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Sega Genesis Mini |OT| SEEEEEEEEEEEGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Kazza

Member
Paul, what is wrong with you?

Yep. Even Marble is better than Labyrinth. At least with that water level in Mania you could avoid the water with skillful play. No such choice with Labyrinth. The final zone is filled with water too, only this time the bubbles are in sort supply and take forever to spawn. I had a full five seconds left on that nightmare-inducing drowning countdown waiting for an air bubble to spawn and still drowned!

Heh, I often experience things like this with old games. Sometimes I wonder: why did I find this so difficult back in the day? It's all the experience that we carry with us. In fact I play a lot of games infinitely better than I did back then, and I expect nothing but the best from myself playing these games. Mega Man III and Starwing were probably the only games I could play back and forth without trouble back then. As you can see this goes for Nintendo games by the way, which I played regularly over the decades (on varying platforms), unlike Mega Drive games. lol

Sonic The Hedgehog is such a enjoyable game by the way. It might remain my favorite game in the entire series. It has its flaws here and there, like the sometimes annoying (surprising) enemy placement, but...

I've been playing a lot of SNES games for the first time and, as a Sega kid, I think some of them pretty difficult. I find Mario much more difficult than Sonic:
- full of bottomless pits pretty much from the first level (a missed jump in Sonic usually just results in falling to a lower plane in the level)
- one hit deaths once you lose the big mushroom power up (with Sonic you can usually just grab your rings back)
- a much smaller hit box when jumping on enemies (you have to be pretty much directly on top, no hitting from an angle)
- lots of enemies who can hurt you without you being able to hurt them (ghosts, those ones that ride on clouds)

I've started to get used to the fact that you have to play it differently and have started to enjoy myself now though. Castlevania 4 and Act Raiser were both good and fairly easy too.
 
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Kazza

Member
Yeah Sonic 2. It’s a weird one, the bulk of the game (emeralds excluded) is way easier than Sonic 1, but the difficulty really ramps up in the final level

- Hopping on the opening and closing lids, constant risk of falling to insta death
- Super Sonic makes things even worse as your jumps become floaty and you deplete all your coins
- Three consecutive boss fights
- No rings for the boss fights


would definitely have struggled without save states. I got there with 12 lives so would have been a close call, whereas Sonic 1 I completed legit on Mega SG

Phenomenal game anyway. And I can finally move onto Sonic 3 and S&K on my Mega SG now

I always thought Sonic 2 was easier too - I'll have to see how I do in that final level when I get around to playing it again. The final boss fight in Sonic 1 is super easy, although the last zone (Scrap Brain) has some tricky moments.

Dreamweb on the Amiga had 'Diary of a madman, which was great :)

I used to play on my brother's Amiga, but never heard of that one before. Does it play like Comix Zone?
 
While i wanted to complete all the very early Megadrive titles first, I couldn't resist playing a couple of levels of Sonic. An hour later and I was seeing the ending credits.

Regarding box art, I think it's pretty even between the western and Japanese. I'm not a huge fan of shiny American Sonic, but I do like the US background:

Sonic1_box_jap.jpg
35da62a040f343c4360db62c82e12c9b.jpg


Sonic is so synonymous with the Megadrive/Genesis that many people forget that it came out almost 3 years after the Japanese release of the console, and almost two after the release of the Genesis. I was an early Megadrive adopter and remembering being super hyped for the game, no doubt encouraged by magazine covers and ads such as these (for me at the time, it may really have been the best game ever):

uPOXIxO.png


gUc69oy.png


The end product didn't disappoint, as evidenced in the reviews a couple of months later (I'm not sure I agree with Paul about Labyrinth Zone being a blast though - too much water!):

CVG

kEJhYhA.jpg
RcH85ax.jpg


Mean Machines

jYzJCan.jpg
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kcX8VyV.png


Despite the great reviews (although I think sound of 83% is a little on the low side for such great tunes and sound effects), some still weren't satisfied, as Darren from Australia's letter to the Mean Yob shows (I personally agree with him on the originality part):

oJTkeKQ.jpg
JgjllyH.jpg


For a retrospective, here's a nice video explaining the game design of Sonic and how perceptions of the game has changed over time:




I hope Sega eventually releases a Sonic Jam 2, with the Christian Whitehead HD versions of each 16 bit Sonic game.


That review from the reader telling the Reviewer that Sonic is original and the reviewer shitting on the guy. Some things never change. :LOL:

Where are the EU boxart comparisons? Golden Axe on the European Mega Drive takes the Japanese Art and blows it up I think, which looks better than both I think.

