Ys Book 1 & 2 - GamePro review (and other stuff from old magazines)

[rag-time4]

While checking google for old EGM scans, I came across this review of Ys I & II on imdb.com.

Hahahaha, oh boy!  At least you didn't post my old GameFAQs reviews I wrote in middle school... those were just embarassing to the max!  

Would those be your Ys 1, 2, and 4 (I, II, IV) that are still up there?  :-"

There are a lot of Turbo games that don't have reviews on Gamefaqs. I've been too lazy to do many. I've only done one.

[Joe Redifer]

I've only had a couple reviews actually posted on GameFAQs.  I've written more, but they were never posted.  Even the ones that did go up take awhile to be posted.  Why?

[OldTurboBastard]

This got me thinking about "Team Game Pro" that was put together around this time - you filled out a survey and sent it in and eventually they printed a list on one the pages of GamePro. I was on it - i had dreams oof packages from gamepro coming in the mail full of games that needed to be reviewed....nothing ever happened of course. Does anyone have the issue? If i recall it was a page full of about 100 names.

[Black Tiger]

I love how the SuperGrafx gets good scores even though it only had 3 games and Sushi-X says that developers seem "non commited", but they all trash the SMS for lack of good software and the Gameboy is a "joke" that is soon to be "extinct"

The Turbo CD's $400 price keeps it from boosting the TG-16 scores, but the $400 Turbo Express gets higher scores than the TG-16.

Even the Lynx gets better scores than the SMS. The editors blame the SMS's catalog, but its clear that it never stood a chance in the press.

I'm assuming that the "SFX" would become the Super Famicom. Too bad the Neo Geo can't compete with unreleased consoles. They should've pointed out how poor the Neo Geo holds up to the Playstation 3 as well.

[Keranu]

While checking google for old EGM scans, I came across this review of Ys I & II on imdb.com.

Hahahaha, oh boy!  At least you didn't post my old GameFAQs reviews I wrote in middle school... those were just embarassing to the max!  

Would those be your Ys 1, 2, and 4 (I, II, IV) that are still up there?  :-"

Yep!

[Joe Redifer]

And the Lynx outperforms both the Genesis and TurboGrafx.  This was said most likely because it had hardware scaling.  Other than that, their games pretty much all looked like complete ass.  Blue Lightning was the only one that I enjoyed.  Which would you rather have, a Turbo Express or a Lynx?

[handygrafx]

EGM always made sure their information was 100% accurate at all times.

It's funny you mention that.

Look at the "specs" given for the SuperGrafx system. Maximum resolution 160x146? Maximum colors on screen 128? All this after an article touting the SuperGrafx as NEC's next generation console! The specs they list are inferior to the specs they list for the TurboGrafx! I'm in awe that this misinformation actually made it to publication.

I remember this. even when I read it in 1990, I knew INSTANTLY it was wrong. 

[handygrafx]

IIRC, Video Games & Computer Entertainment had a pretty good review of Ys Book 1 & 2.   can't find it though.


I remember when Ys III was reviewed in another issue of the same magazine, the reviewer said that he only liked about 1/4 of the music selections.

[Joe Redifer]

Here's some more interesting stuff.  First from that same EGM 1991 Buyer's Guide:


I actually had one of those cards!




Ninja Lords, huh?


And from Mega Play, the ALL SEGA ALL THE TIME magazine:



Awesome.

[Black Tiger]

I remember that card, what EGM's propaganda doesn't mention is that the card does list cpu speeds. It just also includes MIPs. From what I remember, that card was the most accurate spec comparison I saw back in the day. Certainly much less misleading than the specs tossed around in mags like EGM.

I've never seen any promotional material from NEC/TTI that compares specs against the SFC. I'm guessing that they're only refering to interviews or just making it up altogether.

[Joe Redifer]

The "Nintendo" comparisons they speak of are comparisons to the NES, not the SFX.

[Black Tiger]

The "Nintendo" comparisons they speak of are comparisons to the NES, not the SFX.

I don't remember ever seeing a MIPs spec for NES anywhere, so that might have something to do with it.

[Cleria]

I have to go way back to the Ys part.

I just hate it when people type it like Y's. Why did that ever start? I don't see an apostrophe anywhere - do you guys?! 

That's like me typing Halo: "Hello".

[Black Tiger]

I have to go way back to the Ys part.

I just hate it when people type it like Y's. Why did that ever start? I don't see an apostrophe anywhere - do you guys?! 

That's like me typing Halo: "Hello".

Many official Y's games spell it that way.

[Joe Redifer]

The Sega Master System version had the apostrophe.  It was also the first version of Ys ever released in the mighty US of A, so that might account for it back in those days in the press.