This week our Old Game That Doesn’t Suck is Power Blade, a game about… bionic boomerangs.

This is NES platforming at its finest.  Take a man made of half-steel/half-flesh and put him in a futuristic society with some boomerangs.  Then stick him in some rooms with really awesome and diverse enemies… you can’t lose!

Sure, you run-and-gun, but a really nice part of this game is the upgrade system.  Every time you gather a powerup you can throw your boomerang further, gain more powerful boomerangs, or even get multiple boomerangs at once.  The ultimate suit powerup grants the player one-hit kill bullets and a heavily armoured suit.  The game is really good about rewarding the player and making the powerups actually useful.

The platforming and exploration fits the game’s great mechanics.  The enemies fit into each of the seven areas beautifully, each area having new enemy types and mixing it up with previous fights.  Think alternate-reality Megaman with a fresh style and better graphics (dare I say that?).

The music in this game is really good.  Each theme is upbeat and well orchestrated for chip music.

The one downside to this game is that its really hard to find.  I paid about $25 recently to rebuy this title, so I hope it appears on wiiware so that a larger audience can play it.  If you find it in some garage sale, snag it.  It’s a rare game worth playing!