32X and Sega CD

[32X and Sega CD]

I love my Sega CD. There's quite a few consoles I'd give up before I'd give up on that one. I bought a model 1 in the spring of 93 and never regretted it. I sold my high school class ring to help afford it. I traded something that did nothing but remind me of 4 unpleasant years among nitwits for something that has given me joy ever since. Pretty good trade I think.

Dark Wizard, Shining Force CD, and Silpheed are my favorite games for it.

I've always thought it was great, from the moment I first hooked it up and played Time Gal as my first game on it.

I bought the 32X at launch. There are certainly games I like on the system. For me, Metal Head, Shadow Squadron, Virtua Racing Deluxe, and Space Harrier are definitely the top highlights. However, I eventually had to admit the 32X was not anywhere near as good a purchase as I wanted it to be.

I like the 32X, but it has been quite some time since I last played it. However, I do tend to keep it hooked up, just in case, which I don't do for some other consoles.

[SNES Mini Confirmed]

Oh well. It seems my window to order one of these has passed me by.

I'm not going to go from store to store looking for this. I don't care enough about it to do that.

I'm out. Good luck to anyone who will hunt for one.

[Mattel Battlestar Galactica elctronic game]

Yeah, I seem to recall a game that looked exactly the same minus the battlestar and the logo. Handheldmuseum.com says it was previously branded as Missile Attack.

 

I really wanted one of those back in the day.

[Terrible classic-era game ideas that should be forgotten]

 

 

Random encounters in RPGs.

You want to level up, and you want there to be some risk in trekking off the beaten path. You DON'T want to get interrupted by stupid $hit so often that you forget the direction you were traveling. Ugh.

 

 

I disagree. I'd rather have the random encounters. With the fixed/shown encounters it just means you always have an encounter in certain areas unless you want to do whatever micro-game element the game expects you to do to avoid them (running past them, hiding, etc) which just wastes time.

 

I prefer the unpredictability in random encounters. I feel it makes not only exploring more fun, but also grinding itself. It's boring to just walk back and forth between the same visible MOBS in the same locations over and over. Walking back and forth down hallways or through the same forest tiles over and over waiting for random encounters to occur can be dull, but there is a level of unpredictability to it. And it's quite a different experience being low on hit points and other resources in a random encounter game than one where all the enemies are visible with known encounter locations.

 

I've had nail biting expeditions in dungeons with random encounters, not knowing if I'd get back or not. They've been frustrating, but also extremely exciting. That just doesn't happen in the visible/non-random encounters games.

 

(edit: and holy shit it's weird to be on this side of this topic. For pen & paper RPGs I strongly dislike random encounters in dungeons. Oddly enough, for mostly the same reasons I say I like them in video game RPGs)

[Unpopular games that you like?]

 

I'm also a fan of Star Voyager.. set it to lasers and the game is good fun.

 

One of my positive memories I have of my stepdad was how he would play Star Voyager with me. I'd drive the ship and fire the lasers. He'd control the photorps with the second controller. I don't recall our best score, but I think we were a pretty decent team.

[What was the first video game you ever played?]

The first video game I ever played was some Kee Games Tank variant which was at a carnival passing through town.

[Is this SEGA NOMAD worth $105 ?]

I'm way late. I used to love my Nomad. But Austin is right, it's completely obsolete now. If you want to play Genesis games play on real Genesis. if you want to play Genesis games on the go, there are superior modern alternatives. I'm normally pretty big about playing on original hardware, but in this case playing emulated on a modern portable is vastly superior to playing on an original Nomad.

 

The screen on the Nomad was far less than ideal even when it was new. Now well over two decades on, it would be a miracle if you got one where the screen could even pass muster of being useable. The thing is HUGE, and you absolutely need an AC adapter because it eats through batteries and a battery pack with lightning speed.

 

If you want it as a collectible, and that is worth $100 for you, then I would have said go for it. If you're wanting to PLAY it, then $100 is ridiculous.

[Unpopular games that you like?]

Pac-Man

E.T.

