Atari 2600 6-Switch and 4-Switch vs. Jr.
Apparently many 2600Jr.s have a buggy TIA chip that causes Kool-Aid Man to be unplayable. It is possible that it may affect other games, but Kool-Aid Man is confirmed. See here :
http://atariage.com/forums/topic/165168-kool-aid-man-rom-problem/?hl=+kool#entry2950077
http://atariage.com/forums/topic/45244-why-does-this-2600-game-only-play-on-the-2600-jr/?hl=%2Bbuggy+%2Btia#entry547110
Unlike all 6-switchers and many 4-switchers, the chips in the Jr. are socketed and not easily replaceable.
Some Atari 2600jr. have a single chip instead of the three chips of most Jr.s and all other 2600. They have video issues with the Harmony Cart's menu, and Kool-Aid Man and some interesting graphical anomalies with Pitfall II : http://atariage.com/forums/topic/196368-unicorn-boards-and-harmony-cart-menus-single-chip-2600-compatibility/
As far as the 6-switch vs. the 4-switch models go, the 6-switches (and the Jr.) have a video buffer chip that provides better video quality than the 4-switch. Some cartridges or controllers may find it easier to fit in a 4-switch or a Jr. than the Light or especially a Heavy Sixer.
Atari 5200 4-Port vs. 2-Port
Not much of a comparison here, the ability to play four player games on the 4-port 5200 is balanced against the ability to use the VCS Cartridge Adapter to play 2600 games on the 2-port 5200. However, the 4-port 5200 can be modded with eight passive components to provide the required compatibility. See Here : http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/5200/cx55.html
In addition, the 4-port 5200 uses a combination RF and power switchbox that is known for its fragility. The 2-port uses a simple power adapter and separate RF output. Fortunately, it is not too difficult to mod a 4-port for separate power and AV output.
NES - Front Loader vs. Top Loader
The Front Loader may have issues with its connector, but typically a good cleaning of the connector and carts a visual inspection of the pins can solve virtually any problem. The Front Loader has AV out, which the Top Loader lacks. Top Loaders are RF only. In addition, the output on a Top Loader is crap. A fix like this : http://www.stoneagegamer.com/nes-toploader-av.html would will restore the video quality, but you have to drill holes in your system's case or remove the RF unit. Not a beginner's mod.
Also, Game Genies don't fit properly in a Top Loader. There was an official adapter made for the Game Genie, but it is extremely rare. You could use a NES PowerPak or Everdrive N8, which support five Game Genie Codes as opposed to the three codes of the real Game Genie. Finally, there is no power LED on a Top Loader.
Sega Master System Model 1 vs. Model 2
Compared to the Model 2, Sega Master System Model 1s have a card slot in addition to the cartridge slot. The card slot let you play those games that shipped on a Sega Card. It also is required for the Sega 3-D Glasses. They also have an Expansion Port, which was unused officially but can be used for an FM Chip mod. They have a port with composite video and RGB connections on the back whereas the Model 2 is RF only. You can officially only play the Snail Maze game on early Model 1s, and the Model 2s lack the Opening Logo and Tune on startup. There is no power LED or reset switch on a Model 2.
Genesis - Model 1 vs. Successors
The Model 1 is the only system which works as designed with the Power Base Converter. While there are SMS adapters that fit in the Model 2, they do not offer a card slot.
Most Model 1s do not have the TMSS protection, which adds a second or two to the boot time of any game with the message Produced By or Under License from Sega Enterprises, LTD. At least five US games will not work with TMSS Genesis machines.
There are two types of of Genesis Model 1s with TMSS. One has the words HIGH DEFINITION GRAPHICS in white around the circle bordering the cartridge port. The second omits the words. All consoles with those words are widely considered to produce the best sound of all Sega Genesis models. Some of the Model 1s without the text have a much poorer sound, it depends on the motherboard. See here to find out how to determine the good Model 1s from the bad Model 1s : http://www.sega-16.com/forum/showthread.php?7796-GUIDE-Telling-apart-good-Genesis-1s-and-Genesis-2s-from-bad-ones The Sega Genesis Model 2s have variable sound quality, but none are considered to be as good as the Model 1s.
Model 1s have a headphone jack and use a power adapter with a plug that also fits into NESes, Famicoms and Sega Master Systems. Model 2s omit the headphone jack but have stereo audio on their AV ports.
Game Boy - Original vs. Successors
The original Game Boy is larger than the Pocket, Light or Color. It has larger buttons and a larger speaker and better quality audio. There are games like Castlevania II : Belmont's Revenge and The Legend of Zelda, Link's Awakening which rely on the properties of the green LCD screen found in the larger Game Boy for certain graphical effects. The Game Boy 4-player adapter does not require a converter. Batteries last much longer in it than the Pocket or the Light.
SNES - Original vs. 1-Chip & SNES Mini
Most of the original boxy SNESes use a separate CPU and a two-chip PPU solution. Late SNESes and all SNES Minis combine the CPU and both PPU chips into one large chip, called the 1-Chip. While the graphics are slightly sharper than on earlier SNES models, some games suffer from graphical inaccuracies on the 1-Chip models, some games with enhancement chips run slower, some colors combinations suffer from ghosting and the whites are overly bright. See here for more info : http://www.racketboy.com/forum/, go to forum called Guides under The Garage and look for the following thread, "SNES Console Revision Differences. SHVC-CPU-01 vs 1CHIP-Mini".
Playstation vs. PSOne
The PSOne is the slim version of the Playstation console. It has a different looking menu for CD-audio playing, and a port for a matching Sony LCD. But it looses the separate reset button, Serial and Parallel Ports, both of which have their uses, officially (serial for PlayStation Link Cable) or otherwise (parallel for Game Sharks). It is harder to install a mod chip in a PSOne due to the tighter space. There is an upcoming SD card solution for the Playstation called the PSIO which allows you to play CD backups from disc images, but it fits into the parallel port found on the SPCH-7xxx and lower, so no PSOne users need buy.
Showing posts with label NES. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NES. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Friday, November 7, 2014
NES - Famicom Differences
Cartridge Connectors
Famicom - 60 pins
NES - 72 pins, Lockout chip in all licensed carts and lockout defeaters in all unlicensed carts
The Famicom and NES cartridge connectors provide the same signals with some exceptions. The Famicom has an audio input pin and an audio output pin, see the next section.
The NES front loader has ten pins that run from the cartridge to the expansion port. It uses four pins for the lockout chip and there is a pin that carries the 21MHz master clock to the cartridge.
The NES top loader does not connect the lockout chip pins and does not physically have pins for what would be pins 18, 19, 54 and 55. The Everdrive N8 and NES PowerPak use pin 54. One of the remaining pins (pin 51 has been suggested) can be connected with a 1.2K resistor and the audio output point.
The Game Genie uses a cartridge connector that is slightly thicker than a regular NES cart. This was advantageous in a Front Loader because the pins on the NES connector could be bent back by the pushing down motion required to get a game PCB's contacts to connect with both sides of the cartridge connector. In a Top Loader, it is not, and the Game Genie's board requires tremendous force to insert in a Top Loader. There was an adapter made for the Game Genie that would allow it to fit in a Top Loader without trouble, but they are extremely rare.
Cartridge Design and Boards
Famicom - Nintendo's own cartridge shells come in a variety of colors and are typically shorter than NES cartridge shells. They are held together by internal plastic tabs. Some official third party companies (Konami, Sunsoft, Namco, Taito, Irem, Jaleco and Bandai) had the right to manufacture their own cartridges and used their own boards and shell designs.
NES - All licensed cartridges come in dark gray and are held together by five screws (early releases) or three screws and two tabs on the top. Nintendo always manufactured the boards and the chips, but occasionally made exceptions in the US (Konami, Sunsoft, Virgin Games, Acclaim) The screws were originally regular slotted screws, but Nintendo changed to using security screws. Unlicensed cartridges used their own boards and cartridge shell designs.
Cartridge Audio
Famicom - Expansion audio supported
NES - Expansion audio not supported (mod required)
The Famicom routes its internal audio to the cartridge slot on pin 45. Most cartridges do not generate sound, so they simply send it back to the system by connecting pin 45 to 46, where it is sent straight to the output circuitry in the console. Cartridges that do generate sound, like Akumajou Densetsu and the Famicom Disk System RAM Adapter, mix their audio with the Famicom's audio, then send it back to the system.
