Impressions on various obscure Saturn games as they come Part II
Hey guys, well I have a SLEW of lesser known Saturn games in/coming in, and thought the time was right to create a sequel to my first thread:
http://www.neo-geo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=78710
So over the next course of a month or maybe more I'll have impressions on various (obscure) Saturn titles. I haven't counted how many I'll be writing on, but rest assured it's over 20...
Leadoff hitter later today. BTW I warn you, if you are a regular viewer of this topic, expect for your want game list to grow. Fair warning. This could be dangerous :loco:
It (does not?) hit the Spark...
Alright let's get back with the flow. Like the sound of Keriotosse! did you? Like offbeat 4 player games?
Well then!
Hansha de Spark! is as off beat as off beat 4 player games get. It comes to us from the fine folks at SIEG (who? This was the sole game they ever made) It opens with a 3D intro introducing us to our "Fantasic 4" team of heroes. The 4 heroes are the only characters selectable from the get-go. More may be unlockable as there are other characters but since I can't beat the rock-hard 1P mode this is unconfirmed. The four Heroes are as such:
1. Hansha (blue guy)
The typical all-around leader type. Has one bar in four categories, but I can only make out one category as "speed." Looks like MegaMan a bit.
2. Chammy (girl)
Sports, you got it, pink and even has the bunny ears down. Fast like a rabbit too.
3. Hayate (black and purple guy)
Sort of the "cool looking non-leader rebel type"
4. Wappaa (big guy)
The typical big guy... this one wears sheepskin (?) and has a mask complete with tusks. SLOW
So what is the premise of the game?
Do you drop bombs like in Bomberman and run away?
Is it like Grid Runner where you play virtual tag?
Is it like hide n seek?
OK, enough with the suspense.
Bascially, each character shoots a circular shot. If you hit your opponent head on with it, it doesn't kill or harm them -- it merely pushes them back a few steps. The only way to eliminate them is to bounce your shot off of a lever, which in each of the 10 stages, multiple levers are positioned.
Once the shot hits a lever and bounces off, it becomes a spark which if it hits an opponent, he is then eliminated. You have to rely on the multiple levers to richochet your shots off of.
The levers come in these directions:
1. |
2. /
3. \
4. _
And reverse for a total of 8 positions.
Basically, if you're facing to the right of _ and you fire a shot at it, it will go through.
However, if you're facing North or South of _ and fire, it will bounce back at you.
Stand to the left of "/" and fire means it'll go up.
Stand to the right of "/" and fire means it'll go down.
Same principle with \ (only reverse them)
And yes, your own shot, much like your own bomb in Bomberman, can kill you.
Sometimes there will be four, five sparks flying around the playing field! Watch your step...
Thankfully in HDS! the levers can be switched with the press of Button Y in any of the 8 directions. So you're not just a sitting duck based on predetermined factors.
But just like the cardinal rule in baseball and basketball, remember that a pass or a fastball ALWAYS travels faster than a guy running. In other words, the sparks come off the levers pretty fast. If you're in the direction of an incoming spark you better change the lever real quick. You literally have to anticipate and see the play happening before it happens. Otherwise you stand no chance.
There are also red levers, these levers cannot be altered.
This game has strategy and technique thanks to the ability to switch up levers.
The more times a spark bounces off a lever, the faster it travels and the bigger it gets. Also, it gets louder too. Nice.
Each field has blocks to clear too, much like Bomberman. Sometimes these blocks hold powerups.
With the exception of a double shot powerup, only one shot from your character can be in play. It needs to either dissipate or destroy something before you can fire another. If the shot has been bounced into a spark, that spark will keep bouncing along the path set by the levers until it hits something. There are the usual power ups like speed, shield, life extenders, etc. There are no cheap dinosaurs or kangeroos here to save your butt though! :p
The graphics are a notch below Saturn Bomberman, but still pretty decent. The music is pretty good, my friend describes it as "the music, which sounds like Kraftwerk if they OD'd on happy pills" lol.
There is some technique such as switching the levers in one of 8 directions as pointed out. It definitely has a learning curve too. Whereas in Bomberman you could just pick it up and play, this one you can't just hand the controller over to your 8 year old nephew and expect him to get it.
The 3 game modes are:
1. Free play 1-4 player battles
There are 10 mazes with each having its own gimmicks and design, a la Bomberman. Though some stages aren't really THAT much different and only sort of aesthetically come off different. You can do any combo of 1-4 player Human or CPU. You can do a 1-on-1 human vs. CPU battle or even watch 4 CPU's battle it out on any one of the 10 stages. There might be 2 hidden stages as the select screen shows 6 on top and 4 on bottom with room for two.
