The Retrogaming Thread! [8-bit/16-bit/32-bit/64-bit]

Guys, I've been playing "Gradius 3" on SNES. Does anyone remember this series? I forgot how insanely hard and fun it was. Love the simplicity of it and it's making me want to play the earlier Gradius games on NES. Love the basic concept of leveling up weapons and the quick reaction time that you need to play it. Wondering if any of you played this series either on 8 bit or 16 bit! When I was a kid I was never able to get much farther than the first few stages but for some reason I've wanted to re-take it and see how I do, finding it very hard but fun!

 
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And to complete the trilogy.. This has to be some of the toughest games ever!! Will probably start with the NES ones and go from there, although something tells me that it's gonna be like Ghosts N' Goblins / Super Ghouls and Ghosts in terms of toughness! haha.. I really love how challenging these old-school games are.. And how the huge and epic bosses contrast with the rest of the stage, really gives the games a unique character. Definitely a saga I'll be playing a lot of these days.. A trip down memory lane!! :TU:


 
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I played a tons of Shoot-them-up but only the first or the one i owned i don't remind them until i saw the picture lol, except the one i owned.
But Gradius it's practically sure, even a sequel on SNES. Great NEST port, which wasn't a console that much created for that kind of game.

My very first was Galaga, i was 4 years old and played it standing, on a chair 🤣. And i maked very high scores and goes very far on the game (i think it's a game when you finish, you restart with one level more in difficulty, pretty old game)

No one i just got one day to share which is a classic for people (but every-time i'm saying myself "now you play... And try to get to the end now!" is that one, never posted here i believe or not regarding Shoot-them-up.

Axelay (snes exclusive) : he's often listed as one of with the best graphims on SNES.




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The console i played the most Shoot was... Master system. And it was very great : of course and thanks there wasn't that many slowdown. But some got small slowdowns but pretty rare as the console was made to receive Arcade port but on 8 bits lol.
But thanks to emulation "sprite limiter > removed".

2 or 3 games wihout posting images i loved, only the last i will mention:
Bomber Raid, Aerial Assault, Scamble Spirits, and of course R-type MS version (never discovered IRL the very first R-Type in my life elsewhere) and to finish the best of all graphically and the one of the most cultissim game from that console, looking like a 16 bits games : Sagaia (also Darius II, never played the first). If we played firstly on Master System, is that the game wasn't out on megadrive already lol. But the difference isn't that big.

SAGAIA / (Darius II) (Arcade, megadrive, master system, Game boy too lol)



Ah yes, a game not on that console i played the most was DRAGON BREED on amiga, at the time i discovered it it was pretty special, you couldve defend with your "body" except the head, a bit strategic one of my best remember Shoot em up of all time. Then i discovered it on arcade and spend a bit too much money on it 😅

DRAGON BREED (best ports : Amiga, Atari ST, C64 etc. but no console)




Good idea to switch a bit to that style, especially with vassel and sometimes tanks etc.
There's TONS of it. And all PC Engine Shoot are good Arcade port or originals, why they nickamed it "the king of Shooter".
 
@vialli82 haha! you are really a retro-gaming encyclopedia my friend. :) Axelay is definitely a classic, it does have great and colorful 16-bit graphics! I will add it to the next to play after Gradius. :) Looks really fun. Also haven't heard of the Master System / Sega Genesis game Sagaia (makes me wonder if it is a wordplay on Segaia) or the Amiga Dragon Breed but they look fun as well. Taking a look at similar games, here's one that I wasn't familiar with, called "Super Nova" for the SNES! Looks quite underappreciated and also very much in the spirit of the ones we posted! :TU:

 
It's a Darius (same as Sagaia is Darius 2) i recognised it at the shield and the type of vassal, exactly the same.
I checked on YT commentary and it's called "Darius Force" in Japan...
That one i remember the name lol, as i try to get NTSC games as their runs better/faster on 16/32bits (after only we will get the option "50/60 Hz")
 
vialli82 said:
It's a Darius (same as Sagaia is Darius 2) i recognised it at the shield and the type of vassal, exactly the same.
I checked on YT commentary and it's called "Darius Force" in Japan...
That one i remember the name lol, as i try to get NTSC games as their runs better/faster on 16/32bits (after only we will get the option "50/60 Hz")
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I checked on Youtube about Gradius, cause i was playing R-Type, by coinsidence, and while i was surprised, part of me expected, that there was an unofficial contest back then, like we say PES-FIFA fanboys, people pick sides in a contest R-Type vs Gradius vs Darius.

