Ninja Gaiden [NES] + R2RKMF: Scrolling Action Monogatari

[Stevens]

This is one of my favorite threads that I rarely post in, you guys are tops.

Making me want to pick up Dynamite Headdy again.

[__SKYe]

As I said in the post that you snipped away, I'm also not a big fan of using glitches in speedruns (unless those glitches are somehow more interesting than the intended route), but there are so many great speedruns out there that don't do it. So once, again, why should you generalize speedruns based on the runs that do?

I didn't mean to make it look like I disregarded the snipped part, I have read it and watched a few of the clips, and when it comes to NG and SMB3, and really, any classic action games, I agree that their speedruns can be quite good, as, just like I said before, these games lend themselves to be played fast normally, as the player's skill grows. I only posted the MegaMan part, to show my experience with speedruns in general, not to make a point that they all are alike.

The NG run, for example, is very good, and while I don't really have an interest in attempting one of those runs, I have to admit that their runs were incredible.

But for FPS games (like DOOM and Quake), I cannot say the same.
Again, despite the very skilled players and the impressive techniques they use to beat those games that fast, I don't enjoy playing FPSs in this manner. I very much prefer to play these games more thoughtfully, checking every corner, every room, etc, and I don't really enjoy the speedrunning aspect here.

[FinalBaton]

While I know I should respect your opinion, and I really can't tell how much of a chance you have given the concept, I feel that you are just too quick to jump to that conclusion.
That fact that you looked at my long post defending the broad spectrum of what a speedrun can be, and emploring people to forget the "speed" aspect and appreciate the way some runs dig into games on a high level instead, and replied with a simple "I respect it but I don't enjoy it" really gives me an impression that your approach is similar to what I quoted from SKYe above. So I apologize if I'm wrong about this, but I think some of you guys should at least watch the Ninja Gaiden and SMB3 runs I've linked above. I don't care if they are "speedruns" or not. This is just classic NES gaming at its best.

I'll repeat what Is said before. Saying that you "don't like speedruns" because you've seen some that you didn't find entertaining is like saying that you "don't like video games" because you've tried some that you didn't enjoy. I'm saying this because it also really took me a long time before I realised how interesting some speedruns could be. Something that's also partly owed to the fact that the whole speedrunning community can be pretty cringeworthy from time to time.

I did watch quite a few speedruns of different games, don't worry I gave the concept a chance. Thanks for the links you provided btw. I watched the NG one and the SMB3 one

sadly it hasn't changed my opinion

[BIL]

To clarify slightly, I quite enjoy watching the occasional speedrun - it's actually participating that I'm disinclined to. Duckfist's NGII sword-only run at AGDQ 2014 was not only a superb watch, it inspired me to quit fucking around with my rickety 1LC and get to grips with the annoyingly tiny swordbox. If he could tear it up without the monstrous subweapon firepower offset, I figured average joes had no excuse. (NGII's toothpick sword was a balancing over-compensation on Tecmo's part, but I endorse learning to work with it... a uniquely minimal/maximal firepower action game results)

Here's another one of my favourites, Funkdoc's Castlevania IV run at AGDQ 2013. I don't find damage boosting very appealing, outside of a few extremely specific cases (Holy Diver's twisted world). As with my own play, I like runs with minimal bumps (one reason I enjoy Super Shinobi and Vampire Killer runs... getting hit will destroy your pace in both). However, rather like NGII, CV4 not only has an undeniably satisfying knockback - even moreso with its normally conservative pace - but, more importantly, Funkdoc's use of it here is both surgical and transgressive. Sacrificing HP for speed to send Simon's bruised, battered, metal hotpants-clad ass flying over the finish line almost brings to mind Garegga's lives for bombs bartering.

Sadly the run is tainted by some annoyingly tone-deaf announcing. It's not a job for everyone, clearly. :V Still, recommended if you don't mind putting the volume down a bit. This may be what Sumez meant by cringe factor.

[Sumez]

I might be wrong, but I think said announcer is actually a user on this forum I'm sure he's already heard from this though - while it's only sensible to respect people who donate to the purpose, there's an obvious limit where it harms the potential commentary of the run.

