What does Neo Geo mean for you?

[NeoPancho]

7 hours ago, fdurso224 said:

As for homebrew. There were two channels that I was following that were doing projects for the Neo-Geo. One was NeoHomeBrew that was developing Hypernoid and a 3D Racing demo. The other was 7Blackjack8. His game is called Neo Thunder X. Sadly, there isn't any new footage or news from them in the past 2-3 years. Maybe I'll try to contact them to see what's new from them and their works.

 

Here's footage of the games by the way.

 

 From NeoHomeBrew

 

Hypernoid.

 

 

Demo Racer

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

From 7BlackJack8

 

Neo Thunder X. Very impressive when I first viewed it.

 

Neo Thunder X Beta testing.

 

 

 

Anthony..

Wow... Neo Thunder X looks really impressive! Too bad there hasn't been any update in so long.

It's also interesting the Demo Racer, i mean, it's probably the less graphically stuning of the videos but i always liked these kind of racers (like Out Run) and wondered why the only one available for NeoGeo is Riding Hero (which i love with its fascinating RPG mode!), I'm sure NeoGeo fall quite short of the Sega arcade boards when using sprites scallation, but still... it's a pity there is only 1 game.

[128Kgames]

On 1/6/2021 at 12:43 AM, eightbit said:

I owned it back when it came out...purchased on launch day. It meant creme of the crop of consoles to me then. It still does in many ways. And, I still have an AES console I don't play it all of the time, but it is hooked up and on the ready when the mood strikes. And, I wake up to look at it each morning!

So August 22, 1990?  (If that date off Wikipedia is even correct).  Not doubting you got one, its just 30 years ago nobody I know referred to anything by "launch day."  It's more of a modern reference in my opinion, I usually say I got it "when it came out" but to each his own I guess. 

On 1/7/2021 at 12:44 PM, Cobra Kai said:

Used to own and play neo geo quite a bit, but quit because the online community for it is filled with terrible, terrible people. 

We're not so bad, really, if you get to know us.  Yes, I am aware of the "community" you are alluding to and as someone who's been around it for a long time, I take it with a grain of salt.  I find it good for historical information, tech support and news.  A lot of people in it are good people, willing to help and generally all around A-ok.  It just takes some getting used to, that's all. 

 

Now, to Serguei2 question about what the Neo Geo means to me - it's "arcade perfect" in my opinion.  Hands down the first and only system at the time to have the exact same arcade titles on the home system.  Expensive.  Maybe even a little "elitist" at the time.  The Lamborghini Countach of video games in 1990.  Untouchable.  Blew up the Genesis, NES and SNES (no, really, there was even a Neo Geo commercial where that happened, but I have yet to unearth a copy of it).  A thing of beauty, grace and speed.  Definitely "sexy" for a home console.  The system outlasted the ex-girlfriend that bought it for me by several years.  

 

So yeah, huge fan of the Neo Geo.  Not a "big tymer" but I have owned one it at one time or another since it was released in the US.  First played on a 4 slot MVS in Roosevelt Field Mall arcade back in the day.  Totally fell for Magician Lord and pumped quite a few quarters into it.  Saw the Neo Geo Gold system on the wall at Electronics Boutique at the same mall and had to have it.  Girlfriend bought it for me for Christmas, I chose Magician Lord (obviously) for the pack in game, got a memory card and Sengoku cart along with it.  Picked up Super Spy but returned it (beat it in a day) and got Cyber Lip instead.  Did not pick up another cart until Art of Fighting came out and was again blown away by the "100 Mega Shock" -ness of it.  Last cart I wound up purchasing at that time. 

 

I've collected the Neo a total of 3 times in my life, each time having a larger and more expansive collection.  I'd sold the original Gold system and about 5 years later got back into it when you could still buy one new, albeit from Japan.  Got into neo-geo.com and learned about the debug bios and mods like S-VIDEO.  Found out SNK was still around and still putting out titles for it, I got Shock Troopers, Second Squad and a number of other titles.  Wound up with around 30 or so carts, 1 of which to this day I can't touch price wise (US Garou: Mark of the Wolves).  That collection paid for the band at my wedding.

