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[Voliko]

What's with the weird warping effect on a couple rows of pixels? It's like the rows are shifted to the right by a few pixels. Especially apparent on the first boss.

I'm just going full speed now, it makes the game more exciting and you get that juicy 500,000 time bonus. I'm liking TB a lot personally. I like it more than Fantasy Zone and After Burner anyway. I can get to the third level pretty consistently on one credit now but the enemy planes in that level are kind of tricky, they really get up in your face. The fourth level seemed pretty cool with the pipes you have to dodge. Can't wait to get special mode too.

 

[duckroll]

Thunder Blade's Special Mode is so much better than the standard game it's ridiculous

It's just a lot more frantic and shmup feeling (to me at least), the rockets also seem far more useful than the standard ones

Anyone not feeling TB, I strongly recommend brute forcing through levels to unlock it

What's the unlock condition? Just beating the regular arcade mode? I'm not surprised if M2 managed to improve the game substantially, since it just feels so.... iffy in the original form. Lol.

 

[Naked Snake]

I'm liking TB a lot personally. I like it more than Fantasy Zone and After Burner anyway. I can get to the third level pretty consistently on one credit now but the enemy planes in that level are kind of tricky, they really get up in your face. The fourth level seemed pretty cool with the pipes you have to dodge. Can't wait to get special mode too.

I'm with you. I don't get the hate.

What's the unlock condition? Just beating the regular arcade mode?

Yes, similar to all special modes they included in other games. You can even reduce the difficulty to the minimum and increase your lives to the max in the settings to make unlocking it a breeze.

 

[Voliko]

It's pretty nice that you get an extra life at 2 million and then again at 4 million points on the arcade settings, it makes the 1CC even more doable. Definitely more generous than After Burner! And Space Harrier iirc. I got to the last boss so I'm close.

 

[Brian_FETO]

What's the unlock condition? Just beating the regular arcade mode? I'm not surprised if M2 managed to improve the game substantially, since it just feels so.... iffy in the original form. Lol.

Yep, you can even start on stage 4 and complete it from there. It's kinda funny that they said they made it an unlock so that you know the controls before moving onto special mode, when in reality special mode seems a lot more friendly difficulty-wise

Also, just 1CC'd special mode. Obviously grabbing extra lives at the end of each stage meant I had a little leeway on the last couple stages but feeling accomplished nonetheless. Pretty sure this is my first 1CC of anything lol

 

[Voliko]

The last boss in TB is probably the easiest. It's like a Space Harrier boss as opposed to the top down ones. I 1CC'd on arcade settings, don't think I will be playing it anymore. I missed the 500,000 time bonus on stage 3 by a few seconds but whatever. Not too hard, but I had fun. I might get FZII now since I skipped that one.

 

[Zonic]

So uh, will this be the OT for SoR2, Gunstar Heroes, & Sonic 2 come July, or will we make a new one for them considering it's 2 months away? I recall Sega said they're still part of Wave 2.

 

[Khaz]

It's like Wave 2.5

 

[Zonic]

Yeah, that's what I consider the three games. I'd say make a new OT with "Wave 2.5" since they weren't originally planned to be part of the original wave 2.

 

[rjc571]

When's Sonic 2 and Gunstar Heroes coming out in Japan? I already cleared 3D SoR2 and it looks really cool in 3D, but it's not really my type of game and I can't see myself ever coming back to it.

 

[AmyS]

Two side scrolling games we gotta have in Wave 2.5 or 3.

Again, the arcade versions were never properly brought home.

 

[Jo Shishido's Cheeks]

I've only played Shadow Dancer once a very long time ago and it still sticks with me, would love to try it again.

 

[Zonic]

So could we see more 3DS themes based on the games, like with Fantasy Zone & Space Harrier? I wouldn't mind ones on Sonic 2 (or Sonic 1's Green Hill Zone), Gunstar Heroes, & perhaps Outrun.

