Posts Tagged ‘wonder boy’
Monster Boy is Coming Sometime in 2016
This is probably my most anticipated game of 2016. A new game for the Wonder Boy, well its spiritual successor. The latest trailer for Monster Boy looks like a love letter to Wonder Boy III: The Dragons Trap by featuring animal transformations in the game. Inspiration and love from both Wonder Boy in Monster Land and Wonder Boy in Monster World by featuring the infamous merchant sections from Land. It was interesting to see the trailer features animated cutscenes which look kinda cute. The developers have been allowed to practically mimic the formula made famous by the Wonder Boy series, Sega just didn’t want to give up the name for some reason. I guess Sega’s just going to sit on that IP and do nothing with it while other developers work around them, thanks Sega stay classy.
Interesting to note the game is going to be released to PS4, Xbox One, and PC but it has been rumoured the game will come to Wii U and PS Vita if the game does well. Not only would I love for this game to come to a portable device but I want Sega to release a complete Wonder Boy Collection. We were fortunate enough to get a Wonder Boy Collection of three games on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 but there are still several games on the series that very much need a re release. Wonder Boy III: The Dragons Trap one of the best Sega Master System (and Game Gear) games for the system can only be found on the original Wiis virtual console which is quite disappointing. The only glimmer of hope is Monster Boy sells 40 billion copies and Sega at least considers releasing the old games. But I guess I’ll keep dreaming.
At the end of the day I’m hugely excited for Monster Boy. Hopefully the game will do well and we will see ports to other consoles but more importantly I want to see sequels. I want more games like this and hopefully it will encourage more developers to attempt to bring back for forgotten gems from the past, even if they can’t use the name. If you can’t call it Kid Chameleon call it Power Helmets ….. anyone buy that?
ChronCD: Episode 1
ChronCD is the comprehensive coverage of all CD-based console games in chronological order. This first episode discusses the series, delves into the history of the CD-ROM and console marketplace that CD-based consoles came out in. Then we proceed into the launch window titles from 1988 and 1989. Time codes after the jump.
The downloadable highest quality version can be found here: https://archive.org/details/chroncd_ep1
0:00-0:30: ChronCD Intro
0:30-11:10: What is ChronCD?
11:17-13:43: History of the CD-ROM
13:44-22:29: Console Hardware
22:30-28:03: Fighting Street
28:04-30:43: No.Ri.Ko.
30:44-31:56: Bikkuri Man Daijikai
31:57-32:15: PC-Engine CD Launch Wrap-Up
32:16-36:00: Cobra: Kokuryo’s Legend (Space Adventure)
36:01-43:22: Valis II
43:23-45:19: Tengai Makyo Ziria (Far East of Eden)
45:20-48:58: Monster Lair (Wonderboy III)
48:59-52:06: Super Albatross
52:07-56:56: Ju O Ki (Altered Beast)
56:57-57:27: Closing Credits
Chrontendo Link: https://www.youtube.com/user/Chrontendo
Fighting Street Review
CD player sound effect by user NLM from Freesound.org and used under Creative Commons license for non-commercial use. Sound can be found here: https://www.freesound.org/people/NLM/sounds/144054/
Monster World IV Review (English Translation)
Platform: Mega Drive and PS2 (Japan Only), English translation available on XBLA (360), PSN (PS3), and Virtual Console (Wii)
Released: 1994 (Japan only), 2012 (English Translation)
Developer: Westone (English port handled by M2)
Publisher: Sega
Digital Release? Yes
Price: $8.00 (Wii), $9.99 (XBLA & PSN – part of Monster World Collection)
The Wonder Boy/Monster World series is one of those unappreciated darlings in gaming that has spread its love across various Sega consoles and even arcades but never reached it’s height of popularity in the West. So I guess it made sense that the series swan song, titled Monster World IV, was released on the Mega Drive in Japan only. It was not until 2012 that a official English re-release came out on services like XLBA and PSN, which is the version I will review here. [Editor’s Note: There is a fan translation of the original game released by DeJap in 2000, that site can be found here. Our review does not account for or evaluate this fan translation.]
New Monster Boy in Development
It finally happened and I couldn’t be happier. A spiritual successor to the Wonder Boy games is in the works, let the fireworks fly people. Just after Fred and I did our top 10 Mega Drive/Genesis games, I strolled along to my local newsagent to pick up the latest copy of Retro Gamer magazine followed by a coffee. One sitting down to enjoy my fine beverage I almost spat out my drink in disbelief when the first article I see is interview with the publisher about a game called Monster Boy. Read the rest of this entry »
Podcast: Top Scores, Volume 2
Video game soundtracks are as varied and nostalgic as the games themselves. Sometimes just hearing a few bars from a classic tune brings the memories of playing that game rushing back. Thanks to the community and a handful of personal selections, Fred and Jam present a collection of nostalgic favorites.
Download this episode (right click and save)
Download the higher quality version (right click and save)
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Track List:
Generation Gap Pt. 2: 8-Bit
Amidst the video game crash of 1983, it seemed pretty unlikely that home consoles would have a future. Fortunately a Japanese toy maker had figured out how to re-sell video games to the masses despite the world economy turning its back. That company was Nintendo.
8-bit Generation (1985 – 1995)
Nintendo Entertainment System – Launch Price: $200 – Released: 1985
Depending on your age, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) probably needs the least introduction or background, but there were many things going on behind the scenes that assisted this console in becoming the giant it was. Initially Nintendo had to figure out how to overcome the world economy’s opinion on video game consoles, which the Famicom/NES clearly was. In Japan, where personal home computers were all the rage, it was marketed as a computer for your family, hence the name Famicom (for “family computer”). In America the better way to sell it was as a toy, which everything from the console’s marketing to the simple boxy aesthetic suggests. It worked and in both regions this little 8-bit system assisted Nintendo in virtually running the 8-bit era.
Gaming History 101 