 

3 times the charm and I missed it so much I went back to eBay to build my system up.  Got a NOS Gold System that I still keep boxed.  Got a great deal from a friend of a friend on a loose modded AES with S-VIDEO and debug BIOS, 2 old style controllers, a number of AES games and about 20 MVS titles, and the original !ARCADE! converter.  Paid about $225 as the guy needed the money.  That was my daily system until I picked up an Omega Entertainment System years back.  Have stayed with MVS format since then, still have my AES systems with about 50+ titles though.  Bought the "X "when it came out, and have a "Mini" Haohmaru version boxed, lots of the titles from NG:Dev.Team and I'm waiting on Xeno Crisis from Bitmap Bureau. 

 

A multi-cart like the 161-in-1 while not perfect is a good way to get a nice sampling of the games.  The go to cart right now is the NeoSD and I picked up the MVS version from Old School Gamer when it was released.  Perfect way to play all the titles, plus the opportunity to play some demos which at one time you could only do via emulation.  Waiting / hoping on a second release of the NeoSD PRO MVS.  

 

I have 2 Gold Cabs in the garage, one was free on the curb being thrown out.  Most recently, I picked up the new MVSX and have found it pretty good for a 3/4 size cab, even thought its all emulation.

 

So, fan?  You could say that.  To me, 1 of my 2 all time favorite systems, the other being the Astrocade.  I find them to be very similar systems from each their respective generations.  Anyone looking to get into the system now is a great time - you can pick up any number of consolized MVS systems (although I'm a fan of and recommend the Omega) along with a cheap multi cart or save for a NeoSD.  There is even now a flash option for the CD system to replace the CD drive if you want to go that router.  Or heck, pick up a MVSX if you want the feel of a "big red" all your own!

[eightbit]

31 minutes ago, 128Kgames said:

So August 22, 1990?  (If that date off Wikipedia is even correct).  Not doubting you got one, its just 30 years ago nobody I know referred to anything by "launch day."  It's more of a modern reference in my opinion, I usually say I got it "when it came out" but to each his own I guess. 

 

 

Yes. I was 15 at the time. One of the regular game stores I purchased a lot of my stuff (Lynx when it came out, various other games and consoles) was the "Babbages" in the Garden State Plaza Mall here in Paramus NJ (now called "Westfield Garden State Plaza"). I was playing a lot of Magician Lord and Ninja Combat in the local Fun N Games arcade in the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, NJ (well, attached to the mall...not really "in" it) and I was blown away. Then I read a lot in the gaming magazines about the home console version coming... so I called Babbages on the day it was supposed to be released, they said it was there, and I had my folks hightail it to the mall to pick this up. As for the wikipedia date, I can't recall. It was the summer (school was out...high school for me at the time) so it was definitely summer.

 

The arcade at the time was a big influence to us when it came to console purchases. The summer before this I picked up the Genesis on "launch day" at the Kay-Bee in Willowbrook Mall mostly because I was addicted to "Altered Beast" in the arcade and finding out that hot arcade title was going to be a pack in with the console was something else. When I got that it was "like" the arcade, but it was not the arcade. The Neo-Geo on the other hand was a whole new ball game. It WAS the arcade!

 

I picked up Ninja Combat and Magician Lord with the system that day. I can't remember if the console came with the memory card. Either it came with it or I purchased it separately....again, it was 30 years ago and my mind is foggy nowadays But, I do remember using that card in the MVS arcade machine at the arcade and the change attendant ran over thinking I was "doing something" to the machine....as he never saw anyone use that card slot.

 

The games were $199.99 a game and I was never able to purchase any more for the machine in those days. Many years later (the beginnings of ebay) I purchased a dozen or so games for very cheap. I recall common games going for $30-$50 at most. And, I purchased some new releases from Playmore at full retail price (I think $250 each) like Metal Slug X and Shock Troopers 2.

