Mike Arcade

Hey guys, right here is where you can post fan animations be it new or old. So if you got some favorites, just let us know. I'll start us off with a more recent one from Terminal Montage, love the dude's stuff and I was so hyped to see this.

Hey everybody, this topic has been long overdue on having any sort of post as there have been many great shmups released over the years since then. Right now though, I'd like to share some news regarding the upcoming Turbografx-16 Mini. Yes, this does have something to do with shmups, mainly on how M2 are still madmen that love to add extra stuff in these sort of collections. You see, while we do get the classic Konami shooters of Gradius and Salamander for the TG16, M2 decided to make new ports of the games hidden in the mini console. They're easy to access too, and unlike a few other mini games hidden in the consoles like Force Gear or Twinbee, these are full games. Both M2 versions of the games are Near Arcade Perfect ports of their respective entries, which means the M2 port of Gradius doesn't have that exclusive TG16 level the original port has. It also means that the M2 Salamander port has the voices from the Arcade. While I know it seems like a very minor thing to do in making new ports of games already available for the console, it just goes to show just how above and beyond M2 will go in order to make a great collection even better. Granted, this isn't Arcade Perfect, but Near Perfect enough to run on the TG16's hardware and look so darn impressive on what is technically an 8-bit console. After hiring the man who spearheaded his own personal Sega Genesis port of Darius, as well as making a similar Arcade port of Sega's Tetris for the Sega Genesis Mini, I wouldn't expect anything less from the greats over at M2. By the way, only the US and PAL versions of the Turbografx-16 Mini have Salamander and the M2 port. The Console comes out for on May 22nd for 100 bucks, and if you like Mini Consoles it's really a must buy. Especially if you love shmups as it's a dream machine for them. Seriously you got some of the greats of Horizontal Shooters like Gradius, R-Type, and Darius on there. Plus Soldier Blade and the obscure Sapphire as well. So if you like Shmups (and other classic retro games like Bomberman and Castlevania: Rondo of Blood) I'd highly recommend it. I'd like to post more shooters on here soon, so keep an eye out guys and stay tuned.

https://www.nintendoenthusiast.com/upcoming-sonic-audio-drama-unites-an-all-star-voice-cast-of-fans-and-pros/ Stop the presses everyone! A new audio series is coming out from Emi Jones. Most noticeable thing? Mike Pollock is gonna voice Eggman for this fan series...and Ryan Drummond returns as Sonic in this fan series for the first time since Sonic Advance 3! I'm excited to see how this turns out.

https://sonichacking.org/vault/ Good news everyone! As SHC 2020 is underway, Sonichacking.org is now archiving as many entries as they can from past years. So far, they've got entries from 2012 to 2019. There are some that are missing, but it's still nice they are doing this. In hindsight, this probably should have been done a long time ago. XP In any case, enjoy these entries from the past as I'll bring you news of SHC 2020 in the future. Stay tuned!

Parts 2 & 3 of the interview. Had no idea they were uploaded until now. Sorry about that, so if you are curious just watch and discuss.

