cawley1

I'll go to my grave with Revenge of Shinobi's music playing in my ears! Can't wait to see what Ancient has planned next.

I've just ordered the standard Switch physical version from Amazon.jp - it costs as much to ship it to the UK as the game, but I would prefer the Japanese version over the Limited Run release.

@HammyHavoc
At the end of the day, I am certain that Ancient will make more back on Earthion than Mega Cat will on ZPF.

The other thing -and this will be the kicker- is there are pirated carts of ZPF on eBay for significantly less than the real deal.

It is obvious that by the end of the week, there will be knock-off Earthion Mega Drive carts on eBay and AliExpress etc. I think that will be an even more painful situation for Koshiro and his team to stomach.

When I went looking the other evening, it did not take me long to find the ZIP file with Earthion and other related files. At the same time, I looked around for recent Mega Drive releases (mainly Homebrew) as it's a while since I put anything on my flashcart - the Ghostbusters hack, Final Fight MD etc.

I knew that ZPF had also been recently released, but the only ROM of that I could see is a demo.

This struck me as odd, given that on the one hand you have a homebrew release that's only on a Mega Drive cart currently (I believe) and no commercial game ROM has been leaked, and on the other you have Earthion, which has released via Steam and now seems to be easily available if you go looking.

So, what is causing the above? Is it that there is more respect for ZPF developer Mega Cat Studios, as it appears people have chosen not to release the ROM. Is it because it is only on a vintage cart currently, so maybe less people who would be inclined to leak it to the internet have the relevant hardware to get the ROM off the cart? Is it because Earthion is on Steam, and easier to extract the ROM file from?

I feel bad for Ancient, and it must be causing them stress knowing it's been pirated, but I still believe that people who were going to buy the game will still do so, even if they have got hold of the ROM beforehand.

I just wish the console releases had happened at the same time as Steam, then I could have bought it as well.

To be fair to Ancient, they held off releasing the Mega Drive cart first as they want to release it in its most ‘perfect’ form when bugs etc. have been ironed out via the Steam and console releases.

I understand and support this. But it doesn’t change the fact that lots of people want a 16-Bit version now!

In fact, I’m surprised the release has gone Steam > Modern Consoles > Original Hardware.

Surely releasing it on Steam and the console digital stores on the same day would have been the right move? Then physical and original hardware a little later due to manufacturing.

Why is it Steam exclusive for now?

I commented on this scenario on the review page last week. Unfortunately it was always going to happen…

I’m surprised they didn’t offer the ROM to purchase, surely would have been simple enough and satisfied the need for people who want to run under emulation on x device, or on original hardware.

I’ll be honest here - I’ve played it via the ROM. I don’t have a Steam account (yes, seriously) but I will buy the physical release on Switch when available (hopefully a JP retail release, but Limited Run if not) and plan to buy the physical cartridge for my Mega Drive as well, although that looks like it’s going to be Limited Run only.

I’m pretty sure the ‘nasty pirate’ comments don’t apply to too many 40/50 something gamers who are always likely to support and even double dip on a game like this - the majority will always want to support the developer.

@Relikk "They ROMs were decrypted yesterday. It works just fine on my MegaSD."

Bit of a shame, really - I find it nuts that they wouldn't have foreseen this outcome, but I am guessing they decided to not release the ROM for purchase as they know people who pirate the game and play it on original hardware will likely buy a physical release regardless.

@JetmanUK

Agree totally, Ultimate should be named on the plaque somewhere.

@jesse_dylan

They absolutely should have done this, especially if the ROM is easily ripped and spread like wildfire.

Given they extracted Darius and Tetris from the Mega Drive Mini, and Star Fox 2 was extracted from the SNES Mini and runs on original hardware, I can't imagine this won't get ripped and be running on flash carts long before the official 16-Bit release.

Hmm, something smells fishy to me!

All the reviews of these games back in the day had these kind of puns! Let's not waste the opportunity!

To be fair, the original James Pond on the 16-Bit computers and Robocod on Amiga and Mega Drive scored well - I'm sure Mean Machines said it was better than Sonic (I can see they gave it 95%!) which seems nuts in hindsight.

This new game looks rubbish, which is maybe to be expected. Appears to be little love for the character these days, outside of nostalgia.

@mjparker77
Just your typical retrogaming nobhead, hiding behind a keyboard and monitor. This kind of comment baiting is an example of why this hobby isn't always as much fun as it could be!

I am all for using eBay to determine the market price of an item, but in this case -given the rarity- it's just not appropriate. You just wouldn't bother listing it, but let it be know via social media and community channels that it is available - the seller has done exactly the right thing IMHO.

Doesn't sound like they have read the article at all, given the snarky comments towards @VGEsoterica...