 

Then, I moved, married, sold the collection, had kids. The AES console I have now was purchased again quite recently. Not the same one I had (USA AES consoles are quite rare now I find, and expensive) but it is the Japanese release. No sweat, still works just as well and looks as fantastic as it did when I was a kid.

 

As for calling it "launch day"...you are correct. I never remember anyone calling it that when I was a kid, but I guess I am just so used to the term nowadays.

Edited January 10, 2021 by eightbit

[+madman]

On 1/7/2021 at 9:46 AM, Mikebloke said:

I had a curious look into why awhile back, and I think the hardware and software behind the hood is slightly dedicated to the 1-on-1 genre, it doesn't make it impossible to make other games, but I think it encourages it.

This makes no sense whatsoever. What about the hardware, in your opinion, makes it dedicated to the 1-on-1 genre? The majority of the games on the system weren't vs fighters (yes, it was the single biggest genre). Also, what is the "software" behind the hood?

[Mikebloke]

40 minutes ago, madman said:

This makes no sense whatsoever. What about the hardware, in your opinion, makes it dedicated to the 1-on-1 genre? The majority of the games on the system weren't vs fighters (yes, it was the single biggest genre). Also, what is the "software" behind the hood?

 

It wasn't my intention to shove a stick up anyone about it, just an impression I had when I looked into it a few years ago. I'll see myself out of the thread.

[Steven Pendleton]

13 hours ago, 128Kgames said:

lew up the Genesis, NES and SNES (no, really, there was even a Neo Geo commercial where that happened, but I have yet to unearth a copy of it).

 

[128Kgames]

1 minute ago, Steven Pendleton said:

 

Yes thanks, seen that one! The one I'm looking for is a little different, I think it used the bigger badder better theme they used in the US, and the other consoles just blew up because of the Neo Geo's awesomeness, not missiles.  I'll find it one of these days.

[128Kgames]

23 hours ago, eightbit said:

 

Yes. I was 15 at the time. One of the regular game stores I purchased a lot of my stuff (Lynx when it came out, various other games and consoles) was the "Babbages" in the Garden State Plaza Mall here in Paramus NJ (now called "Westfield Garden State Plaza"). I was playing a lot of Magician Lord and Ninja Combat in the local Fun N Games arcade in the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, NJ (well, attached to the mall...not really "in" it) and I was blown away. Then I read a lot in the gaming magazines about the home console version coming... so I called Babbages on the day it was supposed to be released, they said it was there, and I had my folks hightail it to the mall to pick this up. As for the wikipedia date, I can't recall. It was the summer (school was out...high school for me at the time) so it was definitely summer.

 

The arcade at the time was a big influence to us when it came to console purchases. The summer before this I picked up the Genesis on "launch day" at the Kay-Bee in Willowbrook Mall mostly because I was addicted to "Altered Beast" in the arcade and finding out that hot arcade title was going to be a pack in with the console was something else. When I got that it was "like" the arcade, but it was not the arcade. The Neo-Geo on the other hand was a whole new ball game. It WAS the arcade!

 

I picked up Ninja Combat and Magician Lord with the system that day. I can't remember if the console came with the memory card. Either it came with it or I purchased it separately....again, it was 30 years ago and my mind is foggy nowadays But, I do remember using that card in the MVS arcade machine at the arcade and the change attendant ran over thinking I was "doing something" to the machine....as he never saw anyone use that card slot.

 

The games were $199.99 a game and I was never able to purchase any more for the machine in those days. Many years later (the beginnings of ebay) I purchased a dozen or so games for very cheap. I recall common games going for $30-$50 at most. And, I purchased some new releases from Playmore at full retail price (I think $250 each) like Metal Slug X and Shock Troopers 2.

 

Then, I moved, married, sold the collection, had kids. The AES console I have now was purchased again quite recently. Not the same one I had (USA AES consoles are quite rare now I find, and expensive) but it is the Japanese release. No sweat, still works just as well and looks as fantastic as it did when I was a kid.

