David Kudrev
“Then suddenly out of the gloom came a sharp hiss. ‘What has it got in its pocketses?’ “1 A Neo Geo Pocket perhaps? I’ve never owned one myself, but I hear they’re pretty darn precious! Including games like World Heroes, Fatal Fury, and even Samurai Showdown (Samurai Spirits depending on your region) with Chibi versions of the fighters, I can see the temptation… but then I came across this!
According to a translated post on Famicom Plaza (translated and caught in time by Andriasang.com before the post disappeared) this new variant of the Neo Geo Pocket (no official word from SNK Playmore as of yet, but it does bear the branding) includes a 4.3 inch screen (for what exactly? Not sure, as Neo Geo games were in 4:3 ratio anyway), 2GB storage, and will come bundled with 20 classic Neo Geo games, including:
1. World Heroes
2. Ultimate 11
3. Top Player’s Golf
4. Sengoku
5. Nam-1975
6. Mutation Nation
7. Last Resort
8. King of Monsters
9. Frenzy
10. Cyber Lip
11. Fatal Fury Special
12. Art of Fighting
13. Super Sidekicks
14. League Bowling
15. Metal Slug
16. Magical Lord
17. Baseball Stars Professional
18. Samurai Showdown
19. King of Fighters ’94
20. Fatal Fury
Take note however, that the games are all US versions. Why is this relevant you ask? Because the Japanese release of numerous games were uncensored. Minor detail really, however one does involve Mai Shiranui…
Regardless, there’s no decent way to describe how excited I am about this! I’ll be lurking around the internet with a comb to find out pricing and the release date. No doubt any Neo Geo fans out there will also be pretty chuffed that it’s making an official(?) return! :D
Deviant Artist qwedfgbnm has created an amazingly detailed illustration of all the classic and current characters from the Smash Bros. series. The detail put into this is simply astounding! It would make an excellent poster for any fan of Nintendo IP’s, not to mention Smash Bros!
Whilst tooting on the Nintendo trumpet, this week’s retro release from the eShop is Balloon Kid, the sequel to Balloon Fight on the NES. Balloon kid is basically a platform game involving flying around the screen collecting balloons. It didn’t get the best reviews, which is a shame as it had pretty good graphics, a gorgeous soundtrack, and it also did something not many platform games have dared to attempt- going from Right-to-Left! But hey, a piece of history is still a piece of history.
Righto, so this is what it would be like if video game characters went corporate. Here we have a rather comical mashup of video game characters names into popular contemporary logos by Duelling Analogs. Although I’m not sure if I’d be down for a sandwich from Sub Zero! Either too much bone, or soggy bread that hasn’t been thawed out properly…ugh.
And now for a treat! I’ve deliberately left some kickass news for the end of today’s post! Good Old Games have added yet another developer/publisher/conglomerate to the games library. Square Enix is the new name, but regardless of the title it is thanks to this company that many classics have shined in the PC gaming world. One in particular, I even would go out there to state, is the best PC game I’ve ever played! That’s correct, not one of the best, but the best. Of course, I speak of Deus-Ex.
Deus-Ex is a game like no other (well, System Shock 2 was very similar and also scored very positive reviews). You are Agent J.C. Denton, a member of an anti-terrorist organisation which is set to locate members of a terrorist group responsible for destroying an iconic piece of America, as well as locating vaccines for a virus which is infecting many around the globe. This is one amazing adventure inspired by numerous conspiracy theories prior to 9/11.
What makes this game stand out from others in similar genres, is not just the storyline, but the fact that you can choose how to complete certain missions, as in either running in guns blazing, or a more tactical approach where you sneak around in the shadows. Also any game with multiple endings tends to be well received (Chrono Trigger is another example).
Another game which stood out in the PC gaming world and added an interesting ingredient to the third person shooter genre, is Hitman: Codename 47. You play as a hitman, and you must sneak around and be quite covert in your assassination missions. There’s a slew of sequels made since Codename 47 as well, but definitely check out where it all started.
Deus-Ex and Hitman: Codename 47 are now available on GOG.com
1 quote from The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien.