@Jintenzo Yep the original PC-98 version has the losing heroine being subject to what's essentially eroticized SA. Some of the scenes are really cringy.
@Sketcz TBH the original Variable Geo PC-98's is one of the worst fighting games I've seen next to Rise of the Robots. There are only two attack buttons, and there is visible movement and scrolling lag, plus the enemy AI is incredibly cheap due to the poor controls. And even the sprites look rather simple and pixelated compared to their artwork.
The series didn't get good until Advanced Variable Geo, and its sequel is a hidden gem on the PS1.
I just hope it isn't censored. While the first remaster didn't cut things as drastically as the Director's Cut of the first game, there are some NPC death scenes that got shortened.
@Damo I doubt The Last Ninja would've passed South Korea's censorship laws back in the 80s. From what my friend told me, South Korea had extensive censorship against Japanese cultural products which only eased in the 2000s, and the Rising Sun flag is just the tip of the iceberg. Samurai and ninja iconography were removed from several localized Japanese games, with Arthur from Soulcalibur a notable example, replacing the resident samurai Mitsurugi. The Samurai Shodown games were also renamed, and one of the Neogeo quiz games had all depictions of ninjas removed.
@Markiemania95 Yep that comment was one of the most ***** up things I've read so far, and shows why history education is so important. The Nazis also used "fighting Judeo-Bolshevism" as justification for their wars of aggression. The Japanese Empire meanwhile killed over 20 million people in China and millions more in Korea and South East Asia, with many atrocities that made the Nazis blush. And ironically, the Japanese invasions helped the communists gain a foothold later in East Asia.
@The_Nintendo_Pedant Good on your parents. Sadly the trans panic seem to be worse nowadays even among the gaming community, with certain people claiming that fictional video games characters ie pixels, like Sonya and Kitana from the last Mortal Kombat games or Joanna from the cancelled Perfect Dark game, are secretly men because they don't have "feminine" jawlines or some other BS.
I'm wondering if this will be PC exclusive or will there be console ports down the track. We currently have a rather ridiculous situation on Xbox where there are 3 ways of playing KOF 98: the Xbox 360 Ultimate Match version, the original Arcade Archives version, and the Arcade Archives 2 version with added online multiplayer. I presume it's the same for PS5.
@Atariboy Same here. After being accustomed to the SNES layout for decades, where Y is shoot and B is jump, I cannot go back to the NES/GB layout at all. Good thing is that the NSO apps now allow for control customisation.
@knightofthewind89 The first game is a decent platformer at least, especially if you like Madhouse's animations, and the levels do get kinda crazy later.
Earnest Evans is more of a so bad it's good game, especially with the bizarre animations. Anett Returns in contrast is a very average beat em up.
Hurry up and release the F3 games, including Arabian Magic, Bubble Symphony, Dungeon Magic, Gekirindan, Grid Seeker etc. It's bizarre how they're included in the Taito Legends collections from 2006 but not Arcade Archives.
Good news is that Ninja Gaiden just got an update on Switch enabling 60 FPS as an option. Shinobi is also getting an update bumping up its resolution on Switch.
It's kinda annoying that since AA2 debuted for PS5 and XBSX, other than Namco's efforts, all of the other games are simplistic early 80s titles. Konami still has several 3D and 32-bit 2D left, like the Parodius and Twinbee games.
It's kinda unfortunate that the SIN remaster was placed in the backburner for some reason. Nightdive should have finished that instead of working on the PO'ed remaster that hardly anyone asked for.
@MontyCircus These shmups are some of the reasons why I got a TG16 Mini. I also imported the Galaxy Fraulein Collection for PSP back in the day for Sapphire alone.
I'm still waiting for Tenshi No Uta to be localised. Even for the Cosmic Fantasy Collections, the translations are spotty and some dialogue were not fully translated.
From what I've heard, ININ and SLG are in some sort of financial trouble due to the Egret 2 Mini selling below expectations in the West, among other issues. This may explain why the Egret 2 expansions were never released outside of Japan, and why the later volumes of the Irem Collections took so long to be released.
