The Good Old Days Review
The Goonies is one of those movies that, if it were on WPIX on Saturday morning while channel surfing (please, please do not make me explain that), would remain on until the end. To this day, if I hear Goonies, I immediately think…
If you are wondering if there are Goonies video games, there are several in fact!. Konami released The Goonies I and II for the Famicom, with the sequel also available on the NES. Even the Commodore 64 had a Goonies game. If you are old enough to remember these, you know they were action-adventure/metroidvania-style games that were pretty difficult. Add in the fact that Google did not exist in 1986, so it's unlikely you'll find hints or solutions. I bet you could call the Nintendo Power hotline. Oh, the good old days (sorry, not sorry).
Developed by Gravity Co., LTD, The Good Old Days is “A nostalgic metroidvania from the good old days back in 19XX.” In a direct homage to the Goonies film, you play as Sean, a member of the Noogies, who must find his friends and pay back a loan shark who has come to collect on Sean’s missing father’s debt. Set in Arostia (sounds like Astoria…), Sean must find enough money before the day ends and before Ma, Biff, Chuck, and Frank (otherwise known as Mama, Jake, Francis, and Sloth) find the treasure themselves. Paying back the debt is only the beginning.
Players begin the game as Sean. The loan shark has a heart after all and gifts Sean an unlimited supply of bombs. These can be used to defeat enemies, but are mainly used to open up doors containing keys and loot. Combat is not really the focus here, which is evident in how the bombs are used. Once dropped, Sean has a brief window where he can push it forward or just run away before the bomb explodes, damaging anything in its small area of effect. This includes enemies who all have set patrol patterns. If a bomb blocks an enemy's path, they will just turn around. Standard enemies will die in one hit, but are sometimes not worth the effort, as there are usually paths around them. On the other hand, the bombs are unlimited, so once you feel comfortable with the way they operate, kill everything. Bombs are not just for the seen, though, as you will discover walls that can be busted open. I also discovered that bombs can be used to gain a little extra height on jumps, that is, if you are quick enough to jump before the explosion. By my third run, I figured out how to do a bomb jump, which is not explicitly explained but works in a pinch until you gain the ability to jump higher. If Sean gets lost and there appears to be no way forward, chances are you were not looking hard enough.
Sean is not alone in his adventures, though. That snake of a loan shark kidnapped them as an incentive to force you to pay back the debt (look, it was the 1980s - tasking a child with paying back 30k is the plot of most movies). Finding them is the Metroidvania equivalent of locating new abilities. Instead of powering up some suit, each member of the Noogies can be swapped in and out for their unique ability. The location of the friends is marked on the map, but until you find the actual map of the area, they are just marked on a blank section. Foodie was the first friend I encountered in my playthrough. If Sean is the game counterpart of Mikey from The Goonies, Foodie is definitely Chunk. Foodies’ special ability is moving large crates, and their attack is a headbutt. Sean can only damage enemies with the bombs, so Foodie adds a normalized melee attack to the arsenal. Before finding Foodie, Sean had encountered a number of those large crates, forcing him to find other routes. With Foodie, backtracking becomes significantly easier. If you have been following along up to now, Sean’s other friends are indeed the counterparts to Data and Mouth. Each comes with a unique traversal ability and attack.
Despite appearing central to the plot, Sean does not need to locate his friends to repay the debt. There is even an achievement to do so, although I did not reach that point in my playthrough. Outside of his friends, Sean can find additional upgrades to aid in his exploration. As you explore Arostia, your path will be blocked by freezing water, sections on fire, electrified floors, and underwater tunnels. Luckily, there are items allowing for safe passage. These items are also permanent upgrades and persist into future playthroughs.
The Good Old Days takes approximately 3-4 hours to complete the first time. The genius of the game is that you will want to play it again. There are 8 endings in total, which puts a completionist playthrough in the 20-hour range. Why can’t you do all this in your first playthrough? Well, when the loan shark said you had until the end of the day to pay back the debt, he actually meant it. Sean has 14 real-time hours to return with the 30k. 14 hours is a significant amount of time, so you are not really racing the clock. Dying does take a few seconds off the clock, but nothing insurmountable. For research purposes, I let time expire and it actually took some effort to do.
Anyway, subsequent runs of the game become both shorter and longer. Huh? Let me explain. The first permanent upgrade I found was the raincoat. This allows Sean to walk through water, including that falling from above or traverse small water-filled gaps (swimming beneath the surface is its own upgrade). To find said raincoat, I had to navigate an entire section before backtracking through the previously inaccessible areas. By having the raincoat from the beginning, I could start my new game and head to previously blocked areas. The permanent upgrades allow you to skip some of the earlier exploration to discover newer areas sooner.
New games all begin the same, with Sean being told there is a debt to pay and that his friends have been kidnapped to incentivize him to get moving. All permanent upgrades remain, and all items in your inventory remain, including keys found. I did notice that, across playthroughs, your friends’ location is randomized. The exact spot you found them previously remains the same, but the friend in said spot is different. Foodie was first for me but by my fourth playthrough, he was in a brand new location that I had yet to even explore. As I said previously, the abilities provided by the friends can aid in your exploration, but there is always another way. There are also time-specific events that can be found in your new playthrough, requiring you to be in certain locations at a set time. This can dictate actions early on if you think it is worth doing. I have seen 4 of the 8 possible endings so far, but I have a plan for my next run already set in motion (in my head, of course).
The Good Old Days is an exploration-based Metroidvania that seeps nostalgia from its pores. Fans of The Goonies and fans of NES-styled games are in for a real treat here. As combat is not at the forefront, this is as close to a cozy game endorsement you will be getting from me. It was fun to explore everything without fear of dealing with obnoxious combat-related deaths. I admit, I was concerned when I rolled credits the first time, but after starting up a new run, I was super excited to proceed with my eventual third, fourth, and fifth runs. If you can help Sean pay back the 30k and call it quits, more power to you. Seeing the memories screen on the main menu with lots of ??? was more than intrigue to get me interested in jumping right back in. The Good Old Days is available now on PC and consoles.
