Game & Watch Gallery 4
Game & Watch Gallery 4 is the fourth in a series of compilations of the classic Game & Watch games made between 1980 and 1990. Like the previous incarnations in the series, the featured games have both Classic modes, which attempt to recreate the look of the original unit as faithfully as possible, and Modern modes, which feature all-new graphics, music, and, often, gameplay elements. It is the first, and likely only game in the series to be on Game Boy Advance.
Stars
Like all other games in the series, Game & Watch Gallery 4 features a system to unlock bonus features. As before, every 200 points in the high score for a game earns the player one star, up to five per game. That is, a high score between 200 and 399 is worth one star, 400 - 599 is two stars, 600 - 799 is three stars, 800 - 999 is four stars, and 1000 and above is worth five stars. Each game counts its stars separately, (For example, the player cannot earn 150 points in one game and 250 points in another and earn four stars for the cumulative total.) and the total (Up to 220) is what unlocks new features in the game.
Gallery
The "Gallery" is where most special features are unlocked. These include a sound test, a Game & Watch timeline, the credits, and nine games (listed below). However, the games must, in essence, be unlocked twice -- the first time a game is unlocked, the player is treated to a short write-up on the game and a video of the game in action. Later on, the player can unlock playable versions.
Games
Game & Watch Gallery 4 features a total of 20 games, though only 11 have Modern modes:
Primary games, unlocked from the beginning:
- Fire
- Boxing* (In this game, a star is earned for every three KOs, rather than every 200 points.)
- Rain Shower
- Mario's Cement Factory
- Donkey Kong Jr.
- Donkey Kong 3*
In the games marked with a *, the Hard mode (Game B) is replaced with a two-player mode. Each time a game is played with two players, a star is earned regardless of the winner.
Unlocked with stars, in order they are unlocked
Secondary games
- Chef
- Mario Bros.
- Donkey Kong
- Octopus
- Fire Attack
Tertiary games These games, unlocked in the Museum, can only be played in Classic mode, and cannot earn you stars.
- Manhole
- Tropical Fish
- Mario's Bomb's Away
- Parachute
- Bombsweeper
- Climber
- Safe Buster
- Lifeboat
- Zelda
Authenticity
Game & Watch Gallery 4 attempted to be the most authentic Gallery game in the series, and in the eyes of most, it succeeded. Somewhat controversial was the inclusion of "shadows" in the Classic mode. The places where unlit liquid-crystal units would be were filled in with a light grey to attempt to emulate the look of a Game & Watch unit. However, some thought that it was tacky to imitate what they saw as a defect in the original units. Also, many pointed out that several shadows were forgotten, such as Donkey Kong's mouth in Donkey Kong Jr. In addition, several games in the Museum had no shadows at all, creating an inconsistency some found bothersome. Nevertheless, Game & Watch Gallery 4 is still the most authentic game in the series.
