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Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 8:13 pm
by Exhuminator
I beat my eighth game for AJ's TR theme this evening:
Zillion II: The Triformation for Master System.
This is a licensed game based on the Red Photon Zillion anime.
This one actually got a domestic release though,
I only used the Japanese cover 'cause it's better.
I used to think Zillion II was a shmup, and I thought it sucked.
I was wrong! Zillion II is not a shmup, though it has some shmup elements.
I was wrong! Zillion II does not suck, it's actually pretty good.
Apple's still a hottie, Opa-Opa forever. Full review
here.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2018 10:36 pm
by ElkinFencer10
Confession - I never knew Zillion was an anime. I always thought it was just a Sega IP.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 11:12 am
by chuckster
Got a few minutes last night to boot up Castle of Illusion. I played through the first 3-4 levels in probably 20 minutes. So far the game is pretty good but I'm not feeling the magic just yet. I know this is a favorite for some, and I can see that if you played the game as a kid especially. The game looks fine, controls great and is easy (it's a real 180 from Mutant Apocalypse), but it is still fun to work your way forward. I'll play more as time allows, I have a feeling I'll be through it by the weekend.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 1:15 pm
by Exhuminator
chuckster wrote:Got a few minutes last night to boot up Castle of Illusion. I played through the first 3-4 levels in probably 20 minutes. So far the game is pretty good
That's where I was up to that point, but the latter half of the game was a decline IMO. Looking forward to seeing your thoughts after you finish it.
-
I've got two more licensed platformers picked out. Here's hoping I can have them beat before the end of the month. They are both Japan-only imports, but not based on Japanese source material (no more anime games sorry). If the dreaded real life cooperates, I'll have 'em beat.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 3:43 pm
by Sarge
chuckster wrote:Just got back to being able to play some Mutant Apocalypse, and it's definitely getting tougher. I restarted about half a dozen times on...
Plus that boss fight was a disaster until I learned how to cheese it. I've been gravitating toward Cyclops and Wolverine so far. I know you effectively have 10+ lives with all the characters combined but this game really needs some better balance. There are way to many situations with instant death or sections obviously designed for certain characters.
Overall though, I'm still liking it and the password system is a lifesaver.
EDIT:
Powered through the rest of Mutant Apocalypse. It was nails-hard and the difficulty feels like a result of poor, callous game design rather than a well-designed challenge. The amount of instant-death traps, trial-and-error boss fights, and the unsuitability of some characters for some situations with no option to change out mid-level (with a limited amount of lives for each) is very frustrating while playing.
On the other hand, you have the password system to allow for experimentation, and it feels like any character can technically make it through each level, even if some aren't as easy. Once you know about certain traps, you can avoid the instant-death scenarios fairly easily as well.
Once you get to that point, the game is still very tough (or it was to me at least), but it's also exciting and tense. The art is great and the soundtrack is at least pretty good. I'd give this game a 6/10 overall, but with a few changes it could easily be an 8.
Now onto lighter fare to close out the month, Castle of Illusion!
Your criticisms are why I revisit
War of the Gems more often. While it can be tricky at times, it's not nearly as mean as
Mutant Apocalypse.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2018 5:12 pm
by ElkinFencer10
It took most of the day, but I played through Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers today. That was the first of the Disney Afternoon Collection games that disappointed me. I'll probably do Darkwing Duck and Chip 'n Dale 2 this week just to round it off.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2018 12:53 am
by Exhuminator
Number 9 is down:
Super Back to the Future II, for Super Famicom.
A western movie game made in Japan that never left Japan.
But it did get an English fan translation.
A platformer on a hoverboard yo!
Kinda plays like Sonic the Hedgehog, loosely speaking.
A bit too easy, not super great, but the best Back to the Future game from forward to the past.
Full review
here.
I will try to beat number 10 tomorrow.
I've saved the weirdest thing for last! 
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2018 2:57 am
by ESauced
ElkinFencer10 wrote:It took most of the day, but I played through Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers today. That was the first of the Disney Afternoon Collection games that disappointed me. I'll probably do Darkwing Duck and Chip 'n Dale 2 this week just to round it off.
Well if you didn’t like Rescue Rangers 1 (did you try with a friend by the way? really fun to try and kill each other), then you won’t like the sequel either. It’s just a worse version of the first one.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2018 6:16 am
by alienjesus
Exhuminator wrote:Number 9 is down:
You're blasting through these! Well done!
I'm happy with my 3 games beaten for the month, but I do want to try and put a little more time into some replays if I can. My ambitious gaming goals for the year mean I need to make progress in those too.
Re: Together Retro: Licensed to Thrill (Licensed 2D Platform
Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2018 8:31 am
by ElkinFencer10
I've done four this month - Duck Tales, Duck Tales 2, TaleSpin (not a 2D platformer, I know, but whatever, it was in the Disney Afternoon Collection), and Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers, and I'm content with that. I'm gonna try to finish off that collection and do Chip 'n Dale 2 and Darkwing Duck, but we'll see if that happens or not.