Summer Games Challenge 2016

[Ack]

Yeah. Seeing as I will likely be writing that TR article, I figured I should knock this out now.

[Exhuminator]

To play the original Alone in the Dark today, for the first time, would be such a wild experience.




I first played through it around 1993 (DOS), and the game totally blew me away. I mean, this was before PlayStation and Resident Evil, so the crazy camera angles and 3D polygon characters were amazing at the time. The fact that AitD is actually a great game in and of itself just took things into the stratosphere for me. Looking forward to reading what you guys think about it. If you're a fan of Lovecraft you'll be extra pleased.

I guess I should consider getting back on my SGC list. What do you guys want me to play next on this list?:

Aquales | 1991 | Sharp X68000
Beneath Apple Manor | 1978 | Apple II
Dragon Quest II | 1987/1999 | Game Boy Color
Malaya's Treasure | 1989 | MSX
Night Slave | 1996 | PC-98
Policenauts | 1994/1996 | PlayStation
Rusty | 1993 | PC-98
Shadow Tower | 1998 | PlayStation
The Scheme | 1988 | PC-88

Or should I just scrap the list and make a new one?

[Ack]

Play Dragon Quest II, Exhum. I've got the same version you do but haven't given it a whirl yet myself.

[fastbilly1]

1. Dragon Quest 5 - DS
2. Paper Mario - N64
3. Outlaws: Handful of Missions - PC
4. Wing Commander 1,2, or 3 - PC
5. Witcher 1 - PC - Ok so I started it a couple years ago, I will beat it this summer though.

Made a good bit of headway in Dragon Quest 5 last night. Got out of the starting town, and through the Uptaten Tower. Bianca was a welcome addition to the party, but in early 90s JRPGs tropes, that means I am about to lose her.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Summer Games Challenge

1. Adventure - Broken Sword (PC/iOS)
2. Beat 'em Up - Guardian Heroes (SATURN/360)
3. Fighting - Virtua Fighter Remix (ARCADE/SATURN), Virtua Fighter 2 (ARCADE/SATURN/PS3), and Fighting Vipers (ARCADE/SATURN/PS3)
4. FPS - Perfect Dark (N64/360)
5. JRPG - Dragon Warrior II (NES/GBC)
6. Racing - Virtua Racing (ARCADE/PS2), Daytona USA (ARCADE/DREAMCAST), and Sega Rally Championship (ARCADE/SATURN)
7. Rail Shooters - Virtua Cop (ARCADE/SATURN) and Virtua Cop 2 (ARCADE/SATURN)
8. Run 'n Gun - Ikari Warriors (ARCADE/PS3)
9. Shmup - Galactic Attack/Layer Section/RayForce (ARCADE/SATURN/XBOX/iOS)
10. Sports - Decathlete (ARCADE/SATURN)

I knocked out Sega Rally Championship last night. It is a really, really great racing game. It is less realistic than Virtua Racing; it isn't as fast or fun as Daytona USA; but it is more challenging and more addictive than either. I highly recommend it, and I am looking forward to playing through the Dreamcast sequel. (Next summer, maybe?)

I had the strange experience of playing through increasingly sophisticated racing games on decreasingly sophisticated hardware. (I played Virtua Racing, released in 1992, on my PS2; I played Daytona USA, released in 1994, on my Dreamcast; and I played Sega Rally Championship, released in 1995, on my Saturn.) I nonetheless developed a lot of respect for these classic Sega racing games, and their strange, somewhat inverted difficulty curves. (As alienjesus noted, to win these games, you have to drive flawlessly on the beginner course; you have to drive really well on the intermediate course; and you have to avoid completely screwing up the expert course.) I also really had some fun getting back into racing games for a while, and I can't wait until I see another Sega racing game in an actual arcade.

.....

Next, I will try to tackle Galactic Attack/Layer Section/RayForce (ARCADE/SATURN/XBOX/iOS). I have determined that I can't really tolerate the compromised visuals on the Saturn and Xbox ports; so, I will play through it on my iPad. The touch controls aren't that bad, and I will consider the game "beaten" when: (1) I play through the whole game in one sitting; and (2) can beat each of the first four stages on a single credit and each of the last three stages on two credits.