 

As for calling it "launch day"...you are correct. I never remember anyone calling it that when I was a kid, but I guess I am just so used to the term nowadays.

I remember Babbages but not sure we had any on Long Island.  Seems we both had similar introductions to the Neo Geo, I don't remember though when I started reading up on it.  Definitely was already on store shelves when I first played the MVS and then saw it at EB.  Mine would have been under the tree that Christmas, 1990.  Sengoku was my second favorite game so that's the one I picked at the time of purchase (I wasn't paying so, yeah, there was that).  Same thing with Memory Card - I had heard the Gold system was supposed to come with it, but I could have sworn my ex had to buy it.  Ninja Combat would have been a better choice for my 3rd title when instead of Super Spy, not sure why I chose Chose Cyber Lip but you can imagine EB wasn't too happy with me returning any Neo Geo game (back when you could return games!).  I will forever regret selling my original Gold system even though I was able to replace it with another one all those years later.  I like to say "You never forget your first Neo" and use that in my sig on neo-geo.com.  Glad to see another Neo Geo lifer...

Edited January 10, 2021 by 128Kgames

[eightbit]

I'm fairly certain it was the gold system that I purchased and it already came with the memory card and Magician Lord...and I purchased Ninja Combat along with that set at that Babbages that day. I only say that because I specifically remember taking the memory card out of the console box. It was in a white cardboard cover and had the card in there in a plastic sleeve. Man, so long ago...my memory is not all that great nowadays

[Steven Pendleton]

13 hours ago, 128Kgames said:

Yes thanks, seen that one! The one I'm looking for is a little different, I think it used the bigger badder better theme they used in the US, and the other consoles just blew up because of the Neo Geo's awesomeness, not missiles.  I'll find it one of these days.

If anyone knows about it, it would be Anthony, so I'll summon him. @fdurso224 have you seen this one?

[+Charlie Cat]

13 hours ago, 128Kgames said:

Yes thanks, seen that one! The one I'm looking for is a little different, I think it used the bigger badder better theme they used in the US, and the other consoles just blew up because of the Neo Geo's awesomeness, not missiles.  I'll find it one of these days.

 

38 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

If anyone knows about it, it would be Anthony, so I'll summon him. @fdurso224 have you seen this one?

 

Hi Steve and 128K,

 

128K and I haven't been able to see it off the internet so far on this particular version. But still searching in the meanwhile.

 

In fact, I'm also trying to help AtariAge member @DJ Clae look for the news footage that he viewed in 1990 that introduced him with his family members to the Neo-Geo. We haven't found it as of yet either. However, I did find one close to it from NBC during the Christmas season of 1990 that was recently available to see for the first time in 30 years. If this is available, the others are are out there as well. 

 

 

Anthony...

 

 

 

 

Edited January 11, 2021 by fdurso224

[DragonGrafx-16]

On 1/8/2021 at 2:04 AM, fdurso224 said:

 

Hi Is650 and Mike

 

 

Here a list of developers that are making games for the Neo-Geo. I can provide links for you fellas and for those who are interested as well. Best one so far out of the lineup is NGDEVTEAM since they made quite a good amount. The rest made one title or currently in the works of one or two of them

 

NGEDEVTEAM

http://ngdevteam.com/

 

Neobitz

https://www.facebook.com/Neobitz/?fbclid=IwAR2ovsImD_b-ogz5WLNdSzWcQr0uXtRZsz5t5Q50lE1UaL7wNDg4s5u4fkg

 

Bitmap Bureau 

https://shop.bitmapbureau.com/

 

FULLSET

https://fullset.io/

 

Chipsonsteroids

https://www.facebook.com/Chipsonsteroids

 

 

 

As for homebrew. There were two channels that I was following that were doing projects for the Neo-Geo. One was NeoHomeBrew that was developing Hypernoid and a 3D Racing demo. The other was 7Blackjack8. His game is called Neo Thunder X. Sadly, there isn't any new footage or news from them in the past 2-3 years. Maybe I'll try to contact them to see what's new from them and their works.

