Rarest games?

[Pretas]

Gamshara is not a rare game. Speaking of Mitchell, Mad Motor is.

People tend to conflate "unemulated" with "rare." And Mad Motor's rarity owes to the fact that the game was never actually released - it failed location testing.

[NAVVARR]

Was Gradius III ever released for the PAL Snes?

I know its available elsewhere- but I've never seen a PAL version.

[Ghegs]

It was not.

[pestro87]

Sorry for asking a slightly OT question but I've been wondering about this for a long time: is there a reason why Vampire Killer on the MD is so expensive or is it just in high demand?

It's my understanding like a lot of end-of-life games in Japan where the MegaDrive did not sell well, many games were not printed in great numbers and carry a premium over Genesis versions. A good example of this are any Acclaim games. Vampire Killer is an odd one as I don't recall any benefit to owning it over the original barring case artwork and the like. Contra The Hard Corps does carry a tangible benefit in having 3 hits per life versus 1 hit-ko in Contra Hard Corps NTSC-U/C. Both games are region locked so if you want to play one or the other a region switch doesn't do you much good. Demand as a result spurs the prices onward.

Ah, I see. Thanks a lot for the info!

[Squire Grooktook]

Sorry for asking a slightly OT question but I've been wondering about this for a long time: is there a reason why Vampire Killer on the MD is so expensive or is it just in high demand?

It's my understanding like a lot of end-of-life games in Japan where the MegaDrive did not sell well, many games were not printed in great numbers and carry a premium over Genesis versions. A good example of this are any Acclaim games. Vampire Killer is an odd one as I don't recall any benefit to owning it over the original barring case artwork and the like. Contra The Hard Corps does carry a tangible benefit in having 3 hits per life versus 1 hit-ko in Contra Hard Corps NTSC-U/C. Both games are region locked so if you want to play one or the other a region switch doesn't do you much good. Demand as a result spurs the prices onward.

Ah, I see. Thanks a lot for the info!

The Usa Version of Vampire Killer has an extra difficulty mode that is actually pretty nice (a few extra bats, ghosts, and other small enemies from time to time and more penalizing but still fair damage scaling, makes the game feel a bit more tight). I'd recommend that version over JP.

[pestro87]

Oh wow, that sounds awesome! Thanks a lot, Squire! I would have been a little pissed if I bought the JP version and found that out afterwards, lol

[Squire Grooktook]

Oh wow, that sounds awesome! Thanks a lot, Squire! I would have been a little pissed if I bought the JP version and found that out afterwards, lol

You're welcome! Just keep in mind you have to enter the Konami Code to unlock it (or beat the game).

[stryc9]

Vampire Killer has the extra difficulty mode as well doesn't it?

[Squire Grooktook]

Vampire Killer has the extra difficulty mode as well doesn't it?

I don't think it does, or it might be easier. I seem to recall being told it wasn't in an earlier thread.

"The Japanese version is closer to its American counterpart but still includes some changes. The game is there called Vampire Killer, the normal mode is less difficult (fewer enemies and more powerful heroes), and the password screen doesn't show after a stage is completed but only appears when your character runs out of lives."

Maybe if expert is in Vampire Killer, then it's just normal mode from usa version? Might want to get someone more knowledgeable in here to clear this up.

[BIL]

Imma quote myself:

Ya, I know! I grew up with Bloodlines and moved over to VK recently, so trust me mang.

short version: Bloodlines Expert is a bit harder than Vampire Killer Expert due to a few alterations in stages 1, 5 and 6, along with a slightly harsher damage scale. If you can ace VK the increase won't be very noticeable - if you can barely survive VK, it'll probably be enough to finish you off.

super hardcore version:

stage 1 - Infinitely spawning turbo bats in the final area of the entryway, and the penultimate dungeon area. Absent in VK.

stage 5 - Evil Pillar gets triple fireballs (double in VK), making him a bit tougher for John if you're low on subweapon ammo.

stage 6 - biggest alteration by far. No health restores in this stage whatsoever (Death gives one in VK), adding additional pressure to ace the opening areas.

LIKE THIS:



The BL damage scale amounts to one less hit allowed, iirc. Either way, unless you're getting biffed all the time, it won't be very significant.

Summary: VK and BL Expert difficulties are nearly identical, level design-wise. BL has a harsher damage scale leaving a bit less room for error.

I have both and consider the marginally harder BL the definitive version, but if you're stuck with VK for whatever reason, don't sweat it; master that and you can ace BL too. It's definitely not a Ninja Ryukenden III vs Ninja Gaiden III scenario, where the difficulty gap is so huge as to create entirely different experiences.

The only variant to flat-out avoid is PAL's The New Generation, which is censored and 50hz, thoroughly torpedoing the game's strong suits of gory metal style and rampantly fast action.

[BrianC]

The only variant to flat-out avoid is PAL's The New Generation, which is censored and 50hz, thoroughly torpedoing the game's strong suits of gory metal style and rampantly fast action.

Despite the title, it doesn't add Picard or the X-Men either.

On a more serious note, PAL also got gypped on Hard Corps with the Probotector version that makes almost everyone a robot, butchers the plot, and doesn't even use a unique sprite for the counterparts of Sheena and Ray.

[Pretas]

I still prefer the US version of Hard Corps with its one-touch deaths. The game is simply far too easy with a lifebar, enough that it feels un-Contra like. The US version is about equal to Shin Contra in challenge.

[BIL]

I go with the US one too, though arguably the JP is the best of both worlds since you can simply ignore the hitpoints when going for no-miss runs. Apart from the HP and cutscene dialogues, the two versions are 100% identical. The JP's level select cheat is handy for perfecting super risky endgame strategies too.

[Warhol]

Was Gradius III ever released for the PAL Snes?

No, it wasn't..

Parodius was !