The NES routes its internal audio to the output circuitry, there is no audio output and input pins on its cartridge connector. The cartridge connector does have extra pins that could be used for this purpose, but the audio will be routed to the expansion port on the front loader, where it can be mixed with the internal NES audio. There is no expansion port on the top loader and some of the expansion port pins are unconnected, requiring a different mod.
Loading Mechanism
Famicom, Famicom AV & NES Top Loader - Top Loading (Famicom has eject lever)
NES Front Loader - Front Loading
The front loading mechanism was probably the second biggest mistake Nintendo ever made (the Virtual Boy being the first), as its spring loaded mechanism and design that required the cartridge to bend pins would cause the connector to eventually become unreliable.
AC Adapter
Famicom - 10VDC, 850mA, negative tip (Famicom AV didn't come with an adapter).
NES - 9VAC, 1.3A, polarity immaterial (DC conversion occurs inside system)
A Famicom, Sega Master System or Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Model 1 power adapter will work in any NES, the plug is the right shape and DC is unaffected by a DC converter. The NES power adapter must only be used with a NES, even if it will fit other systems.
Security
Famicom, NES Top Loader - None
NES Front Loader - Lockout chip
Unlicensed cartridges for Famicoms require nothing more than a licensed cartridge. For the NES, all licensed carts included a lockout chip that communicated with the chip in the console. If the connection was broken, then the game would constantly reset. All unlicensed NES carts either cloned the lockout chip (Tengen) or used circuitry to try to defeat the lockout chip.
Camerica cartridges have a switch on them to enable the lockout defeating mechanism. Position A enables the lockout defeat, position B disables it. You should always set the switch to Position B when using Camerica cartridges on a Top Loader.
Video and audio output
Famicom - RF (Japanese Channel 1-2)
NES Front Loader - RF (US Channel 3-4) & RCA AV Composite
NES Top Loader - RF (US Channel 3-4) (and AV, but extremely rare)
Famicom AV - Nintendo Multi-out Composite Video & Audio (can be used with Japanese or US RF adapter)
The US RF modulators broadcast on Channel 3 (60-66Mhz) and Channel 4 (66-72MHz). Japanese RF switches broadcast on Channel 1 (90-96MHz) and Channel 2 (96-102MHz). The US reserves those frequencies for FM radio stations (frequency spectrum 88-108MHz). The old TVs with dial controls, which were still used quite frequently in the 1980s, went from 2-13 VHF and 14-83 (UHF). However, in more modern TVs, some will support the Japanese channels on Channel 95 or 96 and can add channels from 84-158, covering the whole UHF frequency range and more of the VHF frequency range.
The Famicom RF switch-box is not auto-switching, it has a TV-GAME switch on the back of the console which functions like the switch on an Atari-style switchbox. The NES RF switch-box does not have a TV-GAME switch, its switchbox will automatically change the input when the console is turned on or off.
Controllers
Famicom - Hard-wired to console, 3' cord, microphone on controller 2
NES Front Loader - Rectangular-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 6' cord, detachable
NES Top Loader - Dogbone-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 6' cord, detachable
Famicom AV - Dogbone-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 3' cord, detachable
Japanese households, especially in the cities, had substantially less square footage than US households. Nintendo did not believe the cables needed to be long for Japan, but changed their minds for the US.
Expansion
Famicom - 15-pin Expansion Port
NES - Controller Port 2 (also Famicom AV if modded)
NES Front Loader - 48-pin Expansion Port, unused
On the Famicom, any peripheral connected to the expansion port unless it plugged into the cartridge port. This includes the Famicom Light Gun (Zapper), Arkanoid VAUS controller, the Bandai Family Trainer (Power Pad), two extra Controllers for four-player games, the Famicom Keyboard and Data Recorder. The Expansion port only brought most of the inputs, the three output lines and the two controller enables, audio input and IRQ, it did not serve as a general purpose expansion port.
The NES expansion port has all the functionality of the Famicom Expansion port and much more. It brings the data lines, the upper address line, audio in and out, video out, all the input and output lines, the two controller enables, the IRQ, NMI and the lockout chip clock signal. It also has 10 lines that go directly to the cartridge. With an appropriate RAM cart, this could have been used to implement a NES version of the Famicom Disk System. Unfortunately it was never used in products that saw a release (and neither were the SNES and N64 expansion ports outside of Japan). The expansion port can be used to mix audio from Famicom cartridges with the internal NES sound by connecting two pins (pin 3 and typically pin 9) with a 47K resistor. The expansion pin must also be connected on the cartridge converter for real Famicom cartridges.
The NES controller ports bring three input lines for controllers to use. By convention, all controllers (Zapper, Arkanoid VAUS, Power Pad) that require more than the controller input line use controller port 2. Both ports have all three lines. The Famicom AV, which has the same ports, does not bring the two extra lines to the controller ports, but by soldering two wires from the 15-pin expansion port, the correct inputs can be brought to controller port 2 (but NOT controller port 1).
Famicom - 60 pins
NES - 72 pins, Lockout chip in all licensed carts and lockout defeaters in all unlicensed carts
The Famicom and NES cartridge connectors provide the same signals with some exceptions. The Famicom has an audio input pin and an audio output pin, see the next section.
The NES front loader has ten pins that run from the cartridge to the expansion port. It uses four pins for the lockout chip and there is a pin that carries the 21MHz master clock to the cartridge.
The NES top loader does not connect the lockout chip pins and does not physically have pins for what would be pins 18, 19, 54 and 55. The Everdrive N8 and NES PowerPak use pin 54. One of the remaining pins (pin 51 has been suggested) can be connected with a 1.2K resistor and the audio output point.
The Game Genie uses a cartridge connector that is slightly thicker than a regular NES cart. This was advantageous in a Front Loader because the pins on the NES connector could be bent back by the pushing down motion required to get a game PCB's contacts to connect with both sides of the cartridge connector. In a Top Loader, it is not, and the Game Genie's board requires tremendous force to insert in a Top Loader. There was an adapter made for the Game Genie that would allow it to fit in a Top Loader without trouble, but they are extremely rare.
Cartridge Design and Boards
Famicom - Nintendo's own cartridge shells come in a variety of colors and are typically shorter than NES cartridge shells. They are held together by internal plastic tabs. Some official third party companies (Konami, Sunsoft, Namco, Taito, Irem, Jaleco and Bandai) had the right to manufacture their own cartridges and used their own boards and shell designs.
NES - All licensed cartridges come in dark gray and are held together by five screws (early releases) or three screws and two tabs on the top. Nintendo always manufactured the boards and the chips, but occasionally made exceptions in the US (Konami, Sunsoft, Virgin Games, Acclaim) The screws were originally regular slotted screws, but Nintendo changed to using security screws. Unlicensed cartridges used their own boards and cartridge shell designs.
Cartridge Audio
Famicom - Expansion audio supported
NES - Expansion audio not supported (mod required)
The Famicom routes its internal audio to the cartridge slot on pin 45. Most cartridges do not generate sound, so they simply send it back to the system by connecting pin 45 to 46, where it is sent straight to the output circuitry in the console. Cartridges that do generate sound, like Akumajou Densetsu and the Famicom Disk System RAM Adapter, mix their audio with the Famicom's audio, then send it back to the system.
The NES routes its internal audio to the output circuitry, there is no audio output and input pins on its cartridge connector. The cartridge connector does have extra pins that could be used for this purpose, but the audio will be routed to the expansion port on the front loader, where it can be mixed with the internal NES audio. There is no expansion port on the top loader and some of the expansion port pins are unconnected, requiring a different mod.
Loading Mechanism
Famicom, Famicom AV & NES Top Loader - Top Loading (Famicom has eject lever)
NES Front Loader - Front Loading
The front loading mechanism was probably the second biggest mistake Nintendo ever made (the Virtual Boy being the first), as its spring loaded mechanism and design that required the cartridge to bend pins would cause the connector to eventually become unreliable.
AC Adapter
Famicom - 10VDC, 850mA, negative tip (Famicom AV didn't come with an adapter).
NES - 9VAC, 1.3A, polarity immaterial (DC conversion occurs inside system)
A Famicom, Sega Master System or Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Model 1 power adapter will work in any NES, the plug is the right shape and DC is unaffected by a DC converter. The NES power adapter must only be used with a NES, even if it will fit other systems.
Security
Famicom, NES Top Loader - None
NES Front Loader - Lockout chip
Unlicensed cartridges for Famicoms require nothing more than a licensed cartridge. For the NES, all licensed carts included a lockout chip that communicated with the chip in the console. If the connection was broken, then the game would constantly reset. All unlicensed NES carts either cloned the lockout chip (Tengen) or used circuitry to try to defeat the lockout chip.