[BIL]

The comments on that video are already pretty mean, I definitely don't want to add to the fusillade. I was wondering if maybe his audio monitor setup wasn't great (if there even was one). I've been in a few situations like that (addressing auditoriums, lecture halls) where it was hard to hear myself / others. Oh well. ;3

[Vanguard]

After all the talk about Cave Noire I decided to give it a revisit. Very enjoyable, though the shallowness problem stands out even more on a second playthrough. About 80% of the danger comes from titans and skeletons, because everything else can generally be bypassed without expending resources. Titans, to my knowledge, always appear alone and they're too strong to fight so you always either burn a consumable or avoid them altogether. Pretty dull. Skeletons, on the other hand, are the best-designed enemies in the game. They're threatening enough that fighting them is costly, but not so powerful that it isn't an option. They also pair up with other monster types and when they do they generally create the most interesting problems the game has to offer. Sometimes lesser enemies like reapers, bats, and big crabs become a threat on their own, but those are exceptions to the rule.

The game is a lot more fair than I remembered it to be. I only had two deaths on the way to the normal ending and both of were due to severe errors on my part. I died a bunch more on the way to the 100% ending, but I had had a few drinks by then so the game can't take any blame for that. I do think that the game probably puts you in occasional unwinnable situations in the higher level orb quests where you wind up with only one or two free inventory slots.

Throughout my entire first playthrough I never figured out how the holes your character can pass over worked. I thought you were jumping over them and needed a running start, but it only worked in certain places for some reason? It turns out they're actually just invisible floor tiles you can walk over freely. Moving directly towards a pit has your character check for an invisible tile (this inspection mechanic is what I mistook for the running start). The same room designs always feature the same invisible tiles, so if you memorize them you don't need to look before you leap.

Anyway it's certainly a nice game, but it could have been much better with some more aggressive enemies.

With regard to speedrunning: I think the level of skill and dedication speedrunners put into their play is great. It's not something I care to participate in (I prefer games where each run is unique, speedruns are about forcing your runs to adhere as closely to a plan as possible) and I don't have the discipline for it either. I do think that very nearly every game in existence benefits from a deliberate effort to play quickly. I also think very nearly every game should feature a time limit, respawning enemies, or some similar pressure system to encourage speedy play.

[Immryr]

super metroid reverse boss order: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-pO0OjGSeE

the first half in particular is really nail biting, seat of the pants stuff. lower norfair is terrifying and meridia features loads of cool technical tricks.

[LichbannMejolaro]

super metroid reverse boss order: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-pO0OjGSeE

the first half in particular is really nail biting, seat of the pants stuff. lower norfair is terrifying and meridia features loads of cool technical tricks.

Super Metroid and Super Mario 64 may be the hardest games to speedrun out there.

Getting a WR in them is pratically impossible. If you watch the WR runs in both you'll be amazed at how optimized they are and how little room for error is there. Not to mention that SM 64 camera is a nightmare even for a experienced player, and seeing the tricks those guys do is amazing.

Is really enjoyable to watch runners from both of these games.

[soprano1]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZi870IbWMI
Cool run of Master of Darkness on SMS.

[mycophobia]

Does anyone know what the default dipswitches should be for Strider Hiryu? I think whatever Mame is telling me is wrong (30k & 60k extends only, starting difficulty 2, difficulty difference on death is just "Default")

[BIL]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZi870IbWMI
Cool run of Master of Darkness on SMS.

Never played this game, but I'll always regard its protagonist Dr. Social as having the coolest name ever.

Does anyone know what the default dipswitches should be for Strider Hiryu? I think whatever Mame is telling me is wrong (30k & 60k extends only, starting difficulty 2, difficulty difference on death is just "Default")

Good question... I seem to recall wondering if it was low the last time I played, years ago... I also recall cranking the difficulty all the way up and not finding the game much harder, haha. IIRC, jepjepjep is a big fan and has a Japan version PCB - might be worth PMing him.

[mycophobia]

PM sent. These manuals would seem to indicate that Mame's settings at least approach the correct defaults (the extends are slightly different and there's no mention of internal difficulty loss on death in the manual). I remember playing the game a while back with extends set to 20k, 40k then every 60k with a starting difficulty of 4 but I can't remember if it was in mame or some compilation or something.

[dunpeal2064]

Having tried Leynos a while back and not really clicking with it, I assumed the series might not be for me. Randomly booted up Valken despite this, and HOLY SHIT, this is one hell of a game. The weight of the mech, with its slow walk speed and aiming, combined with the ability to quickly maneuver via dash/boosters and punch the shit out of things is rad. . Great movekit too, being able to lock direction, shield, etc. Stage 1 music has been in my head since, was happy to see them reuse it in the later shmup stage. Visuals are wonderful. Immediately bought a copy, this game is way above "hidden gem" and easily sits among the greats for me.

