It was made for the Genesis. They could have made Donkey Kong Country, Chrono Trigger and Super Mario World for the Genesis and they would still be in the bargain bin.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamahl
It was made for the Genesis. They could have made Donkey Kong Country, Chrono Trigger and Super Mario World for the Genesis and they would still be in the bargain bin.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamahl
I'm going with Robocop Vs. The Terminator too.
Lack of advertising, most likely.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamahl
Comix Zone and Vectorman were bargain bin titles too, despite having received good reviews at the time.
My guess is it's a combination of no marketing and a generic sounding name and looking box that doesn't exactly make it stand out. There probably was some word of mouth but a portion of that might have come from people who had 3-button controllers or just didn't grasp the control scheme.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamahl
It's unfortunately a sad story shared by many Genesis titles. There's so many "hidden gems" on the console because of lack of advertising.
I heard about that. I plan to get a Duo-R eventually to play JP PC Engine cards and CD games.Quote:
Originally Posted by j_factor
I've had Ranger-X for a while now, I really need to play it.
Ranger X wasn't better than I expected, but I had high expectations at the time.
I think some of the sections feel a little clunky, and a level or two feels unfocussed, but they're minor criticisms, I'd probably give it like ~8.5 but I expected it to be a 9/10.
Never had any real problems with the controls.
It's an 8.5-9 to me too, the only reason it doesn't get more is that you can't learn the game just by playing. In ranger-x you have no idea about the light mechanic without reading the manual and to make it worse the first level doesn't need it while the second needs it the most. That's poor level progression. The fact that you can for some reason eat fruit to recover health is also a total asspull (fruit that needs to be shot with a freaking plasma gun first), so much so that I only figured out why I was getting health out of nowhere after seeing an explanation on gamefaqs.Quote:
Originally Posted by Thenewguy
There are other minor faults. While I'm ok with the controls they're still wasting a button for little gain. The bike is mostly annoying and doesn't really have any major use during gameplay (weapon switching and auto-aim could be done in much better ways, transforming into a bike with a press of a button instead of riding it for example). And don't get me started on that stupid ship that replaces it.
Still, it's original, it's a whole lot of fun and it's total eye-candy. Love it.
I definitely agree with that assessment. I've got the box but no manual so the first time I played Ranger X I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. After reading a bit on the net about the gameplay mechanics though it was a really great experience the whole way through.
I like the bike, ramming it into enemies is a lot of fun. The ship is a piece of excrement though.
Light Crusader... I wasnt expecting too much but then bam! you have one of the best games one genny!
That's interesting. I see this from time to time. I've owned it since Bel over at WAG recommended it, but haven't given it much time. It seemed to be well made from what I played, but just didn't hook me.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cucollins12
I think the laser was the only addition to the spread Aprinet could manage w/o turning the game into a flicker parade--I get the feeling they wanted to add something big between the spreading shot but whatever giant fireball type of thing they had in mind would've been too much for the MD to handle. The laser also makes it harder to hit some enemies, every now and then one will fly between the laser and the spread.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamahl
@ topic let me add Boogerman which I expected to be as repugnant as its premise but actually plays well. Shadow Dancer too, much more fluid than its wooden predecessor, both in character movement and stage design.
I concur.Quote:
Originally Posted by QuickSciFi
Taz in Escape From Mars.
I got this game when I was little, on the discount rack when the Genesis was dead. Hell, I think the Dreamcast came out about a year later.
I'm not a big fan of Looney Toons games, but this one was so much fun.
I played and beat Light Crusader when I was first getting into the Genesis, and it's still one of my favorite games on the console -- but a lot of people don't much like it. Not sure why that is, but hey, more for me. (If only it worked that way!) The soundtrack is arguably the best I've heard on the system.Quote:
Originally Posted by sheath
The music is what convinced me to pick it up, the graphics are awesome as well. Bel always raved about the polygonal effects in some places. I think people don't like it because they consider Land Stalker a better isometric RPG and because Treasure made it and they think Treasure should stick to shooters.Quote:
Originally Posted by goldenband
Light Crusader isn't bad, it's just that it's not as good as it should be.
The problem with Light Crusader is that it's so generic.
It makes the whole experience a bit bland. Then again, I didn't expect much from it.
Also, what is so great about Robocop vs The Terminator? I didn't think much of it after playing it a while ago.
Landstalker- I saw no reviews for the game, and don't even remember much advertising either. But one day, I went into a pawnshop, and saw a copy of it sitting inside their glass counter. I asked if I could take a look at it, and found that it was complete and in very good shape. Looking through the manual, and reading the back of the box, I took a chance and paid the $15 for it. When I popped it in, I more or less fell in love with the game. The graphics, the music, the isometric gameplay, the puzzles, the characters... it was just fun (except for that fucking pair of black boots hidden in a dark pit). I've played through this game quite a few times, and it's just enjoyable from beginning to end.