Camerica cartridges have a switch on them to enable the lockout defeating mechanism. Position A enables the lockout defeat, position B disables it. You should always set the switch to Position B when using Camerica cartridges on a Top Loader.
Video and audio output
Famicom - RF (Japanese Channel 1-2)
NES Front Loader - RF (US Channel 3-4) & RCA AV Composite
NES Top Loader - RF (US Channel 3-4) (and AV, but extremely rare)
Famicom AV - Nintendo Multi-out Composite Video & Audio (can be used with Japanese or US RF adapter)
The US RF modulators broadcast on Channel 3 (60-66Mhz) and Channel 4 (66-72MHz). Japanese RF switches broadcast on Channel 1 (90-96MHz) and Channel 2 (96-102MHz). The US reserves those frequencies for FM radio stations (frequency spectrum 88-108MHz). The old TVs with dial controls, which were still used quite frequently in the 1980s, went from 2-13 VHF and 14-83 (UHF). However, in more modern TVs, some will support the Japanese channels on Channel 95 or 96 and can add channels from 84-158, covering the whole UHF frequency range and more of the VHF frequency range.
The Famicom RF switch-box is not auto-switching, it has a TV-GAME switch on the back of the console which functions like the switch on an Atari-style switchbox. The NES RF switch-box does not have a TV-GAME switch, its switchbox will automatically change the input when the console is turned on or off.
Controllers
Famicom - Hard-wired to console, 3' cord, microphone on controller 2
NES Front Loader - Rectangular-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 6' cord, detachable
NES Top Loader - Dogbone-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 6' cord, detachable
Famicom AV - Dogbone-shaped, start and select on controller 2, 3' cord, detachable
Japanese households, especially in the cities, had substantially less square footage than US households. Nintendo did not believe the cables needed to be long for Japan, but changed their minds for the US.
Expansion
Famicom - 15-pin Expansion Port
NES - Controller Port 2 (also Famicom AV if modded)
NES Front Loader - 48-pin Expansion Port, unused
On the Famicom, any peripheral connected to the expansion port unless it plugged into the cartridge port. This includes the Famicom Light Gun (Zapper), Arkanoid VAUS controller, the Bandai Family Trainer (Power Pad), two extra Controllers for four-player games, the Famicom Keyboard and Data Recorder. The Expansion port only brought most of the inputs, the three output lines and the two controller enables, audio input and IRQ, it did not serve as a general purpose expansion port.
The NES expansion port has all the functionality of the Famicom Expansion port and much more. It brings the data lines, the upper address line, audio in and out, video out, all the input and output lines, the two controller enables, the IRQ, NMI and the lockout chip clock signal. It also has 10 lines that go directly to the cartridge. With an appropriate RAM cart, this could have been used to implement a NES version of the Famicom Disk System. Unfortunately it was never used in products that saw a release (and neither were the SNES and N64 expansion ports outside of Japan). The expansion port can be used to mix audio from Famicom cartridges with the internal NES sound by connecting two pins (pin 3 and typically pin 9) with a 47K resistor. The expansion pin must also be connected on the cartridge converter for real Famicom cartridges.
The NES controller ports bring three input lines for controllers to use. By convention, all controllers (Zapper, Arkanoid VAUS, Power Pad) that require more than the controller input line use controller port 2. Both ports have all three lines. The Famicom AV, which has the same ports, does not bring the two extra lines to the controller ports, but by soldering two wires from the 15-pin expansion port, the correct inputs can be brought to controller port 2 (but NOT controller port 1).
Friday, October 31, 2014
NES (and Famicom) Lists
I have felt list-happy over the past few days, and decided to put together some lists of NES games.
Official Licensed Multi-carts
Donkey Kong Classics
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet (US Only)
Super Spike V'Ball / Nintendo World Cup (US Only)
Sesame Street ABC & 123 (US Only)
Super Mario Bros. / Tetris / Nintendo World Cup (Europe Only)
Classic Series Re-Releases
Legend of Zelda, The
Metroid
Punch-Out!!
Zelda II - The Adventure of Link
These US-only re-releases had no differences from their earlier counterparts from a ROM standpoint (Zelda Rev. A came in a gold cart), but were the only games Nintendo re-released with obvious changes under a Classic Series label. All have different box and label artwork, and the Zelda games use the standard gray cartridges. While there are many, many games with minor variations such as 3-screw vs. 5 screw and round vs. oval Nintendo Seal of Quality, these games have obvious cosmetic differences to their original releases. These releases occurred during the Red Label era, 1992-1994, of the NES's lifespan when the SNES was released. These Zelda cartridges are less likely to loose data than the gold cartridges because Nintendo had refined their PCBs to work more reliably.
Official Licensed Multi-carts
Donkey Kong Classics
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet (US Only)
Super Spike V'Ball / Nintendo World Cup (US Only)
Sesame Street ABC & 123 (US Only)
Super Mario Bros. / Tetris / Nintendo World Cup (Europe Only)
My definition of a true multi-cart is that the games on it had to have been previously released as standalone cartridges. All the above carts fit the criteria. A game like Short Order/Eggsplode does not because the two halves were never released separately. Unfortunately, Donkey Kong Classics does not contain the "pie factory" level. Nintendo would, however, include it with Donkey Kong Original Edition released for the European Nintendo Wii and later the 3DS. The ROM extracted from the Wii is fully playable on a CNROM board that has been modified to prevent bus conflicts.
All these multi-carts, except for Donkey Kong Classics and Sesame Street ABC & 123, were only released as pack-in games with the NES console. Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt was released with the Action Set and included a NES Zapper. Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet was released with the Power Set with a NES Zapper and Power Pad. Super Spike V'Ball / Nintendo World Cup was released with the Sports Set, an NES Satellite and four controllers. Interestingly, World Class Track Meet, Super Spike V'Ball and Nintendo World Cup were not developed by Nintendo but by Bandai and Technos.
Super Mario Bros. / Tetris / Nintendo World Cup could be found in the Super Set released in Europe both for PAL-A (Mattel Version or NES Version, released in the U.K., Italy and Australia) and PAL-B (France, Germany, European Economic Community, Scandinavia) countries.
Re-releases
Stadium Events/World Class Track Meet
Mike Tyson's Punch Out!!/Punch-Out!!
Pac-Man (Tengen)/Pac-Man (Tengen Unlicensed)/Pac-Man (Namco)
Gauntlet/Gauntlet (Unlicensed)
R.B.I. Baseball/R.B.I. Baseball (Unlicensed)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom/Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Unlicensed)
Mario Bros. (Europe Only)
These cartridges have some substantial change when re-released. Stadium Events was briefly released by Bandai with the Power Pad, but saw far, far more widespread distribution as World Class Track Meet. The Stadium Events US cartridge is insanely rare, but WCTM is the same game with a different box, label, manual and title screen.
Pac-Man is unique in that it was released three separate times. The original Famicom cart was from Namcot. In the US, first Tengen released it when they were an official licensed NES publisher. Then they released it in their own-style of cartridge casing when they went down the unlicensed road. Finally, late in the NES's life Namco released it for the third time, as a licensed cart. The Namco version is easily the rarest. Each version has different copyright text. Similarly, Gauntlet and R.B.I. Baseball were released twice, once as a licensed cart and the second time as an unlicensed Tengen cart. Weirdly, Indiana Jones may have been released first as a Tengen unlicensed cart, and then by Mindscape as a licensed cart.
Punch-Out!! was released around August of 1990 and revised to eliminate Mike Tyson's name and likeness in game when their licensing contract with him expired. He had received his first professional defeat and lost the heavyweight title back in February of 1990 to James "Buster" Douglas. Even if he did not, as the title was a re-release intended to be sold in smaller numbers, it would not have made much sense for Nintendo to pay an expensive new license fee when the quality of the game itself was superb.
Mario Bros. was re-released for the PAL territories in an updated form sometime in 1993 with a Classic Serie(s) label. This version was similar to the old release but had better enemy graphics (taken from Kaettekita Mario Bros. for the Famicom Disk System), instructional cut-scenes, an altered level layout and was the music was tuned for PAL speeds.
Classic Series Re-Releases
Legend of Zelda, The
Metroid
Punch-Out!!
