So, what you playing at the mo? Retro Edition

Retr0gamer

Finally beat Castlevania. The last boss is like the boss of most castlevanias but the timing was much stricter. Once I found out how to manipulate the final forms AI to make it jump over me it wasn't too bad. The final stage is pretty tough but very short so it's not so bad if you can get through it by cheesing it or by luck. Definitely the worst thing in this game is the Grim Reaper who is so bloody difficult and the flying sycle things are so random. The credits are hilarious. Instead of crediting the developers it gives a cast with comedy names of famous actors such as Christopher Bee as Dracula. They also call Simon Belmont, Simon Belmondo which is weird.

Once you beat the game you can play a second loop which is even tougher with some horrible enemy placement. Not going to bother, this game has already given me enough nightmares.

Anyway this playthrough has given me some new respect for the game. It's absolutely brilliant and so well designed throughout other than the game crashing every so often (not an emulator issue either).

K.O.Kiki

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Castlevania, we meet again.

Did you try out Touhouvania (Koumajou Densetsu) 2 yet?

Retr0gamer

No but it does look really good. Is it old school vania or more like Symphony of the Night?

Sindri

Anyone playing Super Mario World recently?

CiDeRmAn

OwaynOTT wrote: »

Just got the space shuttle in tetris!

Actually, putting in my rocketry nerd hat on, its the Buran, the superior Soviet reusable launcher ... which is nice!

K.O.Kiki

Retr0gamer wrote: »

No but it does look really good. Is it old school vania or more like Symphony of the Night?

Linear levels like in Super Castlevania IV, but without a whip & with the ability to fly/hover for short periods.
You choose a few secondary weapons at the start of the level, and they're useful - in essence, it addresses some of the problems put forth by Egoraptor about IV (that the whip is ALWAYS the best weapon). While your sword IS your strongest weapon, it won't be the only one you use.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww_PjqYQi5E

Oh, and the boss battles are... well, it IS Touhou!
Hope you've kept your Saturn pads in good nick!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih16ZFjcYEk

Retr0gamer

Playing Castlevania 2: Simon's Quest now. Played this years ago but myself and my friends dad got stuck at the bit that required you to duck in front of a wall and had no strategy guides at the time. It still plays great but is just way too obtuse so I'll be using a FAQ.

Retr0gamer

Beat Simon's Quest last night. If it wasn't for obtuse and stupid the puzzles are it would be a really good game. It's got some really experimental features like RPG elements and levelling up and plays quite well. The only thing that I didn't like especially after the nightmare I had with them in the first game is the bosses which are an absolute push over.

I also played a bit of contra hard corp. Still a great game but this time I played the US version. There's loads of story and cutscenes cut from the European version so it's definitely the one to play and the game running at 60 FPS really makes the game blisteringly fast. Forgot how hilarious the boss is after the second choice you make in the game and you pick not to surrender. The mad scientist guy mixing up all the enemies from the previous stage to make weird mutants and how the final mutant eats the scientist which had me in stitches.

Myrddin

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Beat Simon's Quest last night. If it wasn't for obtuse and stupid the puzzles are it would be a really good game. It's got some really experimental features like RPG elements and levelling up and plays quite well. The only thing that I didn't like especially after the nightmare I had with them in the first game is the bosses which are an absolute push over.

I also played a bit of contra hard corp. Still a great game but this time I played the US version. There's loads of story and cutscenes cut from the European version so it's definitely the one to play and the game running at 60 FPS really makes the game blisteringly fast. Forgot how hilarious the boss is after the second choice you make in the game and you pick not to surrender. The mad scientist guy mixing up all the enemies from the previous stage to make weird mutants and how the final mutant eats the scientist which had me in stitches.

Thats a damned good achievment. Contra, Castlevania 1 & 2 in as many weeks - well done :cool:

Retr0gamer

Well I used a FAQ for Simon's Quest. It's pretty much essential but once you know where you are going in that game it's a breeze. Thinking game to play next. Perhaps actually finishing Skyward Sword

johnny_ultimate

Have decided to give SMT: Strange Journey my commuting time for a while at least.

Initial impressions are positive - actually reminding me of a cross between 2001: A Space Odyssey (there's already a lot of seemingly direct homages to it) and The Thing.

OwaynOTT

Playing Resident evil on GC.

Retr0gamer

I've stopped playing Skyward Sword again. I'm at a stealth section and I've tried to get through it in two evenings in a row but I just can't be bothered. I'm too tired for it. Zelda and stealth does not work!

Instead I've been playing Phantasy Star 2. It's tougher than old boots and has more grinding than a typical MMO but I like it!

CiDeRmAn

One of the things about Zelda that always annoys, and only Zeropunctuation mentions it, is the insistence of putting in a "sneak past the guards" section, be it towards Zelda's castle, through Zelda's garden, the entirety of some dungeons, tiptoeing about, awaiting the whistle of alarm or the incoming charge of an enemy...
Very annoying and the reason I never bothered finishing Phantom Hourglass.

The Last Bandit

Saturn stuff for now.

Although a trip back to Black Mesa is overdue, not sure if Gordon or Barney is guiding me though yet.

CiDeRmAn

Pulled out a load of PS2 games and had a blast with Urban Chaos on it, it's brilliant!
Now, the visuals have dated somewhat but it plays really well and the action is nicely paced.
Nothing quite like it on the current consoles, well maybe the non-spooky bits of Fear or Fear to be honest, and that's no bad thing.