 

Here's footage of the games by the way.

 

 From NeoHomeBrew

 

Hypernoid.

 

 

Demo Racer

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

From 7BlackJack8

 

Neo Thunder X. Very impressive when I first viewed it.

 

Neo Thunder X Beta testing.

 

 

 

Anthony..

Oof... please tell me that Neo Thunder X going to have smooth scrolling in the finished version. That looks rough. But I do like seeing the Neo Geo get more shmups. 

Edited January 11, 2021 by DragonGrafx-16

[+Charlie Cat]

52 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

 

 

4 hours ago, 128Kgames said:

I remember Babbages but not sure we had any on Long Island.  

Speaking of Long Island 128k. I'm not sure if you seen this, but @Zap! found this gem of a Neo-Geo clipping that he save and shared for us to view. Since all three of us are from the Tri-State area, this was a advertisement clipping from Macy's that was demonstrating at their locations. One of the areas that was available to see the Neo-Geo AES in action was in Roosevelt Field in Garden City. Amazing to say the least. 

 

  

 

Anthony..

[+Charlie Cat]

1 minute ago, DragonGrafx-16 said:

Oof... please tell me that's going to have smooth scrolling in the finished version. That looks rough. But I do like seeing the Neo Geo get more shmups. 

I agree Dragon. But nothing has been posted in the last 3 years from the developer. 

 

Anthony..

[128Kgames]

1 hour ago, fdurso224 said:

 

Speaking of Long Island 128k. I'm not sure if you seen this, but @Zap! found this gem of a Neo-Geo clipping that he save and shared for us to view. Since all three of us are from the Tri-State area, this was a advertisement clipping from Macy's that was demonstrating at their locations. One of the areas that was available to see the Neo-Geo AES in action was in Roosevelt Field in Garden City. Amazing to say the least. 

 

  

 

Anthony..

Anthony the Roosevelt Field arcade is where I first played Neo Geo, and the Electronics Boutique was just a few stores down from there where I first saw the AES Gold System for sale.  Ultimately we bought it the EB at what was then the Mid-Island Mall in Hicksville, closer to where I grew up.  I remember at that time the Neo Geo was at EB, Macy's, and the Wiz, which was in Carle Place.  I don't think we had a Babbage that I remember but its possible, but to me that was more of a computer store and I didn't get in them till a few years later.  Then Neo commercial I remember and was looking for is similar but its more a dark intro, black, there's smoke when displaying the Genesis and SNES or NES and then they intro the Neo Geo.  The others systems blow up during the commercial due to the Neo being bigger badder better, I think.  I do not think this was a retailers commercial but an SNK commercial, listing where to buy at the end.  The search continues.

[+Charlie Cat]

4 minutes ago, 128Kgames said:

Anthony the Roosevelt Field arcade is where I first played Neo Geo, and the Electronics Boutique was just a few stores down from there where I first saw the AES Gold System for sale.  Ultimately we bought it the EB at what was then the Mid-Island Mall in Hicksville, closer to where I grew up.  I remember at that time the Neo Geo was at EB, Macy's, and the Wiz, which was in Carle Place.  I don't think we had a Babbage that I remember but its possible, but to me that was more of a computer store and I didn't get in them till a few years later.  Then Neo commercial I remember and was looking for is similar but its more a dark intro, black, there's smoke when displaying the Genesis and SNES or NES and then they intro the Neo Geo.  The others systems blow up during the commercial due to the Neo being bigger badder better, I think.  I do not think this was a retailers commercial but an SNK commercial, listing where to buy at the end.  The search continues.

Oh man 128K!!! I use to play in the Roosevelt Field Arcade when I visited many of my relatives out in Nassau County and purchased Fatal Fury and Samurai Shodown for the SNES at the EB there. At the time I was there, I don't remember seeing a Neo-Geo AES Gold system on display, but the store manager told me once that they had 2 of them in stock, but didn't want to show them because how expensive they were and he worried about getting mugged for it. But he was kind enough to show me the box and let me hold it before putting it back.

