All has been quiet in the Saturn front lately, as the calm
before the Christmas '97 storm is about to begin. Some of
Saturn's best games ever will be released within the next
two business quarters: "M.K.Rayearth", "Quake" and "Last
Bronx" are the games I'm excited about, along with the
recently announced "Burning Rangers" for next year. Yuji
Naka and his Sonic Team better make this new title as good
as their hype makes it seem, since nothing short of a
miracle will equal (or surpass) the joys of their best game
to date, "Christmas NiGHTS". So I'm playing a holiday title
in the middle of September...big deal! Aren't we supposed
to feel the Christmas spirit every day of our lives
(excluding atheists, of course)?
I never cared to explore or thoroughly sample this Sega
freebie that came packed with some magazines and Saturn
games last Christmas. I just got it with my copy of "Next
Generation", played it a couple of times and threw it in
with my pile of sampler CD's. It wasn't until recently that
I decided to give "Christmas NiGHTS" another shot, mostly
because I played the original "NiGHTS" to death and was
impressed with the stuff Sonic Team did with their "Sonic
Jam" package. What a fool I was to let this magnificent
piece of gaming software sit on my shelf! There is more
effort, emotional/gameplay rewards and polish in this free
Saturn sampler than in half the entire library of PSX CD's.
"Christmas NiGHTS" has a truckload of features that were
supposed to ship with the original "NiGHTS" back in
September of 1996, but were left out due to deadline
constraints. Nearly everyone agrees that the game was a
phenomenal experience that was dragged down due to the
small number of levels (which were incidentally packed with
high replay value). When the original and the sampler's
features are put together, the original vision of Mr.
Naka's team of developers becomes clear: a moving and
dreamy playing experience that rewarded your repeated
efforts with Easter eggs and tapped the internal calendar
feature of the Saturn to the fullest. Along with improved
scrolling, sharper graphics and new textures, "Christmas
NiGHTS" feels like a mini-sequel. If you don't have it or
can't get a free copy from the Sega of America folks, you
must track down a fellow Saturn gamer who has a copy and
borrow it for a try. Forget about asking someone to give
you their copy, since this baby is destined for classic
status (so is Nintendo's "Virtual Boy", but for the
opposite reasons).
GRAPHICS/VISUALS: A-
Depending on what date your Saturn calendar is set to (more
of that under "Gameplay/Fun Factor"), "Christmas NiGHTS"
polishes the graphical look of the original game with a new
coat of holiday textures: Santa suits for all characters,
decorations on all trees in Nightopia (including the Ideya
capsule), and bright new backgrounds. Remember how the
background graphics would be drawn-in at the last second in
the original "NiGHTS"? That effect has been severely
minimized and is less noticeable in the sampler, with a
higher level of resolution to boot.
Other small touches make a big difference when added up:
the jumpsuits Claris and Elliot wear during Winter months
not in the holiday schedule, the use of a modified Spring
Valley for Elliot's dream (Claris' remains the same), the
choice (with the internal clock) of all sorts of falling
goodies to see when you play (candy, falling stars, etc.),
the high-resolution stills used for the "NiGHTS MUSEUM"
Easter eggs, the new hand-drawn intro/ending sequences,
etc. I can't recall another sampler promoting the real game
that is more fun to play than the game it is supposed to
be promoting; Sega knew this one was for the fans.
MUSIC/SOUND EFFECTS: A+
All the sound effects (the paraloop music, the increasing
tone as you fly thorough consecutive rings, the "Aptiva"
yell, etc.) were recycled from the original, and were
pumped up for the holiday motif. The stars that used to
populate Nightopia have been replaced by bells, and the
springs with party poppers; their sound effects have been,
therefore, tweaked to sound accordingly. You'd be hard
pressed, however, to pick any noticeable difference between
the "Christmas NiGHTS" sound effects, and the original.
