Little known Sega classic
Not to be confused with another game called Hopper, which is actually a clone of Frogger, this is instead a clever but little known Sega arcade game. The inspiration seems to be the Donkey Kong-style platformer but it's not a game which Sega seems to acknowledge as part of its extensive legacy which is a shame as it's actually quite fun stuff. The goal is pretty simple, requiring players to collect eight treasure chests from a series of single screen levels, each of which are populated by a number of fast moving enemies. You can take out the bad guys by jumping on their heads (something which Mario didn't learn until some time later), but watch out as they can respawn indefinitely. You can jump around the various platforms to get to you goal but you can also hang on to them in a pretty cool move, while there are also springboards and pipes to aid in getting around too. That's pretty much all there is to the game to be honest and while it is undeniably fun, it is also quite shortlived. There are only eight stages to complete and while the enemies are pretty dangerous on later levels, they're still not challenging enough to keep you occupied for that long. The graphics and sound are pretty charming though, with all that classic old-school charm, thanks to some nicely designed sprites and cool sound effects. Level design too is pretty cool, with some clever additions like the pipes and springboards and although this is short, it is most definitely fun. If you enjoy classic platformers like Bubble Bobble and the original Mario Bros (see Mario VGA), this is well worth seeking out.