 

[OmegaFax]

Check your emails folks, I just got a prize notification for the Fantasy Zone contest

Spoiler

I never win anything so this is exciting!

Good to see some Gaffers winning the contest, I happened to win a hoodie too haha.

Can't wait for Fantasy Zone later this week, the 3D sounds great reading the interview.

So that makes, what, 4 members who won a Sega controller hoodie now? Cool to hear more of us are starting to win.

Spoiler

Now I just need to win one of those JSR hoodies...

Actually, the people who won from the 3D After Burner contest SHOULD have their hoodies sent out this week. Last week (on the 25th), I contacted them again to ask if they meant 4 weeks to be sent or 4 weeks is when I should expect it to arrive, & they said "stand by and allow about another week … they are in process."

Make that 5 members who won a Sega controller hoodie. I got an e-mail about two weeks ago and I should be receiving it tomorrow! I'm super excited!

 

[@MUWANdo]

http://archives.sega.jp/3d/gh/

3D Gunstar's out in Japan next week. Includes a "full spec" mode that basically gives you all the attack options at once and lets you switch between them at will.

 

[Zonic]

Like, AALLLL of them, i.e all the different combinations, or just all 4, similar to Gunstar Super Heroes?

Seems you can also choose for sound between Mega Drive & Mega Drive 2. Also between the JP & US versions of the game, but it seems to state the only difference is the text, so....*shrugs*

 

[chemicals]

I think I need this. Thunderblade is soo sweet. Outrun original on 3ds will be amazing if they do it right.

 

[@MUWANdo]

Like, AALLLL of them, i.e all the different combinations, or just all 4, similar to Gunstar Super Heroes?

Seems you can also choose for sound between Mega Drive & Mega Drive 2. Also between the JP & US versions of the game, but it seems to state the only difference is the text, so....*shrugs*

All 14 weapon combinations plus Red/Blue character switching. It doesn't say exactly how it works but the button increase from MD to 3DS will play a role, obviously.

There's also a "Mega Life" setting that doubles your starting HP, as a handicap for beginners.

All the usual MD-specific features are there: JP/international version toggle, button mapping, save state, MD1/2 sound toggle, CRT filter, etc.

 

[rjc571]

http://archives.sega.jp/3d/gh/

3D Gunstar's out in Japan next week. Includes a "full spec" mode that basically gives you all the attack options at once and lets you switch between them at will.

Excellent, right after I sent a message to Sega Japan asking for an update on GH and Sonic 2. Looks like my bitching paid off!

 

[Naked Snake]

I think I need this. Thunderblade is soo sweet. Outrun original on 3ds will be amazing if they do it right.

u wot m8?

It's been out for many months and it's perfect.

 

[sixteen-bit]

u wot m8?

It's been out for many months and it's perfect.

Did it ever come out in Australia? Maybe they can't get it where they live. Region lock epic fail.

 

[rjc571]

There's a 3D trailer for Gunstar Heroes on the JP eShop BTW. Looks fantastic!

 

[mclem]

Did it ever come out in Australia? Maybe they can't get it where they live. Region lock epic fail.

It's out in Europe, and they're generally the same release dates as Australia.

 

[Putosaure]

Gawd, I didn't realized that Thunderblade was out. Man this game is tough ! Especialy the top view segments. Controls are awkward.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Gunstar Heroes next week! (JP)

It's out in Europe, and they're generally the same release dates as Australia.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=163884796&postcount=999
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=164255160&postcount=1037
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=164034082&postcount=1019

 

[mclem]

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=163884796&postcount=999
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=164255160&postcount=1037
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=164034082&postcount=1019

I stand very much corrected.

 

[Snkfanatic]

Gunstar Heroes next week! (JP)

The wait for it in NA is going to hurt....

 

[sixteen-bit]

The wait for it in NA is going to hurt....

I'll be painful, but It's coming in August so at least it won't be a year+ wait like wave 2 was.

 

[Jo Shishido's Cheeks]

I hope this latest batch are the best selling lot so far, which they probably will be, as I still need Comix Zone, Power Drift and Sonic 3 & Knuckles!

