Retro Gaming

[Scyla]

25 minutes ago, mikeszekely said:

Anyone else grab the new Legend of Zelda 35th Anniversary Game & Watch?  I thought $50 was a bit steep for last years Super Mario version, since it only came with SMB, SMB: The Lost Levels, and Ball.  The Zelda one is a much better value with The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, and Vermin.  The packaging is also a bit nicer, too.  Instead of the simple insert that holds the console and USB cord that the SMB version had, this one has a nice glossy black insert that has a spot inside for the USB cord but a tray for the console.  The tray has a cutout to run the USB cable through and flaps that fold out to make a kickstand, so you can actually set it up and display the console in clock mode this time.  So yeah, if you liked last year's SMB unit then you'll love the new Zelda one, and if you thought $50 was too much for last year's SMB unit then you'll be happy to know that you're definitely getting more bang for your buck this time around.  I wouldn't mind if Nintendo did a few more of these with some of their other first-party games.  

For me it would be interesting to have a Game and Watch replica but I don’t have any nostalgia for the 8bit games or Game and Watch in general. My first video game system was the SNES and it will be forever burnt into my mind as my first experience in and pinnacle of gaming.

I tried to play the original Zelda and the NES Metroid (as a preparation for Dread) and while I can appreciate what they did for gaming the actual games are not that good compared to their SNES counterparts. A Link to the Past and Super Metroid are considered a timeless classic for a reason.

[mikeszekely]

6 hours ago, Scyla said:

For me it would be interesting to have a Game and Watch replica but I don’t have any nostalgia for the 8bit games or Game and Watch in general. My first video game system was the SNES and it will be forever burnt into my mind as my first experience in and pinnacle of gaming.

I tried to play the original Zelda and the NES Metroid (as a preparation for Dread) and while I can appreciate what they did for gaming the actual games are not that good compared to their SNES counterparts. A Link to the Past and Super Metroid are considered a timeless classic for a reason.

I can respect that, given that was pretty much my own stance on the original Metroid and Metroid II just a few weeks ago (and funny enough, I've also been replaying old Metroid games, I just started after I'd already finished Dread).  But I did have an NES and the original Legend of Zelda, and I loved it.  Sure, a Link to the Past is a big improvement in a lot of ways, but it (and basically every other Zelda until 2017) was a lot more linear.  Breath of the Wild was the only sequel to recapture that sense of really having a world with mysteries around every corner that you could kind of take at your own pace.  When I do a playthrough in modern times I'll usually kill enemies for bomb drops and rupees to buy the blue candle, then hunt for heart containers so I can get the white sword before I do any dungeons.  And when I do get around to the dungeons I like to do them out of order.

But yeah, I'm totally in favor of Nintendo making Game and Watch consoles with SNES or GBA games, not just NES and Gameboy.

[JetJockey]

Not interested in that Zelda Game & Watch. I'm going to get some older ones though.

And I love the old NES games. That's where so much started. Original NES Metroid is still a classic game. Very tough and scary at times (at least when I was young). I didn't know what to do. The Player's Guide helped back then. But now it is fun to play on your own. The NES version is still better than the GBA I believe remake. I remember the remake didn't have the complete Escape theme.

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

https://limitedrungames.com/collections/neo-frontpage/products/gaiares-genesis 

 

 

[jenius]

1 hour ago, Black Valkyrie said:

 

 

https://limitedrungames.com/collections/neo-frontpage/products/gaiares-genesis 

 

 

I grabbed this today as an Xmas present for my brother. It was definitely one of our favorite shooters growing up.

[efisher]

Love me some Gaiares. It's one of the few Genesis shooters I haven't 1CC'ed. That boss rush on stage seven always stops me dead in my tracks.

 

I'm still hoping Limited Run or Strictly Limited will do a physical re-release of Eliminate Down for the Genesis.

[mikeszekely]

Well, after finishing Metroid Dread I decided to play the previous four main entries*

*At least, some version, as Metroid and Metroid II are just too dated for me.  It's interesting how different my thoughts are than before...

Metroid Zero Mission - I played it when it first came out, and thought it wasn't as good as Fusion.  I was wrong.  It actually takes everything good about the original NES version but makes it so much more playable.  I think it might actually be my second favorite Metroid game; the only thing I really don't care for is the Zero suit stealth bit.

