Do you own none of the (mainline) Yakuza games. Have you considered owning all of the (mainline) Yakuza games? Limited Run Games is re-releasing all the (mainline) Yakuza games from 0-6 in some fancy special editions. There is no such thing as too much K??iryu??.

I’m aware that the series didn’t end with Yakuza 6, but at that point, it began transitioning to the Like a Dragon nomenclature. It’s also weird to attach “classic�to Yakuza Kiwami, since it’s a remake of an older game. We could get technical here, but let’s focus on this sweet line-up of classic re-releases focused on the person who doesn’t own any part of the Yakuza series. If such a person exists.

Right now, only Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami are up for pre-order. The “Classic�editions of each come with character cards, an acrylic standee, the soundtrack on CD, and appropriate swag (pin for 0, more cards for Kiwami). It comes in a book-style hardcover box that matches the other games. Also, buying the Yakuza 0 Classic Edition will also net you a slipcase. It gapes open, ready to fit all seven classic ed?itions. Don’t miss one or both your slipcase �and, by extension, your life �will forever remain with an empty hol??e in it.

This isn’t for me; I already own all those Yakuza games. Some of them are in Steelbook cases?, and 3-5 are in that big honking compilation. Shelf space is already at a premium for me; do you understand how thicc a Genesis/Mega Drive case is? By the time you own 20 of them, you n??eed a dedicated bookcase.

Want to get into the Yakuza series? This doesn’t seem like a bad way to do it. You can definitely get most of these games for cheaper at this point, but at $75 for the special editions it’s maybe not that bad. I can almost guarantee that it will be one of your new favs, and you’ll want to immortalize that love. Just trust me. They’re like 100 hours long, and half of that is just screwing around town and in arcades. Another big portion is ridiculously long cutscenes. It’s amazing. Just trust me.

Yakuza 0 Classic Edition and Yakuza Kiwami Classic Edition are available for pre-order n?ow and expected to ship in March. The other titles are forthcoming. 

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It’s been 25 long years since the release of the Dreamcast (in North America), Sega’s short-lived but beloved litt??le console. That’s about the time that society began to slide downhill. To celebrate this (the console, not the slide), Limit??ed Run Games has some great swag to take you back to the before times.

The big push they’re doing is mostly behind the trading cards, which they say are the “coolest trading cards to grace your eyeballs and touch your fingertips.�Wow, it sounds like I wrote that. Although, I probably would have said “touch your eyeballs�or to give it even more of a vaguely creepy sound. There are 200 cards featuring Dreamcast art that you can smear across your retina. You can buy a hobby box with 20 cards for $24.99 or a booster box with 120 cards for $124.99.

I don’t collect cards and never ha??ve. Is that normal pricing for trading cards? The boos??ter packs look like VMUs and there are some cool card storage options. Hold on, I can’t get over the price. And then you can pay for sleeves and a box?

The other gear seems a lot more reasonable to me. There’s a skateboard deck for $74.99, a pin, a coin, and a keychain. There’s a hat for $31.99 and a hoodie for $54.99, which seem like fair prices. Everything seems priced right, but the cards give me pause. But, like I said, I know nothing about trading cards. They should have made it a CCG so we could pit Crazy Taxi against Space Channel 5.

Pre-orders are open now, with the shipping date for the items predicted for March 2025. That production time sounds very Limited Run Games. I’m not throwi??ng shade. I like LRG for the most part, but you grow to expect long lead times.

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This might take the crown for the best Doom news today. Limited Run Games is reissuing Doom for the SNES. This is no mere re-release of the 1995 console port. It’s g?etting spruced up to run better and include more.

Most of the early console ports of Doom were derided for various reasons. Even consoles that should have been able to play the game well couldn’t without severe drawbacks. The SNES version had many, making it pale in comparison to? the original DOS version, but it he??ld up a smidge better than some others. It was rather impressive that it would even run on the platform, though it needed some assistance from Nintendo’s proprietary FX Chip.

I loved Doom when I was a wee tot, but my parents wouldn’t buy me the PC version. It wasn’t because of the violence, however, but rather their inability to understand the mysteries of computer hardware. So, instead, I got the SNES version. I will tell you that, even with its deficiencies, it was a lot better than having no Doom at all. I mostly just lamented that there? were no cheat code??s.

Limited Run Game’s new version is going to bring it closer to the PC experience. It touts better performance and the inclusion of Ultimate Doom’s Thy Flesh Consumed episode. But more importantly: ??circle strafing. But even more importantly: level s??kip codes.

The original programmer for the 1995 SNES version, Randy Linden, is helping make this a reality. You probably couldn’t ask for better assistance, since he was able to get it working on the console in the first place. He says that the improved performance is handled by a custom chip that is working in place of the FX chip while providing improved memory and speed. He also says that there still are no ceiling and floor textures, but that’s part of the charm.

Doom on the SNES will have a standard release, as well as a ??super-special release limited to 666 units. The difference is mainly packaging.

There is also going to be support for a special co??ntroller with rumble built in. Not sure why, but cool.

No word on when the improved SNES Doom will be available for preorder, but it’s set to r?elease in 2025.

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Do you remember when Ziggurat announced a remaster of Rendering Ranger: R²? I had forgotten about it (thanks for the reminder, Gematsu). However, it has resurfaced as Rendering Ranger: R² [Rewind].?? It’s coming to PC, Switch, PS4??, and PS5 later this year.

Ziggurat’s press release states Rendering Ranger: R² is the most expensive SNES game in the collector’s market, which isn’t true according to PriceCharting.com. It is, however, the most expensive Super Famicom game.

It also describes it as a side-scrolling action game, which might seem rather vague, but that’s because it alternates between horizontal shoot-’em-up and terrestrial run-and-gun. It was created by some of the people behind Turrican and Giana Sisters. Weirdly, it only came out in Japan, despite Rainbow Arts Software being a Germ??an company. According to Ziggurat, it only sold about 10,000 copies.

As a note, it did get an SNES release by Limited Run Games in 2022/23. They are also listed as developing the re-release, which means it will be powered by their Carbon Engine. That means it will have rewind, save states, and CRT filters. It will include Rendering Ranger: R² as well as Targa, the unreleased Western version.

Rendering Ranger: R²’s big claim to fame (aside from its price tag) is its technical showcase. It makes great use of the console’s scaling and rotating abilities, and ties in some 3D-to-2D objects, not unlike Donkey Kong Country.

It’s always nice to see an obscure old game get an??other chance ??at finding an audience.

Rendering Ranger: R² [Rewind] is coming to PC, Switch, PS4, and PS5 late?r this year.

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Wayforward has revealed that the GBA’s 2005 hidden gem, Sigma Star Saga, is getting ported to modern plat??forms via Limited Run Games�proprietary Carbon Eng?ine. On top of that, it will also be getting re-released on GBA.

Sigma Star Saga is an interesting hybrid of RPG and horizontal shoot-’em-up, which aren’t exactly the most compatibl?e for crossover, but Wayforward was able to make it?? work. It’s sort of like a normal JRPG, but the random battles are shoot-’em-up sequences.

Critics at?? the time were pretty lukewarm on it. However, over recent yea?rs it has found a fanbase in people plumbing the GBA catalog for forgotten gems.

I’ll be honest, I’ve played only about 15 minutes of Sigma Star Saga, but my husband was pretty stricken with it. What sticks most in my memory is the vibrant graphics. The original Game Boy Advance had a really difficult-to-see screen. While the GBA SP alleviated it with its front-lit screen, developers developed the technique of using really bright colors to make things more visible. The most notable examples of this are Metroid Fusion and Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance. The style was born out of necessity, but it’s a un??ique aesthetic that stands out today.

While details are somewhat scarce, this seems to be planned as a pretty straightforward port. I’ve played a few of the LRG Carbon Engine re-releases lately, and outside of rewind and save states, they tend to be lacking in bells and whis??tles. It’s mostly just great to see older games get new leases on life. I just really wish that they’d add in control mapping.

Sigma Star Saga will be released on PC and ??(unspecified) consoles sometime in 2025. It will also be getting a new physical GBA release v??ia Limited Run Games.

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Limited Run Games announced as part of their LRG3 stream that they will be localizing Assault Suit Leynos 2 for the first time in North America. This looks like they’ll be publishing a translated version of Assault Suit Leynos 2 Saturn Tribute, which released in Japan earlier this year.

Assault Suit Leynos 2 is the third game in the Assault Suit series. In the West, we’d remember the first two games as Target Earth and Cybernator, but were actually Assault Suit Leynos and Assault Suits Valken, respectively. It’s part of a series of sci-fi mech games. I’ve talked about Cybernator/Assault Suits Valken about a jillion times here ??on Destructoid. The series has seen something of a Western resurgence.

While Assault Suit Leynos 2 Saturn Tribute is largely a port of the Sega Saturn version of the game, quality-of-life features have been added, such as saving, loading, a rewi?nding. ?There are also option difficulty adjustments.

