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Post by dsparil on Jul 18, 2022 10:41:56 GMT -5
Forgotten WorldsDeveloper NEC Avenue Publisher NEC Avenue, Turbo Technologies Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) March 27, 1992 Release (US) November 1992 Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place with upgrades kept, 2 continues from start of level By 1991, some developers found the stock PCE controller overly limiting and started to put key functions on the Run or Select buttons. To make this configuration less awkward, NEC released the Avenue Pad 3 featuring a III button mappable to Run or Select. Capcom’s original Forgotten Worlds used a rotary dial to control the gun direction which NEC Avenue changed to a three button set up of one button to fire and two buttons for rotation. This scheme benefits from the AP3, but also seems made to sell them as the Autofire Normal Pad option does not do the sensible thing and make I and II the rotation buttons. Even with an AP3, Forgotten Worlds remains best played in a modern arcade emulation with a twin stick set up such as in Capcom Arcade Stadium. Approximate Hitbox
The arcade game went by Lost Worlds in Japanese arcades, but the PCE game used Forgotten Worlds in all regions. The game was also unsurprisingly sold bundled with an AP3. I really do think NEC Avenue didn't include the most obvious control set up on purpose. When in auto fire mode, the fire button gets such prominent placement but is only used when double pressed to do your health draining bomb attack. That could have been mapped to Run or Select without issue. As it is, the Normal and Avenue Pad options (plus auto fire variants) only change if Run or Select is used for the second rotation button. The US release drops the pretense of there being real control options for a simple auto fire toggle.
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Post by dsparil on Jul 22, 2022 8:25:38 GMT -5
Super RaidenDeveloper A.I Publisher Hudson Soft Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) April 2, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low to High Looping Yes Continue System Checkpoints with upgrades lost, 3 continues Slightly over four months after its initial release, A.I and Hudson returned with a CD version of Raiden. A new soundtrack was created, but the graphics remain the same so some graphical details are still missing compared to the arcade game. If the soundtrack was the only change, this edition would be completely superfluous. However, A.I also added two new levels to the end. These are unsurprisingly the hardest in the game and feature new enemies and bosses alongside a little extra graphical flair compared to the rest. This gives the game a bit more of a dramatic ending compared to the original and makes this version the best among all the versions of the original game. The one ding remains the move to a checkpoint system which artificially increases the difficulty. Approximate Hitbox
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Post by dsparil on Jul 26, 2022 18:01:32 GMT -5
Super Dimension Fortress Macross 2036 超時空要塞マクロス2036Developer Dual Publisher Masaya Format CD-ROM² Release (JP) April 3, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place with upgrades kept, unlimited continues from start of level
Macross 2036 is in some ways the Platonic ideal of CD games on the platform. Owing to its nature as a “sequel” to the Macross film Do You Remember Love?, it features lengthy cutscenes between each level rather than some of the half measures seen in other games such as infrequent scenes of shorter length or with less visual distinctiveness. The gameplay itself is fairly basic although “experience points” (score) also dictates which special weapons may be equipped between levels. These are not limited use and instead have a meter with each weapon having a different cool down. The standout feature however is the boss battles using the ship’s robot form. These take after Forgotten Worlds but with the sensible two button control scheme that game did not include. Approximate Hitbox
From what I can tell, this may be the only actual licensed shooter aside from Gunhed which is basically just has the same name as the movie. That's a little surprising to me especially since this is so late into the overall list.