To be honest, if did not now the names previously, i would not be able to seperate if a game is R-Type or Gradiusor Darius, just by videos.

Also what new i learned , there are two definite editions in 2003 and 2004 respectively, R-Type Final and Gradius V on PS2. And R-Type has more retrained and remastered editions since then, on the following Nintendo platforms.

 
Well let's Resume :
-Gradius is out as the first i believe shoot horizontal more advanced. It was a success in arcade and got several ports

-Darius is out later, perhaps the less known of the 3. But as it's a good game with many choice of weapon when you start and some +, it became a classic too

-R-Type was something pretty creative when it's out, the most popular, and the hardest. Also, ennemies could be some scary E.T., it was more "gore" and pretty impressive visually even if it was out in end 80 (1987), all fresh to be ported on every support possible.

All of them got remakes, or sequel, etc., but in terms of duration console era after era, i believe R-Type is one of the only remaining, remastered, sequel, etc. that's the one who got more versions that i know.

... But one of my favourite, due to the graphisms (especially when you play in EPSXE hd, looks like a Dreamcast game) is G-Darius.
They did a remake on PS4, in high definition. No idea but i don't think you can put it in 16/9 as it was part of the gameplay.
Very dynamic, tons of different monsters, i loved that 2.5D game when i discovered it (a bit late but it's never too late)

I will post the enhanced version, as everyone will play it now will see the PS3-PS4 1080p enhanced version:


 
Tote there's also DARIUSBURST EX on PS4 but i don't know, the background is more static, you lost the "voyage" impression. I'd like G-Darius better > they got the same price on the PSN lol, and they're probably on steam...
But 30 euros, it's again making money on the back of nostalgia players, i hate that.
If i want it i will ddl it to play on Duckstation PS1 emulator some filters + resolution *4 :P


Also like @slamsoze posted, the R-type final is a great game. The 2 is really well made, the atmosphere, graphisms etc., i don't remember if it was out on PS2 or PS3...

But you can see a gap graphically between the R-TYPE Final 1 and the 2 so probably on PS3-4 (still on sale on the PSN i believe like Dariusburst... All between 30-34 euros. I won't fall in their nostalgia trap)

 
vialli82 said:
But you can see a gap graphically between the R-TYPE Final 1 and the 2 so probably on PS3-4 (still on sale on the PSN i believe like Dariusburst... All between 30-34 euros. I won't fall in their nostalgia trap)
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30 Euros is too much.. But I gotta say that I have fallen hard for the retrogaming remakes on steam. I paid about the equivalent of 10 Euros each for Ghosts N´Goblins Resurrection and Streets of Rage 4. (with massive holiday discount of course)




Actually come to think of it. It's not nostalgia at all for me. I can honestly say I REALLY like these games much more than 99% of modern games. Maybe I just have unusual taste when it comes to gaming. :)
 
Exactly, at least to me both aren't nostalgia. Except if it's a simple remake of a game i already played and ended.
Those two games especially G'n'G resurection which is simple but with more RPG elements and graphisms PS4 level.
Street of rage 4 i'm still waiting a decrease in price to brought it (it was 34.99 euros once... Don't mess with my wallet he's not extensible)

But for many people it's nostalgia : they're less familiar than us as they didn't played those games since 25 years. It's totally understandable they don't considers those games as "equivalent" as current games as we don't search the same stuffs (fun, variety, deep, playability), and like you said for Axellay "awesome 16 bits graphisms".

It's just that i got a lot of recoil regarding 16 bits or XXXX bits from the PS5. I know the console limits so i know what is impressive and what isn't. I'm often more impressed by hack (like the G'n'g future hack in Megadrive) than tons of Remaster like Resident's Evil one (well, i admit that it was much more an experience / movie like, than a super-playable game)
But the controls haved his charm and we get used to it after some games.
 
Actually my friend, both of these games are not really "remakes", I used the wrong word.. They are the same "universe", but if you take a look at the stages, monsters, bosses, they are entirely new. Both in GnG resurrection and Streets of Rage 4, there are some classic enemies, but also a whole new group of opponents, both normal and bosses, and stages are completely invented (new ones), So I would't really call them remakes but more like sequels with a more "modern" feel to them but with the classic gameplay. :TU:
 
(Edit: Corrected)
No, they're could be or sequel or we could say they took the best of all version and recreated one game with it + new stuffs on it.
Like Sonic 4 Episode 1 (i loved it and i'm not especially a super fan of Sonic : just like the game, some better than the others... Even the one on Dreamcast in 3D "Sonic Adventure" was impressive and pretty fun) or i don't remember.

Edit: if i remember i'd brought G'N'G resurrection without discount at 14.99. That should have been the price of Street of Rage 4.

It's not like AAA games who got a full movie budget, even half of the price of those game is too much.
And i don't talk that they're better or whatever : just about the development cost which is, in comparison, ridiculous
 
@vialli82 @slamsoze Before I forget, wanted to ask you guys: what would you recommend for Neo-Geo/MAME games which are similar in style to Gradius/Darius? Been wanting to play an arcade version of this style, perhaps with a bit more graphics capability. :TU:
 
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No port, arcade only? It will be hard to remember lol. I will on Neo Geo as their Shoot' are made for 4:3 or 8:7 (japanese standard).
Otherwhise there's tons of magnificent shoot but they're created with a vertical long screen...
It looks too small with our screen. Like Dodonpachi (you can try with the big black bars) considered as perhaps the best Shooter never released.

Neo Geo shoots on vids :

The one i tested, considered as one of the most beautiful game in NEOGEO : Last Resort (the 3rd on the vid)


There's one pretty good Arcade/Snes "Aero Fighters / Sonic Wings"

The Snes port is very very lookalike, as you guessed already it's named "Aero Fighter" in Europe, "Sonic Wings" in Japan.
There's a translation patch for Snes easy to found.

Arcade vs Snes :

 
Those look REALLY fun. :) Out of the ones you showed me, the only one I played was "Blazing Stars", which I remember instantly for the Power Up voices which were really imprinted in my memory when I was younger. Some of them remind me of a more "intense" 1943: The Battle of Midway for NES! One of the first games I played when I was kid. For some reason I am really drawn to these kind of "jet" or "plane" games lately, just the intense gameplay, no mind, just reflexes and action, is really appealing to me nowadays!



Oh, and Ports or SNES/Master System original suggestions are perfect too! :TU:
 
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images

Shame or no shame this was a thing in my country.
 
Does the Light Phaser worked on a Megadrive for gun's shooter games? I know there's one called "Menacer".
But i remember too that port from MS and MD were interchangeable > you could've play with a Megadrive pad on Master System.

Only owned the Light Phaser on Master System, and the NES one (when we shared/exchanged consoles. But i only got Duck Hunt) and the Bazooka on a pack / let's admit it, it was fun the first day but "too much" for a simple gun-shooter, too big, perhaps the biggest SNES fail.
Namco did another gun version through.

Now 2 shoot-em-up from my childhood i played the most on Master system, not especially the best but scotching at the time. One vertical and one horizontal. Of course after R-Type, and i discovered Sagaia later than those two:

Bomber Raid / i took one with the less blurry rendering


Aerial Assault (what i liked is the super fast ship, ultra responsive)


@millossobek if you're searching about good port or original Shoot-em-up, it's more on the Sega side you will found them.
More than on Snes or NES.
But the one who got the more shooter, practically half of their catalog is the Supergraphx/PC Engine (I repeat but it was called the king of shooter. Unfortunately i didn't owned one so... No memories)
 
@vialli82 I haven't been able to get the Turbografx emulator to work yet for me.. But when I do I will definitely be checking out the games you mention, if it is called "the king" of the genre then yes, definitely it is worth checking out big time! :TU:

Sega comes to the rescue! Once again, more of a mystery console for me! I wasn't really part of the "console wars" of the 90's, but I was definitely more of a SNES kid than a Mega Drive, so a lot of these games are new to me.. which is really exciting. :)