The game is very customable a la Saturn Bomberman. Also an unique concept is that you can pick from 1 through 10 rounds, NOT wins. So say you pick 2 rounds and 2 players each won 1. What happens next is those two are placed in a smaller version of the stage you picked... death match style. If you play 1 round and everyone dies, the next match pits all four in a VERY small version of the arena you had chosen.
2. 1 Player Quest
Kinda like Bomberman's 1 player quest. This mode was fun as it is more of a brainteaser than Bomberman as you don't just lay bombs and run about. You gotta watch those levers... enemies range from zombie skeletons to headless knights to dragons to pumpkin-headed demons.
I was able to beat the first 2 bosses. (each stage has 3 rounds then you face a boss) First boss was a cool looking giant brown castle that emits bats from its forthold. Not hard at all.
2nd boss was this flower-looking monster. He spits out a circle of white spears. Use your MAD SHMUP DODGING SKILLS! :p After you kill him he splits into 3 smaller forms. Blasphemy! No rest for the wicked eh?
You got to use the levers to flip the sparks off of to hurt the bosses. Shooting the spark directly at them does no good.
Based on the manual here are some of the other bosses:
-A towering blue bipedal Hammerhead Shark.. his head glows yellow
-A giant white Kirby :p
-Three enormous yellow Aliens (fun...)
-A fire monster
-Some sort of white Creature from the Lagoon...
Looks like good stuff.
3. Pre-arranged scenarios where you gotta get to the exit
There are 36 total. Kinda reminds me of the one found in N64's Pokemon Puzzle League or those Side Pocket games where you have specific things to unlock and they get increasingly harder. You start off here and the exit door is there. Use your spark and levers to get to the exit.
Here are some brief notes on the 10 stages:
1. Green shrubbery surrounds the outside playing field. Looks like a castle surrounds the play area (which makes sense as you fight a giant castle in the 1P mode in this level). Spikes pop outta the ground after a while. Touch and you die
2. Green shrubs are the blocks here. Fire errupts outside the arena. There are a couple red levers in this stage (red levers cannot be changed)
3. Bigger playing field than the previous two, colorful stage with water.
4. Carnival theme as carnival-esque lights light up the top of the screen. Very small field... things get up close and personal here. Better think on your feet!
5. Destroy box-like blocks as fog sweeps through this brown-hued stage.. cool affect!
6. Gearworks stage, gears rotate outside the arena. Big stage. Nice and simple.
7. Another watery stage, only this time the water moves and looks very lovely indeed. It's slippery... the water sways you to the left.
8. Same design as stage 3 only in lava. The characters must have some special shoes. The lava bubbles and glistens.
9. Dinosaur bones litter the arena. Every once in a while a giant dust storm clouds the entire screen. Some purple levers are present -- bouncing a shot off a purple lever results in the Mega, Ultimate Speeding Spark of Disaster!
10. Houses surround you and fog comes in and out. Done differently than the fog found in stage 5. Great affect.
Due to waiting factor for the spark... this game is more of a "thinking man's" survival of the fittest. You can't go "super crazy" like you can in Bomberman, Bomberman Fight!! or Keriotosse! I like this aspect of the game. It's not really a "chaotic" title like the other 3 mentioned... rather more of a thinking man's 4 player game.
I got this game for $14 a month ago. When I first played it I was HORRIBLY disappointed. But the more I played it the more I understood the little intracies of this little game and it warmed up to me.
It's safe to say HDS! is a hit or a miss title, for me it was a (small) hit. Not a great game, and it will definitely NEVER replace Saturn Bomberman, but it's decent and can prove to be a nifty little diversion of a game. Whereas I highly recommended Keriotosse! and Shingata Kururin Pa!... for this obscure exclamation Saturn title I will say "buyer cautioned." It's def. not for everyone. Only buy it if you *really* feel you might like it.
The only picture I can find of it currently is:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WD1V
Well have a great weekend everyone. Stay tuned for my next writeup... it's sort of a Resident Evil for kids. ;)
we interrupt this topic for Miss Rami
Tonight we examine a game that is not as obscure as the others, but definitely could use a moment in the spotlight. I'm sure some of you have played this game before, own it possibly, or maybe you've heard clumps of brief info on it and would like a more in-depth review before you commit.
Keio Yugekitai
Overview:
Keio Yugekitai is a very cute 2D hand-drawn platformer that at its core, while featuring diverse gameplay, is a 'basic' platformer. The game stars Rami, a cute little girl sporting a semi-bunny costume. There's lots of humor and hi-jinx to go along the way as players control Rami through a wild and wacky adventure.
Categorical breakdowns:
Graphics: 9
Very beautiful hand-drawn art is everywhere. Nice looking backgrounds and everything on-screen is well animated. You'll see an underwater scene, a space scene, a forest scene, a mine scene, a screaming roller coaster ride, etc. There's plenty of 2D eye candy to find here, and the Saturn pumps it out like no one's business. (see link for pictures at bottom) Rami has plenty of cute facial expressions, as does even the roller-coaster whenever it lands from a hard bump.
Music/sound effects: 8.5
Japanese-like tunes fill the air. It sets the mood well. Sound effects are crisp and loud. I like the sound Rami makes when she jumps on an enemy's head. The one thing I didn't like about the music was the boss battle theme. It's way too cute! I can accept cute music in the stages, but boss themes should be serious. And the bosses all share the one cute theme. I found the theme to be annoying and didn't help to intensify the boss battles any.
Gameplay: 8.5
You kill enemies by jumping on their head or picking up one of 3 weapons: the giant hammer, the umbrella or the bow-and-arrow. I personally found the bow-and-arrow to be useless. It was too slow and ineffective in my experience. The umbrella is useful for covering Rami's head from falling boulders (hey -- it's an enchanted umbrella for crying out loud! ;-) and gliding (just open it and press jump). The hammer is my favorite because I found it very useful.
Rami acts like Sonic the Hedgehog in the sense that as long as she has a weapon in her hand, she can take a hit and still survive. Once hit, the weapon flies out of Rami's grasp and you have a few seconds to retrieve it before it fades away, a la Sonic's rings. You'll swim underwater, ride a roller coaster, hop on your flying dragon friend and battle the unfriendly skies in a horizontal shooter-like section, etc.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...l/kfs2/k2b.jpg
There is a lot to do and within stages there's plenty more to do than just hop on enemies' heads. In one stage you will have to pick up a giant hand and take it over to a big button high above. A meter shall appear and you have to press 'B' as quickly as you can to activate the locked doors to open. It's little things like this that help the game move along at a nice pace without getting too boring at any one point.
The enemies were different. You battle little bears, giant flying mutated bats, funky looking machines, red small birds, etc. The enemies are about as light-hearted as the game itself is.
The boss battles I was disappointed with. Yes the bosses are big. But they're simply too goofy and weird for my tastes. I wanted a bigger 'omph!' feeling from them. It's a shame too that, you will come across a HUGE gorgeous (and hideous) red octopus, but it's not a boss battle (you can't even hurt it)
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...l/kfs2/k1b.jpg
Some bosses defy explanation. The last boss is truly a strange fellow...
Some bosses reminded me of bosses seen in fellow Saturn imports 'Psychic Assassin Taromaru' and 'Shin Shinobi Den' (Shinobi Legions in the US)
There are three difficulty levels.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...l/kfs2/k4b.jpg
as weird as this Mofo be, he has nothing on the final boss...
-Easy: The game's too easy here. Not much enemies, lots of inventories to help you out. So easy I found this mode boring
-Medium: This is more like it. More enemies, less inventories, and little touches like the time you have to retrieve a lost weapon (it's drastically less than when you play on easy) makes for a much tougher challenge.
-Hard: Master platformers need only apply. Tons of enemies littered everywhere...
Control: 9
I did not have a problem with it, although Rami's jumps to me seem a little low. I wish she could jump higher. I personally found setting the 'run' button to 'L/R' to work best, instead of setting it to double tap right or left.
Fun Factor: 8
It's pretty fun to guide little Rami throughout the wacky battle zones. Some will find the cute Japanese humor to be amusing, others will not. The more you fall in the former category, the more likely you are to enjoy Keio Yugekitai on the whole.
Replay Value: 6.5
I've said it before and I'll say it again. Most platformers just don't have a very high ceiling when it comes to replay value. As cute and humorous as this game is, after a while it does lose some of its appeal and charm. Thankfully, the normal and hard difficulty levels will give gamers incentive to return, whereas other platformers don't even have different difficulty levels (e.g. Pandemonium!)However, unlike Pandemonium, you can only use one character in Keio Yugekitai... (whereas it's two in Pandemonium!) so it balances out kinda...
