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Celebrating Konami

They were one of my favorite publishers in the PS1/2 era, due to Silent Hill 1-3 and Shadow of Memories, but it's been 14 years since the last of them was released. They ran the SH franchise down last gen, but managed to get the fans excited with PT, only to disappoint them with its cancellation.
 
Used to be this:

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Now its this:

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Contra 3 (Super Probotector in the UK - because robots killing aliens is the only acceptable form of violence here) on SNES will always bring back fond memories. Was a go-to for couch co-op with my good friend back in the day. Obviously the main focus is on the superlative run-and-gun gameplay, but the soundtrack is suitably ace as well.

Metal Gear series. I was relatively LTTP on this, and in fact MGS2 was the first game in the series I tried to play (unsuccessfully). I still have the boxed copy, and the manual has a cool comic panel explaining various mechanics. So sad that we don't get decent manuals these days. Needless to say, I have since played through the series from the PS1 game, and following the story from (nearly) the beginning was what pulled me in.

Not such a fan of their other franchises, but one only has to go back to Konami's 16-bit glory days to witness that this studio was once a purveyor of quality. A vast catalogue of riches that is going to waste given their current shift in attitude/focus.
 
Despite being a huge Castlevania, Suikoden, and TMNT fan, the Ganbare Goemon series is really the one that I miss the most. I can still remember how it 'felt' playing Legend of the Mystical Ninja on my SNES when it first came out. Such special games to me. Hopefully the third one gets translated in my lifetime as it is the only one I've held off on playing.

Here is another game that may not be remembered quite as fondly as some of the others here, but was still a good time:

Buster_Busts_Loose_box_art.jpg



I've also heard the opinion that the Genesis verison was totally different and better, though I've never played it.

Damn, I'm going to go play some Mystical Ninja on my 3DS now.
 
I've also heard the opinion that the Genesis verison was totally different and better, though I've never played it.

I can confirm that the Genesis version is far better (Although it's pretty much a Mario 3 clone). I played the SNES version far later and was really shocked by how much worse it was (It's a far prettier version though, which was to be expected at that time).
 
One of the best ninja games, that few people have played. Man, I wish I still had my copy.

Same here. I found a copy at a mall in So Cal that was new, and I kept it really nice. Nowadays, I don't know how to spot a fake, so I'm just hoping it turns up on a service like virtual console.
 
I've also heard the opinion that the Genesis verison was totally different and better, though I've never played it.

Damn, I'm going to go play some Mystical Ninja on my 3DS now.
I do prefer the Mega Drive game, but I wouldn't say it is objectively better. It's basically a standard NES style platfomer, like the first NES game. The SNES game is a different thing with the charge mechanic and more variety of gameplay. The MD game is solid graphically, but the SNES game is much better looking and sounding,

Honestly the Fami/NES games are the all round best, gameplay wise IMO.
 
My friend and I used to go to our local bowling alley just to play GTI Club.

The PS3 port just didn't feel the same without the awesome handbrake :( (Sadly, no longer available on PSN).

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I'd say their quality was quite a bit more spotty on PS1. Especially early PS1.

Diver's Dream was a bit scabby, Contra PS1 games were pure shit. Track & Field, Crypt Killer, Poy Poys, Broken Helix, Kensei, Midnight Run, plenty of early PS1 mediocrity.

Some nice gems like Ronin Blade though.

SNES though, hard to fault. Gradius III has slowdown, a million Power Pros which were kind of middling, but literally no outright duds.
We should remember not to frame gens just in terms of leading platforms though too. It's not just NES vs SNES vs PS1 vs PS2, we should also factor in MSX, Game Boy, X68000, PC Engine, Megadrive, Saturn, N64, Dreamcast, GBA, Gamecube, Xbox...
 
Suikoden II is one of the best games I have ever played. I only discovered the Suikoden series two years ago, and I still need to play III-V, but I'm already sad that there isn't and will probably never be more of it... :(
 
The fact that they still make all sorts of Bemani games, including keeping IIDX going even 17-ish years after its initial release, is dope to me.

their beat 'em ups though? no good.
 
We should remember not to frame gens just in terms of leading platforms though too. It's not just NES vs SNES vs PS1 vs PS2, we should also factor in MSX, Game Boy, X68000, PC Engine, Megadrive, Saturn, N64, Dreamcast, GBA, Gamecube, Xbox...
Generally true, though I prefer eras, as generations really do not work in any eras until the late 90s, despite Wikipedia and many others trying to force older consoles into false ideas of generations.

