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Post by Xeogred on Dec 23, 2019 19:26:41 GMT -5
Xeogred I'm glad you played through The Misadventures of Tron Bonne, and also enjoyed doing so. I think far too many Legends fans ignored this great game. Sure it wasn't Mega Man Legends 3, but Tron Bonne's game was still a fantastic gaiden all its own. A lot of Legends fans missed out on something truly special by ignoring it. This was my review if you're bored: gamefaqs.gamespot.com/ps/197949-the-misadventures-of-tron-bonne/reviews/164986 That was a good read. I can easily see how the RPG mode was your favorite. You pointed out a few things I should have mentioned as well, the OST and voice acting was fantastic here. Which almost seems like a miracle when compared to Mega Man 8 at the time. But I'm guessing they had a better voice director for the Legends games, since they're more dialogue heavy. Who knows...
That cover art is indeed atrocious though and I can imagine didn't help its poor sales. I would hope more people go back and check this gem out though. Sure, Inafune is gone and I don't think modern day Capcom could really continue the Legends saga, but at the very least, it feels like Tron Bonne could have become her own series. Tron Bonne, her brother, the Bon guy, and all the Servebots have so much personality and there's SO much they could have done here, it's a shame.
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Post by Ex on Dec 23, 2019 22:04:01 GMT -5
That cover art is indeed atrocious though and I can imagine didn't help its poor sales. I didn't think Capcom could do worse than that, but I was wrong: Meanwhile this was the ridiculously superior Japanese version: Seriously. Sarge you ever beat this one? The Legends characters are so well realized, Capcom should have at least licensed an anime series in the MML world, with all the Bonne family in tow.
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Post by Sarge on Dec 23, 2019 22:19:57 GMT -5
Yep, I've beaten all three of them. A little clunky, sure, but full of charm, and I still think they look nice today.
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Post by Xeogred on Dec 23, 2019 22:30:42 GMT -5
Yup. These games hold up tremendously to me. Capcom did a good job getting around the limitations of the hardware.
Did any of you ever play the N64 version of the first game? I might check it out sometime. Wonder if there's any differences.
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Post by toei on Dec 23, 2019 22:49:58 GMT -5
I didn't quite get into MML myself, but it's definitely a great looking game, I guess because it builds its whole world out of the shapes of early 3D so it feels like it looks exactly how it's supposed to.
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Post by Sarge on Dec 23, 2019 22:55:35 GMT -5
I mean, it's not too far from cel-shading, honestly. They used the basic shapes really well to make a more captivating style than stuff that tried to go realistic.
I haven't played the N64 version of MML, but now that you've mentioned it, I really should give that version a go. I actually started up a replay earlier this year while I was fiddling with some of the PS Classic stuff.
EDIT: Here's a look at the opening section. As you might have guessed, the N64 version shows all the advantages and flaws of the platform. Blurrier looking overall, especially some textures, but it also looks smoother, and also has stable polygons, unlike the jitter in the PSX version.
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Post by Ex on Dec 23, 2019 23:03:53 GMT -5
I mean, it's not too far from cel-shading, honestly. That's how I feel about it too. I consider the MML games to be in the realm of (crude) cel-shading, albeit really it's just clever usage of simple textures. I think the visuals hold up very well today.
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Post by Xeogred on Dec 31, 2019 14:50:59 GMT -5
Could be the best retro game I played this year. Time for the review.
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Post by Sarge on Dec 31, 2019 17:46:16 GMT -5
Man, glad you enjoyed it. Sounds like I need to give in and play it next year. I'll probably do it via the PC version, even though I do have the PSX game.
I do have to change my best retro game for this year, though. Wild Guns takes my top spot. I'm probably not going to finish Brain Lord in time, but so far I'm definitely enjoying my time with it. I think part of my hangup in the past has been the graphics; I think the hero character looks a little derpy. You'd be surprised at how much that can affect my initial thoughts about a game.
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Post by toei on Dec 31, 2019 18:03:47 GMT -5
I did most of my gaming in the first half of the year. As has been the case for a few years, I mostly played side-scrollers, with a period of time where I also played a number of shmups. The very best side-scrollers were Zillion 2 (Master System), Atomic Runner (Sega Genesis), and probably Vice: Project Doom (NES). Also good, to varying degrees: Cyborg 009 (Sega CD), Dragon Fighter (NES), Astyanax (NES), Ken-Go aka Lightning Swords (ARC), Perman (NES), Shinobi Legions (Saturn), Hagane (SNES), Hyper Iria (SNES), and Shadow Dancer (arcade). Edo no Kiba was not good but I kind of liked it anyway, or at least parts of it. It's just one of those games where the potential the game had keeps you playing more than what it actually is. A big thing for me earlier this year was auto-runners, a rare subset of side-scrollers where the screen scrolls forward automatically and the character also runs automatically, keeping the action going at all times. Atomic Runner is the purest example of this on retro consoles, but Zillion 2's vehicle-bound half was like that, as were some levels of Cyborg 009 and Edo no Kiba. I think Sarge would probably like Cyborg 009, it's easily a cut above Laser Soft's other games and it's pretty fast-paced and fun, despite some of the usual roughness. Can't remember if you played Hagane, but that's also solid. I did not enjoy Valis IV and Batman (NES), both of which caused me endless frustration. I vow to never play games that annoy me so deeply all the way through anymore. Shmup-wise, I enjoyed Aleste Gaiden and Psycho Chaser the most - fittingly, they're not too far from being top-down versions of Atomic Runner, since they feature humanoid characters who walk rather than fly (and in the case of Aleste Gaiden, can even jump). Coryoon was a surprisingly fun "cute-'em-up" that managed to have steady action while still being on the easier side. As for more traditional shooters, Gate of Thunder was just nice in every aspect, despite doing nothing that really stands out. The two games I got into the most were the two of the very few RPGs I played this year, though: Stella Deus, a IMO very above-average PS2 SRPG, and Hero Chronicle, which is just one of a very large number of SNES RPGs that are good or better. Kind of halfway between side-scroller and RPG was Castlevania - Aria of Sorrow, which I also liked. I got pretty burned out on retro action games. There's still about 15 to 20 I really want to play eventually, but for this coming year I think I'd just like to play a RPG every now and then and otherwise focus on my other hobbies. We'll see how things go, though.
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