Here's one more great game of the genre for SNES which I really like and still play: UN Squadron!

 
haha, I'm actually quite obsessed with these kind of games nowadays, here's another one.. SNES Thunder Spirits! I'd never heard of this one, seems to have a nice selection of different weapons.. Doing some research on it there are really a lot of these games in 16-32 bit, Iooks like I'll have my hands full for quite some time! :TU:

 
It's in fact the Megadrive series "Thunder Force V" (or IV, well i know it's the best version) but ported on Snes on another name, i believe in US/Japan only and years later.
There's a comparison vids, i don't remember exactly, but it's a fast paced game so it could be hard for the Snes to make it run without slowdown, even if the game may be more colorful if they ported it in accordance to Snes capacities.
Through, i remember on the comparing vids that there was some micro different stuffs here and there, background colors etc.

Well it's a Megadrive classic for sure. So whatever the emulator Snes/Megadrive, just run on it ;)
 
I think I posted this one before, but the 8-bit Nintendo version.. This is the arcade version. It's amazing how many games I didn't know were based on arcades and now with MAME I'm discovering them! I always thought KARNOV had a great universe, very original and based on multiple folklores, it even has prehistoric creatures. Some of the bosses really seem invented for the game, and have strange appearances, and the whole game just has this whole original strange subworld theme which I find very cool! :TU:

 
I loved "Mario 2" when I was a kid, one of the first games I played. :) Lol, everyone knows now that this is a "re-drawn" version of Doki Doki panic (btw, has anyone played the original one?), but I had no idea as a kid. In my memory at least this game is part of the Mario series :LOL: Always thought it was so fun and back in the day I thought "man the Mario guys really re-invented themselves with this one".haha.. Doki Doki panic or Mario, I think this is a great game with very inventive controls and gameplay! :TU:

 
As for horizontal shooters, found a game similar to R-Type/Radius/Gradius. It's named Super Earth Defense Force, and i discovered it recently on Switch. I see it has a lot of customization on weapons and similar but different shields to the other games of the genre.


For classic airplanes, i also only know the series with the ages, 1941, 1942, etc, which are vertical, as @vialli82 said previously

 
millossobek said:
I loved "Mario 2" when I was a kid, one of the first games I played. :) Lol, everyone knows now that this is a "re-drawn" version of Doki Doki panic (btw, has anyone played the original one?), but I had no idea as a kid. In my memory at least this game is part of the Mario series :LOL: Always thought it was so fun and back in the day I thought "man the Mario guys really re-invented themselves with this one".haha.. Doki Doki panic or Mario, I think this is a great game with very inventive controls and gameplay! :TU:

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The OG sequel for the rest of the world, except us in Europe and you in America (north/south) was Super Mario Bros 2 the Lost levels.



But we never knew it , until the Super Marios All stars game in SNES, and the era of the internet then.

P.S.: If you ask me, i prefer the Doki Doki alternative, as something that gives diversity to the series. The Lost Levels, seems more like a retrained SUPER MARIO BROS 1.
 
And something bonus, there is a Sonic Mode, basically it is a reskin for Speedy Gonzales SNES games. Basically it has recieved many negative reviews, cause the sprites are cheap sometimes, basically they look sharp in some instances and it seems a rushed work, but i can't find now, the Sonic Moded ROM for SNES, i've watched months ago, which was very smooth. And someone has put effort in here, so just respect! :)

Speedy Gonzales




Sonic "4" Mode

 
slamsoze said:
he OG sequel for the rest of the world, except us in Europe and you in America (north/south) was Super Mario Bros 2 the Lost levels.
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Right! I discovered the lost levels on one of those 100 in 1 famicom cartridges , imagine my surprise when I saw it, and being a huge fan of the original mario as well, really quite enjoyed the entire new levels! Although I agree with you, I prefer the doki doki alternative as well, very different system and overall feeling!

Here was a hilarious hack that was available too here, I think it was a Chinese version, of Looney Tunes Adventures, but with Mario face and other "elements" looooool.. The guy who tried to sell it to me as a kid said "look it's Mario 4"! :LMAO: I will put the original game and the hack for laughs. :LOL:



 
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