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[Krelian]

Congrats! That was fast.

If you make it to level 3 or 5 you get one additional life. The trick is knowing which path to take, and how to best destroy obstacles without taking much damage.

Thanks. Good to know there's an extra life later on. Can you give me some tips for the combat? I can't seem to beat enemies without losing too much life. Don't really understand combos either.

 

[Aquova]

Congrats! That was fast.

Thanks. Good to know there's an extra life later on. Can you give me some tips for the combat? I can't seem to beat enemies without losing too much life. Don't really understand combos either.

My typical move is to just keep attacking enemies. Most of the time they will be able to block the hit, but about 1/3 hits will land. As you attack, if you also hold up or down, you can punch high or kick as part of the combo. After you land a few hits, you'll do a scissor kick, knocking the enemy back.

The best way to kill enemies while not getting hit is to grab them and then knock them away. Grabbing seems really finicky, you have to be pretty much overlapping the enemy while attacking to grab, and I thinking holding the attack button a little longer helps as well. You don't have much time to throw them, as they break out of holds really quickly. If you time it right, you can grab, throw into a wall, and right when they get up grab and throw again.

 

[ChamplooJones]

Short but sweet is the best way to describe Comix Zone imo.

 

[Timu]

I played Comix Zone when it 1st came out in 1995, though I'll play it again and beat it on my own this time(as I didn't beat it the 1st time I played it).

 

[Morfeo]

Congrats Aquova and thanks for the tip! Gonna need it when i continue the game this week.

 

[Krelian]

My typical move is to just keep attacking enemies. Most of the time they will be able to block the hit, but about 1/3 hits will land. As you attack, if you also hold up or down, you can punch high or kick as part of the combo. After you land a few hits, you'll do a scissor kick, knocking the enemy back.

The best way to kill enemies while not getting hit is to grab them and then knock them away. Grabbing seems really finicky, you have to be pretty much overlapping the enemy while attacking to grab, and I thinking holding the attack button a little longer helps as well. You don't have much time to throw them, as they break out of holds really quickly. If you time it right, you can grab, throw into a wall, and right when they get up grab and throw again.

Thank you! That's really helpful. I'll give it a try again soon.

 

[IrishNinja]

damn, finishing Comix Zone that quickly? props!

Memories I still have the bonus CD (sadly, my cardboard case is long gone tho)

what was on the CD?

I didn't find it, but I didn't look extra carefully. I'd love to the scans.

toss me a PM with your email, ill have whatever i got up on my dropbox soon for you!

 

[Shadow Hog]

what was on the CD?

Music.

EDIT: correction, that was the European release. Apparently NA versions of Comix Zone included this totally-unrelated-to-the-game track list instead.

 

[sixteen-bit]

yeah it looks like this:

https://www.discogs.com/Various-American-Recordings-1995-CD-Sampler/release/310169

 

[IrishNinja]

that already looks cooler than killer kuts

 

[davidwhangchoi]

yeah it looks like this:

https://www.discogs.com/Various-American-Recordings-1995-CD-Sampler/release/310169

damn. that's hard to get.
nice that you own it.

 

[sixteen-bit]

It's cool that the PAL release had the arrange soundtrack by the Drossin's band. North America got a separate Sega Tunes release of it, and it came to Japan in Wavemaster's Mega Drive Last Action Heroes compilation which also included Ristar, Virtua Racing and Pulseman.

 

[Mercutio]

So here's something.

I found a Pioneer Laseractive tonight, and an unopened boxed Genesis module.

The owner is a dear friend whose husband passed a few years ago; he had a habit of "rescuing" old electronics and cameras, and she's got a lot of broken equipment to deal with.

Now here's the question: what do we do with this thing? I know that the modules have leaky caps, do the players have them as well? I'm a bit concerned about just selling it on her behalf to a collector without seeing the internal damage, but it's sealed and may be worth more that way? I don't know.

What do you fine folks think?

 

[Laevateinn]

So here's something.

I found a Pioneer Laseractive tonight, and an unopened boxed Genesis module.

The owner is a dear friend whose husband passed a few years ago; he had a habit of "rescuing" old electronics and cameras, and she's got a lot of broken equipment to deal with.

Now here's the question: what do we do with this thing? I know that the modules have leaky caps, do the players have them as well? I'm a bit concerned about just selling it on her behalf to a collector without seeing the internal damage, but it's sealed and may be worth more that way? I don't know.

What do you fine folks think?

Do capacitors fail because the materials decompose or because the capacitors are rated very close to the operating conditions and fail after use? I'm not sure.

