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VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 2/11/08
This week, we've added a bit to our coverage of the Virtual Console releases. Nothing major to alter how we do things here (we hear you're fine with how it is, but always feel free to let us know how we can improve!), but rather a small thing that we feel many of you will enjoy. So, hit up the video above, then be sure to head past the break for the rest of the coverage.
VC Monday Madness: Harvest Moon & Lords of Thunder
Today's Virtual Console offerins are in stark contrast of one another. On the one hand, you have a calm, some would say somber, title like Harvest Moon, where you'll settle for nothing less than having the best farm ever. On the other hand, there's Lords of Thunder, which tasks the player with shooting the crap out of everything on screen.This week's Virtual Console releases are: Harvest Moon (SNES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) Lords of Thunder (TurboGrafx16 CD-ROM, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) Be sure to stop back later for our video wrap-up of this week's Virtual Console games.
VC Tuesday: Skeleton Crew
After last week, we thought Nintendo might be returning to form with Virtual Console releases, at least in Japan. We didn't get our hopes up, which is good, because we would be disappointed right now otherwise. Nintendo is continuing to do their best to make people forget about the Virtual Console, with another week light on releases. Not that many games for Japan means even fewer games making it out West. We don't even really care that the games aren't Goldeneye or Earthbound or whatever. We'd all be able to find something right for us if only Nintendo would give us a selection. At least nobody's going to have to clean out their refrigerators this week.To be fair, Dungeon Explorer II does look really great, and we wouldn't mind the opportunity to play it ourselves. And Wrecking Crew is pretty good, even if it is ancient. We're sure we'll hear about it if we are, but we don't think we're being unreasonable by saying that regardless of the quality, Nintendo should be able to offer more every week. The games are already made. Wrecking Crew (Famicom, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points) Dungeon Explorer II (PC Engine CD-ROM, 1-5 players, 800 Wii Points)
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 1/14/08
This week's releases on the Virtual Console bring us two very distinct titles. If you like to beat your opponent silly with one hand and solve mind-teasers with the other, then the pair of offerings on tap this week are sure to satisfy your thirst. Hit up the video above and be sure to head past the break for more coverage.
VC Monday Madness: Simon's Quest, Magician Lord and Samurai-Ghost
Another week, another Virtual Console update. And, with this week's update, we've got three new titles to check out. The obvious high-profile game here is Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, which you all likely remember (whether you enjoyed it or not). That doesn't mean we should forget about the other two games, though.This week's releases are: Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points) Samurai-Ghost (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, 600 Wii Points) Magician Lord (Neo Geo, 1 - 2 players, 900 Wii Points) And, as usual, be sure to stop back later for our video wrap-up of today's releases.
Japan's November VC releases: Nuts
... and also Milk. November's Virtual Console outlook for Japan looks pretty excellent, with a lot of delightfully niche stuff. That includes King's Knight, the medieval-themed vertical shooter (!) from Square(!) that nobody likes but us ( ....) It will also bring Sega's Eternal Champions, the goofy Mortal Kombat-influenced fighting game that we poured hundreds of hours into. But it also includes stuff that non-us people will enjoy, like Panel de Pon, which, released in the U.S. as Tetris Attack, is the most popular version of the Puzzle League puzzle games. Light Crusader is notable for being an RPG from Treasure, and not much else.Of course, the big news for a lot of us is that SNK has turned the King of Fighters faucet on, ensuring a constant stream of fighting games with overdone storylines and ridiculous outfits for at least a year. Here's the full lineup for November, assuming some of them don't get bumped or pushed back into December (they will): Famicom: Ganbare Goemon, Balloon Fight, Makaimura (Ghosts 'n Goblins), Nuts and Milk, King's KnightSuper Famicom: Panel de PonMega Drive: Ecco Jr., Light Crusader, Eternal ChampionsPC Engine: Dynastic Hero (Wonder Boy in Monster World), Dragon Spirit, Take the A-Train 3, Kawa no Nushi Tsuri (Legend of the River King), Gradius II GOFER no YabouNeo Geo: The King of Fighters '94, Baseball Stars 2, Top Hunter
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 9/24/07
Mondays are usually regarded as bad by most folk. We have to go back to work and push back the memories of fun from the weekend that just passed. That doesn't count for Virtual Console fans in the U.S. however. No, we celebrate the coming of Monday and cherish its offerings.
