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What's the worst version of your favorite game?


jgkspsx

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3 minutes ago, GoldLeader said:

Yeah that's kind of worth it for the cart alone huh?  While I don't specifically remember playing it (It's Life Force right?)...

I've seen that artwork somewhere for sure!  I'll bet I've got a knockoff of it kicking around here somewhere...I'm thinking maybe it's on one of those 4 in 1, or 2 in 1 (or hell 8 in1), or more (256 in 1), bootleg Famicom Multicarts that were all the rage (presumably) back when I bought way more of them than I should have and before Everdrives...Or I may own it in some other way...I know the game as Life Force and,...Well, It's just too familiar.

Yeah, it's definitely one of the most awesome carts I've ever seen. It looks incredible in person. I see them relatively frequently in Akiba and I stop to admire them every time I see one because it's just too damn cool not to. Last year I saw this thing where a dude put red LEDs inside the cart behind the eyes to make the eyes light up red when he turned his Famicom on. Too bad I can't seem to find it now. I don't know why I haven't bought this game now that I have the Nt mini. I might have to fix that this weekend.

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14 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said:

Yeah, it's definitely one of the most awesome carts I've ever seen. It looks incredible in person. I see them relatively frequently in Akiba and I stop to admire them every time I see one because it's just too damn cool not to. Last year I saw this thing where a dude put red LEDs inside the cart behind the eyes to make the eyes light up red when he turned his Famicom on. Too bad I can't seem to find it now. I don't know why I haven't bought this game now that I have the Nt mini. I might have to fix that this weekend.

That would be pretty cool!

 

I have the Famicom version of Deadly Towers ( Mashō (魔鐘)) which lights up...Just a red LED but cool and maybe the only cart I have that lights up like that.

 

s-l640.jpg

Sorry for the light derail,  Now back to your regularly scheduled program heh...

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10 hours ago, wongojack said:

In my case it's The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition. It's a perfect example of an "if it works, don' touch it" situation that, of course, was touched. I rather play the monochrome or CGA versions and, of course, I prefer the EGA version (my favorite) to the Special Edition. I'll add some screenshots in a spoiler

Oh Lord, this is so terrible. Wish I have never looked :D

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15 hours ago, wongojack said:

I've played a lot of versions of Spy Hunter over the years.  It is generally a game that (surprisingly) is done well across systems.  However, I got a GBA version at some point and while it looked pretty close to the arcade, it was missing the music.  For that game, not having the music is an absolute crime.  I'd rather play the 2600 version.

The 3D ps2 spy hunter remake or an arcade version?  I assume the latter, but I didn’t even know that came out

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On 2/28/2021 at 1:08 PM, mbd30 said:

Oops, I meant to put Rygar not Trojan as an example. Somehow I had those mixed up. Although Trojan is also somewhat changed from the arcade.

 

I actually prefer the NES version of Trojan to the arcade version. I find it a bit easier (and I have played it significantly more) than the original.

 

As for bad ports of good games, I am surprised that nobody has yet mentioned the 2600 version of Zaxxon. It bears only a passing representation to the arcade game; it is sort of an abstract representation. 

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1 hour ago, jhd said:

 

I actually prefer the NES version of Trojan to the arcade version. I find it a bit easier (and I have played it significantly more) than the original.

 

As for bad ports of good games, I am surprised that nobody has yet mentioned the 2600 version of Zaxxon. It bears only a passing representation to the arcade game; it is sort of an abstract representation. 

 

Speaking of bad ports, Atari 2600 Donkey Kong Jr is a complete abomination with hideous graphics, awful sound and no fruit.

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11 hours ago, Steven Pendleton said:

Yeah, I was going to mention Gradius. I've heard Salamander is also quite good. It also has that awesome transparent cartridge that I definitely need to pick up:

 

s-l640.jpg&f=1&nofb=1

I own that cart, one of the few FC games I do.

THis is known as Life Force in the US, but the game because of Nintendo policy on mapper chips, is stripped down and is crappier in the US, so THAT is the one to buy.  Due to the lack of power the MMC has vs the VRC chip Konami used the FC game allows for 4 option dopplegangers vs 2, it doesn't crawl so bad in places, has superior audio too, I think there was more elsewhere but I can't go fishing right now for it.  The game I believe used the same VRC that Gradius 2 on FC uses which allowed for much the same variables to happen there as well with it vs the old original on FC/NES we got.

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Besides being extremely bare-bones, another problem I have with 2600 DK Jr. is that the difficulty doesn't seem to ramp up like it should. Can just play and play and play until you're finally bored with it, which unfortunately, is sooner than later. 

 

Even 2D Zaxxon would have been much better, if only there had been a little more to shoot and look at. Talk about bare bones!
 

2600 Burgertime always comes to mind when thinking of bad or disappointing ports, but have to admit... rather play it than DK Jr. or Zaxxon.  :lol:

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On 2/25/2021 at 6:20 AM, Pixelboy said:

Mega Man on PC. Mega Man III on PC was a tiny bit better, but not by much.