@MeloMan There is also the 3D remake of Brandish for the PSP, which sadly is digital only outside of Japan. I hope to see a modern rerelease because 3D fits the gameplay much better and you can unlock Dela as a playable character too.
This along with last week's Chopper I are the debut of Arcade Archives for PS5 and XBSX, so they come with the new interface allowing for more saves plus rewind. A strange choice of games for such an occasion though.
@JJtheTexan A few can be played in English with no problems. I bought a few PC-88 shmups like Silpheed and Star Trader, and their frame rates to too choppy to be playable IMO. The MSX2 games like Dragon Slayer 4 (Legacy of the Wizard), Undead Line, and Zanac EX have better frame rates.
It's not likely a rights issue since other Falcom and Microcabin games are still available. I assume it's either some sort of emulation issue, or that it contains some sort of Switch exploit.
It's a gift with purchase, and it likely means that there will be a full sized Genesis/Mega Drive coming, similarly to the NES and Atari 2600 Lego sets.
Just a note, the game was shelved back in the day due to Telenet Japan going bankrupt and Sega buying off Renovation Products, thus cancelling all of their products on competing consoles.
@Sketcz I have several of their games on Switch and they always come with issues. Jedi Outcast and Republic Commando have their multiplayer modes outright removed, and KOTOR 1 and 2 came with game breaking bugs that took close to a year to fix. The remasters of Battlefront and Neverwinter Nights 2 are bloated to over 20 GBs for some reason, quadrupling the size of the originals.
Like you mentioned, the differences between Aspyr and Nightdive are like night and day. The Dark Forces remaster is treated with care and is crammed with toggable QOL changes and bonus content, while Aspyr just crammed their SW games into an emulator and called it a day.
@slider1983 Hexen 2 and Heretic 2 ran on the Quake 1 and Quake 2 engines respectively, so getting them to work should not be an issue. The only hurdle is the fact that id didn't publish the Hexen 2 expansion and Heretic 2 back in the day, and Activision never released them even on digital stores like Steam and GOG.
@Zeebor15 What's wrong with a remaster to gauge interests? Also the rights of Heretic/Hexen were in legal limbo due to the dispute between Activision/Raven and Bethesda/id, it don't just go away immediately simply because MS purchased both companies.
@N64-ROX Maybe it's another game like Amulets and Armor. Only Hexen 2 has some light RPG elements which gives abilities to the classes upon leveling up.
It's worth noting that there are some minor map changes to the original, the Cleric in Hexen got a shield, you can now change classes at will in Hexen, and the HP of the monsters are reduced in general. You can however turn off the enhancements for the original experience.
@PowerPandaMods I'd say it depends on whether you live in the USA or Europe. In the former the character is almost unheard of among the sea of console mascot platformers, but in Europe he is one of the more recognisable characters among Amiga gamers.
I remember playing Saiyuuki World 2 numerous times when I was a kid via my Famiclone. For some reason this game is very popular in all those 100-in-1 cartridges alongside Contra and Castlevania.
It's really annoying that the preorder bonuses never made it outside of Japan. On the top of my head, there's Darius 2 GB, Darius Extra MD, Final Bubble Bobble MS, Space Invaders 90 MD, and now R-Gear.
@slider1983 It really depends on how the IP was sold, and many such IPs are owned by the companies rather than individual creators. So unless Sorrell fundraise large amount of money, I doubt System 3 would sell back the IP.
IIRC, the James Bond IP was developed by Millennium Interactive, which got bought by Sony and became Cambridge Studios, until it was shut down a few years ago. The rights to the Amiga era games however got snatched up by others and transferred hands several times, and that includes James Pond, Creatures and Diggers, being one of my favourite games growing up.
@h3s I think the game was Aliens Colonial Marines, which Gearbox subcontracted to Timegate while they took Sega's money to spend on Borderlands 2 and its DLCs. The game's poor reception eventually led to the closure of Timegate.
IIRC, DNF was mostly finished by Triptych, which was largely composed of former 3D Realms employees after the company went bankrupt. Gearbox simply slapped its name on the end product.
