Jaws Retro Edition (PC) Review

There was (and somewhat still remains) a running joke between my friends and I that Jaws is the only film I’ve ever seen. It is my favourite certainly, with its gripping terror and excellent  (ish) special effects. I was glad to have gotten to ride the attraction at Universal Florida before it was removed, we always stop for a photo with Bruce when we visit there too, and I’ve been to the Royal Albert Hall to watch it as a live orchestra played along, as well as various merch that I’ve gained over the years. I have, however, never played a Jaws videogame somehow. So when this Retro Edition dropped in my lap, I took the opportunity to right that wrong.

What we get in Jaws Retro Edition are two variants of the title in the standard Retro edition – the NES game as it was – and the Enhanced Version, which builds upon the premise of the original with new options and gameplay.

Both follow the same basic premise of course; Jaws is terrorising these indistinct tropical waters, and it’s up to us to stop him. Gameplay is split into two parts. We start on an overworld map on a boat and can explore the waters in search of Jaws himself. In the original we encounter random attacks by various sea life as well as Jaws, whereas in the Enhanced edition we get a bit more of a head up with icons indicating where the danger is, at least to a degree.

Bump into a danger zone and we’re thrown into a side on game where our diver braves the depths to harpoon manta rays, jellyfish, sharks and of course Jaws. Again, both versions vary slightly, with the original being a score attack affair that allows us to fire faster, whereas the Enhanced version gives us a slower initial firing rate but tasks us with building up money which in then used for upgrades.

These side on scenes only last a minute or so before we’re back on the boat, and then it’s rinse and repeat until we’re strong enough to take Jaws down for good.

The original is straightforward in this regard. We collect conches to trade in at one of the two harbours to increase our power or gain other equipment like a rader to warn us of an incoming Bruce. The faster fire rate is nice but it is very of the time i.e. very basic. It does at least control well, but with more than a few sprites on screen we see the old hardware struggling to render it all, with both sea life and our diver flickering in and out of view. 

I have spent more time with the Enhanced edition, and this version offers some nice changes to the formula to give us a bit more incentive to go on the attack. The aforementioned money is spent at the harbour on upgrading our power, health, and speed, and we also have a few other characters to interact with that set us basic quests like collecting 10 shells or killing a specfic enemy. These then offer rewards like increased shot counts or a better radar that shows more on the world map.

It’s also a multichapter affair, as killing Jaws in one then resets us for a new challenge against harder sea life but also increases the ceiling on our abilities. All of the improvements here are nice touches and make it worth engaging with the other sea life rather than just concentrating on Jaws. 

In both versions, getting his life bar down is one thing but then we need to ram him with the tip of our boat to kill him proper. This is a simple minigame and failure just gives him some life back so we can try again. 

This collection does have a few quality of life improvements so modern gamers don’t have to suffer the same progression losses as we used to back in the day. We can save anywhere now, and also rewind up to one minute of gameplay to try again.

With these, Jaws becomes a bit more enjoyable to play. Having not played it back in the day I don’t have the nostalgia to help ease me back in, and it is of course showing its age. But then again, that’s not always a bad thing as Jaws is simple to get into, and with the Enhanced edition there’s that bit more to get into. I’ll admit I was cautious going in that I’d just not enjoy it beyond the first few minutes, and yet I’ve been going back to it repeatedly these past few days in between other titles and genuinely having a good time. If I had to start over after each death I might feel less enthusiastic about it, but save states and rewinding has softened the blow a few times for sure.

Conclusion

While the base gameplay may be simple and of the time, Jaws Retro Edition proves that can still be fun even today. The Enhanced edition is great and offers more meat on the bones to the original, and while it may not be my favourite retro game ever, I have still enjoyed taking it to Bruce and his aquatic cohorts all the same.

This game was tested and reviewed on PC (via Steam). All of the opinions and insights here are subject to that version. Game provided by the publisher.