The Panzer Dragoon Remake: Flying Blind Through Familiar Skies

I’ve always been sympathetic to, and even charmed by Sega’s mid-‘90s transitional struggles. For a time, the company was caught perpetually off guard as the industry conventions it had relied on (and indeed, helped define) crumbled amidst a swift generational shift. Sega adapted, more or less. It eventually forged its own creative renaissance that continues to endear the company to many of us today, even if it was ultimately a victim of that sea change.

In my mind, no game exemplified that precarious phase more than the original Panzer Dragoon. As something of a killer app in the Sega Saturn’s early days, the original title stands as a cult classic, particularly by association with its offspring. Fans maintain an enduring fondness for the original Panzer Dragoon, of course, but it remains even better known for kicking off a remarkable and criminally underappreciated gaming franchise.

For its part, the original Panzer Dragoon was a timid first step in a bold new direction. It navigated a generational chasm between a familiar arcade-action framework and the unbound possibilities of 3D gaming. Between them, Panzer Dragoon took a contorted middle path. It utilized the third dimension to great artistic and mechanical effect, hoisting players atop a majestic dragon and immersing them in a 360˚ perspective as they locked lasers with fantastical beasts in a mysterious, post-apocalyptic setting. Those concepts contributed to a distinct vision and tone that felt entirely new. However, several of the game's structural aspects – like its rigidly linear pathways, finite life/continue counts, and lack of upgrades or progression systems – did not.

The game is about dragons, after all, so in those terms the original Panzer Dragoon was like a young fledgling: confined to well-trodden ground despite its loftier ambitions for flight. With later installments, the series would grow its wings, evolve with more modern conventions, and soar with a swagger to match its ambition.

But now, 25 years later, developer MegaPixel Studio and publisher Forever Entertainment return us to that young fledgling via the Nintendo Switch (for now, with PC and other platforms eventually).

At face value, the Panzer Dragoon remake basically does what it promises. It lets me hop back into the dragon’s saddle and guides me through the linear pathways and familiar locales from the original game. Homing lasers in tow, I again blast the waves of monsters surrounding me. The remake largely succeeds in replicating the basic structure of Panzer Dragoon, no doubt, but it overlooks many of the things which defined its novel vision in the first place. At no point does the Panzer Dragoon remake ever make a compelling case for why it really needed to exist.

Saturn Quake Takes: Killing Them Slowly

I don’t need to tell you that Quake rocks. Father K already covered that a while back, offering praise for it and the other iconic first person shooters Lobotomy Software famously ported to Sega’s mid-90s underdog console.

It’s also no secret that Quake’s presence on the Saturn was practically a miracle in the first place. Digital Foundry’s John Linneman has even gone as far as to dub it the “Impossible Port.” The Saturn was notoriously a pain in the ass to develop for – particularly for devs hoping to utilize the third dimension – and yet it still runs Quake somehow. Granted, plenty of concessions were needed to make that happen. Compared to the PC original, the Saturn Quake sports choppier frame rates, reduced responsiveness, and less precise movement and aiming sans mouse and keyboard. But despite its limitations, it remains infinitely more impressive than the PlayStation port of Quake…which doesn’t exist.

Tech stuff aside, I’m more interested in delving into some interesting ways Saturn Quake managed to differentiate its player experience from the classic PC original. As a likely result of the technological and design compromises Lobotomy made to get Quake to function on Saturn hardware, I quickly noticed the Saturn version forces me to approach its gameplay in some fundamentally new and unexpected ways.

Sonic R: Sonic Ace or Sonic Arse?

Something wonderful has happened within our little gaming community. Something unexpected, that has given me the most pleasure out of my whole Saturn experiences to date - the phenomenon of the "game of the moment". It starts with someone in the community extolling the merits of a particular game... it jogs the memory of some, tickles the fancy of others and invites the curiosity (or indifference) of the rest. So far, the games which seem to have captured the imagination and interest of our little community are the following: Sega Rally, Daytona USA, Christmas NiGHTS, Virtua Racing, Sega Touring Car, Burning Rangers and most recently, Sonic R. The buzz around certain games are often, but not always, influenced by the Saturn Junkyard's regular and partially successful Facebook challenges and by the wonderful tutorial videos produced by Sega Saturn Shiro's David Lee!!