More importantly, we never got Leynos 2 in English. Our Assault Suit collection has been incomplete. This will bring us one step closer. Then the only thing missing is Assault Suits Valken 2, which is weirdly very similar to the Front Mission series. But then, Front Mission: Gun Hazard is extremely similar to Assault Suits Valken (because most of the staff is the same). So rea?lly, they were just returning the favor.

But seriously, somebody translate and re-release Valken 2.

Assault Suit Leynos 2 Saturn Tribute is out in North America sometime later in ??2024. It’s coming to PS4, PS5, and Switch.

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As part of the LRG3 stream, Limited Run Games revealed that they’re pulling the two Fighting Force games together for a compilation. It will be arriving sometim?e in 2024.

Do you remember Fighting Force? The first one was released in 1997. Reportedly, Core Design pitched it to Sega for the Saturn as Streets of Rage 3D. Sega passed on it. As a result,?? it didn’t even release for the Saturn, instead arriving on PS1 and N64.

It’s fun. It’s pretty loose. I don’t think anyone really had a good idea of how to do beat-’em-ups in 3D at the time, and this was no exception. Beyond just fisticuffs, there were also a lot of firearms. Honestly, I think what makes it stick out in my mind so much is its general vibe. T??here’s a real urban feel to its aesthetic that I love. The weirdest thing about it was that players had lives and limited continues, if I recall. Kind of a drag.

Fighting Force 2 followed on PS1 and Dreamcast. I’m less familiar with this one because I had an N64 growing up. I’ve nearly bought the Dreamcast version on quite a few occasions in the last couple years. Contrary to the first game, the only footage I’ve seen of it takes place in some military complex. It’s also 1-player, what the hell? There’s no word if it’s ??the PS1 or Dreamcast version (or both) included in the collection. By the looks of it, it’s PS1.

I’m down. They’re admittedly not great games, but I have enough affection for the era. I guess I’m saying that I really want to like them and am willing to attempt it again.

Fighting Force Collection is coming sometime in 2025.

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Those looking to divine the future of the world of boutique physical game releases will soon find out what's next for Limited Run Games. The publisher announced plans to kick off its LRG3 2024 showcase next week, with the stream set to go live on June 20? at 11:00 a.m. PT / 2:00 p.m. ET.

The showcase will be available to watch via Twitch and YouTube.

I wanna get physical

While the primary focus is naturally on physical releases, the LRG3 showcases aren't bereft of fresh game announcements. Last year's event brought with it some unexpected news, including the first announcement of the enhanced port of Super Famicom survival horror classic Clock Tower. That one has WayForward ??partnering with Limited Run Games and using its Carbon Engine to retain the essence of the original and add new features, from a new animated opening to save states and beyond.

The 2023 showcase also revealed physical release plans for Tiger Heli, The Making of Karateka, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle game soundtracks on vinyl, Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 on Switch, Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution, and more. It was also the first time we got a look at the spiritual successor to the notorious CD-i Zelda games, Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore. 

We don't have much to go on right now other than looking forward to seeing some of their "biggest upcoming physical and digital releases." Basically, anything could happen, so we'll definitely be tuning in to see what Limited Run Games and the ??developers partnering with them are up to for the rest of this year and beyond. 

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Limited Run Games and Konami have announced that the digital version of the Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked collection ??will be releasing on Switch, PS4, PS5, and PC on June 11.

Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked contains the three 16-bit games in the Rocket Knight series. This includes the original Rocket Knight Adventures, the Genesis Sparkster (subtitled Rocket Knight Adventures 2), and the SNES Sparkster (not subtitled). To be clear, Genesis Sparkster and SNES Sparkster are two completely d??ifferent games featuring the series�protagonis?t. Of the included games, one of them is the very best Genesis/Mega Drive ever made, and the other two are games.

Okay, that’s not quite fair. SNES Sparkster and Genesis Sparkster are both decent �maybe even above average �platformers, but they don’t even hold a ca?ndle to the original.

Limited Run Games did a round of pre-orders for the physical version of Rocket Knight Adventures: Resparked back in January and promised a digital release for anyone not interested in material possessions, but previously had not announced a date. I scooped up the Ultimate Edition of it at the time. I don’t usually go for special editions because I have enough random game collectibles, but Rocket Knight Adventures is one of my favorite games.

The collection will not only include modern comforts such as save states and rewind, but also a new boss rush mode and a “franchise museum and music player.�/p>

Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked releases digitally ??on Switch, PS4, PS5, and PC on Jun?e 11.

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With Limited Run Games being granted the rights to re-release some old Konami games that the publisher previously kept buried in the backyard, I would not have expected Felix the Cat to be one of t?he first to come out of the relationship.

Felix the Cat isn’t technically a Konami game. Released in 1992, it was published by Hudson and allegedly developed by the elusive Shimada Kikaku, w??hich would explain why there are no credits to be found anywhere. It’s? loosely based on the 1989 movie, which was an extension of an absolutely atrocious 1958 cartoon series. Thankfully, the game isn’t bad.

Most importantly, this is a re-release of a licensed Konami game. A lot of old games based on film and TV licenses feel as though they are lost to be confined in their original format, so anytime one makes it to modern platforms, it’s a win. Even if it’s just an okay game, like Felix the Cat.

Felix the Cat (PS4, PS5, Switch [Reviewed])
Developer: Shimada Kikaku, Limited Run Games
Publisher: Konami
Released: March 28, 2024
MSRP: $24.99

Limited Run Games�release bring the 1992 original release alongside the unreleased Japanese Famicom version and the 1993 Game Boy port. It’s technically just three flavors of one game, which is probably why it’s not called the Felix the Cat “Collection�or anything similar.

What you get is an action platformer, and while it’s a pretty boilerplate platformer, it’s at least a solid one. You play as the titular golden age cartoon star, and you’re trying to rescue you girlfriend, Kitty from the clutches of Professor�Oh, that’s his entire name. It’s just “Professor.�There are short vignettes every co??uple of levels where the professor threatens Felix, but that’s about all you get in terms of storyline.

I say that Felix the Cat is pretty standard, but it’s not without its own ideas. The core mechanics beyond jumping onto floating platforms is multiple levels of power-ups. You collect floating Felix tokens from ??the environment, and every tenth collected will throw a power-up. On a walking stage, this changes out Felix’s punching glove attack for a wave of stars that explode from him. Ten more, and he gets a car. Ten more, and he gets a tank. It’s rather satisfying.

Each power level is on a timer that depletes as y??ou use it. You can refill the gauge by either powering up to the next level or collecting milk that sprays out every fifth token you pick up. It has the benefit of both keeping you moving and gives meaning to collecting tokens beyond just getting a higher score, which I don’t think anyone cares about these days.

Every so often, the game switches itself up from? simple platforming. You get the odd level where Felix is flying, ones where he’s traveling over water, and some in which he’s under it. Each one has its own set of power-ups to go along with it, but while they’re usually not as layered as the walking levels, it’s a nice change of pace.

More importantly, it gave the artist more chances to flex their muscle. Whoever they had handling the graphics for Felix the Cat outdid themselves (again, no credits). It’s not that it’s a game that? pushes the graphical boundaries of the console, but the art and animations show a level of demonstrate a level of passion for the project. Small details like Felix falling asleep in an innertube kick the game’s personality an extra mile.

But, as I keep hammerin??g on, the game itself is pretty standard. Combat is pretty straightforward, with you hitting enemies with whatever projectile you have at your disposal. You can take a lot of damage if you keep increasing your power-up level, which means that getting through the game is pretty easy. For that matter, bosses are rather disappointing as well?, showing no interest in mechanical trickery or creative design. I wouldn’t say it’s boring, but it’s something you’ll probably complete quickly and move on from.

The Game Boy version is a (slightly) scaled-down port of the NES release. Some compromises were made for the smaller palette and screen size, but it plays pretty well. It would have been pretty cool to have on long car trips back in the �0s, but it’s overshad?owed by the NES version being on the same cartridge.

As for the Famicom version, it’s sort of just here as a cu?riosity. As I mentioned, it was never actually released in Japan. But, on the other hand, it is, as far as I can tell, identical to the Western version??, aside from the text. I guess they might as well include it, but it doesn’t really add value to the collection.

In terms of extra features, Limited Run Games�Carbon Engine adds borders, CRT effects (or LCD on G?ame Boy), save states, rewind, and you can turn off sprite flicker. The sprite flicker and CRT options are perhaps less common in these sorts of re-releases, but they aren’t unheard of. Overall, it’s a decent presentation of a retro game.

If I have one complaint, you can’t rebind the controls. They also chose A and B to be, well, A and B. That may sound obvious, but on modern controller??s, the tilt of those two buttons isn’t optimal. A better layout is binding B to A and Y to B, making it easier on your thumb to jump and shoot. It’s not a dealbreaker, but it is an annoying oversight. On the other hand, if you have NSO NES or Famicom controllers, it works as it would on a normal controller. But then you can’t bring up the program menu because that is bound to ZR instead of just R. They should have just let? you bind the controls yourself.