 

[Dragoon En Regalia]

Gunstar Heroes got a big reaction JP Twitter feeds, so at least it's likely to sell well over there.

 

[Bar81]

Two side scrolling games we gotta have in Wave 2.5 or 3.

Again, the arcade versions were never properly brought home.

That was Sega doing us all a favor. The genny versions of both are vastly superior to the arcade games. If those never get ported no one's missing anything.

 

[@MUWANdo]

3D Gunstar trailer is on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oR1RcDCRTYY

 

[@MUWANdo]

Two JP interviews for 3D Gunstar, one at Game Watch and one at Famitsu:
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20150624_708466.html
http://www.famitsu.com/news/201506/24081431.html

There's a lot of technical discussion related to the Giga Drive that I won't even attempt to summarise, but here are some tidbits:

-The budget/workload for the final 3 Giga Drive titles has significantly increased compared to the first batch--Bare Knuckle 2 required 250% more work than BK1 and Gunstar is over 300%. The main programmer has been working on it for 14 months.

-The new "full spec" mode was inspired by another Treasure game (Alien Soldier); they also implemented it with the hopes that it might encourage more players to experiment with all the weapons and not just stick to blue+green. (This weapon combo is known as "Shacho Laser", a reference to Treasure CEO Maegawa.)

-The new "mega life" mode was implemented to make the harder difficulty settings more accessible to less skilled players; there are a lot of enemy attacks and patterns that only present themselves in the higher difficulties, so they want players of all levels to be able to witness them.

-The backgrounds were originally drawn by Hiroshi Iuchi who now works at M2, but whenever they asked him for advice or insight on the original graphics he'd usually reply "I don't remember, it was 20 years ago!"

 

[Tizoc]

Two JP interviews for 3D Gunstar, one at Game Watch and one at Famitsu:
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20150624_708466.html
http://www.famitsu.com/news/201506/24081431.html

There's a lot of technical discussion related to the Giga Drive that I won't even attempt to summarise, but here are some tidbits:

-The budget/workload for the final 3 Giga Drive titles has significantly increased compared to the first batch--Bare Knuckle 2 required 250% more work than the original and Gunstar is over 300%. The main programmer has been working on it for 14 months.

-The new "full spec" mode was inspired by another Treasure game (Alien Soldier); they also implemented it with the hopes that it might encourage more players to experiment with all the weapons and not just stick to blue+green. (This weapon combo is known as "Shacho Laser", a reference to Treasure CEO Maegawa.)

-The new "mega life" mode was implemented to make the harder difficulty settings more accessible to less skilled players; there are a lot of enemy attacks and patterns that only present themselves in the higher difficulties, so they want players of all levels to be able to witness them.

-The backgrounds were originally drawn by Hiroshi Iuchi who now works at M2, but whenever they asked him for advice or insight on the original graphics he'd usually reply "I don't remember, it was 20 years ago!"

Thanks for the tidbits!
Iuchi's reply reminds me of 'Upskilling' where you learn new skills but discard old skills or stuff you could do in the past.
Unless I am refering to another term entirely XP

 

[adversesolutions]

Super ready for Gunstar. One of the Treasure games I've actually never had the opportunity to play.

 

[Null Pointer]

Two JP interviews for 3D Gunstar, one at Game Watch and one at Famitsu:
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20150624_708466.html
http://www.famitsu.com/news/201506/24081431.html

There's a lot of technical discussion related to the Giga Drive that I won't even attempt to summarise, but here are some tidbits:

-The budget/workload for the final 3 Giga Drive titles has significantly increased compared to the first batch--Bare Knuckle 2 required 250% more work than BK1 and Gunstar is over 300%. The main programmer has been working on it for 14 months.

-The new "full spec" mode was inspired by another Treasure game (Alien Soldier); they also implemented it with the hopes that it might encourage more players to experiment with all the weapons and not just stick to blue+green. (This weapon combo is known as "Shacho Laser", a reference to Treasure CEO Maegawa.)

