See that Flyer? That's the Flyer for the original Arcade version of Splatterhouse. Tell me, are Arcade games usually long? No. Do they usually take HOURS to beat? No. Splatterhouse breaks both of these rules with it's Nightmarish difficulty. I just spent THREE hours playing through this game, and let me tell you, it was not a walk in the park. Splatterhouse has got to be the toughest Arcade game in the world, without question. I continued over 200 Times, played for three hours, and I finally managed to beat it. Seriously, if I was playing the actual cabinet (I was playing an emulated version on the PS3 Version of the game), I would be out a year's salary. It's THAT tough.
Anyway, your probably thinking "Why didn't you just quit then?". I ask myself that same question, as I honestly have no idea. Normally, my temper and low patience would have led me to quit a game like this, but for some reason, I didn't. I just kept pressing forward until I finally beat it. I knew Arcade Games could be sadistic, but I never imagined one would take it this far. The people who developed it are probably laughing about it to this very day. In all honesty, I don't see how anyone could have allowed a game like this to be released. This game probably crushed a lot of kids' spirits when it was first released. Imagine the toughest game you've ever played, and multiply it's difficulty times four, and you have this.
But enough about how tough this game is. How does it play? This time, you can go figure it out for yourself, because there is no way I can give this game an honest review. It's just not in me. If you want to punish yourself for some reason, then go and play this. I just do not think I can give this game a fair review after what I went through tonight. If you want my advice though, stay away from this game and play Ninja Gaiden II instead. You'll save yourself a lot of frustration. Yeah, I went there. It's THAT tough, if I haven't made myself clear enough yet.
This is ReddMcKnight, signing off, and hoping that I won't ever get the urge to play this game again.
[img width=300 height=372]http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/1/11480/237103-1181242172216_large.jpg[/img]
The Force is with you, but you are not a Jedi yet.
Oh, man. I can't count how many times I've heard Darth Vader utter those dreaded words to me in Star Wars Trilogy Arcade.
In SWT:A, you battle Darth Vader as the Penultimate Boss in the game. To beat him, you have to follow on screen arrows to block his Lightsaber Strikes, and after you've blocked enough of them, he'll get stunned, and you have to follow the arrows on screen to slash him. Sound easy? It's not! You have to do it multiple times, and up & down are reversed, so it can get confusing, leading you to lose the fight.
Anyway, after learning today that this game could finally be emulated, I got out my Flight Stick and set it all up, hoping to finally beat Vader.
After reloading my game several times, I finally beat him, and man, did I feel good afterwards! It was tough at first, but I eventually managed to get the idea in my head that up & down were reversed, which allowed me to beat him.
Anyway, even though this game can be emulated, I recommend you seek out the actual Arcade Machine. It's a lot of fun, and it makes you feel like your actually in the Star Wars Universe. 
[img width=640 height=929]http://pics.mobygames.com/images/covers/large/1081062175-01.jpg[/img]
Who do we have here? That, my friends, is Bubsy The Bobcat. 
Who is he, you ask? To many, he's a failed (and hated) Mascot, but to me, he's an awesome, wise-cracking bobcat who likes to fight Aliens.
But what makes Bubsy stand out from other Platforming Mascots? Where to begin?
Well, for starters, before each level begins, he'll utter some kind of funny line in a digitized voice relating to the level itself. For example, in the first level, he'll say his catchphrase "What could possibly go wrong?", and on the last level, he'll go "WHOA! Are you still playing this thing?!". To make him even cooler, he's got his own Nerf (That's right, the famous toy gun makers Nerf) Gun to shoot his enemies with. Although that only appears in the second game, it's still awesome. He can also run faster than Sonic The Hedgehog. (!!)
