Pocky & Rocky / Kiki Kaikai - Nazo no Kuro Manto

Kiki Kaikai is an amusing action shooter game featuring ghosts and other weird creatures. It also features great co-op play. By: Evan G

I received this game a while back on ebay, and it was the first SFC game I ever owned (along with Street Fighter 2). This game is interesting, and fun. It was released in North America as Pocky and Rocky. The story would appear to follow the exploits of a girl and a racoon as they fight some evil Cyclops. The game plays like an overhead action/shooter in the vein of Guerrilla War. You can shoot either fireballs or cards/leaves, plus you deflect projectiles with a stick/tail (depending on whether you are the girl of the racoon).

Graphics: 7/10

There is nothing really that special to distinguish this game from an average snes game. The graphics are colourful, and the enemies and characters are detailed enough. There is some slowdown when there are a lot of sprites in the screen, but it isn’t really that bad.

Sound: 7/10

Again, the sounds are typical of a snes game. The music is suitable for the scenes they are in and are enjoyable to listen to. The sound effects are all right, but the sound effect of hitting projectiles is rather annoying.

Play Control / Gameplay: 8/10

Efficient controls work well in this game. Each button on the face is used, with one button for rapid fire, one for single shot, one for using the stick/tail, and one for diving. In general, you will be continuously firing, except when fighting bosses, which require a bit more strategy. Diving is a bit tricky at first, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes a useful tool to avoid enemy fire.

Overall Score: 7/10

This is a fun little game, but at higher levels, it becomes difficult to proceed. The two-player mode makes this game more fun to play through, and makes it easier to get through the levels, as long as you play with someone who is on par with you in terms of skill. There appears to be a story to the game, but since I cannot read Japanese, it is lost to me. If you like games of this genre, I definitely recommend picking this up, or the North American equivalent, Pocky and Rocky.