AL82 Retrogaming Longplays | Psycho-Nics Oscar Longplay (Arcade) [QHD] @AL82RetrogamingLongplays | Uploaded 11 months ago | Updated 11 hours ago
Game Info
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Developer: Data East
Publisher: Data East
Year of Release: 1987
Game Review & Impressions
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One of Data East's lesser-known coin-op releases, Psycho-Nics Oscar has one of the weirdest video game titles I can think of. It's a run-and-gun fusion of Gradius and Rygar, maybe with a light sprinkling of Xain'd Sleena for good measure.
It would be a completely inoccuous and forgettable game, save for the fact I reckon this game served as the inspiration for Turrican series, one of the most iconic series of platform shooters on the Commodore 64 and Amiga computers. There are some remarkable similarities between the design of the main character sprites in both games, and the level design and background artwork seem oddly familiar; even the jumping animations for the main sprite are the same!
If you're a fan of the Turrican games, this is definitely worth playing just to see the similarities!
Chapters
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TBC
Game Info
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Developer: Data East
Publisher: Data East
Year of Release: 1987
Game Review & Impressions
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One of Data East's lesser-known coin-op releases, Psycho-Nics Oscar has one of the weirdest video game titles I can think of. It's a run-and-gun fusion of Gradius and Rygar, maybe with a light sprinkling of Xain'd Sleena for good measure.
It would be a completely inoccuous and forgettable game, save for the fact I reckon this game served as the inspiration for Turrican series, one of the most iconic series of platform shooters on the Commodore 64 and Amiga computers. There are some remarkable similarities between the design of the main character sprites in both games, and the level design and background artwork seem oddly familiar; even the jumping animations for the main sprite are the same!
If you're a fan of the Turrican games, this is definitely worth playing just to see the similarities!
Chapters
---------------------------------------------------
TBC
![Psycho-Nics Oscar Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QhIEqEvyZ3g/hqdefault.jpg "Psycho-Nics Oscar Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Data East
Publisher: Data East
Year of Release: 1987
Game Review & Impressions
One of Data Easts lesser-known coin-op releases, Psycho-Nics Oscar has one of the weirdest video game titles I can think of. Its a run-and-gun fusion of Gradius and Rygar, maybe with a light sprinkling of Xaind Sleena for good measure.
It would be a completely inoccuous and forgettable game, save for the fact I reckon this game served as the inspiration for Turrican series, one of the most iconic series of platform shooters on the Commodore 64 and Amiga computers. There are some remarkable similarities between the design of the main character sprites in both games, and the level design and background artwork seem oddly familiar; even the jumping animations for the main sprite are the same!
If youre a fan of the Turrican games, this is definitely worth playing just to see the similarities!
Chapters
TBC")
![Power Drift Longplay (PC Engine) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Qzoy7E-MhbI/hqdefault.jpg "Power Drift Longplay (PC Engine) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Copya Systems/Sega
Publisher: Asmik Ace Entertainment
Year of Release: 1990
Game Review & Impressions
Released in 1988, the arcade release of Power Drift was Segas next big super scaler release, adding various tilting and rotating cleverness to its sprite scaling hardware. A slew of home conversions followed over the next couple of years, most of them doomed to worse-than-mediocrity, thanks to hardware that simply had no hope of recreating the arcade experience.
Right off the bat, the PC Engine version was never going to be perfect, but to give the developers credit, the various concessions and cuts made to the game result in a product that, at a surface level at least, still resembles the source material. The Oversized dirt buggy sprites, stylised racers and tracks made of overlapping scaling sprites are still present and correct, albeit in much more limited fashion; its not a bad looking game, certainly better than the woeful Amiga and Atari ST ports us UK gamers had to endure back in the day.
As to how it plays, this is more of a mixed bag. The cornering mechanics are much closer to a traditional 2D racer, with the cars speed and sharpness of the curve determining how quickly said vehicle slides to the roads edge and into the rough. The fact the track is wider than the visible screen makes it almost impossible to determine the difficulty of the curve, which means youll almost certainly fly off the track because you misjudged the timing on when to brake.
