Taito Legends 2 and Powered Up

[Gabriel]

I'm a weak little pussy. I ordered the new Taito Legends games through Gamestop's site and got them yesterday. Dammit. I hate giving those bastards money. Why the hell did these games become a Gamestop exclusive.

 

 

Anyway, on to the games, the PS2 version first.

 

It's interesting how much harder Raystorm and G-Darius are on this compared to their old PS1 adaptations. Between those two and Darius Gaiden, this collection is shooter heaven. There are other shooters on the disc, but they honestly aren't very good. But Raystorm, G-Darius, and Darius Gaiden are a holy trinity of teh win!

 

The games which impressed me were Arabian Magic and Dungeon Magic (Dungeon Magic moreso than Arabian). I had never seen these before and they were pretty damn cool. I played Dungeon Magic for some time. The only problem was the slowdown, which was pretty harsh.

 

Qix completely blasted me with it's difficulty. I've played the Atari 5200 version all these years, and I didn't recall the viciousness of the original.

 

Finally, after all these years, Legend of Kage comes home (no, the horrible NES version doesn't count). This was the game I fell in love with in the mid 80s. Playing it nowadays is a mix of love and hate. It's clear it was a quarter muncher. Kage is such a one hit pussy, and death is so arbitrary. Still, I really enjoy it. Considering it's less of a time investment than the shooters or the scrolling brawlers, I'll probably play it the most.

 

The rest of the games were pretty forgettable, if not outright bad. Still, Raystorm and G-Darius alone make the disc worth it, and partially offset the humiliation of paying Gamestop.

 

The PSP version didn't wow me as much. The games are almost all the forgettable bits of the PS2 disc. The best bits are Space Invaders, Space Invaders Deluxe, Phoenix, and Legend of Kage. However, Legend of Kage has some serious screen refresh problems. It's barely playable because of this.

 

There are remixed versions, and the only one I've spent any time with is Legend of Kage. The remix looks beautiful. Everything is full 3D in traditional 2D gameplay. What's the problem? Kage is still a one hit pussy, and the enemies are more vicious than before. This makes the game pretty damn frustrating. Had Kage simply been given a multiple hit life bar, then this remix could have been truly great. As it is... meh. Ironically, it's more playable than the original version of the game on the disc because it doesn't suffer the ghosting problem.

 

Anyway, I'm satisfied with the PS2 version. It was worth the $20. Hell, it's worth $30 for the holy shooter trinity. But I'm less than impressed with the PSP version. I'll probably get my money's worth out of it through Phoenix and Legend of Kage remix, but I have the feeling I should have just skipped it.

[BrianC]

I heard that some of the games in Taito Legends 2 PS2 have issues. Most of the later games are slower or have more slowdown than the arcade originals, with G-Darius and Raystorm being the exceptions (from what I heard, G-Darius may actually be the PSX version with slowdown removed and other alterations. I also heard that Raystorm actually plays like the extra mode in the PSX version, but I'm not sure if this is accurate).

 

Metal Black has an issue where the MAX laser doesn't focus correctly (and only for the US and EU Taito Legends 2 PS2, not the JP Taito Memories version that supposedly uses the same code). The Bust-A-Move Again version of Bust-A-Move 2 with generic backgrounds and all of the characters removed is used in the US Taito Legends 2 instead of the unaltered version. The European version has an issue where the button input doesn't work right for Hat Trick Hero (called Football Champ in the EU version), but I'm not sure if it has been fixed for the US.

 

Here are some links about Taito Legends 2:

Info on issues with the EU TL2 PS2

Shmups forum discussion on Taito Legends 2

Info about why the EU Xbox and PC versions of Taito Legends 2 are different from the PS2 version

Edited May 25, 2007 by BrianC

[Emehr]

This is only available through GameStop? I hate buying new games from them. Did they take the shrinkwrap off the games for you when you went to pick 'em up?

[Gabriel]

This is only available through GameStop? I hate buying new games from them. Did they take the shrinkwrap off the games for you when you went to pick 'em up?

 

I ordered it online. I knew better than to go into a brick and mortar Gamestop store and ask them to sell me something the store was allegedly selling. If I had done that, I probably would have just been told the game didn't exist, or maybe they would have tried to sell me a used rental store copy of Taito Legends 1 as new.