I'm back again! Got another review for you all, this time it's a double header. I've got two game reviews for the price of one as I review the more recent entries (to be released outside of Japan) in the Puyo Puyo Series. Though some of you may know the game better as Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine and Kirby's Avalanche, this series has been going on for a long time and only a few years back has finally returned internationally. Join me as I review... Puyo Puyo Tetris & Puyo Puyo Champions Review Overview: You may have played the above games mentioned for the Genesis and SNES back in the day, but those games were actually a reskin of a series called Puyo Puyo. What you may not know is that the series started out on the MSX2, created by Compile in 1991 (the same creators as the Zanac and Aleste Series of shmups). Inspired by Tetris and Dr. Mario, game designer Kazunari Yonemitsu's idea for the game was like dominos. Except that four of the same color would vanish after they were in place. To make the game more unique, they added in the characters from their Madou Monogatari (Sorcery Saga) Series of Dungeon Crawler RPGs. An enhanced version of the game would be released for Arcades in 1992 and ported to other platforms like the Mega Drive that same year (which Mean Bean Machine is a port of). As successful as the original game was, it's sequel Puyo Puyo Tsu (2) in 1994 was a nation wide hit in Japan. It ended up being the biggest Arcade game in japan since Street Fighter II. They was even gaming tournaments back then for the game! As great as that was, along with other sequels afterwards, Compile over extended themselves. By 1998 they ended up with the most debt a game developer had ever gained, and in a desperate measure sold the rights to Puyo Puyo (and the cast of Madou Monogatari along with it) to SEGA. Sadly, Compile ended up falling to bankruptcy, but did live on as Compile Heart, a subsidiary of Idea Factory. After a few handheld titles, SEGA got Sonic Team to developer a new entry in the series with Puyo Puyo Fever for Japanese Arcades in 2003 with (most) new characters made for the series. Several Puyo games would be made over the years, yet despite Puyo Puyo Fever (localized as Puyo Pop Fever internationally) being localized, every other game in the series would remain only in Japan. That is until 2017 for the Nintendo Switch and PS4, when the 2014 title and crossover game Puyo Puyo Tetris would be localized. It would be released a year later on Steam. At the end of 2018 and in 2019, a digital only title called Puyo Puyo Champions (eSports in Japan) would be released. Ever since SEGA got the rights and developed Puyo Puyo, they've moved 27 Million Copies. It's become a mainstay for SEGA alongside Sonic, Yakuza, and Atlas' titles. Synopsis: There's an Adventure Mode for Puyo Puyo Tetris, but it's a pretty straightforward and comical romp. All the Puyo Puyo titles are like that. The main character for this one is Ringo (Protagonist of Puyo Puyo 7) and the space faring Tetris King Tee. The crew of the SS Tetra crash land on the World Ringo resides and run into her. After a puzzle bout with the other using a strange means to battle, Ringo and Friends help the SS Tetra crew out and later try to find the source for the dimensions merging. Ringo is joined by Compile-era Protagonist Arle and Puyo Puyo Fever Protagonist Amitie. Both Protagonists come from different worlds, as using Puyos somehow allows you to travel into other worlds. Champions lacks any sort of Adventure Mode, which probably explains why the game is cheaper than PPT. That and Champions uses the same assets of PPT.Likes: .I don't think I need to tell you guys how to play Tetris right? But if you aren't familiar, it goes like this. You match up Tetrominos in a row to clear a line of them. That's all there is to it, though you can hit up to hard drop the piece instantly to the board and hold a piece back for later use. Puyo Puyo is about matching four colored blobs together, but if you want to take your opponent down you have to form chains. Chains are stacks of puyos that match and follow up one after another. How Puyo Puyo plays in PPT also works in Champions under the Tsu/2 Rule set. Another thing to note is that you can Offset your opponent's chain with your own to negate the effect of Garbage Puyos. They're the black blobs that get in your way. Champions has another rule set called Fever, where if you Offset 7 chains you build up a meter to enter Fever mode. In it, you are given a separate board with preset opportunities to form big chains to take down your opponent before time runs out of Fever mode. These two rule sets are the only game modes for Champions. Puyo Puyo Tetris has a lot more game modes than Champions as it was a physical release. But it also does something that no other puzzle game does. When you select a character to play as in most modes, you can select which puzzle game you want to play. Meaning while you can play Tetris, you're opponent can play Puyo Puyo against you! This leads in to two other modes, Swap and Fusion. Swap is where you both play Puyo Puyo and Tetris in timed intervals. You can also follow up chains from the previous board if your puzzle piece has yet to drop before time runs out. Fusion plays like Puyo Puyo, with the addition of Tetris pieces and puzzle pieces that swap between Tetris and Puyos. You can crush Puyos with Tetrominos, which causes the crushed puyos to drop from above. Finally there's Big Bang, which works just like a constant Fever mode. Both can be played with both puzzle sets, where you have to gain more cleared lines or chains that your opponent before time runs out. They somehow manage to balance these two puzzle games out to work absolutely beautifully together, it's a sight to behold. Simply put, no matter what game you get you'll have a fun puzzle game to play. While PPT has a lot more modes alongside an Adventure Mode with some pretty funny moments, Champions gives you the standard Puyo experience, which is a very good and well designed game on it's own merit. Swap has got to be my favorite mode in PPT, as it really gives you a lot of strategy on how to manage your boards. While Champions doesn't have as many game modes, it was updated with a Lessons Mode that gives you certain puzzles to solve with Puyos. Did I also forget to mention that both games have 4-player multiplayer? It's fun for the whole family! Now if I didn't explain the rules of Puyo Puyo or Tetris well enough for you, both games have a tutorial on how to play.Dislikes: Now the setting and aesthetic is very bright, colorful, and full of chibi anime-like characters. For those of you who don't like that sort of style, that can be a bit of a problem. You can turn the character voices off if they prove annoying to you, as well as character animations if that helps you out. Another is a problem that SEGA-era Puyo games have, that being each CPU opponent has a set AI and Difficulty. Meaning some characters you face off are harder than others, and you can't change that if you want to face off against a certain character but without being taken down. It's trial and error on which characters are harder than others, on that note don't take on the Dark Prince unless you're sure you can beat him. I don't care for Big Bang mode. I mean I do like the Fever ruleset and it's basically a Fever Marathon mode, but it's just a timed marathon where if you are faster you pretty much win. It's really easy to cheese this mode playing Tetris if you know what your doing, but I can also say the same for Puyo players that know how to use chains. Fusion is a really cool mode, but very intimidating. I'd recommend easing your way into it, also here's a hint. Your chains work like Tetris links in this mode. Meaning you can drop and clear one set of puyo after another, but it won't be as effective as chaining puyos. Now I need to remind you, Champions is much cheaper to get than PPT, but it only has two main game modes. It would have been nice to have at least one or two more game modes, like the rulesets of Sun and Yon. The game originally was only for multiplayer, but was given a Challenge Mode and Lessons Mode later on. So you do have ways to play the game if you don't have anyone to play with (like me ;_;). Speaking of which, I gotta talk about something. The Online Multiplayer for both games, from what I've seen works fine. Thing is, I couldn't find anyone to play a few rounds. Maybe I just hit a dry day, but that could be a problem if you want to play online. Especially for a game meant for Multiplayer. Granted, this is regarding the Steam versions of the game, so your results may vary for the console ports.Trivia: As mentioned before, the Puyo Puyo series is actually a spin-off of the Madou Monogatari Series. What you may not realize is that Compile Heart (formed by the devs of the long gone Compile) have recently brought back the series under the Sorcery Saga name internationally. It's latest title was released for the PS Vita back in 2013, with a port for PC that came out in 2018. Due to the licensing of Puyo Puyo and the original characters now belonging to SEGA, it has a new cast of characters. They also made a new puzzle game called Octomania in 2008 for the Wii. Despite Compile Heart no longer under the helm of Puyo Puyo, with a number of titles they have under their belt such as the Hyperdimensional Neptunia series of RPGs, they seem to be doing just fine. Puyo Puyo and Madou Monogatari are in separate continuities, though one Compile employee did try to bridge the titles together. This was rejected by Compile, but at the very least Japan got some Madou Monogatari light novels that follow up on the concept. Arle Nadja from Madou Monogatari and Puyo Puyo is a well requested character for Super Smash Bros in Japan!? http://sourcegaming.info/2015/02/19/perception-of-smash-dlc-in-japan/ According to some data, there was a noticeable few who requested her as DLC for Smash Wii U/3DS. Whose to say there aren't still fans to this day who'd like to see the Wizard and Puyo Popper in the series? She'd certainly be an interesting addition if that were to ever happen, though it seems pretty unlikely. SEGA has an extensive history with Tetris, having several games released on Sega arcade boards and consoles but mainly only in Japan. They're first Tetris title was released on December of 1988 for the Arcade. They even won a Game of the Year award from Gamest the following year for it! A Mega Drive/Genesis port was made and released in 1989, but had to be recalled as Nintendo had exclusive rights to make console Tetris games at that time. All but a few copies are left as the rest had to be destroyed, making a genuine copy of Tetris for the Mega Drive one of the rarest games ever. Though it has been re-released like in the PS2 Sega Ages Tetris Collection. A new port of the 1988 Arcade game would be made by M2 for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive Mini.Would I Recommend?: I'd recommend both games, but one over the other that really depends. Champions is only 9.99* while Tetris is 19.99*, not counting online sales which usually cut the price in half for both games. Champions would be cheaper to get overall though it doesn't have as many game modes. Now if you also like Tetris I'd say get that instead. Wait for these games on sale if you don't think they're worth the default price. Both games give you the tools needed to know how to play the game. It all depends on you if you think which title is worth it and the content they provide. Either way, you'll have a good time. If you can manage to bring friends over to play, it'll make it all the better. *Prices for the games stated are under the US Currency, your resulting price internationally will vary. --- If any of you guys get either of these games on Steam hit me up! Maybe we can play a few rounds. Till next time!