Speaking of braking, its largely redundant mechanic. The rate of deceleration is too slow to be useful, whereas shifting to low gear will kill your speed instantly, making it a much better tactic for cornering. Even then, its impossible to reach first place on a couple of the tracks, thanks to cheating AI which suffers none of the penalties you do, and can take the corners at top speed. Some tracks lack sufficiently long straights for you to claw back the distance to reach the pack leader, so you have to settle for 2nd place.
All of this means that Power Drift on PC Engine is a bit of an odd beast. Its passable facsimile in some respects, but is still too far removed from the arcade to give a strong recommendation. Theres also the fact Power Drift as as a concept pales against OutRun; for all its tilt-scaling grandeur, its just not as a good a game.
Ultimately, the PC Engine port of Power Drift is one of the more technically adept home conversions, certainly when compared to many of the computer-based ports, but the fact remains better racing games than this exist.
Chapters
TBC")
![Road Fighter Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RE7j5MUpGA0/hqdefault.jpg "Road Fighter Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Konami
Publisher: Konami
Year of Release: 1984
Game Review & Impressions
Certainly one of the earliest arcade titles Ive played, Road Fighter is a simple premise: drive fast and avoid opposition vehicles and obstacles on the way to the finish line.
Chapters
TBC")
![Trojan Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RZgDgec09h4/hqdefault.jpg "Trojan Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Year of Release: 1986
Game Review & Impressions
One of Capcoms arcade releases with which I was not familiar, Trojan could be perceived as the missing link between Kung Fu Master and Vigilante.
This side-scroller is definitely cut from the same cloth as Items games, albeit equipping the hero with a sword and shield, instead of pure martial arts skills.
Its also not very good. The gameplay is uninspired, the graphics somewhat drab, and possessing a difficulty curve which becomes more of a vertical line in later levels. Trojan is probably worth checking out, but only if youve never experienced it; one you have, you probably wont come back for more.
Chapters
TBC
#capcom #retrogaming #longplay")
![Cool Spot Longplay (Mega Drive/Genesis) [50 FPS]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RjSCoCeG0vI/hqdefault.jpg "Cool Spot Longplay (Mega Drive/Genesis) [50 FPS]
Cool Spot Longplay (Mega Drive/Genesis) [50 FPS]")
![Power Piggs of the Dark Age Longplay (SNES) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RrkAwlmA5Yk/hqdefault.jpg "Power Piggs of the Dark Age Longplay (SNES) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Radical Entertainment
Publisher: Titus
Year of Release: 1996
Game Review & Impressions
Certainly one of the weirdest premises for a game Ive come across in a while, Power Piggs of the Dark Ages is a tongue-in-cheek take on the platforming genre. It stars a bunch of donut-loving hogs who embark on a quest to save their donut shoppe, and the rest of the kingdom, from some kind of big bad wolf wizard and his minions.
Whats obvious from the outset is this is a game which clearly wasnt dunked in the deep-fat frier long enough. Despite the prologue and title screen clearly showing three pigs, the game only ever lets you play one of them. Clearly, the plan was to have different pigs with different skills, but this must have been scaled back at some point.
What remains is a game which feels rather like the Sega Genesis version of Disneys Aladdin. You can attack enemies with your sword, as well as hurl a variety of different donuts from afar. The levels involve a fair degree of running and jumping, collecting coins for bonus lives, and using air vents to reach higher places. Its not the worst game Ive played, just achingly mediocre - nothing changes over the course of the entire game, other than the backgrounds change occasionally. It doesnt help that most of the artwork uses really drab shades of brown, grey and taupe.
Ultimately, Power Piggs is kind of cool as a curiosity for fellow retro historians keen to delve into the lesser-known titles in the back catalogue of SNES games, despite the fact its no where near being one of the best.
