river city ransom
Latest
Beat 'em up revival 'River City Girls' arrives September 5th
WayForward thinks it has a simple way to keep the River City formula fresh: reverse the roles. It's releasing River City Girls, a revival of the side-scrolling brawler that has high school girls Kyoko and Misako laying waste to everyone between them and their captured boyfriends. True to the spirit of the series, virtually anything is a weapon -- baseball bats, bikes and even park benches are fair game.
Crowdfund Bookie: Hyper Light Drifter is the post-apocalyptic Zelda
The Crowdfund Bookie crunches data from select successful Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns that ended during the week and produces pretty charts for you to look at. A post-apocalyptic, Zelda-like action game and a reboot of a beloved brawler were both funded this this week, as the Kickstarter projects for Hyper Light Drifter, River City Ransom: Underground, The Fall, Epic Space Online: Capital Ships, Luna's Wandering Stars and Soul Power ended. Hyper Light Drifter, a pitched as a blend of the Diablo and Zelda series, earned the most money ($645,158) and had the highest number of backers of the group (24,150). The "Capital Ships" expansion for the Epic Space Online infinite sandbox MMO had the highest pledge-per-backer rate for the week, as each of the project's 491 funders invested an average of $50.27 into the campaign. Head past the break for the week's results, accompanied by some fancy charts.
River City Ransom follow-up goes live on Kickstarter
River City Ransom: Underground is now on Kickstarter, seeking $180,000 (CAD) by October 9. Developed by Conatus Creative, the game is an officially-licensed follow-up to the original Technos Japan NES game. The developer acquired rights to the beat-em-up in April. River City Ransom: Underground will feature an 8-bit-style look while also expanding to include more playable characters and four-player cooperative multiplayer. The game is currently in development for PC only, though the developer noted that with enough support, it could appear on consoles as well.
MechWarrior Online invites you to River City
It's important to remember that for every shell-shocked city that you're rampaging through with your 40-ton 'Mech, there are families who have lost everything in the destruction. But enough about them -- more pew pew! Welcome to MechWarrior Online's River City, where the fun never stops and the human suffering is drowned out by cheers of "PWNED!" In a new video, Piranha Games shows off the urban battlefield of River City. It's a high-tech metropolis on fire, with hazy smoke and broken highways abounding. In the middle of River City is a fortified building, which is the high ground. Holding this will help players achieve their two objectives: a space port and an industrial port facility. And yes, the narrator actually uses the words "River City" and "ransom" in the same sentence. There's a strange video game crossover going on here. You can visit River City after the jump, but you probably won't want to move there.
River City Ransom 2 barfing on Japanese WiiWare this summer
A sequel to the teen-brutalizing, coin-collecting, sushi-eating NES classic River City Ransom (pictured) is in the works from the delightfully-named developer Miracle Kidz. It sounds like a pretty authentic follow-up -- right down to its reported launch on a Nintendo platform. According to Andriasang, the sequel will punch its way to the Japanese WiiWare this summer and will be ported to the PC as an "online title" in 2012. There's been no word on whether Miracle Kidz has plans to localize River City Ransom 2 for North American players, but we like to think that we believe in Miracles. And also Kidz.
Interview: Scott Pilgrim production manager Marc-Andre Boivin
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World has been selected as one of Joystiq's E3 Standouts this year. It's got everything an old school gamer could want: a 2D beat-em-up foundation, pixel art by Pirate Baby's Cabana creator Paul Robertson and a chiptune soundtrack by Anamanaguchi -- not to mention it's based on Bryan Lee O'Malley's seminal rock and roll Canadian comic. Can it get any more geek chic than that? We spoke with Ubisoft production manager Marc-Andre Boivin to learn more about how this nugget of awesomeness came about, the PSN timed-exclusivity agreement and our one disappointment so far: the game's lack of online co-op. The full interview follows. Joystiq: This Scott Pilgrim game is sparkling with indie charm, and yet it's being made by Ubisoft -- a big company. How did this project come about at Ubisoft? Marc-Andre Boivin: From my understanding, Universal first proposed a project to Ubisoft, and it was the vision of the initial director and the initial team. They worked with [Scott Pilgrim creator] Bryan Lee O'Malley, with the creative team in place, and they found that the beat-em-up style with the pixel art style was a good direction to go. I think everyone agreed at that time that this could be interesting, and I think the creator of the books, Bryan Lee O'Malley, liked the genre as well. So they started the project that way. Since the beginning, that was the vision -- a beat-em-up with the pixel art style that we have. %Gallery-95506%
Aksys resurrects 'River City' name for DS sports games
The latest announcement from Aksys games includes two surprises. It doesn't come as a shock that the company would choose to localize Kunio-kun no Chou Nekketsu Daiundokai (Kunio's Extreme Hot-Blooded Athletic Meet) for DS -- Aksys is fairly reliable about picking up everything Arc System Works releases in Japan, and it published the last new Kunio game for DS, Super Dodgeball Brawlers, in 2008. However, in addition to the multi-sporting event game (a sort of sequel to the NES game Crash 'n the Boys: Street Challenge), it also announced a new Kunio soccer game that hasn't even been announced in Japan. You may be familiar with Nintendo World Cup for the NES -- that was originally a Kunio game too. Much like Super Dodgeball Brawlers, you can expect both of these to be revivals of NES sport classics. The other big surprise is the naming scheme Aksys has adopted. Building on the popularity of the best-known Kunio game -- River City Ransom -- these games are being localized as River City Super Sports Challenge and River City Soccer Hooligans. That's basically enough for us to pretend they're really odd River City Ransom sequels. Aksys hasn't dated either game yet.
