We store cookies, you can get more info from our privacy policy.

Virtual Console Mondays: March 3 and March 10, 2008

by Evan Burchfield - March 17, 2008, 1:24 am
Total comments: 8

Two games entirely in Japanese and one made by Germans. Wha?

Yeah gang, it's been a rough week or two. Super Turrican and DoReMi are both positive experiences, but once again we are left waiting to find out whether this month's N64 game will be anything worthwhile (it could be Majora's Mask or Super Smash Bros., but anything from a third party would be preferable to those games at this point).

Nintendo knew that Virtual Console would be a tough sell last Monday since Super Smash Bros. Brawl came out last Sunday. Nintendo's solution? Two import titles! Normally I'd be busting down the door but these games are, well, not what we want imported: give us StarFox 2, Mother, etc. Also consider that Nintendo has not translated a whit of either of these titles, outside of their operations manuals.

I'd like to take this moment to bemoan and speculate on Earthbound's absence from the Virtual Console, considering that it was rated by the ESRB several months ago and has already been released on the Japanese VC. Here's the most conspicuous detail of the week: Earthbound was removed from Super Smash Bros. Brawl's "Masterpieces" function in North America (Masterpieces is a feature whereby you get to play a few minutes of the old games that Smash characters are based on). Why would Nintendo of America remove the game when it seems reluctant to even release it on Virtual Console, especially since it is fully translated and was released in America in 1993? I guess I don't want to speculate too much, but let's just say that if Nintendo of America does want to release Earthbound on this shore, they're probably not going to do it on the Virtual Console. If they do it at all.

And with that, here's our Virtual Console Recommendations for the past two weeks.



Puyo Puyo 2: Tsuu

SystemVirtual Console - Genesis

Cost900 Points
Players2
ControllersWii Remote,Wii Nunchuk,GameCube
ESRB RatingEveryone
ReleasedYear 1994

Puyo Puyo 2: Tsuu is an inexplicable import title for the Virtual Console, seeing as there are already two identical versions of Puyo Puyo available in the forms of Kirby's Avalanche and Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine. This version does have some added features, but it is also completely in Japanese, making it a hard sell even to fans. For those not in the know, the game has you combining colored blobs in groups of four in any shape possible. Garbage is formed and sent to your opponent by combining more blobs or chaining combos together.

The only real feature added here is the ability to block the garbage being sent over to you by quickly creating garbage of your own. It adds a neat dynamic that has you watching your opponent's field as well as your own. There's also a level editor, but like the rest of the game's menus, it is completely in Japanese text with no symbols to guide you. There is an attempt at a translation in the Operation Manual, but that's a bit of a joke.

I don't know why this game was brought to our shores. New features aside, Puyo Puyo has never been too popular with the western world, and this updated version, laden with foreign text, doesn't change the experience other than adding the possible surprise and suspense of choosing the wrong menu option. I very begrudgingly recommend this game for fans of Puyo Puyo, but only if you understand the nitty gritty differences between this title and the previous Puyo Puyo titles already on VC.

Recommended for Fans

- Evan Burchfield



Super Turrican

SystemVirtual Console - Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Cost800 Points
Players1
ControllersWii Nunchuk,GameCube
ESRB RatingEveryone 10+
ReleasedYear 1993

A continuation of a franchise born on the Commodore 64, Super Turrican mixes the expansive level design of Super Metroid with the hardcore platforming action of Bionic Commando. Factor 5's first SNES game appoints you as liberator of the planet Katakis, a remote space outpost caught in the evil clutches of an enemy force known only as The Machine. Your Turrican Assault Suit aids you in your struggle, equipping you with several different ammo types, a grappling hook, an enemy-freezing beam, and the ability to bounce around as a deadly ball. In addition to your array of suit weaponry, you can also drop bombs that clear the screen and lay mines in ball form. While it may seem like the odds are stacked in your favor, you're going to need all the help you can get thanks to Super Turrican's intense level of difficulty. Even its easiest setting presents a formidable challenge.

If Super Turrican's plot and gameplay sound similar to the adventures of a certain bounty hunter we all know and love, it only takes a few minutes of play time to render any comparisons with the Metroid franchise invalid. Super Turrican is as pure a side-scrolling action game as they come. You don't acquire new weapons, build up character abilities, or solve puzzles. Each of the game's twelve sprawling levels can be explored at will (and exploration is actually encouraged, since it's the only way you'll find the extra lives hidden in each one), but you can only progress by constantly moving to the right and destroying all in your path. Your opposition includes pesky hives spawning robotic flies, massive mechanical hands, and monstrous fish. Katakis is not a friendly place.