Chapters
TBC")
![Insector X Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/S8k07zZuBQA/hqdefault.jpg "Insector X Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Hot-B
Publisher: Sages Creation
Year of Release: 1990
Game Review & Impressions
Converted from the 1990 arcade original, Insector X is horizontally scrolling shooter with its roots firmly in the R-Type school of design. The player pilots their cybernetic insectoid against swarms of similarly chitinous foes, all bristling photon cannons and missile launchers, rounding of each stage with a battle against the obligatory end-of-level boss.
From a design point of view, this is pretty workaday shooter territory. It looks decent enough, with solid, if somewhat unremarkable gameplay. The ability to swap between weapon loadouts mid fight is pretty handy, and the arsenal at your disposal is varied and destructive enough to keep the action going.
I need to check out the original arcade version to get a better appreciation as to how good this port truly is, but taken on its own merit, Insector X on Sega Genesis isnt a bad shooter.
Chapters
TBC")
![Super Adventure Island Longplay (SNES) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SKR6hEjH3SQ/hqdefault.jpg "Super Adventure Island Longplay (SNES) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Hudson Soft
Publisher: Hudson Soft
Year of Release: 1992
Game Review & Impressions
The original Wonder Boy coin-op was a regular sight at arcades when I was growing up, but Id always wondered how and why the series seemed so similar to Hudsons Adventure Island games.
As it turns out, Adventure Island is effectively a fork of the original Wonder Boy IP. Hudson Soft had signed away the rights to the Wonder Boy name and characters to Sega, so created a new protagonist Master Higgins and assets for their own series of games. Unlike Sega, who transformed Wonder Boy into a series of monster-slaying action RPG titles, Adventure Island and its brethren stuck to the original Wonder Boy arcade formula.
Super Adventure Island is, in many respects, a souped up Wonder Boy for the 90s, using graphical tricks made possible by the SNES. It looks really cool, and the gameplay, if youve played Wonder Boy, is instantly familiar. Each level is a giant obstacle course of platforms, hazards and enemies, with the ever-present threat of your dwindling energy bar, which must be topped up by grabbing fruit, cakes and other sweet treats suspended in mid-air.
If Im honest, Super Adventure Island isnt particularly innovative, but its a decent-enough arcade platformer. I love the visuals, but I cant say this is a game Id come back to very often.
Chapters
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![X Multiply Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SNlcmEKR0wc/hqdefault.jpg "X Multiply Longplay (Arcade) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Irem
Publisher: Irem
Year of Release: 1989
Game Review & Impressions
I suspect most people reading this will be familiar with the R-Type series, the horizontal shoot em up franchise which really put Irem on the map, but I wonder how many folks will have heard of X Multiply.
The general game design and overall aesthetic featuring bio-mechanical alien monsters and levels is very much in keeping with R-Type, as is the shooting and power-up system. However, for X Multiply, Irem replaced the force pods which fly parallel to your ship with a pair of metallic tentacles which flail around and track the general movement of your ship as you fly through space. These tendrils damage enemies, nullify incoming projectiles, and can even be used to shoot behind your ship - its a a really cool mechanic, albeit one that adds a level of complexity to the gameplay which some players might find aggravating. Because the tendrils drift about on their own accord, youll be constantly shifting your position to realign the hard-points to face in the direction you want; with ship speed upgrades, this can lead to situations where youll overshoot and collide with an enemy or part of the scenery you didnt intend.
Ultimately, I still prefer R-Type and R-Type II, but X Multiply is still a very cool game worth playing. It looks great, offers a very stiff challenge, and the ship tendrils provide a mechanic quite unlike anything else.