Zelda II - The Adventure of Link
These US-only re-releases had no differences from their earlier counterparts from a ROM standpoint (Zelda Rev. A came in a gold cart), but were the only games Nintendo re-released with obvious changes under a Classic Series label. All have different box and label artwork, and the Zelda games use the standard gray cartridges. While there are many, many games with minor variations such as 3-screw vs. 5 screw and round vs. oval Nintendo Seal of Quality, these games have obvious cosmetic differences to their original releases. These releases occurred during the Red Label era, 1992-1994, of the NES's lifespan when the SNES was released. These Zelda cartridges are less likely to loose data than the gold cartridges because Nintendo had refined their PCBs to work more reliably.
Licensed NES Games with Revision A/PRG1 (NTSC only unless otherwise specified)
Barbie
Captain Skyhawk
Castlevania
Chessmaster, The
Double Dragon II: The Revenge
Double Dribble
Dragon Ball Europe Only
Dragon Warrior
Dr. Mario
Faxanadu
Home Alone
Hunt for Red October, The
Jeopardy!
Ikari Warriors
Karate Champ
Kid Icarus (Rev A PAL Only)
Kid Niki: Radical Ninja
Kirby's Adventure
Lee Trevino's Fighting Golf
Lee Trevino's Fighting Golf
Legend of Zelda, The (Both)
Major League Baseball
Mega Man 4
Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! Both
Operation Wolf: Take no Prisoners
Platoon
Pro Wrestling
R.C. Pro-Am Both
Rambo
Robin Hood - Prince of Thieves
RoboCop 2
Rygar
Silent Service
Simpsons, The - Bart Vs. the Space Mutants
Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet
Super Mario Bros. 2
Super Mario Bros. 3
Taboo - The Sixth Sense
Tecmo Bowl
Tecmo NBA Basketball
Tecmo NBA Basketball
Top Gun
Track & Field II
Wheel of Fortune
Wild Gunman
Winter Games
Wizards & Warriors
World Class Track Meet
Wrath of the Black Manta
All the above games have one known, released revision to their ROM(s). Typically they are referred to as REV. 0 and REV. A or REV. 1.
Some of these revisions are interesting. The original version of Castlevania has a bug that can crash your game in the hall with the medusas and armored knights just before Death. The revised version of Pro Wrestling says "Winner is You" instead of "A Winner is You" and says Won and Lost for Win and Lose. Although transparent to the player, the later revision of R.C. Pro Am uses the Nintendo MMC1 chip while the older version relies on discrete logic (mapper 7) for bankswitching.
Some of these revisions are interesting. The original version of Castlevania has a bug that can crash your game in the hall with the medusas and armored knights just before Death. The revised version of Pro Wrestling says "Winner is You" instead of "A Winner is You" and says Won and Lost for Win and Lose. Although transparent to the player, the later revision of R.C. Pro Am uses the Nintendo MMC1 chip while the older version relies on discrete logic (mapper 7) for bankswitching.
Licensed NES Games with Revision A & B/PRG1 & PRG2
Bases Loaded
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Licensed Original, Licensed Rev A, Unlicensed)
Mega Man 3 Europe Only
Untouchables, The
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (Revs PAL Only)
All the above have two revisions to their ROM(s). Typically their second revisions are called REV. Bs or REV. 2. The Untouchables has a totally different title screen in the latest revision.
Unlicensed Games with Known Version Numbers
Bible Adventures (v1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4)
Bible Buffet (v6.0)
Chiller (Three Revisions)
Double Strike (v1.0, 1.1)
Exodus: Journey to the Promised Land (v4.0, 5.0)
F-15 City War (v1.0, 1.1)
Joshua & the Battle of Jericho (v5,0, 6.0)
King of Kings, The: The Early Years (v1.1?, 1.2, 1.3, 5.0)
Spiritual Warfare (v5.1, 6.0, 6.1)
Solitaire (v1.0?, 1.1)
Multi-Region Games (Japan & US)
1942
Dr. Mario
Excitebike
Mach Rider (Rev A released only in Japan)
Pinball
Soccer
Tennis
Multi-Region Games (World)
Clu Clu Land
Donkey Kong (Rev A Only)
Donkey Kong Jr. (Rev A Only)
Donkey Kong 3
Duck Hunt
Gyromite
Hogan's Alley
Mario Bros. (Rev A released only for PAL)
Popeye (Rev A Only)
Stack Up
Super Mario Bros. (Rev A released only for PAL)
Urban Champion
Wild Gunman (Rev A Only)
Wrecking Crew
Multi-Region Games (US & Europe)
Ice Climber
Kid Icarus (Rev A released only for PAL)
Volleyball
Games that are identical across two or three regions does not necessarily mean the game will be playable on a system from a different region. The PAL lockout chips will not prevent games from functioning in an NTSC NES unless the console's lockout chip is disabled or bypassed, and vice versa. NES games will need a pin adapter to work in a Famicom, and vice versa. I have not included any games Nintendo only released for the Famicom Disk System in Japan, Ice Hockey, Pro Wrestling and Volleyball and were released in cartridge form elsewhere.
Except in one instance, every one of these games are Nintendo first party titles. When third-party titles were released for the NES, they always add the in-game text "Licensed by Nintendo." Sometimes this may be the only difference between a US and Japanese game. US and European releases soon required some kind of adjustment for the differing NTSC and PAL speeds.
Lockout Chips & Countries
NES NTSC
CIC 3193 or 3193A or 6113 or 6113A or 6113B1
United States (USA)
Canada (CAN)
Brazil (unconfirmed)
NES PAL-A "Mattel PAL Version" or "NES Version"
CIC 3197A
United Kingdom (UKV)
Italy (ITA)
Australia (AUS)
NES PAL-B "European Version"
CIC 3195A
Scandavia (SCN)
Sweden (SWE)
Netherlands (HOL)
European Economic Community (EEC)
Spain (ESP)
Germany (NOE or FRG)
France (FRA)
Except in one instance, every one of these games are Nintendo first party titles. When third-party titles were released for the NES, they always add the in-game text "Licensed by Nintendo." Sometimes this may be the only difference between a US and Japanese game. US and European releases soon required some kind of adjustment for the differing NTSC and PAL speeds.
Lockout Chips & Countries
NES NTSC
CIC 3193 or 3193A or 6113 or 6113A or 6113B1
United States (USA)
Canada (CAN)
Brazil (unconfirmed)
NES PAL-A "Mattel PAL Version" or "NES Version"
CIC 3197A
United Kingdom (UKV)
Italy (ITA)
Australia (AUS)
NES PAL-B "European Version"
CIC 3195A
Scandavia (SCN)
Sweden (SWE)
Netherlands (HOL)
European Economic Community (EEC)
Spain (ESP)
Germany (NOE or FRG)
France (FRA)
NES PAL "Hong Kong Version" and "Asian Version"
CIC 3196A
NES NTSC "Comboy" or "Korean Version"
CIC 3195A
Foreign Language NES carts (non-Japanese)
Finnish |
|||||
| F-15 Strike Eagle (No, Sw, Fi) |
| French |
| Addams Family (E, F, G) |
| Battleship (E, F, G, S) |
| Defender of the Crown (F) |
| Dragon Ball (F) |
| Duck Tales 2 (F) |
| F-15 Strike Eagle (F) |
| Kirby's Adventure (F)* |
| Last Starfighter, The (F) |
| Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque - La Legende d'Or (F) |
| Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade (E, F, G, S) |
| Maniac Mansion (F) |
| McDonaldLand (F) |
| Miracle Piano Teaching System, The (F) |
| Mission Impossible (F) |
| Monopoly (F) |
| Nigel Mansell's World Championship Challenge (E, F, G, I, S) |
| Prince of Persia (F) |
| Shadowgate (F) |
| Swords and Serpents (F) |
| The Smurfs (E, F, G, S) |
| Ultimate Air Combat (E, F, G) |
| Korean |
| Arabian (K) |
| Macross (K) |
German |
| Addams Family (E, F, G) |
| Banana Prince (G) |
| Battleship (E, F, G, S) |
| Darkwing Duck (G) |
| Duck Tales 2 (G) |
| F-15 Strike Eagle (G) |
| Kirby's Adventure (G) |
| Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade (E, F, G, S) |
| Maniac Mansion (G) |
| Monopoly (G) |
| Nigel Mansell's World Championship Challenge (E, F, G, I, S) |
| Pirates! (G) |
| Prince of Persia (G) |
| Robin Hood - Prince of Thieves (G) |
| Shadowgate (G) |
| Star Trek - 25th Anniversary (G) |
| The Smurfs (E, F, G, S) |
| Ultimate Air Combat (E, F, G) |
| Italian |
| F-15 Strike Eagle (I) |
| Maniac Mansion (I) |
| Nigel Mansell's World Championship Challenge (E, F, G, I, S) |
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (I) |
Norwegian |
| F-15 Strike Eagle (No, Sw, Fi) |
Spanish |
| Battleship (E, F, G, S) |
| Linus Spacehead's Cosmic Crusade (E, F, G, S) |
| Maniac Mansion (S) |
| Nigel Mansell's World Championship Challenge (E, F, G, I, S) |
| Prince of Persia (S) |
| Robin Hood - Prince of Thieves (S) |
| Tecmo Cup - Football Game (S) |
| The Smurfs (E, F, G, S) |
| Swedish |
| Deja Vu (Sw) |
| F-15 Strike Eagle (No, Sw, Fi) |
| Maniac Mansion (Sw) |
| Shadowgate (Sw) |
Games in bold are unique to that country.