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Post by dsparil on Jul 28, 2022 9:17:19 GMT -5
Star Parodier STAR パロジャーDeveloper Kaneko Publisher Hudson Soft Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) April 24, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place and from start of level with upgrades lost, unlimited continues Star Parodier’s most obvious point of reference is Konami’s Parodius especially considering the two games close releases on the system. However, the two take near opposite philosophies with Parodius clearly aiming for older Gradius experts. Star Parodier sticks to family friendly graphics and a lower difficulty than the Star Soldier series which already shed difficulty during its 90s Caravan Festival era. This is not a minus since it allows Star Parodier to fill a underserved niche. While Hudson’s less storied history in the genre limited it’s ability to include iconic weapon sets, the choice to include a PC Engine as a ship choice with hardware themed weapons was a good one. This gives the game some flavor that wouldn’t be possible in a third party game. Approximate Hitbox
One thing I find a little puzzling is that the Hudson bee was not made a ship option even as a hidden feature. Having three ships versus four is the one objective negative compared to Parodius. Master Higgins is another weird exclusion especially considering New Adventure Island was released on HuCard only a few months later.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 1, 2022 10:25:05 GMT -5
Spriggan mark 2 — Re-Terraform ProjectDeveloper Compile Publisher Naxat Soft Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) May 1, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Moderate Looping No Continue System Unlimited continues from start of level Compile’s tenuously connected sequel began life as a true side story to their Genesis game MUSHA, but it’s real origin was in the concept of a shooter with extensive in-level dialogue. The Gundam inspired science fiction story is well developed, but the frequency of the dialogue gives the game a jerky rhythm making it somewhat frustrating to play. The gameplay itself is decent especially once selectable weapon load outs become available after a few levels. However, Compile did not have a significant amount of experience with the horizontal format and the gameplay does not rise to the heights of their better vertical shooters. While there are some good points like the graphics, Spriggan mark 2 mostly feels like a partially failed experiment. Approximate Hitbox
A note on the hitbox, it actually does include the empty space above your selected weapon. It's basically the whole sprite minus the gun barrel and the bottom foot. I didn't get into this because I want to keep the main bodies consistently short, but the game's direct connection to Spriggan only came about when someone noticed that they were using the name when the game was unrelated otherwise. Because of a short development timeline of only 10 months, the engine to Spriggan was reused, and It seems possible that the game's project name was something along the lines of Spriggan mark 2 because of that. The project name morphed in the title, and then someone suggested that Spriggan get retconned to taking place on Mars to somehow tie the games together.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 3, 2022 9:51:52 GMT -5
TerraForming Syd Mead's TerraFormingDeveloper Right Stuff Publisher Right Stuff Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) May 1, 1992 Release (US) June 1993 Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place with upgrades lost, unlimited continues from start of level Although not a household name, visual designer Syd Mead worked across many industries and project scopes from promotional flier series, concept art on classic films such as Blade Runner and a surprisingly large number of yachts and laser tag arenas. He also worked on a fair number of games, but this is the sole release to prominently bear his name albeit only in the US release. The art is the most remarkable aspect with Mead’s distinct style permeating the graphics. However, the game itself is overly standard especially in contrast to the visuals with three typical weapon choices (laser, spread, homing) and no unique secondary features. TerraForming is still worth playing for its art direction alone, but that can only go so far in elevating the overall game. Approximate Hitbox
Syd Mead sadly passed in 2019 but he left a large impact on modern culture. This game is more of a footnote compared to even his automotive poster series with the list of works on his website not explicitly giving its name and misspelling the developer as Right Staff in two places. There's also about an hour of interviews he did in relation to his work on Turn A Gundam, and the first few parts touch on his general work for anyone not really familiar with him.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 5, 2022 10:11:10 GMT -5
Rayxanber IIIDeveloper Data West Publisher Data West Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) June 26, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System Checkpoints with upgrades lost, unlimited continues from start of level It’s difficult to see Rayxanber III as anything but a huge step down from the prequel. The overriding impression it gives is that of an unfinished game. There are only five stages with long sections missing backgrounds and those that do exist are fairly boring and lack variety as if there was not enough time to fully flesh out the levels graphically. The level design is also much less interesting than II’s and rather monotonous. The bosses fair slightly better, but most feel like typical shooter bosses with only one in line with II’s. The difficulty is also much lower but in a way that makes it slightly dull. The sole positive is that the weapons are much more powerful, and the new homing missile charge attack would have been useful in the prequel. Approximate Hitbox