Thanks @MoKat, really appreciate the feedback on what you tried to find. So everyone, I got another review in the help, and it's the first fighting game I'm reviewing for the site too! Despite what you may assume, it's not Street Fighter or from Capcom. It's not even an SNK game (though any of those would be fun to do) either. Today I'm reviewing the other fighting game series that's made a name for itself and is held in high regard...no it's not Tekken or Soul Calibur. It isn't Mortal Kombat either. I'm talking about Arc System Works series Guilty Gear. But which one? I'm going all the way back to where it started, and it's not Guilty Gear X. I'm talking about the PS1 sleeper hit that started it all... Guilty Gear: The Missing Link ReviewOverview: The Guilty Gear Series is the brain child of Daisuke Ishiwatari. This man here is the creator, writer, director, voice actor (for the main character, Sol Badguy), designer, and composer in every game in the series. In other words, it's pretty amazing what Ishiwatari-san and his team brings out every time a new game in the series comes out. In fact, the newest game in the series as of this post will be out this year (Guilty Gear Strive). But back then in the mid-90's, he just got out of vocational school and later joined the company Arc System Works. Before Guilty Gear, they did a bunch of games for companies like Banpresto (known for Super Robot Wars), along with SEGA and Sammy Corporation (way before they merged). With the president at the time's permission, he got 12 people together to form Team Neo Blood. These guys would develop a fighter who would spawn a series to rise above and rival the big hitters of Capcom, SNK, and Namco.Synopsis: The setting of Guilty Gear is really cool, and the (Shockingly accurate) manual from the release outside of Japan explains it well: [Set in the 22nd Century, mankind succeeded in developing a natural, limitless energy supply, and brought about the Age of Magic. Science and industry, sources of environmental pollution and weapons of mass destruction, were thus outlawed. However, the abolition of technology did little to soothe mankind's suffering. A war erupted, fueled by rapidly developing magical theory, that saw the birth of Gears—powerful biological weapons produced by fusing human and animal DNA with magic. The powerful military state that produced the Gears as little more than slaves monopolized the manufacturing process, bringing countless other lands under its control. Yet among their ranks, a rebel appeared and announced herself to be self-aware—Justice. She gathered an army of fellow Gears and declared war on all mankind. Despite heavy initial casualties, humans put their differences aside and formed the Sacred Order of Holy Knights to combat the Gear menace. After one hundred years of brutal war, the Crusades came to an end when the Order sealed Justice inside an impenetrable dimensional prison, and the masterless Gears were rounded up and destroyed. However, in 2180, five years after the end of the Crusades, the walls of Justice's dimensional prison unexpectedly begin to erode away. Assessing the threat before them, the world's leaders quickly organize an international fighting tournament to select members for a proposed Second Sacred Order. Few take notice of its suspicious rules, but the prize is tempting: The victor gets to make a "single wish... any wish at all".] Later games flesh out the overall backstory, such as an entity that tried to break into our reality in 1999 by manifesting through electricity. Which resulted in the UN somehow putting a ban on all modern technology. This resulted in Mages showing up and introducing to the world literal Magic that replaces technology. Basically Magitek that doesn't need electricity and by 2010 they phase out old tech for Magic. 4 Years later the Gear Project is formed, but due to a certain accident two years later it doesn't go well. That is until in 2073 when Justice is completed and the Gear Project is restarted. After that, well you can see the text above you. The year GG1 takes place is in 2180 for anyone who is curious. There's much more, but I could always go over some more details later in some future reviews of Guilty Gear games. Really the setting of the series is awesome, and the terminology is simple and welcoming to get into. Can't say the same for Blazblue, but that's an entirely different beast on it's own. Characters: This segment is just a (hopefully) short and basic overview on the characters of the first game. I'm gonna try to be brief, but give you enough to know just who some of these cool guys and weirdos are. There might be some spoilers for this game, but by this point some of these tidbits are well known. At the very least I won't tell you the endings for (most) of these characters less I find it necessary to tell you in case I do review other GG games in the future. Sol Badguy: A bounty hunter with a bad attitude. He joined the Holy Order during the Gear Crusades at the behest of Kliff. He did not get along well with any of the other knights (especially Ky), and when Justice was sealed away he took the chance to steal a weapon called Fireseal (his sword in the game) and make his own way. (Kliff knew he'd do this, funny enough he was going to give him the sword anyway). Entered the tournament to take down Justice once and for all. Despite hunting down Gears...he's one as well... Fun Fact: His favorite thing is listed as the Queen album Sheer Heart Attack. \m/ Ky Kiske: Wielder of the Thunderseal and the young prodigy who helped seal Justice away, this former Holy Knight turned police officer enters to quell any sort of rumors about Justice's revival and stop whatever's going on. He also ends up trying to settle the score with Sol as well. May: Orphaned at a young age, this girl turned Sky Pirate wields an Anchor as her weapon. She joins the tournament in order to wish for her Captain Johnny to be free from prison. What she doesn't realize however, is that she's actually Japanese, which of course is a pretty big deal in Guilty Gear...but not because of what you might be thinking. You'll see when I get to another character later. Kliff Undersen: A Hero of the Gear Crusades who trained Ky, this legend used his giant knife-like sword Dragonslayer to cleave giant Gears apart in his youth. He's retired, but once he hears about what's going on, he takes up his sword one last time. Sadly, he dies after the events of this game. But he is still playable in some versions of the sequels Guilty Gear X and Guilty Gear XX. Potemkin: This hulking giant of a man is sadly a slave soldier for the Zepp Empire, the only nation that still uses regular technology. He's tasked to join the tournament in order to gain territory for his empire, but he and his Sargent Gabriel may have something else in mind... Axl Low: A young man from 20th Century England. Back then on the East End of London, he used his unusual prowess in Martial Arts and Kusari-gama to clean up his neighborhood. Before he could enjoy the peace, he somehow ended up slipping through time to the 22nd Century. He joins in hopes that he can wish for a way back home to his own time. He has this problem throughout the series, and is further explored why in later games. Zato-One: A member of the Assassin's Guild who sacrificed his eyesight in order to wield a symbiotic weapon known as the Forbidden Beast. With the power to weaponize his own shadow, he became the leader of the Guild within a few weeks. Currently imprisoned due to being turned in by his former subordinate Millia, a mysterious benefactor releases him in order to enter the tournament and get his revenge. There's a lot that happens to him in the series, as well as his Shadow... Chipp Zanuff: A former druggie and dealer for the Mafia, he was saved by the ninja master Tsuyoshi and trained in the art of Shinobi. When his master was found at death's door due to the Mafia, despite his pleas not to retaliate, Chipp vowed revenge and entered the tournament. He does so in order to start his own organization and take down the Mafia. Gets a lot of neat character development in the series. Dr. Baldhead: Once known across the world as the best Doctor in 100 years, the death of a little girl under his care drove him mad. He became a serial killer and was detained, but freed by the same man who released Zato. This benefactor handed him his extremely large scalpel to take care of his "Patients" at the tournament. It's implied in the manual and later games that her death was not his fault. After this game, No one ever sees Dr. Baldhead again. However, a very