There has been little debate as to whether the other games are "classics" or not. They've almost universally been applauded as great examples of their genres. But there is dissent in the air... the disgruntled and disenfranchised are making their voices heard. "Everybody's supersonic racing"? Most definitely not.

 So why is this game so divisive? Let's take a little look...

SJY Let's Play: Virtua Schlub "Races" and Rambles Through Sonic R

In this episode, Virtua Schlub takes a leisurely stroll through the lush islands and dangerously radioactive cities of Sonic R. Join him as he "races" through the game all while discussing its design, features, mechanics, environments, soundtrack, innovations, critiques, divisiveness, and generally pondering its greater place within the Sega Saturn's legacy. Hope you enjoy delightfully cheesy vocal dance pop because we got all of it!

And while we're at it, here's Virtua Schlub's follow-up speed "run" of the Resort Island level with Super Sonic!

Die Hard Arcade VS. Dynamite Cop: A Sega Brawler Grudge Match!

Now playing on the Saturn Junkyard YouTube channel:

Join Virtua Schlub in this hard-hitting Grudge Match episode starring Sega's OTHER iconic beat 'em up games, Die Hard Arcade and Dynamite Cop (a.k.a. Dynamite Deka 1 & 2 in Japan). In this episode, these classic 3D brawlers face off in an action-packed showdown with all of the sumo pirates, killer robots, and frozen tuna beat-downs you can handle!

Episode 7 - Burning For Burning Rangers

In this week's episode we go full blown book club, or game club if you will. With all the hubbub over Sonic Team's classic over at the Yard, Brian figured it suiting for us to dissect and discuss what made and continues to make this game so great. Tune in and hear what all the fuss is about yourself!

Contributors: 

The SSG - Samuel 

The VirtuaSchlub - Brian 

Father K - Simon 

NebachadnezzaR - Nuno;

Junkyard Let's Play - Panzer Dragoon II Zwei

If you missed the livestream on FB yesterday, join The Southern Sega Gentleman and The Virtua Schlub as they fight through the Empire's Hordes, in the Saturn Masterpiece, Panzer Dragoon Zwei. Special guest Dave and Pat from the Sega Saturn, Shiro! Podcast join in on the action. 

Sunday Let's Play's are streamed ever Sunday at 3pm Central US time / 9pm UK time. Like and follow the official Saturn Junkyard FB page to keep up to date.  

Import Friendly? - Burning Rangers

In this inaugural episode we kick of our new series, Import Friendly?, with the Japanese release of Burning Rangers. The SSG takes a look at just how pick up and playable the Japanese release is for Western speakers, and whether the cost savings are worth it.

Pebble Beach Golf Links - Golf Heaven Or Golf Hell?

As I set the weekly Saturn game challenge last Sunday over at the Saturn Junkyard Facebook page, I was feeling upbeat and positive. I was happy to be finally setting a challenge around a golf game... So many of our weekly challenges had been around driving games, that I felt a golf game would be providing those gamers who liked their sports at a gentler pace, something to get their (false) teeth into. And wasn't I the guy who had waxed lyrical about how playing Sega golf games had brought me to the point of purchasing a Saturn? Yes, this was going to be great!

Virtua Schlub: "The Holy Grail..."

The game had entered my head when the Yard's very own Virtua Schlub (Mr. Brian Vines) had posted a selfie of him holding the titular game with the esteemed caption: "The Holy Grail".

'Pebble Beach  Golf Links' was the Sega Sports title built around moustachioed golf-tubster Craig Stadler. The picture had encouraged fond reminiscence about the game, mostly centred around the inclusion and utterings of Craig himself, affectionately monikered "Old walrus chops".

Welcome to the Afterburner Afterparty: A Sky Target Review

"I feel the need...the need for speed!"

Another review video has landed on the SJY YouTube channel. This one is for Sky Target, the Sega Saturn reincarnate of Afterburner's classic arcade, fighter jet shooter formula. Can it stay in formation or will it choke on vapor trails? Watch and find out!