 

And speaking of the Mid-Island Mall in Hicksville. One of my uncles  use to be a security guard there and use to drive around in the parking areas patrolling when he was semi-retired.. Before he moved, he and my aunt lived in Mineola for years. They moved to Florida and wanted to move on to enjoy there Golden Years . 

 

What I find truly amazing is that I'm familiar to many of the malls and shopping centers that you and @eightbit happen to go growing up. With @eightbit I use to visit the Garden State Plaza, Paramus Mall, Bergen County Mall, and Willowbrook Mall, just like he did in New Jersey and while he was buying his AES unit in the Garden State Plaza, I was close by in a local Dairy Queen playing on a MVS in Paramus. 

 

Maybe it's possible that all four (@Zap! is from Staten Island) have seen each other in the arcades or passing by in the malls.  

 

Anthony..

 

 

[sn8k]

Wanted it so bad since I was a kid but could never afford it. Had to deal with shit loading times on NeoGeo CD when I got one myself when I was 20, games were alot cheaper but in some cases, just as much or half. Half of 800 is still alot for a single cart or CD..... found out after I sold it that it was like Dreamcast, lacked any real security feature and all games could just be burned to discs. Was kicking myself after I found that out.

 

AES is what I really wanted and that was the problem. My parents wouldnt buy me that as kid because of it's insane price tag for the console and the games were a whole other level of expense.

 

Fast forward to today........

 

Things have changed. I have made dreams of Neo Geo ownership a reality. I look at it as the Rolls Royce of gaming. Being able to get one finally and then being able to get the games is like enduring a life long quest. This shit goes 20 years deep.

 

Would have been nice to see where it could have gone if it were more mainstream. No one was going to pay $250 a game back then. But $100-$120, I could have seen it not only surviving but thriving in the console space as a premium brand. We would have seen a follow up to MVS/AES and the another to those. If the games were 100 bucks a pop, my parents would have got it for me. The price of games was the biggest draw back. But they looked so f@#%ing good for the time.....still do. 

 

 

[+madman]

5 hours ago, sn8k said:

Would have been nice to see where it could have gone if it were more mainstream. No one was going to pay $250 a game back then. But $100-$120, I could have seen it not only surviving but thriving in the console space as a premium brand. We would have seen a follow up to MVS/AES and the another to those. If the games were 100 bucks a pop, my parents would have got it for me. The price of games was the biggest draw back. But they looked so f@#%ing good for the time.....still do. 

ROM chips weren't cheap back then, they really had no choice. I remember before the SF2 release on the SNES, all the hype about it being a whopping 16mbit cart and that it was $74.99 at retail when it was released. The most I had ever spent on a game back then. Of course prices came down on the chips over time, but SNES and Genesis games sold orders of magnitude more than the Neo Geo home system. I'd be surprised if the home division made much money as it was, the arcade was really where SNK was profiting. 

[Steven Pendleton]

10 hours ago, madman said:

I'd be surprised if the home division made much money as it was, the arcade was really where SNK was profiting. 

I've heard (although never from a source that I'd consider to be especially reliable) that the AES wasn't really doing much at all for them, but it was also not especially hurtful to them. If they are available (probably not), I'd love to read their financial reports from 1992~2004 to see how well the AES did, but it was probably the MVS that got them most of their money.

[Hwlngmad]

On 1/11/2021 at 8:01 AM, sn8k said:

Would have been nice to see where it could have gone if it were more mainstream. No one was going to pay $250 a game back then. But $100-$120, I could have seen it not only surviving but thriving in the console space as a premium brand. We would have seen a follow up to MVS/AES and the another to those. If the games were 100 bucks a pop, my parents would have got it for me. The price of games was the biggest draw back. But they looked so f@#%ing good for the time.....still do. 