similar looking doctor appears in future games... Millia Rage: A war orphan from the Gear Crusades, she was taken in as an infant by the Assassin's Guild. Trained to use her hair as a weapon, when she found the opportunity to betray the Guild she took it. Now running for her life and hearing that Zato was freed, she enters the tournament to take him down and finally be free. Her hair isn't normal by the way. For she was also embedded with a Forbidden Beast. There's a lot that she goes through in the series, and it's also implied there may have been a thing with her and Zato. Testament: The real host of the tournament and a Humanoid Gear. He was once the Stepson of Kliff and joined a special program to become a Gear who could fight other Gears. It didn't go well, and is now a slave to Justice's will and ideals. By freeing Zato and Dr. Baldhead, he used everyone in order to spill blood and use a ritual to free Justice to continue where she left off. Serves as the sub-boss of the game. Despite how the game ends, he comes back in later games. Justice: Type-01, the First Completed Gear. A Command Type Gear, she turned on the US and declared war on Humanity. She also blew up Japan, making the survivors an endangered people. Testament manages to free her in order to wipe out Mankind, it's up to you to take her down once and for all. Also despite the game calling her "him", and the fact she doesn't look like it, Justice is female. There's a LOT about her that is revealed in later games after this one, with the most spoilers than anyone on here. Like Kliff, she's playable on some versions of GGX and GGXX. Baiken: The Hidden Boss of GG1 if you beat the game (or get up until Testament from what I've heard) with no continues as Sol or Ky. A Japanese woman who lost her family after Gears attacked the colony she lived in. Baiken saw the Creator of the Gears and swore to kill him. Self taught with a Katana and other weapons. While she's not playable in Arcade Mode, in later games it's said she entered to find and kill That Man and take revenge against Justice for Japan. Fun Fact: As far as I know, Justice is the first Female Final Boss in a Fighting Game that doesn't come from an All-Female Fighter. Just wanted to throw that out there. Likes: The way a Guilty Gear game works is this, it's kinda like Marvel vs. Capcom. Only you use 4 buttons (and more in later entries) with Punch, Kick, Slash, and Heavy Slash as your attacks. You can air dash and (for most characters) double jump, basically there's a lot of movement options. You can fill up the Chaos Gauge (Super Meter) to use your character's super moves, if you drop to half health you can use them as many times as you want. You can launch your opponent up real high with S+HS. With P+K, you can initiate an Instant Kill move by following it up with double quarter circle forward and punch before your opponent does to cancel it. There's no penalty for failing to do so in this entry, unlike in later ones. The game is the basis for all other Guilty Gear games in the future, so if you are familiar with later entries you shouldn't have much trouble getting into it. Also, for all but three characters, you can use a special movement and the taunt button to charge up one of your special moves to make it more powerful. This sort of thing doesn't really show up again in future games. While it's not as refined as it's sequels, the game play is still really solid and fun. Considering this was such a small game, you only have Normal Mode (Arcade Mode) Versus, Practice, and Options. Not much else really, but the re-release does include a move list on the pause menu. It's all about the game here, as well as the unique setting that inspired many others in the genre. The style for the characters is not like any other, back then and even now really. The stages you find yourself in really paint an odd yet intriguing picture, it's like Medieval Fantasy, Steampunk, and a Metal Album Cover all rolled into one. Speaking of which, if you haven't gotten it by now, there are a LOT of Music and Rock references spread all throughout the game and series. This doesn't just transfer over visually, but musically as well. This is where you notice the soundtrack, it's absolute jammin' with guitar riffs of different kinds of sub-genres. Classic, Punk, Death Metal, Industrial, Alt, you get a lot of different tracks that not only sound good but fit each character. Several of these songs would later get carried over and remade for the GGX and GGXX games. While the audio quality is a bit low, it still transfers over extremely well. I could see myself just popping in some tracks as I go about my day (and I have).There's a lot to enjoy when it comes to the first Guilty Gear. Seriously the music is great, I'd even check it out online if I were you. Also, Justice's boss introduction is one of the coolest cutscenes I've ever seen in a fighting game. It pumps your blood and shows that you are in for a heck of a fight.Dislikes: Despite my praises above, it's certainly not a perfect game by any means. It's a rough game in terms of how it looks and such, not just because of it being a PS1 game, but due to inexperience by the devs at the time. It's certainly not like the later entries, that's for sure. For one, if you couldn't piece it together up above, it's an extremely unbalanced game. At half health there's no cool down that can stop you from spamming super moves until whoever you fight dies. Another is the Instant Kills, ohh boy did I have my problems with them! Unlike in future games, there are absolutely no penalties for failing to pull it off. Not to mention that if an Instant Kill is done successfully, you don't just win a round like in later games, you win the whole match! All rounds, you win it all with an Instant Kill, but that knife cuts you both ways. In Normal Mode, you can relatively pull off IK easily for the first 4 matches of the game. However, so can the CPU, and it gets harder to counter an Instant Kill in Normal Mode as you progress to later matches. I can't count the number of times where I almost beat an opponent or Justice, only for them to pull of a IK and bring me to a continue screen. It's the absolute most bull-moment of the entire game. Especially if want to get that achievement for meeting Baiken and beating her, at least going through the game with Sol is relatively pretty simple if you are decent at fighters. Speaking of Sol, there are just some characters that are way better than others. Some character's attacks feel a bit awkward on how they move compared to later games, like May or Zato. But every character does have a certain strength, it's certainly possible to beat the game with everyone. Also, we gotta talk about infinites. As in combos that can be executed where your opponent has almost no chance of getting out of it, outside of human error. While it's not an uncommon thing to see, it's extremely easy to pull infinites off in this game even by normal standards. Some character are just flat out insane when it comes to damage output, mainly Kliff. He has the movement of normal characters, and causes big damage like our heavy thrower Potemkin. It's probably the reason why he was killed off in the first game and given status as an extra unlockable character in later games (he does get balanced out completely in Accent Core + & + R alongside Justice). As long as you and your friends swear not to keep using Instant Kills and give breaks from certain combos, you should be fine. Unless you want something similar to a Mario Party Massacre that is. XP Would I Recommend?: The best way to describe Guilty Gear: The Missing Link is like an EP for a Band before they come out with their first hit album. It's pretty rough around the edges with a dirty sound quality to it, but it's still nice and interesting to look back at to see where it all started. Overall, I'd say yes if you get it on digital for sale unless you are a big or curious Guilty Gear fan. Otherwise, I'd recommend Guilty Gear Accent Core Plus R, Xrd SIGN, or Xrd Revelator as your first Guilty Gear before picking this one up.With Guilty Gear Strive on the way, that might be a good way to get yourself introduced to the series as well. You can get GG1 on Steam, Xbox One, and PS4 on digital. On the Nintendo Switch, there's a Guilty Gear 20th Anniversary Pack with both this game and Accent Core Plus R. For a deal like that, if you want it on the Switch alongside one of the best fighters around I'd say go for it. --- Hope you like this review, and let me know if you'd like to see other fighting game reviews later on down the road.