MISC:
-Loading times are average
-No English to be found here, but it's still quite import-friendly (little trial and error should do the job)
-There are plenty of secrets to find
-I found the ending very amusing
-The anime intro is atmospheric; particularly in the beginning where it's peaceful at night with the crickets chirping... then all hell breaks loose (you'll have to see it for yourself)
-The plot goes something like: Rami must recover the crystal balls from Hibiki (a troubled girl) and the mad scientist racoon (I suppose) Dr. Pon
-Honestly, while I do like this game, I find it *slightly* overrated within the Saturn diehard community... I feel this way also about Guardian Heroes. I like both these games but just not in that '10' or '9' grading range others have deemed these titles
-There is a PAL version of this game where it's translated all to English, but as of this writing it's harder to find than the JPN version and is more expensive
Bottom Line:
A strong entry into the platform genre, I hope you can find it at a good price (shoot for $35 or under) There's a lot of life to this game, but fair warning it's not for everyone. It's not really a serious platformer. In fact, at times it feels like almost a parody, but that could just be me. At any rate, it's a solid game with great graphics and diverse gameplay in a polished package. If you're looking for a serious smash-mouth 'whoa look at that cool gruesome boss!' kind of platformer, you will want to look elsewhere. But for most everyone else, don that bunny suit and let's find those lost crystals!
Overall: 8.5
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...l/kfs2/k3b.jpg
a very cool sub-shooter part
For even more pics go here:
http://www.markinjapan.com/detail.php?selected=601
As promised... a House of (Kiddie) Horrors...
*cue movie trailer voice*
There is a HOUSE...
That is hardly ever spoken of
There is a HOUSE...
Where evil laughter lurks in the winding hallways
There is a HOUSE...
That is unlike any other
Resident Evil mansion, Amityville Horror house, the crib in the film Darkness... these places have NOTHING on this HOUSE...
Taking place on a most malevolent Holiday...
You will enter the longest day of your life.
Once inside THERE'S NO WAY OUT.
Welcome to this House of Pain.
Welcome to...
WELCOME HOUSE
So is this game as good as the "teaser intro"? Carry on...
The story goes something like this: Keaton is in Miami to visit his crazy Uncle Parkinson. For what wacky reason is unbeknownst to us. Beknownst to us however, is that inexplicably Keaton's car completely breaks down in front of his Uncle's huge 2 story house. The doors to the house are open, Keaton walks in and as soon as he does they slam shut bolted. As Keaton looks frantically around, the windows downstairs all clamp down as well. He is stuck.
And his Uncle has a little game... essentially "Survive my house of tricks and traps!" Why is his uncle like this? Well, if he wasn't, there wouldn't be much of a game eh?
The game takes place on April Fools' Day... and Uncle Parkinson sure has some gags on hand for Keaton!
Welcome House is a 3D adventure (I think the manual dubbed it a "Cartoon Adventure" which is fitting) where you guide Keaton around a big house looking for a way to escape the house. You pick up items, figure out where to use what items and the like. Some doors are readily openable, others are locked and required finding the proper key. Sounds like Resident Evil for kids? In a way, the premise very much so is.
It controls like RE too. Left and right to spin our man Keaton around, up and down gets him walking. Sadly, Keaton can't run, and his walking pace ain't gonna set the world on fire. Controlling Keaton is a bit clunky due to his walking pace and the click-clat turning style. A surveys whatever Keaton is facing. C brings up any items you are carrying. Pressing C again uses item if applicable in that spot. To open a door, face any door and press Up.
There are some open windows in the house. If you press A at a window Keaton goes to touch it but then the window slams down on his fingers while somewhere in the house mysteriously Uncle Parkinson laughs devilishy.
Graphically the polygons are a little rough though certainly manageable. I guess if you're not spoiled by today's graphics by now, Welcome House won't look THAT rough, but it ain't winning any beauty contests either. I dunno, I kinda enjoyed the tacky polygon graphics in that B-Movie way. Keaton is a likeable chap, I just wish he moved faster. Game speed is slowly paced somewhat, but I guess that's the nature of the game the makers were shooting for.
The house is somewhat reminiscent to the Resident Evil mansion. The controls are similar as are the Camera angles. They have the same kind of fixed view point where when Keaton moves to a certain spot the camera angle changes to a new and different viewpoint. Overall it works well, especially without the troubling zombies coming after you that makes you curse at the control system.
The game has a chill, mellow pace/feel.