Laser Blast

Spacechase

Bugs

 

There's one game I like that I wouldn't call it unpopular as much as completely unknown. I don't recall the title of it. I periodically rediscover it when surfing roms on my Harmony. You have a central missile base and paratroopers jump down towards your installation. If they land, they start digging tunnels to your base to blow it up.

 

[I like the pacing of shining force]

Shining Force is one of my favorites.

 

I bought my original cart from K-Mart. I had no idea what it was like, but it seemed interesting. I was pretty much in love with the game from the moment I popped the game into the console. The first time through, I blazed through the game without any grinding.

 

Since then, I tend to play it with my partner. Each of us pick characters and we periodically do some leveling. The large character roster supports this extremely well, so each of us can have our own party even though we're playing the same game.

 

I liked how there was no backtracking and exploration was almost non-existent. The game knew it's appeal was in the battles and focused on that. I think all the exploration and mucking around is something that hurts the sequel a bit.

 

I like how you can approach the game how you want. If you want to just grind, then it lets you. If you want permadeath, there's no reason you have to rez fallen warriors. If you want to just blaze through, then pretend Egress and Wings don't exist. There aren't a lot of characters you HAVE to use when all is said and done.

 

And it's pretty simple, because whomping monsters is fun.

 

Enjoy the game. It's a blast, and ages very well. And once you've completed it, try Shining Force II and Shining Force CD.

[Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives 3: Final Stage - What about us, the west ?]

What about us, the west ?

it's say right there

Fukkoku

 

Yeah, that's pretty much Sega's stock historical answer to that question.

[Great classic-era game ideas that have been forgotton]

Master of Monsters on the Genesis (and the identically named title on the PS1) is a turn based strategy game with RPG elements. It doesn't have any action combat elements.

 

There was a hexgrid based Archon style game for the PS2 and Xbox. I have the X-Box version of it somewhere, but the name escapes me. (Doh. It was the earlier mentioned Wrath Unleased)

 

The mini-game Mortal Kombat Chess on the Mortal Kombat Deception disc a very Archon inspired mode.

 

There's a single player mode in Soul Calibur III on the PS3 which isn't turn based, but it's like a RTS where combat is handled via fighting game. It's kind of like a hybrid of Archon and the Saturn game Dragon Force.

[No more E.T bashing, there are games that are really garbage, ET is not one]

You are obviously in error. Decades of editorials paid for by the current rulers of the videogame world as well as thousands of half-wit internet personalities desperate to prove their "street cred" have taught us that E.T. was the worst game of all time. Please report to the nearest re-education center for correction to your programming.

 

::looks around::

 

Swordquest: Earthworld is worse.

 

 

 

[SNES Mini Confirmed]

I saw an article about this earlier today. While the NES mini didn't appeal to me, this one does.

 

The game list is excellent. Other than F-Zero which has never been anything other than a glorified tech demo, there is no chaff whatsoever. They even managed to avoid using Pilotwings, which you know pained them to leave that gack off.

 

Someone even resisted the urge for the millionth release of Final Fantasy II, instead going with far superior Final Fantasy III. AND Earthbound AND Super Mario RPG!

 

They even decided to admit Starfox 1 exists. And holee shit! Starfox 2! Has Nintendo decided they want my money?

 

I may niggle a bit about the game list. The lack of Mortal Kombat II is a pretty big deal, as is the MIA status of Killer Instinct, but I understand the licensing snarl behind those. The lack of traditional shumps is noticable, but I really can't think of one above others they should have included. The only inexcusable thing is the total lack of a brawler. Capcom seriously didn't want to whore out Final Fight 2 or 3?

 

But, like I said, those are just nits. This game list hits the iconics much better than the NES one did (and the NES didn't do a bad job). I think I'll have to hunt one of these things down.

[challenge time: SNES vs genesis]

I have to say that what gets me about this is using Comix Zone as the benchmark, and not even the game itself, but the amount of time to load a stage. How random.

[Last 3 games you played?]

Super Robot Wars V (PS Vita via PS TV)

Top Shop (PS1 via PS3)

Venture (Atari 5200)

[Venture 5200]

Very, very cool.

 

I played on 1. That was too easy. I killed myself off at 1 million.