But what went wrong? For one, his games are TOUGH! Save for the second game, he only takes one hit to die, and invincibility T-Shirts (Yes, T-Shirts) are scarce. Also, he was marketed as being the Character who would stomp on every other Mascot, so I guess it disappointed people who thought his game wouldn't be cheap in terms of difficulty. Me, I can't even get past the 2nd Level of the first game without a Game Genie. That's actually the only way I can beat it. Fortunately, the second game is less punishing. Still, the games ARE fun once you figure out how to get Bubsy under your control.
Did I mention he was popular enough at least to get a TV Pilot in the form of a Cartoon? Although it's not shown on the Box above, some of them have a sticker telling you to look out for his Thanksgiving TV Special. My Box is one of the ones that has it. Nowadays, you can find the Cartoon on the Internet if you search on Google.
Anyway, that's it for this entry on one of my favorite Characters of the 90's. Thoughts? Just shout out in the comments.
[img width=400 height=329]http://theniftyperson.tripod.com/niftystuff/mvs/mario_vs_sonic.jpg[/img]
Anyone who experienced Gaming in the 90's knows about the fierce (and awesome) War fought between Nintendo and Sega. In the end, Nintendo won, but it was, without a doubt, the biggest War in Gaming History.
People know me as a huge Nintendo Fan, but I love Sega too. Only a few of my friends are aware that I grew up with a Genesis and SNES in my house.
Anyway, with the 16-Bit War over, it was time for the 32-Bit War. The competitors? Sony and Sega.
[img width=300 height=160]http://gamesnet.vo.llnwd.net/o1/gamestar/objects/516005_widget.jpg[/img]
(This was before God of War and Crash Bandicoot was Sony's mascot, see...)
Sega would go on saying "Hey! We've got TWO CPUs in our Console! Sony only has one! Plus, ours will be in stores first!". So what went wrong? Sega broke street date, so that turned off fans who were unprepared for it's arrival. Also, the inclusion of a second CPU made it difficult for Game Programmers to make games for the console. It also didn't help Sega that Sony was releasing games that people thought were better. They also released (way) more than Sega did for the Saturn. With victory all but guaranteed for Sony, Sega eventually gave up, and the 32-Bit War came to an end.
Am I saying people hate the Saturn? Hell no. In fact, as far as I know, it has a bigger cult following than the PS1 in this day and age. I could be wrong though, so don't quote me on that. Also, if it's any consolation to Sega fans, Sony's first batch of PS1 Consoles had overheating problems due to poor construction materials. In fact, I think I once read about that batch of consoles actually melting somewhere! 
Anyway, that's it for the story of the 32-Bit Wars. Keep an eye out for my next article!
EDIT: It seems I won't be going to Magfest. Instead, I'm going to Anime USA!
I love anime conventions. They're fun, and going to one can be quite the adventure. That being said, I'm going to Anime USA this Autumn!
It takes place in November, and this will be the 3rd time I've attended a Convention. Hopefully, it's a lot better than the last one I went to. Not that the last one was bad, mind you. They just could've had more stuff to do is all.
Anyway, when I get there, I'll be chronicling my adventure here on my Blog, so look forward to that!
The 90s: Nintendo and Sega are tearing each other's throats out in the biggest Console War in history, while NEC's TurboGrafx-16 fades into obscurity.
Today: NEC's TurboGrafx-16 is a collector's item for hardcore gamers.
Then again, isn't that the case with most older consoles? Heh. Anyway, here's the story of my (failed) attempt to get a TurboGrafx-16.
.....Okay, there's no real story behind this one, I'm afraid. The only story here is that I've never been able to get one, US or JP because they're expensive. Even though I came into some money recently, all of them on eBay are out of my price range/missing stuff/broken.
Anyway, the point of this post, is to ask this: Does ANYBODY have a working one with a Controller and all the hook-ups? If you do, PM me, post in my Sales Thread, or leave a comment here.
Sorry for this entry, but I HAD to ask.
Nightmare Guy Savage (as dubbed by someone on a Message Board) is a Mini-Game (or Demo) of a game on Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence for the PS2. Some think it's just a Mini-Game, while others think it's a Demo for an unreleased Konami Game. Whatever it is, it's fun.