Sold my unopened copy on eBay last year for £600! I had no idea they had failed to fulfil as many orders as it appears they did, nor do I have any idea how I got lucky and received mine. It’ll be interesting to finally play it.

Have to say I am perplexed at the amount of posts in favour of a Lynx or Jaguar Plus. I have a soft spot for both consoles having bought them near launch back in the day, but why would anyone bother in 2025?

Outside of a small handful of genuinely decent games on either platform, once you add in licensing issues it's pretty much slim pickings. What would you want on a Jaguar+? Mutant Penguins, Chequered Flag, Club Drive and Fight for Life? I mean, let's be serious!

If they want to keep going with Plus releases, rehash the 400 Mini in an 800XL mini case (it was the best selling Atari 8-Bit, after all), and do an ST Mini - both would have a far bigger reach than Lynx or Jaguar. You could go all out on an ST Mini and give it Falcon functionality, although that has fewer games than the Jag!

I think the current Atari continuing to buy up vintage publishers and titles (they should seriously talk to Microsoft about getting the 2600 releases from Activision, as they don't seem to have any interest in using them) and then capitalising on them is the way to go. There's plenty of other 80's publishers they could have a crack at - Broderbund, Synapse, Datasoft, First Star etc.

While I agree, it's fantastic to see Atari doing this sort of thing, it's pretty niche!

That boxart is incredible - Loving it... Truxton 2 next, please!!!

Finally, been waiting for this for years - 32 of them, actually! Seriously, the only way this could have been better news is if it had been a compilation wirh Ridge Racer 2, Rage Racer and the PS1/2 ports and games.

Also another of the LikSang GameBoy Player gang. To be fair it was an ugly slab of grey plastic, and as it slotted over the feet made the base of the Q look rubbish! Should have also had the mirrored finish with another set of feet! As with the Q, more than made my money back even then, but makes me chuckle when I see what they go for now!

Had a Q back in the day, it was my first GameCube! It had been modded to play both Japanese and US games, but at some point I foolishly unplugged it while the tray was closing and for some reason it stopped the mod working? 🤷🏻‍♂️ I ended up selling it as it still went for more than I paid for it and bought a bog standard Platinum US Cube.

I’d wager there’s plenty of games on the 8-Bit computers that are far worse than any Saturn game!

Cascade’s Cassette 50 or Firebird’s Don’t Buy This spring to mind.

Can’t go wrong with Amiga or ST version of Shufflepuck Cafe! The older stuff is all late 80’s/early 90’s Domark, who were generally OK in terms of quality. Doubt there’s much exciting in there, maybe if they have some SAM Coupe games, or Prince of Persia.

Not as good as the G.I. Joe versions we got in the West!

(only kidding!)

Always an odd tale with this one, looks like it’s hugely taken its inspiration from Capcom’s 3 Wonders sub-game Midnight Wanderers.

I remember coming across the SNES ROM years back and being surprised how much of a rip off (even down to the sound effects) it was. No wonder Nichibutsu never released it.

Probably not a popular opinion, but I fail to see the attraction of any of these retro releases, anyway.

Without the Nintendo or Sega branding, and weird stuff like funky coloured cartridges, they all look ***** to me.

PCEWorks put out a bootleg MD Darius release a few years back, complete with all the knockoff Sega branding these ‘official’ releases can never use, and it looks incredible!

Maybe one day Nintendo and Sega will see the benefit of releasing some of their back catalogue on the original format (well done Atari in this respect), but until then, I’ll give them a pass.

I pre-ordered this (wasn’t a backer) and amazingly was one of the lucky ones who got the game. I left it on a shelf, sealed, as despite wanting to play it thought I’d see how much I wanted to, then after a few years decided I’d just sell it. I don’t regret it, just wish so many other people hadn’t been effectively scammed.

It came out on the X68000 as well as PC Engine - that version is a more faithful port of the Arcade. Think the original was only released in Japan, hence no European computer ports. It’s definitely one of Namco’s more obscure titles.

Does it all work fine if you’ve got a mod chip in the PS2?

It's been mentioned a couple of times above, but for me (outside of the dodgy colours and weird bits where it looks like it's loading the next part of the stage in!) the Mega Drive port of Midnight Resistance is better then the arcade original. The controls and the music tip it towards the home version.

While they are really different games, Mega Drive Shadow Dancer and E-SWAT spring to mind.

I see Amiga Pac-Mania mentioned above. Hate to disagree but IMHO the only version that comes close is the X68000 version. The Amiga version doesn't replicate the look closely enough for me. It's a great Amiga game with the scrolling playfield, but it is beaten itself by the Archimedes port, which is basically the Amiga version with better sprites!

Why have they licensed to this crappy mini arcade’s manufacturer, and not New Wave Toys awesome Replicade range? Mind you, looks like Mega Drive titles, so yet more crappy SOC rubbish.