Metroid: Samus Returns - This would be Mercury Steam's remake of Metroid II.  Taken in a vacuum it's a good, fun game.  Taken in the context of the rest of the series, including the source material, it's clear that the team at Mercury Steam didn't really 'get' Metroid II.  The game is an action game first and foremost, one that relies heavily on the new melee counter move they added to Samus' arsenal, and not always effectively (there are times when multiple enemies will attack at once, causing you to only counter one and take the hit from the other).  As @JB0 noted, the game practically revels in violence, with counter moves on the Metroids giving you cutscene-like bits where you have a chance to do massive damage.  The horror element is pretty much lost, and the game never really wrestles with the notion of Metroid genocide the way the original Gameboy game did.

...also, F that digger robot.  I almost quit right there.  Still, I wouldn't say it's the worst Metroid, only the second-worst.  And there are alternatives, like AM2R.  I'm going to look for it and try it; maybe it'll rank higher.

Super Metroid - I actually never played this on the SNES, and I struggled to play it when I bought it from the 3DS eShop.  It's often held up as one of the best SNES games of all time, and the pinnacle of the Metroid franchise... well, one of those things is true.  It is one of the best SNES games.  But best Metroid?  Truthfully, while not nearly as dated as the NES or Gameboy versions, Super Metroid hasn't aged as gracefully as I'd hoped.  Truth is, after playing the GBA games, the basic controls are a bit clunkier and the floaty physics makes platforming a lot tougher than it strictly needs to be.  Fortunately there's a patched ROM that borrows some control and physics elements from the GBA games, but even still I think Super Metroid's actually middle of the pack for me (although I have to stress that the top three are very close, and all three are pretty far ahead of the worst two).

Metroid Fusion - This is actually the first Metroid game I really played, and at the time I loved it.  Years later, with all the other Metroids under my belt, I can say without a doubt that Fusion is the worst one.  Don't get me wrong, it's still a good game, but a lot of what makes the other Metroids great is missing here.  You don't have the whole map to explore, limited by the need for certain power ups.  Instead, the doors are simply locked, and for the bulk of the game your railroaded into missions to either get a power up or unlock a certain level of door.  What's worse, once you get to a point in the game where you start to have powerups like Power Bombs, Speed Booster, Space Jump, or Screw Attack and you have the security doors open something will happen like the power going out or the computer simply not allowing certain doors to open, so you still feel railroaded and unable to freely explore the map.  Also, absorbing X parasites sucks compared to the usual energy and ammo drops you get in other Metroid games.

Metroid Dread - It's not a perfect game.  The melee counter is back, although it's not as vital.  The first few EMMI encounters really do convey a sense of dread, but after awhile they're just a frustrating game of getting caught and getting insta-killed as you fail the nigh-impossible escape QTE until you finally figure out the optimal route through the EMMI's zone.  Like Super Metroid, though, Dread gives you a sprawling map to explore, and unlike Super Metroid I wanted to keep exploring it (sorry, Super Metroid, Maridia sucked).  Plus, I don't think any game in the franchise had better boss encounters.  Zero Mission, Super Metroid, and Fusion bosses were often scenarios where you'd just eat the damage and trust that you'd blast the boss enough before you ran out of health.  Samus Returns was all about that Melee Counter.  Dread, though, is almost like a Mega Man game where everything is about learning the bosses' patterns and timing.  Bosses hit hard, and chances are you will die a couple of times every time you face one.  But only until you learn the pattern- once you do that you might even beat some of the bosses without taking damage.  I think Dread might actually be the best of the franchise... while I really loved my time with Zero Mission and Super Metroid, Dread is the only one that I wanted to replay immediately upon finishing it.

[JetJockey]

On 11/17/2021 at 7:26 AM, efisher said:

Love me some Gaiares. It's one of the few Genesis shooters I haven't 1CC'ed. That boss rush on stage seven always stops me dead in my tracks.

I still have the original game which I too never finished. I could get to that female robot boss with the shield without dying but never figured out her weak point. I guess I'll try again one day since I'm older now.

 

18 hours ago, mikeszekely said:

And there are alternatives, like AM2R.  I'm going to look for it and try it; maybe it'll rank higher.

I downloaded that back in the day but haven't played it yet. I'm sure it's still out there somewhere. I hope you got the Prime 2D Demo as well which was pulled. I heard that was good. I downloaded that and the soundtrack when it was up.

 

Speaking about Legend of Zelda. I remember seeing a fan remake of the original NES game that looked pretty good. I downloaded that as well but haven't tried it yet. Zelda and Adventure of Link are two of the games Nintendo should have remade similar to the old SNES Mario All-Stars but apparently they don't want to.