* - Also released for NTSC in Canada for French Canadians. The language text is identical to the PAL version for France.
Ports : Famicom Cart to Famicom Disk
Baseball
Bomberman
BurgerTime
Dig Dug*
Dig Dug II
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Galaga
Galaxian*
Golf
Goonies, The@
Mahjong*
Mario Bros - Kaettekita Mario Bros./
Pac-Man
Pachicom*
Pinball
Soccer
Solomon no Kagi (Solomon's Key)
Super Mario Bros. & All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros.*
Tanikawa Koji no Shougi Shinan II*
Twinbee*
Wrecking Crew
Xevious
* - No NES Release
@ - Playchoice-10 Release only outside Japan
/ - In-game graphics used in Mario Bros. (Classic Serie(s)) re-release for PAL countries
Reverse Ports : Famicom Disk to Famicom Cart (and NES Cart except Bio Miracle)
Zelda no Densetsu: The Hyrule Fantasy - Zelda no Densetsu 1: The Hyrule Fantasy (The Legend of Zelda)
Akumajō Dracula (Castlevania)
Moero Twinbee: Cinnamon Hakase wo Sukue! (Stinger)
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa
Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic - Super Mario Bros. USA (Super Mario Bros. 2)
Released for both Disk and Cart on same date :
Family Computer Othello
Ports : Vs. System to Famicom Disk
Vs. Clu Clu Land - Clu Clu Land: Welcome to New Clu Clu Land
Vs. Ice Climber - Ice Climber
Vs. Excitebike
Ports : Famicom Disk to NES Cart
Bubble Bobble
Dr. Chaos
Dracula II: Noroi no Fūin - Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
Exciting Basketball - Double Dribble
Final Command: Akai Yōsai - Jackal
Green Beret - Rush'n Attack
Gun.Smoke
Hikari Shinwa: Palthena no Kagami - Kid Icarus
Ice Hockey
Konami Ice Hockey - Blades of Steel
Legend of Zelda 2, The: Link no Bōken - Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Metroid
Nazo no Kabe: Block Kuzushi - Crackout (PAL Only)
ProWres - Pro Wrestling
Roger Rabbit - Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle
Section Z
Tobidase Daisakusen - 3-D WorldRunner
Winter Games
Volleyball
Zanac
Ports : Famicom Cart to Famicom Disk
Baseball
Bomberman
BurgerTime
Dig Dug*
Dig Dug II
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Galaga
Galaxian*
Golf
Goonies, The@
| Karate Champ |
Mario Bros - Kaettekita Mario Bros./
Pac-Man
Pachicom*
Pinball
Soccer
Solomon no Kagi (Solomon's Key)
Super Mario Bros. & All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros.*
Tanikawa Koji no Shougi Shinan II*
| Tennis |
Wrecking Crew
Xevious
* - No NES Release
@ - Playchoice-10 Release only outside Japan
/ - In-game graphics used in Mario Bros. (Classic Serie(s)) re-release for PAL countries
Reverse Ports : Famicom Disk to Famicom Cart (and NES Cart except Bio Miracle)
Zelda no Densetsu: The Hyrule Fantasy - Zelda no Densetsu 1: The Hyrule Fantasy (The Legend of Zelda)
Akumajō Dracula (Castlevania)
Moero Twinbee: Cinnamon Hakase wo Sukue! (Stinger)
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa
Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic - Super Mario Bros. USA (Super Mario Bros. 2)
Released for both Disk and Cart on same date :
Family Computer Othello
Ports : Vs. System to Famicom Disk
Vs. Clu Clu Land - Clu Clu Land: Welcome to New Clu Clu Land
Vs. Ice Climber - Ice Climber
Vs. Excitebike
Ports : Famicom Disk to NES Cart
Bubble Bobble
Dr. Chaos
Dracula II: Noroi no Fūin - Castlevania II: Simon's Quest
Exciting Basketball - Double Dribble
Final Command: Akai Yōsai - Jackal
Green Beret - Rush'n Attack
Gun.Smoke
Hikari Shinwa: Palthena no Kagami - Kid Icarus
Ice Hockey
Konami Ice Hockey - Blades of Steel
Legend of Zelda 2, The: Link no Bōken - Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Metroid
Nazo no Kabe: Block Kuzushi - Crackout (PAL Only)
ProWres - Pro Wrestling
Roger Rabbit - Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle
Section Z
Tobidase Daisakusen - 3-D WorldRunner
Winter Games
Volleyball
Zanac
Levels : Famicom Disk to NES
Eggerland: Sōzōhe no Tabidachi (and possibly Eggerman) - The Adventures of Lolo
Levels : Famicom Cart to Famicom Disk
Lode Runner & Championship Lode Runner - Super Lode Runner & Super Lode Runner II
Official Famicom Multi-carts:
Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. [Math] Lesson
This is debatable because it only contains about half of each game, because it is a 24KB cartridge and each of the original games were also 24KB carts, so a good deal had to be cut from each. DK Jr. cuts out stages 2 and 3 and the B game select option, and only the Calculate function. The graphics are different in the Calculate function because they reuse tiles from DKjr.
Final Fantasy I & II
Thic cart uses 32KB of battery backed RAM, but each individual cart only has 8KB. The multi-cart's board is the only one using the MMC1 chip that supports more than 8KB of battery backed RAM.
Official Famicom Multi-carts:
Donkey Kong Jr. + Jr. [Math] Lesson
This is debatable because it only contains about half of each game, because it is a 24KB cartridge and each of the original games were also 24KB carts, so a good deal had to be cut from each. DK Jr. cuts out stages 2 and 3 and the B game select option, and only the Calculate function. The graphics are different in the Calculate function because they reuse tiles from DKjr.
Final Fantasy I & II
Thic cart uses 32KB of battery backed RAM, but each individual cart only has 8KB. The multi-cart's board is the only one using the MMC1 chip that supports more than 8KB of battery backed RAM.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Sitting this One Out - The Lack of an American Presence in the Third Generation of Console Video Games
After the video game crash of 1983-84, there were far fewer companies making video games than at the height of the second generation of home video game consoles. What companies remained focused solely on home computer games. When the NES kick started the third generation of console games and revived the console industry, few people overlooked the fact that Nintendo was a Japanese company. Nintendo thoroughly dominated the 3rd generation of home video game consoles. Sega was also a Japanese company, although its console had less impact in the United States and Canada, it still competed with Atari for 2nd place.
If you looked through the credits of most NES games (that had credits), the names would typically be Japanese names. Of all the great, classic NES games, virtually all came from Japanese developers. Some of the best known are Shigeru Miyamoto, who created Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda, Kenji Inafune of Mega Man fame, Hironobu Sakaguchi, original designer of the final Final Fantasy series, Yoshio Sakamoto, designer of Metroid and Kid Icarus, Genyo Takeda for (Mike Tyson's) Punch-Out!! and the Startropics games, and of course no list can be complete without Yuji Hori of Dragon Quest/Warrior renown.
I do not wish to be ignorant by implying that America did not have an important role to play in the third generation, as it most certainly did. Americans bought millions of systems and games and millions were spent to get them to buy those games. Success in America transformed the console from a single-country (Japan) success into a global phenomenon, even if it was not as dominant in Europe. Nor do I ignore the important contributions of several Americans like Howard Phillips, Howard Lincoln, Henk Rogers and (indirectly) John Kirby. Without them, Nintendo of America may never have been able to make the console a success.
