Aero the Acrobat

Ladies and gentlemen, please direct your attention to the high wire above you. There, located on the highest perch is the star of our show, Aero the Acrobat! Clap, clap (crickets chirp).

In case you may have missed it, Aero was a platform game released on the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo in the early 90's. Problem is, Aero was never a real big hit and I'm not quite sure why it has been ported over to the GBA. So it is with a sharp pencil that I write this review.

First off, Aero appears to be a pretty straight up side scrolling game. With a slightly clever intro we are introduced to both Aero and his nemesis, Edgar Ektor.

The back-story on Edgar was that he was a rich spoiled brat who one time in his youth pulled a nasty prank at the circus and was forever banned from attending. Fast forward several years and Edgar is an incredibly wealthy industrialist who apparently has no life other then exacting his revenge on the circus community. Now I have played many, many games, and I honestly cannot say that there has been a more ridiculous plot device ever used. Even small children (one of whom I asked) will find this character development to be truly sad.

Controlling Aero also has its problems. While the set up of the buttons seem solid, the control itself leaves much to be desired. While jumping along the tops of small pillars Aero continually overcompensates when he lands, inevitably resulting in him falling and injuring himself.

Graphically, the game is middle of the road, even for the GBA. The details of the icons are so small and difficult to see it just kept occurring to me that porting this game over was a mistake. If you can't see the tiny details on the 2-inch screen, then you probably won't have much fun playing.

This game really just isn't worth it. While on a recent road trip, my wife asked that I turn down the music because it was grating on her nerves. Even fans of side scrolling adventures will be hard pressed to find any redeeming qualities in this game. There are far better games to satisfy your platform thirst.