The game is pretty gory. In it, you play the role of a man with two hook swords. Using them, you can dismember enemies in more than one way. After you've killed enough of them in rapid succession, the man will transform into a creature with Werewolf like movements, and gain claws in place of his hook swords. Using the claws, you can rip open enemies, and see they're rib cages. It's nasty fun!
I would personally love to know more about this game, and that's why I'm posting this. If anyone has any other information on this game at all, or if there's a game just like it out there, give me a shout in the comments or PM me.
Thank you.
[img width=385 height=732]http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/bigboxshots/3/917943_41180_front.jpg[/img]
"It's time you did something about those Monsters under your bed!"
That cheesy, but somewhat cool line is from the back of Slayer's Box.
Released sometime in 1994 for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, Slayer is a D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) RPG, and my favorite 3DO Game. Having already completed the Easy and Normal modes of the game, I found it very fun and well worth my time. Aside from the lame Ending, here's why you should play this game:
Gameplay: 8/10
This is an Action-RPG that is VERY similar to a DOS Game called Arena. The goal is to traverse Maze-Like Dungeons and get to the exit in each one. The Dungeons are all part of a bigger Dungeon, and each floor is randomly generated, making for a new experience each time. While traversing these floor, you have to fight Monsters and find Treasure. On most floors, you need to find a key to proceed to the next floor, but you may find keys for other doors as well. Unfortunately, when you swing your weapon, you can't see it, so you have to get in the Monster's face to actually tell if your hurting them or not, which can sometimes lead to a quick Game Over. This is a HARD game, even on easy mode.
Graphics: 7/10
The graphics are of a very early 3D kind. Rather than try and describe them, take a look at these screenshots:
Music: 10/10
I absolutely LOVE the Music in this game. It's very eerie sounding. Here's a piece from the game, and my personal favorite from it:
Overall: 9/10
This is a great game, and probably the best game for the ill-fated 3DO. I love almost everything about it, and I recommend that everyone who loves RPGs find some way to try this game.
Fun Fact:
-Gary Gygax is the creator of the Table-Top RPG Game that this Video Game is based off of.
This past Summer, I noticed a few people on here taking a "Summer Gaming Challenge", where they had to complete certain games before Summer ended. Well, I've decided to try my hand at this, except with Autumn, which starts September 23rd. It ends on December 22nd, so I will be given approximately 3 Months to finish. Here are the games I'm going to try and beat (in no particular order):
1. Zhadnost (3DO)
2. Wing Commander III (3DO)
3. Slayer (Hard Mode) (3DO)
4. Killing Time (3DO)
5. Halo: Reach (It's on Normal Mode, and I suck at FPS's, so...yeah) (X360)
6. Bubsy 2 (Normal Mode) (Genesis)
7. Phantasy Star 2 (Genesis game on PS2 Compilation)
8. Shaq-Fu (Genesis)
9. Home Alone 2 (SNES)
10. SVC Chaos: SNK VS. Capcom (Arcade)
Well, that's all. This is gonna be interesting.
[img width=256 height=224]http://www.mariowiki.com/images/a/a0/Smbtitle.gif[/img]
Everyone I know knows that I am a Gamer. Whenever I make a new friend, I make it known that I am a gamer. Whenever I meet someone new, I make it known. Even people who see me once know it.
But when did I become a Gamer? Where did it all start? Time to go back in time!
1990, 2 Years Old: I was introduced to the game "Super Mario Bros." for the NES by my Grandmother. She put the controller in my hands and told me to play. Being only 2, I naturally couldn't get very far, but I still kept playing.
1991, 3 Years Old: My older Sister brought home a Sega Genesis one day with Altered Beast. According to my Mom, I was trying to repeat those famous opening words all day: "RISE FROM YOUR GRAVE!!".
1992, 4 Years Old: My Grandfather introduces me to the Gameboy, and my Grandmother introduces me to the SNES. I remember it like it was yesterday. I just would not be stopped from playing.
