Games Beaten 2016

[Xeogred]

Shinobi III is where it's at.

[alienjesus]

I think Revenge of Shinobi is pretty great myself. I don't even think most of your criticisms are wrong (besides the cheap death one, which I don't think is that common). The double jump can be a pain in the ass, and the game is slow, but to me it just makes it feel very precise. The final level is horrible, but I enjoyed the levels leading up to it a lot.

A lot of people love Shinobi III. So do I. But I might like Revenge more - it forces you to master the mechanics way more than the comparitively easy Shinobi III.

[Exhuminator]

I remember enjoying The Revenge of Shinobi quite a bit, but then again that was back in 1990. I haven't played the game in over a quarter century, so my halcyon memories are probably a bit gilded by nostalgia.

[alienjesus]

I remember enjoying The Revenge of Shinobi quite a bit, but then again that was back in 1990. I haven't played the game in over a quarter century, so my halcyon memories are probably a bit gilded by nostalgia.

As is the case with other games where this has come up, I played the majority of the game for the first time as an adult, after I had already graduated university. I did own the game as a kid but I hated it then as I found it way too hard, so I'm doubtful there's a lot of nostalgia.

I do think the game isn't going to be to everyones tastes though - it's very deliberate and methodical and not everyone is going to find that fun. I certainly wouldn't call it bad though!

[prfsnl_gmr]

Shinobi III is where it's at.

Actually...Shinobi (3DS) is where its at. That is probably my favorite game in the series. (Also, I agree with you Sarge. The Revenge of Shinobi isn't fun enough to justify its challenge.)

[Sarge]

January:

1) Bonk's Adventure (NES)
2) Little Samson
3) Holy Diver
4) Holy Diver (legit!)
5) Mitsume Ga Tooru
6) TMNT II: The Arcade Game (NES)
7) Mighty Final Fight
8] Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!
9) Monster In My Pocket
10) Battle of Olympus
11) Gunstar Heroes (repeat)
12) Dragon Age: Inquisition
13) Dragon Age: Inquisition - Trespasser
14) Captain America and the Avengers (NES)
15) StarTropics
16) Double Dragon II: The Revenge (NES) (save states)
17) Double Dragon II: The Revenge (NES) (legit)
18) Crisis Force
19) Esper Dream 2
20) Felix the Cat
21) Moon Crystal
22) Panic Restaurant
23) Frankenstein (NES)
24) Crystalis
25) Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu

February:

26) Killer Instinct (GB)
27) Mashin Hero Wataru Gaiden
28) Sly Spy (Arcade)
29) The Red Star (unreleased XBOX, also on PS2)
30) Adventure Island 4
31) Cocoron
32) Batman: Arkham Knight
33) Xeodrifter (Vita)
34) Doom 2
35) Brandish: The Dark Revenant
36) Magical Pop'n
37) The Ninja Warriors (SNES)
38) Phantasy Star (SMS)
39) Phantasy Star III
40) Super Smash Bros. for 3DS
41) Brandish: The Dark Revenant (Dela Mode)

March:

42) Freedom Planet (Milla, 82 lives lost)
43) Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
44) Lara Croft Go
45) Oniken
46) Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam
47) Batman: The Video Game (GB)
48) Batman: The Video Game (NES)
49) Super Spy Hunter

April:

50) Mega Man 2
51) Mega Man 4
52) Mission: Impossible (NES)
53) Mega Man 6
54) Super Mario Bros. 3
55) Sword Master
56) DuckTales 2
57) Rush'n Attack (NES)
58) Mega Man 3
59) Mega Man 5
60) Mega Man
61) S.C.A.T. - Special Cybernetic Attack Team
62) TaleSpin (NES)
63) Double Dragon III (NES)
64) Donkey Kong (NES)
65) Astyanax (NES)

May:
66) Master Chu and the Drunkard Hu
67) The New Ghostbusters II (NES, proto)
68) Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PSP, via Dracula X Chronicles)
69) Revenge of Shinobi
70) Shinobi III
71) Shadow Dancer

And now, to contrast, we have Shinobi III. It's a much easier game, and it's also balanced much better. I also found out about that seppuku art that lets you sacrifice a life for health, which is great against the final boss.

