Summer Games Challenge 2015

[prfsnl_gmr]

Blaster Master (NES/PSP)
Earthbound (SNES/WIIU)
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (2600/7800)
Kaboom! (2600/7800)
Galactic Attack/RayForce (SATURN/XBOX)
Half-Life (PC/PS2)
R-Type Delta (PS1/PS3)
Samurai Shodown II (NEOGEO/PS2)
Shining Force II (GENESIS/PS3)
Virtua Racing (ARCADE/PS2)

My wife went to bed early on Friday, and I knocked out two more of the games on my list:

Samurai Shodown II - This is a fantastic fighting game, and its mechanics are deeper than the ocean. You three levels of weapon-based attacks; three levels of kicks; and, if you drop your weapon, three levels of punches. You can also throw and parry, and you can dash and roll toward and away from your opponent. Each of the game's 15 playable characters have a variety of special moves - which can be faked or cancelled - and their normal attacks often vary depending on their distance from their opponent. Finally - and reminiscent of Bushido Blade - it is possible to defeat your opponent with only a few big hits; so, a match is never really lost until one player's lfe-bar is fully depleted. IMO, Samurai Shodown II is one of the best 2D fighters of the '90s; it is easily SNK's best game of the '90s; and it is certainly the best game in the Samurai Shodown series. (I spent some time with the later installments, and it is amazing how much worse they are than Samurai Shodown II.) The game is also quite difficult, and despite a lot of practice, I am not very good at it. (Don't get me wrong. I would probably stomp most of you in a 2-player game. The computer is just really, really good.) In a single-player game, the difficulty spikes at the third, seventh, eleventh, and twelfth characters. (That is, it doesn't matter who you fight and no matter what difficulty setting you choose, that opponent is going to be really tough. If you get Nicotine - who totally sucks - for your third opponent, you might be able to get through unscathed, and you should hope that you get Kyoshiro - who isn't much better than Nicotine - for your seventh.) Despite the fact it is an SNK game, however, the final boss is quite easy (and I was able to defeat her on my first attempt). In sum, I highly recommend this game to anyone who is a fan of 2D fighting games, and I am gald that I finally saw it through to the end.

E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial - I collected phone parts; I gave Eliott some Reese's Pieces; I fell into some pits; I cursed an FBI agent; I phoned home; and I got picked up by the mother ship. Despite its reputation, E.T. really is not that bad (and it is by no means the worst game on the Atari 2600). It is really annoying until you learn its mechanics, however, and the game (like many of its era) is exceptionally cryptic. (Accordingly, it is best to consult the manual so you know what you are doing. It is, however, like a primitive Legend of Zelda, and I admire what Atari did with it. I don't exactly recommend it, but I think that no Atari 2600 collection is complete without it.

I also started Shining Force II this weekend, and I am really enjoying it so far. The game is a lot of fun, and the graphics are stupendous.

[Ack]

1. Final Fantasy V
2. System Shock 2
3. Descent
4. Ultima
5. Loom
6. 7th Guest
7. Mortal Kombat 2
8. Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
9. Super Mario Bros. 2: The Lost Levels
10. Castlevania: Dracula X

Dracula X is fairly quick to get through, if you're still looking to do the short games first.

You weren't kidding. I'm not done playing it yet, as there are several alternate paths to go down and I want to see all the different levels and bosses before I move on, but yeah, I started this up on Saturday after beating Loom, and I crawled through several levels to finish it Sunday night. Passwords...thank God for passwords.

If you get Nicotine - who totally sucks - for your third opponent, you might be able to get through unscathed, and you should hope that you get Kyoshiro - who isn't much better than Nicotine - for your seventh.

I actually usually play as Kyoshiro...

[prfsnl_gmr]

I actually usually play as Kyoshiro...

You may be great with him...The computer doesn't know how to use him very well, however, and I was always delighted whenever he was one of my opponents.

(I usually play as Charlotte, Haohmaru, and Jubei. I beat the game as Haohmaru.)