Anyway, as the years passed by, I was introduced to most, if not all, the mainstream consoles. For whatever reason, no one ever took the time to acquaint me with the other consoles, like TG-16, 3DO, or CD-i. I actually learned of those long after they're discontinuations.
The point is, I've been a Gamer for a LONG time, and I've loved every moment of it. I'll probably be a Gamer forever...scratch that, I WILL be a Gamer forever.
Thanks for reading!
Welcome to my newest series, The Hunt For Retro. This series will chronicle my hunts for various Retro Gaming Merchandise. First up, the hunt for 3DO. Here we go!
Sometime in 2008 or so, I saw the GT Countdown Video "Top Ten Worst Consoles" on Youtube.
Needless to say, I thought it was crap. I think those systems are just fine. (Save for the Phantom and Gizmondo, as I've never played those, and since the Phantom was never released...well, yeah).
Anyway, while watching the Video, I found Number 7 on the list, the 3DO, particularly intriguing. After researching it, I desired one, and began my hunt.
Enter Collector's Cards and Games, a Website that sells Retro Game Stuff (Among other things). I noticed that the guy running it had a 3DO, so I inquired about it via E-Mail.
Some time later, I received a reply:
"I have a working Goldstar 3DO ready to ship for $60."
Unfortunately, I was completely oblivious to the various 3DO Models in existence, so I agreed, sent him the money via Paypal, and the deal was sealed.
Fast forward a week or so, and the UPS Man showed up at my house with a rather heavy box addressed to me. I opened it, and was greeted with quite the device: The Goldstar 3DO.
Having no games and remembering what the GT Countdown Video said about copy protection, I burned a game and tried to play it.
...It didn't work.
So, I went to Racketboy and asked for help. I then learned that the Goldstar couldn't play Backups.
Pissed off, I ordered a game called Slayer, which I enjoyed for about 15 Minutes before the damn controller broke.
Even angrier now, I decided to settle with a Panasonic Model. I went to Amazon, and found an FZ-10 3DO for $55. I bought it, and waited.
Another week later, I received it in the Mail. This one played backups, and worked very well. It was even in good cosmetic shape.
Unfortunately, I became low on money for other stuff some months later, so, of all the things to sell, I sold the 3DO. I was pretty upset.
Fast forward to present day, I went out to the local Retro Store, and to my shock, the man there had a 3DO for sale, an FZ-1 to be exact.
Unfortunately, It was a little too pricey for me, so we worked out a deal: I gave him my Neo-Geo CDZ (I have a Consolized MVS, so I really had little to lose here), and he gave me the 3DO with Wing Commander 3 and a cool Controller.
So, what did I learn here? Learn to manage your Money better, or you'll regret it later. All things considered though, this all worked out very well in the end. I now have a really cool 3DO, he has a shiny CDZ, and everyone is happy.
Anyway, that's all for this entry. Thanks for reading, and look out for my next Hunt For Retro entry.
To many gamers, 3DO is game-speak for "What the hell is this thing?!". Well, here's the story...
The 3DO, conceived by EA Founder Trip Hawkins, was a CD Based Game Console with impressive processing power and a host of cutting edge technologies. Mr. Hawkins had high hopes for this thing...
...So what went wrong, I hear you ask...Well, for starters, the thing was released with a price point of 700 US Dollars, which even the PS3 couldn't match. (599 US Dollars). It also, as quoted from a GT Countdown Video, squandered it's impressive processing power on playing horrible Full Motion Video. In my opinion, it wasn't really horrible. Just really cheesy. Me, I like FMV Games. Trip also refused to reduce it's price until near the end of it's life.
So, is there anything cool about this thing? Hell yes! It has no copy protection or regional lockout! It also features some great games that weren't available for any other console. One such game is Slayer, a First Person RPG, which takes place in the Dungeons and Dragons Universe.
