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BoneSnapDeez
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by BoneSnapDeez Sun Sep 10, 2017 10:01 am

Ha, I didn't know the Simple 1500 Series had an RPG. Reminds me of how the G.G Series series had that one ARPG, The Last Knight.

Xeo, that MSX soundtrack is good but I was thinking specifically of the CD one, which is even better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJMeNWHBj4U
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bmoc
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by bmoc Sun Sep 10, 2017 10:11 am

Great info everyone! However, this thread is exactly what my wallet doesn't need. I'm going to have to stock up on some of these before the Polymega comes out and makes it easy to apply translation patches.
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by ElkinFencer10 Sun Sep 10, 2017 10:11 am

Is there a fan translation for Shin Megami Tensei on PC Engine? I know I could use my Retron to play it on SNES, but I'd rather play it on PC Engine if I can.

Exhuminator wrote:In general I don't like playing RPGs where I can't read the text. I don't like missing out on dialogue and plot exposition because I can't read Japanese. I understand one could play through some of these Japan imports with a walkthrough, but on a personal level I still don't prefer being unable to read what's on screen.

I'm with you 100% on that. That's why I love my Retron5 so damn much.

bmoc wrote:Great info everyone! However, this thread is exactly what my wallet doesn't need.

You and me both.
Exhuminator wrote:Ecchi lords must unite for great justice.

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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by Exhuminator Sun Sep 10, 2017 11:21 am

BoneSnapDeez wrote:Ha, I didn't know the Simple 1500 Series had an RPG.

There is also this "mountain climbing RPG" thing:

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Simple 1500 Series Vol. 92: The Tozan RPG ~Ginrei no Hasha~ (The Mountain Climbing RPG ~Conqueror of the Silvery Peak~)
Although based on screenshots I have to assume the name "RPG" is being used in a very loose sense:
https://www.video-games-museum.com/en/g ... 31/2/36826

There are also three Simple 1500 dating sims which I've read have "lite" RPG aspects:

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Simple 1500 Series Vol. 36: The Renai Simulation - Natsuiro Celebration

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Simple 1500 Series Vol. 71: The Renai Simulation 2 - Fureai

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Simple 1500 Series Vol. 81: The Renai Adventure - Okaeri!

I can't vouch for the RPG-ness of those three personally though (never played them). However there are bunch more Renai sequels on PS2.

As for Simple 1500 SRPGs, this one looks cool:

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Simple 1500 Series Vol. 70: The War Simulation - Nin no Tsukurishisha-tachi
It looks rather Front Mission inspired, I might have to muddle my way through it someday. :)
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BoneSnapDeez
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by BoneSnapDeez Sun Sep 10, 2017 11:33 am

Some more I own and/or have played and enjoyed. Again, one per CD-ROM console.

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Efera & Jiliora: The Emblem From Darkness (PC Engine CD), 1991
From what I can tell, this is technically a licensed game, featuring the heroines from an anime I had never heard of (Gude Crest). It's a fast-paced hack-and-slash that allows for simultaneous two-player play. It's a "dark" game thematically, and even features some WRPG-esque "morality" decisions. Massive bosses that look lifted straight from Ys. The most unique aspect of all is, oddly enough, the cutscenes. They aren't "anime" but are instead presented in an old-school PC-style adventure type of format (see Loom and so forth).

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Arcus I・II・III (Mega CD), 1993
Ever play Wolf Team's Arcus Odyssey (Arcus Spirits) on Genesis or Super Famicom? You know, the one that's fast-paced and feels like a Japanese Gauntlet. Well, that was part of a larger series with the other three installments appearing on Japanese computers - until being compiled on the Mega CD. These ones are a different flavor of RPG: slower, first-person dungeon crawling affairs with plenty of anime cutscenes sprinkled throughout. The compilation is designed so the games flow like chapters, much like Ys Book I & II. There's a nice PDF guide available online for those who don't know Japanese.

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Kurokishi no Kamen (3DO), 1994
If you are acquainted with old-school horror games, Super Famicom fan translations, and the like then you're perhaps familiar with Laplace no Ma. That particular game is in fact the first of a "Ghost Hunter" trilogy, and is followed by Paracelsus no Maken (PC-98), and then Kurokishi no Kamen. This is an utterly bizarre game: a FMV RPG. The RPG elements are admittedly rather rudimentary; the highlight here is the glorious grainy FMV horror. Navigation is first-person, and a bit like walking "through" an extended FMV sequence. Like nothing else out there, check it out if you have a 3DO.

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Crossed Swords II (Neo Geo CD), 1995
Really stretching the definition of "RPG" here - but if SNK can call these RPGs so can I! Unlike the original Crossed Swords, this one is a CD exclusive. No MVS, no AES. Gameplay is very similar to the first game. It's first-person, with a protagonist who becomes translucent during battle scenes. There are character classes, branching paths, and occasional shops to visit. Really, it's a lot like Capcom's D&D beat 'em ups, so if you liked those check this out. I've just about covered all the Neo Geo CD RPGs. The Super Spy and Riding Hero could conceivably qualify, but those are already pretty well-known, in English, and available on the MVS/AES/CD triumvirate.

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Riglord Saga 2 (Saturn), 1996
The game known as Blazing Heroes OR Mystaria: The Realms of Lore in the U.S. was called Riglord Saga in Japan, and was followed by a sequel that was never localized. It follows directly after the first game in terms of both story and gameplay. Long, grid-based, strategic battles with chunky character sprites and grainy graphics. An acquired taste, perhaps, but I love it. Micro Cabin can do no wrong.