[jenius]

38 minutes ago, JetJockey said:

I still have the original game which I too never finished. I could get to that female robot boss with the shield without dying but never figured out her weak point. I guess I'll try again one day since I'm older now.

There's some good cheats... even cheating that game is fun... there's so much eye candy. I definitely had to cheat to beat it.

[JetJockey]

On 11/18/2021 at 8:21 PM, jenius said:

There's some good cheats... even cheating that game is fun... there's so much eye candy. I definitely had to cheat to beat it.

No cheats for me. The only time I remember cheating on games was during the NES time as I had a Max and Advantage joystick. But at times it was better not to cheat. I vaguely remember using the turbo on a Rygar boss and it was better just playing normal.

[ScrambledValkyrie]

Gaiares is one of those games that’s simply above my skill level, especially now that my reaction times are probably not as good as they were 30 years ago.

@mikeszekely Interesting thoughts on the Metroid series. I don’t fully agree (Super still ranks top tier for me; and Fusion is a very well executed game despite the linearity) but always interesting to read other perspectives. I still need to play Dread (now that my son is done with it) but was trying to finish Samus Returns first. You may want to give the original two a play through and see what you think. Have you ever played Prime?

[mikeszekely]

2 hours ago, ScrambledValkyrie said:

You may want to give the original two a play through and see what you think.

Oh, I've played them. I don't want to be too harsh on them, because what they did was pretty groundbreaking in the context of the time, but QOL updates since Super Metroid have made them practically unplayable to me now.

2 hours ago, ScrambledValkyrie said:

Have you ever played Prime?

I've only played the first one, but I loved it. It's difficult to compare the Prime series to the main one, though. I keep hoping for a Switch Prime collection; maybe one day I'll play through all three and offer my thoughts on them. 

[JetJockey]

Can't remember if this playlist was posted.

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[Valkyrie Hunter D]

Creator of NES and SNES dies

[Black Valkyrie]

Sad, the SFC/ SNES will always be my favorite system. 

 

[Scyla]

On 12/10/2021 at 4:16 AM, Valkyrie Hunter D said:

Creator of NES and SNES dies

Sad news. The SNES was a huge formative experience for me. It was the second console I’ve owned (the Game Boy was the first) and it not only made me a fan of video games in general but Japanese video games and the Japanese aesthetics specifically.

This had a huge impact on my other hobbies I have now: mecha, anime and manga.

For example I fell in love with Arika Toriyamas character design for Chrono Trigger (which my dad brought over from a trip to the US, since Europe rarely got JRPGs) long before I knew Dragonball existed.

[Valkyrie Hunter D]

Modern day sequel to Moon Cresta and Terra Cresta:

From Platinum Games, with Yuzo Koshiro for music!

[JB0]

Oh, cool! Another Cresta game is a surprise, and this looks really interesting!

[Black Valkyrie]

 

https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/6463/

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

 

[Valkyrie Hunter D]

If aging arcade rats like me ever wanted a coffee table book, here's my recommendation: a guide to beat-em-up games.

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

 

[pengbuzz]

20 hours ago, Black Valkyrie said:

 

 

 

Now I feel old! lol

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[mikeszekely]

A bunch of the old classic Gold Box D&D games just went on sale on Steam.  They're divided into six collections- Collections 1, 2, and 3 cover all the old games set in the Forgotten Realms, then there are separate collections for Krynn, Dark Sun, and Ravenloft.  (No Spelljammer: Pirates of Realmspace, though?)  All of the collections are listed at $9.99*, except Collection 3 at $5.99, though they're already on sale for 15% off.  Or you could buy the whole shebang for $31.86.

*In the US, anyway.

I'm thinking for $32 I might as well buy the whole thing, although I suspect I'll find some of those games a bit too old for my tastes.  Menzoberranzan was my jam back in the day, though, and I liked the Ravenloft games that used the same engine.  I'm sure I'll pick up at least that much.

Edited March 29, 2022 by mikeszekely

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

[F-ZeroOne]

For those of us on my side of the gaming pond, its been a celebratory month; that humble rubble-keyed wonder, the colour-clashing 8-bit icon, Uncle Clives most successful child, the working persons micro - the ZX Spectrum is 40 years old!

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

https://www.gematsu.com/2022/06/sega-genesis-mega-drive-mini-2-announced

 

 

[Black Valkyrie]

 

 

 

[davidwhangchoi]