It's a bit of a mystery what happened here since the team was basically the same as II. The main programmer was new, but he was from Compile and worked on Xevious: Fardraut Saga so he had experience on the platform. That man was Yukinori Taniguchi, founder and still CEO of Yuke's! DW was actually primarily a developer of adventure games for various Japanese computer platforms so this series is a bit of an outlier for them. My only thought is that they had big plans for III, but the sales of II didn't justify it anymore so they sort of pushed out III. I have no idea if this was the case, it's 100% speculation on my part, but it's the only reason I can think of since this wasn't their last game or anything. The company still exists and makes GPS software now. They didn't quite survive the 32-bit transition as a developer. They made a single PC-FX game and then a PSX action-RPG before exiting the game industry. Data West also developed the two Vajra games for the Pioneer LaserActive using the PCE module, but those have proven to be nearly impossible to properly emulate. I thought I posted about that before, but I can't seem to find it or where I originally saw information about it. The short version is that while the hardware is technically supported by MAME, it's been incredibly difficult to properly rip them. There's videos of them on YouTube if anyone is interested in them. They're full screen rail shooters so a bit out of scope, but I still would have liked to have included them.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 9, 2022 7:15:38 GMT -5
Solder BladeDeveloper Hudson Soft Publisher Hudson Soft Format HuCard Release (JP) July 10, 1992 Release (US) September 1992 Difficulty Low Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place, unlimited continues from start of level Soldier Blade was the last shooter to be featured at the All-Japan Caravan Festival before it switched to focusing on Bomberman. Hudson saw the shooter genre as waning and gave the game a brief six month development period and even cut the card size from 6 to 4Mb partway through. Soldier Blade goes back to a simpler gameplay concept but also has an intensity missing from Final Soldier along with higher quality graphics. Its main distinction is in the special attack system lightly reminiscent of Compile’s Spriggan but without the weapon mixing. The game was seen as somewhat of a failure by its designer due to communication issues with the rest of the staff, but this dim view is really from knowing what was intended versus the game’s actual quality. Approximate Hitbox
Shmuplations has an interview with designer Ukiuki Uribo which goes into some of the issues faced during development. I also saw some speculation that Star Parodier was initially going to be the 1992 game, but I think this wholly hinges on that game having a Caravan mode. Considering a CD-ROM² in some capacity was generally the top prize, I think Hudson would have stuck with a HuCard game. This year's festival also featured a special Master tournament with the top prize being a PC-9801CS! Apparently that model didn't sell that well, so it might have been a sneaky way to get rid of extra stock.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 10, 2022 11:17:41 GMT -5
Summer Carnival '92 — AlzadickDeveloper Naxat Soft Publisher Naxat Soft Format CD-ROM² Release (JP) July 17, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place with upgrades lost, no continues Unlike the previous year’s Summer Carnival game (Spriggan) or 1992’s additional Famicom game (Recca), Alzadick is not a full game with a special training mode. It is strictly a training game with two levels possibly for two different age groups akin to the competition versions given out as prizes rather than other retail competition games. There is a Story Mode which adds intro, ending and failure text to each level, but little else was done to justify a retail release. Alzadick is a competent, purpose-built game, but it stands in stark contrast to Recca, a boundary pushing game that ranks among the Famicom’s best. The most audacious thing about Alzadick is that Naxat thought ¥2980 was a decent price for a few minutes of content with score and time attack modes. Approximate Hitbox
It's hard to get information about the actual Summer Carnival competitions since the name is embedded into the games for '92 and '93. So it's speculation on my part that there were different age brackets. Hudson did this, and the "Beginner Attack" option is the only one that uses the first level.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 13, 2022 11:31:13 GMT -5
TatsujinDeveloper Sting Publisher Taito Format HuCard Release (JP) July 24, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Moderate to High Looping Yes Continue System Checkpoints with upgrades lost, 4 continues Toaplan’s original Tatsujin, known as Truxton in western releases of other versions, is somewhat of a link between its predecessor Ultimate Tiger and successor Twin Hawk. It features the shielding bomb of the former and the lack of distinct levels of the latter. The game was specifically designed around memorization much to its detriment as this aspect seems to mainly manifest itself as enemies attacking from the bottom of the screen without warning. The porting by Sting is also somewhat rough with glitches occurring during bomb usage. The timing of this release may seem curious at first since the original came out in 1988, but a sequel arrived in arcades the previous month. Tatsujin King is tougher but also much fairer than its prequel and greatly preferable. Approximate Hitbox
Tatsujin translates to "expert" although Toaplan used the English transliteration in the Japanese release. The title was all kanji in the sequel which is a little weird, but it did let them use a nice looking logo with the 達人王 characters over a flaming background. A flier for the English arcade release also has the slogan "Be a king rather than an expert" which seems like a non sequitur next to Truxton II instead of a game literally titled Expert King. The arcade and Genesis versions did see worldwide releases in 1988 and 1989. The Genesis port looks and sounds the worst, but the arcade game is unsurprisingly the best overall. Honestly though, save yourself the headache and play the sequel instead. It is so much better on every level.
