|
Post by alexmate on Dec 18, 2021 12:12:27 GMT -5
Keio Flying Squadron (Mega CD, 1st Time, Timer: 54 minutes) Much easier game than I expected it to be. Solid gameplay, nice graphics, some great soundtrack, suffers from some slow down and repetition.
Rating: 7
|
|
|
Post by dsparil on Dec 19, 2021 9:13:08 GMT -5
Altered Beast (Genesis/Switch, Replay)
I'd say Altered Beast was the worst first party game on Genesis if not for the truly awful ports of Super Thunder Blade and Galaxy Force II. AB at least isn't totally butchered although the original arcade game isn't that great either. This also lacks the quirky ending the arcade game has which was it's only bright spot. Did anyone even buy this when it stopped being the pack in?
I finished in 00:20.
Rating: 4
Thunder Force II (Genesis/Switch, First Time)
I like the idea of mixing eight way top down sections with standard horizontal shooting, but the actual design is a little on the disappointing side. The top down parts aren't too bad, but the horizontal parts rely too much on stage hazards you can't react to and even blind guessing at times. This does feel a little bit like a soft promotion for the Sega Ages TF AC and Lightening Force since TF II is still good enough to make me curious about those even though I didn't like it a whole lot.
I finished in 01:40.
Rating: 6
Trash Quest (Switch, First Time)
A metroidvania where you play as a raccoon that's stowed away on a space ship for some reason. There's really no direction at all except for going where you can because everything else is blocked off. You get a whole lot of mobility by the end, but it's tied to a game that so small that there's very little good use of it. There really isn't any reason you're a raccoon either aside from it probably being a Guardians of the Galaxy reference to Rocket Raccoon and his jetpack. This really just feels like a game made for speed runners needing something quick to stream. The full price of $10 is preposterous considering the PC version is $3, but the new release sale price of $2 is more fitting.
I finished in 01:13:00. The timer is broken, but I finished in one sitting so it isn't off by too much.
Rating: 4
|
|
|
Post by Digitalnametag on Dec 19, 2021 15:05:24 GMT -5
Pokemon Shining Pearl NS FTP 21 hours
Decent. It lacks the conveniences of Sword/Shield and makes TMs perishable again. Also missing the GTS and multiplayer raid battles. The underground has some improvements but raiding in SW/SH is way more fun than digging up fossils and stones here.
Diamond/Pearl has probably the lamest basic Pokedex bunch too. Mostly fish and repeats of older 'mons. Hope you like having all the trade Pokemon in a game where trading is more of a pain due to the lack of GTS! The map is kinda weird too. You bounce all over the place with odd roadblocks. The power is out! You can't go this way!
On the upside HMs slaves are no longer required and the underground makes catching appropriate level Pokemon easy. And I don't care what those other idiots think EXP Share is a godsend here just as it has been in all the other titles. No more wasting time switching lower level monsters out of battle all the time.
Decent remakes but remakes of weaker entries in the series regardless. I'd rather play more SW/SH than do the post game here. Call me when you remake the excellent Black/White Nintendo.
X-Men Arcade Replay 40 minutes 9 credits
So I bought one of those overpriced Arcade1up machines. I have most of the stuff to mod it into a 4-player MAME emulator with a raspberrypi and better controls. Just waiting on the long holiday and one more part. Meanwhile I've been playing X-Men a couple times a week. This is by far my favorite arcade game. My holy grail machine is the ridiculously oversized 6-player cab but this 1up will have to do for now.
My best run so far is 9 credits (at 2 lives apiece) with Storm. Working on getting better. Wish the cab had the option for the Japanese ROM too as it plays somewhat different. Ah well. The emulator will fix that.
Captain America and The Avengers Arcade Replay 30 minutes 8 credits
Also included on the Arcade1up. Funny for the meme's but not as fun to play. It's okay. Tiny sprites and limited animation. Nowhere near as classic as any of the Konami Beat'em Ups.
|
|
|
Post by spanky on Dec 19, 2021 20:04:11 GMT -5
Captain America and The Avengers Arcade Replay 30 minutes 8 credits Also included on the Arcade1up. Funny for the meme's but not as fun to play. It's okay. Tiny sprites and limited animation. Nowhere near as classic as any of the Konami Beat'em Ups. I've had a grudge against this game ever since it replaced the Simpsons cabinet at my town's Wal-Mart decades ago. And the home ports were lousy!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2021 3:03:24 GMT -5
Captain America and The Avengers Arcade Replay 30 minutes 8 credits Also included on the Arcade1up. Funny for the meme's but not as fun to play. It's okay. Tiny sprites and limited animation. Nowhere near as classic as any of the Konami Beat'em Ups. I've had a grudge against this game ever since it replaced the Simpsons cabinet at my town's Wal-Mart decades ago. And the home ports were lousy! To be fair to the home ports it's not like they had a good place to start with in the arcade. Yeah, it's a better game, but really lame for a super hero game. There's a weak selection of Avengers chosen for the ability to use all the same moves, which goes against the idea of a super hero team game in the first place. In it's favour the game does have a kitsch quality, including the home versions. Particularly the music and vocals are delightfully hammy. I'll forever have 'okaaaayyy gooo' and 'Americaaaa still needs your help' etched on my brain.