.....

Finally, I have now beaten ten(!) games in five genres for my summer challenge. I am very happy with my progress so far, and I look forward to getting through the last five games on my list (each of which is in a different genre).

[Ack]

Ooph, I've been looking up the controls for Alone in the Dark on PC, since I plan to play the GOG version. Those are gonna be...interesting. I don't mind tank controls for movement, but double-tap running and menu-based combat are not things I've ever been big on.

[Exhuminator]

Yeah there's some jank there being old and all that. Once you get past it, you'll be rewarded with a superior (IMO) experience versus the original RE.

As an aside, quite a few folks don't know about this for whatever reason:



"Jack in the Dark is a spin-off game made during Alone in the Dark 2's development. It was used as a promotional game, distributed at Christmas 1993. The game was on a single floppy disk in a golden wrap featuring a Jack-in-the-box illustration on top. Later CD versions of both Alone in the Dark and Alone in the Dark 2 came packaged with Jack in the Dark." http://aloneinthedark.wikia.com/wiki/Jack_In_The_Dark



"It is Halloween, and Grace Saunders is out for tricks or treats, when she enters a small toy store and gets locked in. The Jack-in-the-Box laughs, the toys play and walk by themselves and hold a dark secret. Grace must discover what secret is that and figure out a way to leave this somewhat eccentric toy store, governed by a somewhat psychopathic Jack-in-the-Box." http://aloneinthedark.wikia.com/wiki/Jack_In_The_Dark

Since it incorporates both elements of Halloween and Christmas, it's the perfect game to play during the interim between the two seasons (in addition to watching The Nightmare Before Christmas).

If anyone's interested, DJ Oldgames has Jack in the Dark ready to go with DOSbox already setup:

http://www.oldgames.sk/en/game/jack-in-the-dark/

[BoneSnapDeez]

Akumajō Dracula (Famicom Disk System)
Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi (Famicom)
Guardian Heroes (Saturn)
Hikari Shinwa: Palutena no Kagami (Famicom Disk System)
Moon Patrol (various)
Ninja Gaiden (NES)
OutRun (various)
Super C (NES)
Wonder Boy (Sega Master System)
Zaxxon (various)

I'm back!

Zaxxon has been vanquished twice. First, the arcade version (emulated on Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection) and then the Atari 2600 port.

A tough and ambitious game. The isometric perspective and inverted controls of the arcade original can make it tricky to navigate.

As for the 2600 port, let's just say that I had to consult GameFAQs to figure out how to play it. Yeah...

More thoughts coming soon to Games Beaten.

[prfsnl_gmr]

Akumajō Dracula (Famicom Disk System)
Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi (Famicom)
Guardian Heroes (Saturn)
Hikari Shinwa: Palutena no Kagami (Famicom Disk System)
Moon Patrol (various)
Ninja Gaiden (NES)
OutRun (various)
Super C (NES)
Wonder Boy (Sega Master System)
Zaxxon (various)

I'm back!

Zaxxon has been vanquished twice. First, the arcade version (emulated on Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection) and then the Atari 2600 port.

A tough and ambitious game. The isometric perspective and inverted controls of the arcade original can make it tricky to navigate.

As for the 2600 port, let's just say that I had to consult GameFAQs to figure out how to play it. Yeah...

More thoughts coming soon to Games Beaten.

I'm impressed! Zaxxon is my list of "must beat" games, but I have never lasted more than a few minutes while playing it. You'll have to give me some more details on how you got through it.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Well if you're counting one loop finished as "beaten" then the game is over in a matter of minutes. You were probably really close. I managed to do a few loops of both arcade and Atari. There are three stages total - two "platforms" with a space area in the middle.

Really, it's all about managing altitude and gathering fuel. I found that if I went out of my way to shoot enemies (for points) I'd end up dead. Avoidance seemed to be the best technique.

If you want to finish one variation of the game, the Atari 2600 port is fairly easy. It's not isometric, so you need to know that the yellowish areas are the tall walls and you must be at high altitude and cross through the black "holes" to clear them.