Chapters
00:00 Attract mode
00:18 Stage 1 - Loop 1
02:30 Stage 2 - Loop 1
04:38 Stage 3 - Loop 1
07:40 Stage 4 - Loop 1
10:10 Stage 5 - Loop 1
12:44 Stage 6 - Loop 1
15:34 Stage 7 - Loop 1
18:57 Ending - Loop 1
20:31 Stage 8 - Loop 2
22:44 Stage 9 - Loop 2
24:45 Stage 10 - Loop 2
27:42 Stage 11 - Loop 2
30:08 Stage 12 - Loop 2
32:35 Stage 13 - Loop 2
35:28 Stage 14 - Loop 2
39:00 Ending - Loop 2")
![Chase H.Q. II Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/S_ihMO-WInw/hqdefault.jpg "Chase H.Q. II Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Taito
Publisher: Sega
Year of Release: 1992
Game Review & Impressions
Released before the much later Chase HQ 2 retconned this console-only release out of existence, Chase H.Q. II for the Genesis is a fairly humdrum cash-in for the franchise.
In all honesty, apart from the additional vehicles, theres little else of significance here. The appeal of the arcade original was the super-slick scrolling and fast-paced action, which are somewhat lacking here. Its not really bad, just rather dull, which makes it difficult to recommend.
Chapters
TBC
#chasehq2
#segagenesis
#retrogaming")
![Ranger X Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Sp0wmKdmP9A/hqdefault.jpg "Ranger X Longplay (Sega Genesis) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Gau Entertainment
Publisher: Sega
Year of Release: 1993
Game Review & Impressions
If you have a penchant for Anime-inspired mech games, Ranger X might just be up your alley. Its yet another title in the Genesis library Id never heard of before, and it turned out to be really quite impressive.
The premise is pretty straightforward: pilot a mech suit in a series of sorties to destroy the forces of an oppressive military force, attempting to bring return some semblance of peace to the world. Each stage contains a number of targets indicated under the radar at the top of the screen that must be located and destroyed. Some of these are hidden out of reach, so youll need to make use of your mechs in-built jet pack to reach them, although the pack slowly overheats through use, so youll often need to land at opportune moments to let it cool off.
Then there are your weapons, which include a pulse rifle with unlimited ammunition, plus a selection of specials with varying shot pattern, utility and so forth. Specials require power to operate, and your suit recharges power when in open daylight, or exposed to light sources - environments located in caves, underground, or places where light is otherwise lacking means youll need to conserve power and use your weapons only when needed, which adds a degree of strategy to the game. In one of the later stages, the only light sources are high-intensity search lights, which trigger swarms of enemies when you enter the beam, so recharging weapons comes with a price; its a really neat feature and one that adds variety to the levels.
In addition to your own mech suit, youll be accompanied by one of two vehicles Couriers during each stage. Indra, a speedy motorbike, can be used to skip across the level in double quick time, and comes equipped with an additional pulse rifle. The Eos, on the other hand, provides fire support from the air, bombarding enemies with powerful laser blasts, and slowly follows you around the level. Docking your suit with a Courier allows you to change the special weapon you have equipped, and grants you a degree of protection from enemies, thanks to an extra set of shields equipped on the craft.
I had no real preconceptions about the game prior to playing, and I came away suitably impressed. The inclusion of support vehicles and reliance on light to recharge weapons adds depth to the gameplay, and Ranger X is also one of the most visually impressive titles in the Genesis library. The artwork is exceptionally good throughout, with extensive parallax layers adding depth to the backgrounds of each level, and cool tricks, such as the light shafts breaking through the roof of the caves in stage 2, setting this a cut above other Genesis games.
Ranger X is a seriously cool game, one I recommend any shooter fan check out.
Chapters
TBC")
![Shinobi Longplay (NES) [QHD]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Tvs-cZYqfQI/hqdefault.jpg "Shinobi Longplay (NES) [QHD]
Game Info
Developer: Tengen
Publisher: Tengen
Year of Release: 1989
Game Review & Impressions
An unlicensed NES game and terrible conversion of an arcade classic. Theres really nothing to redeem this pile of tosh; the controls are awful, the collision detection amiss, and animation almost non-existent. I guess some of the sprites are reasonable, but backgrounds from certain bosses are missing, and theres perpetual raster flicker where the top UI and game window meet.
Chapters
TBC")