[MetalSlime23]

The Gamestop stores in my area couldn't explain why it took them over a freaking week to get them in

 

That said, I finally got a copy, but only for the PS2 since the they didn't get any PSP copies. I haven't tried it out yetm but thanks for the review.

 

I guess I should start ordering things online. I am reluctant to do so because I live in an apartment complex full of thieves, and the delivery people like to toss things at people's doorsteps.

[Jess Ragan]

I just bought this game. What's this I'm hearing about Bust-A-Move 2 missing the dinosaur characters? That's total crap... Bub and Bob MAKE the game. The back of the box claims that Puzzle Bobble 2 (the Japanese BAM2) is included in the package, and there's a huge picture of Bub on the front, so if he's not actually IN the game... wow, I'd be a little steamed.

 

Some of the games in the collection are pretty iffy. Fairyland Story was horrible, and Chack 'n Pop is only interesting as a precursor to Bubble Bobble. I heard the Xbox version of Taito Legends 2 includes Cadash and Bubble Symphony, two games that this collection lacks and desperately needs. If they're not going to release a third Taito Legends, why on Earth would they leave these games off of this one? Arrgh!

 

All right, enough negativity. I AM looking forward to playing G-Darius and Raystorm. G-Darius in particular was a mindblower on the Playstation, and the best Darius game since the absolutely awesome Sagaia on the Genesis. It'll be great to fire it up again.

 

JR

[BrianC]

I have this collection now. Despite what I heard, I thought it would at least be worth it for a slowdown free G-Darius. So far, the slowdown issues aren't as major as I thought they would be and Elevator Action Returns and Darius Gaiden are still a blast so far despite the issues. I like Metal Black despite the beam issue too. Hat Trick Hero still has the issue where holding the buttons doesn't work right.

 

I just bought this game. What's this I'm hearing about Bust-A-Move 2 missing the dinosaur characters? That's total crap... Bub and Bob MAKE the game. The back of the box claims that Puzzle Bobble 2 (the Japanese BAM2) is included in the package, and there's a huge picture of Bub on the front, so if he's not actually IN the game... wow, I'd be a little steamed.

 

The version in the game is an actual edited arcade version without the dinos, but it gets worse. The game doesn't even use the correct Bust-A-Move Again music. They STILL used the sound engine for Puzzle Bobble 2, despite it not being 100% compatible with Bust-A-Move again. The game plays the sound for Puzzle Bobble 2, but incorrectly with music not playing at all in spots. BAM Again actually had some pretty cool original music and the slipshod job with the sound makes me sad.

 

Some of the games in the collection are pretty iffy. Fairyland Story was horrible, and Chack 'n Pop is only interesting as a precursor to Bubble Bobble. I heard the Xbox version of Taito Legends 2 includes Cadash and Bubble Symphony, two games that this collection lacks and desperately needs. If they're not going to release a third Taito Legends, why on Earth would they leave these games off of this one? Arrgh!

 

I don't know about Fairyland Story since I haven't tried it yet, but the iffiest game in the collection has to be Nastar Warrior. I can't believe it's actually the real sequel to Rastan. That game is dog ugly. Cadash and Bubble Symphony are in the JP PS2 Taito collections, though. Cadash is in Taito Memories Gekan and Bubble Symphony is in Taito Memories II Joukan (though I do hope they make one last EU/US collection with them).

 

All right, enough negativity. I AM looking forward to playing G-Darius and Raystorm. G-Darius in particular was a mindblower on the Playstation, and the best Darius game since the absolutely awesome Sagaia on the Genesis. It'll be great to fire it up again.

 

You will not be disappointed with either. Both are ported over quite well and G-Darius is missing the slowdown of the PSX version.

Edited May 26, 2007 by BrianC

[Jess Ragan]

I may have spoken too soon on G-Darius. It becomes evident in the later rounds that the developers turned it into a "bullet hell" shooter, which is something that no Darius game should ever be. The screen is choked with firepower which can be difficult to discern from the colorful backgrounds. This makes survival difficult and collecting the number of power-ups necessary to bring your ship up to speed even more so. And the boss battles... geez! I was starting to think that some of them would NEVER end!

 

It's a shame too, because there's a lot I DO like about the game. The capture ball brings back memories of the Genesis oldie Gaiares, letting you take control of nearly every minor enemy in the game and even some of the larger ones. Also, the unlimited continues are a welcome feature, as the game is much too difficult to complete without them. If only the designers had made it more like Gradius and less like Ikaruga, it really would have been the best game in the series.