In terms of this release, I’m more excited to see a lesser-known Konami game get re-released than I am to actually play it. Let’s be fair here, I’ve happily played ports of less exciting games, but in terms of being able to recommend them to someone who isn’t already familiar with the game or someone who isn’t into retro games in general is a little more difficult. When I was a kid, Felix the Cat was one of my ??favorite games on the console, but I recognize it’s not going to be very exciting for newcomers.

But even if you are just curious and want to try it out, Felix the Cat is a decent game. It’s rather routine. It's slightly above average.?? But it’s not a passionless title with no value. On top of that, it's a quality port. So, even if you come in with only an appreciation for the NES, the character, or Shimada Kikaku (for some reason), then you won’t be disappointed. Limited Run Games didn’t recove?r a hidden gem, but it gave an old cat another life.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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When I reviewed Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore, Limited ????Run Games sent me a press kit. It included their, er, “Retro Inspired Switch & PC Controller,�which is a cheeky way of saying it’s a reproduction of the Philips CD-i controller.

One of them, anyway. The Philips CD-i had a few controllers made for it. The one that Limited Run Games chose was the “spoon�controller. The �2ER9019 CD-i Wired Controller.�It could have been worse, but on??ly barely.

The CD-i Spoon: the controller that makes you ask, “What did I do wrong in life?�/p>

The controller is Dinput. Windows recognizes it as a � axis 10 button joystick.�That’s weird for two reasons. It has 9 face buttons, but one of them is a home button, which Windows doesn’t recognize. So, it has 8 Windows-usable buttons, with 5 and 6 being nowhere to be found. There are also only two axes - X and Y. Windows knows this, but?? it still calls it a 6 axis controller. But those are the facts. 2 axis 8 buttons. Dinput.

With Switch, it works out of the box. The buttons are labelled. However, there is no ZR or ZL, and no cap??ture butt??on either.

It’s not an exact replica of the CD-i Spoon. There’s an extra button on the bottom, as well as one at the top. If you hadn’t seen the controller before, you probably wouldn’t even realize that it hasn’t always been like that. To be honest, I’ve never held an authentic Spoon in my hands. I have about two jillion controllers in my apartment, and a Spoon isn’t one. So, I can’t really confirm how authentic it feels. However, I’ve held plenty of �0s controllers, and this one is?? convincingly �0s quality.

None of that matters,?? however. The controller is a nigh??tmare.

Limited Run Games has such a commendable commitment to the bit. Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is the spiritual sequel to the derided CD-i Zelda games, Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: Wand of Gamelon. The developers managed to take the pungent formula of thos??e games and make an actually great gam??e out of it. However, it still looks and smells like a CD-i game.

So, what better way to complete that experience than sti?cking one of the system’s notorious controllers into your ha?nd?

The quality of the controller is fine. Actually using it sucks out loud. From the looks of it, you might expect that you use it with one hand, but that’s not really a great option, especially in Arzette.

Arzette has a “classic controls�mode which maps jumping to up on the, er, D-ring. That allows you to jump while moving, which is pretty important. Attacking while jumping is possible with one hand, but it’s difficult since you need to take your finger off the directions to hit the attack button. Crouch attacking is essentially impossible with one hand. Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon both locked your character into the crouching position so you could attack low with one hand, but Arzette didn’t borrow that detail for their?? classic?? controls, so you need a helping hand.

It feels really weird to play with two hands. Working the d-pad with my left is fine; that’s its nor??mal assigned duty. However, my right hand is then relegated to working, like, one button. My right hand deserves more than respect than that. It puts in a lot of hard work.

Regardless of what hand you ??use, the D-ring just feels imprecise an??d awful. It’s like the Neo Geo CD controller had a disappointingly underachieving sibling.

The CD-i Spoon can be used with any Switch game, but I’m not sure why you’d want to. In the early �0s, there were some one-handed controllers for the SNES, for use with games like Derby Stallions and Mini Yonku Shining Scorpion. So, with that in mind, you could maybe use the Retro Inspired Switch & PC Controller for, say, Pocket Card Jockey on Switch. Or you could download the new Derby Stallion from the Japanese eS?hop. ?I don’t know; I’m just spitballing here.

However, if you want to get the CD-i experience on PC while playing, I don’t know, Space Ace, then this is an option. Any program that al?lows Dinput should be work??able on some level.

With that in mind, the Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon remasters that Seth Fulker?son worked on don’t seem to support Dinput. I know that there are progra??ms that allow you to map a Dinput controller to Xinput, but out of the box, it doesn’t allow you to set the controls. However, you would be able to map it on alternative ways to access CD-i games.

The controller is still available for pre-order on the store page, with an estimated shipping date of November. Alternatively, if you order the Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore collector’s edition, you can g?et the controller in pink. Whether or ?not you’re going to use it, I’m not sure. 

Really, I’m impressed that Limited Run Games' “Retro Inspired Switch & PC Controller�even exists. Selling torture devices takes guts, but love to see it. Arzette is a fantastic game, but I’m?? not sure playing it with a Spoon is a superior way of enjoying it. If you really want that CD-i experience, I’m not judging. I, too, endeavor to play things the way? the Gods of Thumbs intended, and I always respect the commitment.

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Limited Run Games has announced that they’re going to be re-releasing Hudson’s 2003 Game Boy Advance game, Ninja Five-O, both physic?ally and digitally for Switch, PS4, and PS5.

You might be thinking that Ninja Five-O is a quirky early-�0s localization title, but it was never released in Japan despite being developed by Hudson and published by Konami. That’s actually what it’s called, though it was released in Europe as Ninja Cop. It’s an extremely rare GBA game that now commands an impressive price tag on the collector’s market.

I was considering it for coverage as part of my Weekly Kusoge column, but then I found out that it’s actually a good?? game. Despite being rather obscure and having a small print run, the crit?ics who reviewed it at the time gave it high marks.

Just look at that trailer. You can tell it’s fun to play. Featuring a ninja in the modern world, it resembles 1988’s Ninja Gaiden on NES, but Joe Osugi’s fancy footwork and flashy ninjutsu gives him a more impressive presence than Ryu Hayabusa of that series. According to the Blurb, Joe is out to “protect the city of Zipangu and take down the evil Mad Mask bosses.�/p>

Ninja Five-O is another in a lineup of games that are starting to come from Limited Run Game’s new partnership with Konami. Previously, the distributor announced Rocket Knight Adventure and Felix the Cat. Given Konami’s history of not respecting their back catalog, it’s nice to see that old library revisited. I still have my fingers crossed for some localized Ganbare Goemon games.

Ninja Five-O is c?oming to S?witch, PS4, and PS5 sometime in 2024.

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It’s dangerous to base an entire game, movie, book, or anything on a single joke �especially a referential joke. Yet the developers of Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore did exactly that.

The Phillips CD-i Legend of Zelda titles are many things, including a rare besmirchment on the brand and a laughing stock, but they’re rarely referred to as quality games. For some reason, Seedy Eye Software (oh, I just got that pun) chose those three games of questionable quality as inspiration. In particular, Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is billed as a spiritual successor to Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon.

But if they were aiming for “so bad it’s good�with Arzette, they’ve missed the mark entirely. Arzette is just plain good.

Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore (Switch [reviewed], Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, PC)
Developer: Seedy Eye Software
Publisher: Limited Run Games
Released: February 14, 2024
MSRP: $19.99

The early steps in??to the world of optical media were, perhaps, the most awkward period of video games. While it was sometimes harnessed for good rather than evil with games that resembled the period’s normal fair with extra v?oices and cutscenes, others tried to stuff them full of terrible live-action cutscenes and FMV sequences barely resembling gameplay.

Nintendo nearly entered this market but bailed out at the last minute, leaving Sony, their first partner for an SNES CD-ROM attachment, scorned, and Phillips, the potential successor, with a license to make a few games with Nintendo’s properties. The result was Hotel Mario and three titles based on The Legend of Zelda.

You’ve probably heard of them since their internet fame propelled them to prominence. Both Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon had animated cutscenes that combined straight-to-video animation with nightmare fuel. Characters were questionably voiced and script??ed, the transitions were strange, and while the animation had too-detailed movement, it had fewer frames than you’d expect. Every so often, an aspect of the games breaks away and once again enters meme-space. I even find myself unintentionally quoting the games.

Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore cops that style. It starts with a prologue narrated by a school marm before going into an impressive facsimile of CD-i Zelda’s uncomfortable animation. Seedy Eye went the distance with rough edges, horrible zooms, and stilted voice acting. Underlying this is a soundtrack made from extremely cheesy, low??-??quality sampling.

The schtick progresses into the gameplay, where the world is broken into explorable, bite-sized stages. Hand-drawn backgrounds clash against basic collision and flat characters. Enemies warp away with cheesy sound effects. Bits of UI look both ostentatious and? unpolished.

