Retro Gaming Australia

One of the best games made here in Australia;

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Shadowrun was developed by Beam Software and published by Data East for the SNES in 1993. It is widely held to be one of the best RPGs on the system, but limited availability meant that the game did not see the success it deserved. This advertisement comes from the US.

Nintendo didn’t do a whole lot of print advertising early on, but here’s one;

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Super Mario Bros. 2 was developed and published by Nintendo for the Famicom Disk System in 1986. The game was famously kept away from international audiences for many years due to Nintendo feeling that the game was not much of an improvement over the first game and too difficult for general audiences. The game eventually left Japan in 1993 as Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels, debuting in the compilation title Super Mario All Stars. The game made another appearance as a set of bonus levels in Super Mario Bros. DX for the Game Boy Color. It is now available on the Wii Virtual Console. Obviously, this ad originates from Japan.

Admittedly, the only thing I remember about this game was catapulting sheep;

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Hexen II was developed by Raven Software and published by id Software for the PC in 1997. The game was a mix of first-person shooter and RPG, with heavy emphasis on magic and exploration. The game is available on Steam alone or as part of the id Software megapack. This particular advertisement comes from Australia.

Today’s ad is for one of the best brawlers on the NES;

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Double Dragon II was developed by Technos Japan Corp and published internationally by Acclaim Entertainment in 1990. The NES version of the game is inspired by the arcade version, but was developed in-house by Technos and contains several levels and enemies not found in the game which inspired it. Many feel that it is the best version of the game. An enhanced version of the NES game was released on the PC Engine CD – it features better visuals, a remixed CD soundtrack and animated sequences between levels. This advertisement originates from the US, but was used worldwide.

Get those Trace Vibrators out;

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Rez was developed by United Game Artists and published by Sega for the Dreamcast in 2001 in Japan and Europe. A port to the PlayStation 2 was released worldwide in 2002. Although popular with critics, the game was a commercial failure when first released – world of mouth drove up interest in the game (and auction prices of second hand copies) until a reprint was issued. A port to the Xbox 360 called Rez HD followed in 2008. This particular advertisement originates from the US and is for the PlayStation 2 version.

Snake? SNAAAAAAAKE?!?!

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Metal Gear was originally developed and published by Konami for the MSX2. While it wasn’t the first game Hideo Kojima was involved with, it was the first he designed and produced. It was ported to the NES without his knowledge. The NES version is generally inferior to the MSX2 version, and features a distinctly different endgame. The manual of the US version is infamous for featuring a storyline that has nothing to do with the game.

Today’s ad is for the not-so-good console port of one of my favourite PC games;

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Crusader: No Remorse was originally developed by Origin Systems and published by Electronic Arts in 1995. Realtime Associates handled the console ports of the game. The game was followed by a sequel, Crusader: No Regret in 1996. A third game, Crusader: No Mercy was planned but cancelled. A PSP sequel was also pitched to EA, but overlooked. This particular advertisement originates from the UK.

Today’s ad is for a game many of us wish we bought upon release, if only for our wallet’s sake;

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Snatcher is a futuristic cyberpunk adventure game developed and published by Konami. It is best known for being written and directed by Hideo Kojima. This advertisement is from the United States. The Mega CD version of the game is the only one released outside of Japan to date. The game sold poorly on release, but its positive word of mouth has led to high demand, giving the game a high price tag on auction sites. Meanwhile, most Japanese copies of the game will cost less than a cup of coffee.

Today’s advertisement is a little more grisly;

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Resident Evil: Director’s Cut was released for the PlayStation in 1997. This advertisement originates from the United States. The director’s cut version of the game features some different camera angles, new costumes and an arrange mode. It was also meant to feature the uncut, full colour version of the introductory FMV, but a miscommunication at Capcom led to this being omitted. A second version of the director’s cut was released, with the addition of Dual Shock support.

The first of many ads we’ll feature on this game, given its heavy marketing campaign;

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Earthworm Jim was the first game developed by Shiny Entertainment, which was formed after David Perry and a number of other talented individuals struck out from Virgin Interactive onto their own. Perry was the driving force behind several bigs hits at Virgin, most notably Disney’s Aladdin for the Mega Drive. This advertisement originates from the US, but I believe it was used across the world.