 

It's a little early to make a call at this point, but I'd have to say that this one is a disappointment; not half as entertaining as the previous Taito Legends. The lack of Bubble Symphony, Cadash, Space Dungeon, and a REAL version of Bust-A-Move 2 hurts it badly. The developers need to be slapped upside the head for false advertising, too... many of the games listed on the back of the box are the Japanese versions, which is what you DON'T get on the disc. Not cool, Empire!

 

JR

[BrianC]

The problem is that the documentation was copied right from the European PS2 version (which does use the actual Puzzle Bobble 2). The fact that the Metal Black and Hat Trick Hero bugs are still there shows that the localization was a rush job.

 

It's a little early to make a call at this point, but I'd have to say that this one is a disappointment; not half as entertaining as the previous Taito Legends. The lack of Bubble Symphony, Cadash, Space Dungeon, and a REAL version of Bust-A-Move 2 hurts it badly. The developers need to be slapped upside the head for false advertising, too... many of the games listed on the back of the box are the Japanese versions, which is what you DON'T get on the disc. Not cool, Empire!

 

Actually, the majority of the games listed are the European versions, not the Japanese ones. The Japanese Taito Memories collections also use different names from the ones listed. BAM Again/BAM2 was Puzzle Bobble 2 in Europe too. Dungeon Magic is called Lightbringer in Japan. Football Champ is most definitely the European name for Hat Trick Hero. Aside from the Puzzle Bobble 2 issue (which is a real bummer since the unedited version was also released in US arcades), it's understandable that the US names are used for the games. However, Empire still should have reflected the names in the packaging instead of using the list form the EU version.

 

So far, despite the issues, I like this better than Taito Legends one. More modern games and some excellent games like Qix, G-Darius, Darius Gaiden, Dungeon Magic, Elevator Action Returns, Growl, Majestic Twelve, Space Invaders '95, Liquid Kids, Puchi Carat, and Don Doko Don.

Edited May 26, 2007 by BrianC

[Gabriel]

The problem is that the documentation was copied right from the European PS2 version (which does use the actual Puzzle Bobble 2). The fact that the Metal Black and Hat Trick Hero bugs are still there shows that the localization was a rush job.

 

Did anyone expect any different? Wasn't it not even quite 2 months from the announcement that the agreements had been signed to the release of the disc?

 

I'm going to commit some heresy now. Space Dungeon isn't very fun. Yes, the 5200 version is awesome, but the original arcade game, or at least the one on the PSP disc, is too damn frustrating to be entertaining. I'm constantly getting stuck against the walls for one thing. For another, I have about 3 seconds to look for treasure before enemies come after me in large numbers. They crowd the hell out of me while putting out enough bullets to make me feel like I'm fighing a boss in a Psyko shooter, and unlike Robotron, the control isn't precise enough to actually fight my way out. Multiple hit enemies don't help either.

 

So, a level goes something like this:

 

1) I start out and run from room to room looking for treasure.

 

2) By about the 4th room, there are always about 12 enemies chasing me relentlessly. Trying to kill them is totally pointless because they're replenished faster than I can shoot. So, I run like a little round bitch.

 

3) By this point I have a decent number of treasures, so I try making a dash for the exit room. Unfortunately, the game will outright cheat at this point. It will spawn an enemy directly on top of me and I'll die.

 

Seriously, it really seems like the game will not let you collect more than 5 treasures. If you attempt to do so, it will spawn an enemy on top of you, or just automatically kill you. I almost threw my PSP against a wall last night because it happened EVERY DAMN TIME.

 

Oh, and it's pointless to play this game in the default display setting. The only real option is to change the display to be on it's side and fill the entire screen. Then reconfigure the fire buttons for the new directions. Oddly the game automatically realizes you want the D-Pad to conform to the new screen orientation, but it makes you redo the fire directions manually. Oh, and the D-Pad and analog always default to movement with no way to change them, so don't get any bright ideas about actually using one for move and one for fire.

 

Dammit. I want a controller coupler or a PS2 controller adaptor for my Atari 5200 so I can play Space Dungeon in it's fun form. Either that or we need "Galactic Dungeon" or something for XBox Live Arcade or as a PS3 download.