[BogusMeatFactory]

I actually usually play as Kyoshiro...

You may be great with him...The computer doesn't know how to use him very well, however, and I was always delighted whenever he was one of my opponents.

(I usually play as Charlotte, Haohmaru, and Jubei. I beat the game as Haohmaru.)

Genan 4 LIFE! He is absolutely my favorite character and it is a shame he isn't in all the iterations. Ukyo, on the other hand is out and out broken in a big way. Low frame, heavy hitting attacks and a lot of versatility. Definitely the best character to be successful as, but that is just my opinion.

I remember playing Samurai Shodown on the SNES with my friends. They were touting their mad skills and they weren't bad, but if I selected Earthquake, they couldn't beat me. The matches would last just seconds and I was really confused as to how they could take down everything I was throwing out, except for Earthquake.

As for which is the better Samurai Shodown, I feel that 2 is definitely the best for what makes samurai shodown samurai shodown. Later iterations are alright, but deviate from what makes the game special. V isn't bad, but it has a heavier focus on environment play. Characters have floating projectiles and positioning is the number 1 factor for success and stringing these projectiles into combos is important. It no longer is about the pure weapon on weapon combat.

[noiseredux]

found these:

(2012)

Beats of Rage
Cave Story
Corpse Party -Rebuilt-
Fallout
Grand Theft Auto Vice City
Half-Life
Indigo Prophecy
Loom
Super Fighter
VVVVVV

(2014)

Aliens Versus Predator
Batman Arkham Asylum
Dragon's Lair
Fallout
Loom
Metal Slug 3
Phantasy Star IV
Sonic 3 And Knuckles
Tomb Raider Anniversary
Wonder Boy In Monster World

Funny, I guess I've been meaning to tackle Loom and Fallout for a while now. I actually didn't beat anything on the 2012 list in 2012, but rather beat Half-Life later for Together Retro, and then Indigo Prophecy earlier this year via the HD version.

[BoneSnapDeez]

E.T. really is not that bad (and it is by no means the worst game on the Atari 2600).

Do you happen to have the infamous Fire Fly in your collection?

[prfsnl_gmr]

E.T. really is not that bad (and it is by no means the worst game on the Atari 2600).

Do you happen to have the infamous Fire Fly in your collection?

Of course! I have all of Mythicon's games! (Mythicon only released four or five Atari 2600 games - none of which are very expensive - and it is easy to get a complete set of them.)

[Ack]

Funny, I guess I've been meaning to tackle Loom and Fallout for a while now. I actually didn't beat anything on the 2012 list in 2012, but rather beat Half-Life later for Together Retro, and then Indigo Prophecy earlier this year via the HD version.

Loom won't take you very long at all. Just remember to write down the drafts you find. It's a pretty quick run.

[alienjesus]

The next 3 games on my alphabet list are all handheld games, so I thought I might get stuck into my summer games challenge list for my console game of choice now that I've finished Live a Live.

My list:
1. Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryuu To Hikari No Ken (Famicom)
2. Super Aleste (SNES)
3. Banjo-Tooie (N64)
4. Metroid: Zero Mission (GBA)
5. Saturn Bomberman (SAT)
6. Shenmue (DC)
7. Shinobi (GG)
8. Final Fantasy VIII (PS1)
9. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Vita)
10. The Curse of Monkey Island (PC)

Gonna try and get a big one out of the way first. Final Fantasy VIII it is!

[BoneSnapDeez]

Nothing finished yet! But my progress so far.

Bonk's Adventure - I've made it about 2/3 of the way through. I wish the game had some sort of save/password feature; it seems just long enough to necessitate that sort of thing.
Castlevania - Terrible at this one. Haven't even reached the second boss yet .
Ghosts 'n Goblins - Made it to stage 5. Not bad!
Ikari Warriors - Who the hell knows, everything looks the same.
Ninja Gaiden - Made it to stage 5-3. Not bad!
OutRun - I can almost reach the third checkpoint. Not very good at this one either.