Tech: Sin & Punishment review

When the N64 was getting its clock cleaned by the original PlayStation, it's no secret Nintendo gave up and shoveled many of the later N64 titles onto the nascent GameCube. One title that did not come to American shores was "Sin & Punishment," a game developed by the legendary Treasure, famous for shooters like "Gunstar Heroes" and "Radiant Silvergun." Now, however, 7 years after the original Japanese N64 launch, the game is finally available to American gamers via the Wii Virtual Console.



"Sin & Punishment" borrows ideas from a lot of previous 3D rail shooters, including the old arcade game Cabal, but everything is wrapped in Treasure's typical polish. You take the role of a young rebel soldier fighting against monsters named Ruffians, as well as conventional military forces. The plot is fairly throwaway; the game is all about fast, arcade-style action. You'll encounter boss enemies at a fairly regular clip, stuff will explode all the time, and you carry a sword to swipe at enemies who come in close.

It's a fun game, though the mechanics are less complex than the rest of Treasure's landmark shooters, which makes the whole experience more shallow. After you've completed the game, which isn't an easy task on the "Normal" difficulty level, there's not much left to do but jockey for high scores.

Rating: 83/100

The game's standout level features epic flybys of a carrier battle group and combat through the air and on the sea. Really outstanding stuff, especially considering the meager powers of the N64: