NCSupport Product Update for Items Available Week of 09/03/96
Last week was all Saturn, this week is all Playstation:
Samurai Spirits 3, Fuun Goku Ninden , Steeldom, Hokuto No Ken, Sonic Wings Special, Cool Boarders, C1 Circuit, Crash Bandicoot, Impact Racing , Star Fighter , Whats New Menu
Samurai Spirits 3 from SNK
Neo-Geo fighting games have always held a small but captive and loyal audience. This small gaming group was kept down in size due mostly to the high prices of Neo-Geo hardware and software which placed them beyond the reach of most of the general populace. When SNK inked deals with both Sega and Sony to port their premiere fighing games to these more widespread machines, we knew that things would change for the better for all consumers. The first SNK conversion was King of Fighters '95 for the Sega Saturn and it was a great success. Our company sold roughly 900 units in the first three months of availability and we still sell a few here and there. A few more SNK releases on both the Sega Saturn and Sony Playstation have become available since then and SS3 is the latest Neo-Geo conversion to hit the market. What did I think of Samurai Shodown 3 in general [from the Neo-Geo cartridge version?] Well...in my humble opinion, Samurai Shodown 2 is still the best of the series and we still get a lot of orders for the Samurai Shodown 2 cartridge and CD. That game played a lot better, the control was dead-on and the overall feel of the game was superior to Samurai 3. Samurai 3 did not play as well and the moves didn't feel right. I'm not saying that Samurai 3 sucks (well, that is, the Neo-Geo cartridge version didn't suck. We'll talk about the Sony Playstation version later), it doesn't but I think a lot of Samurai 1&2 players, me included, were expecting a lot more in Samurai 3. So, instead of going two steps fowards with SS3, SNK took one step back. Thats all. I suppose I can put it in another perspective: Samurai 1 and 2 were great. Samurai 3 is good but when viewed from a distance, it just doesn't live up to its predecessors. One innovation in Samurai 3 was the ability to play a good or bad version of a character, which would then affect the disposition of your fighter, his special moves and his attack style. This is something that SNK should keep when they release SS4 (hope). Now, how does the SONY Playstation version live up to the Neo-Geo version? I'm afraid to say that it doesn't fare very well. Two major flaws are found in the SONYPS version which make the game almost unplayable, at least to me since I have gotten used to the gameplay and quality found in the NG versions of SS2 and SS3. One, the control is a tad off and not as good as the control on the NG versions. Two, the animation is not smooth and is rather distracting to see. It is choppy, so much so that I thought I needed to adjust my bias screw again. I think some of you have seen the 3DO and Sega Genesis versions of Samurai Shodown 2. Pitiful conversions that they were, they made the NG originals look like masterpieces, not that they aren't but I'm trying to drive home a point here. SS3 on the SONYPS is not as bad as those two but it gets pretty close. Purist Neo-Geo fans should not pick this one up as it will make you wish you had never sold your Neo-Geo to that video game store for five cents on the dollar when you heard that SNK was licensing out their software. Our company ordered big on Samurai 3 and we hope that we will sell a lot of units but I am not too keen on this new conversion from SNK and hope that their next effort, Fatal Fury Real Bout is more worthwhile. I await Samurai Shodown 2 on the SONYPS or SATURN and maybe I will look forward to SS3 on the Sega Saturn but maybe, just maybe I should stop waiting and just stick with the original on the Neo that I will probably never sell now that I have seen that some conversions can be pretty lame. For those of you who have kept your trusty Neo-Geo cartridge system and/or Neo-Geo CD system, we have a selection of Samurai for you in the options box below:
Fuun Goku Ninden from Aicom
Side scrolling platform games are scarce in the era of the 32-bit polygon powered console [Soon to be joined in the USA by the 64-bit Nintendo]. Every once in a while however, a publisher releases a side scrolling game to break the string of 3-D fighting games, 3-D shooters, 3-D adventures games, well, you get the idea. Fuun Goku is a fine looking game with rendered character graphics but the gameplay is standard platform action where you go from left to right and jump, kick, and punch your way through an assortment of enemy characters whose sole purpose in life is to pummel you into oblivion. The main characters in the game are monkey gods. You may recognize the word 'Goku' from last year's Goku Legends which is also known as Magical Beast Warriors. Goku Legends was a 2-D fighting game which featured characters from Chinese lore, including the monkey god who fights with a cane and wears some funky looking head ornaments. The monkey gods have been miniaturized for this new platformer from Banpresto and they look like they could be platform action stars if the game is good enough. You know, Aicom could start start a franchise in video games with these Goku characters like Ganbare Goemon or Doraemon has done. We expect Fuun Goku to sell the usual 50 pcs for titles of this type so we have ordered in moderate quantities.
Steeldom from Technosoft Co.
Steeldom is a 3-D fighting game where your characters can walk around a bit before engaging in hand to hand combat. This free roam environment is reminescent of Robo-Pit or Reverthion and Steeldom should probably be thought of as Robo-Pit with better graphics. Both games feature interesting looking robots that can upgrade their body parts so that you can fight more effectively against your opponents. I don't have much else to say about either game, except that they are both fun and can be quite engaging (sic) when you get down to exploring the game in good detail and finding out which robots are better than others against certain opponents or in certain environments. Steeldom gives you a total of eight characters to choose from who range from spiky haired samurai warrior types to a cute bunny eared girl who all commandeer vicious looking mecha. Some of the mechs look pretty unbalanced with their oversized arms with claws on the ends while others carry really big swords. Steeldom should do okay and sell Reverthion type numbers.
Hokuto No Ken from Banpresto
Buyers note: This is the same interactive movie fighting game that has been available on the Saturn for a few months now. Hokuto No Ken is also known as Fist of the Northstar and this is a very popular anime series in Japan which is about a group of fighters with oversized, muscular bodies who go around and fight amongst each other to settle their differences, their personal conflicts and their own little dramas that go on. The game format is an interactive movie/fighting game. The interactive movie part of it allows you to respond to certain situations by clicking on a set of options which designate the paths that you can take. The fighting sequences are turn based click and choose interactions that should not be considered as fighting ala Street Fighter Zero but more like Battle Heat where you can choose to either punch, kick or guard and then your opponent does likewise. You then watch the move being played out in fine animation quality and see if you were successful in hitting the other guy or if the other guy was able to whup you. This continues until one of you goes down. If this doesn't sound like much fun, you're absolutely right. The Saturn version was mediocre and the Playstation version should be a carbon copy of it.
Sonic Wings Special from Video System
A cool shooter on the Saturn, the same cool shooter on the SONYPS. Sonic Wings is a vertical shoot 'em up where you can choose from two characters and their metal birds. First there is Hien who is a ninja warrior, in addition to being an ace fighter pilot. He flies an FS-X, which is a snazzy number for those of you who are not aeronautically inclined. Then there is Mao-Mao, no relation to the Mao of Chinese history, who is a flamboyant Japanese airplane stewardess who shows a lot of leg and flies an American F-15 Eagle. Sound far fetched? Remember, we're in video game land here, where the plots (pilots?) and characters can get more contrived than any Hollywood script. The graphics in SWS are 16-bit quality and are really nothing special. Arcade shooters are still on 16-bit systems so this is nothing out of the ordinary and is rather standard since most shooters don't need 3-D polygon style graphics or powerful processors when they are based in 2 dimensions anyway. Games such as Philosoma for the Sony used 32-bit graphics but to be frank, I did not think those graphics were better than the current 16-bit graphics on most shooters in the arcades and in the home. Sure they were texture mapped and looked realistic but at times the graphics looked like they were cut and pasted on the video game background. That wasn't too appealing and it felt artificial...if I can use such a word to comment on video games. I enjoyed the Saturn version of SWS quite a bit and the SONYPS version should be just as fine.
Cool Boarders from UEP Systems
A decidedly 'American' game gets first release in Japan. Decidedly American because the only snow in Japan is on the top of Mount Fuji. CBoarders is ESPN Extreme on snow where you guide a snowboarder through icy terrain and try to navigate him so that he doesn't crash or freezer burn on the way to the finish line. Your snowboarder can also perform little jumps, spins and little snowboard tricks as he goes down in the snow which will make your snowboarder look that much cooler. This title will be renamed Shred Fest for its American release later this month. The graphics in Cool Boarders are good but since the action moves at a lively pace, you don't really get to appreciate the scenery or details too much. I enjoyed CB a bit more than ESPN Extreme although they both share very similar themes (and game engines). Maybe it was the crisp, cool, icy feel of the whole game and the fact that snowboarding is a more plausible activity than racing down urban jungles alongside motor wehicles with your in-line skates. In any case, both titles are currently in stock for your Playstation enjoyment.
C1 Circuit from Invex
A rather plain looking racing game makes it out for the Playstation along with the bevy of titles listed above. The graphics for the cars look amateurish and simple and I felt that the publisher could have spent a little more time in sprucing up the cars so that they would look a bit more appealing to drive and look at. After all, image is 90% everyting in playing a racing game to get that feel of speed and to think that you're pretty happening with a nice set of wheels. This certainly ain't no Ridge Racer or Sega Rally. The roads however look detailed and feature bridges, overpasses, railings and city scenes as you ride through the game so this is a redeeming quality. The control of the car is passable and the game itself is playable so these are some other redeeming qualities. All in all, an average racing title that would have benefited from a little more touch up before release.
Crash Bandicoot from Sony Computer Entertainment of America [USA]
Another video game rascal hits the market and he might just become another famous mascot that heads a company (SONY) in the likes of Sonic the Hedgehog or Mario the Plumber. Crash looks a little more scruffy than either the clean cut Mario or Sonic but he does have a fierce spin attack that could be endearing. The game itself is a 3-D platform action game where you, as Crash, have to save your girlfriend from an evil kidnapper. I suppose saving the world from environmental dangers would be too much of a stretch. Like Mario and Sonic, Crash has a jump attack but also a spin attack which is reminescent of the Tasmanian Devil's move of Warner Brothers cartoon fame. The views and perspectives that are presented by the game's 'camera' look great and this platformer should be a fun and engaging 3-D romp. Crash Bandicoot is available for shipping as of September 4, 1996.
Impact Racing from Funcom
A racing game with teeth arrives on the Playstation scene. It won't win any awards of any kind but it plays okay and looks good enough for a 32-bit racer. Impact Racing places you in the drivers seat of a rubber burner with the ability to pick up weapons with which to blow your fellow motorists out of the road. Of course, you're not the only one with the guns and missles, the other drivers are out for a good time as well and will aim for your car when they're behind you to try and know you out of the road. A varied mix of racing scenery in the levels adds to the general fun and carnage of Impact Racing. Impact Racing is also available for the Sega Saturn as of 09/04/96.
Star Fighter from Acclaim
SF brings to mind the type of game found in such older titles as 3DO Total Eclipse and the subsequent SATURN Solar Eclipse. Star Fighter is a 3-D shooter where you engage waves of enemies through varied star fields and through interesting looking planetary terrain. SF is available for both the Playstation and Saturn as of 09/04/96.