I own Stider but can never get into it as it feels too hard!
 

Kazza

Member
That review from the reader telling the Reviewer that Sonic is original and the reviewer shitting on the guy. Some things never change. :LOL:

Where are the EU boxart comparisons? Golden Axe on the European Mega Drive takes the Japanese Art and blows it up I think, which looks better than both I think.

I own Stider but can never get into it as it feels too hard!

You're absolutely right, how could I forget about the Sonic PAL boxart! I remember feverishly looking at it in the back of my mum's car after we had bought it from the shop (there was no way I was waiting for Christmas to play that game). I actually think the PAL version might be the best one - I like the Japanese Sonic and the playful Robotnic and animals on the cream background:

2859044-238.jpg


The Golden Axe looks like it is just a zoomed in version of the Japanese one:

golden-axe-on-sega-genesis-original-box-art-photograph-J7JGPC.jpg


Golden Axe 2 looks good too:

220px-Golden_Axe_II_Coverart.png



Strider's hard, but gets easier as you start to memorise the levels.
 
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Handy Fake

Member
I'd just like to butt in to throw hate at the OP for the title, since now every time I open up Gaf and see it, the opening sting plays in my head.

Carry on.
 

Rodolink

Member
The tetris port inlcuded is really awful, which version is this tetris based on? You cant wall kick, you cant rotate pieces the moment they appear at the top of the screen, etc
 

Rodolink

Member
It's based on the SEGA System 16 one, released in 1988 (a year before the Game Boy one). That means it doesn't adhere to the current rules of the game. The biggest problem I have with this version is the slow speed turning pieces.
yeah also that. Couldve been nice if the port was updated since this removes completely the appeal to play it there for me. Anyway didnt get the Mega Drive to play tetris on the first place xD
 

Xenon

Member
I have to say I'm loving this thing. Right now I'll pop in Sonic The Hedghog and play through some levels and only use save states to continue where I left off. It's just a such a fun game to pick up and play, especially with the controller. Have to say Im not mad it came with the original controller now. Also after playing the other minis, Sonic>Mario. So much more fun to play around and explore in the levels Sega created.
 

MacReady13

Member
Is there any word on a hack for this thing? I'm dying to put some other games on there that really should've been there in the 1st place (Aladdin, Sonic 3, TMNT etc...)
 
Did M2 fix Alex Kidd's Hit Detection on the Mini or was it just a quick emulated job?

The gamw would be so much better if the collision detection works a lot better.

Sad to say, this aspect has not changed. I think it's a OK game that could've been better, and yes, in part because of what you mentioned. Still, I like the cutesy and colorful visuals.

Would be great if the first Master System game became a part of the hypothetical Master System Mini.
 
Sad to say, this aspect has not changed. I think it's a OK game that could've been better, and yes, in part because of what you mentioned. Still, I like the cutesy and colorful visuals.

Would be great if the first Master System game became a part of the hypothetical Master System Mini.

Sad to hear as I don't think it would have took M2 that long to fix. :(

It will definitely be on a Master System Mini as it was one of their main games on the system!
 

Neff

Member
All I want is to be able to import Revenge of Shinobi from the JP model to my EU model.

I mean Shinobi III is good and all but fuck that game for taking Revenge's place.
 

Kazza

Member
All I want is to be able to import Revenge of Shinobi from the JP model to my EU model.

I mean Shinobi III is good and all but fuck that game for taking Revenge's place.

Well, the hacking project is making progress and they have been able to add some games, so hopefully you being able to add Revenge won't be too far off. I'm in the opposite camp, I have the Asian version and want to add Shinobi 3! I always change my mind about which one is better, they are both amazing (Shadow Dancer is very nice too). I'm currently stuck in the final maze leave on Revenge. I've killed everyone, but just can't find the exit. I'm trying not to cheat by checking online.

 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Is that middle one Tiny Tunes? How does it compare to the Megadrive Disney games? It looks good from this SNES Drunk video:


yeah that's the one a hidden gem that is one of the best platforms ever made. and it rivals super mario world. INC hidden exits etc
busters hidden treasure.
 
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Kazza

Member
I finally managed to find my way through the maze of the final Revenge of Shinobi level. Once past that, the final boss wasn't that difficult (took about 5 or 6 turns to defeat the boss and save my girlfriend). Amazing game, still one of my favourite games ever!