However, when it comes to classic console games of the third generation, virtually none can be traced back to American developers. What few nuggets did come from the States were ports of well-regarded home computer games. AD&D Pool of Radiance, Hillsfar & Bard's Tale, Boulder Dash, Raid on Bungeling Bay, King's Quest V, Lemmings, Maniac Mansion, Might and Magic, Pipe Dream, Pirates!, Prince of Persia, Skate or Die!, Ultima III and IV, Wizardry I & II. Many of these games were good ports but most lost something in translation, or their appeal was lost on NES gamers.
The U.K. developer Rare cannot be overlooked in this article. Rare(ware) made great original games like Snake, Rattle & Roll, Battletoads and its sequel Battletoads & Double Dragon, the Ultimate Teamup. It also made the R. C. Pro-Am and Wizards and Warriors series. Although the latter series is uneven, #3 is quite good. Their pinball ports, Pinbot and High Speed, are probably the best pinball games on the NES.
While there were several American unlicensed companies that released NES games like Tengen, American Video Entertainment and Color Dreams, Tengen's best titles were ports of games already released for the Famicom (Alien Syndrome, Fantasy Zone, Rolling Thunder, Shinobi) by other companies and the other two were bottom feeders that almost never released good games. Many of AVE and Color Dreams games were games developed in Taiwan. Codemasters was a U.K. company that made at least one great game, Micro Machines, good ports of the Dizzy games (which originated on the U.K. home computers) and demonstrated that they could compete with Nintendo's official licensees. Camerica distributed Codemasters games in the US and Canada. There were a few decent games from the unlicensed US NES developers, but if you are looking for classics, look elsewhere/.
Most American designers were commissioned by outfits like LJN and Acclaim to make licensed games. Virtually all suck. If I had to list all the crappy licensed games made for the NES, we would be here for a while. Some of the Star Trek and Star Wars games are okay, but nothing spectacular. Games based on gameshows like Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy fulfilled a need, but the individual games are largely forgettable.
Things are not completely hopeless on the U.S front. One arguable classic from U.S. shores is David Crane's A Boy and his Blob. I consider this as close to an official David Crane's Pitfall 3 as he ever got. The graphics were drab, the music repetitive, the controls somewhat loose and the scrolling notable for its absence. However, the design is first rate, with all the things the blob can do and all the ways you need to do it to solve puzzles and explore the game world.
Regarding the NES's two closest competitors, there were few American original games released for the SMS, and the ports were typically done by Japanese or Europeans and released only in Europe or Brazil. The 7800 had some great arcade ports, but it had a small library and few original games for the console. No classics here.
This situation would continue into the 16-bit generation. The big two consoles, the Genesis and the SNES, still had the bulk of their classics from Japan and Europe. At least U.S. game developers were starting to take consoles seriously, but it would take at least another generation or two before the U.S. could boast of parity with the Japanese and European developers. In the fourth generation, we have such lustrous titles and series like Earthworm Jim, Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Super Star Wars, the Lost Vikings, all developed primarily by US developers. LucasArts never shined on the NES, but on the SNES, it was a different story with the above and games like Metal Warriors. The Sega Genesis may be a bit more egalitarian than the SNES, but only because Nintendo really just kept hitting the home runs on its 16-bit wonder. Of course, I could mention all the sports games like Madden and NBA Jam and quality arcade ports of the Mortal Kombat series.
If you looked through the credits of most NES games (that had credits), the names would typically be Japanese names. Of all the great, classic NES games, virtually all came from Japanese developers. Some of the best known are Shigeru Miyamoto, who created Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda, Kenji Inafune of Mega Man fame, Hironobu Sakaguchi, original designer of the final Final Fantasy series, Yoshio Sakamoto, designer of Metroid and Kid Icarus, Genyo Takeda for (Mike Tyson's) Punch-Out!! and the Startropics games, and of course no list can be complete without Yuji Hori of Dragon Quest/Warrior renown.
I do not wish to be ignorant by implying that America did not have an important role to play in the third generation, as it most certainly did. Americans bought millions of systems and games and millions were spent to get them to buy those games. Success in America transformed the console from a single-country (Japan) success into a global phenomenon, even if it was not as dominant in Europe. Nor do I ignore the important contributions of several Americans like Howard Phillips, Howard Lincoln, Henk Rogers and (indirectly) John Kirby. Without them, Nintendo of America may never have been able to make the console a success.
However, when it comes to classic console games of the third generation, virtually none can be traced back to American developers. What few nuggets did come from the States were ports of well-regarded home computer games. AD&D Pool of Radiance, Hillsfar & Bard's Tale, Boulder Dash, Raid on Bungeling Bay, King's Quest V, Lemmings, Maniac Mansion, Might and Magic, Pipe Dream, Pirates!, Prince of Persia, Skate or Die!, Ultima III and IV, Wizardry I & II. Many of these games were good ports but most lost something in translation, or their appeal was lost on NES gamers.
The U.K. developer Rare cannot be overlooked in this article. Rare(ware) made great original games like Snake, Rattle & Roll, Battletoads and its sequel Battletoads & Double Dragon, the Ultimate Teamup. It also made the R. C. Pro-Am and Wizards and Warriors series. Although the latter series is uneven, #3 is quite good. Their pinball ports, Pinbot and High Speed, are probably the best pinball games on the NES.
While there were several American unlicensed companies that released NES games like Tengen, American Video Entertainment and Color Dreams, Tengen's best titles were ports of games already released for the Famicom (Alien Syndrome, Fantasy Zone, Rolling Thunder, Shinobi) by other companies and the other two were bottom feeders that almost never released good games. Many of AVE and Color Dreams games were games developed in Taiwan. Codemasters was a U.K. company that made at least one great game, Micro Machines, good ports of the Dizzy games (which originated on the U.K. home computers) and demonstrated that they could compete with Nintendo's official licensees. Camerica distributed Codemasters games in the US and Canada. There were a few decent games from the unlicensed US NES developers, but if you are looking for classics, look elsewhere/.
Most American designers were commissioned by outfits like LJN and Acclaim to make licensed games. Virtually all suck. If I had to list all the crappy licensed games made for the NES, we would be here for a while. Some of the Star Trek and Star Wars games are okay, but nothing spectacular. Games based on gameshows like Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy fulfilled a need, but the individual games are largely forgettable.
Things are not completely hopeless on the U.S front. One arguable classic from U.S. shores is David Crane's A Boy and his Blob. I consider this as close to an official David Crane's Pitfall 3 as he ever got. The graphics were drab, the music repetitive, the controls somewhat loose and the scrolling notable for its absence. However, the design is first rate, with all the things the blob can do and all the ways you need to do it to solve puzzles and explore the game world.
Regarding the NES's two closest competitors, there were few American original games released for the SMS, and the ports were typically done by Japanese or Europeans and released only in Europe or Brazil. The 7800 had some great arcade ports, but it had a small library and few original games for the console. No classics here.
This situation would continue into the 16-bit generation. The big two consoles, the Genesis and the SNES, still had the bulk of their classics from Japan and Europe. At least U.S. game developers were starting to take consoles seriously, but it would take at least another generation or two before the U.S. could boast of parity with the Japanese and European developers. In the fourth generation, we have such lustrous titles and series like Earthworm Jim, Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Super Star Wars, the Lost Vikings, all developed primarily by US developers. LucasArts never shined on the NES, but on the SNES, it was a different story with the above and games like Metal Warriors. The Sega Genesis may be a bit more egalitarian than the SNES, but only because Nintendo really just kept hitting the home runs on its 16-bit wonder. Of course, I could mention all the sports games like Madden and NBA Jam and quality arcade ports of the Mortal Kombat series.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Ninja Turtles Mania
You would be hard pressed to find a boy who grew up in the 1980's who was not a fan of the green quartet known as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Our interests at Nerdly Pleasures are very broad, and we certainly remain very fond of them today. In this article, we will reflect on the major incarnations of the Turtles to-date.
My introduction to the Turtles was typical. I first saw them in the original cartoon series which was first broadcast at the end of 1987 and lasted until 1996. This series was so tremendously popular that it became cemented in pop-culture heritage. As they did not aspire to the high artistic merits of series like Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies, Silly Symphonies or even Tom & Jerry, they tend not to earn serious attention from animation critics.
In 1988 only the first mini-series had been broadcast, so it was the earliest stages of TMNT mania.
Playmates toys just landed on the store shelves, video games were in the works, and the live-action films were not yet on the horizon.
