Topic: JonLeung's Requests

[JonLeung]

zagato blackfist keeps the NES train going with two games I'm surprised haven't been mapped before: Nightshade - Part 1: The Claws Of Sutekh Maps and Star Wars (J).

The first is a point-and-click adventure with action elements and humour.  One of the most unique and notable things about this game is that you don't have "lives" in the traditional sense, but that when you get captured, you are taken to a room (as seen in the "Captured!" map) where you do have a chance to escape so you can continue your adventure.  At least, until you get to the inescapable room, then it's really "game over".

The Namco version of Star Wars is different than the JVC/Beam version.  It features the planet Hoth (seemingly "early") as well as the water planet Iskalon (featured in comics and other books).  This game is infamous for its bosses that initially appear to be Darth Vader, but are supposedly illusions, which explain why they transform into a scorpion, Wampa, shark or pterosaur!

Thanks again for the work that you do, zagato!  It's great to check these two off!

[JonLeung]

Another NES request fulfilled by zagato blackfist is for Conquest Of The Crystal Palace.

Since April 2016 we have had maps of its Japanese version, Matendouji (J), thanks to Lex-05.  But it is one of those games that I believed might have some differences.  I didn't really look into it, though, but it turns out I was right, as zagato noticed himself as he mapped them.  He relayed those interesting changes to me, and I'll let him explain if he wants to here on the forums, but one of the biggest differences that's hard NOT to notice is clear when even just glancing at the maps for Matendouji's Stage-3 and Conquest Of The Crystal Palace's Stage 3.  That Japanese version... yikes!

This game is one that I've always been fascinated about since seeing the ads which show off the box art with the big armoured purple guy busting through the frame. I don't think it was one I got around to renting - it wasn't at the usual stores we rented from, though I did see it once at another place that for whatever reason we wouldn't be able to rent from, because of time or convenience, or maybe it was just rented out.  So I think it was one of the games I got into early on in my emulation journey, back when I was using NESticle.  I got stuck at an undefeatable mini-boss in the last stage, seen here in this longplay video at 33:09 and a couple other times shortly after that.  Try as I might, it just wouldn't be defeated or even fly away, as this video shows he should do.  I think it's like the time I played River City Ransom on an emulator (probably NESticle again), and one boss, Turk, was simply undefeatable.  I don't know these were a bad dumps, or something up with the emulator, maybe an overuse of cheat codes or hacks, that somehow created these indestructable bosses.  Well, I've beaten River City Ransom a few times, I'm sure, even before that and on an actual cartridge, but I should revisit Conquest Of The Crystal Palace one of these days, so my brother can stop mentioning that "invincible green and orange guy" as an inside joke about games I've never finished.

Thanks yet again, zagato!  Keep up the great work!

[JonLeung]

I just noticed today, coincidentally, as I was adding Alley Cat (an MS-DOS game from my childhood) to my request list, that I had Alone In The Dark on there, but I hadn't actually recognized that VGCartography had already mapped it, and its two maps were submitted on August 22 and August 24... in 2022.  As today is August 23, 2024, that was two years ago.  Whoops!

I'm appreciative when people fulfill my requests, so this is a grievous oversight on my part.  So, a long overdue thanks, VGCartography! 

It was recognized as the Maps Of The Month for March 2024, but even so, I should be better about expressing gratitude, especially at the time!

[JonLeung]

Yet another NES request checked off by zagato blackfist, this time for Spy Vs Spy.

This is one my brother and I rented more than once and enjoyed once we understood it.  It's definitely a lot more fun as a two-player game.  Is this game considered niche, or did others play this back in the day too?  There's a Master System version and some sequels on computers that I might want to check out sometime.

Thanks again, zagato!

[John Brain]

JonLeung, you also have Stargate in your SNES requests, but, like with Daze Before Christmas, Genesis version is the same, as you can see by comparing these two maps, so this request is also completed. 

[JonLeung]

JonLeung, you also have Stargate in your SNES requests, but, like with Daze Before Christmas, Genesis version is the same, as you can see by comparing these two maps, so this request is also completed. 

So, the request for Stargate is specifically for the Super NES version, as it is one of the requests for maps of games that appear on covers of Nintendo Power between 1988-1996.  The game appears on the cover of the magazine for April 1995, and obviously wouldn't be the Genesis version.

However, I certainly do appreciate the effort of mapping the Genesis version, and as you mentioned, its maps are practically identical to the Super NES version's.  I would guess there might be some palette differences, but navigationally, they still work more than well enough.

So, thanks, John Brain!  You have contributed a lot of Genesis stuff, and though I am a Nintendo fan, I have frequently stated my desire to see more Sega stuff on here, in some attempt to balance things out, so you should get more praise for the stuff you have contributed!

I will consider that request fulfilled (as the Genesis version) here in this topic (though I think I will still leave that open in the Nintendo Power topic).

[JonLeung]

Today, we got maps from zagato blackfist, this time for the Japanese Famicom game, Majou Densetsu II: Daimashikyou Galious (J).

This is one that is originally a little indulgent, but I think there are more fans than myself.  I haven't ever gotten far in this, part of why I would like these maps.

The indulgence I speak of is that this was just an old memory of mine, and for years I didn't know what this was.  Back in the day, for whatever reason, I think my dad had just travelled somewhere, and he came back with some loose Famicom games as sort of a long-distance borrowing (? ? ?).  There were three games at least (for some reason I think there might have been four), and after maybe a month or two my dad had to return them.  I didn't find out until much later what those games are.

We turned on one game, and was pleasantly surprised to see the tank from Blaster Master, but in a different setting.  As we already owned Blaster Master, my brother and I got excited at the prospect of a sequel!  But a mere two seconds later, it turned out to be the same game!  Turns out it is Chou-Wakusei Senki Meta Fight (J), the original version with a totally different story - no pet frog here! - which explains why the intro and - a rude surprise later - the end part of Area 4 is different.  In that part, you have to grab a small piece of ladder after a blind jump, it's little ridiculous, so it was changed to a series of platforms for Blaster Master.

Another game we got was a definitely-Japanese game with characters that I would later recognize immediately when I saw The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja for the Super NES.  The Famicom game at the time turns out to be Ganbare Goemon 2 (J), which my silly young self referred to as "Yummy 2" because I couldn't read it other than the "2" on the label.  I most definitely remember the robot sumo boss seen here at 6:40.  I realize I didn't actually request it yet, so now it's added to the list. 

So, Majou Densetsu II: Daimashikyou Galious (J), for the longest time I had no idea what it was.  It's not something that was localized or had recognizable characters.  I didn't give it a weird name like "Yummy 2", so I think my brother and I just called it "the castle game" or "the knight game".  In the years since, I might have seen some random screenshots, but only got its name for sure from reading The NES Anthology from Geeks-Line Publishing, which I reviewed here.  It's a challenging dungeon game, and I didn't get far.  If it's dependent on knowing the Japanese language, that might be part of it.  I especially remembering the ladders, and how weird it is that they don't extend one more block higher - as it is, it looks like all ladders are under the platform that you can actually climb up into, or down.  I guess this hides ladders that would go down from the bottom of the screen, if that's intentional or not.

My dad had to return the games at some point, but just the short time I had with them cemented some memories that make Blaster Master, Goemon/Mystical Ninja, and "the knight game" some kind of weird trilogy.

Anyway, that's a lot of ranting that no one else except my brother might find interesting.  But, in any case, thanks for helping to preserve my childhood memories, zagato blackfist!