Might need to give Leynos another shot now.

Also been playing Jaki Crush, which might not really be a fit here, but oh well. Fucking love the voice at the title, "Jaak... Cruuu!". Kinda reminds me of Sloth Table can be a little mean, and there seems to be some odd ball clipping (lol), but the side areas are sweet, and hot damn that ost is top notch.

On speedruns: They are quite cool. I think I personally put them in the same tier as high-score runs in a shmup, just a tier above 1cc/1lc. The former requires absolute rout memorization, practicing every 10 second segment of the game to death, the latter still requiring mastery but with enough breathing room to show off some personal style in the run. I lean towards the latter, but still enjoy participating and watching the former from time to time.

[BIL]

Leynos and Valken are radically different games - despite technically being in the same series and continuity, they're truly a love/hate pair. IIRC Ganelon is the only poster I can recall who favours ASL over ASV, but I'm sure there are others.

Personally I enjoy Leynos for its unrefined brutality - the vast, randomly-populated battlegrounds where things can go to hell in an eyeblink, the punishing firepower the bigger enemies can unleash, and just the general sense of being a tiny unit in a big, dangerous scenario - but I always stress its flaws, namely a very dated handling model that's neither use (no strafing) nor ornament (doesn't really have that heavy mech feel), and a somewhat jagged difficulty ramp (st3's open space battle will hammer newbies without remorse, while quite a few later missions cool down considerably). I endorse using the extra continues cheat while learning the game... one of those cases where I think they should've come as standard (the PCE mech sidescroller Veigues Tactical Gladiator is another, coincidentally).

Valken is conversely ultra-polished on mechanical and aesthetic fronts, but loses most of ASL's sheer venom - the first half could've used a bit more aggression (the latter comes up nicely though, with far trigger-happier enemies... the climactic street fight finally recalls Leynos's pitiless hellscapes).

Valken's certainly the better-executed game overall, but I'd still suggest Leynos with certain conditions attached. It demands understanding for its flaws while spewing nothing but hate in return.

Have you played Ex-Ranza/Ranger-X, btw? It and Leynos were the two games that really kickstarted my renewed interest in 16bit and much of this thread. There's nothing like either anywhere else. Ranza's more technical than either 16bit Assault Suit game, and not the most user-friendly to start with, but it's incredibly unique and ambitious, and it'll deal out some serious carnage once you've gotten to grips - worth sticking with.

Jaki Crush is always a worthy mention in my book simply for that goddamn main table BGM. The Crush series has strong BGM overall but even then it's outstanding. Aw jeeze I'm running to class, I want to post my usual hitlist of tracks. TO BE CONTINUED ->

[dunpeal2064]

The main table bgm in Jaki is almost too much! I love that the hook just plows in right from the get-go, but becomes a motiff that returns, slightly altered, with even more heroism behind it. Its so good.

I've spent enough time with Ranger X to know that there is something at least really interesting there, but the learning curve is quite steep. Reminds me of initial forays into Street Fighter 2010, Alien Soldier, and the like. I need to give it a good session and see if I can come to grasp with things. Having seen some of your gifs, I know I'll dig it once I come to grips. Hopefully that process isn't too arduous!

Leynos does have appealing things for me. I like that it feels like an "8-bit+" sorta game, if that makes sense. And while control-wise the mecha feel isn't quite there, it certainly has the atmosphere! Far tougher game from what I recall too, I'm not sure I even made it to the 3rd stage, it felt pretty brutal right off the bat. Valken welcomes with open arms quite more, probably due to its very relaxed first stage. That and having time to experiment with the interesting movekit gave me vibes similar to my first time playing MMX. Likewise, I can see the lack of pushback losing some points in the long haul... but that Valken stage 1 bgm might be good enough to excuse the slow start. Thinking about it, Valken and X share a lot of qualities imo. hot gfx, sweet bgm, really fun character to control, but a little lack of resistance.

