Oh man, Pirates of Dark Water—this takes me back. It's that classic Genesis side-scroller based on the weirdly cool cartoon from the early '90s. You play as Ren, swinging your sword through pirate-infested jungles and ships, dodging traps and grabbing those glowing treasures. The animation’s a little stiff, but the backgrounds have that dark fantasy vibe straight from the show.

First level throws you right into it: you’re slashing through vine-covered ruins while these screechy monkey-bat things dive at you. The controls take a second to get used to—your jump arc feels heavy, and the hit detection can be janky. But there’s something satisfying about the way enemies ragdoll when you knock them into the water.

Honestly, it’s rough around the edges, but if you were into the cartoon (or just love janky ‘90s licensed games), it’s got charm. The music’s all ominous synth beats, and that final boss fight against Bloth’s ship? Pure chaos. You’ll either hate it or laugh your way through the frustration.