SJY on YouTube: Zap! Snowboarding Trix '98 Review

Join us for this in-depth video review as we hit the virtual slopes to see whether Zap! Snowboarding Trix! '98 can shred with the best for Sega Saturn snowboard superiority!

This is a follow up to our previous Grudge Match video, which pitted Steep Slope Sliders against the original Zap! in a battle for king of the Saturn's snowboard mountain!

SJY on YouTube: Grudge Match for Sega Saturn Snowboard Supremacy!

For this video, we thought it'd be fun to see what happens when we pit two Saturn snowboarding titles against each other in a one-on-one battle for snowboard superiority. Which will reign as the king of the Saturn slopes? Let's shred the virtual gnar and find out!

Note: I'm very new at this whole video-making thing (I've never made one before this) so forgive the slow, awkward pacing and tangential meandering. I'll be tightening that stuff up in future videos but in the meantime, I also welcome any other feedback you may have.

Cheers!

Saturn Junkyard's TOP 5 - Nuno Edition

Time for something a lil' bit different. Everyone has watched countless top 5's and 10's (or 100's if you're feeling brave) of games for any specific system, citing the same old classics that we all know and love. Lord knows I like Virtua Fighter 2 and Sega Rally as much as the next guy, but sometimes you're craving something a little different. There are many great games on the Saturn, and they don't have to be flawless or all-time classics to leave an impression on us. Sometimes the games that are simply "good" or even "average" for other gamers, are deeply cherished titles for us.

Maybe they were the first games of that genre that we've tried, and showed us a whole new world of possibilities. Or they were a gift from a very special person. Or we were simply stuck with them, and only them, for long periods of time and were left with some kind of gaming Stockholm's Syndrome, our brains furiously trying to convince us they were actually good and not some big pile of trash.

No matter the reason, some games are special to us, even if they're mostly unknown to everybody else, or even considered bad games. Like a baby, we love them no matter what.

Here are mine:

Christmas On Saturn...

This post is not going to be a classic epistle, it's more of a cathartic exercise. I need to get something out of my system... I've been bitten, infected if you like. I've got the bug... its a Christmas based bug, it's a Saturn based bug. It's the game that the Facebook group (The Saturn Junkies) know very well is my current love, my 'jeu du jours', my consuming obsession, my Christmas NiGHTS.

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Lost Games - Armed

We’ve all heard of games being cancelled. It usually happens midway through development when the publisher cuts the funds or forces the developers to work on another project. At the end of the Saturn’s lifecycle it also became alarmingly common to pull the plug on games that were all but finished, usually multiplatform games where the Playstation version went out as usual while the Saturn one got dropped in the bin. Frustrating as that was, at least you could still play the game, albeit on another platform, so all was not lost.

And then there were games that simply died on the final stretch and never saw the light of day, period. Armed (alternatively known as Aftermath) was one of those games. Until now.

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Ys - Falcom Classics Review

We're doing reviews on video now.

Feels gangsta being so hi-tech and all.

Anyway! It's our first foray into this uncharted territory, so feedback would be much appreciated.

Speaking of the game, Falcom Classics is a compilation disc released in 1997 exclusively in Japan, featuring reworked versions of three of their classic games: Dragon Slayer, Xanadu and, of course, Ys. I'm talking specifically about this game only because, not being fluent in nihongo [although I did once memorise the entire hiragana syllabary, which can come in handy when confronted with simple choices like はい (yes) and いいえ (no) - and little else], the best I can do is replay a game that I've played so many times already, in so many different systems, by now I could do it blindfolded. Almost. Tried my hand at Dragon Slayer and...yeah, I couldn't get very far.

I touched upon the most important aspects of this port in the video, from the basics of the gameplay, to the beautifully arranged soundtrack, to the graphics and various gameplay enhancements, so there's not really much more to say.

The story is cool, if a bit incomplete since it only comes to a conclusion in the sequel.

Just go watch it!

And play the game, it's really, really good!

Expect more reviews from the team soon ™.

SWWS 98: The Greatest Football Game Of All Time?