Graphically, Super Turrican's roots in the Commodore 64 and Amiga scenes of the late eighties and early nineties (a time when game development on those platforms had migrated primarily to Europe) is readily apparent. Each level has a distinctly "Euro" feel to it, meaning large and colorful character sprites, Mode 7 effects, and parallax scrolling throughout. Of particular note is the spectacular soundtrack (created by the legendary Chris Hülsbeck), which features some great eighties-style up-tempo synth-rock tracks that are sometimes amusingly upbeat when compared to the bleak worlds they're set against.

Super Turrican is fast-paced and puts a lot of firepower at your disposal, but the casual gamer may find it repetitive and one-dimensional (you basically run around and hold down the fire button from beginning to end). For those looking for something to exercise their brain as well as their trigger finger, Super Turrican is not for you. But if you're a hardcore shooter enthusiast craving a firefight for the ages, Super Turrican will give you all you can handle.

Recommended for Fans

DoReMi Fantasy: Milon's DokiDoki Adventure

SystemVirtual Console - Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Cost900 Points
Players1
ControllersWii Remote,Wii Nunchuk,GameCube
ESRB RatingEveryone
ReleasedMar 22, 1996

The trickle of import games for Virtual Console continues with this quasi-sequel to Milon's Secret Castle, also available on VC, but in English (of a sort). The Super NES follow-up shares little in common with its predecessor except the main bubble-shooting main character and an affinity for destructible blocks. This is a side-scrolling platformer that has more in common with Super Mario World than with Metroid.

DoReMi Fantasy is a cute game with good graphics and very nice music. Despite being entirely in Japanese, it's actually less confusing or intimidating than the first Milon game. That's due to a combination of simpler game design and the unusually helpful Operations Guide accessed through the Wii Menu. The guide even offers tips for areas of the game where you'd normally need to read the text. The gameplay may seem too easy in the first world, but things heat up pretty quickly after that. In fact, this is a solid and even clever 2D platformer, the kind SNES was known for hosting, and fans of the genre should download it right away. Others may be put off by the Japanese text or the higher price, but do take the gamble if you're a fan of the Mario and Kirby series.

Recommended for Fans

- Jonathan Metts


Thanks to VG Museum for the classic screenshots.

Talkback

I got Super Turrican from a friend of mine for my birthday but I haven't played it yet because of Brawl. Good to hear that it's good.

TJ SpykeMarch 17, 2008

"Star Fox 2" (2 words, not just 1 camelcase word) won't ever happen in any region because no such game was ever released. Nintendo started on a game with that name but canceled it during development, so there is 0% chance of any region getting that.

I would suggest DoReMi Fantasy: Milon's DokiDoki Adventure for everyone, it's a really fun game and shows why platform games were so dominant during the 16-bit era. A shame it never came out in North America back at the time.

NWR_pap64Pedro Hernandez, Contributing WriterMarch 18, 2008

Quote from: TJ

"Star Fox 2" (2 words, not just 1 camelcase word) won't ever happen in any region because no such game was ever released. Nintendo started on a game with that name but canceled it during development, so there is 0% chance of any region getting that.

I heard the game was finished enough that people dumped the ROM online and was very playable.

Quote from: TJ

I would suggest DoReMi Fantasy: Milon's DokiDoki Adventure for everyone, it's a really fun game and shows why platform games were so dominant during the 16-bit era. A shame it never came out in North America back at the time.

Thanks, I'll be picking this one up thanks to you!

IceColdMarch 18, 2008

Quote:

(it could be Majora's Mask or Super Smash Bros., but anything from a third party would be preferable to those games at this point).   

And what's that supposed to mean?

SvevanEvan Burchfield, Staff AlumnusMarch 18, 2008

It means that the complete lack of third party games on the VC is a more important issue than getting two of the most popular N64 first party games on there. Majora's Mask is one of my favorite Zelda games, and it needs to be played by all, but I would much rather see Mischief Makers, Buck Bumble, Body Harvest, Castlevania 64, either Goemon game, etc. made available to those who have never played them. Make sense or am I being unreasonable?

IceColdMarch 19, 2008

Not at all.

DAaaMan64March 19, 2008

I've never played Body Harvest, but all those otehr games you mentioned rocked.  Especially mischief Makers, BB, and Mystical Ninja.

Share + Bookmark





Got a news tip? Send it in!
Advertisement
Advertisement