But here's the downside: the game on the whole is mediocre at best IMHO. Once you beat it (I haven't yet, but I know you can save your progress), I don't see a reason why you'd want to beat it again... thus replay value is lacking. The gameplay is simple with the hardest part being mixing and matching which items do what and go where (i.e. the puzzle element)
As for Japanese text, there isn't too much. Sure whatever Keaton observes is in Japanese so you miss out on that, but logically speaking you can figure things out. Though I haven't beaten this game, so I can't say for sure how much a lack of the knowledge of JP might hinder one later on, but early in the game you can get by without hassle. But if you're like me though, you'll quip at not being able to read the little details that Keaton observes. Ah well.
You REALLY have to be into this kind of game style or else you'll be bored off your keyster wondering why you bought this game to begin with (heh... don't look at me). It took me about two years to find a copy of this game though, and I haven't seen it once since I bought the 1 copy I finally spotted several months back. It's safe to assume this game is pretty rare.
My copy came with a sticker card. Ahh those cool little extra's the Japanese give you. :D
My copy ran me $10 and if you can locate a copy going for that much, and you want to give it a shot, it's worth it.
It also came out on PS1 as an import and Welcome House 2 (which GameFan previewed moons ago) is exclusive to PS1. From the sceenshots I saw in the preview, WH2 (not World Heroes 2 haha) graphically is much enhanced and looks like a more involving title based on GameFan's description of improvements made.
So... don't expect a whole lot from Welcome House. I know two others who have played it. One thought it was a dud (see link) and the other played it through, calling it a "decent game for what it was."
For me I fall much closer to the latter. If you're into different, unique quirky games, this one may appeal to you. But again, know what you'd be getting. I suppose the search in itself would be half the fun. (took me close to 2 years...)
http://www.segagagadomain.com/saturn2/welcomehouse.htm
a big platform, puzzle and shooter fan eh?
Shawn, yes, there are a couple turbo button pads on Saturn.
Next we look at WONDER 3
I had very high hopes for Wonder 3. For a while I loved it but then I came down to earth with it after realizing its limitations and getting off that initial early 90's high.
Wonder 3 (W3) features three arcade games on one disc. These games all originated from the early 90s. Roosters (AKA Midnight Wanderers), Don't Pull, and Chariot. The action, puzzle and shooting genre is represented here respectively.
So why do I feel it comes up short? Well, it is fun for a while... when I played it the first couple times my reaction was: This is a high quality Saturn title.
After six hours of game play or so, I was left wanting much more, and for a disc that has 3 games in 1, I found the replay value to be surprisingly limited.
~ MIDNIGHT WANDERERS ~ (you gotta love that name)
My favorite of the lot, MW is like a Metal Slug Junior set in a fantasy world. This is a basic side-scroller where you play the role of an elf who must return peace to his land.
The game play here is very simple. The damage system is like Ghosts N Goblins, one hit causes our good elf to lose his clothes, and two hits total will kill him.
The enemies consist of elf foot-soldiers (who pop out of the ground) and other strange beings. There are 5 stages total and each stage has 2 areas that are respectively guarded by a boss (2 bosses per stage). Your elf's standard shot is an arrow. He can upgrade it by breaking open treasure chests and collecting certain colored orbs. The shot can turn into sort of a boomerang projectile, or a big blue-ish blast.
There is a 2 Player mode that works as you might expect, very well. Me and my brother have enjoyed romping through this one together.
Overall this is a nice little vintage-esque platform blaster but it's very basic and you got to be a fan of these type of simple games to enjoy this one. The bosses are pretty cool (especially Stage 1 Area 2 Boss 2 BALGOSS) and the graphics are a delightful splash of vibrancy, although the animation on our elf friends is a bit lacking.
Goofy sense of humor.
A is shoot, B is jump. Very simple.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...3/saturn2b.jpg
~ CHARIOT ~
Chariot is my least favorite. Our elf friends are back at it. With hang gliders equipped, they take off toward the unfriendly skies to battle the evil-doers. There are 7 stages total and all bosses in this game are of the Zodiac. Cancer (giant crab), Sagga-what's-his-name, etc. The enemies here are the same baddies found from Midnight Wanderers. It's like a continuation except in the form of a SHMUP. With the exception being new bosses. A is shoot, B is to unleash your bomb shot. On paper a great concept.
But like the ole sport saying goes, "On paper means just that... you gotta play the game to see what is real."
