• Tag Archives Capcom

  • Strider (Sega Genesis)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment


    The intro to ‘Strider’ on the Sega Megadrive.

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/176342856720/segacity-the-intro-to-strider-on-the-sega

    Strider is an excellent early platform game by Capcom. While I am most familiar with the NES version, it was first an arcade game and ultimately ported to a number of systems. The NES version is somewhat unique in that it was developed along side the arcade version whereas other versions were ports of the arcade game though all versions are similar. The NES version was also released exclusively in North America.

    The game is set in 2048 and you play the role of a hi-tech ninja as part of a group known as the Striders. Your goal is to assassinate a mysterious dictator known as the “Grandmaster” who controls the world. The protagonist, Hiryu, has shown up in other games like Marvel vs. Capcom.

    While I played the NES version and it was one of my favorites, the Genesis version released a little later is commonly recognized as the best of the original ports. There were also a number of 8-bit computer ports that, while not as graphically appealing or as good in general as the Sega version, were still very good games. There were also Japanese only ports on the Sharp X68000 and PC-Engine CD-ROM2 with the Arcade Card expansion. Later it was also released for the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PSP and Xbox.

    There were a couple of sequels and remakes. Strider II or Journey From Darkness: Strider Returns was released for various home computers, Sega Genesis, Sega Master System, and Game Gear. There was also a Strider 2 later released for the PlayStation. More recently, a reboot simply titled Strider was released via the PlayStation Network for the PS3 and PS4, Xbox Live Arcade for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One, and on Steam.

    The above screenshots are from the Sega Genesis version. This is probably the version I would most recommend you try if you have never played but if you are more of an NES fan I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend that one either. That was the one I played and I loved it.





    📂This entry was posted in Retro Games Sega Genesis 📎and tagged

  • Vanessa Z. Schneider (P.N.03)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    gofg_10

    Source: Girls of Gaming – Volume 1 – – Vanessa Z. Schneider (P.N.03)

    P.N.03 is perhaps one of Capcom’s more obscure games. However, that obscurity comes from the fact that this title was released exclusively on the GameCube and was not one of Capcom’s better games. P.N.03 was released in 2003 and is short for Product Number Zero Three. It is more or less a fairly generic third person shooter and the plot bears at least a passing resemblance to I Robot (the Will Smith movie) with a little bit of Orphan Black thrown in. Though to be fair, this game preceded both.

    In P.N.03 you take the role of Vanessa Z. Schneider (pictured above from Girls of Gaming) who is hired by an unknown client to destroy the robots of Computerized Armament Management System that have run amok. Along the way Vanessa discovers a clone of herself and receives a message from her client who also appears to be a clone and the plot thickens. However, it doesn’t really go anywhere because that’s the end.

    Because of financial problems Capcom was having at the time, development for this game was rushed. The rather shallow plot is one of several problems with the game. Despite the intriguing sounding twists described above, the game is really just about blowing up robots, not that there is anything wrong with that. P.N.03 also had some odd gameplay mechanics like not being able to shoot while moving. There was also an emphasis on defensive action which seems a little odd when you are supposed to be destroying robots. At the end of the day, there was just too little variety and too much repetition. However, the gameplay may remind you of more classic arcade play, just with updated graphics.

    P.N.03 has never been re-released as far as I know. It was the first game of the “Capcom Five” which were five games that were originally supposed to be exclusive to the GameCube and introduce new intellectual property. Of those five games, one was cancelled and only P.N.03 remained exclusive to the GameCube. P.N.03 can still be had pretty cheaply. It may be one of those games destined to rise in price though as it never sold particularly well and despite its flaws, it really isn’t a bad game.





    📂This entry was posted in GameCube Retro Games 📎and tagged

  • Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts (Super Nintendo)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Title: Super Ghouls ‘N’ Ghosts

    Year: 1991

    Developer: Capcom

    Platform (s) Originally Released: Super Famicom

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/174118618405/ilive2daction-title-super-ghouls-n-ghosts

    While not quite a launch title, Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts was released only a couple months after the launch of the Super Nintendo in October 1991. It was released exclusively on the SNES but was the third game in the series. The first two titles in the series, Ghosts ‘N Goblins and Ghouls ‘N Ghosts, were released initially as arcade games and then ported to a variety of systems.

    Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts is much like its predecessors in that it is a side-scrolling action adventure game in which you control the knight Arthur in his quest to rescue the princess from the demon king. Along the way you will fight your way through hordes of undead. Also like its predecessors, it is a very difficult game.

    My first experience with this series came with the Commodore 64 port of the original Ghosts ‘N Goblins. I absolutely loved this game. It had great graphics and music and just a great ambiance. As much as I may have liked it, I don’t think I ever made it more than a third of the way through the game. It was soooo hard. Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts is probably my second favorite game in the series after that one. It had beautifully updated 16-bit graphics and sound and was an excellent game overall. There are only two real complaints. First, it is soooo hard. Second, it suffered from slowdown issues like a number of early Super Nintendo games did. Despite these issues, if you don’t mind the challenge, Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts is one of the better games of its type on the Super Nintendo.

    Fortunately, it has also been re-released a few times for more play options. The SNES version (as it was the only version) was released as part of Capcom Generation: Chronicles of Arthur for the PlayStation and again as part of Capcom Classics Collection for the PS2 and Xbox. It was also released for the PlayStation Portable as part of Capcom Classics Collection: Reloaded. The nice thing about these ports is that they do not suffer from the slowdown issues that the original SNES version has. A Gameboy Advance version of the game was released in 2002 with an additional game mode but it suffers the same slowdown issues that the original SNES version had. Additionally, the SNES version of the game was released for the Wii Virtual Console in 2007, the Wii U Virtual Console in 2013 and the New 3DS Virtual Console in 2013. The GBA version was also released via the Wii U virtual Console in 2015. Finally, Super Ghouls ‘N Ghosts was released in 2017 as part of the Super NES Classic Edition.


    📂This entry was posted in Retro Games Super Nintendo (SNES) 📎and tagged