I'll always remember that early issue of SuperPlay (think it's Issue 1) where Jason and his team are explaining the difference between 50hz and 60hz televisions and speed the Super Nintendo runs at. Most people understood the difference between PAL and NTSC, but it was still the most informative article of it's type up to that point, and you can see how SuperPlay -in particular- influenced so many British webpages on our favourite hobby in the late 90's/early 00's.

On top of the memories above, I cannot believe it's been five years. RIP Jason Brookes.

Jesus Christ! I don't think I have ever seen such a long comments section on Time Extension.

Clearly an emotive subject. I'll probably just stick to the disk version on my 800XL, if it still boots!

Sorry, but I can’t find any enthusiasm for these vintage cartridge re-releases at all, as they never have Sega or Nintendo branding on them. I can see the arguments about not taking the easy route and getting a bootleg or putting a rom on an Everdrive, but outside of them being licensed, what’s the difference?

Look at what PCE Works does with the PC Engine titles they release. I’m fully aware these are just glorified bootlegs, but given they look practically identical to the originals, that’s what I would want from a vintage re-release.

They did a limited run of Darius for the Mega Drive a few years ago, with amazing box art and ‘official’ Sega branding and details. Much more like it!

It astounds me that anyone would run a Mega Drive in 50hz PAL in 2024! Who in their right mind would do that?

Great news, but when will it come to Android? With all the retro handhelds that run on it, getting BigPEmu going on Android would be fantastic!

Love this game on Dreamcast, it’s the only official release I have that came in a DVD case!

I’d totally forgotten this tape ever existed, and I’m pretty good at remembering all kinds of random ***** usually!

@KonixSlipstream - Don't! It still hurts it never came out...

I've got an Odin 2 Max and an RG35XX SP - can't go wrong with that combo in my opinion!

No love for Atari ST? 😔

@-wc- That's exactly what I thought!

That looks bloody awful!

Easy to knock Alan Sugar and he certainly took his eye off the ball of his business while messing about with Tottenham Hotspur, but the guy is a marketing genius - I would recommend his autobiography to anyone interested in consumer electronics as it's a very interesting read (at least up to the football stuff, if that is of no interest to you).

In terms of the GX4000, you can't fault Amstrad for trying, but the simple fact is at that time anyone that wasn't Sega or Nintendo had a massive uphill battle to even make a dent in the console market. At least this one used some more interesting and modern hardware than the C64GS. Back in 1990, I would argue that if you lived in the UK and weren't getting a Mega Drive somehow, you would be getting (or already owned) a Master System.

Really it needs to be someone like Geoff Brown of US Gold, Gary Bracey of Ocean (given David Ward has passed), surely these big publishers would have had multiple issues of the publication, probably even had them in their lobby - but I can imagine they were binned once the next issue arrived. Think that people didn't even think to back up or archive their work in the majority of cases back then, not sure a trade newspaper really stood a chance! The other issue is I would imagine many of these went to commercial properties, and not to home addresses, where it would be more likely that they may have made their way to a loft or shed.

@KitsuneNight Oddly that single 1996 issue is all the way over in the US!

Shocking, but not really surprising - trying to track down more fringe publications from the early to mid 90's is a tricky proposition, with magazines changing publisher and those at the end of their commercial lives just vanishing from the newsstand, with speculation over the final issue numbers of various magazines.

I made it one of my collecting missions to track down every issue of Popular Computing Weekly, from issue one in 1982 through to issue 429 in 1990. It took me years to do it, and I got lucky with a couple of eBay sellers who helped me fill a lot of the gaps with bulk deals. Those last issues from 1990 were a nightmare to track down, and even confirm what the last issue was (I worked it out by cross referencing a story in rival New Computer Express!)

I can well imagine that finding many issues of CTW will be very difficult. Chances are a couple of large collections are sitting in lofts around the country and risk being disposed of, by family members at the passing of an elderly relative, or 'house clearance' who have no idea the importance of them. Let's hope someone somewhere can help out.

Why have Namco never done a Ridge Racer / Ridge Racer 2 / Rave Racer compilation? Go the extra mile and include the PS1 games with upscaled options - would be absolutely amazing.

Ah, back in those wistful days when CEX was Computer Exchange and was stuffed with import titles (before Nintendo put a stop to it by refusing to supply them with PAL GameCubes if they didn’t cease to do so). Was also staffed by genuinely enthusiastic individuals who loved games.

I’ve just had shipping confirmation of the last outstanding order I have with them, I’ll never say never, but I’m in no rush to buy anything else.

Funny thing is PCE Works get a lot of stick, but I’m pretty sure even their discs are pressed, and not CDR’s!

Kind of beggars the question, why the hell didn’t people just open the console and remove the bit of plastic that formed the lock?! It’s not like the MD is difficult to get into, and not exactly difficult to work out which bit to remove once you have!