Chariot at times just dragged on -- at least until you reach the bosses. I just couldn't get into it because I found it very plain and bland. And unlike Midnight Wanderers, it just didn't have that charm value. To be brutally honest, I see no reason to play Chariot more than just a few times, because AT BEST it's average and why play an average ho-hum shooter when you got the likes of Soukyugurentai, Battle Garegga, and Galactic Attack on Saturn? You know what I'm saying? I mean, for God's sake just take a glander at this:
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews.../terra/t3b.jpg
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...attleg/b1b.jpg
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...er/layer1b.jpg
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...3/saturn1b.jpg
This over Saturn's smash hit library of SHMUPS? Ya gotta be damn crazy
Now conversely we could make the same argument between Midnight Wanderers and Saturn platform blasters like Metal Slug, Elevator Action Returns and Mega Man X4, but *at least* Midnight Wanderers is unique enough to bring something different and worth playing to the table. Chariot, sadly, in my book, does not.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...r/saturn2b.jpg
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...rockx4/r1b.jpg
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...al/metal2b.jpg
Even in a tough and crowded genre well covered on Saturn, Midnight Wanderers manages to stand out with its charm and unique look.
~ DON'T PULL ~
It reminds me a bit of a souped up version of Rodent's Revenge. Perhaps Pengo is a better comparison, yes. The elf guys are nowhere to be found here; you control a rabbit in a square area containing blocks and bad guys (green blobs, dinosaurs, etc.) Control is a bit stiff, I assume it's because of the alignment you must make with a block so you can push it up, down, left or right. The instruction booklet says there are 32 levels, and so far I have yet to beat this game. It's not too bad but just don't expect a ''traditional'' puzzle game because it's no Tetris clone. It's an action puzzle game. No falling blocks to be found here. The playing field looks like a Bomberman scene kinda.
Your goal is to eliminate all the enemies within each stage. By kicking the blocks into them which crushes them. Sound easy? On paper, maybe, but in-game you will have to be quick on your feet. There is a 2 player mode and it can make for some good times... teamwork or lack thereof, can make things real interesting real quick. Sometimes you want a block to be there, but if your partner kicks it blindly elsewhere, you might be sorry outta luck! Keeping an open line of communication is crucial.
But overall, I only found Don't Pull to be barely above average.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...3/saturn3b.jpg
I expected a lot out of Wonder 3, maybe unrealistically so, but I really thought going in to this one, that this could have been one of the Saturn's sleeper gem hits.
As stated previously, W3's replay value for me is surprisingly limited. I have no desire to return to CHARIOT, I see little desire to return to DON'T PULL, and MIDNIGHT WANDERERS is one of those ''couple times a year'' types. I played W3 for about four days straight and really liked it. Then time passed and I am left with an empty feeling. It is really truly Midnight Wanderers that "saves" this comp for me. Otherwise, this would be on the trade list.
Bottom Line:
A decent compilation; the likes of which only the craziest gamers will want to hunt down. In the end, I just came out disappointed. But again, I was expecting probably TOO much.
If I had to rate each title independently:
Midnight Wanderers- 7.5
Pretty fun, a decent ''kiddie'' version of fantasy Metal Slug if you will. A little goofy, colorful and very whimsical
Don't Pull- 6.0
Strictly slightly above average. Decent fun with 2 players; trying to plot out the mazes. If you have a girlfriend this might be a good game to play. If not, Don't Pull is almost Don't Play. OK that's a little harsh... Don't Pull feels like an old game that you played on a very old computer many moons ago. I guess there's some charm in that.
Chariot- 4.5
Just not all that fun or appealing. Very ho-hum, very *yawn*
Overall, I score Wonder 3 a 7.0
Please note that it's no cheap game. I believe it commands at least a solid $45. To buy or not to buy, that is the question. If you enjoy these games, I say hell yeah go for it. If you always were a non-fan, skip.
For more pics go here:
http://www.markinjapan.com/detail.php?selected=349
note: the funny square graphical thing you'll see is NOT in the game (dunno what happened there)
The Capcom Interview Part II
Thanks for all the comments. Keep 'em coming.
Let's continue on with the Capcom Interview Part II.
SSM: The Biohazard franchise seems ideally suited to the Dreamcast hardware. Can you let us in on any of you plans for bringing the world of survival horror to the 128-bit generation?
NF: On October 6th, Sega will hold its New Challenge Conference: Part 2. Capcom will be there to make a joint announcement with Sega about Biohazard on Dreamcast.
SSM: Who from Capcom will be at the Sega New Challenge Conference?