[BIL]

Man, Jaki's main table BGM seems to get better every time I revisit. Waited until I got home from work to blast it loud. Reminds me of Mad Machine from the Bubblegum Crisis OST, with the rock-steady pace, simmering chords and simple, catchy riff eventually giving rise to a smoulderingly plaintive solo. The Crush series is a BGM goldmine... even before Tecno Soft's alchemists got involved via Devil Crash MD and its cache of cutting-edge reprises. I like playing Herzog Zwei's bass guitar-driven odyssey "A Breach Of Contract" loud enough to feel that trademark kick drum in my chest.

imo Ranza's main entry hurdle, besides the slightly idiosyncratic controls and novel dual vehicle concept, is st2's fatal labyrinth. After st1's cheerfully straightforward rampage, you and your rad bike are dumped into a huge, dangerous maze that's chock full o' Toshio Toyota's deliberately strange, stage-unique mechanics - crazy Mexican jumping bean boulders that smash you and enemies alike, turrets that can't be destroyed directly, barricades that unleash relentless homing tadpoles when shot, weapon-charging sunlight limited to rare alcoves... with the player very possibly not even knowing the role of sunlight, after the wide-open st1. On top of all this, you're still adjusting to the controls and weapons, which need fairly deft handling to avoid a bumpy, euroshumpy nightmare ending in death by attrition. A trial, not so much by fire as by ice bucket; it made me delay revisiting for literally years, though as you say, I always suspected there was something special about this game.

Stage 3's forest air/ground assault is a far more balanced snapshot of the game's raucous yet technical carnage, with a straightforward route and an intuitive light/dark layout. Once I got the rhythm of carpetbombing ground targets, superjumping up into the sun, annihilating squadrons of would-be interceptors then diving back under the canopy, I was utterly hooked. Would've been a more palatable stage 2, tbh. The stage sequence is like a prog metal album opening with a punky three-chord barrage, then a brutal doom/sludge clobbering, before finally settling into its good-naturedly intricate stride. The opening numbers are fine in retrospect, but they're neither a smooth nor a very accurate first impression.

In case it's of interest, blackoak translated a short but insightful interview with Ranza's director Toshio Toyota - really illuminates the game's meticulous craftsmanship, particularly the determination to stock each stage with its own unique hazards and mechanics. Although it's even more of a marmite game than Ranza, I get the same vibe from Toyota's earlier game, the topdown seek/destroy Granada. Even moreso than Ranza, it's rough-edged, a bit unfriendly, and sometimes just weird... but likewise unforgettable for it. Witness the authentically sugar-crazed REFRECTA powerup, and the madness of BLASTER BOOST:

BOOSTIN' MAKE ME FEEL GOOD

Spoiler

(footage courtesy Enhasa)

Motoi Sakuraba's OST is scintillatingly catchy, too, as is the godlike intro Engrish. Possibly the finest I've ever seen.

GHOST
OF
SOLDIERS

Enhasa could really tear it up at this. His Mania run is a good primer on the reckless art of blaster boosting. One of my favourite little unheralded technical action gems. Absolutely not for everyone, but a bit like Leynos, the sheer audacity is worth witnessing in itself. Goddamn - Ranza, Leynos and Granada is a pretty good night in with the MD, imo. ¦3 These three remind me of why I got back into this stuff. Technical heavy metal action with a healthy dose of inimitable weirdness (and in ASL's case pure malice).

That and having time to experiment with the interesting movekit gave me vibes similar to my first time playing MMX. Likewise, I can see the lack of pushback losing some points in the long haul... but that Valken stage 1 bgm might be good enough to excuse the slow start.

What keeps Valken's frst couple stages interesting for me is the weapon upgrade angle - it's fairly involving to root out every last P chip (both the set boxes, and ones dropped by Nth enemies destroyed), so that I'm rocking the almighty MAX PUNCH and some healthy Bouncy Vulcan Cheetos for stage 3's second half. And tbh, st2's opening STG rush followed by zero-g combat is quite a handful on its own - can't really rest on my laurels there, not without stepping on a landmine or eating a photon torpedo in the grill.

It's really those slightly wimpy enemy mech suits that bug me - they should've cut loose with a bit more firepower, or maybe had some other means of creating pressure (a melee or homing attack would've been cool). But again, by stage 3-1 the real threat are those popup turrets that'll mercilessly tag you with their homing lasers, if not sharply baited and FALCON PAUNCHED with a quick block of the still-active beams.

Leynos does have appealing things for me. I like that it feels like an "8-bit+" sorta game, if that makes sense.