Arzette’s goal is twofold. She has to find the pieces of the eponymous Jewel of Faramore to defe??at Daimur, the b?ig evil. However, darkness is covering the land, so she must also light beacons to push it back and get access to more areas. Beyond that, she also needs to get items that allow her to proceed and become more powerful.

This isn’t much different from the earlier CD-i Zelda games, but the difference is that Arzette doesn’t suck. The controls are responsive, and the hit detection favors the player much better. More imp??ortantly, movement is much less sluggish. The levels are bigger and more open, which turns out to be a double-edged sword as you find yourself revisiting areas to pl??umb for secrets and find better gear. If you’re going for 100%, you’re going to be seeing the same level sections repeatedly.

I finished with around 98%, so it obviously didn’t both?er ?me that much.

That’s largely because, while Arzette lifts heavily from a legendary kusoge, it’s more of an aesthetic than a crutch. The general framework of Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon are here, but some of the rougher edges (a?side from the aesthetic) ?are polished down. It does its part to feel like the spiritual successor that it bills itself as.

Perhaps most strangely, Arzette never really makes a joke of itself. It certainly references the CD-i Zelda titles in a variety ?of ways, but it’s always subtle and dry. Weird stuff happened, but those games, in themselves, aren’t weird.

The jokes in Arzette are amusing on their own. The bizarre zooms and extravagant movements certainly add an extra layer of humor to its bad puns and subversiveness, but it isn’t just pointing and laughing. It knows how to be funny on its own, which car?ries it well beyond simple referential humor. It has heart and an affection to those titles. Rather than just poke fun at them, it takes what worked �even if it was unintentional �and expands on it.

The actual moment-to-moment gameplay is almost too simplistic f??or its own good. There isn’t much more to it than hopping around and smacking enemies. It does manage to ca??pture the satisfying feeling one gets when they find an important item in a gated exploration game that gives you access to all those things that were previously held just out of reach. 

On the other hand, that’s the cheapest part of Metroidvania games, and I’ve never felt comfortable when a game leans on that sort of easy thrill. It is, however, what Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon did, and expunging it would be abandon??ing part of its faithfulness. It fits the manifesto, so I can live with? it.

Speaking of which, the publisher, Limited Run Games, created a USB reproduction of the CD-i controller specifically for this gam??e. They sent me one, however it didn’t arrive on time, so I’ll tell you about it later.

I constantly found myself shocked at the passion that Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore demonstrates toward its source material. It would have been so easy to create a low-effort duplication of the CD-i Zelda games, but instead, Seedy Eye created a game that is enjoyable beyond just the references it makes. The music and animation, despite being stilted to emulate the CD-i aesthetic, are well done. The characters, while often analogous to the weirdos from CD-i Zelda, are memorable and interesting. More importantly, its sense of humor manages t?o tickle in the right places.

My only ?complaint �and it is a minor one �is that the gameplay is a bit on the basic side, being more important in the way it ties together the enjoyable cutscenes. At around 4-5 hours for a comp??letion run, it doesn’t overstay its welcome.

Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore is such an unjudgmental love letter to Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon. It’s a reminder that whether or not a game is good or bad isn’t the whole store. It’s more complex than that. The internet found legitimate entertainment in the CD-i Zelda games, and rathe?r than write them off as ridiculous, Seedy Eye dug in and asked why. It found what was so compelling about those astounding failures and applied those lessons in a thoughtful and deliberate way. The result transcends its influences and takes on a life of its ow??n.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Arzette: The Jewel of Faramore appeared first on Destructoid.

Limited Run Games has announced another couple of classic collections, but unlike the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection, these are actually good. Coming up is Felix the Cat and Rocket Knight Adventures: Resparked.

I’m just learning this now, but Felix the Cat is turning 105 this year. The character got his start in the golden age of animation back in 1919, starring in some silent shorts. Like most popular characters from the time period, he kept coming back repeatedly for new TV series and movies, even if he wasn’t as high profile as Looney Tunes (Merry Melodies) and Mickey Mouse. Limited Run Games�collec??tion contains the 1992 NES title by Hudson So??ft, and the 1993 Game Boy port.

The NES title is actually somewhat based on the godawful 1989 movie, which, in turn, is based on the godawful 1958 cartoon series.?? The game itself is pretty decent, though. The main draw of it is that you continually pile on power-ups until you’re driving a tank, and some of the levels have you flying. They’re not scrolling shoot-’em-up sections, though. You’re just allowed to fly around for some reason. I absolutely loved the game when I was a kid. My cousins owned it, and I always wanted to play it whenever I visited.

Rocket Knight Adventures should hopefully require no introduction. The original title, developed and published in 1993 by Konami, is unequivocally my favorite Sega Genesis/Mega Drive game. It’s just such a joyfully creativ??e platformer that is evocative of early Treasure games. 

The Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked collection compiles that with the Genesis sequel, 1994’s Sparkster, with the SNES sequel, also a 1994 game called Sparkster. Both Sparksters are entirely diffe?rent games. Like, even mechanically, they’re dissimilar. They’re also not as good as the original. They both give off this feeling like the marketing team got i??nvolved and started making suggestions on how to make the character more appealing to the masses.

Both Felix the Cat and Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked are coming to the PS4, PS5, and Switch. Probably PC, as well, but that’s not mentioned in the press release. The physical edition of Felix the Cat will be available for preorder on February 9, until March 10. Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked is sooner, from January 19 until February 18. There’s an �a href="//limitedrungames.com/products/limit?ed-run-532-r??ocket-knight-adventures-re-sparked-ultimate-edition-ps4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ultimate Edition�of RKA going up as well, and that Sparkster Statuette is pretty tempt??ing. The digital versions don’t have a release d??ate yet.

Limited Run ??Games is also that more Konami titles are on the horizon. It’s about damned time, sin?ce the company is sitting on a massive trove of classic titles that have never been re-released. Maybe we’ll get a Ganbare Goemon collection now.

The post Limited Run Games bringing back some (of my?) favorites in Rocket Knight and Felix the Cat collections appeared first on Destructoid.

It looks like Persona 3 Portable is getting the full Limited Run treatment. Limited Run Games revealed today a handful of special physical editions for Persona 3 Portable. This includes the Persona 3 Portable S.E.E.S. Collector's Edition. In between the standard and S.E.E.S. Editions is a Grimoire Edition as well. All three editions are available on all three platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. Pre-orders for all versions will begin on September 29 at 10 a.m. ET via the Limited Run Games store.

Three Editions with different contents

The Standard Edition is priced at $34.99 and includes a region-free version of Persona 3 Portable.

The Grimoire Edition will set you back $69.99 but includes some cool physical goodies. Alongside the physical editions of the game for your chosen platform, you'll also receive a Persona 3 Portable Slipcover that goes with a special edition Grimoire Book B??o??x and a SteelBook case that has some very beautiful artwork on it.

Finally, there is the Collector's S.E.E.S. Edition with a price point of $199.99. This edition, clearly intended for collectors and diehard Persona 3 fans includes everything from the Grimoire Edition as well as a red and black S.E.E.S. Armband, a cool school patch for Gekkoukan Private High School, 11 Character Trading Cards, the Persona 3 Portable official soundtrack, an All Out Attack 3D Shadow Box, and an individually numbered Certificate ?of Authenticity. But, that's not everything. The big item in this collector's edition is a 1:1 Evoker Replica Shadowbox that even ??lights up.

We do need to talk about the elephant in the room. With pre-orders going through November 12, these Editions certainly won't ship out before the new Persona 3 Reload releases. While not quite as cool, it even has its own collector's Aigis Edition. Even though we know Persona 3 Reload won't feature content from FES or Portable, it does still ?seem a bit odd for this to be releasing when it is.

But, I have to admit, this is definitely one of the cooler collector's editions I've seen in a while, and it's nice to see the big item be based around such a staple item from the game. I can't deny I'm?? tempted to ?spring for the Grimoire Edition at least.

The post Pers??ona 3 Portable is getting a ??really nice Limited Run edition that includes an Evoker replica appeared first on Destructoid.

Limited Run Games has announced that 1993’s Jurassic Park and 1994’s Rampage Edition are being added to the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection.

Many were disappointed when the included titles were revealed for the Classic Games Collection, and they excluded the Genesis titles. Instead, the announced titles are the Game Boy, NES, and SNES versions, as well as the SNES and Game Boy versions of Jurassic Park Part 2. Considering most of those titles are not?? very good, it’s kind of understandable.

The Genesis versions of the games were a lot more popular. Can you guess why? It’s because you could play as a velociraptor. If you were a child in the �0s, there was absolutely nothing cooler than that. You could also play as Alan Grant, who has the unfortunate distinction of being neither a velociraptor nor Jeff Goldblum. The games were developed by BlueSky software, who later went on to make the Vectorman games.