 

 

On 2/25/2021 at 10:03 PM, Jinroh said:

The first Mega Man PC, that was the first game I bought with my own money for my old Tandy 1000. x3

 

On 2/25/2021 at 11:25 PM, jgkspsx said:

Every one of the four games is a shameful parody of the source material. The Mega Man games aren't even ports, they're just junk games developed by some poor schlub after a paycheck:

 

 

The first time I played ACTUAL Mega Man 1 I was so confused. I had no idea that this piece of crap I sucked at was not the real thing. I couldn't understand why people liked it.

 

To be honest, I have never had very warm feelings towards either series since. (With the exception of Mega Man Legends and Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo.)

 

Oh man, Mega Man PC. Way back in the day, there was a PC store in the mall that my dad and I would go to. I still remember it was our stop for Space Quest V upon release; good times!

 

Anyway, one fateful visit yielded Mega Man PC. I was familiar with the franchise via Game Players Magazine (remember that?), but I had never actually played one, so home with us it went. Finally, a chance to partake in the same gamin' as the NES kids! And well, uh, yeah; even back then as an easily-pleased child, I was cognizant of the fact that it just wasn't any good. I never made it particularly far in the game, but it wasn't for lack of trying or the unrefined skills of a youngster - the game play was just naturally pathetic.

 

And yet, weirdly, nowadays I don't hate it...but that's based ENTIRELY on nostalgia and that trip to the mall's PC store so long ago. The game itself? Bad bad bad!

 

Anyway, fun topic, though I'm really wracking my brain trying to come up with a fitting contribution. (Regarding the story above, I like the MM series fine, or at least the NES entries, but I wouldn't consider any of them to be among my genuinely *favorite* games; it's just that I had a tale to tell!)

 

BTW, I'm totally fascinated by that handheld version of Joust. I mean, how? WHY?

Edited by King Atari
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On 2/28/2021 at 8:54 PM, DragonGrafx-16 said:

I prefer the 2600 version even though it doesn't have the boss stages.

I first played Demon Attack on the PCjr.  It's by far the best version, at least of the ones I've played (2600, INTV, PCjr).  Graphically it blows everything else out of the water.  The small amounts of sound in the game are just plain better.  And the boss screen...the Intellivision version can't hold a candle to it. 

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You know what I didn't want to post this set of 3 choices, but 2 games ultimately because as so called 'bad' as they are, they're not bad in the end, just not accurate or lacking something due to poor choices by a tightfisted developer.

 

To start with the easy one, the two-for on this one is Wolfenstein 3D.  Which versions?  SNES and GBA...poor Nintendo.  Why?  SNES = Mutilated translaction & GBA = Hey somethings missing hear(yes I meant it this way.)

 

Wolfenstein 3D on the SNES is probably sadly the best FPS game on the system, it flows smoothest, and technically is the most intact, from a structural standpoint.  But due to out of control Nintendo censorship, Hitler or should I say the Staatmeister(or something close to that) is your big bad guy.  Anything every scrap of German spoken, written, hitler and other nazi imagery is all gone, the gore bits too including the lovely deathcam.  Stranger yet, somehow it's bad to shoot an attackdog, but when it's a mutant oversized new york city sewer rat with red eyes ...cool!   And then the GBA game, it's intact...almost, and plays great but being cheapasses to go with a smaller storage chip the bastards erased every scrap of MUSIC from the game.  Visuals, sound effects including voice, the stages, dogs, etc all intact...but it's a quiet game if you're not attracting trouble.

 

And the other...Simpsons Arcade Game for DOS/C64.  They tried hard, and the DOS one is remarkably detailed enough with solid OPL2 audio, more stunning is despite the limitations the C64 game the SID music was solid, and the game was all there and intact.  That's the crazy thing these games look and sound worse (especially C64) over the arcade game, but they're utterly amazing how damn good they are for home (PC) conversions of the game.  All the stages are there, special items, recharge, most the characters and weapons, ALL the bonus rounds and bosses, ending etc.  IF there's a real knock, they're like sadist Neo Geo AES releases of arcade fare -- NO added quarters.  YOu get 5 lives +any earned at the same pace the arcade did, and if you fail, it's back to the beginning.  It was my first full blown PC buy back in the day when it came out in 1991.  I played it to death and could take it down, can't anymore, but I can get at least as far as into dreamland which is pretty good.

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19 hours ago, the_wizard_666 said:

I first played Demon Attack on the PCjr.  It's by far the best version, at least of the ones I've played (2600, INTV, PCjr).  Graphically it blows everything else out of the water.  The small amounts of sound in the game are just plain better.  And the boss screen...the Intellivision version can't hold a candle to it. 

Yeah the PCjr version is really good.  Too bad most people never got to play it.

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21 hours ago, the_wizard_666 said:

I first played Demon Attack on the PCjr.  It's by far the best version, at least of the ones I've played (2600, INTV, PCjr).  Graphically it blows everything else out of the water.  The small amounts of sound in the game are just plain better.  And the boss screen...the Intellivision version can't hold a candle to it. 