I would have enjoyed DNF better if they got rid of all the mechanics introduced by later FPS games like health regen, limited weapons, and uncontrollable cutscenes, and unashamedly embrace its old school roots.
Who knows, had the game been further delayed for a few years it could've jumped on the retro FPS craze and reverted back to the 2001 version.
Comments 209
Re: Random: "F**K YOU, DANIELLE!" - NSFW Fighting Game Variable Geo's English Translation Has Equally NSFW Patch Notes
@Jintenzo Yep the original PC-98 version has the losing heroine being subject to what's essentially eroticized SA. Some of the scenes are really cringy.
Re: Random: "F**K YOU, DANIELLE!" - NSFW Fighting Game Variable Geo's English Translation Has Equally NSFW Patch Notes
@Sketcz TBH the original Variable Geo PC-98's is one of the worst fighting games I've seen next to Rise of the Robots. There are only two attack buttons, and there is visible movement and scrolling lag, plus the enemy AI is incredibly cheap due to the poor controls. And even the sprites look rather simple and pixelated compared to their artwork.
The series didn't get good until Advanced Variable Geo, and its sequel is a hidden gem on the PS1.
Re: Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror Is Officially Set To Get The "ReForged" Treatment
I just hope it isn't censored. While the first remaster didn't cut things as drastically as the Director's Cut of the first game, there are some NPC death scenes that got shortened.
Re: "Nintendo Has Made Serious Objections" - Last Ninja Collection Delayed On Consoles
@Damo I doubt The Last Ninja would've passed South Korea's censorship laws back in the 80s. From what my friend told me, South Korea had extensive censorship against Japanese cultural products which only eased in the 2000s, and the Rising Sun flag is just the tip of the iceberg. Samurai and ninja iconography were removed from several localized Japanese games, with Arthur from Soulcalibur a notable example, replacing the resident samurai Mitsurugi. The Samurai Shodown games were also renamed, and one of the Neogeo quiz games had all depictions of ninjas removed.
Re: "Nintendo Has Made Serious Objections" - Last Ninja Collection Delayed On Consoles
Removed
Re: "Nintendo Has Made Serious Objections" - Last Ninja Collection Delayed On Consoles
@Markiemania95 Yep that comment was one of the most ***** up things I've read so far, and shows why history education is so important. The Nazis also used "fighting Judeo-Bolshevism" as justification for their wars of aggression. The Japanese Empire meanwhile killed over 20 million people in China and millions more in Korea and South East Asia, with many atrocities that made the Nazis blush. And ironically, the Japanese invasions helped the communists gain a foothold later in East Asia.
Re: Random: No, Ridge Racer's Reiko Nagase Isn't Based On The Man Who Created Her
@The_Nintendo_Pedant Good on your parents. Sadly the trans panic seem to be worse nowadays even among the gaming community, with certain people claiming that fictional video games characters ie pixels, like Sonya and Kitana from the last Mortal Kombat games or Joanna from the cancelled Perfect Dark game, are secretly men because they don't have "feminine" jawlines or some other BS.
Re: SNK Shadow-Drops Real Bout Fatal Fury 2 To Debut Its New 'Premium Selection' Label
@BionicDodo Don't forget about Dominated Mind which introduced Alfred and White. It's a great entry for people who dislike the lane switching system.
Re: SNK Shadow-Drops Real Bout Fatal Fury 2 To Debut Its New 'Premium Selection' Label
I'm wondering if this will be PC exclusive or will there be console ports down the track. We currently have a rather ridiculous situation on Xbox where there are 3 ways of playing KOF 98: the Xbox 360 Ultimate Match version, the original Arcade Archives version, and the Arcade Archives 2 version with added online multiplayer. I presume it's the same for PS5.
Re: Here's Why Controllers Have 'A, B, X & Y' Buttons, And Not 'A, B, C & D'
@Atariboy Same here. After being accustomed to the SNES layout for decades, where Y is shoot and B is jump, I cannot go back to the NES/GB layout at all. Good thing is that the NSO apps now allow for control customisation.
