What games should I get?

[thewestexit]

Also, did the 3 in 1 disk come with a back insert, originally? My copy doesn't have one.

No, it did not come with a back insert originally.  A few people have made their own homemade inserts though.

[PhilBiker]

Also, did the 3 in 1 disk come with a back insert, originally? My copy doesn't have one.

No, it did not.  Do a search here for some amusing examples you can print yourself.

[Arjak]

Bump. I found an interesting deal. I found mint copies of both Cosmic Fantasy 2 and Exile. The only problem is, I can only afford one. Which is the better game?

[Arjak]

Sorry for the double post, but it turns out that I do have enough for both. Never mind.

[Keranu]

Bump. I found an interesting deal. I found mint copies of both Cosmic Fantasy 2 and Exile. The only problem is, I can only afford one. Which is the better game?

Depends on your genre preference. Cosmic Fantasy 2 is a fantastic RPG for it's amazing journey, characters, and cinemas but the other aspects of the game, like the graphics and standard RPG gameplay, might turn you off like others. Exile is better if you're more into straight forward games with platform action in it, but the easy challenge and short quest might not be enough for you, despite being a fun game overall. I personally think CF2 is a better game, but like I said it all depends on what you're more into.

[Arjak]

Thanks. I did end up ordering both and it sounds like I should enjoy both. They both sound like fun. Can't wait for them to arrive!

[Keranu]

You're welcome.

Enjoy!

[rag-time4]

Unfortunately, there's a sound bug in Magic Engine that keeps me from enjoying it!

Sounds like it's time to buy a TurboGrafx-16 or a Duo.

I'm definitely with Nat...

Collecting the various bits and pieces that go into the TurboDuo / PC-Engine has been a big part of the fun for me. Right now I'm trying to get my hands on a "Save-kun" backup memory unit made by Koei, since I'm a huge fan of Koei games (many of which are available as Japanese TurboDuo CDs) but the games can't be saved without the backup memory unit.

There is a 128mb backup unit on ebay now, and I read elsewhere that the two backup units are compatible, so I may get the one on ebay until I can find Koei's version. 

[rag-time4]

Can we please stop with the flaming each other? It's driving me crazy!

Listen, we can bitch about games all we want. It's not going to change anything. I, being a veteran gamer, understand that there is a fine line between a tough game and a cheap game. Contra is a prime example, the classic games in the series are known for their pants-shitting difficulty, but it's not because the game threw all kinds of cheap shots at you just to piss you off (except for maybe the bulldozers in the tundra of the first game), it's because the game was well tuned. Heck, they even threw in the Konami code in some of them to let average-skilled gamers play. That's why it's a classic, because it's tough, not because the game was cheating, but because human beings often f*ck up. But if we fight about it, insult each other's gaming skills, and continue to be jerks to other posters, it's just going to make things hard on everyone.

Remember: It's not about the game being the best ever, it's about having fun.

I think I'll try Shape Shifter, if I like it, fine. If I don't, well, It's only thirty dollars.

I didn't mean to start this flame war, but I hope this finishes it.

OK, rant over.

Very well said. Reading this little flame war has made me want to buy shape shifter... I've been debating whether or not to buy it new since I've been buying a lot of import stuff, but now I have to try it and see what the fuss is about.

A couple of CD games I recommend are Fatal Fury 2 and Ys 3.

I enjoyed Ys 3 more than I did 1 + 2 (blasphemy?) Ys 3 has some very retro-feeling music. I get a kick out of playing the music in my car. It's a bit of an easy game, but I really enjoyed it. One knock on the game is that the background scrolling is a bit choppy in some parts. It's not nearly as smooth in the background scrolling department as the SNES version but the music and difficulty level are much more enjoyable (in my opinion)

Fatal Fury 2 is very cheap, even new (should be under 10 bucks) and some of the music is better than the Neo Geo arcade version, in my opinion. If you enjoy this genre of game, this might be the best version of Fatal Fury 2. I'd definitely recommend having a 6-button controller though (or since you are emulating, at least 4 buttons)

[nat]

I enjoyed Ys 3 more than I did 1 + 2 (blasphemy?) Ys 3 has some very retro-feeling music. I get a kick out of playing the music in my car. It's a bit of an easy game, but I really enjoyed it. One knock on the game is that the background scrolling is a bit choppy in some parts. It's not nearly as smooth in the background scrolling department as the SNES version but the music and difficulty level are much more enjoyable (in my opinion)

I posted some comments about this recently. I've personally only gotten into the Ys series this past year since I wasn't a big fan of RPGs when I was younger. I own them all now, but I haven't completed II or IV yet.