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 9/17/07 [update 1]
Update: Sorry, folks. I ended up getting home very late last night and was way too tired to attempt the video. I'll try to get it up as soon as I can today. Thanks for your patience.Sadly, we don't have video for you at the moment (yours truly has a sporting event to attend and I ran into some video editing problems), but when I get back, you can bet I'll be uploading the video (however late that may be). So, you have something to look forward to if you are going to be up that late (or something to look forward to when you get up in the morning). Or, whatever. You just have something to look forward to.
TurboGrafx16 CD-based games coming to the VC
Some of us here are admitted TG16 fans to the end. So, this latest news of more support for the Virtual Console has us all kinds of excited here in the Wii Fanboy offices. Not only will titles from the TurboGrafx16 CD-ROM and TurboGrafx16 SUPER CD-ROM systems be available to Wii owners in North America, but also other territories such as Japan, Europe and Australia. Basically, everywhere. As of now, it looks like 10 or more games will be available this year, with 5 or more becoming available next year. Estimated cost for these games will be 800 Wii Points.[Via Go Nintendo; Thanks, hvnlysoldr!]
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 07/30/07
The switch over to YouTube has been working out, wouldn't you say? We're glad to have our video up so quickly, not forced to wait the hours for it to compress over at GT anymore. Check it out above, then head past the post break for the rest of our coverage.
VC Monday Madness: Star Soldier, Dynamite Headdy and Drop Off
VC fans, prepare for another Monday chock full of new games to download. And, for us at least, it's a first as we've never played any of the titles available for download. Those games are: Star Soldier (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points) Dynamite Headdy (Sega Genesis, 1 playe, 800 Wii points) Drop Off (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, 600 Wii points) We're anxious to try the games out and see what they have to offer. As always, be sure to stop back later and check out our VC Monday Madness wrap-up video.
Turbografx primer part 2: the games
Racketboy's Turbografx-16 coverage continues, and continues to be excellent. We totally feel obligated to cover it, because it's about our favorite underdog VC system. This time, the focus is on the games that made the system so awesome. And also Keith Courage in Alpha Zones. Categorized by, among other criteria, storage format and by whether each is an arcade port or an original game, this list of "Games that Defined the Turbografx-16" covers a lot of the best games for the system. There's quite a bit of stuff on the list, like Alien Crush and Blazing Lazers, for you to go buy on the VC now, and other stuff like Devil's Crush that will ensure that the VC will be providing us with rich, flavorful content for quite some time.
VC Friday: Hey, look, an N64 game!
This week, Europe gets its own milestone 100th game on the Virtual Console in the form of an N64 racer. And it also gets a Turbografx-16 game that most people apparently hate. Not us, though. If we lived in Europe, we'd be downloading right now. Just sayin'.This week's offerings: F-Zero X - N64 - 1000 Wii points J.J. & Jeff- TG16- 600 Wii points Let us know if you go for either of these fine games! We kind of like to talk about games occasionally.
Turbografx-16 primer: required reading for Wii Fanboy fanboys
Of the systems whose games are currently available on the Virtual Console, the Turbografx-16 is the most obscure. It didn't seem that obscure to us, since we had one and played it frequently, but we recognize that most people went with the Genesis or SNES in the 16-bit console wars. That's fine, we guess.Now that the Virtual Console is making the games easily and cheaply available, you have an obligation to buy at least one and see what you've been missing. Okay, actually you don't, but we'd at least like you to read this article about the system so we can feel like we did something good for TG16 fandom today, even though it was retro historian extraordinaire Racketboy who did all the work. Then, if you happen to go download Alien Crush, that would be cool too.Do you know the difference between the TurboBooster and the TurboBooster Plus? Can you put the system cards in chronological order? Read all about it and learn what it was like to be a Turbo fan in the '90s. It was pretty confusing, in terms of hardware.