Unfortunately, the Genesis Jurassic Park games aren’t that great either. Once you get over the admittedly awesome ability to control a raptor, you’re left with a rather clumsy action platformer with aggravating level design. Nonetheless, I think every game should be available on modern platforms. The addition of these two tit??les will add some appreciable value to the collection overall. Moreover, people who were fans of the Genesis titles and felt that the omission was a dealbreaker will probably be pleased.

Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection is coming to Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, and Switch. Preorders are open for? the physical ?versions, but no release date has been announced.

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Getting ready to embrace my inner Alexis Carrington Colby

Yesterday's stream from Limited Run Games certainly had its share of curious announcements for anyone still holding onto their GBA or who actually liked Gex. I told myself I wouldn't give it any thought this year as my backlog is already stuffed with old games LRG has resurrected over the years. But then they had to go and show off a Rose & Camellia collection. Now, they had my attention.

For anyone who forgot or is simply too young to even know about it, Rose & Camellia is a ridiculous flash game where you try to worm your way to the top of the pecking order by smacking the shit out of your competition. I remember playing this game one lonely night at work, completely enthralled by its ludicrous nature. Unbeknownst to me, it got an official sequel, and later a crossover with La-Mulana. All three of those games, as well as two new sequels, are being brought together by LRG, Nigoro, and WayForward for the Rose & Camellia Collection.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=cA6U2v-X9PI

With five games and more than 30 characters, your hands are going to be sore after slapping your way to the top of the household. What I'm most excited about are the motion controls. It just wouldn't feel right if you were pressing a button or flicking a control stick to Zsa-Zsa a woman. This is honestly the first time I've been excited about motion controls in a Switch game since...well, I guess the reveal of WarioWare Move It! from a couple of weeks ago.

Either way, this whole thing looks like a hoot and it's nice that a piece of my past, even if it was just for one night, is managing to make its way back into my life with this port. Rose & Camellia Collection will launch in late 2023/early 2024 for t?h??e Nintendo Switch.

Oh, I should mention it has two-player local versus. So you and your friends can stop settling it in Smash and settle it in slaps.

The post I can’t wait to get slap happy with the Rose & Camellia Collection appeared first on Destructoid.

A little tongue now, a lot of tail later (What!?)

As part of the Limited Run Games Showcase stream, the physical publisher announced that they’re resurrecting the GEX series as in the GEX Trilogy. Wow. Oh no.

Like a few of their surprise game announcements, there wasn’t much to go on from the trailer they showed. If I’m not mistaken, the James Bond parody was a promo for the third game way back in the day. Or maybe it was the second. That lizard really liked parodying characters who were cooler than him. However, the trailer does reveal that the GEX Trilogy will be comin??g to most cur?rent platforms via the Carbon Engine.

//youtu.be/HhXZZsEfRgk

So, Timothy “Toothpick-Fingers�Monbleau and I immediately started venting our shared trauma with this announcement. He played a lot of the first game on the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, while I, as a kid, spent way too much time playing GEX 64. None of the three games included in the trilogy are terrible, honestly. If anything, the most grating part about it is listening to the eponymous gecko spit one-liners that I didn’t really unde??rstand at the time. The?? first game is a sidescroller, whereas the two that followed are collect-a-thon platformers.

Anyway, any port of these games is a net gain. I’ll be honest, I will probably pick up a digital copy of the GEX Trilogy. I already own all three of these games (the first on Saturn, the other two on N64), but I’m willing to shell out to have them in one place and support the endeavors of kusoge preservation.

GEX Trilogy is coming to Xbox One, Xbo??x Series X|S, PS4, PS5, Switch, and PC at some point in the fut?ure.

The post The legendary GEX Tr??ilogy is coming to modern platfo??rms appeared first on Destructoid.

Nice do

As part of the Limited Run Games showcase, the boutique publisher announced a number of retro games that are getting modern ports. Among them is Tomba, the 19?98 (1997 if you count the Japanese release) platformer by legendary developer Tokuro Fujiwara.

Tomba is a game about the eponymous and fabulous pink-haired caveman. It’s a rather ambitious gated exploration platformer for the PS1 platform that got a sequel, but not nearly enough love. I was actually introduced to it through the passionate rantings of Destructoid alumni James Stephanie Sterling. Original PS1 copies go for mad dough on the col?lector’s market, but I think seeing one in person might have me making my wallet cry.

However, it’s not necessary for you to make your wallet cry. Instead, Limited Run Games is bringing Tomba to modern platforms. That’s about all the information we have right now. The trailer shown during the stream was just a cutscene. A Tweet following the stream clarified that it will be coming to us with the help of the proprietary Carbon Engine, and will have p?hysical and digital versions.

//twitter.com/LimitedRunGames/sta?tus/16792277831??49486082?s=20

Good enough! I’m just happy that Limited Run Games is whole hogging it with retro revivals. Game preservation has been a topic that I’ve been pounding on for a while now, and I’m happy to see another company take a leap with it. Limited Run Games has had a hi??story with preservation, but it seems like they’re really doubling down on it!

Tomba will be coming to PS4, PS5, Switch, and PC eventually. No word yet if Tomba 2 will be getting the same treatment.

The post Tomba coming? to modern platforms courtesy of Limited Run Games appeared first on Destructoid.

WayForward is developing a “Port+�of Clock Tower

In a world where games like Trials of Mana have official English translations, the pool of unlocalized SNES gems is shrinking. As someone who loves SNES games and grew up on fan translations through the 2000s, I am all for this trend. So you can imagine my reaction when I learned that WayForward will bring Human Entertainment’s horror classic Clock Tower West for the first time, with a slew of new features.

Announced during the Limited Run Games 2023 showcase, WayForward calls this a "Port+" of Clock Tower. It looks like a faithful recreation of the SNES original, with a fresh localization and bonus features. Extras in this new edition of Clock Tower include an animated opening, “motion-comic cutscenes,�a vocal theme by Mary McGlynn (known for her work on the Silent Hill series), and some quality-of-life features like save states. In short, it looks similar in concept to last year’s River City Girls Zero.

While some may feel disappointed that Clock Tower won’t see a full remaster, the original visual style holds up well. There’s something about retro horror that really gets under my skin, like Capcom’s Japan-only classic Sweet Home.

//youtu.be/ZMzM9J20MOU

A partnership with Limited Run Games

WayForward’s Clock Tower will utilize Limited Run Games�Carbon Engine, which specializes in porting vintage titles to modern hardware. As you’d expect, Clock Tower will also see a physic?al release through Limited Run Games on “select platforms� Further details will be announced at a later date.

I’m incredibly curious to see how Clock Tower will fare with a new, modern audience. I honestly could never get far in the original back in my teenage years. Mostly because I couldn’t stand the oppressive feeling that all my bad choices were leading everyone to their deaths at the hands of the Scissorman. I also wonder if the original point-and-click interface will see any modernization. After all, fa?ns have already done as much for ??the SNES original.

If you feel ready for some retro horror, Clock Tower will launch on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayS??tation 5, Xbox, and PC in early 2024.

The post After 28 years, the or??igi?nal Clock Tower is finally coming West appeared first on Destructoid.

And now you're selling it, you want to sell it

Limited Run Games teased the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection back in April, but now they’ve confirmed the titles that will be included in that collection. Hold onto your butts, because it’s the NES, SNES, and Gameboy versions of Jurassic Park and the SNES and Gameboy versions of Jurassic Park Part 2: The Chaos Continues.

No, I’m sorry, it will not include Bluesky’s Mega Drive/Genesis Jurassic Park titles.

I have to be honest with you, none of these games are really great. Not horrible either, but not great. However, I’ve written multiple times about the 1993 SNES version of Jurassic Park. While it has its problems, it’s also a unique and interesting title for the platform. The first-person perspective for indoor environments,?? awesome soundtrack, and various programming flourishes give it value be??yond its license.

A?s for the other games: meh. I personally believe all games are worthy of preservation, so I applaud Limited Run Games for taking on the endeavor.

[caption id="attachment_391393" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Limited Run Games[/caption]

The color of amber

As is common for Limited Run Games, we’re getting a variety of editions of Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection. There is, of course, the option to just get the game. However, there’s also the “Classic Editionâ€?that comes with a Steelbook and a slipcover inspired by the VHS version of the movie. Finally, the Prehistoric Edition comes with all of the above, plus a replica Alan Grant I.D. tag, soundtrack CD, mini replica cartridges in a custom frame??, and packaging the emulates the classic look of the Kenner toys.

You can also get “Retro Edition�reproduction cartridges of any of the versions included. These come in translucent amber-colored cartridges, which, ugh, I get the intended imagery, but amber is just piss-color??ed. You can upgrade to the “Collector’s Edition�which makes the cartridges also light up.

If you’re not up for VHS cases or piss cartridges, then it sounds like there will also be a digital version of the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection available. It will be coming to Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, and PS5. Preorders start Se??ptember 1st and close on October 15th.

