula, the first two being the younger, male Drago and the female Drago, while the female Drago is the one who was able to save the princess.

Dracula Twins is quite a bit different from other Game Boy Advance games. In fact, its gameplay is much the same as the first one - You take on the role of Dracula as you attempt to rescue Princess 'Nohler'. You have the option to play as either a male or female version of Dracula, and the first and the third versions of the game all use the same battle system, albeit with a few new twists. One of the most notable new features is the use of Tetriminos - now used to shoot jewels off walls, they actually transform into something that could only be destroyed by blasting them away. And secondly, the gameplay in Dracula Twins is much like the first game in the series, albeit with a slight twist. You only have a limited number of Drazons per stage - once you're certain that your target colour is yellow, all your enemies will disappear and be knocked back out for a set amount of time. What's a bit more subtle is that the Dracula Twins feature more enemies than the first game does, as well as higher and more powerful bosses - with the former featuring more varied enemies.

In addition to the Dracula Twins' extra stages and bosses, there's also been a chance to revisit previous locales, and that's where the most exciting new feature comes in. Every stage has two or three additional stages (around five and six in total), which players can choose from for their own custom stages. One of the more exciting new additions is the ability to make use of the Drill Rush machine - a glowing line, with a random high or low effect reflecting a specific direction on the map - for all of the stages. It's a system that really changes the way you approach some of the later levels, and it does make subsequent stages much more fun and interesting.

The Drill Rush machine acts as an excellent tool for messing up the many puzzles, and this is where that resource really shines. One of the biggest challenges in this stage is locating and placing enough items in the space at all times, and thankfully this will be a relatively painless task. You simply need to get around the map quickly, then activate the Drill Rush unit and then put them into a central position on the bottom screen. This is crucial for winning some of the later stages, but as there are no limits to what you can throw at the clock, it can be quite the challenge.

As is the case in other Kirby games in the series, it's rather simple to navigate the world and avoid hazards, even when you're limited to a couple of heads. The Drill Rush, in particular, takes this to a whole new level, in that you'll need to maneuver through a couple of stages of basic Drill Rush action, but it's one of the most fun parts of the whole game. You can have up to four of your friends team up at once, which, if you've gotten some friends to play with, can be pretty good fun, and it's even possible to replay levels on a single player map. The second, arguably, is the most entertaining, as you'll be tearing through various hazards like metal pipes and black holes; another of the unique additions in Kirby's Return to Dream Land is the ability to put on rails and blast through other opponents in the game.

The ability to do this is probably what's going to make the game more interesting, as the Roller's levels usually make for a rather challenging and frantic time, so it's a bit difficult to play it safe. That said, the game is certainly not easy, so you'll still have to be pretty good at timing jumps and extending your line. Kirby's moves will come in handy when you encounter a lot of enemies, as you can use them to get past certain obstacles and move through platforms. In addition to the level select option, you'll be able to use the D-pad to toggle through some of the game's other modes, including the new Battle mode and the snappier Picture Mode.

As for the graphics, the game features a simple but slick look that takes full advantage of the Wii's unique features. The game features a cel-shaded look that looks fantastic.