Taito’s list of arcade conversions to the Genesis is pretty big, much larger still if one includes those titles left behind in Japan. One such game was the adorable platformer New Zealand Story, which tells the tale of a little kiwi named Tiki who is out to save his girl and friends from an evil Walrus. Featuring adorable visuals and some of the most brutal platforming action of the era, this is one game that lures you in with its cuteness, only to then lash out and cut your throat, kind of like Chucky.
Tag: Japan
Shi Kin Joh
Sometimes, you find a game that seemed to completely escape you, and when you finally play it, it’s great. Sunsoft’s Shi Kin Joh is a perfect example of this. A cool Japanese maze game, it was actually compatible with the short-lived Mega Modem in Japan. Things like this make me that much angrier when I think of all the cool stuff we missed out on.
XDR: X-Dazedly-Ray
The Mega Drive has a ton of shooters that never saw release outside of Japan. Unfortunately, for every gem like Battle Mania 2 there is a dud like XDR: X-Dazedly-Ray. If you ever needed a game to cure insomnia, Unipacc has filled your prescription to the letter. Read our full review for more details, and trust us. It’s more fun than the actual game itself.
Ninja Warriors
Taito released plenty of games for the Genesis, but its Sega CD library wasn’t quite as robust. Some of the games that made it onto the add-on seem to have a “B grade” quality to them, and after playing The Ninja Warriors for the Japanese Mega CD, that assessment might actually be too generous. Granted, the source material isn’t that deep to begin with, but one questions why the CD technology seemed to only be used for redbook audio. What a waste.
Super Tempo
Tempo for the 32X was a wacky platformer that had dancing bugs, yodeling, and even flying cows. Though American gamers also saw a watered-down version released on the Game Gear, they never got a chance to check out the Saturn sequel, Super Tempo. It was only released in Japan, and it currently commands very high prices on sites such as eBay (an expensive Saturn import? NO WAY!). While we can’t go out and buy everone a copy, we can at least show you what you may have missed. We’ve put the game through its paces and can at least offer another glimpse into the world of Tempo and his friends.