Readers with keen memories may remember my previous top five weird games from last year. And just to prove that mildly interesting ideas are worth recycling, here's a further five games that perplex, confuse and bewilder as much as they entertain...
Cho Aniki
Literally translated as 'Super Big Brother', this series of Japanese shoot-em-ups distinguishes itself by being quite possibly the only homoerotic shooting franchise in gaming history. Beginning with the PC Engine original in 1992, the Cho Aniki games spiced up a fairly ordinary Gradius clone with an almost unbroken procession of muscle bound men in erotic poses. Despite its classification as a 'kuso-ge' - or 'shitty game' in our native tongue, the Cho Aniki games have enjoyed an enduring cult status, with no fewer than six sequels appearing on platforms as diverse as the Bandai Wonderswan and the PlayStation 2. And thanks to the Wii's Virtual Arcade, the PC Engine original's bizarre delights can be enjoyed by a whole new generation.
Toilet Kids
Now this top-down shooter really is a kuso-ge, and just about the most lavatorially obsessed game you're ever likely to play. Another PC Engine release (a console with more than its fair share of weirdness, come to think of it), Toilet Kids relates the tale of a young man who finds himself sucked into his toilet and flushed out in an alternate world of pooey delights. All this boils down to a retooled version of Xevious with curling spires of fecal matter, clattering toilet lids and spiders with vast pink backsides. While this description probably sounds like a vomit-inducing trawl through a sea of brown sprites, the reality is actually quite the opposite: the gameplay isn't exactly Ikaruga, but there's some genuinely imaginative, if simplistic, character designs to unearth, including a serene-looking cross-legged poo god and a gigantic blue elephant with earrings and a big jobby hat. Now something of a collector's item, Toilet Kids' scatalogical humour is unlikely to endear it to family friendly Nintendo, so don't expect to see this one on Virtual Arcade any time soon.
Read the rest at Den of Geek