I think I know exactly what you mean - the combination of simple, compact graphics and expansive, hectic battlefields always makes me think of a turbocharged Master System game, scrubbed of the flicker and slowdown it might've otherwise suffered. I really like that functional approach - graphical polish is nice, but the sense of scale generated by those little units and their big, merciless world is immortal.

[NYN]

Put in the CCC2 to sharpen up on Strider. Only to get sidetracked with The King of Dragons.
Real simple mechanics. No moveset, just attack. Almost no air game. Magic only when levitating orbs are hit. No grapple. Stages are rather short.
But man, to me, it shines. Not keen on dragons and wizards, yet this is fun. It may be the pace of the thing.
1991 was a fine year to get overshadowed inhouse.

Are the two Capcom takes on D&D anything like this, or does it get more complex?

[qmish]

Man, Jaki's main table BGM seems to get better every time I revisit.

Unknown Song 1 is also great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICpDQQ1RX4U

[Stevens]

Are the two Capcom takes on D&D anything like this, or does it get more complex?

Far more complex but certainly worth checking out. Personally I would skip Tower of Doom unless you really love DnD/Capcom Beat em' ups. Not that its bad, its just that Shadow is far better.

[dunpeal2064]

Holy shit, the last boss of Midnight Resistance is literally King Crimson. <3





I knew the boss' name (Crimson King), but hadn't seen him until now. This album is called "In the Court of the Crimson King" The track that plays during the fight is even named "King Crimson", and sounds like something straight from their 80s lineup, complete with a chunky, Genesis version of the Chapman Stick slapping that main line.

Second time I've seen the band honored in vidya form, the other being in Garegga.

Sorry, I nerd out over this shit, KC is my favorite band ever, and seeing them mentioned at all is a rarity. Hopefully not too off-topic for the thread

[BIL]

Music references and attendant discussion will never be off-topic here. Spotting nods to classic rock in Japanese games (hell, JP media in general) is one of my favourite little past-times. And has good precedent with the thread's namesake, albeit via the arcade version!

I'm only passingly familiar with KC via In The Court Of, but Hyde Park 1969 is one of my favourite live rock recordings - especially its haunting version of Epitaph. Not sure if it was official or a bootleg? Either way, I keep it in the same folder with No Sleep Til Hammersmith and Live At Leeds. I wish there was footage of the whole thing - AFAIK there's just this clip of 21st Century Schizoid Man.

[Squire Grooktook]

I discovered the Jaki Crush ost a few month's back, and added it to my work playlist immediately. Main table is simultaneously a satisfying slow burn with its gradual build up, and also anthemic as all hell. Rest of the ost is great too: I'm very fond of the heavy mystical gravitas of the title screen.

[Bloodreign]

Put in the CCC2 to sharpen up on Strider. Only to get sidetracked with The King of Dragons.
Real simple mechanics. No moveset, just attack. Almost no air game. Magic only when levitating orbs are hit. No grapple. Stages are rather short.
But man, to me, it shines. Not keen on dragons and wizards, yet this is fun. It may be the pace of the thing.
1991 was a fine year to get overshadowed inhouse.

Are the two Capcom takes on D&D anything like this, or does it get more complex?

Never cared for the version of Strider on that, it uses the wrong romset that has less music than the ones heard on the PS1 and Genesis/MD versions of Strider. Capcom goofed on that one. Now my mainstays on CCC2 are Captain Commando (beat shit up, ask no questions), King of Dragons (I'll just hack this dragon with my sword, no harm right?), and Knights of the Round (EXCALIBUR! HO!), Magic Sword (so many people to help you in this one),as well as Mega Twins (it's some Chiki Chiki shit that Capcom renamed the game here in the west, stop it Capcom!).

Both Knights of the Round, and King of Dragons seems so simple, yet one tends to overlook stuff, like being able to block, and attack right after, saving your health in the process.

[Vanguard]

Put in the CCC2 to sharpen up on Strider. Only to get sidetracked with The King of Dragons.
Real simple mechanics. No moveset, just attack. Almost no air game. Magic only when levitating orbs are hit. No grapple. Stages are rather short.
But man, to me, it shines. Not keen on dragons and wizards, yet this is fun. It may be the pace of the thing.
1991 was a fine year to get overshadowed inhouse.

Are the two Capcom takes on D&D anything like this, or does it get more complex?