Anyway, if it's unopened, the person who buys it will most likely be paying the premium for collector value anyway. If they even intend to use it, they are probably aware of capacitor issues and can't blame you because it's unopened. I would leave it as is.

 

[Mercutio]

Do capacitors fail because the materials decompose or because the capacitors are rated very close to the operating conditions and fail after use? I'm not sure.

Anyway, if it's unopened, the person who buys it will most likely be paying the premium for collector value anyway. If they even intend to use it, they are probably aware of capacitor issues and can't blame you because it's unopened. I would leave it as is.

The capacitors are apparently of similar ilk to those in the Turbo Duo. That is to say, they fail regardless of use. Eventually the contents eat through the cap, spill out onto the board, and eat through that. If it has begun, the thing is scrap inside.

Now looking at it though, I can't tell if it was opened. I think it may have been opened, used, and put back. The tape sealing the drive itself is torn, and re-attached.

 

[Laevateinn]

The capacitors are apparently of similar ilk to those in the Turbo Duo. That is to say, they fail regardless of use. Eventually the contents eat through the cap, spill out onto the board, and eat through that. If it has begun, the thing is scrap inside.

Now looking at it though, I can't tell if it was opened. I think it may have been opened, used, and put back. The tape sealing the drive itself is torn, and re-attached.

If you think it may have been opened and are worried about it then it might be worth taking a look just to make sure.

 

[Mercutio]

If you think it may have been opened and are worried about it then it might be worth taking a look just to make sure.

So yeah, this was definitely used. I don't think Pioneer used kitchen twist ties to package their controller cables! Things do seem to be in good shape, but this isn't new.

Most concerning is that Genesis pack: something that sounds a lot like a capacitor is rattling in there. I don't have the right pentalobe screwdriver to get in right now, so I can't see what's up. I'll have to track one down.

The LD player itself though seems to play CDs no problem. Headphone jack actually sounds quite good.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Is it true the Laseractive only outputs composite video? Seems like a waste.

 

[Mercutio]

Is it true the Laseractive only outputs composite video? Seems like a waste.

LD video only does composite, yeah.

According to Game Sack, the composite is exceptionally clean. You can apparently get RGB out through modification.

There is speculation that the internals are similar to the Genesis II, so I wonder what the sound is like?

 

[Piston Hyundai]

Does anybody know if this upscaler is any good or am I getting what I pay for? I'd be using it mostly for Saturn and Genesis.

 

[BTails]

Does anybody know if this upscaler is any good or am I getting what I pay for? I'd be using it mostly for Saturn and Genesis.

Whereas I can't speak for that specific one, most of the upscalers like the one linked are pretty horrible. A lot of them treat the 240p signal from old consoles as 480i, leading to a lot of blurring/smearing during motion.

Furthermore, looking at that scaler, it looks like you're limited to Composite or S-Video in. The Genesis doesn't output S-Video without modification, and the composite quality on that system is horrible. Saturn would fair a bit better (even on composite), but still, you'd probably not be happy with the results.

 

[Mercutio]

Well, it looks like the Laseractive is mine to keep! Seems as if it is in need of repairs though. I'll put up some pictures in a day or two, but it's a very interesting and very pleasant machine to behold.

 

[IrishNinja]

damn, congrats mercutio! looks like it worked out alright, man

 

[Laevateinn]

Does anybody know if this upscaler is any good or am I getting what I pay for? I'd be using it mostly for Saturn and Genesis.

Whereas I can't speak for that specific one, most of the upscalers like the one linked are pretty horrible. A lot of them treat the 240p signal from old consoles as 480i, leading to a lot of blurring/smearing during motion.

Furthermore, looking at that scaler, it looks like you're limited to Composite or S-Video in. The Genesis doesn't output S-Video without modification, and the composite quality on that system is horrible. Saturn would fair a bit better (even on composite), but still, you'd probably not be happy with the results.

If you're not willing to go all out with a crt or high end upscaler then don't bother with some cheap device. There is no magic bullet. If there was we'd all be talking about it all the time.

 

[ResidentDante]

Does anybody know if this upscaler is any good or am I getting what I pay for? I'd be using it mostly for Saturn and Genesis.

Your TV doesn't have a SCART cable option of any sort? The TV will upscale just the same, t free from a lot of disturbance the the analogue picture of a box like that gives, if not better.

I use a cheap box like this for the other way around though. I wanted HDMi to SCART to play MAME and other emulators on a CRT. The picture actually ended up being not so bad. Though nowhere near a console properly outputting 240p to it.

 

[sixteen-bit]

I tired a CZ run and only made it to stage 2 or 3 (the evaluation meter at the end said 52% or so). I know I've beat the game before, but I really need to knock off this rust.