|
|
|
Post by Snake on Dec 20, 2021 20:31:05 GMT -5
X-Men Arcade Replay 40 minutes 9 credits So I bought one of those overpriced Arcade1up machines. I have most of the stuff to mod it into a 4-player MAME emulator with a raspberrypi and better controls. Just waiting on the long holiday and one more part. Meanwhile I've been playing X-Men a couple times a week. This is by far my favorite arcade game. My holy grail machine is the ridiculously oversized 6-player cab but this 1up will have to do for now. My best run so far is 9 credits (at 2 lives apiece) with Storm. Working on getting better. Wish the cab had the option for the Japanese ROM too as it plays somewhat different. Ah well. The emulator will fix that. I'm so jealous! Which Arcade1up machine did you get as your base? Is it the 4-player Ninja Turtles cabinet? I'd like to hear how your hack goes! That dualscreen, 6-player cabinet is so monstrous! If I was filthy rich, I'd look for one to pick up too. I could get by on nearly a credit a stage for the first few levels, but start dying too much by Asteroid M and Magneto. I didn't have the guts to plunk the cash for one of the Arcade1up machines, but at the same time, I splurged $450 for the Neo Geo MVSX. I didn't get the stand cab though, so it sits on the dining table. I joined a Telegram group for the Hylostick hack, but I haven't set the time aside to play around with it yet.
|
|
|
Post by Digitalnametag on Dec 20, 2021 20:52:47 GMT -5
I'm so jealous! Which Arcade1up machine did you get as your base? Is it the 4-player Ninja Turtles cabinet? I'd like to hear how your hack goes! That dualscreen, 6-player cabinet is so monstrous! If I was filthy rich, I'd look for one to pick up too. I could get by on nearly a credit a stage for the first few levels, but start dying too much by Asteroid M and Magneto. I didn't have the guts to plunk the cash for one of the Arcade1up machines, but at the same time, I splurged $450 for the Neo Geo MVSX. I didn't get the stand cab though, so it sits on the dining table. I joined a Telegram group for the Hylostick hack, but I haven't set the time aside to play around with it yet. Hah. It's worse than you think as I bought the $700 X-Men cab. I would've bought the original Turtles cab if it was still available and was significantly cheaper. I don't like the art on the Turtles in Time one and the art on the X-Men one is so nostalgic I splurged for it. I justified the cost by saying I'll mod it, but that just means more money spent hah. I plan on working on the mod next week while I'm off. My raspberry PI is ready to go. Just have to wire the USB converters for the controls and the video converter. I looked at those MVSX's while deciding what to buy. Even thought about buying or just making a 4-player podium to use in front of my big screen. Ultimately just went with the 1up. Yeah I'm about 1 credit per stage until the boss rush near the end. Magneto just wrecks.
|
|
|
Post by dsparil on Dec 21, 2021 8:24:14 GMT -5
Gun-Nac (NES, First Time)
A pretty good Parodius style game from Compile, but it could be better. Right off the top, the nice thing is that a lot of the Japanese-ness that was removed from say Super Aleste is fully present here. There are some parts missing mainly because it seems like the main character was changed, but some or all the images are still accessible as a special ending; it's hard to tell exactly, and I'm not currently in the mood to play through for a third time. For the most part, this is a very quirky game with with the eight stages each having a theme. Five of them are nice, but the water stage is mainly generic battleships although there are still some quirky touches like the mermaid mini-boss. The last two stages are pretty generic though and could have been from any sci-fi shooter. Still good overall with enough going for it that I played two times to get the extra scenes after finding out about them.
I finished in 02:01:12.
Rating: 7
|
|
|
Post by dsparil on Dec 22, 2021 10:43:25 GMT -5
Mega Man & Bass (SNES, Replay)
Not sure why I decided to replay this, and I think I might have played it too much at this point.
I finished in 02:21:23.
Rating: 7
Edit:
Zanac Neo (PlayStation, First Time)
For something that came out in 2001, it is a little skimpy, but I did think it was pretty fun all things considered. The 32-bit presentation does elevate things, and it would have been much less interesting as a 16 or 8-bit game. It's nice to see multiple ships available with different weapon load outs so there is a little extra replayability. The music is nice too, although it's very reminiscent of Taito's Zunata "band".