The post Limited Run Games confirms what’s coming on the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection appeared first on Destructoid.

That is one big pile of... games

Did you know the 30th anniversary of the Jurassic Park film is coming up? Holy gosh, I am so old! Limited Run Games seems willing to sacrifice this horrible entropy by bringing us a collection of “classic�Jurassic Park titles. They've teased us with The Jurassic Park 30th Anniversary Retro Collection, but we'll have to wait until June to get?? more info.

The bad news is that only the titles developed by Ocean are t??eased. The good news is they’re not all bad, and the SNES version is among them.

//twitter.com/LimitedRun??Ga?mes/status/1650961515405537288?s=20

I’ve spent more time than I ever imagined talking about the 1993 SNES version of Jurassic Park. It isn’t great and has many problems, but you can tell the developers had serious passion for the project. It uses ray-casting to create first-person indoor environments the same year Doom ca??me out, and there are several small touches that give it?? life.

I can’t really speak for the rest of the games. The NES and Game Boy versions of the first title are extremely similar. Jurassic Park Part 2: The Chaos Continues is dif?ferent on SNES and Game Boy. They’re side-scrollers, and despite the title, they’re not really sequels in terms of style or mechanics. I? own the SNES version but haven’t played it for more than a few minutes. It’s very difficult to get over the disappointment of it not being a continuation of the previous SNES title.

Beyond the tease and the promise that they’ll announce more in June, Limited Run is being tight-lipped on what they intend to do with these titles. They say it will be The Jurassic Park 30th Anniversary Retro Collection, but will ??it be reproductions of these titles or a release on current consoles? They say we’ll see it later this year.

The post Limited Run tea??ses The Jurassic Park 30th Ann?iversary Retro Collection appeared first on Destructoid.

Catchi~!

If you’re the type that likes their games to have that new plastic smell, Moon: Remix RPG Adventure (which sometimes just goes by moon, but I refuse) is getting physical housing by way of Limited Run Games. It? will come in both standard and collectors edition flavors. It’s perhaps worth noting that this is not a numbered release and, therefore, not part of the Limited Run Collecti??on. It’s simply being distributed on Onion Games�behalf.

[embed]//twitter.com/oniongames/status/162?8094052917997569?s=20[/embed]

Moon: Remix RPG Adventure was the first game by mythical studio Love-de-Lic back in 1997 for the PlayStation. Despite the entire run of Love-de-Lic titles remaining exclusively in their homeland, the developer gained many followers for their weird and charming game designs. After a run of three games, the studio splintered into separate directions, including Vanpool, Skip Ltd., and Punchline. Their design philosophy largely followed, with games like Chulip and Chibi-Robo greatly resembling their Love-de-Lic roots.

Yoshiro Kimura, now helming Onion Games, went to the effort of translating Moon: Remix RPG Adventure and released it on Switch back in the horrible year of 2020. Destructoid’s own CJ Andriesson and I (back when I just went by Adzuken) subjected it to a tag-team review where we were both fond of it m?ostly from a historical perspective but found some of its rougher edges a bit more difficult to swallow.

Nonetheless, this is perhaps the first Limited Run Games release that I feel I just can’t let slip by. Usually, I’m put off by the shocking price of shipping, but my immense fondness for everything tangentially related to Love-de-Lic pushes me to hit that purchase button. Not sure I need all the stuff in the collecto??r’s edition, though.

Moon: Remix RPG Adventure is av?ail??able on Switch, PC, and PS4. So far, it looks like only the Switch version is getting a physical release. The collector’s edition comes with an art book, four “theatre cards,�and a CD of�something. Pre-orders start February 28, 2023.

The post Moon: Remix RPG Adventure is get??ting a physical edition from Limited Run Games appeared first on Destructoid.

Let's judge some books by their covers

I don't have a steady history of creating end-of-the-year Top 10 lists for Destructoid because, well, it's very rare that I actually play 10 games I'd want to write about and celebrate at the end of the year. Such is the life of a part-time games journalist. Most of my free time is locked up playing through games for review, and I think all my reviews for 2022 averaged out to around a 7, which doesn't exactly make for an exciting, OMG kind of list.

My actual game of the year, Immortality, has already popped up on several of these things and I don't think we need yet another writer droning on about its greatness. So I say to hell with actually ranking the games I played last year and instead show the world how shallow I can be by picking the 10 best games based solely on their outward appearance. Inner beauty doesn't matter here, folks, it's all about how s?exy you are on the outside. And some of these game covers are goddamn gorgeous.

Besides, with more and more buying games digitally these d??ays, we should celebrate the physical box art while we?? still can.

10. AI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiative -

AI: The Somnium Files is a series that always seems to be playing the bridesmaid but never the bride. Kotaro Uchikoshi’s follow-ups to his celebrated Zero Escape franchise are some of the best adventure games on the market, with slick production values, whirlwind stories, and excellent voice acting. And yet, when it comes time for GotY time, they always seem to drop off everyone’s radar. It happened in 2019 with the original Somnium Files and it happened again this year with - nirvanA Initiative -. I’ll admit, I chose not to bring it up when we debated the nominees for Destructoid’s yearly awards. Thankfully, I really like what Spike Chunsoft did with the box art for - nirvanA Initiative -, so I’m happy to include it here?? on my stupid little gimmicky top 10 list.

9. Ghostwire Tokyo (Deluxe Edition)

Ghostwire Tokyo had a blink-and-you-miss-it brief bit of relevancy earlier this year when it launched on the PS5. Sadly, Elden Ring basically drank the milks??hake of every non-Nintendo published title over the first four or five months of the year. A lot of people swear by the game, though. Me, I haven’t played it, but I do quite like the box art of the deluxe edition of the game. Great use of hues, shadows, and neon glow. Someday I’ll make the time to play this game, but probably only after it’s deeply discounted.

8. Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope

I love me a good sci-fi box art (or poster art), and in my opinion, nobody did it better this year than Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. This box art just screams, "An am?azing adventure awaits." It’s just a fun cove?r all around.

7. Atari 50

As a child of the '80s and '90s, I tend to latch onto nearly every retro collection from those decades that gets released on modern hardware. Sure, I barely play my copy of The Cowabunga Collection, but just seeing it on my shelf brings back such warm memories that I lik?e having it around. I don’t have any such memories when it comes to A??tari. The Atari 2600 burned out just a few years before I came into the world, and as such, I have no nostalgia for the games. I do, however, have a longstanding love of its name and logo.

The Atari brand is somehow both eternally retro and evergreen, the type of logo that is entirely of its era but also one some up-and-coming app developer would sketch out today. Any use of that logo gets me excited, which is why I love the Atari 50 box art. It’s clean, simple, and absolutely stellar. The multi-line font on the 50 is a beautiful touch. I have zero intention of ever?? buying this game because there are no good Atari titles, but I wouldn’t mind seeing that box art i?n my collection.

6. MLB The Show 22 (MVP Edition)

It’s not often an annual sports game has a great cover, but then again, it’s not often we see a player as brilliant as Shohei Ohtani. Shotime is arguably the most exciting pla??yer in the MLB right now (sorry, Aaron Judge) and an absolute hunk at that. The standard cover for the game is no different than what we’ve seen in years past, but the MVP Edition cover stands out. You might think it’s a bit cliche and predictable to give a Japanese player anime-inspired box art, but I think this looks amazing and I would love to see this kind of creativity moving forward.

5. Castlevania Anniversary Collection (Limited Run Games Best Buy Exclusive)

Okay, now we’re getting into the good shit. I mean, just look at that fucking box art. That’s not video game box art, that’s the cover of a dogeared copy of an early �0s Dungeons & Dragons handbook. The standard cover from Limited Run Games was a fine recreation of the iconic Castlevania box art, but in my eye this blows it out of the water. And that’s not always something you can expect from the Best Buy copies of Limited Run Games titles. Just look at what they did with the Windjammers 2 cover.

4. Evil West

I’m going to keep it 100 and admit I didn’t know what Evil West was until I started searching box art for this list. Maybe somebody had mentioned it before, but I probably mixed it up with Hard West and forgot about it. I truly don’t know what this game is about �and given that it’s $60, I likely won’t until it pops up on Game Pass or PS+ �but I do know that I am 100% down with that box art. Just look at that beauty and tell me it's not some glorious piece of art you’d find on the cover of a SNES title that’s ?now considered a rare gem.

3. NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition (Reversible Cover)

The Switch port of NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition is an absolute work of art and arguably one of the best ports ever to hit the platform. It also has some of the most beautiful box art of the year. Of course, you have to actually buy the game and flip it over to see it. But like the very best alternative box art, you likely won’t switch back to the original. The lush greens on the front of the alt cover absolutely draw you into this world, while the painted grays of the rear artwork tell a story of their own. Sadly, my cover art got a s??mall tear in it when I switched to the alt cover, and I have the type of personality that will absolutely be driven insane by that minuscule imperfection until my time on this Earth is complete.