Apparently there isn't anything interesting lately going on with RPGs. XP In any case, thought I'd share with you a krudzu tree of a series that helped spawn JRPGs as we know it. Hopefully you guys will find this interesting. https://aaltomies.wordpress.com/tag/dragon-slayer/ Before there was Dragon Quest, there was games like Hydlide and Dragon Slayer. This blog post is about the latter from the developer now known as Nihon Falcom. Simply put, the original Dragon Slayer was the Acorn that hatched into a series that (through spin offs) is still going on to this day. Every sequel after Dragon Slayer has a different type of game play, so it's one of those games. To be fair, the first game in the series was made way back in 1984, it's not like there were a lot of examples for how to make RPG games on PC. Well, other than the ones from the West anyway. The other reason why I shared this is because I just got done with completing Ys I & II Chronicles+, which I just reviewed over here. Recently beat both Nightmare Difficulties of both games, so yeah I'm not usually a completion but those games were really something. If you want to check out the Glorious type of soundtracks that Falcom is known for, check out these links below. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzFTGYa_evXgKXcihPWwK74Q2El_B29AS https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzFTGYa_evXinWUTmgjOfZQMx9bOzW4d8 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLzFTGYa_evXiVCPkodEtYCCoiPuV3LUqj

Here I am again with another great recommendation. Though much like my Dragon Quest review (which I still need to review II to IV now that I look at it O_O), it's another old RPG game from the late 80's. This one however, is not one you would usually hear about. To those who were familiar with the Turbografx-16's CD add on, you might be familiar with a little title called Ys... Ys I & II Chronicles+ Review Overview: The Ys Series is created by Nihon Falcom, who since the very beginning of Japan's gaming scene has been very prominent. They aren't as big as other companies who would shoot to the stratosphere like Squaresoft, Enix, Konami, or Koei though, but they are a very important part of gaming history. They were one of the first companies in Japan to create RPG games before Dragon Quest. They made the Dragon Slayer series, which had a very archaic "bump" combat system where you would run into enemies to deal (and take) damage. It's the same sort of combat you'd see in Tower of Druaga and Hydlide, both Japan favorites yet not so much Internationally. Ys I (and it's sequel) broke the mold on how to make bump combat fun, as both games I'd say served as the zenith and finale for that sort of gameplay system. Needless to say, Ys I and II were a big success for Falcom when they came out, and numerous ports would come out all over Japan. For the first two games, it's Turbografx-16 CD port would be it's most recognizable incarnation, even serving as a pack in title for some. It got rave reviews with it's great voice acting (yes, it's actually really good), amazing music, and addicting gameplay. Yet for many, it wouldn't be until it's PSP remake (itself a PC Remake from 1998/2001) where XSeed games ported it to make it's return. Of course this version of the game is the Steam port, where even now you can enjoy it. "This little history segment is long worded Mike, where's the actual review? Can a game with such overly simple gameplay really be that good?" You have no idea what you are in for... Synopsis: The games that bare the title Ancient Ys Vanished Omen and The Final Chapter go like this. 700 Years ago, the Civilization known as Ys vanished without a trace. A land that was watched over by it's Two Goddesses and Six Priests. Why this happened and how is unknown, but the land near it known as Esteria in recent times now suffers a storm surrounding the island. Demons appeared soon after, threatening the island's inhabitants. You play as Adol Christin, a red headed young man who sought out to become an adventurer since he was a kid. Upon hearing what's going on in Esteria, he decides to investigate the island out of sheer (if foolish) bravery. Naturally, he gets caught up in the storm, but survives and is now ship wrecked upon the shores of Esteria. This is where Ys I starts off, Ys II on the other hand starts off directly after the first game. When playing these games, I'd recommend starting off with the first one obviously to avoid spoilers and to get used to the games.Likes: Combat works like this, you ram into enemies in order to damage them. If you run straight in front of them, depending on your stats, you will (very likely) get damaged. What sets this game apart from it's older counterparts is this, if you attack them off-center (or behind them/from the sides) you won't get damaged at all. Also, this game is way faster compared to Dragon Slayer or Tower of Druaga. I know that doesn't sound like much, but it makes a world of difference. This game is pretty fast paced, once you get the rhythm down it becomes pretty addicting. The more Monsters you take down, the more exp you get to level up. You won't grind all that much compared to the original versions of the games or other RPGs for that matter. In Ys I, it's very easy to completely max out your level just by going through the game. Ys II has the same gameplay as Ys I, only with the edition of Magic you can use such as Fire (which is required to take down all but the two last bosses), but you should have plenty of MP in your run of the game unless you spam it out wildly. Also if you attack diagonally in Ys I and II with a decent level and equipment, you can shred through enemies pretty well (especially in Ys II). There are many ways to play these games despite the simple controls, and no matter what I can grantee you'll have a great time. The music was co-created by Yuzo Koshiro, 'nuff said. For those who love the music of Actraiser and the Streets of Rage games, you know exactly who this is. For those who don't, he makes some of the best video game music of all time. Ys I and II is known for having some of the best music in gaming, better yet you are given three soundtracks for these games. The Original PC-88 tracks, the MIDI remixes from the 2001 Complete remake, and the 2009 Chronicles remixes. No matter which version of the Music you select, you're eardrums will be thankful to hear such great compositions. The Chronicles Remixes are absolutely rockin' (from the guy who does music for the more recent Ys games, whose music is also awesome). You can't go wrong with any of them, the music alone is worth it. Now regarding the story, despite the games being made back in 87' and 88', the Remakes were fleshed out. They are Canon with the current entries and remakes of the series, so if you care about that there you go. Also, the writing is actually pretty great. While the overall premise of the story is pretty basic (adventurer goes out to fight the bad guys), it has a lot of great details and actual, memorable characters. Every single character (and enemy) is named, every villager has their own name and background. There are no generic NPCs as not one looks alike. You get to know the land of Esteria and the struggles the people have to endure, it helps that they are all likable in their own way. They're like good neighbors, and those are hard to come by in video games. Some are definitely more noticeable than others, as certain characters play bigger roles later on. A certain few characters are rather obvious on who they are, but you gotta be the one to piece everything together as you track down items to save the world. A good RPG gives you good hints and information you need in order to beat the game, and these games don't hold back on that. As long as you pay attention, you should be fine. On that note, in Ys I, Silver gets mentioned a LOT. So take note of that as you progress to the end of the first game. Also, in early points of both games you get items that allow you to stand and slowly heal in dungeons like you can do so in the overworld. I highly recommend you get those items. Also, talk to everyone in the first village, then talk to Slaff. You'll thank me later for the Gold you save. Speaking of a similar situation, in Ys II when you go to the Ruins, go to the North-West to meet an old man before you buy a weapon. Again, you're welcome Also, if you are achievement hunting for the Monster Bestiary in Ys I and II, you'll be leveled up enough to take on anyone. Finally, the intros for both games are great! Ys I's intro really sets up the tone and scope of the story, while Ys II's intro just rocks out and is now one of my favorite video game intros of all time.Dislikes: The Bosses of Ys I can be pretty tough, the first Boss shouldn't be too bad as long as you are patient. The third Boss requires a lot of patience and I gotta say that one is just annoying to wait on. The fifth boss on the other hand can feel like it's random on how you attack and take damage from it, you only take damage from it's projectiles as far as I know. There is a pattern, but it can be rough to find. The final boss is just about bullet hell, but as long as you have exactly what you need to get, you'll be fine but it is a challenging fight. I feel that some of Ys I's bosses translated a lot better than others, but it's not too bad. Ys II doesn't have that problem at all though. Ys I is a bit more difficult overall, but only by so much. It's also a much shorter game compared to Ys II as well, so it won't take a long time to beat either. Some say that in the originals, Fire Magic breaks the flow of combat in Ys II compared to Ys I as being only reliant on Fire Magic. Honestly, I'd disagree on that notion, at least in the remakes. While Ys II does start off harder than Ys I, it doesn't take long to get some decent equipment let alone Magic. I used swords much more than I used Fire magic in my playthrough against normal enemies. You are only required to use Fire Magic on all but the last two Bosses, even then the Bosses of Ys II are better designed overall. The first dungeon of Ys II can be annoying, and while the last dungeon of the game can be labyrinthine, it's pretty easy to tell where you are. Be sure to check every nook and cranny as the last dungeon in Ys II got me confused on what I had to get in order to beat the game, but it was pretty obvious in hindsight so I'd call this my own flub rather than the game. But the last dungeons of both games can get pretty hectic, it's not too bad though. The overall message one of the characters states at the end of the second game is a bit on the nose, but it's not terrible and doesn't sour the satisfying ending of the second game. It makes sense in the context of the two games, and how everything played out. There aren't any plotholes I saw from my time in the story, believe me I looked. It's just a very solid story. Can't really think of any other downsides, other than this. You can't carry over your save from Ys I to Ys II like in the Turbografx-16 CD version regarding Adol's level. I mean it's not hard to level up in Ys II, but it would have been nice to have such a reward for loading up a beaten Ys I file in Ys II ya know? But that's a minor nitpick honestly. Trivia: The Main Scenario writer and Developer of the first three original games, Tomoyoshi Miyazaki and Masaya Hashimoto, would later leave Falcom to create their own company called Quintet. They would create the first Actraiser and a "trilogy" of games with Soul Blazer, Illusion of Gaia, and Terranigma for the SNES. Each of these games are great and classics in their own right. Both Ys I & II were originally suppose to be one game, but were decided to be split into two games. I can't find any sources on this and why, it could just be popular consensus. It could also be due to hardware limitations. If anyone can find the exact source on if this is true and why just let me know, but it's very likely/possible this is true. Adol Christin is one of the most recurring characters in any JRPG Series ever. He's appeared as the main character in every mainline title, with only the prequel Ys Origin as the exception. He's also one of the oldest next to Link from Legend of Zelda. Just thought I'd throw that in there. Where's his appearance in Smash? XPWould I Recommend?: I think you know the answer to this by now. These games are truly something to experience and I highly recommend them. Together, they are one of the best Action RPG games I've ever played and it tugged the heartstrings by the time I reached the end of Ys II. Plus, with a Boss Rush/Time Attack mode and a harder, Nightmare difficulty, there's plenty of replay value. I know the gameplay may be archaic, if even a little intimidating. Play it on Easy if you have to, please check these games out. The Steam release is the best way to play it, hands down. Though the Turbografx port is also really good too. You can't go wrong with the story of Ys. After the original creators of Ys left Falcom, the company would write the scenario for the Fourth entry and give two developers permission to make their own versions of it. One for the PC-Engine CD (Turbografx in Japan) and Super Famicom (SNES). They would make the Fifth game on their own for the Super Famicom, then put the series on hiatus and develop the Sixth entry for the PS2. The Series has been going on strong ever since, with games since Ys VI being put on the PSP, PS Vita, and later on current consoles and PC. They certainly take their time to make Ys games and it shows. From what I've seen the rest of the series is awesome, though the original 3rd and 5th game are pretty rough from what I've heard. I think it goes without saying I'm a fan now. XD --- Also, regarding the Erdrick Trilogy of Dragon Quest, they recently got released on the Switch. Square-Enix re-released the mobile ports for the Switch with some cleaned up/improved art and visuals. Though from what I can tell you still don't have that awesome intro from the Super Famicom remake of Dragon Quest III or the enemy animations. That and they still don't have the game board mini game either in III, but getting all three in one package is a really good deal. Dragon Quest III is still an excellent game, even without those extras. So if you want the remakes officially on your Switch, there's a good option for you. No word on them doing that for the Zenithian Trilogy, but that would be pretty sweet if they did. See you all next time!