 

Then I played on 3. I didn't notice any real difference until I hit the million mark again and more monsters started populating the dungeon. I kept playing and there were some little changes.

 

Some monsters took more hits to kill (goblins and snakes became multi-hit). The trap room gained a couple of new walls. Other rooms started requiring objectives. For example, the snake room required defeating all the monsters before the treasure would appear. Some rooms required all the monsters be killed before the door would open and allow escape.

 

And then, suddenly there was a new map and four new rooms. I was a little disappointed that two of the four were new trap rooms. The Reaper room and it's unkillable minions is something of a crapshoot. Therefore, I only thought there was one well made room in the set with it's respawning monsters.

 

Finally, I played on 3c. That's the difficulty to play on.

 

But control is so much better than any other version, and the speed feels great. It looks fantastic too.

 

There are a few bugs here and there. Sometimes when shooting in a room you'll "hit" empty air. The treasures shown between each level don't start where they're supposed to if you start a new game after being killed off. Instead they start at wherever the next treasure you would have earned in your previous game. Hall monsters reset to their origin points every time when exiting a room.

 

The pause button isn't enabled. Neither is Reset.

 

Venture is finally on the 5200!

[What game are you best at on the VCS?]

I can play variation 2 of Atari Pac-Man indefinitely. I guess that's not much, as it's probably the easiest difficulty other than the children's variants.

 

I can play indefinitely on any game variation of Atari Defender. Once again, not much to brag about since the game isn't very difficult.

 

I think I'm decent at Star Trek: Strategic Operations Simulator. But my high score on the 2600 version is only 699K, which is probably not so good.

[Classic RPGs: Differences between console and computer versions]

Dungeons and Dragons: Warriors of the Eternal Sun (simplified from a PC game?)

 

 

As far as I know, Warriors of the Eternal Sun doesn't have a PC parent. It seems inspired by a combo of Ultima 6 and the SSI Gold Box games, but not having specific roots anywhere else. Despite it's look as a PC port, it's a Genesis original.

 

Once upon a time, I read an article that Warriors of the Eternal Sun was an unfinished JRPG which used mechanics very similar to D&D, and was retooled to be an official D&D game when it was picked up by Westwood, finished, and localized. Reading up on it now, as well as thinking about it a bit, that doesn't seem likely. I couldn't find the article when I tried to rediscover it.

 

Warriors was very frustrating to me when I bought it. I think I paid $65-$75 or something for it when new. I was expecting a Gold Box experience with better graphics, as well as a little bit of streamlining like Ultima 4 got in it's port to the NES. Instead I got those button mashing first person real time dungeon crawls. Also, I kept on getting pwned by creatures on the world map because I wouldn't see them and I'd be in exploration mode while they'd be murdering me. And godforsaken spell memorization...

 

I've never played tabletop D&D where mages use spell preparation. I've never met anyone in the real world who uses it. Everyone I've ever known plays it so you have a certain number of "slots" per day and each one represents a casting of any of the applicable spells your character knows. But if you play any of the computer or console D&D games, you better get used to going through your spell list and choosing exactly which of your spells goes into which spell slot, because otherwise you're not going to be casting anything later. If anything should ever have been ditched for console ports of D&D, it would be spell memorization/preparation.

 

I probably need to give Warriors of the Eternal Sun another shot. In the intervening years I've gained a fondness for the Dungeon Hack style of play the dungeon crawls in WotES uses. And now stupid mechanics like spell memorization are nostalgic instead of purely frustrating.

[Classic RPGs: Differences between console and computer versions]

Several classic computer RPGs have been ported to consoles, e.g. the NES received Bard's Tale, Might & Magic, and three of the Ultima games.

 

I have read detailed reviews about both the console versions and the computer versions, but is there any source that provides a detailed comparison or discussion of the differences? Obviously graphics and the UI are going to be different, but what are the changes to game play?

 

The Official Book of Ultima devotes a brief section to how the NES games differ from the original versions, but I have not see an equivalent for any of the other titles.

 

For various reasons, I never played any of the classic RPGs when they were new, and I have decided to start with the (emulated) NES versions -- the simplified interface makes them significantly easier to play on my phone. Will I be missing anything significant in terms of content?