It's box art time again:

revengeofshinobijp.jpg
cv0-usa-Revenge_of_Shinobi-x640.jpg


Japanese and western are both good, I think (no difference between the NA/EU one this time). If forced to choose, I would probably go for the western one, but that shot from title screen is just so iconic that it would be a hard choice. Japan had the best manual, as usual, with nice coloured illustrations of the enemies:

gxjZyYL.jpg


I remember they had this game on display at my local import shop back when it first came out. No controllers were connected (presumably to deter the local kids from hanging around playing it all day), but just being able to watch that mind-blowing opening sequence over and over again was good enough for me:

revengeofshinobi_animated.gif


The game left an equally positive impression on the magazines of the day:

k27MAzH.jpg
lsRqapy.jpg

CVG Feb 1990

TuDKKHj.png
bXYkHQT.jpg
Sm8uPKc.jpg


v2JfQqC.png
And still impressed in a later "lookback":
8thqlRb.jpg
cD9oOnv.jpg

Mean Machines Oct 1990

"Masterpiece" and "one of the most outstanding games...on any console" is high praise indeed, but well deserved in this case, imo. Playing it now, it still remains one of my favourites. Sega could easily have gotten away with just porting the original arcade game. As much as I like that one, I'm so glad they decided to make an entirely new Shinobi. The enemies must be some of the best ever: spiderman, batman, Rambo, the Terminator, Godzilla, those crazy sexy ninja women disguised as nuns - amazing! The levels aren't bad too: the bridge with background/foreground, the maze, the aeroplane that sucks you out the door etc.

I think the challenge is set just right. The easy setting just seems to give you more lives, not make the enemies weaker, so you still have to learn the enemy positions and moves. The real "easy" mode is using the ninjitsu/ninja magic (notice that you get bonus points for not using it). However, whereas selecting regular easy modes makes you feel weak, using your ninja magic just makes you feel super badass. I often like to use it to finish off bosses, even when I have plenty health left. Of course, you can always use the famous "infinite shurikens cheat to make things a little easier. Amusingly, the Mean Machines of the time seems under the mistaken impression that you have to keep rapidly hitting the start button for it to work (I can imagine thousands of kids all around the country all desperately mashing their start buttons :messenger_tears_of_joy: ):

IWEOE3b.jpg


To finish up, I'll just leave everyone with part one of Mark from Classic Game Room's retrospective review (I love watching all his Shinobi videos, his passion for the series always shines through):

 
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D

Deleted member 738976

Unconfirmed Member
Tiny Toons is Konami goodness. It's too bad they couldn't have another go at it on the GBA.
Treasure had the perfect sprites for it but not the gameplay
 

cireza

Member
Is that middle one Tiny Tunes? How does it compare to the Megadrive Disney games? It looks good from this SNES Drunk video:
Absolutely brilliant game, especially considering that they were stuck with a 512 KB rom size (Konami was extremely greedy with rom size on MegaDrive). The game is very pretty with great animation. Excellent level-design with secret passages and secret exits everywhere, and a huge world map to explore. Great addition to the MegaDrive library.
 
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I'd argue that both Rocket Knight Adventures and Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster's Hidden Treasure were Konami's finest games on the Mega Drive. Not to say anything bad about the Contra or Castlevania entries, mind you.

IMPLANTgames made a lovely review of Tiny Toon Adventures by the way:



I also love the Game Boy, NES, and Super NES titles.
 
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Kazza

Member
Time for a change of pace from action platformers such as Strider and Shinobi with Sword of Vermilion. I actually prefer the PAL/NA box art for this one. I like the way the horse's head frames our medieval hero:

Sword_of_Vermilion-jp-cv-800.jpg
Sword_of_Vermilion-eu-cv-800.jpg


Released in Japan in December 1989 (early 1991 in US/EU) it was only the second Megadrive RPG (Phantasy Star 2 being the first, released in Japan March 1989). Sega of America made a pretty big deal of it, and it earn a place in their famous "Genesis Does" series of ads:

sword-of-vermilion-ad.jpg


Apart from the hilariously exaggerated claim of over 300 hours of gameplay (30 hours would be closer to the truth), the ad actually does a pretty good job of showing potential customers what the game is all about. Remember, the SNES hadn't been released yet in the US, so the comparison was with the NES, making the screenshots look very impressive (especially the huge boss sprites).