I finished in 01:35:11.
Rating: 7
|
|
|
Post by alexmate on Dec 22, 2021 18:19:38 GMT -5
The Expendabros (PC, 1st time. timer: 1hr 14mins) A lot of fun. Reminded me of another Devolver game: Not A Hero.
Rating: 8
|
|
|
Post by Apollo Chungus on Dec 23, 2021 9:11:54 GMT -5
Arcade Spirits (Switch; First Time; 5 hours 26 minutes)
A pretty cool visual novel I first heard about in Jonathan Holmes' 55 hidden eShop gems article, and picked up because I was really tired of games that demanded a lot of you. You play as a character who ends up being employed at a local arcade, and get many choices as you learn more about the arcade and the various people in it.
There is the option to romance any of the characters, but you're also able to just stay friends if you'd prefer. I really appreciated that option, as I ended up making choices and saying things I would say, and I just don't feel inclined to romance my friends. (Dunno if I'd consider myself asexual or not; that term does fit me, but all I can say is that I've never felt any sexual or romantic attraction to anyone I personally know). I did pick the option where I could romance someone if I wanted to, but then later got the chance to back out and took that. Very nice of the devs to consider that.
It's a cozy visual novel that I liked playing on occasion, and each episode goes quickly enough that you can spend a half-hour session playing through an episode before taking a break to do something else. That pacing works very well for a handheld system, though you have the ability to save anywhere too if you need.
Pikuniku (Switch; First Time; 2 hours 46 minutes)
A cute, weird puzzle platformer I picked up thanks to recommendations from an online friend and the HG101 article on it. You play as a red lad with lanky legs who explores a strange world with odd creatures and people, where your main way of interacting with stuff is to kick it. There's this innocent recklessness about the game that makes me feel like I'm watching an endearingly bizarre children's cartoon, and the music especially plays into this. Probably one of my favourite gaming soundtracks in recent memory with how well it ties into the game, and how unique it sounds on its own.
Sonic Robo Blast 2: Unofficial Level Design Collab: Autumn 2021 (Windows; First Time; 1 hour 10 minutes)
I gave this level pack another shot, making sure to take on the awful Frog Fratricide level with Fang so I could shoot all those blasted frogs and mosquitoes that screwed me over last time. The rest of the levels are much better, with my personal highlights being the awesome looking Boulderstone Alpines, the interesting Plutonium Plant with its radiation gimmick, the huge and very cool Robotnik Winter, and Rocky Ravines with its neat riverside canyon aesthetic.
mb.srb2.org/addons/v1-3-unofficial-level-design-collab-autumn-2021.3423/
Super Mario Odyssey (Switch; First Time; 3 hours 52 minutes)
This one's got a funny story attached to it. I got this second-hand from the local CeX as a Christmas present for a friend about a week ago. I'd played a good chunk of it some years ago, and I had this silly notion of seeing how quickly I could beat it since I wouldn't be seeing said friend for a good while. I knew that you'd get plenty of moons from beating the missions you have to accomplish before you're allowed to leave for the next stage, so I just needed to grab one or two extra moons on the way and I'd be done fairly quickly.
Fairly quickly was an underestimation on my part. I started playing it up in the living room with my folks, who proceeded to watch their daily two episodes of Justified with Timothy Elephant and that guy who looks like Billy Crystal if he had Richard Hammond's teeth. By the time I went to bed and looked up the level list, I realized I literally had only a couple of worlds left. The idea of beating the main story in one night was hysterical to me, and with that thought, I went ahead and cleared the final main levels.
Odyssey's quite the neat game, with a very pick-up-and-play mentality where you can get tons of moons by doing very little. That element has been criticised a bunch over the years, and I do understand and even agree with it to some extent. For what it's worth, I recently noticed that the structure reminded me more of Ape Escape, where you have to do a certain thing ("Collect four monkeys" or "Beat these three main missions") to unlock the next level. Everything else you do if you want, but it doesn't matter beyond unlocking some secret optional stuff or bragging rights. Maybe if that structure was communicated better, people would be more okay with it since they'd at least know that's just how the game rolls.
|
|
|
Post by dsparil on Dec 23, 2021 11:04:40 GMT -5
Sylphia (TurboGrafx-CD, First Time)
Another Compile shooter, and this one is also pretty good. The Greco-Roman theme is fairly unique for the genre and goes a long way to set it apart. It's a fairly easy game, but the weapons all have situational uses so there's some good gameplay variety if you switch them up. The Wind weapon is the clear MVP though once you're fully powered up. The one thing is that it doesn't make terribly good use of being on CD apart from the music. There is a lot of it at least.
I finished in 01:06:05.