First of all, we'll acknowledge the elephant in the room... the very mention of the word "football" is going to be contentious from the start. The official title is "Sega World Wide Soccer", although the commentator, the venerable Gary Bloom, welcomes us to what he hopes... "will be an exciting game of football." So that's the word I'm going to use predominantly in this article... "football". The word used to describe the game in Europe, Africa, The Middle East, Asia and South America...
Apologies to our US cousins, for whom 'football' is an excuse to dress up in crash helmet, a fancy spandex suit and enough padding to protect a kindergarten full of kids, from an oncoming freight train... in order to play a jolly good game of rugby! 😉

''Sega World Wide Soccer '98" is the follow up to the most excellent "Sega World Wide Soccer '97"... A re-skin of the "J-League" inspired football game "International Victory Goal".  The game is widely celebrated for it's instant playability and free-flowing game play. There is little to distinguish between the '98 and '97 editions in terms of game mechanics, physics or engine. The major difference between the original and it's updated counterpart, being in the ability to play as the English Premiere League teams of the time*, as well as a good variety of international squads, more of which later. The only other major difference is the addition to the 'commentary team' of ex-Ireland manager and England player, Jack Charlton, more of that later too!
* The game also allows you to play as teams from the French and Spanish top tier too.

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Fighting Your Way Through Halloween: Darkstalkers 3 - The Characters... (Part 2)

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So, it's time for part two of our introduction to the weird and wonderful 'Halloween-friendly' characters of Capcom's insanely good 2D fighter, Dark Stalkers 3. We've already met our seasonal archetypes-- a mummy, a werewolf, a vampire, a Frankenstein-type monster, a machine gun toting fairy tale character, two confusingly saucy 'succubus' demons and a... *cough* ...haunted suit of Samurai armour...

Now it's time to meet the rest of the roster of  'Vampire Savior: The Lord Of Vampire' for the Sega Saturn!

Sasquatch: is of course the mysterious ape-man of the North American continent. Also known as Big Foot (the same name as his tribe). Sasquatch is an original creature to have in a horror-based fighting game, but unfortunately his race are depicted as something of  a bunch of stupid behemoths, daft enough to be lured to their doom by the offer of lots of bananas! A shame, as I can't think of him showing up in many other video games, and as everyone knows, Sasquatch are intelligent, even noble creatures, which is why they've never been caught by the razor sharp minds and keen cryptozoological instincts of the Finding Bigfoot team on Animal Planet.

Sasquatch's most notable ability is being able to turn water to ice by passing it through his body! Having huge feet (all the better to stomp you with) can also be quite beneficial when facing other creatures of the night...

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Fighting Your Way Through Halloween: Darkstalkers 3 - The Characters... (Part1)

As anyone who has read my last few posts can tell, I'm a huge fan of Halloween, and a recent convert to the genre of 2D fighting games, played of course, on the Sega Saturn. So when I realised there was a game that combined two of my passions, I thought it would be rude not to give it a feature post here at the Saturn Junkyard!
One of the best 2D fighters I've played, 'Darkstalkers 3' (or 'Vampire Savior: The Lord Of Vampire' as it was known in Japan) arrived through my door, some time in the first decade of this millennium, courtesy of one of the previous collaborators here on the 'Yard. It was sent with love, as a beautiful gift, with a burned copy of Radiant Silvergun tucked away inside. I'm ashamed to say I can't remember who was kind enough to send it to me. What I do know however, is that it remained unplayed in my Saturn collection for many years, due to the fact that my import playing Action Replay, did not facilitate the 4MB of RAM necessary for the game to work properly!

Fast forward to 2017; a new Action Replay arrives from Play Asia and all of a sudden, the game that had remained out of my reach for so long, suddenly arrived within it! I was hugely impressed from the moment I fired up the game.... I've already explained in a previous post, why I'm so enamoured with 2D fighters at the moment, so rather than explain all that again, I'll cut straight to the chase. As well as the quirky game play, and fantastic special moves, it's the combatants within this particular game that imbue it with it's eccentric charm and Halloween relevance.