NF: Probably myself, Mr. Yoshiki Okamoto (President of Flagship, Managing Director of Capcom's R&D Division) and Mr. Shinji Mikami (a Biohazard Producer). There might be more staff present because we will be announcing several titles, not just Biohazard.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...envssf/x1b.jpg
SSM: What are your thoughts on the non-release of Grade A quality titles like X-Men vs. Street Fighter and Vampire Savior in the US and Europe?
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...r/saturn1b.jpg
NF: Of course we are very disappointed with this. The problem is that overseas sales companies were really opposed to the use of the 4MB RAM cart because of the additional expense involved. The European and American markets are very hard, so they didn't want the extra risk. Personally, I think that they should have been able to support these titles, but instead consumers have to pay very expensive import prices instead.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...r/saturn2b.jpg
SSM: Dreamcast will appear in an arcade form as the Naomi board. Since Capcom supported the PlayStation System 11 and 12 hardware, are you at all tempted to switch to the far greater 3D power of this new Sega machine?
NF: We will make an official announcement about this at the JAMMA Show in Mid-September, but I think that we will eventually stop using the PlayStation board for arcade games sometime soon. We've pretty much pushed that hardware as far as we can.
SSM: You didn't port any of your PlayStation board games to the Saturn. Does this mean that Naomi board games will all become Dreamcast exclusive games?
NF: It would be very difficult to convert Naomi games to the PS. However, we'll be able to port all our PS board games to the DC.
SSM: Will you improve your PS board games to make more use of the DC?
NF: No, we won't. We won't alter the game to make it look better on the DC hardware. However, if we have a PS board gae that we can't port to the PS then it will only be ported to the DC. We won't let the quality of games suffer.
SSM: Are there any other plans to convert your CP-System III titles to the home market?
NF: As far as DC conversions go, we will make an announcement about that as the New Challenge Conference in October, but it's not possible to port them to the PS. Even CP-System II titles have been very difficult to do. Even Street Fighter Zero was pushing the PS to its limits.
SSM: Apart from WarZard and SF III, do you have plans to release any more titles for your CP-System III board?
NF: Yes, there's a title called JoJo's Adventure. That's going to be a fighting game based on a Manga story which we plan to release in December. We'll show some video footage of it at the JAMMA Show.
SSM: Why has it taken so long for a new CP-System III game to appear in arcades?
NF: It's similar to the problem that Sony has with the PS and PS2. We have so many CP-System II boards out there, that it's difficult for us to introduce a new board into the market place. Many arcades don't have a CP-System III board at all, but they still have their CP-System II boards, so we can't give up on it just yet.
SSM: Would you prefer everyone to change over to CP-System III?
NF: Not really. We're thinking of giving up on the CP-System III. To be honest, it wasn't very good. Many companies didn't like it because it had a lot of hardware faults.
SSM: Will you only use other manufacturers boards from now on or will you create a CP-System IV?
NF: A CP-System IV board does exist, but we haven't decided whether or not to market it yet.
SSM: Can you say when we might see the first real 3D Street Fighter game from Capcom?
NF: The year 2000 (laughs)! We have an in-house joke where we say that it'll be called Street Fighter 2000. From a creative point of view our designers are always asking why they have to create a 3D Street Fighter game. They originally wanted to create a new world of characters, like Star Gladiator. That's what they all strongly felt and they didn't want to think simply about the sales aspects. However, none of our new 3D characters have been very successful, so they're slowly coming round to the idea that it would actually be OK to create a 3D Street Fighter.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews...z/sfex/s1b.jpg
SSM: Will Arika continue to make all the 3D versions of the SF series?
NF: No, they won't be. The last 3D game they developed for us was SF EX2.
SSM: What are are your plans for the SF III series?
NF: In spring of next year, we are planning to release SF III: 3rd Impact. At the moment there are too many fighting games in the arcade, so we can't release a sequel any faster than one every six months. We've only just released SF Zero 3, so we don't really want to launch anything just yet.
http://www.maniac.de/oldhome/reviews.../sfz3/ps3b.jpg
SSM: Will 'Impact' become the official sub-name for the SF III series?
NF: We want to make SF III: 3rd Impact the very best version of this series and possibly the last. After that, we will think about a new Street Fighter series. SF Zero 3 will probably be the last in that series as well. SF III: 3rd Impact wil keep all the old characters, but we'll add some new ones as well. Although it'll be a major change over the 2nd Impact game system, it won't be a major departure from the first two games in the series.
From the folks at Bandai...
