NES/Famicom Appreciation Thread

Anybody remember Rockin' Kats by Atlus? Fun game, you went around with a gun that shot out a hand and you used it to swing Indiana Jones style and punch enemies with it.

Rockin_Kats_cover.jpg
 
Kids of retro generations have grown up and now out of college and with high paying jobs. Modern console manufacturers are pushing digital content. It's driven up the collector's market hugely.
The price rises that are annoying me the most are PC-Engine. Like, why? Ugh.

I'm going to Japan next summer so I'll hopefully be able to stock up without too much pain.
 
Anybody remember Rockin' Kats by Atlus? Fun game, you went around with a gun that shot out a hand and you used it to swing Indiana Jones style and punch enemies with it.

Rockin_Kats_cover.jpg

I remember renting this game a LONG time ago... probably my introduction to Atlus. Never in a million years would I have guessed that 15-20 years later they would become the #1 RPG developer, outshining even a combined Squaresoft/Enix force. Was a fun game from what I remember.
 
Anybody remember Rockin' Kats by Atlus? Fun game, you went around with a gun that shot out a hand and you used it to swing Indiana Jones style and punch enemies with it.

Rockin_Kats_cover.jpg

Yep, one of my favorite NES games, and one of the games that is on the top of my watch for list. I used to own a copy of it, but I traded it a few years back. It doesn't show up in the wild that often though.
 
Kids of retro generations have grown up and now out of college and with high paying jobs. Modern console manufacturers are pushing digital content. It's driven up the collector's market hugely.

Very true. Same has happened with SNES, Neo Geo, Neo Pocket Color.
 
Some of my recent NES pickups:


Due to the prices of a lot of the "good" NES games, I started to get more into homebrews and repros. Now I actually kind of prefer them to official games, haha, but I still look to see if I can find good deals on games I always wanted to try.
 
Some of my recent NES pickups:



Due to the prices of a lot of the "good" NES games, I started to get more into homebrews and repros. Now I actually kind of prefer them to official games, haha, but I still look to see if I can find good deals on games I always wanted to try.
Yes, Journey to Silius is awesome!!!
 
Some of my recent NES pickups:



Due to the prices of a lot of the "good" NES games, I started to get more into homebrews and repros. Now I actually kind of prefer them to official games, haha, but I still look to see if I can find good deals on games I always wanted to try.
Cool. I'd definitely like to get one of those NWC repros. Do they have to be so expensive, though? Seems like they're just playing off the fact that the real thing cost as much as a used car.
 
Picking up on a point last page, I've written up a little thing about Konami Famicom Disk manuals.

How good was Konami box art.

Awesome! I'd love to read what you wrote; do you have a link?

I just found out a friend of mine got me Castlevania FDS for my birthday and it's on its way. YAY!

Definitely want to check out that Indiana Jones dude game and the overhead Blaster Master levels looking one, too.
 
So here are the NES games I played this month and my status on them:

Ninja Gaiden 1-Completed

Ninja Gaiden 2-Completed

TMNT 2 The Arcade Game-On my 2nd try I got up to Krang, then lost my last life and it was game over for me. Game has cheap ass enemies and bosses.

Double Dragon 3-I beaten this game years ago, but I tried it again to see if I can do a no death run and I failed at the no death part so I had to use a continue to beat the game again. I really want to no death this game badly, maybe in the future.

Journey to Silius-Beaten this game years ago, tried it ago to see how well I can do without remembering everything and only got up to Stage 4 before losing all lives and continues. Man how the fuck did I beat this game in 2012? I must had been insane back then, but I'll get it again.

Batman-Got to the end of Stage 3 and got whooped, I'll definitely beat this in the future.

Castlevania 1-Got to the stage 4 boss, died to the stupid Igor that shoots at you and called quits for now. I'm going to say this right now: I was never, ever, into Castlevania until last year so I need to get used to the games. Honestly I don't like the jumping in this game but everything else is fine, kinda difficult in spots but not too bad, I'll beat it though.

The Adventures of Bayou Billy-Shockingly I beaten Stage 4, aka the 1st driving stage, but Stage 5, aka the 2nd driving stage, is hard as hell, came close to the end and messed up, man, it's so unforgiving, you can barely stay on the road, there's a crap ton of poles and other stuff, and no health bar? Lol that's nuts, but if I can beat it then I should beat the game since I like the beat em up and shoot em stages a hell of a lot more than the awful driving stages.

Ghosts N Goblins-I played this years ago but never really liked how it played so back then I didn't get past the 1st stage. A week ago I did past it and got to the 2nd stage, but man, I really don't like playing this game, the controls just kill it for me. Another game that would take me months from now.

Battletoads-A game I play every year and gets better at it so I shockingly made it to Clinger Winger before losing all my lives. Hilariously enough I did better at getting to the end of this game than most of the other games I played.

