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 Paperboy is just what the game says, you
are a paperboy. You cruise around on your bike and try to deliver papers to
all the people on your route. Your goal is two-fold, don’t die and deliver papers to all your
paying customers. In order to
successfully deliver a paper you must put in on their porch or in their
mailbox. Sorry through their
windows, yeah that doesn’t
count. If you miss a house you
will lose their business. However,
this game isn’t simply a
matter of mastering the art of tossing the newspaper. No sir, that is the easy part. There are also plenty of obstacles to
get in your way including skateboarders, tornadoes, break-dancers, and
rabid dogs nipping at your ankles.
This aspect is a bit too traumatic for me as one of my greatest
hits as a  child includes me being chased by a dog
while riding my bike. This
incident ended with me knocking down a mailbox with my head, ouch! There is also some guy that runs out of
his house after you even if you deliver a paper to his house. I guess someone should have told
grandpa that the paperboy was coming by.
One other interesting feature is your ability to destroy anything
and everything. Who knew
newspapers could do so much damage.
Hmm, you cancelled your subscription did you, well there goes your
window and your streetlamp, oh and there goes your tombstones as well,
take that! Seriously who puts a
tombstone in their front yard?? If
you are able to survive all the way to the end of a day you get to
participate in an obstacle course.
Don’t worry about
dying here it is just for points and pride. If you can survive through Sunday you
are no longer a Paper Boy but have become a Paper Man! Overall, this is a decent game but
there is not a lot of variety. I
remember loving this game in the arcade when I was a wee child, but
unfortunately the NES doesn’t
come with the handlebar controller.
I was really looking forward to reliving my childhood memories but
this excitement was quickly dashed.
Paperboy does not quite live up to the special memories I have of
it.
Positives:
Delivering papers can be quite
entertaining. The controls are
tight and the game is fairly unique.
There are a wide variety of obstacles and they can be tough to
avoid as the week wears on. The
obstacle course is a nice addition even though it serves no real purpose.
Glaring
Negatives:
 While the game is fairly fun it is
extremely repetitive. Just keep
chucking those papers and avoiding the obstacles. Also, the tornadoes are darn
annoying. Often there is no way to
avoid them if you get trapped between them and other obstacles. Lastly, points and no extra guys,
really? Come on, no reason to be
so stingy.
Graphics
and Sound: Pretty Good
The graphics are pretty good, but
each day looks just like the last.
The houses look nice but they look the same everyday. The sound is acceptable, nothing fancy.
Gameplay
and Controls: Great!
The controls seem to be quite
good. Making quick cuts is important and once you get a feel for your
bike, they aren't too tough. You
can really pull off some tight squeezes.
I am tempted to run over to an old school arcade to see how
difficult the controls were with the handlebar controller.
Features:
What features?
You can choose one or two player.
That's it. Just fire it up and
play.
Fun?:
Decent
It's a weird game. At first the
game is insanely frustrating. The
obstacles are tough to avoid and you will be lucky to live through one
day on your first attempt. But as
you get better the game gets somewhat boring and repetitive.
Challenge:
Medium
It's a weird
game. Too frustrating at first. But then it gets boring and repetitive.
Oh wait, or is that me that's boring and repetitive.
Replay:
Not much
Once you've beaten it, there
isn't much to come back for other than breaking more stuff or trying to
keep more customers on your route.
I have yet to end the week with an entire roster of paying
customers.
2 Player:
Yup
There is an alternating two
player and a fight mode where you try to knock each other off of your
bike. Okay I made up the fighting part, but it would have been cool.
Online
Manual?: Sure.
Nintendo Age has manuals for
every game. Go check them
out.
Bottom
Line: Maybe
 The game is decent and many of you may
have fond memories of playing this game in the arcade or being a paperboy
yourself. If either of these is
true grab Paperboy and enjoy it.
If you have never played this game you should probably give it a
try. It’s nothing special but it in fairly unique
and entertaining for a while.
However, I must warn you, you may really start to hate
skateboarders.
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