Free NES game now available to Internet Channel buyers
Good news for the people who were unfortunate enough to get the Wii Internet Channel between July 1, 2007 and September 1 of this year. Yes, you may have gotten taken for 5 bucks, but with today's Wii update, Nintendo of America is giving that money back to you in the form of a free NES game from the Virtual Console. You'll see the message when you turn your Wii on, as with all updates.Don't take too long pretending to face a tough decision, because this offer will expire at the end of the year. Just buy River City Ransom and enjoy it! If you've already got River City Ransom, we've heard good things about that "Castlevania" series.
Final Fantasy available on Japanese Virtual Console in May
May's Virtual Console lineup in Japan may be small in number -- just six games -- but it's packed with quality. Most notably, Square Enix's GDC-announced plan to release vintage Final Fantasies on VC starts next month with the obvious choice for the starting point: the first Final Fantasy. Also very, very cool: SimEarth plus a samurai-themed River City Ransom sequel and the first game in the series that we would come to know as Advance Wars. This one's called Famicom Wars because, you know, it's on the Famicom. Famicom Downtown Special: Kunio-kun no Jidaigeki Dayo Zenin Shugou Ninja-kun Ashura no Shou Final Fantasy Famicom Wars Master System R-Type PC Engine SimEarth
Wii Warm Up: VC 2008
There's been a lot of Virtual Console releases this year (been keeping up?), and we were wondering which were among your favorites? We've received Secret of Mana, Super Mario RPG, and River City Ransom, to name a few. So, which sit at the top of your list for this year? Sure, we were hoping we'd have another to consider, but let's not dwell on that.
Who needs E3? iPhone engraved with River City Ransom
When Sal Cangeloso of Geek.com had the chance to get his (no doubt super-expensive) iPhone engraved with a laser-etched design of his choice, he didn't opt for something as mundane as having his name on there (though "Sal Cangeloso" is one rad name). Instead, he chose possibly the most awesome, most BARF!-tastic design that has ever appeared on an iPhone -- this still of River City Ransom's Alex doling out the pain to some Generic Dude.Forget E3, people -- this has just trumped everything that could possibly appear in LA over the next few days.[Thanks, Sal!]
Sealed Game Boy games will make you break your piggy bank
Hey, you. Yeah, you reading this right now. Do you want River City Ransom EX sealed for $17? If you're ready to say anything but "yes," we kindly ask that you close your browser window, call your mother and apologize for being such a disappointment. If for some reason you're not keen on the game and still manage to have a working brain (or, you know, you already own it), there's plenty of other Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games on offer. It's a nice mixture of great first-party and third-party titles, if we may say so. You know, in case you wanted to bulk up your GBA collection.[Via Gamesniped]
River City Dodge Ball All Stars!!: The other new Kunio Dodge Ball game
If you neglected to pick up Super Dodge Ball Brawlers two weeks ago -- and we suspect you did, considering how few people are talking about the game -- you can still terrorize playgrounds with River City Dodge Ball All Stars!!Developed by doujin groups Miracle Kidz and Downtown7 (along with Famicom Kunio series creators Yoshimitsu Yoshida and Mokeke Sekimoto), this PC title was actually released several months ago in Japan, but the demo is still worth downloading and playing. Plus, there's an English version of the trial!The game doesn't suffer from the slow pace many have complained about with the DS release, and it even offers two speeds -- Normal and Retro. River City Dodge Ball All Stars!! doesn't, however, include some of the cool features introduced in Super Dodge Ball Brawlers, like the equipment shop, throwable items on the field, and the 8-player local wireless brawl mode. As its title suggests, the PC game comes with the added bonus of a roster filled with recognizable names from the River City Ransom cast! Smack people in the face as end-boss Slick! Dodge super shots as Zombies gang member Turk! Wear panties on your head as, uh, Panty!%Gallery-25040%[Via Insert Credit, Nico Nico Douga]
Virtually Free: Ransom collected
Another glorious round of Virtually Free has come to an end, and lo, we have a winner. One super fresh copy of River City Ransom will be gifted by us to one mgroves, who, in the winning comment, pined for Mega Man 2 on the US Virtual Console. Congratulations, mgroves! And to everyone else, check back next week for another edition of Virtually Free. Next time, it may be you!