 

 

Yeah, the price of the games was, and still is, astronomically high for the AES.  It would have been nice for the Neo Geo to have been more mainstream, but then again not everything can be and it is nice to have niche things here and there.  I was fortunate enough to have a TurboGrafx-16 with the CD Rom add-on back in its heyday.  It was definitely the odd console out when compared to the Genesis and SNES.  Still, I had lots of fun with it and it was nice to be on the know when (the majority of) others were not.

[DJ Clae]

What drew me to the MVS machines whenever I encountered them was the knowledge that it was possible to own the same games at home on that coveted console.

[glazball]

Like most of us in this thread, I was blown away when I first played Magician Lord in the early 90's mall arcade.  I remember reading about a home console that cost insane amounts of money, but wanted one so bad.  However, I had bought a Genesis at launch and was pretty much in love with it.

 

I also remember thinking how ridiculous it was that the games that cost SO MUCH money were often poorer quality than Genesis games.  Look at Ninja Combat, with it's slightly hokey graphics and terrible translations.  For that kind of money, I would expect MASSIVE, earth-shattering games like epic RPGs better than Phantasy Star II, which I paid $75 for in 1990 (a lot for a game, even now).  It wasn't until much later that the truly great games for the Neo arrived, but by then I had moved on to PS1, N64 and Dreamcast.  It boggles the mind to think what could have been done on the Neo if SNK hadn't put so much focus on fighting games.

 

Anyways, this poll needs more than 4 choices!

[mbd30]

I think of it as an expensive premium console that I've played a lot in emulation and original arcade machine form. I've never seen the home console in person which makes sense because it's probably rare due to the high price.

 

[DJ Clae]

On 1/20/2021 at 11:42 AM, glazball said:

Like most of us in this thread, I was blown away when I first played Magician Lord in the early 90's mall arcade.  I remember reading about a home console that cost insane amounts of money, but wanted one so bad.  However, I had bought a Genesis at launch and was pretty much in love with it.

 

I also remember thinking how ridiculous it was that the games that cost SO MUCH money were often poorer quality than Genesis games.  Look at Ninja Combat, with it's slightly hokey graphics and terrible translations.  For that kind of money, I would expect MASSIVE, earth-shattering games like epic RPGs better than Phantasy Star II, which I paid $75 for in 1990 (a lot for a game, even now).  It wasn't until much later that the truly great games for the Neo arrived, but by then I had moved on to PS1, N64 and Dreamcast.  It boggles the mind to think what could have been done on the Neo if SNK hadn't put so much focus on fighting games.

 

Anyways, this poll needs more than 4 choices!

By "boggles the mind" do you mean you can't imagine what SNK was thinking? Or you're just imagining what could've been achieved in other genres? Look at SSRPG if you want an example of what RPG's could've been like. SNK achieved great success by following arcade trends at the time. It was certainly not the reason they went bankrupt.

 

As silly as Ninja Combat is, it still has arcade quality graphics and performance not possible in the Genesis. Would I rather play a well-made Genesis game? Of course. Was the Neo Geo obviously genuine arcade quality, even when the games were poor? The hardware performance speaks for itself.

[glazball]

I completely understand SNK's thinking, now with hindsight.  I meant that based on hardware alone, I'm stunned to think what could have been done in other genres on a home console if things had been different.  As a not-rich teenager the AES was never going to be an option for me and (at least at first when the AES was being rumored and then confirmed) there was some comfort knowing I wasn't missing much if Ninja Combat was what we could expect.

 

Not to disparage the history and library of the Neo, just what "could have been" with the AES.  One day I would love to play SSRPG, but it's impenetrable to me until we finally get a translation.  But even if it had been released in English bitd and I had been an AES owner, I still can't imagine it being worth the cost as opposed to so many other bigger, better RPGs on Genesis and SNES.  Likewise, there are no platformers on the Neo that come close to Super Mario World or even SMB3 gameplay-wise.  The Neo outdoes them all of course in animation and sprite work in the later titles, which are still nothing but stunning to this day and so Neo will always be the king of 2D in the beauty department, no doubt about that