It's a pretty solid, occasionally well balanced, run'n gun with some neat weapons (blowing off ED-209's gun and wielding it is oh-so-satisfying), copious amounts of trademark Robocop gore, and cool level set-pieces that actually take from their respective movies with lots of shout-out references to the films. It's so over the top like the original Robocop movie to the point where it almost feels like it was directed by Paul Verhooven, since everybody in the game is a highly explosive blood-balloon.Quote:
Originally Posted by Olls
That said I feel like it's got some real problems specifically in the sound design. The music and sound effects are both pretty annoying in my opinion, and it's really jarring when the music occasionally stops all-together like in an early boss fight. I also hate the really Turrican-ish way Robocop takes damage when touching enemies with no knock-back or temporary invincibility. Not so much a big deal in the levels but it makes some of the boss fights a real chore until you get their patterns down. The graphics might also be a little muddy or grimy for some but I think they set a proper and really nicely detailed atmosphere for a game like this, and Robocop himself looks great.
Overall though it's fun for a licensed title. It took me a while to get into it but once I warmed up to it I found I really liked it despite the hiccups.
...And yet we (you) have no Landstalker themed Sega-16 logo. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by The Coop
Landstalker did end up being significantly different and better than I thought going in. It has all the appearance of a Zelda clone. It ended up being far more a platformer from hell than a stabby adventure game, which I liked better except for those times the perspective or blind jumps made me want to kill something.
ToeJam & Earl: Panic on Funkatron is my pick. Raged against the format change just like everyone else, yet in the end, the game is better for it. The world is so much more vibrant, the characters better developed, and the dialogue and variety is wonderful. I believe all these elements could have existed just fine in the original format and have satisfied everyone, but as it stands, Panic on Funkatron is a great game which advances the series more than its familiar aping of the mascot platformer would initially indicate. I miss the Nethack inspired gameplay of the original, but Panic on Funkatron overall is a better game.
Super Hydlide indeed. As bad as it looks and shitty controls, the game turned very fun to me. Looking for secrets, what the hell to do, and the excelent music.
I expected Mickey Mania to be fairly "meh." I got it because it was a part of a lot that I had a good deal on. Instead, I got Micky-vania. Many of the levels made me think of Bloodlines or Castlevania IV, if the protagonist chose to throw marbles instead of use a whip. The visual style is nice and the graphics are excellent. Plus, it's fun to play too!
It's my understanding that it's the frequency and difficulty of the puzzles that stops most people; it takes them "out of the game." I like the puzzles and I like the game. It's a very nice looking game, and the magic system is pretty neat (certainly derived a bit from the gun system in Gunstar Heroes).Quote:
Originally Posted by sheath
Outrun 2019, i did not know what to expect from this but i found it extremely playable.
Interesting analysis -- you may be on to something there. Personally, I "received" Light Crusader as a puzzle RPG first and action RPG second, so the puzzles couldn't take me out of the game; they were the core of the game!Quote:
Originally Posted by TheFace
If one perceives the puzzles as a distraction from the game's central mission, then sure, Light Crusader would seem like a middling action RPG that keeps interrupting itself. But that seems silly to me, like getting annoyed that all the items in Super Mario Kart get in the way of the pure racing experience. It comes back to the ol' adage that it's always a mistake to blame a game (or a movie, album, book, etc.) for not being something it wasn't trying to be in the first place.
The problem with light crusader aren't exactly the puzzles, it's just how uninspired the game is. The graphics are great but the art style is mediocre at best, every character in the game is lifeless, the magic system is great but the magic itself is completely boring, it's 1 giant dungeon with a puzzle in every room (puzzles that can get annoying fast), the weapons are the worst you can have (just "levels"), the items are all either potions, keys, stuff to sell, or "required to exist in the inventory", the dialog and story are garbage, etc...
As far as a puzzle game goes, it's only ok. As an action adventure it's pretty poor. What is Light Crusader trying to be? Is it a puzzle game? The action parts just get in the way then. Is it an Action Adventure? Well it fails at both.
I still think it's better than Landstalker, if only because it a) had shadows and b) actually had controls that made some damn sense
Seriously, an isometric platformer like landstalker without shadows? That game's "puzzles" are just trial-and-error jumping challenges where you can't tell which direction you need to go to reach the next platform due to the flaws in the perspective.
Mercs. The RPG lite origanal mode is fantastic
That's also what made me so frustrated that I gave up on completing the game. If Landstalker had shadows, it would be on my top five list of favorite games.Quote:
Originally Posted by muteKi
True Lies: Expected a crappy movie licence game but got something quite solid. Same goes for Dick Tracy.