Doge

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Pulled out a load of PS2 games and had a blast with Urban Chaos on it, it's brilliant!
Now, the visuals have dated somewhat but it plays really well and the action is nicely paced.
Nothing quite like it on the current consoles, well maybe the non-spooky bits of Fear or Fear to be honest, and that's no bad thing.

Love that game, I bought it along with another few games on ebay about 2 years ago when I decided to rediscover my neglected PS2.

Great action, gore, and huge weapon selection.
Probably even the first FPS game to include a shield for defense.

Saving people makes you feel like a hero.

Haven't cleared it yet and it gets a little repetitive but it's definitely an overlooked classic.

da_hambo

'Jack the Ripper' text adventure on Speccy Android emulator!

Great stuff only read about it the other day in issue 1 of Retro Gamer!

johnny_ultimate

Playing a lot of SMT: Strange Journey on the long commutes these days (film festival week is least game friendly week of the year). Really enjoying it. A much more effective dungeon crawler than the Persona remakes (1 and 2, I mean) as it just doesn't feel anywhere near as outdated. I still don't think an RPG of this sort is an entirely portable friendly experience - the nerve wrecking attempts to save as you approach your destination! - but at least SJ is designed with this in mind. Also, a little warning system up on the top alerting you of the steps left until another battle is a lifesaver, and a great compromise to alleviate the frustration of random battles.

Basically based entirely around the combat system, and the demon collection system bears a lot of resemblance to the older Megaten games (conversation system is back, and mystifying as always!). It's just an extremely solid and enjoyable RPG, and while it's basically a grindfest it keeps things interesting throughout and refuses to hold your hand. There are difficultly spikes from the off - the first major boss around four hours in is a serious baptism of fire - but it's a game that knows its audience and is all the better for it. Great stuff, and makes the hour commute fly by.

Retr0gamer

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Pulled out a load of PS2 games and had a blast with Urban Chaos on it, it's brilliant!
Now, the visuals have dated somewhat but it plays really well and the action is nicely paced.
Nothing quite like it on the current consoles, well maybe the non-spooky bits of Fear or Fear to be honest, and that's no bad thing.

It really is surprisingly good. An FPS that doesn't take itself seriously and is just loads of fun. The same team went on to make Arkham Asylum.

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

There are difficultly spikes from the off - the first major boss around four hours in is a serious baptism of fire.

A SMT game isn't an SMT game unless it has a baptism of fire first boss It kind of needs it though. It's the game saying 'you better know how the system works or you aren't getting any further until you do'.

OwaynOTT

Rock n Roll racing on the megadrive. It's no F-Zero but its fun in a way. The tracks get repetitive very fast and the difficulty on the game isn't much.
I wonder is the SNES version any better?
Good music though.

Myrddin

OwaynOTT wrote: »

Rock n Roll racing on the megadrive. It's no F-Zero but its fun in a way. The tracks get repetitive very fast and the difficulty on the game isn't much.
I wonder is the SNES version any better?
Good music though.

I never played the Megadrive version, but the SNES version is brilliant fun esp 2 player.

Retr0gamer

SNES version is way better than the megadrive version for one reason only, the music sounds so much better through the Sony sound chip.

OwaynOTT

The adventures of Batman & Robin.

Looks great but its just another side scrolling beat 'em up. Now ive a couple of minutes of the first stage but will give it another go later.

CiDeRmAn

It's a bit like the isometric racing games Rare brought to the NES and Gameboy,isn't it, their names escape me now.

Retr0gamer

OwaynOTT wrote: »

The adventures of Batman & Robin.

Looks great but its just another side scrolling beat 'em up. Now ive a couple of minutes of the first stage but will give it another go later.

Megadrive or SNES one? The SNES one by Konami is a cracking game and a minor classic on the system. The Megadrive game looks great but is too tough for its own good and gets repetitive. Great Jasper Kyd soundtrack though.

OwaynOTT

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Megadrive or SNES one? The SNES one by Konami is a cracking game and a minor classic on the system. The Megadrive game looks great but is too tough for its own good and gets repetitive. Great Jasper Kyd soundtrack though.

SNES one but as I said only played a bit. The artwork work in it is gorgeous, just like the cartoon which was a favourite of mine. In fact the new Batmans don't get close to the cartoon of the 90's.
Going to be giving it another shoot later so verdict then.

Retr0gamer

Ah I thought it was the megadrive one because you said it was only a bog standard side scroller. Makes sense that you've only played a bit of the SNES one because after the first stage the game changes gameplay styles nearly every stage.

o1s1n

Rock n Roll Racing - quite possibly the most overrated average racing game ever. It's fun, but boring after a few minutes. So boring that they had to tack on a rock soundtrack at the very end to make it interesting.

It's a shame the gameplay in Batman and Robin on the Megadrive doesn't match the visuals Such potential there to be a classic. In the end it's just an impressive tech demo.

CiDeRmAn

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

It's a bit like the isometric racing games Rare brought to the NES and Gameboy,isn't it, their names escape me now.

R.C. Pro-Am, that's it!
And there also was the equally excellent Super R.C. Pro-Am on the Gameboy.

Both a lot of fun, obvious pre-cursors to Rock'n Roll racing, personally I preferred Super Skidmarks, the Amiga and, later, MD game.