 

[Mercutio]

Alright, so whatever is rattling around in the Genesis PAC-S10 isn't... Essential to operation? I cleaned the contacts and now I have Sega CD functionality. Discs boot and play without issue now.

It also seems that the cables it came with were not allowing video or audio somehow. I'm not sure if they were corroded or what, but a fresh set of red white and yellow cables did the trick. Composite video out of it is really quite good and better than Svideo on many devices. No flickering or shimmering of any kind.

The play / pause button light also functions as a disc read light when games are active.

Sound is generally quite good but I can't tell what unit it sounds most like. The headphone jack on the front is of excellent quality and my Audio Technica W5000 sound warm and rich with CDs and games. All system audio pipes through it. There's an optical port on the back; I wonder if this thing makes analog music in the Genesis portion, then turns it into 1s and 0s?


What's really interesting is that the PAC itself has a mechanical lock on the cartridge slot when the system power is on. The design of this whole system fascinates me; it's a "price is no object" situation and is probably the nicest piece of home theater gear I have.

 

[Aquova]

Alright, so whatever is rattling around in the Genesis PAC-S10 isn't... Essential to operation? I cleaned the contacts and now I have Sega CD functionality. Discs boot and play without issue now.

It also seems that the cables it came with were not allowing video or audio somehow. I'm not sure if they were corroded or what, but a fresh set of red white and yellow cables did the trick. Composite video out of it is really quite good and better than Svideo on many devices. No flickering or shimmering of any kind.

The play / pause button light also functions as a disc read light when games are active.

Sound is generally quite good but I can't tell what unit it sounds most like. The headphone jack on the front is of excellent quality and my Audio Technica W5000 sound warm and rich with CDs and games. All system audio pipes through it. There's an optical port on the back; I wonder if this thing makes analog music in the Genesis portion, then turns it into 1s and 0s?


What's really interesting is that the PAC itself has a mechanical lock on the cartridge slot when the system power is on. The design of this whole system fascinates me; it's a "price is no object" situation and is probably the nicest piece of home theater gear I have.

It sounds really interesting, you should post pics once you get it fully cleaned up.

 

[Galdelico]

It sounds really interesting, you should post pics once you get it fully cleaned up.

Definitely, you don't really see stuff like that every day, here. Congrats, Mercutio. Wonderful acquisition!

 

[Mercutio]

Definitely, you don't really see stuff like that every day, here. Congrats, Mercutio. Wonderful acquisition!

Photo shoot this weekend! Stay tuned.

 

[Mercutio]

Here it is:

A bit dusty still.

It's huge.

Closer image of the Genesis PAC. I've heard that the PAC can actually play MD cartridges, but not Mega CD games. I hope to confirm this later in the week, after I buy a junky cheap MD game (if they even exist).

The Reset button glows bright orange when the system is on, and sits inside a bumped-out IR sensor. I love the gold trim around it.

Over here we've got the spectacular 1/4" headphone jack, and the mysterious "Digital Memory" button. Its purpose eludes me.

The back panel, made in Japan.

The sum total of the inputs and outputs. I've read that the Optical Output is actually only for the LDs and CDs. I'm curious if when playing something like Sonic CD if the music pipes out, but the Genesis sounds don't. The Headphone jack mixes everything properly of course.

And the back of the Genesis PAC. This is where the bad stuff lives. From this close, I can clearly smell leaking capacitors. Everything I've played on it has functioned properly, but it definitely needs a recap before I use it for extended periods of time.

 

[Laevateinn]

Comix Zone arrived yesterday. I hope I can finish Yakuza 0 before the month is over.

Closer image of the Genesis PAC. I've heard that the PAC can actually play MD cartridges, but not Mega CD games. I hope to confirm this later in the week, after I buy a junky cheap MD game (if they even exist).

That's a beautiful chunk of hardware. Nice get!

Regarding the Mega CD thing. Most Genesis/MD games don't bother having any kind of region locking other than being physically difficult to put into the system. For the CD titles, you need your system to be running the appropriate BIOS. If you have an everdrive, you can get a BIOS from the region your game is from and test it that way but a Mega CD title won't boot otherwise unless your system already has a BIOS that enables it.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Nice pics!

 

[Shin Johnpv]

That thing is super fucking cool. Thanks for the pics! When you recap it I hope you snap some pics then too would love to see the inside of it.

 

[Mercutio]

Comix Zone arrived yesterday. I hope I can finish Yakuza 0 before the month is over.



That's a beautiful chunk of hardware. Nice get!

Regarding the Mega CD thing. Most Genesis/MD games don't bother having any kind of region locking other than being physically difficult to put into the system. For the CD titles, you need your system to be running the appropriate BIOS. If you have an everdrive, you can get a BIOS from the region your game is from and test it that way but a Mega CD title won't boot otherwise unless your system already has a BIOS that enables it.

