SNES Games I Love #17: Sparkster

On 02/17/2020 at 11:37 AM by The Last Ninja

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Developer: Konami

Publisher: Konami

Genre: Action Platformer

Release: 1994

Currently available on: cartridge only

About the game: Sparkster is one of the few good furry mascots in the wake of Sonic the Hedgehog. The gameplay here is really fun due to Sparkster's ability to rocket around with his jet pack. Levels are designed perfectly to utilize this ability to its fullest potential. Sparkster attacks with a sword that can shoot out bolts of energy. If you want to see the ending, you will have to beat the game on hard, which is a true challenge. Graphics and sound are also top-notch here, which is not surprising coming from Konami.

Why I love it: This game is incredible. It's oozing with creativity. Levels are designed so well and just zipping around with your jet pack is a lot of fun. The style here is very cartoony, but it works perfectly. When you attack the bad guys, their clothes come off and they run away in their boxers! Bosses are really great, although challenging. The evil Rocket Knight is especially cool as he can do everything that Sparkster can do (it's like a dark version of Sparkster). Overall, this game is outstanding, proving once again that Konami was on fire during the 16-bit era.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

02/17/2020 at 12:13 PM

Never heard of this! It's really a shame that so many old, great games are only available in their original media.

The Last Ninja

02/18/2020 at 12:09 AM

Yes, I wish this was available on some kind of virtual console or collection.

Cary Woodham

02/17/2020 at 07:42 PM

I never played this on the SNES. I always wanted to, but it was never at the movie rental places nearby. I was a teen then with not a lot of spare money so I was leary about buying it full price becuase most of the mascot platformers I played before were awful, llike Aero the Acrobat and such. That's another reason why I don't like Sonic as much, and why I played mostly RPGs back then.

02/18/2020 at 12:10 AM

I don't blame you, most furry mascot games were cash grabs. But Sparkster was that rare exception.

daftman

02/17/2020 at 07:49 PM

I remember first discovering this game while looking through old issues of Nintendo Power to find good games to look for at used stores. What a delightful find Sparkster was! There are even enough Sparkster games for a proper collection but I doubt we'll ever see one, even digitally.

02/18/2020 at 12:12 AM

A Sparkster collection would be amazing! I actually have the cart of Rocket Knight Adventures on Genesis, which is a fantastic game, but I haven't managed to find a cart of SNES Sparkster.

KnightDriver

02/18/2020 at 05:00 PM

Love those graphics. I hope I come across a copy.

Super Step Contributing Writer

02/21/2020 at 01:23 AM

This is a game which has a different name but the same character on genesis, right? Always thought it looked fun.

02/22/2020 at 10:21 AM

Actually, there are two Sparkster games on Genesis. The first one was "Rocket Knight Adventures," which is different from this one, and the second was titled "Sparkster" but was again different from the SNES game. So all three are different games, and all three are great.

PixlBit