The recent release of the Earnest Evans Collection has stirred nostalgia among retro gaming fans, but initial reviews suggest the compilation largely fails to deliver on that promise. featuring three action titles – Earnest Evans, El Viento, and Annet Returns – originally released for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive and Mega CD, the collection is being scrutinized for inconsistent gameplay and unrealized potential. while offering a glimpse into a specific era of Sega development, critics say the titles largely feel like lesser versions of more triumphant games from the period.
The recently released Earnest Evans Collection has sparked a wave of nostalgia, but fails to live up to expectations for many retro gaming enthusiasts. Initial reactions to the compilation, which includes titles from the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive era, suggest a missed opportunity to showcase hidden gems.
The collection bundles together three titles: Earnest Evans (available for both Mega Drive and Mega CD), El Viento (Mega Drive), and Annet Returns (Mega-CD). The first two are action-platformers, while the latter is a fighting game. Despite sharing a common universe, characters, and a vibrant, playful aesthetic reminiscent of many Sega titles of the time, the games are hampered by inconsistent design and a sense of unrealized potential. The overall impression is that these titles feel like lesser versions of games players may have already experienced.
The initial game, Earnest Evans, immediately reveals the core issues present throughout the trilogy. While the game’s visuals initially promise an ambitious, cinematic experience – marketed as an action-adventure title in the vein of Indiana Jones, complete with exotic locales, legendary treasures, and deadly traps – the gameplay falls short. There are also echoes of Castlevania in its use of a whip and challenging platforming. But once players take control, the experience quickly unravels.
The protagonist, Earnest, controls awkwardly, feeling more like a marionette than a capable adventurer. Movement, jumping, and whip attacks all feel unnatural and stilted. This is due to the character being constructed from multiple independent sprites, an attempt to simulate more realistic movement that ultimately results in frustrating control. Players often find themselves stumbling, crawling, or even performing unintended somersaults, frequently leading to unavoidable damage. This awkwardness highlights the challenges developers faced in early 3D animation and character control.
Level design and enemy encounters also feel disjointed and underdeveloped. While the story takes players through underground cave systems, mountains, and deserts, the environments lack a distinct identity and could just as easily be set on another planet. Enemies range from the bizarre (living Moai statues seemingly lifted from Gradius) to the completely inexplicable (a Michael Jackson-esque vampire wizard). Difficulty also fluctuates wildly, and the lack of invincibility frames after being hit allows even minor enemies to quickly deplete a player’s health. The result is a frustrating, unwieldy, and unforgiving platformer with little to redeem it.
El Viento offers a faster pace and more responsive controls. At first glance, it bears a resemblance to early Ninja Gaiden titles, but the similarities quickly fade. In El Viento, players control Anett, a strong-willed American woman from the 1920s, as she battles a mad cult leader and mob boss Al Capone, who are attempting to resurrect an ancient Cthulhu-like deity to destroy the world. The game’s narrative is undeniably outlandish, but it’s also strangely captivating. In fact, it’s the strongest title in the collection, though praising it feels like highlighting the least broken window in a shattered greenhouse.
El Viento suffers from the same fundamental problems as its predecessor: it prioritizes style over substance. It’s a fast-paced action-platformer that demands quick reflexes, but lacks thoughtfully designed levels or enemy encounters that allow players to overcome challenges. Difficulty is inconsistent, and some boss battles are excessively difficult, likely to artificially extend the game’s short runtime.
While playable and initially impressive, El Viento ultimately feels like a montage of action sequences from a low-budget Rocky film, lacking the depth or meaning behind the spectacle.
The final game, Annet Returns, feels like a moment of complete developer resignation. This side-scrolling action game features Anett in a simplistic and uninspired fighting game. Waves of uninspired enemies attack, and the unique or vibrant elements of previous titles quickly devolve into monotony. The dramatic flair feels as lifeless as a recently deceased person’s heart monitor. Players struggle to progress, moving rightward like zombies, growing increasingly apathetic with each button press. It was at this point that it became clear why this trilogy has been largely forgotten – these games simply weren’t memorable enough to stand the test of time. There’s nothing here that previous or subsequent games did better.
So, does the Earnest Evans Collection have any value? Perhaps. But the re-release of these games in modern formats begs the question: why? Preserving and re-releasing games that weren’t particularly good to begin with raises questions about the value of retro gaming preservation.
As a cultural and historical document of a bygone era, the Earnest Evans Collection isn’t entirely without merit. In an age where retro often equates to carefully curated nostalgia and celebrated classics, making room for bad games is a strangely liberating and punk-rock gesture. The trilogy represents an interesting misstep in gaming history, prioritizing art design and cutscenes over actual gameplay. It symbolizes a branch that never bore fruit, but from which lessons can be learned. These titles showcase an era of bold experimentation from Japanese game developers, sometimes without a full understanding of the medium or its limitations.
From this perspective, the Earnest Evans Collection does have intrinsic value. For those interested in gaming history, the collection serves as a digital tombstone for unrealized ambitions, half-baked ideas, and game mechanics that were already outdated at the time of their release. It’s a time capsule from the early 90s – a period when cool anime girls and flashy cutscenes were considered enough to sell a game.
Ultimately, the Earnest Evans Collection isn’t the return of a classic. Instead, it’s a reminder that for every beloved retro game, there are countless forgettable imitators. The games that tried, but didn’t quite make the cut. Perhaps that’s what makes Earnest Evans worth remembering – a reminder that the past wasn’t always better.