Rating: 7
Edit: Forgot to mention that I played a bit on Hard too, and I couldn't really tell the difference between it and Normal.
|
|
|
Post by dsparil on Dec 24, 2021 11:28:34 GMT -5
Robo Aleste (Sega CD, First Time) The one nice thing I'll say is that this sticks to a Japanese theme much better than MUSHA although I guess MUSHA doesn't actually take place in historical Japan. The Sengoku period is front and center in this game although wrapped in steampunk-ish robots and interdimensional villainy. The intro is actually nice and somewhat like a documentary although all the other cutscenes are not as good. One huge problem is that game is mostly way too easy in a boring way with bosses that are defeated literally in a few seconds. The second to last is a huge difficulty spike though, but then the final boss is completely trivial with the laser. It seems like there's going to be one boss after that, but then you get the ending which is a little confusing and the credits roll. (actually a spoiler of the ending) The final boss reveals that Oda Nobunaga is actually Lucifer trying to destroy the world, but then the ending shows him dying in a burning building while your character watches. I guess the implication is supposed to be that you set the fire, but this isn't shown. The game doesn't seem to use all the storage on the disc, so it's weird that there isn't a tiny scene clarifying. Maybe the Japanese version is clearer about what happens. It really feels like Compile pushed this out the door before it was done. There's truly almost no variation between the difficulty levels except in a few places. I played once on Normal, and a second on the hardest difficulty, Cruel. If there's any differences between the stages, they're exceedingly minor. I noticed some of the bosses had an additional attack, but since they die so quickly it didn't even matter. A few even seemed to have less health on Cruel compared to Normal as if the wrong variants are being used. Others seems to have no changes at all, while only one boss is significantly more difficult on Cruel. It's all very, very strange. I finished in 01:44:57 across the two playthroughs. Rating: 5
|
|
|
Post by Woody Alien on Dec 24, 2021 11:34:59 GMT -5
Sylphia (TurboGrafx-16 CD, First Time) Another Compile shooter, and this one is also pretty good. The Greco-Roman theme is fairly unique for the genre and goes a long way to set it apart. It's a fairly easy game, but the weapons all have situational uses so there's some good gameplay variety if you switch them up. The Wind weapon is the clear MVP though once you're fully powered up. The one thing is that it doesn't make terribly good use of being on CD apart from the music. There is a lot of it at least. I finished in 01:06:05. Rating: 7 Edit: Forgot to mention that I played a bit on Hard too, and I couldn't really tell the difference between it and Normal. I wonder why so few games have an Ancient Greece/Rome theme, it's so cool, instead it's all mostly either Medieval European or Feudal Japan.
Here's a few free games randomly found on Steam that I completed in these days:
Press Any Button (PC Windows, first time, 1h 20 minutes)
A little experimental narrative game in the guise of a test, administered in the form of a simple game made by an AI that dialogues with us. Minimalist but quite nice and interesting, the game part is bare-bones but surprisingly varied with having to avoid various objects to fall off the screen, and each one of them interacts differently with the platforms we create. And everything ties in with what the AI says to us. And the final message is surprisingly sweet and thoughtful too. There's a sequel coming out so I'll take a look. 8/10
If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers (PC Windows, first time, 2 hours)
Point-and-click isometric pixelated adventure game featuring the titular travelers on a mysterious train. We see everyone's past in the early 1920s to try and understand who they are and what happened to them. It's a horror game with each chapter becoming darker and more depressing/disturbing with the last one being based on occult/Lovecraftian themes, but still, the main theme are the forms of prejudice that these people have had to face in their lives (a homosexual man, a woman with an arranged marriage to a nobleman and a black surgeon). Interesting and quite more high-brow than the stuff I usually consume, right down to the literary reference in the title. 8/10 (7.5/10 for pretentiousness )
Noitu Love 2: Devolution (PC Windows, first time, about 1 hour)
One of Konjak's most famous games, really fast-paced (maybe even too much) with several clever ideas in the vein of Treasure action platformers. I had it in my library for years but never played it for whatever reason. It's good but I don't want to replay it to "git gud" and get better rankings and scores since it's just a Multimedia Fusion game from almost 15 years ago without any other enhancements. What can I say more? Graphics and humour are quite nice, difficulty could have been more balanced, soundtrack nice but nothing amazing, blah blah... Also I didn't know that Konjak's brother was a Hollywood director. Quite a family of artists. 8/10
|
|
|
Post by Apollo Chungus on Dec 25, 2021 10:25:39 GMT -5
dsparil Quick question about Saints Row The Third. There's a Full Package version that includes all the DLC, including the mission packs Genkibowl VII, Gangstas in Space, and The Trouble with Clones. They aren't available from the menu but they do become available as soon as you're able to explore Steelport. Can they be counted separately?
|
|