Re: After 35 Years, Sunsoft's PC Engine 'City Hunter' Game Is Being Revived For Modern Platforms
I wonder if Ryo can break a SF2 cabinet and transform into Chun-Li in this one?
https://youtu.be/g3ZrNZVYywg
Re: You Can Now Grab Two Of The Best Castlevania Games For Less Than $5 On PS4/PS5
Sadly it's just the PSP version of Dracula X Chronicles minus the Rondo of Blood remake. Konami should at least port it to PC and other platforms.
Re: Edia's 'Earnest Evans Collection' To Launch In Japan This Year For Nintendo Switch, PS4, & PS5
@knightofthewind89 The first game is a decent platformer at least, especially if you like Madhouse's animations, and the levels do get kinda crazy later.
Earnest Evans is more of a so bad it's good game, especially with the bizarre animations. Anett Returns in contrast is a very average beat em up.
Re: Taito's Early Lemmings-Like Construction Game 'Steel Worker' Is Coming To Arcade Archives
Hurry up and release the F3 games, including Arabian Magic, Bubble Symphony, Dungeon Magic, Gekirindan, Grid Seeker etc. It's bizarre how they're included in the Taito Legends collections from 2006 but not Arcade Archives.
Re: The Making Of: Tekken Advance, Namco's Unexpected GBA Conversion Of The Classic Fighting Game Series
Why does this remind me of the Genesis version of Virtua Fighter 2 Sega love to shove into compilations? It's missing two characters as well.
Re: Can't Decide Between Shinobi And Ninja Gaiden? This Steam Bundle Should Help
Good news is that Ninja Gaiden just got an update on Switch enabling 60 FPS as an option. Shinobi is also getting an update bumping up its resolution on Switch.
Re: This Week's Arcade Archives Title Is The Early Arcade Pool Game That Inspired Konami's Time Pilot
It's kinda annoying that since AA2 debuted for PS5 and XBSX, other than Namco's efforts, all of the other games are simplistic early 80s titles. Konami still has several 3D and 32-bit 2D left, like the Parodius and Twinbee games.
Re: "I'm Glad To See It Get Remastered" - Outlaws' Lead Designer Gives His Thoughts On Nightdive's Upcoming Remaster
It's kinda unfortunate that the SIN remaster was placed in the backburner for some reason. Nightdive should have finished that instead of working on the PO'ed remaster that hardly anyone asked for.
Re: Falcom's PC Engine CD RPGs, Including 'Ys' And 'Legend Of Heroes', Are Getting Re-Releases On Modern Systems
@MontyCircus These shmups are some of the reasons why I got a TG16 Mini. I also imported the Galaxy Fraulein Collection for PSP back in the day for Sapphire alone.
Re: Falcom's PC Engine CD RPGs, Including 'Ys' And 'Legend Of Heroes', Are Getting Re-Releases On Modern Systems
I'm still waiting for Tenshi No Uta to be localised. Even for the Cosmic Fantasy Collections, the translations are spotty and some dialogue were not fully translated.
Re: Namco's 1995 Sequel To Numan Athletics Is Being Reissued On Consoles This Week
Fingers crossed for Outfoxies soon
Re: "The Reasons For The Delay Are Complex" - ININ Cancels Parasol Superstars' Planned September Launch Date
From what I've heard, ININ and SLG are in some sort of financial trouble due to the Egret 2 Mini selling below expectations in the West, among other issues. This may explain why the Egret 2 expansions were never released outside of Japan, and why the later volumes of the Irem Collections took so long to be released.
Re: Following The Game Boy, Sega's Genesis / Mega Drive Is Getting The Lego Treatment Next
@Null2 According to some of the Lego sites I've visited, there is an alternative sticker saying Mega Drive.
Re: Can't Decide Between Shinobi And Ninja Gaiden? This Steam Bundle Should Help
@Razieluigi I have the Switch version of NGRB and it's not that bad, running at a smooth 30 FPS with very little slowdown.
In contrast SAOV runs at a higher FPS but there are far more drops, plus the HD sprites got downgraded into a pixelated mess.