 

The Wizardry games for the NES are more or less straight ports adapted for the D-pad world of the NES. You can use the same maps and strategies. The NES versions are really good. Although, you might be better served by playing an English patched version of the SNES trilogy cart.

 

Bard's Tale on the NES was a completely different game than the PC version. Or a better way to phrase it would be that it uses a port of the engine for an entirely different adventure. Think of it like a pen and paper RPG that is inspired by Dungeons & Dragons and uses similar rules with an adventure that borrows from adventure modules like Keep on the Borderlands, The Village of Hommlett, and Isle of Dread without actually being those adventures.

 

I haven't played Pool of Radiance on the NES much, but it seems to be a massively trimmed down and simplified port. It's recognizable, but not really the same.

 

I have no idea about any of the Might and Magic games. I've never played any of them.

 

Starflight struck me as a very different game on the Genesis from the PC version, but I didn't play it much on the Genesis. It was one of those instances where I had played tons of the PC version and got pissed when the Genesis port wasn't a carbon copy.

 

Pirates on the NES is pretty much spot on.

[Where did you first encounter the 3DO?]

I saw it in magazines first. I started really wanting to play Star Control II, Total Eclipse, and Road & Track Presents: The Need for Speed.

 

The first time I saw the real system in action was at Babbages in the local mall. They had a little demo display set up at the front of the store running Total Eclipse. I think it was the only game I saw running on it before I bought one.

 

I guess I bought the system sometime in early 1994. I think it was March or maybe April. I had just got my tax return, and intended to blow it all on a 3DO and a game (probably Star Control II). I was pleasantly surprised when I found out the system had been marked down to $299 and came with Total Eclipse. I also bought Star Control II and Need for Speed. There was a sampler disc with a demo of Gex and something that can only be categorized as a horrible shareware game called Racing in Hell or something like that. It also had information about a mail in offer for a free copy of Gex.

 

Total Eclipse looked great at the time but turned out pretty horrible. I barely played it after the first week I owned the system.

 

I ended up not really liking Star Control II. It wasn't really what I expected after having played the Genesis version so much.

 

Need for Speed was the winner. It was the game I played the most on the system, It alone was worth the price of the console.

[What are some good games to make a best of ps1 game collection ?]

Add Raystorm to the list.

[thoughts on ps1 demo discs ?]

I have a few. The only one I'd consider memorable was the one that had the demo of Macross VF-X 2 on it. I remember geeking out so hard about being able to fly Isamu's YF-19. I was so pissed when the real game never got a North American release.

 

I guess there was also the one for Final Fantasy VIII, but I think that was a bonus disc in some other game I rented, not a demo disc. I remember being so excited about that game because of how good FF7 was. And the demo seemed like it would be good. But then a few months later the full game hit and it was revealed what a turd it was.

 

So, I guess my main memories of demo disks were preludes to disappointment.

[how good will injustice 2 be?]

How good was the last one?

 

It was pretty good. It was more or less just the Mortal Kombat reboot engine with a different coat of paint. The story was fun, but after I finished that it wasn't the anywhere near the first, second, or third thing I'd toss in the PS3 for when someone is over to play fighting games with.

 

But I imagine Injustice 2 will be OK. If I had a PS4, I'd probably get it.

[How many systems do you have connected to your one TV or monitor right now?]

My main TV has the following game systems currently hooked up to it:

 

PS3 - HDMI

PS TV - HDMI

Sega Genesis with Sega CD - coax

NES - coax

SNES - AV

[Last 3 games you played?]

Super Robot Wars V (PS Vita) = Deep into this one. I've been playing this as much as possible since I got it.

 

Stranger of Sword City (PS Vita) = I bought this on sale quite some time back. I just now tried it out. Only played for a little under two hours. Seems OK so far.

 

Fate/Extella (PS Vita) = Dynasty Warriors type game with Fate characters and a lot more story. I got it because I like Dynasty Warriors games and I think Saber is cool even though I have no interest in the Fate franchise. I've only played the first battle. No game breakers yet.