Virtually Free: River City Reminder
Don't forget -- this is the last day to throw your name in the hat for the most recent Virtually Free contest, in which we're giving away one copy of River City Ransom! Head over to the original post and get your name in before the deadline, which drops just before midnight, Eastern time.
Virtually Free: Ransomed
What's that? You didn't buy River City Ransom ($5/500 Wii points) the moment it was available? For shame. Despite the fact that you totally don't deserve, we're here to save the day by offering up a free copy of the very excellent title to one lucky reader for this week's Virtually Free giveaway.So what do you have to do to win? First of all, you have to leave a comment (with a valid e-mail address) on this post telling us what has been released for another region's VC that you want. Second, you must be a legal resident of the United States with an American Wii (sorry, Canadians, we have to leave you out of this one; blame the gifting system and not us!) and 18 years of age or older. You may enter once per day between now and Monday, June 2; the contest comes to a close that night at 11:59 PM Eastern time, and we'll select a winner in a random drawing the next day. Questions? Check out the official rules.
The VC Advantage: Merlin's Mystery Shop
In River City, the streets, parks, and even high schools are populated by gangs of identical-looking, identically dressed teens who spend the day protecting their turf from any interlopers by beating them savagely with chains and throwing garbage cans at them. And yet, despite their efforts, turf can change hands from gang to gang in a fraction of a second -- leave the Frat Boys' area, turn right back around, and it's now the Generic Dudes' property.Yet, to these violent, truant (except for the ones who inhabit River City High, but even they aren't in class or anything) teens, malls are sacred. A shopping center can stand between two gang warzones, and yet no Jock or Squid dares step foot into the Flatirons Mall. Shoppers walk through the center with impunity, unaware that the Internationals are just a few yards away, being kicked in the face by a guy who is standing on top of a fence and thus invincible.Chances are those stumpy thugs would be even more reverent of River City's shopping options if they knew about Merlin's Mystery Shop. Conveniently located in the middle of the wall in the Armstrong Thru-Way Tunnel, Merlin's Mystery Shop offers rare items that provide pretty great stat boosts. We've got those items and their effects listed after the break, so you'll know just which items you'll have to beat up Benny and Clyde repeatedly to save up for.
For awesome NES mods, just add legends
Thanks to its largely flat surface, the NES doubles up as an ideal canvas for those wishing to spruce up their consoles with a custom paint job. Of course, you also need artistic ability, which is where we fail hideously, and eBay user hellokitty11111111111 (yes) excels.Well, "excels" most of the time, anyway. The quality of these mods does vary a little -- we're not big fans of the Kid Icarus design -- but we do absolutely love the Earthbound, Super Mario Bros. 3, and (highly topical) River City Ransom examples. Are they worth (up to) $149.99, though? At a stretch, we'd be tempted. There's more past the break, complete with auction links.
VC Monday Madness video wrap-up 4/21/08
Well folks, we're back with video commentary and ready to give you the lowdown on this week's Virtual Console releases. This week will go down in history for us, as it shows the release of one of the best NES games ever here in the United States. So what are you waiting for? Hit up the video above, then cruise past the break for the rest.
VC Monday Madness: River City Ransom and some other game
So, uh, we all know what today is, right? It's a day that will go down in history for us, the fine men and women behind Wii Fanboy, because a game of epic proportions is hitting the Virtual Console later today (12pm ET): River City Ransom, There's also some other game but we haven't even bothered to, well ... care about it. Dude, River City Ransom! River City Ransom (NES,1-2 players, 500 Wii Points) Phantasy Star III Generations of Doom (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points) As usual, be sure to stop back later for our video commentary on this week's Virtual Console releases. Until then, chill out at Merv Burger and enjoy one of their free smiles.
