Game vs Game, It's back! -- Now Playing: Episode 1 Racer

[Betagam7]

To add another point to the Aladdin discussion, I don't think Aladdin running around hacking and slashing people in the Genesis version fits the character. It's similar to how I feel about The Adventures of Batman and Robin on the Genesis being a run n gun game featuring a character who abhors guns. It just doesn't fit. The SNES version is a better representation of the character.

And getting back to Aladdin, seeing him use his acrobatic abilities (jumping on people Mario style, swinging on stuff, gliding through the air, etc.) and attacking people with non violent means (apples) seems like a truer representation of the character.

The Genesis versions of some cross platform, licensed games had that annoying habit of forcing characters into play styles that don't fit them, which makes them feel like games that feature the characters but aren't really about the characters.

This is definitely a good point. I remember being vaguely annoyed by this back in the day and I wonder if, today, Disney wouldn't be more protective of what it's characters did in games. The swordplay seemed to to me very much representative of the Mega Drive's endless quest to be more "edgy" than the SNES, even though I realise now that it wasn't probably conceived that way by the developer, I did think I read something about Nintendo vetoing a sword at the time.

The Snes game was easy as hell to beat but it did seem a true representation of the cartoon and was a lot more fun to play in my opinion.

I just played the GB version on my new GB Boy clone and it also features a sword wielding Aladdin so I guess it was nothing to do with Nintendo's attitude to violence after all.

EDIT: Btw, I thought the Goldeneye video was great. i hope you still plan to do the Shadowrun comparison. I loved the SNES game but have never been able to get into the Genesis title on emulators.

[Gunstar Green]

I think the sword is there because they thought it would be fun. It's not like Aladdin violently eviscerates people with it or anything. If Disney had a problem with it they would have said something since they did all of the game's animations themselves.

[Sload Soap]

He does use the sword to stab Snake-like Jafar, so it isn't that much of a push. Gameplay wise it gives you a bit of extra reach when going for gems and things.

[GryeDor]

the sword is a bit of a funny aspect, the Virgin developers said in retrospect they would have left it out, and the Capcom developers said they would have included one, so we're not alone in the debate at least!

EDIT: Btw, I thought the Goldeneye video was great. i hope you still plan to do the Shadowrun comparison. I loved the SNES game but have never been able to get into the Genesis title on emulators.

thanks man, the Goldeneye episode didn't seem to get as much attention as the others. i've had a hard time with the Genesis Shadowrun too, and am eager to get and play the SNES one, i definitely have it on my list for a future episode.

[ZeroAX]

Awesome series . I'm looking forward to a Lion King comparison

[ExedExes]

The SNES vs. Genesis Aladdin debate has been something that's been grabbing my attention for much of the year as many recent podcasts and reviews I've been seeing and hearing have done so many comparisons, the pros and cons of each etc.

I think they're both unique and good games in their own right. We already know Capcom's quality output in their Disney games; yet the Genesis port has many well known names in the game industry behind theirs, correct?

[GryeDor]

yeah, the Genesis game had the likes of David Perry (Designer) and Tommy Talarico (Composer) working on it alongside Disney's animation teams. Perry went on to create Shiny Entertainment after leaving Virgin and made games like Earthworm Jim and Wild 9. Tallarico is most well known for the Video Game Live concerts today.

[Gunstar Green]

The SNES vs. Genesis Aladdin debate has been something that's been grabbing my attention for much of the year as many recent podcasts and reviews I've been seeing and hearing have done so many comparisons, the pros and cons of each etc.

I think they're both unique and good games in their own right. We already know Capcom's quality output in their Disney games; yet the Genesis port has many well known names in the game industry behind theirs, correct?

There's a lot of interesting history behind the Genesis Aladdin. It was originally going to be designed by Blue Sky Software before their failure to produce a solid product lead to it landing in Virgin's lap. Here's a great article on the whole debacle by Sega-16's always amazing Ken Horowitz.

http://www.sega-16.com/2014/03/behind-t ... s-aladdin/

[GryeDor]

Awesome series . I'm looking forward to a Lion King comparison

thanks man, and thanks for the suggestion, there are so many Disney games out there to look at, i honestly forgot all about LK! i'll have to add it to check out for sure

[Ziggy]

I went to post this twice yesterday, and both times had to stop in the middle and scrap the whole thing.

The other night, I decided to give Aladdin on Genesis another shot. Now, I'm not saying that I hate the game, or that I'll never play it again, but I just don't think it's that great. I got a few levels deep then got bored and shut it off.

I've played a lot of the SNES version back when, so I know that I'm use to that version and I might be biased. But the first thing that always hits me about the Genesis version is the visuals and the sound. They're just not as good as the SNES version. The colors seem bland by comparison (the really plain backgrounds probably don't help) and it sounds more like an NES game. The sound effects aren't as good, and the music just seems really simple and kinda cheesy.

I'm also not a fan of the level designs. This might be tough for me to explain. A lot of the levels have you going vertically and horizontally, and I've never been of a fan of that. Games like SMB3 or Super Mario World, Sonic, and plenty of others have you going vertically often, but it's not the same. I'm talking about the type of level design that feels more like a maze, that has you constantly going up and down as much as you go left and right. I'm having trouble citing examples because I don't like that type of level design, I haven't played many games with it. IIRC, Daffy Duck The Marvin Missions and Daze Before Christmas had that type of level design. Does any one know what I'm talking about?