I'm still alive... just busy around FINALS time. I've been tackling this game lately... it's really grown on me. It might grow on you too, if you give it a chance.
PD ULTRAMAN LINK
No matter what I do this game will forever be linked to me, no pun intended. This is a game that I've been after for two years. It's a hard bugger to come by. But the real interesting thing here is, my ex-girlfriend gave me this game as part of my Christmas gift set last year.
Now there's your common 2004 Christmas gift -- an outdated, out of circulation obscure Saturn puzzle game. =P
Yes PD Ultraman Link is a puzzle game. There are a couple UM games on Saturn, I have never played the rest, but me being the puzzle fanatic, was always after this one. Two years, man. Two bloody years. It just doesn't pop up on eBay very much. Or elsewhere on the net.
So how is it? What's it like? And is it worth hunting down? Let's examine PD Xiga Link... uh, excuse me I meant PD Ultraman Link ;)
There are 5 blocks:
_l (red)
l_ (blue)
[ (green)
l (yellow)
l
- (purple, hard to show, but they're connected)
I know, the pieces may seem slightly reminiscent of Shingata Kururin Pa! (boy was that game covered a long time ago...) The basic concept of PD Link is to link together 3... doesn't matter what color.
Say a green drops down
[
And then another green
]
You combine them to be
[]
They will all disappear (because you connected four links together)
Each piece has two links already. (The purple one is unique because they're not linked together)
So you can easily go for the link 3 here and there and keep your field clean, which won't damage your opponent much.
The key here is, like all puzzle games, to work on a big chain.
The purple block is unique because it usually leaves one piece behind. This part is hard to explain because you really need a visual to see how it works.
Debris comes in the form of light black link pieces. Once you connect 2 or more to a black debris piece, it turns gray... repeat again and it disappears for good.
You can turn around and do some crazy stuff with the debris if you strategize well. One time I nailed an 8 chainer that just made the screen go crazy (pop pop pop pop pop .... good feeling for sure) Killed my enemy easily after that.
Yeah, when I first played this game I was like "What the hell... this puzzle game is weird."
But over the past week or so it's really grown on me after I learned more about the kinks in the gameplay.
There are 10 characters to select from. 5 versions of UltraMan and 5 of his monster foes. The game has a different look. It's not really colorful or bright or "sugary" looking so to speak. The character models are funky looking and of the SD mode more than anything else.
During gameplay you can press 'X' to change the way the pieces look.
A. One mode makes them all lines. Here it REALLY looks like Kururin. The lines are colored appropriately.
B. Your standard mode, where you get capsule-like pieces. Only, when you link them together you can see the individual breaks.
C. Like above, except they link together... and start to look like a box of MIKE AND IKE'S after not too long.
You have a story mode (it's hard), 2P mode, VS. CPU mode, and a "see if you can clear me all" puzzle mode.
I'll give you an example of a nice little 4 hit combo
note. the 'X' you will see indicates to leave it blank here
First you set up four blues on your bottom left hand corner as such:
BBBB
Then you drop a couple reds on top of them blue suckers:
XRRR
BBBB
Finally get a green piece and stick it next to the blue.
XRRR
BBBBG
What happens?
Blue meets green. They link and disappear:
l_ <---> ]
The red on top of the blue that just cancelled drops down to greet blue
l_ <----> _l
And then after they disappear the other reds drop down in succession.
There are more advanced crazy combo's but I'll let your imaginations work it out.
Overall this is not a puzzle game that will appeal to every one. Puzzle fans may even be indifferent toward it as it has a bit of an acquired taste, much like Hansha de Spark! in my opinion. However, give it a shot, learn the kinks of the gameplay, and it just may grow on you like it did me.
Keep in mind that it is a VERY hard to find video game. (look around, no one sells it)
But it cost me $12... so it should be had cheap. Well, I should say it cost my ex GF 12 dollars, haha.
Not bad... not bad at all. Where does it rank? It definitely is no Puzzle Fighter, Puyo Puyo or Bust A Move.... doesn't quite have the charm as those games... but it's got a unique puzzle system worth checking out if you're a fan of the genre. It's a different spin on the ole "connect 3" formula. I would say it's worth hunting down. But not a top priority.
Oh yeah, hawk-eyed GameFan magazine readers may remember the small quarter of a page preview of this game in some 1997 (96?) GameFan issue (where I discovered this game)... other than that itty bitty preview, I haven't been able to find ANY info on this game anywhere. Glad to see that things will change now.
See you guys next time.