The cartoon series lived up to its intent to be goofy fun. The good guys were fun and funny, the bad guys inept but never truly vicious, and there was plenty of ninja action to go around. Real effort was put into making the turtles unique from each other beyond the color of their bandanas: Leonardo the leader, Donatello the nerd, Raphael the wise-cracker and Michaelangelo the wild and crazy dude. There was even a small extent of character development over the series.
Not too long after I started watching the cartoon regularly, I was introduced to the Turtles' original media, the comic books. I was never really a comic book junkie, but I quickly became a fan of the Mirage Comics series.
These Turtles were a revelation to me having watched their juvenile versions on TV. They lived in a rather gritty world, they fought and argued with each other and actually killed their enemies!
The cartoon always had problems with Leonardo's Katanas and to a lesser extent Raphael's sais, as the sharp and pointy implements would cut and piece flesh instead of merely brusing it. Censors overseas had more problems with Michaelangelo's nunchucks, frequently editing them out of the broadcasts. Nunchucks are quite lethal in their own right, but Europe and Australia were in the midst of a moral panic over the concept of ninja in entertainment, believing children would copy the ninja moves they saw on TV. However, katanas and sais remained in the program. In contrast, in the comic book, Leo and Raph would not hesitate to use the business end of their weapons on any enemy.
As I mostly acquired the colorized graphic novels, I had difficulty appreciating that TMNT was a black and white comic. When TMNT was first being published in the mid-1980s, the creators were essentially self-publishing the comic. Self-publishing in those days was often something one did part-time, a status which would continue until if and when your book really began to sell. Printing in color was simply beyond the resources of the TMNT creators, Eastman and Laird. Even the comic book's cover did not gain full-color until #5 (after 1-4 and Raphael 1). Like Cerebus, what began as a necessity continued as an artistic choice.
I really enjoyed Volume 1 of TMNT through issue 21, which concluded the Return to New York storyline. After that, even I could tell that its creators were no longer seemingly involved in the stories and the style varied so wildly from issue to issue that I quickly became turned off. I never did manage to read Volumes 2 or 4, and what little I read of Volume 3 did not encourage me to want to read more. Officially it is treated as a red-headed stepchild.
Having acquired a love for all things Turtles, naturally my attention was drawn to the reports that there would be a TMNT game for the NES. The NES was a constant companion in those days, and I eagerly awaited the release of the game with great anticipation. I remember calling every toy shop and electronics place around to see whether they had the game in stock on opening day. None did. A week later my mom and I confirmed the existence of the game at a distant store and we traveled in the early morning to get there to get my copy before they ran out.
The game itself had been widely commented and criticized, but I will give you my impressions. First, although based off the cartoon, the TMNT theme did not seem to be well-integrated into the gameplay. No Krang, Baxter, theme music, mousers and foot soldiers that barely looked the part and somewhat of a grim atmosphere. Second, the game was cruelly unforgiving. Limited continues, poor hit detection, large hit area for your characters, nearly constantly respawning enemies, tricky jumps, lots of pits, limited health items. Michaelangelo and Raphael were nearly useless due to their short attack ranges. Donatello's bo was the most powerful weapon, so he had to be saved for bosses at all costs. The graphics, although flickery, and non-traditional sound were very well done, a testament to the skills of Konami (published under its Ultra Games label). However, the game really felt like it originally was not intended to be a TMNT game but the imagery was later tacked on. On the other hand, back in 1989 when the game was first released, TMNT was still pretty new and the TV show concepts still somewhat under-defined.
Still, the game sold millions and Konami made up for it in its other TMNT games. The Arcade Game was awesome. One of the best beat-em-ups ever, it allowed for four player simultaneous action, which may not have ever been done in the beat-em-up before. It had very colorful graphics, upbeat and catchy tunes and followed the cartoon to a T. It sucked many a quarter or two out of me back in the day. Its NES port may not have been anywhere as graphically impressive, but it was a superb port. Konami tightened the control scheme in the NES port and even added additional levels not found in the Arcade version. Konami followed it up on the NES with The Manhattan Project and the Arcade with Turtles in Time. Ports of the latter game to the SNES and (more loosely) to the Genesis were also top notch. Most ports of hot media properties to video games tend to be (especially back then) to be crap. Not so with the Turtles, thanks to the talented designers at Konami.
Following our rough chronology, I soon learned that the Turtles were coming to the big screen. The first TMNT movie is pure corn, and the sequels even more juvenile. The movies did not seem to take themselves any more seriously than the cartoon. But this was live-action, and the silliness that the cartoon could get away with looked foolish at the multiplex. The guys in green looked exactly like what they were, actors and stuntmen in costume. The costumes were pretty good looking, and the face masks did a nice job of lip-syncing, but the facial expressions were rather limited. At least the Shredder had an air of menace until he stupidly tried to run Splinter through with his spear. And I know Splinter has always been depicted as old, but in this movie he seems positively arthritic and you could almost see his wires or motors being manipulated. The Turtles were born in comics and found a home in cartoons, but just cannot fit within the confines of live action film. I have yet to see the computer-animated film, but it is in my Netflix queue.
Like many childhood interests, my interest in TMNT faded as I grew older. Lately, feeling the need to recapture some of my youth, I have reawakened my interest in the franchise. I had known that there was a new cartoon series, closer to the darker, more mature (non-Archie) comics. But being on the 4kids channel and often on Saturday mornings, I never got around to watching them. However, when they did a countdown of the 10 greatest episodes recently, I used my DVR to examine this series.
Upon watching several episodes, I was struck how closely the series hewed to some of the old Mirage storylines. Being a more maturer version than the '87, series, it is incredibly violent for a kids' show. The Shredder is a vicious creature indeed. A fair comparison between the old cartoon Shredder and the new would be Cesar Romero to Heath Ledger's respective Jokers in Batman. Characters die and even get maimed in the show. The foot soldiers, while still not much more than the Turtles' practice dummies, are human beings, not robots as in the original show.
There are many positive things about the new show. It takes itself seriously and treats the Turtles with respect. Raphael is his true bad-tempered self, Leonardo practically embodies the concepts of honor and fidelity. Donatello is more sensitive and Michelangelo (preferred spelling), is good-natured without constantly spouting dated one-liners or looking for a pizza. Having read the comics, it is fun to watch how the episodes deviate from the printed stories. There is a strong sense of continuity throughout the series with returning allies and villains. Eventually, the series started to progress to season-long storylines, which people tend to love or hate. (My view tends to be closer to hate, unless the whole series is on DVD or demand.)
A digression before I conclude. TMNT and Other Strangeness by Palladium Books was my first experience with a pencil and paper RPG. This book was awesome, but it took me a while to really appreciate it. It had artwork from Eastman and Laird, even an original story or two. It gave the stats for all the major characters that had appeared in the TMNT Mirage comic up to that point. As the point was issue #4 (after Raphael #1). It had pages of equipment, multiple adventure scenarios, and an excellent animal character creation system. However, it was not the ideal game to bring a brand new player into RPGs. Also, unless the RPG was AD&D, it was difficult to find other players.
This week I watched the TV movie TMNT Forever. This is a movie-length episode of the new series where the current Turtles meet up with the Turtles from the old cartoon. The modern Turtles and characters were the same as always, but the older cartoon characters seemed to suffer by comparion. The modern characters always remark on how silly the behavior, ideas and technology of the old characters by comparison. The movie shows that the old cartoon Turtles are seemingly unequipped to deal with the challenges faced by the modern Turtles. Still, it was an entertaining hour-and-a-half and nice to see the old characters return to the screen after nearly fifteen years, Shame they couldn't get the old voice talent.
To conclude this epic post, I would point to the title. I always used to hear non-fans refer to the franchise referred to as "Ninja Turtles". No Teenage, Mutant and often not even a "the". That pretty much summed it up for those who could not appreciate it. Appreciation of the franchise requires a love of the ridiculous, which is appropriate for an idea that began as a parody of serious comic books like Daredevil and Ronin. The franchise has been accused of being the epitome of banal commercialism. Yet it appealed to a generation of young boys, for a while. Not too long after it became popular, it seemed you were a dork for admitting to liking the Turtles. Each one of my elementary/middle school associates was quicker to distance himself than the last.
My introduction to the Turtles was typical. I first saw them in the original cartoon series which was first broadcast at the end of 1987 and lasted until 1996. This series was so tremendously popular that it became cemented in pop-culture heritage. As they did not aspire to the high artistic merits of series like Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies, Silly Symphonies or even Tom & Jerry, they tend not to earn serious attention from animation critics.