Still, easier doesn't mean easy. There are still some tricky bits, but most of the times you die won't be from really sneakily placed enemies. Many of the hazards actually give you at least some time to react, and it doesn't feel like you're having to kill enemies before you can even see them to not get knocked into pits and whatnot. There are also some really tricky platforming sequences that require some mastery of the double-jump, which appears to have slightly different timing than Revenge.

Graphically, it's probably one of the best Genesis games out there, and there are some really catchy tunes as well. There's a reason I have some Shinobi III remixes in my rotation.

As regarding Revenge of Shinobi, I suspect if I'd played it when I was younger, I might like it a bit more. I'd probably have memorized all the hazards, and think it a far stronger game. Kinda like stuff like Ninja Gaiden. I wonder what current me would think of some of the games that I played when I was younger if I was just discovering them. Perhaps I would be more charitable to RoS than I am right now. (But then again, there's something about Sega's overall ouvre that has never quite resonated with me, even when I was a kid. Not that there aren't some standout titles in there.)

I'm mulling over playing Shadow Dancer, which is a significantly different experience from either of these, from my understanding. I've played a little of it, but not enough to really make a solid judgment on it.

EDIT: Shadow Dancer down. With save states, of course. It's a lot more like the original Shinobi than anything. It's pretty solid, although I can see where fans of Revenge would have been disappointed by this one.

Also, extra lives are pretty plentiful if you can win those bonus stages!

[Exhuminator]

Far as Genesis goes... I'd like to read Sarge's reviews of:

Earnest Evans
El Viento
Jewel Master
Mystic Defender
Ranger X
Wardner

[pierrot]

Ranger X is awesome, and probably Nextech/Nex Entertainment's best original game, along with Crusader of Centy, although they've always been a very technically gifted development company.
Jewel Master is brutally difficult, and not that much fun, despite some good music, and a neat ability mixing mechanic with the rings (its novelty wears off fairly quickly).
Wardner is kind of shitty on the Genesis. Legend of Hero Tonma (PCE) is a much better port of an arcade platform game.

Sarge, did you have to use save states for Shadow Dancer, but not Revenge of Shinobi? That seems backward to me. RoS is one of the toughest games I can think of; maybe a good 100 times more difficult than any Megaman or Castlevania game. I've never seen past the military complex.

[Sarge]

I used states for both, but Shadow Dancer seemed a lot easier overall, despite the one-hit deaths.

That military complex is garbage, but I also think there were some tricks I could have pulled to make things easier. That lightning-shield thing is useful when trying to work through areas that are crammed with enemies and pits. I can see a path forward in the game, but I really don't have the patience for it right now, and that's saying something.

I really don't know if it's that much harder because it's "new", as opposed to something like Mega Man or Castlevania. I got hung up on the Death fight in that game for years, for instance.

I've actually played El Viento, but I'm not sure I beat it. I've seen Earnest Evans and its wonky-looking hero, but I don't think I've actually played it.

[alienjesus]

I used states for both, but Shadow Dancer seemed a lot easier overall, despite the one-hit deaths.

That military complex is garbage, but I also think there were some tricks I could have pulled to make things easier. That lightning-shield thing is useful when trying to work through areas that are crammed with enemies and pits. I can see a path forward in the game, but I really don't have the patience for it right now, and that's saying something.

I really don't know if it's that much harder because it's "new", as opposed to something like Mega Man or Castlevania. I got hung up on the Death fight in that game for years, for instance.

I've actually played El Viento, but I'm not sure I beat it. I've seen Earnest Evans and its wonky-looking hero, but I don't think I've actually played it.

Is the military complex the really vertical indoor level? If so, I used the jump boosting magic and skipped half of it

There's a level (I think in a factory?) where you can grind for infinite lives too. Right at the start theres an extra life over a pit. It's actually a 2UP - grabbing it causes you to die, but you still gain a live from it. And you respawn right before it, so you can do it endlessly. The live counter stops rising at 9, but you can have up to 255 lives iirc, it'll just display 9 until you drop all the way back to 8.