• Tag Archives KOEI

  • Operation Europe (Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    USA 1994

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/176294698071/retrocgads-usa-1994-operation-europe-sega

    Turn-based strategy games are not particularly common on consoles (or really at all anymore). Even in the 16-bit era they were few and far between. KOEI was one company that developed these sorts of games for Nintendo and Sega systems. Operation Europe: Path to Victory 1939-1945, released in 1994, is one such game.

    Operation Europe consists of a variety of historical World War II scenarios in Europe and North Africa. As the player, you take the role of one of a variety of historical and fictitious generals. The game can be played with one player or two. There was also a campaign mode but oddly that mode was only made available in the Japanese version and you could only play as the Germans.

    Those familiar with other KOEI games, in particular Nobunaga’s Ambition, will have a pretty good idea what this game was like. In fact, Operation Europe used the same game engine as Nobunaga’s Ambition. The game received generally favorable reviews but it really comes down to whether or not you like turn-based strategy games or not. It happens to be one of my favorite genres.

    In addition to the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis versions, Operation Europe was also released for DOS based computers. Unfortunately, I’m not aware of any re-releases so you will have to track down an original or resort to emulation to give this one a try. The console versions will be easier to deal with in either case.

    Screenshots above are from the Super Nintendo version of the game.





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  • Brandish (Super Nintendo)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    BRANDiSH
    Koei
    Super NES
    1995

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/165513774884/videogameads-brandish-koei-super-nes-1995-ask

    Brandish is an action RPG that was released by KOEI for the Super Nintendo in 1995. It had other contemporary releases, including for the PC Engine CD-ROM2 (TurboGrafx-CD), NEC PC-9801 and FM Towns but these were Japan only releases. The U.S. release was censored due to some revealing costumes and the plot also had significant changes.

    Brandish is played from a top down perspective like many similar action RPGs of the time. I won’t go into the plot but it’s safe to say it is a suitable fantasy storyline for a video game RPG. The sound wasn’t much to speak of and the music was fairly repetitive. Even the graphics were not spectacular but they were good enough not to detract from the game play which is what counts. As far as action RPGs go, it is actually a pretty decent game despite some of the shortcomings it has. It was quite a popular series of games in Japan.

    While several sequels were made, none saw a U.S. release. There was a remake for the PSP titled Brandish: The Dark Revenant that was initially released in Japan in 2009. It was finally released in downloadable form in the U.S. in 2015. To play the original you will need a Super Nintendo and an original cartridge or be willing to emulate. As far as sequels, you will probably have to learn Japanese or perhaps track down a fan translation if there are any. If you like action RPGs of that era then this is one worth playing.





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