But in that comment I was not referring to any generation, I was responding specifically to IrishNinja's direct comparison between SNES and PS1.
 
We also need to remember their contribution to the Visual Novel genre. Back then it was a niche genre exclusive to PC but Tokimeki Memorial proved that these games have the potential to gain mainstream success on console without adult content.
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They easily have the most diverse lineup among 3rd party developers.

They also made LOVE PLUS ..it just changed the way i saw my nintendo DS.

a complete and total revolution in my eyes
 
Favorite underrated series has got to be Twinbee. Great music, colorful environments, and solid playability. Jackal is also up there, as well as Esper Dream 2 and Lagrange Point.
 
Speaking of Twinbee, could anyone please recommend some of the best games in that series? It's one of the few I never explored (ironic considering my avatar, I know) but it looks very pretty and fun. I think I only own the NES 3D remaster on my 3DS, but haven't played it yet.
 
Despite being a huge Castlevania, Suikoden, and TMNT fan, the Ganbare Goemon series is really the one that I miss the most. I can still remember how it 'felt' playing Legend of the Mystical Ninja on my SNES when it first came out. Such special games to me. Hopefully the third one gets translated in my lifetime as it is the only one I've held off on playing.

Here is another game that may not be remembered quite as fondly as some of the others here, but was still a good time:

Buster_Busts_Loose_box_art.jpg



I've also heard the opinion that the Genesis verison was totally different and better, though I've never played it.

Damn, I'm going to go play some Mystical Ninja on my 3DS now.

How I forgot about this game and Animaniacs!!!! I heard NES version was better, but I never played it.

Thanks to this game I can now understand the football rules, lol.
 
Speaking of Twinbee, could anyone please recommend some of the best games in that series? It's one of the few I never explored (ironic considering my avatar, I know) but it looks very pretty and fun. I think I only own the NES 3D remaster on my 3DS, but haven't played it yet.

Twinbee Yahho is the best of them in my opinion, though Detana Twinbee comes close. You can get them both in the Twinbee Deluxe pack on PS1 or Saturn if you have a means to play them, or you could just emulate. Check out their OSTs, too.
 
I still remember the days between 2005-2007 when a small group of friends and I went to the mall arcade to hit up occasional DDR tournaments. I always came in dead last, but I had fun regardless.

DDR Extreme Arcade was my favorite (and DDRMAX2 for home versions). A lot of us moaned and groaned when the arcade replaced it with SuperNova, but we mostly got over it.
 
Twinbee Yahho is the best of them in my opinion, though Detana Twinbee comes close. You can get them both in the Twinbee Deluxe pack on PS1 or Saturn if you have a means to play them, or you could just emulate. Check out their OSTs, too.

Ah nice, thanks!

Looking these up, I found out that apparently there's a PSP compilation that seems to include these plus more, is it any good? I love portability when possible so I'd love to import this if the ports/emulation are decent.
 
They made some of my all-time favorite games and series. I can endlessly replay the old Castlevania's or Contra's. Truly phenomenal games. I could just grab a random Konami game in the NES/SNES era and be sure of at least a decent game.

The worst thing about companies like Konami and Capcom is that they have a treasure trove of rich ips which they're holding hostage.

Fuck them both.
I wish they would grant other companies their licenses every now and then. I just know Nintendo would make a killer Mega Man game. Just think about the possibilities...actually it's best not to, I'd just get depressed.
 
Ah nice, thanks!

Looking these up, I found out that apparently there's a PSP compilation that seems to include these plus more, is it any good? I love portability when possible so I'd love to import this if the ports/emulation are decent.

I haven't played it myself but Konami's other shmup compilations have been solid. Only issue I think would be with Detana getting excessively letterboxed since it has a more traditional vertical shooter aspect ratio and the PSP screen isn't very tall. The other ones are all 4:3 and should be fine.
 
We also need to remember their contribution to the Visual Novel genre. Back then it was a niche genre exclusive to PC but Tokimeki Memorial proved that these games have the potential to gain mainstream success on console without adult content.
2010813145523.jpg


They easily have the most diverse lineup among 3rd party developers.

Both the Tokimeki Memorial and Girl's Side games are outstanding when it comes to romance sims. Hilarious writing (on the Girl's Side sometimes unintentionally so), unexpected turns (at least in the original series), rad mini games, enraging stat raising RNG...

Remember when you had to fight of those Banchos?


And sideways DS pillow fights for love?


Thank you Konami for trying to breach out into Otome with these dorks:


Two of them are your teachers.
This game was a riot.

You got really got with it in the third game though.

<3
 
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