Both CVG and Mean Machines gave the game good scores (Digital Foundry's Richard Leadbetter showing a beautiful mop of hair):

I7ntVkO.jpg
b9YVFNr.png


0Ai3R14.jpg
hTvG5pS.jpg


vi9wjMy.png
F9lMOgz.png
LF73Mhr.png


wL5IIJT.jpg
DpD9UKg.jpg
R8WSm10.png


I think Sword of Vermilion is one of those games which came onto the console at just the right time. With the notable exception of the aforementioned Phantasy Star II, the Megadrive library up until that point was generally dominated by relatively short games, such as platformers, arcade conversions and shoot'em ups (although sports games could be said to have a lot of replayability). Having such a meaty title come along was a welcome breath of fresh air for the reviewers. They don't seem to be fans of turn based combat, so Sword of Vermilion took the crown as the best Megadrive RPG.

Things are a little different playing it today, of course. Although having four different types of gameplay was impressive in 1989, none of them play particularly well. The overhead village parts are the most smooth, and the villagers' dialogue can be amusing. The overworld map parts are a little choppy (it's a shame that both this and Phantasy Star II seemed to take a step back from the smooth corridor sections of the Master System's original Phantasy Star, but I guess Yuji Naka was too busy developing Sonic to lend a hand). I normally just ended up looking at the small map rather than the first-person view. The side view battles are a little weird too. Your character is a chubby, purple-haired chap in armour, awkwardly waving his blue sword (which looks more like a light sabre) as enemies seemingly randomly move around the battlefield. Although impressive in screenshots, the boss fights with the huge sprites are disappointing too. The bosses have very few frames of animation, and the only thing your character can do is walk back, forward, duck or swing your sword.

Despite all that, I actually found myself enjoying the game quite a bit. Firstly, as noted in the reviews, the music is indeed excellent, which helps a lot in a game where a decent amount of grinding is required. The whole simple rhythm of the game has a bit of an addictive quality to it too: go to the village, talk to the inhabitants, upgrade your stuff, wander about in the wilderness gaining money and experience, find treasure, defeat the boss, get the ring and repeat. I stopped at the third village (where everyone has been turned old by some evil creature), but I can see myself continuing the adventure some day.

It got some harsh reviews when rerelased on the Wii Virtual Console in 2007, but this one is a little fair:




As we prepare for Shenmue 3, how about giving Yu Suzuki's first epic adventure a try? It also starts with the death of your father, so it's basically the same game :messenger_tears_of_joy: At the very least, I recommend giving the OST a listen. The first village's music is especially great:

 
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Kazza

Member
every time this thread gets bumped i am thinking about.

feck it it hacked yet ? +

Didn't you see the "Genesis Does" Sword of Vermilion ad? It has over 300 hours of gameplay! Surely you haven't platinumed it yet? You'll play your 300 hours of Yu Suzuki's masterpiece and you'll damn well enjoy it, scrub! Your mini will be hacked by the time you're done.
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
Didn't you see the "Genesis Does" Sword of Vermilion ad? It has over 300 hours of gameplay! Surely you haven't platinumed it yet? You'll play your 300 hours of Yu Suzuki's masterpiece and you'll damn well enjoy it, scrub! Your mini will be hacked by the time you're done.
sorry i like to play games for fun not how long they last
 

Kazza

Member
I don't know if Nostalgia Nerd has been keeping tabs on this thread, but he has just released a video doing exactly what I've been doing on here - reviewing the games and comparing his views with those of the magazines of the day, particularly Mean Machines. Worth a watch:

 
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Time for a change of pace from action platformers such as Strider and Shinobi with Sword of Vermilion. I actually prefer the PAL/NA box art for this one. I like the way the horse's head frames our medieval hero:

Sword_of_Vermilion-jp-cv-800.jpg
Sword_of_Vermilion-eu-cv-800.jpg


Released in Japan in December 1989 (early 1991 in US/EU) it was only the second Megadrive RPG (Phantasy Star 2 being the first, released in Japan March 1989). Sega of America made a pretty big deal of it, and it earn a place in their famous "Genesis Does" series of ads:

sword-of-vermilion-ad.jpg


Apart from the hilariously exaggerated claim of over 300 hours of gameplay (30 hours would be closer to the truth), the ad actually does a pretty good job of showing potential customers what the game is all about. Remember, the SNES hadn't been released yet in the US, so the comparison was with the NES, making the screenshots look very impressive (especially the huge boss sprites).

