This is part of our ongoing “Great Video Game” series in which readers are asked to submit articles about video games they consider to be great. This week’s submission — “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” — comes from graduate student Farzeen Dhalla.
By Farzeen Dhalla
Guest Contributor
My love for “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” all started one snowy morning in Canada in 1994. When I walked downstairs I saw a medium-sized birthday gift labeled “Sega Genesis.” I didn’t know then as a confused 5-year-old that the box would spawn a new era in my life: the use of video games.
More than 16 years have passed since I received that Sega Genesis and since then, I’ve gone through the original Nintendo (NES), a Nintendo 64, the original Playstation, the original Xbox and currently the Playstation 3.
I’ve played numerous titles, including “Sonic the Hedgehog,” “Super Mario Bros,” “NBA Jam,” “NBA 2k12,” “Street Fighter” to “Marvel vs. Capcom,” “WWF Wrestlemania” and “WWE Smackdown vs. Raw.”
Though now I rarely play video games, one game still sticks out to me after all these years: “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.”
I was only 5 years old when “Mighty Morphin Power Rangers” came out in 1994, but the game was a shrine for every fan boy (and girl) who grew up watching the show “Power Rangers.”
It sold more than 1 million copies in the United States and is listed as the 11th best-selling game of all time for the Sega Genesis.
This game had the “it” factor and kept me busy for hours a day. The depth and realism of the content was second to none at the time — hey, it was the mid-1990s, after all.
First, you started the game by picking your favorite character: Jason, Kimberley, Billy, Zach or Trini. Sadly, there was no option for Tommy.
Once you got past that screen, you begin fighting as a civilian and then morph into a ranger while continuing to fight off the evil Rita Repulsa’s Putty Patrollers.
The game becomes even more intense as you move on as you gain access to your signature attack, which can be used to kill multiple swarms of bad guys. I always hated when I accidentally pushed the button to release the special attack because then I had to wait forever until my power replenished and I was able to do it again.
Once you get through all those levels, it was time for the best part, which was marked by the game screaming, “IT’S MORPHIN’ TIME!”
In the final stages, you got to control the all-mighty Megazord, a really big robot, and use its special powers to defeat Rita’s monsters. By this point when I played the game, the adrenaline would be pumping through my little-boy veins and I would be amped to send the villains back to their planet.
I knew I was not going to be denied victory because Zordon, a powerful wizard, had given me his words of wisdom: “LET THE POWER PROTECT YOU!”
Though those “Power Ranger”-video game-playing days have long passed me, I will never forget the fun I had playing with my sister, cousins and friends for hours while taking down the bad guys. It will always remain one of my favorite games of all time.
If you’re interested in writing about a video game that you consider to be great, please email us at lariat@baylor.edu. Please include a few hundred words on why you think your selection deserves to be recognized as a great video game.