Australia to be Bonked
Australia never got an official release of the NEC Turbografx-16 system, so they never got the chance to ignore classics like Bonk's Adventure and Alien Crush like we did here in the States. Hudson, proving that they are good people, are going to start releasing Turbografx games on the Virtual Console in Australia, starting this July. They plan to release more than 60 games this year, which is 36 more than are currently available in the US. That indicates that not only will Australia be completely caught up with us, but that we'll all get a bunch more TG16 games this year!Does this mean that we'll get MSX games in the US? Please?
ActRaiser, Kid Chameleon on the Virtual Console
Each week, Nintendo unveils enough Virtual Console goodness to keep us occupied for seven whole days. Three new classic games make an appearance today, spanning the genres from simulation to platformer to ... well, they're mostly platformers. But the inclusion of ActRaiser means you'll have at least one game worthy of your precious Wii Points. ActRaiser (SNES, 800 Wii Points) - The classis SNES game that combines side-scrolling platform elements with a Sim City-esque urban planning simulation. J.J. & Jeff (TG-16, 600 Wii Points) - A "comical action game" starring two detectives solving cases in a platformer-style adventure. Kid Chameleon (Genesis, 800 Wii Points) - Work your way through over 100 levels in this early Genesis platformer. Take on different forms such as Berzerker, Micromax, or a Skycutter, each with unique abilities.
See before you buy: Japan edition
We were happy when Nintendo of America finally put up some preview videos so people could at least get a look at Virtual Console games before throwing their Wii Points into a hole. Now, Nintendo of Japan has done the same! You'll be able to preview new Virtual Console games long before they come to the US. In many cases, you can just uselessly torture yourself by watching videos of games like Shin Megami Tensei and Mario's Super Picross that will never be released over here! And if there's anything we enjoy, it's uselessly torturing ourselves.[Thanks, creamsugar!]
Hudson confirms Bonk's Revenge for Monday's VC update [update 2]
Sure, we knew the game would be coming, but we had no idea as far as what date it would arrive. Well, it turns out Hudson is kind of heart, as their Virtual Console section of their website details Bonk's Revenge as being released this Monday. Now, we've had VC updates in the past where we were only given one game, so let's hope that Bonk's second adventure isn't left all alone this Monday.Anyone interested in downloading this game?See also: Wil Wheaton loves the VC[Via digg]Update: Neglected a word in the post. All is fixed. Thanks, Dan Russell!Update 2: Wow, talk about dropping the ball. I updated the post and didn't even fix it! It has been corrected now.
Virtually Overlooked: J.J. & Jeff
Welcome to our weekly feature, Virtually Overlooked, wherein we talk about games that aren't on the Virtual Console yet, but should be. Call it a retro-speculative. Hudson's J.J. & Jeff isn't particularly obscure. But it happens to be one of our favorite Turbografx-16 games, and we really like talking about it. If Hudson really plans to release every US Turbografx-16 game, then we have to hurry up and get our longform rambles out while we can! Plus, apparently some people don't like this game, and, while they're entitled to their crazy, wrong opinions, we feel like it deserves defending.
Hudson Entertainment president talks about TG16 and Virtual Console
As you may have guessed, we're big Turbografx-16 fans here, so Brandon Sheffield's interview with Hudson USA president John Greiner, who was with the company through that system's lifetime, was an especially good read for us. The interview is long and detailed, and covers a lot of Hudson's lesser-known franchises like Tengai Makyou, as well as the fantastic Kato-chan and Ken-chan, which we got as JJ & Jeff. It also talks about how Hudson got into the Virtual Console biz.Here's the quote of the freaking millennium for us: "We're looking at...you know, eventually all Turbo Grafx games will be on the Virtual Console, because they're going to be emulations." Oh, no, wait, that's awesome, but here's the quote of the millennium: "We're going to work on the Turbo Grafx titles, but there were 600 some-odd PC Engine titles, and there were only 150 or so Turbo Grafx titles, so I think that if people tell us they want these games, absolutely." We cannot control our dancing. It is difficult to type at the moment.