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Dragon Knight 4 (PC-FX), 1997
Another one you probably haven't heard of...... but you have heard of its predecessor. Knights of Xentar, the glorious PC-DOS "eroge" JRPG is in fact a localized version of Dragon Knight III. Part four is different from all others in the series in that it's a strategy RPG. This is a tough game, with permadeath, battle turn-limits, and so on. In contrast, the story is light-hearted and silly, with tons of gorgeous character art. The game's much cheaper on Super Famicom but this port contains more, uh, NSFW content.

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Brave Prove (PlayStation), 1998
Super-slick game, another one I'm surprised isn't more popular. Brave Prove is a short, straightforward ARPG with gorgeous graphics and smooth gameplay in the vein of Linkle Liver Story, The Legend of Oasis, Alundra, and, yes, Magic Knight Rayearth. Only downside: this one doesn't go for cheap. There's a single English walkthrough on GameFAQs that appeared a month after the game's release (wha?????).
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by pierrot Sun Sep 10, 2017 4:06 pm

BoneSnapDeez wrote:Shin Megami Tensei I enjoyed on Super Famicom. Playing another port is probably too daunting for me.

Yeah, I don't think there's much reason to, anyway. The Sega CD version adds a lot of nice bonuses, and rearrangements, like the extra monsters, a monster library (like SMT II's), updates to the 2D and 3D map modes, large character portraits for a lot of story dialogue scenes, larger text with kanji (which just helps for reading, compared to full kana), mouse support, ability to run from bosses with the item that escapes battles, and a whole host of other things. It also has a considerably higher encounter rate, and choppier scrolling in the 3D maps, though. It's a pretty heavily arranged version, but it at least doesn't totally mess with the balance, and core gameplay (although you can actually keep Law Hero in your party until the end of the game in the Sega CD version).


ElkinFencer10 wrote:Is there a fan translation for Shin Megami Tensei on PC Engine? I know I could use my Retron to play it on SNES, but I'd rather play it on PC Engine if I can.

Doubtful, but I would recommend against playing that version, anyway. There are some early game balancing issues, in terms of how much money monsters drop, and the encounter rate is higher than the original. Also, it just doesn't really add anything over the Super Famicom version that would really make it preferable. Neither of the Sega CD or PC Engine romrom versions were made by Atlus, but the Sega CD version at least mixes things up enough to make it interesting. You'd really be better off with either the Super Famicom version, or the Playstation version. The latter provides a lot of quality of life, and graphical enhancements, not the least of which being the ability to quick save anywhere. I'm pretty sure the GBA version is based on the PS version, but I don't really know enough about it to say much else.


Exhuminator wrote:Falcom Classics
You want this for the Saturn version of Xanadu.

--And Dragon Slayer! Don't forget about Dragon Slayer.


Xeogred wrote:I don't know if I'd ever get around to any of these, but my money is on 99% of these having killer OST's so this could be a good reference for that.

Let me give you a nudge, here.

Magicool:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=selHLyEUclk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZKuKHikG-o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdAs8s-YDr8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFLSQJsO_jQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKhjoduNPIk


Illusion City:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEc60Zy5_5U (This is actually the final boss theme, not the ending, and it is entirely as epic as it sounds. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be anything else from the Sega CD version around, but I have the redbook audio ripped from the disc if you want it.)


Linda Cube:
(These are the only videos I could find with the soundtrack from the included disc in the complete edition. I hope you enjoy timestamps. Highlighted my absolute favorites with asterisk.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5ZAeMrp7VA (0:06* ; 5:00*; 7:55* ; 9:23** ; 11:51*)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ULym8QpHeg (0:00* ; 9:00* ; 12:15)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ry4Rb4RbwM (The first track.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-ADLCkLB80 (For the sake of completeness.)
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by Sano Sun Sep 10, 2017 6:34 pm

Dragon Force II ... O.O I may shit a llama! I didn't know there was a 2! I lurve Dragon Force 1 soooo much. Side note: I love 90s anime style of drawing... so beautiful.
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by Exhuminator Sun Sep 10, 2017 6:48 pm

Sano wrote:Dragon Force II ... O.O I may shit a llama! I didn't know there was a 2! I lurve Dragon Force 1 soooo much. Side note: I love 90s anime style of drawing... so beautiful.

Most folks weren't aware of the sequel because it never left Japan. But now there's a full English translation available for it.
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by Xeogred Sun Sep 10, 2017 8:20 pm

Sano wrote:Dragon Force II ... O.O I may shit a llama! I didn't know there was a 2! I lurve Dragon Force 1 soooo much. Side note: I love 90s anime style of drawing... so beautiful.

I call that good tastes. :mrgreen:

Nice music pierrot, especially Linda Cube... more like Lina Inverse! Makes me want to watch Slayers. :lol:
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Re: Forgotten CD-ROM JRPGs

by BoneSnapDeez Sun Sep 10, 2017 8:58 pm

I concur that the best way to play Dragon Slayer and Xanadu is on the Saturn. These games are brutal in their original format. Not that it's possible to complete Xanadu here either...

The Falcom Classics versions of the Ys games are essentially enhanced ports of what was on the PC Engine CD. Except they end up looking and sounding way worse on Saturn. For completionists only.

Falcom Classics II also contains Asteka II, which is Tombs & Treasure. Again, just play on NES unless you can't get enough of this game.
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