 

2 hours ago, Tempest said:

Yeah the PCjr version is really good.  Too bad most people never got to play it.

TIL there is a PCjr version of Demon Attack!

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  • 1 month later...
On 2/23/2021 at 8:35 PM, jgkspsx said:

Versions/clones/spinoffs of Joust I love:

- Joust (Arcade)

- Joust (Atari ST)

- Joust (Atari 5200... I think, my 5200 got lost in a move and I don't really remember it)

- Joust (Atari 7800)

- Joust (Atari Lynx)

- Joust (Pinball)
- Buzzard Bait (CoCo)

- Pegasus and the Phantom Riders (CoCo)

- Balloon Fight (NES)

- KnightEx (Vectrex)

- Sportsball (Wii U)

- FlapPing (Atari 2600)

 

Versions of Joust I'm okay with:

- Joust (Atari 2600)

- Joust (NES)

- Joust (Board game)

- Joust 2 (Arcade)

- Justice Duel (NES)

 

Versions of Joust I despise:

- The game.com version (which is 100% better than the following two)

- This GBA one

- The LCD game

I have recently spent time with the original Nintendo-developed Game Boy Joust/Defender release, the game.com version on Williams Arcade Classics, and the Game Boy/Color Midway Arcade Hits version. And you know what...

 

The Nintendo-developed Game Boy one is really, really bad. Really bad. Down with the GBA one bad. Videos do not capture how bad and unfun it is, but they come close.

 


Not only are the physics awful and the flapping painful and the screen claustrophobic, it also, unforgivably, stops the game when you die and makes you press a button to continue. I am convinced that this was ported by somebody who worked on Balloon Fight and wanted Joust to look worse in comparison.

 

I have to say, now that I have a game.com with a working screen again, Joust is actually pretty good. It is definitely better than despicable. And pretty much the only game on the Williams cart worth playing. I think it’s better than the 2600 and NES versions at least. If you have really good lighting.

 

 

And, finally, I got the Game Boy Color cart, and it’s actually good. It looks, sounds, and plays like Joust. Since it is a black cartridge, it works fine on an OG Game Boy. If you want to play Joust on a Game Boy of any kind, this is your only acceptable option.

 


It’s a lot of fun and plays perfectly well. Given the choice I’m always going to play the Lynx one, but this is definitely in the “good port” pile.

 

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OMG, why have I never seen that one? The only Game and Watch I have is the Ball reissue from Club Nintendo.

 

It looks like that is Balloon Trip mode, which is purely a Nintendo invention and one of the most sadistically addictive games ever. That would work much better as an LCD game.

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On 3/2/2021 at 4:05 PM, GoldLeader said:

Maybe I'm weird, but for what little time I spent with them, having already owned the superior ColecoVision ports,  I still had a little fun with both Donkey Kong and Zaxxon on the VCS.

 

DK is easily my favorite of any game that has been widely ported to a range of platforms.  The arcade original is by far the one I prefer.. by far.

 

Long before ever getting to know the arcade version I owned and played the 2600 version as a kid and thought it was decent.  For years on here I kind of felt like it got a disproportionate amount of hate.  I mean, yeah, it's only 2 of the 4 stages but the game is still OK fun... or so my memories had me believing.  

 

But a few months ago 2600 DK popped up in the AtariClub score competition on Twitter and for the first time in decades I sat down and actually tried to play it and get a high score.  In doing so, I was reminded of the "rose tinted glasses" effect.  For the first 1-2 plays, the experience was pretty consistent with my memory of a simplified-but-still-fun game.  But that mirage crumbled very quickly thereafter.  I mean, as a student of the arcade game, the 2600 port is pretty much irredeemable.  Having only 2 screens is a major shortcoming but it wouldn't be a total showstopper if those 2 screens were done well.  The last straw was when I kept dying on the rivet stage even though I had the hammer.  WTF is that?  Complete crap, that's what.  

 

 

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2 hours ago, Cynicaster said:

 

DK is easily my favorite of any game that has been widely ported to a range of platforms.  The arcade original is by far the one I prefer.. by far.

 

Long before ever getting to know the arcade version I owned and played the 2600 version as a kid and thought it was decent.  For years on here I kind of felt like it got a disproportionate amount of hate.  I mean, yeah, it's only 2 of the 4 stages but the game is still OK fun... or so my memories had me believing.  

 

But a few months ago 2600 DK popped up in the AtariClub score competition on Twitter and for the first time in decades I sat down and actually tried to play it and get a high score.  In doing so, I was reminded of the "rose tinted glasses" effect.  For the first 1-2 plays, the experience was pretty consistent with my memory of a simplified-but-still-fun game.  But that mirage crumbled very quickly thereafter.  I mean, as a student of the arcade game, the 2600 port is pretty much irredeemable.  Having only 2 screens is a major shortcoming but it wouldn't be a total showstopper if those 2 screens were done well.  The last straw was when I kept dying on the rivet stage even though I had the hammer.  WTF is that?  Complete crap, that's what.  

 

 

I actually also tried to replay the 2600 version for high score and had a similar reaction.  Its just not very much fun.

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