So I finally managed to get my hands on one of these Mini CoreGrafx things (TurboGrafx 16 Mini to you, Americans, and PC Engine Mini for you Japanese). The TG16 is the one console I never saw in the wild, so besides a few games in the WiiVC I had never interacted with its library, so I was really curious,
First, I must say I’m impressed with the system menu. The card being inserted when you choose a game feels like a silly detail but that’s how you can tell this thing was made with love. The controller is also not the abomination that was the original NES mini controller, so kudos,
So far I’m liking what I’ve played. In particular Guardian Legend looks like the game my inner child ever wanted to play (melee and air combat, with a stage and vehicle select? Yes, please). Dracula X is still fun even in Japanese. Karate is still a very bad game in a way that makes it good now that it comes free with other 31 games.
The one I’ve spent the most time is, of course, Ninja Gaiden, because it’s me. I like comparing the localization and graphical style with its NES counterpart. And while it does look a lot nicer, it has so much detail it makes it hard to tell sometimes what is climbable and what isn't, so I'm playing mostly by muscle memory (and almost died at the first boss as you can't duck his sword in this version, and the swirl doesn't kill him in one hit). I'm interested in the sordid licensing history of this game, because I wanna know the reason why it doesn't have the amazing NES music, and it suffers a lot for it. Even the act opening jingle is different while attempting to remain familiar without triggering a trademark dispute.
First, I must say I’m impressed with the system menu. The card being inserted when you choose a game feels like a silly detail but that’s how you can tell this thing was made with love. The controller is also not the abomination that was the original NES mini controller, so kudos,
So far I’m liking what I’ve played. In particular Guardian Legend looks like the game my inner child ever wanted to play (melee and air combat, with a stage and vehicle select? Yes, please). Dracula X is still fun even in Japanese. Karate is still a very bad game in a way that makes it good now that it comes free with other 31 games.
The one I’ve spent the most time is, of course, Ninja Gaiden, because it’s me. I like comparing the localization and graphical style with its NES counterpart. And while it does look a lot nicer, it has so much detail it makes it hard to tell sometimes what is climbable and what isn't, so I'm playing mostly by muscle memory (and almost died at the first boss as you can't duck his sword in this version, and the swirl doesn't kill him in one hit). I'm interested in the sordid licensing history of this game, because I wanna know the reason why it doesn't have the amazing NES music, and it suffers a lot for it. Even the act opening jingle is different while attempting to remain familiar without triggering a trademark dispute.