Same it looked dumb but I played it with my friend and it as pretty awesome.Quote:
Originally Posted by Iron Lizard
NBA Live '95 - My cousins passed this game down to me as a kid and I could never get the hang of the controls and switching between players. As an adult, it's one of my favorite sports games for the system and a dream to play. So much fun!
Also, Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster’s Hidden Treasure - I've never watched the show, and that's half the appeal of most licensed platformers. But this game blew me away with just how fun it was! I had always passed on it thinking it was just another kiddie game, but it's a genuinely well-made game!
Basically everything I've chosen to play has met my expectations, which are set pretty high for this console.
So nothing really stands out - although if we can extend the criteria to include Mega CD then Soul Star would be a candidate for sure. There's not a lot of info about it on the net, and reviews that do exist paint the game in a pretty mediocre light, but playing through it revealed a better game than some would have you believe. I still think the 3D roaming boss segments are clunky as hell, but the rest of the sections control fine - including the Turbocopter ones.
The game has a steep learning curve IMO and frustrated with some cheap seeming hits, once you learn the tricks though you can avoid everything if you're good enough.
I wouldn't even know where to begin. Skitchin' maybe. I bought that one(one of the few times I had money in those days) because the back of the box had the word "bitchin," and I'm sure I'm not the only one that picked it up for that reason(someone said the same thing in the games review topic) and it turned out to be one of the most fun games I've ever played.
The Adventures of Batman & Robin. Initially I didn't even know it was different from the SNES game, and at the time the internet had me convinced that same game = greater on SNES all the time, because graphics and sounds. Well, the SNES game didn't leave me with a great impression, so thinking it was basically the same thing on the Genesis, yeah... I consider the Genesis game one of the best run 'n guns of the era now.
Pirates! Gold. Admittedly this has more to do with finally trying one of these games out, through the 2004 remake, ported to the PSP. Gold isn't missing a whole hell of a lot by comparison, though.
Moonwalker. I still haven't played it much, for the same reason I hadn't given it a chance before. Nothing against the guy, but I was never a fan. Still, much better than a property based on a celebrity has any right to be.
In the same vein as Moonwalker would be the Disney games. I guess I thought I outgrew Disney as a whole(despite still watching Looney Tunes and Tom and Jerry), so I didn't think much of anything based on their properties. The only bad one I know of nowadays is Phantasia.
Streets of Rage 2. It actually took me as recently as Streets of Rage Remake to know what the characters were fully capable of. Until you know that, a beat 'em up can seem fairly generic(see also: Night Slasher, which is one of the best arcade beat 'em ups, just unconventional with it's controls), and one getting the praise this one was, can seem crazy overrated. Took me a while to appreciate the music too, as I've never been into(still not) techno at all, but something about chiptunes makes it all the more tolerable.
Predator 2. Didn't care for it all at first, but some time later, when I was really bored, I gave it another try, and I started to enjoy it. I even managed to beat it a few times, though I can't remember if legitimately or not.
Sonic Spinball. I'm not sure how much I knew about this when I got it as a gift(Christmas I think), but I enjoyed it a lot.
I thought the Genesis version of Shadowrun couldn't possibly be on par with the SNES version. But I played it and it equalled its rival, with some qualities better and some worse.
Sub-Terrania
Once you get passed the steep learning curve, it becomes insanely rewarding and enjoyable.
Absolutely amazing game.
I recently got into Bonanza Brothers. I always thought it was kind of lame because I didn't know what I was doing. It's a really excellent co-op game now that I've given it a chance.
I bought Grind Stormer for $3 from a Genesis bin back in the days of Funcoland. Internet wasn't nearly what it was back then, I just bought it because it had a cool looking spaceship on the cart and a weird name. One of my favorite Genesis games.
I didn't expect much from Mega Turrican, never heard of the Turrican series before playing the Genesis version.
I was very disappointed that the Genesis version of Samurai Shodown didn't include Earthquake, but it probably plays the best of all ports of the time (AES of course not withstanding).
Yeah, it's not a fantastic port by any means but I think people are a little rough on it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tower of Power
If the only way you could play Samurai Shodown back then was a Sega Genesis (and let's face it, for most people it was) then you were still getting a really competent playing and good-looking fighter.
As I've said before I'll take the sacrifices the Genesis version made over the perpetually zoomed out perspective on the SNES any day.
I'm going with Jurassic Park:Rampage Edition. My cousin was on the dinosaur band wagon at the time so we'd play the first one a lot, it was a decent game ruined by probably a very rushed schedule. That second game really ironed out a lot of the first one's problems and made for a more enjoyable play experience. I was really just shocked how much better it was, I could see things better, the level designs were less muddled, love that T-rex encounter. :D
I originally thought Aladdin was going to be one of those get rich quick movie tie in, where the game is god awful but it ended up being one of my favorite games on the genesis.