In 1988 only the first mini-series had been broadcast, so it was the earliest stages of TMNT mania.
Playmates toys just landed on the store shelves, video games were in the works, and the live-action films were not yet on the horizon.
The cartoon series lived up to its intent to be goofy fun. The good guys were fun and funny, the bad guys inept but never truly vicious, and there was plenty of ninja action to go around. Real effort was put into making the turtles unique from each other beyond the color of their bandanas: Leonardo the leader, Donatello the nerd, Raphael the wise-cracker and Michaelangelo the wild and crazy dude. There was even a small extent of character development over the series.
Not too long after I started watching the cartoon regularly, I was introduced to the Turtles' original media, the comic books. I was never really a comic book junkie, but I quickly became a fan of the Mirage Comics series.
These Turtles were a revelation to me having watched their juvenile versions on TV. They lived in a rather gritty world, they fought and argued with each other and actually killed their enemies!
The cartoon always had problems with Leonardo's Katanas and to a lesser extent Raphael's sais, as the sharp and pointy implements would cut and piece flesh instead of merely brusing it. Censors overseas had more problems with Michaelangelo's nunchucks, frequently editing them out of the broadcasts. Nunchucks are quite lethal in their own right, but Europe and Australia were in the midst of a moral panic over the concept of ninja in entertainment, believing children would copy the ninja moves they saw on TV. However, katanas and sais remained in the program. In contrast, in the comic book, Leo and Raph would not hesitate to use the business end of their weapons on any enemy.
As I mostly acquired the colorized graphic novels, I had difficulty appreciating that TMNT was a black and white comic. When TMNT was first being published in the mid-1980s, the creators were essentially self-publishing the comic. Self-publishing in those days was often something one did part-time, a status which would continue until if and when your book really began to sell. Printing in color was simply beyond the resources of the TMNT creators, Eastman and Laird. Even the comic book's cover did not gain full-color until #5 (after 1-4 and Raphael 1). Like Cerebus, what began as a necessity continued as an artistic choice.
I really enjoyed Volume 1 of TMNT through issue 21, which concluded the Return to New York storyline. After that, even I could tell that its creators were no longer seemingly involved in the stories and the style varied so wildly from issue to issue that I quickly became turned off. I never did manage to read Volumes 2 or 4, and what little I read of Volume 3 did not encourage me to want to read more. Officially it is treated as a red-headed stepchild.
Having acquired a love for all things Turtles, naturally my attention was drawn to the reports that there would be a TMNT game for the NES. The NES was a constant companion in those days, and I eagerly awaited the release of the game with great anticipation. I remember calling every toy shop and electronics place around to see whether they had the game in stock on opening day. None did. A week later my mom and I confirmed the existence of the game at a distant store and we traveled in the early morning to get there to get my copy before they ran out.
The game itself had been widely commented and criticized, but I will give you my impressions. First, although based off the cartoon, the TMNT theme did not seem to be well-integrated into the gameplay. No Krang, Baxter, theme music, mousers and foot soldiers that barely looked the part and somewhat of a grim atmosphere. Second, the game was cruelly unforgiving. Limited continues, poor hit detection, large hit area for your characters, nearly constantly respawning enemies, tricky jumps, lots of pits, limited health items. Michaelangelo and Raphael were nearly useless due to their short attack ranges. Donatello's bo was the most powerful weapon, so he had to be saved for bosses at all costs. The graphics, although flickery, and non-traditional sound were very well done, a testament to the skills of Konami (published under its Ultra Games label). However, the game really felt like it originally was not intended to be a TMNT game but the imagery was later tacked on. On the other hand, back in 1989 when the game was first released, TMNT was still pretty new and the TV show concepts still somewhat under-defined.
Still, the game sold millions and Konami made up for it in its other TMNT games. The Arcade Game was awesome. One of the best beat-em-ups ever, it allowed for four player simultaneous action, which may not have ever been done in the beat-em-up before. It had very colorful graphics, upbeat and catchy tunes and followed the cartoon to a T. It sucked many a quarter or two out of me back in the day. Its NES port may not have been anywhere as graphically impressive, but it was a superb port. Konami tightened the control scheme in the NES port and even added additional levels not found in the Arcade version. Konami followed it up on the NES with The Manhattan Project and the Arcade with Turtles in Time. Ports of the latter game to the SNES and (more loosely) to the Genesis were also top notch. Most ports of hot media properties to video games tend to be (especially back then) to be crap. Not so with the Turtles, thanks to the talented designers at Konami.
Following our rough chronology, I soon learned that the Turtles were coming to the big screen. The first TMNT movie is pure corn, and the sequels even more juvenile. The movies did not seem to take themselves any more seriously than the cartoon. But this was live-action, and the silliness that the cartoon could get away with looked foolish at the multiplex. The guys in green looked exactly like what they were, actors and stuntmen in costume. The costumes were pretty good looking, and the face masks did a nice job of lip-syncing, but the facial expressions were rather limited. At least the Shredder had an air of menace until he stupidly tried to run Splinter through with his spear. And I know Splinter has always been depicted as old, but in this movie he seems positively arthritic and you could almost see his wires or motors being manipulated. The Turtles were born in comics and found a home in cartoons, but just cannot fit within the confines of live action film. I have yet to see the computer-animated film, but it is in my Netflix queue.
Like many childhood interests, my interest in TMNT faded as I grew older. Lately, feeling the need to recapture some of my youth, I have reawakened my interest in the franchise. I had known that there was a new cartoon series, closer to the darker, more mature (non-Archie) comics. But being on the 4kids channel and often on Saturday mornings, I never got around to watching them. However, when they did a countdown of the 10 greatest episodes recently, I used my DVR to examine this series.
Upon watching several episodes, I was struck how closely the series hewed to some of the old Mirage storylines. Being a more maturer version than the '87, series, it is incredibly violent for a kids' show. The Shredder is a vicious creature indeed. A fair comparison between the old cartoon Shredder and the new would be Cesar Romero to Heath Ledger's respective Jokers in Batman. Characters die and even get maimed in the show. The foot soldiers, while still not much more than the Turtles' practice dummies, are human beings, not robots as in the original show.
There are many positive things about the new show. It takes itself seriously and treats the Turtles with respect. Raphael is his true bad-tempered self, Leonardo practically embodies the concepts of honor and fidelity. Donatello is more sensitive and Michelangelo (preferred spelling), is good-natured without constantly spouting dated one-liners or looking for a pizza. Having read the comics, it is fun to watch how the episodes deviate from the printed stories. There is a strong sense of continuity throughout the series with returning allies and villains. Eventually, the series started to progress to season-long storylines, which people tend to love or hate. (My view tends to be closer to hate, unless the whole series is on DVD or demand.)
A digression before I conclude. TMNT and Other Strangeness by Palladium Books was my first experience with a pencil and paper RPG. This book was awesome, but it took me a while to really appreciate it. It had artwork from Eastman and Laird, even an original story or two. It gave the stats for all the major characters that had appeared in the TMNT Mirage comic up to that point. As the point was issue #4 (after Raphael #1). It had pages of equipment, multiple adventure scenarios, and an excellent animal character creation system. However, it was not the ideal game to bring a brand new player into RPGs. Also, unless the RPG was AD&D, it was difficult to find other players.
This week I watched the TV movie TMNT Forever. This is a movie-length episode of the new series where the current Turtles meet up with the Turtles from the old cartoon. The modern Turtles and characters were the same as always, but the older cartoon characters seemed to suffer by comparion. The modern characters always remark on how silly the behavior, ideas and technology of the old characters by comparison. The movie shows that the old cartoon Turtles are seemingly unequipped to deal with the challenges faced by the modern Turtles. Still, it was an entertaining hour-and-a-half and nice to see the old characters return to the screen after nearly fifteen years, Shame they couldn't get the old voice talent.
To conclude this epic post, I would point to the title. I always used to hear non-fans refer to the franchise referred to as "Ninja Turtles". No Teenage, Mutant and often not even a "the". That pretty much summed it up for those who could not appreciate it. Appreciation of the franchise requires a love of the ridiculous, which is appropriate for an idea that began as a parody of serious comic books like Daredevil and Ronin. The franchise has been accused of being the epitome of banal commercialism. Yet it appealed to a generation of young boys, for a while. Not too long after it became popular, it seemed you were a dork for admitting to liking the Turtles. Each one of my elementary/middle school associates was quicker to distance himself than the last.
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