 

Anyway, I played the other remixes on the PSP disc. All of them look really nice. Crazy Balloon is actually fun on the remix, unlike the original version which just looks and plays badly. Balloon Bomber (what was Taito's deal with balloons?) looks really nice too, although it isn't much of a game. Cameltry is the weakest looking of the batch, or should I say that it really doesn't seem like a vast visual improvement over the original like the others do. But, it's addictive in the same way Marble Madness is.

 

Legend of Kage remix continues to frustrate. The reason why is simple. Enemies are multi hit, but your guy isn't. The red ninjas take 2 hits to kill. I think the fire breathing guys take 3. There are also some running sword dudes who are either immune to throwing stars or take several hits to kill. In the words of the Angry Video Game Nerd, FUCK! Oh, and they make your jump a button press instead of pushing up on the stick. This seems like a good idea at first, but then you realize that it's about the worst choice possible to have all the buttons on the face of the PSP. The best arrangement I've found is to put star on square, sword on X, and jump on the right shoulder. It doesn't help that there are just times where your sword will not swing, no matter what button you put it on.

[Jess Ragan]

Or how about those wall-mounted laser beams? Just try to find a way around them without getting blasted, I dare 'ya!

 

Someone had made a Space Dungeon game for PCs, but I have no idea what happened with that. It looked like it could have been fun, but since I never had the chance to play it I couldn't tell you for sure.

 

JR

[Gabriel]

Or how about those wall-mounted laser beams? Just try to find a way around them without getting blasted, I dare 'ya!

 

Amen. Seriously, I could bitch violently about this game for ages. This game eliminates any capability I have to avoid using profanity. While playing, I become a violently spewing fountain of profanities, and lose the ability to speak in anything resembling coherent language.

[BrianC]

The problem is that the documentation was copied right from the European PS2 version (which does use the actual Puzzle Bobble 2). The fact that the Metal Black and Hat Trick Hero bugs are still there shows that the localization was a rush job.

 

 

Did anyone expect any different? Wasn't it not even quite 2 months from the announcement that the agreements had been signed to the release of the disc?

 

The European version came out over a year before the US version. Long enough for the issues to get out in the open. Yet nothing was done. The Metal Black and Hat Trick Hero bugs shouldn't have been there in the first place since they are based on the Taito Memories versions and the Taito Memories versions didn't have the bugs.

Edited May 26, 2007 by BrianC

[shep]

I was getting ready to import these almost half a year ago when it was said that they weren't coming to America. Luckily, recently it was decided they would be. PSP is sad in that there is no Bubble Bobble, but it makes sense as an update to Bubble Bobble is coming.

[Gabriel]

I was getting ready to import these almost half a year ago when it was said that they weren't coming to America. Luckily, recently it was decided they would be. PSP is sad in that there is no Bubble Bobble, but it makes sense as an update to Bubble Bobble is coming.

 

Bubble Bobble is sorely missed. Instead there the lame, kinda-sorta might have met Bubble Bobble once at a party game The Fairyland Story.

[Lauren Tyler]

Does anyone have a full list of the games on the PSP version?

[Gabriel]

Does anyone have a full list of the games on the PSP version?

 

Original Games

 

Space Invaders

Space Invaders Part II

Space Chaser

Crazy Balloon

Balloon Bomber

Lunar Rescue

Phoenix

Qix

Space Dungeon

Alpine Ski

Elevator Action

Chack'n Pop

The Legend of Kage

The Fairyland Story

Return of the Invaders

Ki Ki Kai Kai

Rastan Saga

Kuri Kinton

The NewZeland Story

Raimais

Cameltry

 

Deluxe Remixed Games

 

Crazy Balloon 2005

Balloon Bomb 2005

The Legend of Kage 2005

Cameltry 2005

[Lauren Tyler]

What, no Continental Circus? AARGH!

[shep]

Does anyone have a full list of the games on the PSP version?

 

Original Games...

 

Thanks you saved me a "Just Google it" thread bomb

[bdog_147]

Well I finally found a copy of this game. Took long enough. I played the darius games those are awesome. Haven't tried the others yet....

[JB]

QIX!

 

That is all.

[+Psionic]

QIX!

 

That is all.

I don't remember Qix being so damned hard! I guess I'm used to playing the Game Boy version...