I may sound like I suck ass, but note that some of these games are the 1st time playing them(in bold) so I'm not going to get them in one try or a few, not to mention I have a backlog of current games too that I play more. Having that said I can't wait to do playthroughs on them for youtube.
 
Nah, you're doing great! Ninja Gaiden is no fucking joke. Bayou Billy is hard because it kind of sucks, lol. Ghosts 'n Goblins is a terrible Micronics port that is miserable to play.

Why did I get into Fami stuff so late =[ Now I want Akumajou Densetsu, Contra, and Boku Dracula-kun but they seem to show up scarcely and their CIB prices are ridic.
 
The Adventures of Bayou Billy-Shockingly I beaten Stage 4, aka the 1st driving stage, but Stage 5, aka the 2nd driving stage, is hard as hell, came close to the end and messed up, man, it's so unforgiving, you can barely stay on the road, there's a crap ton of poles and other stuff, and no health bar? Lol that's nuts, but if I can beat it then I should beat the game since I like the beat em up and shoot em stages a hell of a lot more than the awful driving stages.

Terrible beat 'em up levels. The driving and shooting levels are okay. I give anyone credit to get far in that one.

Better beat 'em ups on the NES: Double Dragon trilogy (natch), River City Ransome, Batman Returns, and Mighty Final Fight. Hell, even Toxic Crusaders is better. It's really not a bad game despite it's reputation. And if they count there's Kung Fu and Spartan X but their status as beat 'em ups is a little questionable.
 
Awesome! I'd love to read what you wrote; do you have a link?

I just found out a friend of mine got me Castlevania FDS for my birthday and it's on its way. YAY!

Definitely want to check out that Indiana Jones dude game and the overhead Blaster Master levels looking one, too.
Here and also here for my post about Famicom Konami collector cards:


Also that Indiana Jones dude game is Armana no Kiseki and is my single favourite 8-bit game.

Let us take this time to look back and reflect on how good all of Konami was once upon a time. :c
They were once the greatest. Up there will Nintendo and Sega. Now only one of the three remain great :(
 
Terrible beat 'em up levels. The driving and shooting levels are okay. I give anyone credit to get far in that one.

Better beat 'em ups on the NES: Double Dragon trilogy (natch), River City Ransome, Batman Returns, and Mighty Final Fight. Hell, even Toxic Crusaders is better. It's really not a bad game despite it's reputation. And if they count there's Kung Fu and Spartan X but their status as beat 'em ups is a little questionable.

The Japanese version has a more reasonable difficulty. It's much better due to this.
 
The gameplay is still crap for the beat 'em up levels though.

Yeah. The enemy's hit stun should last longer than the delay between your attacks (AKA a fucking combo) in any decent beat-'em-up. When it doesn't it causes Bayou Billy syndrome and forces you to either jump kick all the time or stick out attacks that stay longer, like his kick, above or below an ememy and let them walk into the active frames, then scoot up or down and repeat again.

See also: SMS Double Dragon, which is trash.
 
Anybody remember Rockin' Kats by Atlus? Fun game, you went around with a gun that shot out a hand and you used it to swing Indiana Jones style and punch enemies with it.

Rockin_Kats_cover.jpg

I remember seeing that in Nintendo Power. I never played it, but always oo. I never saw in my rental places sadly.

ATLUS also did a lot of the LJN fare--Friday the 13th and Karate Kid.
 
Played TMNT 3 The Manhattan Project for the 1st time today, on 2nd attempt I got to the Final Boss Super Shredder and died...wow, these TMNT games on NES are no joke in difficulty.
 
Question for the image quality obsessives: How well does the NES work via composite and a good upscaler on modern TVs?

My retro systems and CRT are boxed up iny basement because I've had to give over my extra space in the house for a retro setup to my kids' nursery/bedroom. I've been operating under the assumption over the last couple of years that if I just buy an xrgb-3 or Framemeister, I can simply hook up my NES via composite and SNES via s-video and viola -- playable and pretty accurate retro systems on my plasma TV. I hope to that this year. Do I have to get an RGB modded NES to make the games playable? I know that would improve the IQ but is it really necessary?
 
Question for the image quality obsessives: How well does the NES work via composite and a good upscaler on modern TVs?

My retro systems and CRT are boxed up iny basement because I've had to give over my extra space in the house for a retro setup to my kids' nursery/bedroom. I've been operating under the assumption over the last couple of years that if I just buy an xrgb-3 or Framemeister, I can simply hook up my NES via composite and SNES via s-video and viola -- playable and pretty accurate retro systems on my plasma TV. I hope to that this year. Do I have to get an RGB modded NES to make the games playable? I know that would improve the IQ but is it really necessary?

Framemeister slightly helps with composite, but it's REALLY not worth the expense to grab an upscaler unless you do RGB. Pumping composite through an XRGB mini is like buying a Ferrari and filling it with lighter fluid instead of gasoline.