Re: "We Sincerely Apologize" - EGGCONSOLE 'Fray' And 'Brandish Renewal' Delisting Due To "Unauthorized Use" Of Emulator
@MeloMan There is also the 3D remake of Brandish for the PSP, which sadly is digital only outside of Japan. I hope to see a modern rerelease because 3D fits the gameplay much better and you can unlock Dela as a playable character too.
Re: This Week's Arcade Archives' Offering Is An Early Title From The Developer Of Double Dragon
This along with last week's Chopper I are the debut of Arcade Archives for PS5 and XBSX, so they come with the new interface allowing for more saves plus rewind. A strange choice of games for such an occasion though.
Re: "I Lost Myself" - Nostalgia Nerd Opens Up On "Starting Again"
Why the vegan food? Is there really a crossover between the retro gaming and vegan crowds?
Re: EGGCONSOLE Versions Of 'Fray' And 'Brandish Renewal' Are Being Removed From The Switch eShop
@JJtheTexan A few can be played in English with no problems. I bought a few PC-88 shmups like Silpheed and Star Trader, and their frame rates to too choppy to be playable IMO. The MSX2 games like Dragon Slayer 4 (Legacy of the Wizard), Undead Line, and Zanac EX have better frame rates.
Re: EGGCONSOLE Versions Of 'Fray' And 'Brandish Renewal' Are Being Removed From The Switch eShop
It's not likely a rights issue since other Falcom and Microcabin games are still available. I assume it's either some sort of emulation issue, or that it contains some sort of Switch exploit.
Re: Following The Game Boy, It Seems Sega's Genesis / Mega Drive Is Getting The Lego Treatment Next
It's a gift with purchase, and it likely means that there will be a full sized Genesis/Mega Drive coming, similarly to the NES and Atari 2600 Lego sets.
Re: This Week's Arcade Archives Release Is A Twin Cobra-Esque Shoot 'Em Up From SNK
Interestingly, Chopper I uses the new Arcade Arcade archives menu system also used by the AA2 games. Now you can rewind and save anywhere.
Re: This Week's Arcade Archives Release Is A Twin Cobra-Esque Shoot 'Em Up From SNK
Hopefully we can see the rest of the games from SNK 40th like Prehistoric Isle 1930, since the original collection has performance issues.
Re: The SNES Platformer Psycho Dream Is Coming To PC & Modern Consoles, With English Text
Just a note, the game was shelved back in the day due to Telenet Japan going bankrupt and Sega buying off Renovation Products, thus cancelling all of their products on competing consoles.
Re: The Source Code For The Engine That Powered The Sega Saturn FPS PowerSlave Has Been Released
Meanwhile Atari is still gatekeeping the Blood source code.
Re: "Not Cool. Not Classy" - Tomb Raider Co-Creator Responds To Remaster AI Accusations
@Sketcz I have several of their games on Switch and they always come with issues. Jedi Outcast and Republic Commando have their multiplayer modes outright removed, and KOTOR 1 and 2 came with game breaking bugs that took close to a year to fix. The remasters of Battlefront and Neverwinter Nights 2 are bloated to over 20 GBs for some reason, quadrupling the size of the originals.
Like you mentioned, the differences between Aspyr and Nightdive are like night and day. The Dark Forces remaster is treated with care and is crammed with toggable QOL changes and bonus content, while Aspyr just crammed their SW games into an emulator and called it a day.
Re: Edia's Latest Telenet Revive Project Brings Together Three Super Famicom Titles On Switch
I doubt it's coming overseas as the Tenshi no Uta games are still untranslated. Even the later Cosmic Fantasy games have translation issues.
Re: Nightdive Studios Latest Release Resurrects The '90s FPS Classics Heretic + Hexen
@slider1983 Hexen 2 and Heretic 2 ran on the Quake 1 and Quake 2 engines respectively, so getting them to work should not be an issue. The only hurdle is the fact that id didn't publish the Hexen 2 expansion and Heretic 2 back in the day, and Activision never released them even on digital stores like Steam and GOG.