Both CVG and Mean Machines gave the game good scores (Digital Foundry's Richard Leadbetter showing a beautiful mop of hair):

I7ntVkO.jpg
b9YVFNr.png


0Ai3R14.jpg
hTvG5pS.jpg


vi9wjMy.png
F9lMOgz.png
LF73Mhr.png


wL5IIJT.jpg
DpD9UKg.jpg
R8WSm10.png


I think Sword of Vermilion is one of those games which came onto the console at just the right time. With the notable exception of the aforementioned Phantasy Star II, the Megadrive library up until that point was generally dominated by relatively short games, such as platformers, arcade conversions and shoot'em ups (although sports games could be said to have a lot of replayability). Having such a meaty title come along was a welcome breath of fresh air for the reviewers. They don't seem to be fans of turn based combat, so Sword of Vermilion took the crown as the best Megadrive RPG.

Things are a little different playing it today, of course. Although having four different types of gameplay was impressive in 1989, none of them play particularly well. The overhead village parts are the most smooth, and the villagers' dialogue can be amusing. The overworld map parts are a little choppy (it's a shame that both this and Phantasy Star II seemed to take a step back from the smooth corridor sections of the Master System's original Phantasy Star, but I guess Yuji Naka was too busy developing Sonic to lend a hand). I normally just ended up looking at the small map rather than the first-person view. The side view battles are a little weird too. Your character is a chubby, purple-haired chap in armour, awkwardly waving his blue sword (which looks more like a light sabre) as enemies seemingly randomly move around the battlefield. Although impressive in screenshots, the boss fights with the huge sprites are disappointing too. The bosses have very few frames of animation, and the only thing your character can do is walk back, forward, duck or swing your sword.

Despite all that, I actually found myself enjoying the game quite a bit. Firstly, as noted in the reviews, the music is indeed excellent, which helps a lot in a game where a decent amount of grinding is required. The whole simple rhythm of the game has a bit of an addictive quality to it too: go to the village, talk to the inhabitants, upgrade your stuff, wander about in the wilderness gaining money and experience, find treasure, defeat the boss, get the ring and repeat. I stopped at the third village (where everyone has been turned old by some evil creature), but I can see myself continuing the adventure some day.

It got some harsh reviews when rerelased on the Wii Virtual Console in 2007, but this one is a little fair:




As we prepare for Shenmue 3, how about giving Yu Suzuki's first epic adventure a try? It also starts with the death of your father, so it's basically the same game :messenger_tears_of_joy: At the very least, I recommend giving the OST a listen. The first village's music is especially great:



I think Rent A Hero uses the same Engine? (it uses a lot of the same UI and the same Team).

I wonder if RaH improves on Sword of Vermillion?

One thing is for sure, Phantasy Star 3 is pretty Terrible with a new Team doing the game in just under a year!
 

Kazza

Member
Has anyone here ever completed Wonder Boy in Monster World before? That final boss is total bullshit, well the US version (right) at least. Compare it to the Japanese one (on the left):

giphy.gif
giphy.gif


To be fair, the Japanese one does look a little on the easy side, so adding either the conveyor belt or the blade would have been fine, but adding both at the same time - that's some rage-inducing shit! The conveyor belt constantly changes direction, there is significant knockback, plus there are very few invincibility frames when you do get hit. Below is live footage of me playing the final boss:

tenor.gif


Great game, but i recommend playing the Japanese version.
 
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DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Finally got around or picking one of these bad boys up. Best Buy had them for $30 off, so I was all over it.

Heavy little box that feels solid. About to open it up and take a nostalgia trip!
 

Kazza

Member
Finally got around or picking one of these bad boys up. Best Buy had them for $30 off, so I was all over it.

Heavy little box that feels solid. About to open it up and take a nostalgia trip!

Got mine day one and am still playing it now. I'm currently alternating between the hectic Thunderforce 3 and the more relaxed Beyond Oasis. I really like the beat-em up style combat of the later (not surprising coming from the SoR2 devs, but still novel in a 16-bit overhead adventure game).

And before anyone asks, still no news from the hacking people.
 

DeepEnigma

Gold Member
Got mine day one and am still playing it now. I'm currently alternating between the hectic Thunderforce 3 and the more relaxed Beyond Oasis. I really like the beat-em up style combat of the later (not surprising coming from the SoR2 devs, but still novel in a 16-bit overhead adventure game).

And before anyone asks, still no news from the hacking people.

Holding those controllers again gave me such a nostalgic feel. Granted my hands are much bigger than when I was 12.

The buttons seems snappier than I remember, but that may just be that the “clickiness” got worn in back in the day when playing the heck out of it as a kid.
 
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