It's an improvement, but not even close to a $300 improvement. Plus, why would you not just buy an RGB cable for SNES? Don't use s-video when there is a better option out there without needing to mod your system. Most SNES systems are natively RGB-capable.

TL,DR: Yes, it's necessary. Composite to RGB really is like night and day as far as quality is concerned.
 
http://www.oldskoolkonsoles.com/index.php

This guy claims to have stock of the boards and the necessary skills. I have no idea if his work is any good or not, I just found the site on google. The site seems to say the right things though. He doesn't offer the sound mod but if and when I order an RGB mod from him I may mention it because I guess if he can do this he can do that.

In case any UK people were interested, I emailed the guy and he said to send the console over when it arrives from the states, he'll fix up the 72 pin, snip the NES 10, RGB mod it with Tim's board and sound mod it as well for £135. Which I thought wasn't too bad considering the RGB board is like ~ £80. He seemed like a nice guy.

So I'm going to do it and then get the framemeister.

Now I need someone in the UK who does custom paint jobs...
 
Framemeister slightly helps with composite, but it's REALLY not worth the expense to grab an upscaler unless you do RGB. Pumping composite through an XRGB mini is like buying a Ferrari and filling it with lighter fluid instead of gasoline.

It's an improvement, but not even close to a $300 improvement. Plus, why would you not just buy an RGB cable for SNES? Don't use s-video when there is a better option out there without needing to mod your system. Most SNES systems are natively RGB-capable.

TL,DR: Yes, it's necessary. Composite to RGB really is like night and day as far as quality is concerned.

Thank, Peltz. I guess I didn't realize I could get RGB from a SNES with a cable alone. That's good to know.

Seems I'm fucked with the NES, though. I'd rather go for a solution that benefits a wider array of hardware (xrgb) and works with my modern TV. I just don't think I can afford both the scaler and an expensive RGB mod for the one console. Thing is, I enjoy collecting for NES the most and have nearly a 100 games for it. All useless right now. I might have to find a way to hook up the CRT in my cold, unfinished and uncomfortable basement. Ugh.
 
I actually just replaced the 72 pin connector in my boyfriends system. He got it from an old college roommate that gave it to him (i believe because it was "broken" then). It was ashame to have an NES sitting there...asking to be played again. I grew up playing this and the SNES.

SMB, SMB 2 & 3 just doesn't feel right on any other system ^_^
 
Thank, Peltz. I guess I didn't realize I could get RGB from a SNES with a cable alone. That's good to know.

Seems I'm fucked with the NES, though. I'd rather go for a solution that benefits a wider array of hardware (xrgb) and works with my modern TV. I just don't think I can afford both the scaler and an expensive RGB mod for the one console. Thing is, I enjoy collecting for NES the most and have nearly a 100 games for it. All useless right now. I might have to find a way to hook up the CRT in my cold, unfinished and uncomfortable basement. Ugh.

Have you considered the mod + RGB monitor instead of the upscaler? It'll be cheaper and better quality. Sony PVMs are really popular among retro-GAF. Many of us have found them for very cheap prices on craigslist.... like well under $100 for a quality set.
 
I'm with Radar.

Using a CRT is obviously the best way but CRTs are massive and ugly as all hell and even if my Wife would be ok with having one in the living room and I don't think I would be. I considered putting one in my office but my office is for working. I don't want distractions in there and I don't want to go in there in evening if I can avoid it.

So instead I'm constructing a NES that costs more than a PS4 and as much as a half-decent modern PC. LOL.
 
Have you considered the mod + RGB monitor instead of the upscaler? It'll be cheaper and better quality. Sony PVMs are really popular among retro-GAF. Many of us have found them for very cheap prices on craigslist.... like well under $100 for a quality set.

I have. Again, it's just having the space in my house for the setup. It's either the dreary basement (our house is 90 years old) or use my plasma in some way. There's no way I can squeeze a CRT of any kind upstairs right now.

just buy both the mod and the scaler and worry about it later :)

That's where I might be headed. I'm considering selling my 360 to do it. I use my PS3 for all my 7th gen console needs anyway. I can always re-download my XBLA games (my fave stuff on 360) at a later time if I buy another 360 in the future.
 
Question for the image quality obsessives: How well does the NES work via composite and a good upscaler on modern TVs?

My retro systems and CRT are boxed up iny basement because I've had to give over my extra space in the house for a retro setup to my kids' nursery/bedroom. I've been operating under the assumption over the last couple of years that if I just buy an xrgb-3 or Framemeister, I can simply hook up my NES via composite and SNES via s-video and viola -- playable and pretty accurate retro systems on my plasma TV. I hope to that this year. Do I have to get an RGB modded NES to make the games playable? I know that would improve the IQ but is it really necessary?
Composite through the framemeister is pretty shit. In my experience, the NES output was kind of shaky. It works but I'd rather play composite on any CRT than through the upscaler.
 
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