Huh! So the actual cartridges had physical differences like the SFC / SNES, but also might have an additional hardware / software lockout? How odd. Any particular titles famous for it? I guess I'll have to track down a list.

Shame it isn't like the PC Engine with discs being region free.

 

[davidwhangchoi]

crosspost:

finally got a ghouls n ghosts!

 

[Shaneus]

crosspost:

finally got a ghouls n ghosts!

Nice! It's such a good port. Yuji Naka at his almost best.

Are they typically hard to find? I have one, but I bought it new back when it was still in shops.

 

[Piston Hyundai]

Nice! It's such a good port. Yuji Naka at his almost best.

 

[Shaneus]

Oh damn, I had no idea the collision was so terrible :/

 

[sixteen-bit]

hitboxes more like shitboxes

 

[Voliko]

Wow, that would make me rage

 

[davidwhangchoi]

Nice! It's such a good port. Yuji Naka at his almost best.

Are they typically hard to find? I have one, but I bought it new back when it was still in shops.

thanks! it's easy to find but not at a good price. i think 35 shipped is a steal (i got mine for 38 shipped) but they're normally in the 45-50 range.
unfortunately i don't have a pc engine yet so the hit box will have to do. this is a nice childhood memory, first game that i saw in the arcade and thought wow it looks great on genesis.

i need to start comix zone...

 

[Mercutio]

Oh damn, I had no idea the collision was so terrible :/

Whelp

*Buys a Supergrafx*

 

[Laevateinn]

Huh! So the actual cartridges had physical differences like the SFC / SNES, but also might have an additional hardware / software lockout? How odd. Any particular titles famous for it? I guess I'll have to track down a list.

Shame it isn't like the PC Engine with discs being region free.

Master list of region locked games

Whelp

*Buys a Supergrafx*

Why get a Supergrafx when you can get the X68000 version?

Spoiler

Please don't. I haven't gotten a copy for myself yet!

 

[Morfeo]

Here it is:

A bit dusty still.

It's huge.

Closer image of the Genesis PAC. I've heard that the PAC can actually play MD cartridges, but not Mega CD games. I hope to confirm this later in the week, after I buy a junky cheap MD game (if they even exist).

The Reset button glows bright orange when the system is on, and sits inside a bumped-out IR sensor. I love the gold trim around it.

Over here we've got the spectacular 1/4" headphone jack, and the mysterious "Digital Memory" button. Its purpose eludes me.

The back panel, made in Japan.

The sum total of the inputs and outputs. I've read that the Optical Output is actually only for the LDs and CDs. I'm curious if when playing something like Sonic CD if the music pipes out, but the Genesis sounds don't. The Headphone jack mixes everything properly of course.

And the back of the Genesis PAC. This is where the bad stuff lives. From this close, I can clearly smell leaking capacitors. Everything I've played on it has functioned properly, but it definitely needs a recap before I use it for extended periods of time.

Thanks a lot for these pics Mercutio! Amazing get for you

 

[IrishNinja]

Here it is:

that is a dead-sexy piece of hardware, m'man. congrats, for real!

 

[Shaneus]

For what it's worth, Mercutio, IIRC (from when I had an MCD2) the CD games don't have any copy protection. So if you just want to test, you should be able to find an image to burn... I'm sure I've even seen a way to convert cartridge ROMs to the Sega/Mega CD format.

 

[Galdelico]

That's a huge beast! Great pics dude. ^_-

 

[Mercutio]

BONUS PACKAGING PICTURES THAT NOBODY ASKED FOR BUT EVERYBODY MUST NOW ENJOY


Top of the Genesis PAC:

Short side with Serial #:

Long side:

The short and long sides are identical the same on either side. The bottom of the box is just white.

Why get a Supergrafx when you can get the X68000 version?

Spoiler

Please don't. I haven't gotten a copy for myself yet!

Fairly sure I'm over my quota on "Gigantic rare Japanese Gaming Equipment" at the moment, unfortunately.

 

[Mercutio]

Last images post until I find more stuff. Which could happen, come Monday.

The controller is fairly identical to a regular Genesis 6 button. START is like the Mega Drive Japanese version, which is cool. The button labels are actually fairly essential when you're watching a Laserdisc (which I have now done on this thing).

I actually think the back is more interesting. I don't know if Sega actually made any 6 button controllers in Japan, mine always said "MALAYSIA" or something. It also says "PIONEER" which is cool. I can't imagine it was cheap to get the molds made for whatever kind of limited run this was.