The fine fellows over at Midnight's Edge, along with Somecallmejohnny, interview the long time Archie Sonic and Knuckles Writer Ken Penders! This is also the first scheduled interview he's had on video from what I know as well.

I'll have to do a review of it, because you see... I LOVE THIS MOVIE. Seriously it's just a great film. So yeah I'll have to work on that for the site here.

So, after all the madness and thankful restructure of Sonic's CG, we're finally getting the film in but a few days times in the US. It's been a hectic ride so I guess it's time to ask before anyone sees the movie. After everything is all said and done... What are your expectations for the Sonic Movie now?

I got this re-release years ago, but had yet to finish it until now. Not by the lack of skill in it's difficulty, but rather due to other events and stuff I was looking into at the time. I'm glad I got to play this Sega Saturn Classic now. NiGHTS into Dreams is the flagship title of the Sega Saturn, since Sonic Team wanted to do other things and took a break from Sonic (We would have had a mainline Sonic Title, but that's a story for another day). To those that have played NiGHTS it's another Sega Classic, among the many icons of Sega's Older Days that (of course) are not utilized other than cameos. NiGHTS did gain a sequel in 2007, but otherwise is another dormant IP among a foundation. Despite that, it's be said to be one of Sega's best games and was a good reason to buy the Sega Saturn. Some copies of the game even came with a 3D Controller, as in one with an analog stick. Whlile NiGHTS couldn't save the Saturn, it was a massive hit for those who owned it, even inspiring a small fan base as well. But how does this game hold up? With it's 2012 Remaster/Re-Releases (for PC and PS3/360, it's still available) I got to experience it years later for myse lf just yesterday. Besides, with an unlockable Christmas NiGHTS levels, seemed like a good time to play it. NiGHTS into Dreams... Review Synopsis: There are two sides of the Dream World, Nightopia and Nightmare. When you dream you go to Nightopia, where specific parts of your personality form into Ideya, which are of course Multicolored Crystal balls (can't completely escape from Sonic XP). The Ruler of Nightmare, Wizeman the Wicked, is trying to siphon off dream energy so he can not only take over Nightopia, but the Real World as well. To do so he creates beings called Nightmarens, one of which is NiGHTS who rebels and gets trapped in an Ideya palace that contains Ideyas (it's the gate thing you see NiGHTS in at the start of every level). Meanwhile in The Real World, the city of Twin Seeds houses two teens with some problems. Elliot Edwards has confidence issues after failing to win a Basketball game against some older kids while Claris Sinclair chokes at an audition. Both of them have nightmares of the events and eventually find themselves in Nightopia. They meet up and find out that they both contain Red Ideyas of Courage, which Wizeman can't steal for reasons. Both of them meet NiGHTS and tell them what's going on. The Trio then proceed to stop Wizeman and his plans together. The cutscenes of the game basically tell you this story without words, aside from NiGHTS backstory anyway. If you went in blind like I did, you wouldn't really know just what exactly going on until the end. It's certainly an interesting premise that was given a lot of thought, pretty sad it only got one sequel out of it. Likes: First off, I got say that no matter if you play the game with the original or HD graphics, the game looks absolutely great with it's surreal visuals. The Re-Release has Brand New Dreams and Sega Saturn Dreams, the only difference is the graphics and each played stage will count for the other mode so you can't go wrong with either one. The goal of the game is to get enough orbs to break the prisons that house the Ideyas and reach the Ideya Palace before the time runs out. Before you free NiGHTS in each level, Nightmaren monsters jack you of the other four Ideya, as either Elliot or Claris, you can freely roam the level around and even get some orbs and points earlier before you start the level. However, after some time as either of them an alarm clock will start chasing you around. Should it catch you, you'll get a game over before you start. Go to the Ideya Palace and free NiGHTS to start the game, or rather NiGHTS ends up possessing (?) your character and get to fly around throughout the level. Each Dream has Four Mares (Laps) to fly through as you can basically tackle and/or throw enemies that try to get in your way as you perform loops to gain a bunch of surrounding orbs and stars (stars give you points). You can also attack and damage enemies (as well as certain bosses) with loops, which can net you some points. It's kinda hard to describe this game, but once you get the hang of it you'll see what I mean. There's also a Ranking System similar to Sonic Adventure 2, you can also run as many laps as you want so long as you don't reach the goal, just make sure to get the Ideya to the Palace before time runs out. At the end of every level is a Boss (also with a time limit), should you take out the boss fast enough the time can add to a 1.x - 2.0 times multiplier. What I'm saying is that the game is great for you Score Attack junkies. The music is wonderful, it's just as good as a Sonic game. Heck, some tracks are even better than most Sonic Games. You can really tell they went all out for this game. You have Seven Dreams you go through, each split between Elliot and Claris. There's no real order you have to go through regarding the two, but you do get the complete ending by beating both of their paths. The Final Level, Twin Seeds, is one of the best final levels I've ever played. It's an emotional ride to see Elliot and Claris grow so much. Without spoiling anything, it's a real experience for a game that's basically an arcade-like score attack romp. Dislikes: So, you have a very visually stimulating game that's feels like a dream. If you aren't ready ahead of time for it, as fun as it is going in blind, you'll have no idea what you are doing or what's going on. Normally that's a bad thing, but it's not completely terrible as you can quickly find out how to play it. Getting really good at it is another, yet worthy experience. One problem that I do have however is knowing what to do during a boss fight. So I'll tell you what you need to do for the Fish and Jackle (Jester with a Cape). All you got to do with the Fish is fly through it using the two halves of the fish it's left behind to shoot out and crash toward it's side. It can be a little consistent with when it's okay to attack it (never do so while it's firing energy at the fish), but you can easily loop it when you get the first hit on it. Jackle (3rd level Claris Boss) is simple, grab him and throw him away from his cape. All you got to do after that is keep throwing him when he doesn't have his cape on. Claris' first boss can be killed via the Paraloop move, but under normal conditions you just got push the underside of it's chin a few times to take him out. The rest of the bosses are pretty easy to figure out, but Claris' bosses left me scratching my head. Also while you get the Christmas NiGHTS level for this re-release, you don't get the bonus Sonic into Dreams level sadly. Neither do you get the split screen multiplayer where you re-enact Reala's boss fight with a friend. Oddities: I'm making this topic as an ode to the Nightopians. What are these bald headed, halo wearing faires you may ask? They are basically the inhabitants of Nightopia, and the precursors to the Chao from SA1 and SA2. The "A-Life" System first debuted in this game, it's one of the weirdest things this game has. Now while you can raise them in a sense, you can only really do so as NiGHTS in-game. There's no Chao Garden for them, the levels themselves is where they resiide. This also means you should probably be careful when you do loops near them as you can kill them easily that way, I even saw one cry after seeing it's friend get looped unto oblivion. Not exactly what I wanted to do... If you drill towards them they'll be afraid of you, they basically kinda effect the mood of the level in some very minor ways. Nothing game play wise that can effect you, but still. Enemies you throw toward them that turn into a ball can be absorbed by Nightopians and turn into an egg to become a Mepian. It's basically a Nightopian/Nightmaren hybrid, you need these in order to breed (yes, just like the Chao they can breed) a King Pian which can build a tower in your honor depending on how well you treat these little guys. Now I have no problem with Nightopians, but why can't I raise them freely in a seperate mode? Using enemies in-game to change them I get that, but it's just weird to have them just wandering around to be bred in a time based game. You don't exactly have a lot of free time to focus on raising these things, as interesting as they are with how they are programmed, it seems like they end up being more of an after thought. At the very least, we got the Chao because of them. So thank you Nightopians, I'm sorry about the few or so of your kind I've accidentally looped to death. This moment of silence goes out to them... Okay that's enough, still though has anyone else played NiGHTS to raise Nightopians? Again, it's so weird. Who thought it was a good idea to leave them wandering around in the stages like that? I mean if the idea was to make Nightopia to feel like a living world, well you got me there I suppose. To be fair, they are usually only on the surface of the levels so you normally wouldn't end up getting them killed or scared. Overall, pretty interesting to see where the Chao came from. Would I Recommend?: This was an experience, a good one. It hit me emotionally, I can't really say that about a lot of games. The concept of Nightopia and seeing Elliot and Claris grow throughout the journey from their opening cutscenes to the endgame got to me. Even then, it's a fun, quirky arcade-type of game where you can loop (pun intended) over it again and again until you get the best ranking and high score. The re-release does have an online leaderboard so there you go. It's both for Score Attack fiends and casual players who want to have fun, or story goers who want a decently told tale. It's a pretty easy game overall so you shouldn't have too much trouble with it. Even with the Christmas Levels, the game is indeed very short. It'll probably take you about two hours or so to get everything. Despite that, for you Sonic and Sega Fans out there or anyone interested, I'd highly recommend it. I don't know if this game would have been worth the price back then f or the Sega Saturn, but for the eight bucks (or less depending on sales) it's completely worth it.