2. Save me Mr Tako: Definitive Edition (Limited Run Games)

This one might be cheating seeing as Save me Mr Tako: Definitive Edition actually came out in 2021 on the Nintendo eShop, a full year and some change before the physical edition was released through Limited Run Games. For any other end-of-the-year list, that would disqualify it. But for this dumb top 10 list, the fact the game arrived on my doorstep just days before Christmas means it makes the cut. And that worked out well for me because this is actually the box art that inspired this whole Top 10 concept. I LOVE the artwork on this cover. I think it is some of the most beautiful and enchanting cover art I have ever seen. Just imagine the box art we could have got for Kirby and the Forgotten Land if Nintendo put this? kind of effort into designing its packaging.

1. Card Shark (Special Reserve Games Standard Edition)

Card Shark turned out to be a love-it-or-hate-it type of game, but I think one thing everyone can agree on is how outstanding the artwork is for its physical edi??tion from Special Reserve Games. In fact, I think the box art is so great, it’s the only reason I bought the game. I haven’t even bothered taking it out of the shrink-wrap. I just love looking at that box. I’m sure the game is fine, but this box art: wow. I am in love with this artwork. Get rid?? of the logos and nameplate and you have a piece of art I’d love to have framed on my wall.

The post CJ names the best games of?? 2022 based solely on how much he likes th??e box art appeared first on Destructoid.

They better have pictures

Boutique retailer Limited Run Games, not content with merely offering up physi??cal games, toys, clothes, and soundtracks, has decided to get into the world of the printed word, with the announcement of a new book publish??ing arm, Limited Press Run.

The new endeavor, which is led by Limited Run writer Jared Petty and media researcher Jeremy Parish, will see Limited Press Run publish a range of books based on video games and game-adjacent topics. Hitting the ground running, the new outlet h?as already released its first three tomes, which focus on various aspects of retro gaming �a topic that is obviously close to Limited Run's heart.

//twitter.com/LimitedRunGames??/status/1575476153623744512?s=20&t=FxlALRX66f8x-MJS_vanew

The first book, Virtual Boy Works, is a written and pictorial representation of Nintendo's strange and experimental Virtual Boy console, with write-ups on each and every game released for the console, alongside critiques, screengrabs, and packaging scans. The second book, Super NES Works Vol. 1, is a similar retrospective compendium focusing on the early years?? of a somewhat more popular piece of Nintendo hardware, the SNES. This book also looks at the games and accessories for the 16-bit wonder.

The third book from Limited Press Run is The History of Sunsoft Vol. 1, and focuses on the early history of the arcade and console developer, from its early days as a textile outlet to its transition into the electronics industry and, ultimately, the coin-op, console, and home computer market. The book features exclusive interviews and first-hand accounts of Sunsoft's formative y?ears in the fast-growing gaming industry.

All three titles are available to purchase today from the Limited Run Games store, priced at $34.99 each (not including shipping). The books are already published, in h??and, and ready to ship. So if you fancy ??taking a deep dive into a little bit of gaming history, maybe head on over to LRG and take a look.

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Back 2 (old) Skool

Back in 2019, the global gaming community was introduced to two totes-adorbs, totes-dopey schoolyard sluggers: Kyoko and Misako, collectively known as the River City Girls. Essentially a rebirth of sorts for the legendary Kunio-kun series, WayForward's River City Girls revitalized the franchise for modern audiences, retaining the open-world nature and nose-busting brawling of its predecessors and dressing it up with dazzling colors, a badass soundtrack, slick artwork, and cool new characters. River City Girls reinvented not only the Kunio-kun series, but also brawlers themselves.

However, in news that still surprises folk today, River City Girls was not the debut adventure for Kyoko and Misako. No, our excitable and somewhat obsessive teens made their original video game debut way back in 1994, in Japan-only Super Famicom release Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka, which saw series leads Kunio and Riki team up ??with their respective gals to get to the bottom o??f a case of mistaken identity. One broken jaw at a time.

While many of the Kunio-kun titles are playable today via the Double Dragon & Kunio-kun: Retro Brawler Bundle, Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka remained unavailable to western players. Until now, as Arc System Works and WayForward has finally localized this lost sequel for these shores. So fire up the Switch, it's time to rumble with River City Girls Zero.

Our story begins with a hit-and-run tragedy, as a bystander is hit by two dudes on a speeding motorcycle, with one of the riders identified as Kunio-kun's titular hero and badass school boss, Kunio. Quick as a flash, our boys find themselves sped through the courts and thrown in the slammer, accused of a crime th??at they did not commit. This being the video game world, they quickly escape solitary via amusingly easy means, before setting out on a cross-country jaunt to uncover the truth behind the hit -n- run �a jaunt that will see a lot of fists and feet thrown before justice is ultimately served.

It should be noted, first and foremost, that River City Girls Zero is quite unlike a lot of the other titles in the Kunio-kun series. The 16-bit adventure eschews much of the open-city adventure ?and backtracking of its contemporaries, switching it up for sequential, linear stages as our gang of heroes?? follows the trail of breadcrumbs to the villains of the piece. For the most part, this consists of very straightforward 2D belt-scrolling action, as Kunio, Riki, Kyoko, and Misako throw down with the bullies, street thugs, gangsters, and other Bad Dudes that have the lowdown on the boys' mistaken confinement.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpJ-UYq9T1k

River City Girls Zero is a simplistic brawler. Immensely so. It features the typical punch/kick action that typifies the series' combat, complete with the classic back-attack, the satisfying ground-and-pound system, and ugly, unwieldy jump kicks. Each character can also put up their dukes to defend against incoming attacks, and all four fighters have their own cool special moves, activated by hitting block and then the requisite attack button. Misako gets her Street Fighter hurricane kick on, while Kyoko opts for seriou??sly overpowe?red lightning legs.

For the most part, however, River City Girls Zero is a slugfest, exchanging finesse and skill for exploitation, tolerance, a??nd patience.

Whereas the best brawlers, then and especially now, understand the flow of the fight, and the importance of smooth, rhythmic combat, River City Girls Zero is somewhat raw, with stiff movement and ultra-strict hitboxes. The "overlap dead zone" is in effect, and quite often victory is to be achieved through "working" the opponent (for example overlapping from above, walking the opponent into corners, or otherwise tricking the A.I.), rather than through smart combat, an admittedly clunky strategy style demonstrated in Technos' arcade brawlers such as Double Dragon and The Combattribes.

This stiffness is a problem with many early brawlers, but by 1994, the genre had already moved beyond what is offered in Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka, which, from a gameplay standpoint, feels years older than contemporaries such as Capcom's Cadillacs and Dinosaurs, or Sega's Streets of Rage 2, both of which had released?? over two years prior.

The cute Super Famicom sprites offer much personality to our heroes and villains, and the combat is meaty and relentless, but the game's design barely advanced from the earliest Kunio-kun titles, when other series had already begun experimenting with much deeper combat mechanics.  As a result, standard enemy encounters are incredibly samey, while boss battles an exercise in "trickery". The new engine utilized for River City Girls Zero does wo??rk to improve the notorious input latency of the original Super Famicom release, making the action here a little more forgiving and responsive to the player??.

In the title's favor, its nicely animated and colorful sprites, variety of citywide locations, and legitimately smooth SNES synth punctuate the action. The anarchic story is also a lot of fun, (you gotta love the police telling our gang of renegade high school kids that it's fine to take the law into their own hands). Aesthetically and narratively, River City Girls Zero lives its?? cool and compelli??ng "outlaw" vibe, reminiscent of Toei's excellent array of '70s gangster flicks.

As the story progresses and our heroes travel around the country, the side-scrolling stages are linked with Road Rash style motorcycle sections, where the player guns the hog to the next location, while indulging in footsies with enemy riders. These sections are pretty disappointing, dated even by '94 standards. The overall problem with Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka/River City Girls Zero is that the title lacks ??a sense of "electricity", despite its fun story and? great soundtrack. Still, as is the case for so many brawlers, the enjoyment is increased with the addition of a second player.

Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka is, without doubt, a piece of gaming history. WayForward recognizes this, and has dressed up the title in a wonderful presentation package. We open with a fantastic anime sequence, (when's the OVA!!?) backed by an absolute fire song from series composer Megan McDuffee. We also get a delightfully meta manga sequence, as Kyoko and Misako pick up a copy of Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka for the Super Famicom and attempt to get it running on, (what must be t??o them), ancient hardware. Kids these days.

We roll credits with another awesome new tune, and scans of the original artwork and instructional manual are also available to peruse as a fun extra. In regards to localization, there are two English translations on offer: A "Literal" translation, which closely follows the original Japanese text, and a "New" translation which is a little tidier and omits the swearing and misogynistic language of the original script. A useful save state function also helps out in some aggravating boss battles. Ironically, River City Girls Zero fits the bill as a preserved hist??orical relic better than it does as a retro experience.