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Post by ommadawnyawn2 on Aug 14, 2022 9:03:27 GMT -5
I found the sequel harder tbh, one of the hardest shooters I've played.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 14, 2022 10:01:35 GMT -5
Looking over it, I did make it seem like the sequel is easier, but I really meant that it didn't have any many dirty tricks. I tweaked the last part to note that it is harder. Tatsujin feels more like a quarter muncher to me, but dying in the sequel felt more like it was my fault.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 15, 2022 14:14:22 GMT -5
Zero WingDeveloper Unclear Publisher Naxat Soft Format CD-ROM² Release (JP) September 18, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System Checkpoints with upgrades lost, unlimited continues from start of level Toaplan’s second and final horizontal shooter was initially an internal project for new employees before becoming a full release. This gives the game a feeling different than other Toaplan games particularly in its occasional biomechanical and horror elements. The overall game is fairly easy which sadly makes its unique feature, an enemy capturing tractor beam, superfluous. However, the original arcade game did not use checkpoints making this port a touch harder. Like many CD games, Zero Wing mainly adds voiced cutscenes and higher quality music to differentiate itself from the arcade and Genesis ports. The story is nothing particularly engrossing, but the fantasy stylings of the villains actually gives a little bit of extra cohesion to the game’s graphical elements. Approximate Hitbox
It's really hard to find out who developed this port. The Genesis game is easy, they did it in-house. Wikipedia links to an interview with composer/programming Tatsuya Uemura where he mentions that this version was handled by a former colleague from Orca but also that he did the new soundtrack so it's up in the air on the exact nature of the outsourcing.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 17, 2022 9:35:33 GMT -5
Kiaidan 00 キアイダン00Developer Alfa System Publisher Telenet Japan Format Super CD-ROM² Release (JP) October 23, 1992 Release (US) Unreleased Difficulty Low to Moderate Looping No Continue System 4 continues from start of level Alfa System’s final shooter on the platform is the Super Robot anime inspired Kiaidan 00. Your robot has permanent access to five weapons with different auto-charging special attacks, and knowing when to use them is the key to success. Each of the seven levels has a mid and final boss and must be defeated using a special attack in proper Super Robot fashion. The graphics also compare well to other systems of the time. The game’s main problem is that it doesn’t make good use of the medium. The 80s derived CD music gives it some extra atmosphere, but there are no between level cutscenes and only a few lines of voiced dialogue during the game. Aside from the episode-like level title screens, the “show as game” element is essentially non-existent. Approximate Hitbox
Arguably most of the CD soundtracks are "80s derived" but it actually fits here. I should also mention that you get special little bonuses for completing the game at the three difficulties higher than the default 0. 1 gives an enemy "bestiary", 2 does the same for bosses, and 3 gives a few codes. The difficulties seem to mostly vary in adding in greater numbers of "death bullets" when defeating enemies and even bosses rather than changing up the attack pattern or adding extra boss attacks. If you look at Alfa System's Moby Games page, you'd think that they were founded specifically to make PCE games, but this isn't the case. According to their website, they were actually founded to make business software for the PC-9801 but basically immediately started doing PCE work. They also did development for the Sharp X68k, and also the Famicom but that work seems to either be unreleased or uncredited. They did stick by the system until close to the end only releasing a single SFC game under their own name, a port of RPG Emerald Dragon for which they also did the PCE version, before switching the the PSX and Saturn. They also did some work on PCE RPG Linda³ but seem to have a stronger direct connection to the later PSX and Saturn ports. They also did two games for Casio's merging of the console and sticker maker, the Loopy. They're still around today although mainly as a co-developer since they are pretty small at only 64 employees. Interesting enough, after leaving the genre after Castle of Shikigami III back in 2006-2008 depending on port, their newest game is actually the vertical shooter Sisters Royale! Reviews are mixed, but maybe it's actually decent since this is a niche genre these days.
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Post by dsparil on Aug 19, 2022 8:07:33 GMT -5
PC Denjin — Punkic Cyborgs PC電人 Punkic Cyborgs Air ZonkDeveloper Red Company Publisher Hudson Soft, TTI Format HuCard Release (JP) November 20, 1992 Release (US) October 1992 Difficulty Low Looping No Continue System Resurrect in place with upgrades lost, unlimited continues from start of level Red’s PC Denjin is considered one of the best shooters on the platform and for good reason. The gameplay is solid with some good boss battles, and there is also a choice of ten partner characters—the Punkic Cyborgs of the title—that can also merge with the player adding a larger second tier of weapons. The real highlight are the graphics which feature non-traditional subject matter and some of the best sprite work on the platform comparing well to games on other systems. Despite being on a 4Mb HuCard, it puts some of the small group of 6Mb and 8Mb games to shame. These graphics do come at a price in the form of occasional slowdown and flickering although it is not as bad as in other less graphically impressive games. Approximate Hitbox
A few notes. The title is obviously a pun on PC Engine much like Bonk's original PC Genjin (prehistoric man roughly). Denjin translates to electric man. The hitbox is also a little more approximate as bullets also have their own that might be smaller than the sprite. There's also some small regional variations. The score is shown differently, the Punkic Cyborgs are just called Friends in the US release, and the stages have different titles. For example, the first level is Aqua Base in the Japanese version, but Toxy Land in the US.
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