Retro Gaming Australia

The Saturn version is the better of the two by a long shot;

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Street Fighter Alpha 2 was developed and published by Capcom in 1996. The game is a bit weird in that’s it’s both a remake of and sequel to Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors’ Dreams. The most recent port of the game was in the Street Fighter Alpha Anthology for the PlayStation 2. This advertisement originates from the UK.

From a time when Namco was at the top of its game;

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Time Crisis was developed and published by Namco in 1996. It was the first light gun game to use a foot pedal for the purposes of reloading and going behind cover. This advertisement is for the Australian release of the PlayStation port, which came with the G-Con 45 light gun peripheral.

Nintendo games weren’t always exclusive to Nintendo systems;

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Popeye was originally developed by Nintendo, but the non-NES versions were published by Parker Bros. Donkey Kong was originally meant to be a Popeye game, but Nintendo were unable to secure the rights. However, when Donkey Kong was a smash hit, King Features Syndicate wanted in on the money. This ad was for the US release of the game.

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.