As both a Kunio-kun and a brawler aficionado, I think it's marvelous that Shin Nekketsu Koha: Kunio-tachi no Banka has been given this new lease of life. It's gaming history that needed to be archived, both for the legacy of Kunio-kun and for protagonists Kyoko and Misako, a duo who only have further fantastic adventures ahead. Fans of the series, who can better tolerate its gameplay shortcomings, will squeal with delight that this long-standing hole in their collection has finally been pl??ugged �though even they wouldn't deny that this entry is, ultimate??ly, one of the series' weaker offerings.

River City Girls Zero is available now on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, PC, and Xbox. River City Girls 2 is currently in development for PlayStation, PC, Xbox, and Nintendo ?Switch.

_{[These impressions are based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post River City Girls Zero: Old-school Famicom fistic?uffs for die-hard? fans appeared first on Destructoid.

Supermarket Sweep

Embracer Group, continuing on its apparent mission to become the only company in existence, has been on another shopping spree, walking away with several studios, publishers, and million-dollar IPs in a mi??ghty sweep of its seemin?gly bottomless wallet.

Announced this morning, Embracer's recent purchases include Lord of the Rings IP holder Middle-earth Enterprises, Maneater developer Tripwire Interactive, Japanese studio Tatsuji, accessory brand Giotech, karaoke hardware company Singtrix, and popular boutique retailer Limited Run Games. The identity of a further? acq?uisition remains unannounced as of this writing.

All of Embracer's gaming entities will be managed within a new operating divi??sion in the holding company known as "Embracer Free??mode." The total purchase price for all of the listed acquisitions is reportedly in the region of SEK 8.2 billion, or roughly $787 million USD.

"Today Embracer becomes an even better group. I am pleased to welcome an amazing group of entrepreneur-led companies to the Embracer family and to extend our portfolio with some truly remarkable IPs and franchises, including The Lord of the Rings," said Embracer CEO? Lars Wingefors of the purchases.

"It is encouraging that our group has become a natural and preferred buyer of creative, growing and profitable companies within Gaming and Entertainment. Several discussions with entrepreneurs now joining have been ongoing for more than three? years before the stars aligned today, which underlines the importance of a long-term perspective in building our group."

Middle-earth Enterprises has held the licensing rights to J.R.R Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit for some 50 years. In an accompanying statement, Embracer appeared to ?show great interest in exploring the characters and worlds that exist within Middle-earth, which frankly sounds like a Disney-style abundance of movies and TV shows might be headed our way in the future.

Embracer Group has been incredibly proactive with its purchase power in recent years. In the gaming sphere, the umbrella corporation already has stakes or full ownership in companies such as THQ Nordic, Saber Interactive, Koch Media, Gearbox Entertainment, Aspyr Media, DECA Games, and all of their respective subsidiaries, alongside numerous independent studios.

The post Embracer Group acquires Lord of the Rings, Limited Run Games, Tripwir??e, and more appeared first on Destructoid.

...And the clock's ticking, dude

As part of the Limited Run Games summer showcase, wherein the retailer revealed its long laundry list of physical releases for 2022-2023, it was announced that Dotemu's cool-looking brawler TMNT: Shredder's Revenge will be getting a hard copy on PS4, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.

All three versions will include a disc/cart-based copy of Shredder's Revenge, a full-color art booklet, a set of character stickers, a reversible cover, and, in a nice little throwback, a voucher for a free personal pan pizza at participating branches of Pizza Hut. This neat bonus is, of course, a throwback to the release of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Arcade Game on NES, which ?also included a free pizza wi?th each purchase!

//twitter.com/LimitedRunGames/status/1533910176637??517827?s=20&t=1OyPR7h4FbGbLewoOupIfg

It seems like Limited Run really had to pull some strings and do some serious organizing in order to get the pizza tie-in promotion on board, and as such, the offer is only redeemable at North American outlets and is tied exclusively to the Limited Run edition of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge. Still, it's a very cute, unique, and nostalgic freebie, especially for those who can actually eat pizza, unlike your feather-stomached boy Moyse. Regardless, pre-orders are now live on the Limited Run Games store.

While no ima?ges were shown, Limited Run also has a full Collector's Edition of the cartoon brawler in the works, wh?ich will include all of the above gubbins along with a Playmates figure of Shredder himself, replicated from the megaselling 1990s toy line. More details on this edition will be revealed in the near future.

TMNT: Shredder's Revenge launches 2022 on PlayStation, PC, Xbox, and Nin??tendo Switch.

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I don't know who asked for some of these but...

Yesterday, Limited Run Games held its annual summer showcase, which was produced by the folk at Mega64 and revealed the? boutique retailer's upcoming catalog of physical releases. On the agenda were a wide variety of new and old releases, all of which will be making the leap from the digital archives to a whole new world of shelf-filling plastic.

There were familiar brands and IPs such as Shantae, Blade Runner, Doom, Tetris, and Star Wars lined up alongside radical '80s/'90s franchises such as TMNT, Bill & Ted, Shadowrun, and even the classic horror adventure, D. Oh, and that PS5 port of Night Trap we all wanted is finally on th??e way, because that's what we bo??ught that $500 console for. Right?

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Srqc6DQH6M8

There was simply too much on offer to break down on an individual basis, so I've painstakingly recreated the entire lineup in the list below, complete with platforms and dates. Please be aware that some of these are simple physical releases, while others will be getting the full Collector's Edition treatment. You'd be better off visiting the official Limited Run Games online catalog for full details on any specific titles that pique? your interest. Finally, all titles are expected to open pre-orders between now and the end of 2023.

Right, ain't nothing to it but to do it.

• A Boy and His Blob: Retro Collection â€?PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
• American Hero â€?PlayStation, PC, Switch
• BATS: Bloodsucker Anti-Terror Squad â€?PS4, Switch
• Bill & Ted's Excellent Retro Collection â€?PlayStation, Switch, Xbox
• Blade Runner: Enhanced Edition â€?PlayStation, Switch
• Blossom Tales 2 â€?Switch
• D â€?PC, Panasonic 3DO
• Deathwish Enforcers â€?PlayStation, Switch
• DoDonPachi Resurrection â€?Switch
• DOOM 64 â€?Xbox
• DOOM Eternal â€?Switch
• Enclave â€?PlayStation, Switch
• ESP Galuda II â€?Switch
• Frogun â€?PlayStation, Switch
• Garden Story â€?Switch
• Glover â€?Nintendo 64
• GoGo Kokopolo! â€?Nintendo 3DS
• Konami Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection â€?PS4, Switch
• LUNARK â€?PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
• Night Trap â€?PS5
• Plumbers Don't Wear Ties: Definitive Edition â€?PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
• PowerSlave: Exhumed â€?PS4, Xbox, Switch
• Rendering Ranger R-2 â€?PlayStation, Switch, SNES
• River City Girls 2 â€?PlayStation, Xbox, Switch
• Shadowrun Trilogy â€?PS4, Xbox, Switch
• Shantae â€?PlayStation
• Skelattack â€?PS4, Switch
• Spidersaurs â€?PlayStation, Switch, Xbox
• Star Wars: KOTOR II â€?PC, Switch
• TMNT: Shredder's Revenge â€?PS4, Xbox, Switch
• Tetris Effect: Connected â€?PS4, Xbox, Switch
• Undermine â€?PS4, Switch

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Next week's LRG3 digital showcase promises 30+ trailers and physical game reveals

For the third year in a row, Limited Run Games will be a part of our summer stream smoothie, so don't spoil your appetite. (And bring money. Lots of money!) The physical game purveyor is hosting its LRG3 digital showcase on June 6 at 1:00 p.m. Pacific.

For this year's showcase, Limited Run Games will be covering "over 30 awesome game trailers and physical release reveals for bespoke, high-quality collector's editions," which is par for the course at this point. You'll be able to watch along on the company's Twitch channel. Expect to see plenty of Mega64 shenanigans, as the boys ar?e back? in town.

//t?witter.com/Limited??RunGames/status/1532064573771358208

We know of at least one high-profile release that'll show up: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge. A tweet last month confirmed a Collector's Edition reveal at LRG3.

I feel like some of you will tune in just for TMNT, but that's just on??e of many games. There's plenty of room for other limited editions, and it's been great to see Limited Run (and other fo?lks doing similar work) on the rise in spite of industry trends. As we've seen, there's still plenty of demand for physical releases �especially when they're done right.

For those of you in North Carolina (or anyone willing to travel for the sake of hard-to-find video games), Limited Run recently open?ed its first retail store in Cary, as pictured above. I haven't been! But have you ever had that dream where you've somehow stumbled upon the motherload �rare games as far as the eye can see �and then you wake up?

With new showcases filling out the rest of June, LRG3 won't be everyone's top priority, but it's bound to be a fun one for collectors. L??et's all try to stay on budget, shall we?

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