StarTropics is solid but can also be frustrating, making it best suited for adventure fans who like a stiff challenge.
In StarTropics, you play as Mike Jones, a high-schooler from Seattle who journeys to picturesque C-Island to visit his uncle, the famous archaeologist Steve Jones. (No relation to Indiana.) Upon arrival, Mike learns from a friendly island chief that his uncle has disappeared, and it falls to him to go to the rescue. The game doesn't exactly have the most fleshed-out story, but the portions that you spend talking to villagers, travelling between islands via submarine and doing some light puzzle-solving are a nice break from the action that makes up the bulk of the gameplay.
Whenever you enter a cave, dungeon, or other dangerous area, the game switches from a maplike screen that resembles many RPGs of the NES era to a more Zelda-like view. Unlike Link, though, you won't be taking on your enemies with sword in hand. StarTropics dates back to a simpler time when killing enemies with yo-yos was very big amongst video game heroes, and like Mikey of Goonies II, Mike's primary weapon is a yo-yo, though you'll also use baseball bats, laser guns and plenty of other items throughout the game.
While the action of killing monsters and moving from room to room is unmistakably Zelda-like, there are some significant differences here. Most noticeably, Mike can only move in four directions, and turning takes a brief but sometimes crucial moment. Also, Mike can jump, but he can only jump over one tile's worth of space (at least until a certain item is acquired), and not paying close attention to this can result in death, as contact with water will instantly result in Mike's ghost (complete with halo) flying heavenward.
This isn't the only thing that will result in a quick death. Hearts are frequently in short supply and vanquished foes are very stingy about giving up more of them. Combine this with the facts that Mike waddles around the screen and turns like a tank, and that enemies do a significant amount of damage when you come in contact with them, and what you end up with is a game where careful, precise play is called for. Enemies often move in predictable patterns but if you screw up and find yourself in their path it won't take long for Mike to die, potentially sending you back quite a ways and requiring you to play much of the dungeon over again.
The dungeons also involve a bit of puzzle-solving, though this generally isn't so much thought-provoking as it is just a hoop you need to jump through. You'll very often find yourself in a room with many tiles and progressing is just a matter of hopping on all the tiles until you find the one that reveals the switch you need to jump on to open the path to the next area. You'll also sometimes have to keep your eyes peeled for easily missed shadows indicating where a hidden doorway is, and you may occasionally walk through a doorway only to find yourself falling into water immediately upon entering the next room. By today's standards traps like this seem a bit cheap, but they were not so uncommon in 1990.
StarTropics is a nice-looking NES game. Mike's sprite is large and animates well and the environments are colorful and somewhat varied. There's also a nice variety to the enemies you encounter in the game, from standard stuff like mummies to truly bizarre, freakish creatures such as skeletal ostrich-like birds with giant human skulls for heads. The music is also good, with a catchy tropical theme that you hear throughout much of the game being the highlight.
In many ways, StarTropics seems dated. Some of the elements of the game that make it more difficult reflect a philosophy of gameplay design that has since gone out of fashion. However, it's still a well-crafted and charming game, so adventure game fans who like their games tough may be drawn to it for both the tropical ambience and the serious challenge it offers.