Ys III put simply, just f*cking rocks. I had more fun playing through Ys III than I've had with the other three [so far]. I just couldn't put it down until I finished it. I prefer the style and melodies on III over anything I've heard of the others.

And despite a glaring technical flaw (the scrolling in certain portions), the game is still a must-own. And that's just a testament to it's greatness.

[rag-time4]

I enjoyed Ys 3 more than I did 1 + 2 (blasphemy?) Ys 3 has some very retro-feeling music. I get a kick out of playing the music in my car. It's a bit of an easy game, but I really enjoyed it. One knock on the game is that the background scrolling is a bit choppy in some parts. It's not nearly as smooth in the background scrolling department as the SNES version but the music and difficulty level are much more enjoyable (in my opinion)

I posted some comments about this recently. I've personally only gotten into the Ys series this past year since I wasn't a big fan of RPGs when I was younger. I own them all now, but I haven't completed II or IV yet.

Ys III put simply, just f*cking rocks. I had more fun playing through Ys III than I've had with the other three [so far]. I just couldn't put it down until I finished it. I prefer the style and melodies on III over anything I've heard of the others.

And despite a glaring technical flaw (the scrolling in certain portions), the game is still a must-own. And that's just a testament to it's greatness.

Nat, the feeling I got from playing the game wasn't that it was "flawed"...

I really felt like the programmers were trying to get everything they could out of the hardware, but the hardware limitations when the game was made let them down.

I certainly haven't played every game from the era, but as the US version came out in 1991 it's a very old game. Are there other pre-system 3.0 games that have better background scrolling? I only have a handful of pre-3.0 gaems... None of them seem better than Ys3 in terms of parallax scrolling. Anyway, there are only certain parts of the game where it is really noticeable.

I own Ys 1-4 as well, but I haven't really started 4 yet. I've played through the first 3 and Ys 3 was definitely my favorite.

[awack]

I certainly haven't played every game from the era, but as the US version came out in 1991 it's a very old game. Are there other pre-system 3.0 games that have better background scrolling? I only have a handful of pre-3.0 gaems... None of them seem better than Ys3 in terms of parallax scrolling. Anyway, there are only certain parts of the game where it is really noticeable.

Yes there are a few pre-system 3.0 games that use a similar type of scrolling, one of them is shockman 3, the scrolling is very smooth.

[nat]

Nat, the feeling I got from playing the game wasn't that it was "flawed"...

...

I certainly haven't played every game from the era, but as the US version came out in 1991 it's a very old game. Are there other pre-system 3.0 games that have better background scrolling? I only have a handful of pre-3.0 gaems... None of them seem better than Ys3 in terms of parallax scrolling. Anyway, there are only certain parts of the game where it is really noticeable.

I agree on the last point. It's an intermittent problem but a problem nontheless.

However, I would argue it is indeed a flaw. A very big one. If the programmers were unable to create a viable background layer they shouldn't have bothered. However, there is no reason they couldn't have. Nothing I've played in my life approaches the atrocity of [some] of the scrolling in Ys III. As awack pointed out, Shockman 3 is a Sys-2.0 game that has beautiful layers. In practice the first level of Shockman 3 and the first town in Ys III are very similar in the way the layered backgrounds are laid out. The difference is that Shockman works correctly and Ys doesn't. What compounds the issue for me is that the backgrounds in Ys III aren't even all that complex, technically. There were lowly cartridge games released in the late '80s that have better scrolling layers, for heaven's sake!

The game is so good it makes up for all this, but I still can't believe Hudson actually released a game with an issue like that.

[Keranu]

The programmers who made the Turbo versions of Ys seemed to have had problems with parallax since all of the games suffer that choppy scrolling at one point or another. Oddly enough, there is one screen in Ys III that had perfect scrolling as well as a couple screens in Ys IV.

[awack]

If the programmers were unable to create a viable background layer they shouldn't have bothered.

I agree, they were trying to give the graphics a sense of depth but what they ended up with was an eye sore, the same goes for ninja gaiden.