So just yesterday Sonic Robo Blast 2 Version 2.2 came out, I then proceeded to do a playthrough with Sonic & Tails to beat the game. I succeeded, not that I would recommend anyone to do so under one sitting. I did take a few breaks, but not as many as I should have. Simply put, don't do what I did. @_@ To those who don't know, this is the Sonic Fan Game with the longest development time...ever. It first began in 1998 on the Klik N Play as a sequel (obviously) to Sonic Robo Blast, that in itself a very early fan game that plays barely anything like a Sonic game. But for some reason they later switched over to the Doom Engine instead! Sonic Team Junior over the course of 11 Years have managed to create a long lasting legacy with a game that resembles as close as possible to the Sega Genesis games. It's a testament to fans who can gather together to make something that everyone can enjoy, but how is it overall? I have yet to play any of it's multiplayer (aside from the mod of this game, SRB2 Kart, which deserves it's own review in the future), so this will only cover the single player of the game. Sonic Robo Blast 2 Review Synopsis: After the events of the first game where Sonic destroyed his Ring Satellite (you really don't need to play it though, unless your curious), Dr. Eggman discovers a comet known as Black Rock which appears and disappears...pretty much like the Little Planet (before you ask, this was WAY before Shadow's Game). So he re-purposes it as his new base of operations...that's pretty much it. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles now have to find the Chaos Emeralds and stop him. Considering this story has been slowly revised over the years to a minimum degree, there could be more but it's serviceable I suppose. But then again the story isn't exactly what this fan game is about. Likes: This game works, somehow the mad men managed to make Doom into a Sonic Platformer. There are mouse controls of course, but any gamepad will do and work for you once you manage to get it set up. Either way, the game plays very well. Sonic's got an air dash much like in Sonic Adventure (minus the homing attack, that's the Magnet Shield's ability), which in this game is lovingly called the Thok due to the sound it's make. Tails and Knuckles play great as well, and since this entire game is of course in 3D, both characters are very cheap to play as yet very fun. Much like in Sonic 3 & Knuckles, you also have Sonic & Tails together and are able to fly with Tails now without needing a 2nd player. While I won't spoil anything for you guys, there are a few secret characters you can unlock as well. You'll just have to play the game to find out, but it's relatively simple to find them. Also the Special Stages are all based on NiGHTS and play like the levels of that game, so if you're a fan of the Purple Jester there you go! Lastly, under certain conditions you can unlock bonus levels, which I'd recommend playing as they're really neat, you may even get a few extras by beating some of them. Dislikes: Now as fun as this game can be, there's a bit of a problem with the single player game, that being the difficulty spikes. Now the Special Stages are relatively simple and pretty easy going overall...until the 7th Stage. That one will show you no mercy whatsoever with walls that take away precious time from you. That last Special Stage seems a bit too difficulty considering how decent the others were. Speaking of which, I did have some trouble with Arid Canyon Zone, mainly do to some weird jumps and being a bit confused on how to solve the mine cart puzzles (Act 3's Boss makes it so worth it though). It's when we get to Red Mountain that the game spikes and ascends into almost lunacy. Now I could be a bit reckless in levels, but the amount of stuff you are thrown at Red Mountain is nuts. Gets even crazier in the last 2 zones with Egg Rock and Black Core. Egg Rock is a trial of new, impressive technical features, and interesting ways to kill you. It's like your trapped in a maximum security prison crossed with a deadly obstacle course. I never thought I'd see those Snail Badniks from Sonic 3 end up being so deadly to snipe you from afar. You also can't breath in space this time around for outside sections so keep that in mind as you rush to small pockets of oxygen. Black Core get me to the point where I'm not sure how this is possible with anyone other than Sonic in terms of speed, as you have to go through a course as fast as possible combining every sort of gravity flipping, oxygen depriving moments of platforming possible in a short span of time. If you aren't quick enough you start to lose oxygen until you die. As insane as that it, it is also really short...but it'll feel like an eternity. Last two boss fights though aren't really a problem compared to the last 4 levels, if you made it through all that you can survive them no problem. Now I was aware that the last few levels in previous version were pretty crazy, heck we have much more checkpoints now compared to previous versions. However, that really doesn't ebb the crazy difficulty of what you go through toward the end of the game. They really should have tried to balance it out near the end....unless they already did. O_O Would I Recommend?: Overall, yes...but tread lightly from Red Mountain and onward. That was some of the most difficult moments I've ever had in a Sonic Fan Game, not the absolute hardest but it's got the Silver Medal in my book for that. Still, it's a very fun game with plenty of replay value and extra characters to boot. With brand new, colorful visuals and a better soundtrack to go along with it I'd recommend any old school Sonic fan to check it out. But don't say I didn't warn you about the end game.

