Developer: KID (SNES), Athena (N64)
Publisher: Athena (SNES), UFO Interactive (N64)
Platforms and Release Dates (US): SNES (September 1992), Nintendo 64 (January 15, 2001)
Genre: Sports
Super Bowling was the title of 2 bowling video games released for the SNES and N64, and while the core mechanics are they same, they are fairly different.
I will discuss the N64 version here (I may add the SNES version here after I acquire more information).
The N64 version has more than double the content of the SNES version of the same name. There are 8 character each with different stats that govern Power, Accuracy, and Curve. There are also 8 different lanes to bowl on, based around a different theme and Oil Pattern. The Oil Pattern affects how the ball behaves on the lane. In No Oil, the ball will start to curve a lot right away, Half Oil the ball will barely hook on the first half of the lane and will hook a lot on the second half of the lane, Normal Oil has Oil on about 3/4 of the lane, with the ball barely hooking on the front 3/4 of the lane and hooking a lot on the last 1/4 of the lane, and All Oil has the whole lane coated in oil causing the ball to barely hook at all on the lane. Two of the lanes also have bumpers, which prevents the ball from going in the Gutters on the side for a 0. The mechanics use a 3 step system. You got the Top Arrow, which is where you will throw the ball. Next, you go to the bottom arrow, which is where you will stand. The 3rd step involves 3 different meters. The Power Meter is how fast you through the ball and can be adjusted by pushing the stick up/down, the Curve Meter is how much the ball will curve and can be adjusted by pushing the stick left/right, the Accuracy Meter starts when you press the A button after you adjusted the other 2 meters, it fills up with Blue, Orange, and Yellow segments, and rebounds when it fills up, you press A in the middle of the Yellow section on the Rebound for the best accuracy. Missing the middle of the Yellow section left/right will cause the ball to go left/right respectively of your intended target when you release it. You can also adjust the Power and Curve meter while the Accuracy meter is filling up before for the rebound if you need a last second adjustment. Once you start up the Accuracy meter, there is no going back. You can also change the weight of your ball, from 6-16 pounds. Lighter balls can be thrown harder and hook more, but deflect off pins more easily instead of plowing through. Heavier balls can't be thrown as hard or hook as much, but will plow through pins with little deflection. Choosing the right ball for a given setup of pins can be crucial. You can also play on a Single Lane or Double Lane, the screen is always split in 2 vertically, in Single Lane mode, play takes place on the left half and a Live window on the right half. On Double Lane mode, play takes place on both lanes, which can make for faster play, when one side is done, that side can walk around on the lane and look at things until the other side gets done. The option of Single Lane or Double Lane depends on the number of Players and Game Mode. You can play most modes with 1-4 players, with at least 1 player being Human, the rest can be filled in with CPU players.
The gameplay is basic bowling, you try to get the highest score you can over 10 frames, which is called a Game, 10 frames in a Game of bowling. Each frame can allot you up to 2 balls to knock down all 10 pins. Getting all 10 pins on the first ball is a Strike and the next two balls you throw are added to that frame. 2 Strikes in a row is called a Double, 2 Strikes in a row is called a Turkey and every Strike thereafter is just XX in a row, with XX being the number of Strikes. Getting all 10 pins on the second ball is a Spare and the next ball you throw is added to that frame. If you fail to knock down all 10 pins on the 2nd ball, it is called an Open Frame. The pins reset after all 10 pins are knocked down or once both balls are thrown and play moves to the next frame. On the final frame, which is Frame 10, you can throw up to 3 balls on that frame if you get a Strike or a Spare. If there is a gap between the pins after the 1st ball, it is called a Split, Splits are usually hard to pick up on the 2nd ball. If the ball goes into the gutters on the sides, it is called a Gutter Ball and the ball counts as a 0. A perfect game in Bowling is a 300, which is 12 strikes in a row. The CPU on Pro difficulty will get very close to 300 games on a regular basis.
There are a selection of game modes as well. You can play Standard Bowling (Open Bowling) as described above in Singles, Doubles, or Teams. Singles is that each person bowls for him/herself, for 1-4 players on Single or Double Lane. Doubles is where you pair up with a 2nd player, you each bowl your own Game and your scores are added together for a total, for 2 or 4 players on Single or Double Lane. Teams is where you pair up with a 2nd player, this time you share a game, as in you alternate balls, Player 1 throws ball 1, Player 2 throws ball 2, Player 1 throws ball 3, and so on, and you do that for the whole Game for the highest score, for 2 or 4 players on Single or Double Lane. Golf mode is Bowling Golf, how exciting! In this mode, each frame is a hole, and each hole has a different pin setup that you have to knock down in as few balls as possible. Each hole has a Par, which is always 1 of 2, with the objective being to get at or under Par. You have a maximum of 8 balls to knock down all the pins on that hole before you are forced to move to the next one. There are 9 holes in each game of golf. Stroke mode is a contest to get the lowest score possible in a game, for 1-4 players on Single or Double Lane. Match mode is a direct competition between 2 players, where you compete on each hole for the lowest score, the player that scores the lowest on that hole wins the hole, with the objective being to win the most holes overall, for 2 players only and on Double Lane only. There is also the Challenge Mode. In this mode, you have to clear 10 different setups of pins within 5 misses, if you miss 5 times it is game over. The setups get progressively harder the further in the challenge mode you go, for 1-4 players on Single or Double Lane. In Acquisition Mode, you play in best of 3 matches against CPU opponents, this is also where you unlock characters and lanes to use for other modes. You bowl in the home lane of the opponent you choose, for 1 player only on Double Lane only. You also have the Practice mode, where you can choose any setup of pins and practice forever if you feel like, for 1 player only on Single Lane only.
The last mode available is the Vs Mode, which is probably the most unique mode. This is a 2 player only mode on Double Lane only. This mode is a direct Survival competition between the 2 players. You both start with a set amount of Life, measured in Time. When you run out of Life, you lose. Your life constantly drains while you are lining up your shot, when you go to step 3 of the throwing, the accuracy meter automatically starts to fill and your character begins to throw the ball, so you have to adjust the Power and Curve before the Accuracy meter rebounds. While you are throwing the ball and the ball is traveling down the lane, your Life stops decreasing, and begins decreasing again when you go back to lining up your shot. Unlike the other modes, you can take as many balls as you need to knock down the set of 10 pins that are there, and they reset when you knock down the last pin. There are ways to gain life, lose life, and attack your opponent. If you get a Strike, you attack your opponent's life, and the attack grows stronger with each successive Strikes in a row. If you get a Spare, you regain your life the amount equivalent to bring attacked with a single Strike. Every ball after a Spare increases your life by a lesser amount when you knock down the last pin in the set. If you pick up a Split, you regain life and attack your opponent's life at the same time. If you fail to hit at least 1 pin on each ball or get a gutter ball, it is a Miss and you take a hit on your Life. When you have 5 seconds of life life, you get a warning countdown. Play continues until 1 player runs out of Life. This is probably the most interesting mode out of the lot.
The graphics and music are kind of blah, but get the job done.
Bottom Line: N64 Super Bowling is a pretty blah game overall, but it can provide a bit of fun, especially the unique Vs mode. This is worth a Rent or a Play.
I also did an LP on this game, watch them here!
Part 1: Practice and Open-Single
Part 2: Open-Double and Open-Team
Part 3: Golf Mode and Challenge Mode
Part 4: Acquisition Mode
Part 5: Vs Mode
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