There are also three different models of it. (At least in America. There are more in Asia.) First up is the FZ-1, which was the first model released. Second is the Goldstar, pictured above, which I own. I would NOT recommend it to anyone, as it's picky with some games, and is the least reliable of all the models. The last one released in America was the FZ-10, which, unlike the FZ-1 and the Goldstar, was a Top Loading Model.
Anyway, that's it for this short entry. If you'd like more 3DO Information, PM me. I'm always happy to talk about this stuff.
Alrighty! I am back, and better than ever! To celebrate the first entry of my revamped Blog, Hardcore Old-School, I'm going to talk about Arcade Games!
Arcade Games. For many older gamers, they are a great source of Nostalgia. I'm sure that if you ask any gamer who was between the ages of 10-20 in the 80's/90's about Arcade Games, they'll go on forever about them. Hell, even I'll do that, despite being just a kid in the 90's. I love Arcade Games. However, these games have one major flaw. That flaw is they're punishing difficulty.
I'm not sure exactly why they're so difficult. The only reason I can think of is that Arcade Game Designers really wanted money. In short, they would develop super difficult, but addictive games that would eat away at your hard earned allowance.
One of my particular favorites is Street Fighter The Movie.
[img width=222 height=313]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a136/DarkTheThief/10012501.png[/img]
Now, before you turn away from this entry in disgust or give me all kinds of crap about how it sucks, acknowledge a few things for me:
1. The game was NOT developed by Capcom.
2. It's fighting engine is based on Aerial Attacks and "juggling" opponents.
3. Jean-Claude Van Damme is pretty cool.
OK, now feel free to quit reading, or just keep reading.
Now, while this game is one of my favorites, it's VERY difficult. Make even one mistake while fighting your opponent, and it's game over for you. By default, the game is set to Medium, which I found out by using the MAME Emulator. It may as well be on the hardest difficulty though, because if I haven't stressed it enough already, this game is hard.
Another example of difficult Arcade Games is this:
[img width=222 height=284]http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a136/DarkTheThief/13004901.png[/img]
As you may be aware, I reviewed the NES Version of Bad Dudes a while back. While that version is difficult, this version ups that difficulty 3x.
My point is, Arcade Games are tough, and not for the casual gamer. They are certainly good fun though.
This is ReddMcKnight, signing off!
Uhhh...Right. As you can all see, I recently posted an entry on my Blog stating that I was leaving RFGeneration. Well, after reading several comments on that Entry, I've come to realize that I was wrong for trying to leave.
I honestly don't know what the hell I was thinking. I guess I was just in some kind of slump, which led me to believe that there was just no point in continuing to update this Blog.
Anyway, I guess I'm here to stay. Your friendly neighborhood Nintendo Man isn't going anywhere.
...What? That's it. Go home already! I'll update the Blog with a real entry later!
Well, friends...this is it. I'm saying Goodbye. There's nothing left for me here at RFGeneration.
I've come to the harsh realization that no one reads this Blog of mine anymore, and that I have officially run out of ideas on what to write about. I've also noticed a lack of front-page updates and forum topics, which leads me to believe that no one visits this site anymore. (That, or I'm really oblivious.)
I've also come to the (extremely sad) realization that the Game Industry is dying, and once fine companies like Capcom and Square-Enix have been consumed by greed, wanting nothing but money, which hurts the quality of they're games. Let's face it. There's no such thing as a game made with Heart and Soul anymore. Even someone like me, who has grown up with Video Games, finds no joy in playing the crap released in this day and age. Dare I say it, even Nintendo has fallen. It's sad, but more than likely true.
I also believe that with the cancellation of Mega Man Legends 3, there is absolutely no hope for the gaming industry, or it's fans. Not to mention that I think the failing economy is going to cause a second Video Game Crash.
Well, that's it. Goodbye everyone. I leave you all with this:
[img width=300 height=300]http://www.megamancartoon.com/images/mega-man-cartoon.jpg[/img]
This is ReddMcKnight, your friendly neighborhood Nintendo man, signing off!
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