From Sonic Games that were made from the ground up, what are your favorites and most noticeable ones you've played?

So recently I brought myself a small challenge regarding a Rom hack and realized this would be great for topic! This isfor issued challenges among ourselves and others, mainly for fun. So for any Classic Era game if you have a way to playthrough the game and let's see how you stack up! The challenge that inspired this run is for Sonic 3 Complete, it's something I call the Classic Sonic Run. You see, in the hack you can set it up so that Sonic can play like how he did in Sonic 1/2 and Sonic CD (both Original and 2011 version). Along with that option in the menu are ips patches where you can set up the items to be that of Sonic 1/2, meaning all elemental shields become normal shields from 1/2/CD. This is how I set it up. Sonic 3 Complete: Classic Sonic Challenge Use patch for Sonic 1 or 2 Sprites (For Extra Flavor). Use patch for Sonic 1 or 2 Items (They're the same aside for minor visual differences, but change the game due to no elemental protection or free oxygen via Water Shield). Use patch for Sonic 1 or 2 Monitors (For stylistic legitimacy). in Sonic 3 Complete Menu, Use Control Type Sonic 1, 2, CD 1993, or CD 2011 (This means NO Insta-Shield). I managed to get through the game and got both Chaos and Super Emeralds. It did make the game slightly tougher, especially in later levels, had to be a lot more careful. Do any of you have your own little challenges that you make up or know of? Let us know.

Been awhile since we've had a few highlights, honestly I have way too many to count. But still, I'd like to share a few noticeable Rom hacks today. http://www.s3complete.org/ Sonic 3 Complete is an extensive Rom hack that gives you Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Blue Spheres, and Sonic 3 & Knuckles all in one game. It's the same game, however there are a ton of bug fixes and quality of life improvements. You have new Super Sonic sprites for situational moments like those Carnival Barrels, the choice to use Sonic's moves from Sonic CD, change the Zone Order to that of Sonic 3's Level Select screen, change certain music tracks to the PC version, and much more! On it's website you can download a Rom of the hack with more changes they couldn't fit on the game alone, such as choosing between Sonic Sprites from S1 and S2, changing Mushroom Valley's name back to Mushroom Hill, and even how Bonus Stages work. It's amazing what a group of fans can do and if you want to shake up your next Sonic 3 & Knuckles playthrough I'd highly recommend it. https://info.sonicretro.org/Big's_Fishing_Derby Big's Fishing Derby shows you that hacks of Sonic Games can end up becoming anything. Despite the hilarity of this existing, it's actually a pretty fun game where you try to catch Froggy before Eggman does. Apparently, Froggy keeps eating every kind of gemstone you can think of. XP It's kind of like a Puzzle Game, and there are items you can get from catching badniks to either help you or hinder your opponent, it's also a multiplayer game with Player 2 as Eggman. My favorite port of this game is all the different backgrounds and music from previous games (Both from the Genesis and Advance Series). If you got a few minutes with a friend and have a good laugh, I'd say check it out. It's a lot better than you think this concept is. https://info.sonicretro.org/Knuckles'_Emerald_Hunt Knuckles' Emerald Hunt is what happens when you take the Hunter Stages of Sonic Adventure 1 & 2, then put it in Sonic 2. It's really cool, as you go through the levels to find Emeralds as fast as you can, this hack even has a ranking system like SA2! You can also play as Tikal, though she does play exactly like Knuckles it's still a nice edition. Much like Big's Fishing Derby, you also have an abundance of music from various Sonic Games, even some Genesis versions of tracks from the Adventure Games and Heroes. It's a great hack, and of course with this one there's Multiplayer as well. Can't recommend this one enough, as long as you like the Treasure Hunter stages anyway. Do you any of you have some favorite Rom hacks to talk about? Let us know!

I'd like to apologize for not posting the links for SHC 2018, I'm not sure what happened on my part there but I'm happy to announce that SHC 2019 is coming around December 2nd! From the look of things, it's gonna be VERY good.

While the list for this selection is small, it's nevertheless important to include. The 32-Bit Sonic games can be discussed about here, from Knuckles Chaotix to Sonic R. Sonic 3D also gets to be mentioned again as it came out later for the Saturn. With this topic, we have all the Classic Era games covered! Let us know if you were one of the rare few to experience these games and how they were.

Hi everyone, I broaden the topic to further discuss the 8-Bit Sonic Games. Enjoy reminiscing about Sonic's 8-Bit Adventures!

Welcome to The Next Level, Genesis Does what Nintendon't, this topic is for the Sonic games made for Sega's hit console! The Sega Genesis (also known as the Sega Mega Drive everywhere else) broke the stranglehold Nintendo had internationally over the game market, though while it did well it's thanks to the Blue Blur that made it a true hit. In here you can talk about all the Sega Genesis games Sonic has had, this also includes Sonic CD as well. So if you want to start discussions about the games that started it all, please do so. A few days ago, Sonic 2 had it's 27th Anniversary. It's called one of the best Sonic games, even the best Sonic game and Genesis game ever made by many. So, I'd like to ask you that question and hear what you all have to say. Is Sonic the Hedgehog 2 really the best Sonic game ever made? Is it the best Sonic game ever made for the Genesis? Let's get this ball rolling.

https://hiddenpalace.org/Sonic_Month_2019 Welcome one and all to another Lost & Found topic, this time we cover the famous betas that are found throughout the years for multiple games in the Sonic Series. Of course the history of Sonic Betas is vast, starting off with the discovery of what is known as the Sonic 2 Beta found by Simon Wai. Lately however, those over at hiddenpalace.org has found multiple betas. We now have newly discovered betas for Sonic 2, Sonic CD, Sonic Chaos, and Sonic 3! All these new discoveries deserve to be talked about, so check them out and let us know your thoughts.

This is a topic for unused and obscure Sonic Music. Recently, GameHut on youtube has finally managed to start releasing Sonic 3D's Demo Tracks which he tried to a year or two back, but due to the weird legality behind it couldn't until now. So for Sonic Music that is not well known or was never used in games and such, post your findings here! I've got a few posts I can do regarding the Masa Demos and obscure mid 90's tracks. Have fun!

http://www.sonicfangameshq.com/SAGE/ Quite a few days ago, SAGE 2019 kicked off! This year brought quite a number of surprises. Not only do we more games not based on Sonic (be that original or fan games), but this also marks the first time I've seen fan games based on SatAM! It's been a really interesting year over at SAGE and I'd say you guys should check out what they've got.