I know I picked a strange X-Men title to play through, but I am fond of this long-forgotten Sega Game Gear game. X-Men: Gamemaster’s Legacy was one of four Game Gear games I had as a kid. I recall countless road trips, taking turns playing Game Gear (for about an hour or so before the 6 AA batteries it chugged through would die), and trying desperately to beat this 8-bit superhero action game. I never did manage to do so back then, so I thought I was long overdue to finally cross this one off the backlog.
As a 90s game, X-Men: Gamemaster’s Legacy understandably models the 90s cartoon. Considering Marvel just revived this show, it’s easy to see just how popular it was. One of the reasons I loved this game as a kid was because I was able to play as some of my favorite characters. Unfortunately, Gamemaster’s Legacy only lets you play as two members of the titular team right off the bat: Storm and Cyclops. The rest, including my personal favorite, Wolverine, have to be unlocked by playing the various levels. This seems tedious but this is 80% of the actual game. All of the levels when you boot up the game are based around “rescuing” an individual character. Wolverine, Rogue, Jean Grey, Gambit, and Bishop all have dedicated levels, and some are much harder than others. Once you manage to rescue the whole team, you are treated to a sequence of levels to finish the game, where you get to fight some classic X-Men baddies: Apocalypse, Mister Sinister, and Gamemaster himself! Oh, and if you’re really crafty, you can even find Cable hidden away in one of these maps. None of these levels or enemies are inherently terrible… they’re just not all that good either. The gameplay has little variety and unless you’re trying out different characters, the fun begins to wear off.
The real problem though is not every X-Man is created equally. Cyclops, for instance, is a waste of a character slot. He is weak and cannot even shoot his eye beams straight! Rogue on the other hand, is an overpowered melee juggernaut (but not THAT Juggernaut). Most of the game is built around making sure you pick the right character for the right level, instead of playing your favorites. It does take some of the joy out of the game. Especially if Cyclops is your favorite X-Man. Because he is never the right choice!
So then why was I so eager to jump back into this mediocre handheld game? For me, nostalgia really hits hard. I love X-Men, but this game was more about me reliving my childhood gaming. I recall spending hour after hour trying to unlock Wolverine before the Game Gear would die, and fighting with my brother over whose turn it was to play this or who had to sit with the Game Boy instead that day. Gaming is full of memories like this. And when I play some of my old games, it brings me back to what was a mostly happy childhood. I cherish those memories and the feelings that come with them. X-Men: Gamemaster’s Legacy might not be worth your time, but it will always hold a special place in my heart.
If you want to see just how bad Cyclops is for yourself though, X-Men: Gamemaster’s Legacy is fairly inexpensive, averaging about $11 in online listings. Although the AA batteries to get your Game Gear up and running might run up those costs!