Tower of Doom and Shadow over Mystara are both more complex than King of Dragons with full movesets, combos, usable items, and spellcasting. SoM also adds equippable items in addition to having a larger list of spells. In my limited experience I've found SoM's inventory system to be excessively finicky for an arcade brawler. King of Dragons is the only one I've put much time into, and the only one I've 1CC'd, so I can't say much about ToD and SoM's overall quality (I'm not big on brawlers).

By the way, in King of Dragons you can cast offensive spells at the cost of some health by pushing the jump and attack buttons at the same time. It's not very useful for most of the game, though I do recommend using it to stun Gildiss out of his nastiest attack.

[Vludi]

King of Dragons (along Tenchi wo Kurau) is probably the simplest Capcom brawler mechanics-wise, but it has good enemy design and solid mechanics/hitboxes so it's still fun to play. Knights of the Round expands it quite a bit with a bigger move-set, rides and more elaborate block mechanic. Tower of Doom plays kinda similar to KotR but with an inventory system that will help you. Shadow over Mystara is more of a rushdown game with longer, faster combos and dumbed down enemies, also a bunch of overpowered items/bugs that make it the worst balanced of the bunch, you can always limit your firepower tho.

[NYN]

By the way, in King of Dragons you can cast offensive spells at the cost of some health by pushing the jump and attack buttons at the same time. It's not very useful for most of the game, though I do recommend using it to stun Gildiss out of his nastiest attack.

Yeah, it's worth mentioning just because it's so easy to overlook. Final Fight is pressing harder for crowd control, attack+jump special there feels warrented.
I'm a sucker for the Elfman. Stringing it from afar adds to the fun. In other brawls I'd first pick the fighter. Cool I'm going out of the habit with this one. All credit to the game.

Thanks to all who responded to the mention. Makes me think simplicity done right has attributes on their own and is not dismissed.

[__SKYe]

Hey, I don't have anything game related to post at this time, but I did find something pretty cool.

I recently (and by chance, I might add) I came across this website, which contains a series of articles about the history of Sunsoft.
The latest article on Sunsoft's articles was just posted a couple days ago, so I don't know if you are already aware of it, but it is a great read nonetheless.
Only some of their titles have been mentioned yet, so I assume there are more articles still to come.

[BIL]

God damn, that is one substantial article. Excellent find! Just skimming the first two sections, I already see a ton of stuff that piques my interest. Just the late 70s/early 80s stuff is fascinating. Real primordial-feeling, seeing the earliest footholds of legendary names like Konami and Sunsoft in the West.

edit: PART III SPOILERS

Spoiler

In 1988 Sunsoft started releasing games under the name Tokai Engineering. Some people have speculated that Tokai was an external developer and that they might have contributed to the higher quality of the games Sunsoft put out in this period. But according to Gimmick! creator Tomomi Sakai, Tokai is just a dummy company, like Konami’s Ultra and Palcom brands, created to circumvent Nintendo’s rules restricting the number of games a developer could publish for the Famicom/NES in a year. Former Sunsoft programmer and Trip World creator Yuichi Ueda, Blaster Master creator Kenji Sada, and current Chief Director of Sunsoft Shigeki Shimizu confirm this. Tokai was a dummy company.

“Tokai Engineering is just a dummy company to avoid the limitation by the contract with Nintendo. ‘Meta Fight’ was developed completely inside of Sun-Elec.” – Kenji Sada

The name almost certainly stems from the name of the subregion Tokai, where Sun Denshi’s home city, Konan, is located. The company is still a part of Sun Denshi but does not seem to be used for anything. “Tokai Engineering” is even written on a sign on the Sun Denshi building.

Aww sheeeit! Feels good to see this confirmed.

[FinalBaton]

Yes nice to get confirmation of this indeed. We can finally put the speculations to rest


Re : part I

Spoiler

-Sun Denshi, that has a pretty cool ring to it. I like it

-From what I've gathered, Kangaroo was at least a decently popular machine in North America. It seems that many people know about it, I've bumped into quite a few stories of people playing the cabinet

-I actually didn't know Arabian was made by them

Re: part III

Spoiler

-it's great to see the passion of the sound team, both the composer and the coders. The coders moto of "Make the Famicom sing!" is pretty cool! Love the story of the one coder going to the composer and being like "Composer-sama! I've just crwated a sound I am immensely proud of! please write a song around it right away, I'll wait here and once it's done I'll run right back to the studio to code it!" Now THAT is passion for your craft!