-The new "mega life" mode was implemented to make the harder difficulty settings more accessible to less skilled players; there are a lot of enemy attacks and patterns that only present themselves in the higher difficulties, so they want players of all levels to be able to witness them.

-The backgrounds were originally drawn by Hiroshi Iuchi who now works at M2, but whenever they asked him for advice or insight on the original graphics he'd usually reply "I don't remember, it was 20 years ago!"

「3D ザ・スーパー忍II」や「3D ベア・ナックル」が“界王拳”だったらとうとう“超サイヤ人”になれました的な感じですね。

"If 3D Shinobi 3 and 3D Streets of Rage was the programmer learning Kaioken, then this is him finally going Super Saiyan."

I love these interviews so much.

 

[Jo Shishido's Cheeks]

Two JP interviews for 3D Gunstar, one at Game Watch and one at Famitsu:
http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20150624_708466.html
http://www.famitsu.com/news/201506/24081431.html

Thank you for this, very interesting as always!

 

[rjc571]

3D Gunstar Heroes is so cool you guys, easily the best Genesis -> 3DS conversion so far!

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Re: Gunstar Heroes

Blue+green is actually really underpowered on any difficulty higher than easy. Sometimes it's better to just kill the boss quickly rather than worry about dodging all of its stuff.

 

[VandalD]

Re: Gunstar Heroes

Blue+green is actually really underpowered on any difficulty higher than easy. Sometimes it's better to just kill the boss quickly rather than worry about dodging all of its stuff.

Yeah. On expert it's pretty much not an option. It doesn't even kill regular enemies fast enough to not get you smacked around, and on bosses it can target parts that don't even take damage. It's a crutch weapon, for sure. Red+blue is what tends to take me through the game.

Can't wait for GH in August!

Yep! SoR2 and GH are two of my favorite games ever, and it'll be awesome to have them on 3DS.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Can't wait for GH in August!

 

[Zonic]

Heads-up, starting today at 9 a.m. ET/Noon PT, the older 3D Classics (Sonic & Streets of Rage were named) will be on sale! No word on the full list, but nice to see them FINALLY go on sale. I would assume 50% off.

 

[Ingueferroque]

3D Gunstar Heroes is so cool you guys, easily the best Genesis -> 3DS conversion so far!

Oh wow, hyped.

Do we know what comes after GH?

 

[Zonic]

Oh wow, hyped.

Do we know what comes after GH?

July = Streets of Rage 2
August = GUNSTAR HEROES WOOOOO
September = Sonic 2

 

[The Lamonster]

October = Sonic 3 & Knuckles PLEASE

 

[Zonic]

Yes, I'm seriously hoping at this point, Sonic 3 (AND KNUCKLES, PLEASE, DON'T SEPARATE THEM) is being worked on. Hell, considering Sonic 1 is going on sale, I might as well aim for the complete trilogy.

Also, am I the only one that misses the fact you can't do stuff like Debug Mode in the Sonic Genesis games anymore on these newer ports? I loved doing things I wasn't suppose to in S3&K like have Sonic & Tails fight that Knuckles-exclusive boss in Marble Garden Zone.

 

[@MUWANdo]

I think you can still access the image editor in Shinobi 3, can't you?

 

[dreamcastmaster]

Heads-up, starting today at 9 a.m. ET/Noon PT, the older 3D Classics (Sonic & Streets of Rage were named) will be on sale! No word on the full list, but nice to see them FINALLY go on sale. I would assume 50% off.

Great news, I'll fill in the last few titles I passed on.

 

[Zonic]

I wonder if it'll just be the Wave 1 stuff, considering they only mentioned Sonic & SoR.

Sonic & Galaxy Force II are instant buys. Still deciding on Space Harrier & Super Hang-On.

 

[@MUWANdo]

Here's a little-known secret about Super Hang-On:

Spoiler

it has better music than Outrun