The music, however, is heavenly sent, beautifully composed
and is one of the best videogame soundtracks ever! Most of
it was in the original "NIGHTS", but is far more accessible
and fun to play them with the Jukebox (which must be earned
as a present) than straight from the CD (which is OK). All
the tracks from the original game are here, as well as a
couple of new songs exclusive to the sampler; the haunting
one minute loop that plays during the "Press Start" screen
(Winter months that are not holidays) is stuck in my head,
and is one of the most beautiful tunes I've ever heard.
There are remixes of Christmas songs like "Jingle Bells",
as well as an acappella version of the "NiGHTS" musical
theme ("Dreams Dreams" I believe it's called, but I'm not
100% sure). This theme, written and composed by Tomoko
Sasaki, has got to be one of the most enjoyable pop songs
I've ever heard (and I despise that s@%^ like you wouldn't
believe!), nicely fitting the surrealistic world of
"NiGHTS". The Karaoke present features two versions
(instrumental and with lyrics), and it makes dorks like
yours truly wish they had an understanding girlfriend
sitting next to you when you're singing stuff like: "Love
can come...through an open door...just be strong..." But
not everyone can be an EASTMAN (Boo Boo-hoo!).
GAMEPLAY/FUN FACTOR: A+
Those not familiar with "NiGHTS" will scoff at the fact
that the game only has two levels (one for each of the
kids, although Elliot's is a modified mirror version of
Claris', "Manx TT"-style), and that after you go through it
a couple of times there is really nothing new to see
(except the presents). True, but for those caught in Sonic
Team's spell, the game becomes an involving experience in
which playing isn't a matter of scoring the most points or
beating the level faster (although you can make those your
motivators if you so choose). You don't play "Christmas
NiGHTS" (or the original), you live it! The Christmas
holiday aspects fit into the emotional feel the character
and its environment populate: hearts that don't feel
warmth, lack of spirit in people's holiday routines, etc.
If you check this site's "Tips & Tricks" section you'll
have access to the key information needed to get the most
out of this sampler: the dates that must be entered into
the internal calendar/clock of the Saturn. That will give
players a chance to admire how this underappreciated and
barely-explored feature of Sega's system can make a world
of difference. And the best part of the CD are the many
Easter eggs Yuji Naka and Co. packed into the game's
presents feature, which must be accessed through a
Concentration-type game of matching cards. The frustration
you'll feel when you've played for fifteen minutes to get
to the matching-card game and get a Reala card first (you
lose your earned picks for that attempt) cannot be
minimized. But if you persist, you get little rewards like:
-a hidden Sonic game with the blue one running in full 3D
through the Spring Valley, collecting blue orbs and
avoiding the clock in order to go one-on-one with Dr.
"Puffy" Robotnik;
-high-resolution stills of everything "NiGHTS" related you
could think of: mouse pads, dolls, artwork for all
characters, etc. Think of a stripped-down version of the
Museums in "Sonic Jam";
-mini-games with different challenges, like "LINK" and
"TIME";
-videos from early Beta versions of the original "NiGHTS",
including one from the Tokyo Toy show in 1996, where the
game pretty much had its worldwide debut.
There are lots of other stuff, and each one of those you
earn by perfecting the "NiGHTS" routine over and over
again. By tweaking the clock and the calendar, "Christmas
NiGHTS" cannot be the exact game twice if you so choose.
OVERALL: A+ (It's free!)
Can't say enough good things about a title that showed
Saturn supporters that Sega cares for its gamers. It didn't
make an impact with the casual gamers, since Saturn fell
behind PSX and N64 during Christmas '96 (and it will
probably happen again in 1997). As a morale booster,
"Christmas NiGHTS" keeps the faithful happily holding onto
the Saturn cursing the injustice destiny has perpetrated to
Sega's fortunes. We can only hope a fleshed out sequel
(with more levels, PLEASE!) will materialize either as a
Saturn-exclusive last hurrah, or as ammunition for the
next-generation console. But "Burning Rangers" is up next,
and since it uses a modified "NiGHTS" engine we can pretend
it is a spiritual follow-up of sorts to Sonic Team's
greatest creation to date (sorry Mr. Hedgehog).