Re: Nightdive Studios Latest Release Resurrects The '90s FPS Classics Heretic + Hexen
@Zeebor15 What's wrong with a remaster to gauge interests? Also the rights of Heretic/Hexen were in legal limbo due to the dispute between Activision/Raven and Bethesda/id, it don't just go away immediately simply because MS purchased both companies.
Re: Nightdive Studios Latest Release Resurrects The '90s FPS Classics Heretic + Hexen
@N64-ROX Maybe it's another game like Amulets and Armor. Only Hexen 2 has some light RPG elements which gives abilities to the classes upon leveling up.
Re: Nightdive Studios Latest Release Resurrects The '90s FPS Classics Heretic + Hexen
It's worth noting that there are some minor map changes to the original, the Cleric in Hexen got a shield, you can now change classes at will in Hexen, and the HP of the monsters are reduced in general. You can however turn off the enhancements for the original experience.
Re: Brandish Renewal Is Next Week's EGGCONSOLE Release On Switch, Complete With Mouse Support
@Cronodoug She is playable in the third game and also the PSP remake.
Re: "He Seems To Have Turned Blue" - Gameware Can't Even Get James Pond's Colour Right
@PowerPandaMods I'd say it depends on whether you live in the USA or Europe. In the former the character is almost unheard of among the sea of console mascot platformers, but in Europe he is one of the more recognisable characters among Amiga gamers.
Re: Saiyuuki World II & Whomp'Em Are Being Reissued On Switch This Week
I remember playing Saiyuuki World 2 numerous times when I was a kid via my Famiclone. For some reason this game is very popular in all those 100-in-1 cartridges alongside Contra and Castlevania.
Re: Capcom Fighting Collection 2's Next Update Has A Cool Surprise For PSP & GBA Fans
If only the extra single player content from the PSP version is added, like world tour.
Re: RayForce's Phantom Sequel 'R-Gear' Just Got A Standalone Release In Japan
It's really annoying that the preorder bonuses never made it outside of Japan. On the top of my head, there's Darius 2 GB, Darius Extra MD, Final Bubble Bobble MS, Space Invaders 90 MD, and now R-Gear.
Re: This Keio Flying Squadron 2 Patch Fixes A Decades-Old Crime Against American Saturn Fans
@Guru_Larry I found out about it via your video haha
Re: M2's 'Operation Night Strikers' Is Getting A Physical Edition Early Next Year
@AMAGON Pretty sure on Switch 2, you can either use analog controls, USB mouse, or the Joycon to emulate lightgun controls.
Re: "I Hate Almost Everything They Do With A Passion" - James Pond's Creator Isn't A Fan Of Gameware's AI-Focused Sequel
@slider1983 It really depends on how the IP was sold, and many such IPs are owned by the companies rather than individual creators. So unless Sorrell fundraise large amount of money, I doubt System 3 would sell back the IP.
IIRC, the James Bond IP was developed by Millennium Interactive, which got bought by Sony and became Cambridge Studios, until it was shut down a few years ago. The rights to the Amiga era games however got snatched up by others and transferred hands several times, and that includes James Pond, Creatures and Diggers, being one of my favourite games growing up.
Re: Anniversary: Duke Nukem Forever Is Now One Duke Nukem Forever Dev Cycle Old
@h3s I think the game was Aliens Colonial Marines, which Gearbox subcontracted to Timegate while they took Sega's money to spend on Borderlands 2 and its DLCs. The game's poor reception eventually led to the closure of Timegate.
IIRC, DNF was mostly finished by Triptych, which was largely composed of former 3D Realms employees after the company went bankrupt. Gearbox simply slapped its name on the end product.
Re: Anniversary: Duke Nukem Forever Is Now One Duke Nukem Forever Dev Cycle Old
I would have enjoyed DNF better if they got rid of all the mechanics introduced by later FPS games like health regen, limited weapons, and uncontrollable cutscenes, and unashamedly embrace its old school roots.
Who knows, had the game been further delayed for a few years it could've jumped on the retro FPS craze and reverted back to the 2001 version.