What makes Darkstalkers 3 so fantastic, is it's insane roster of characters, inspired by classic horror archetypes as featured in the popular Japanese anime. As well as those monsters and 'creatures of the night' one might expect to find in your average Hammer Horror film, the game boasts some surprises. They're such a fabulous collection of Halloween-style freaks, creeps and misfits, that I've decided to shine the spotlight on each and every one of them during this article. I want to share their images and backstories, with those of you waiting to add this game to your collection, in order to whet your appetite. So lets jump straight in with the the first one! I've used capcom.wikia.com as my primary source, so props to them!

Anakaris: is a huge mummy, a twelfth dynasty pharaoh who bears more than a passing resemblance to Tutankhamen. A slow and lumbering character, (the slowest in the game, in terms of mobility), Anakaris does have some compensatory abilities. Those abilities include the fact that he can float and hover temporarily in the air, teleport (like Dahlsim in Streetfighter) and drop a huge casket on top of his foes, amongst other things!

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2D Fighter Kicks 3D Fighter's Ass!

One of the biggest revelations from my current revision of the Sega Saturn, is the brilliance of 2D fighting games. A genre which failed to excite me when the console was current, 2D fighters seemed cheesy, over the top, brash, outdated, cartoonish and comical. This was in comparison to what I perceived then, as 'realistic' 3D fighters, which I could not get enough of. For me, the characters of the Virtua Fighter series were far more interesting and strangely enough, believable (as if realism was an important factor in gaming!)  The ability to take on the persona and moves of a mysterious, yet understated combatant like Kage from Virtua Fighter--a character akin to the ninjas and martial arts masters I had admired in the kung fu movies of my youth--was loads more appealing than martialling the impossible theatrics of  Ryu, or the limb stretching slap-happiness of Dahlsim!

Now time has done a sneaky switcheroo on us, and the cartoon-like graphics of the 2D fighter have weathered the passage of the decades far more effectively than their 3D counterparts. Whilst the pointy and angular graphics of the Saturn's later software, --for example Sarah Bryant or Lion in 'Virtua Fighter 2'-- look undeniably dated by today's standards, the 'side on' two dimensional perspective of the  2D fighter-- for example 'Street Fighter Alpha'-- has emerged as more of a 'classic' look than an antiquated one. Whilst I'm talking about this genre, my only experience of these titles on the Saturn are those produced by Capcom. I'm hugely looking forward to exploring the SNK releases that so many Saturn fans hold dear, but I cannot speak about them from a position of knowledge at this time...

There are other factors at work in making the 2D fighter, particularly those from the Capcom stable so relevant in 2017-- and one of those factors is the longevity of Street Fighter as an IP. Whilst the 'Virtua Fighter' characters are fast becoming a faded memory in the mainstream gaming market, the assembled characters from Capcom's 2D biggest franchise, 'Street Fighter' still command big budget releases. They have a commercial relevance and familiarity today, that Akira Yuki, Lau Chan and Wolf Hawkfield cannot claim, however much we want them to. We've seen Ryu and Ken in recently successful iterations of Street Fighter, such as Street Fighter 4 and Street Fighter 5. It's interesting to note that character models and the overall format of the games, were not altered much at all for the '2.5D' reboot, however... proof of the old adage "If it ain't broke, don't fix it.".  Capcom themselves knew that the 2D fighter was not a genre that needed much upgrading.

The updating of the Marvel vs. Capcom franchise, and it's subsequent commercial success, plus the critical acclaim of the Wii's "Tatsunuko vs. Capcom" is also proof of the enduring love for the 2D fighter.

Talking of character mash-ups, Capcom's willingness to bring the characters from anime, comics and even rival software publishers for their 2D fighting releases mean that we have some monumental titles, full of charm and individuality. The range of 2 D fighters available for the Saturn vastly outnumbers that of 3D fighters. The flirtation with Marvel has been a very lucrative one, both critically and commercially, as the original titles that they produced with the company proved to be big sellers. Stand alone 'Marvel' games such as 'Marvel Superheroes' and 'X Men Children Of The Atom' brought superheroes and super-humans into the arena. Who wouldn't want to fight as Hulk, Spider-Man or Wolverine?  A stroke of genius to then pit them against the cast of Street Fighter! We're all prone to those "I wonder who'd win in a fight between..." questions. Here was a chance to find out! An unforeseen factor has been how much the Marvel brand has exploded in the wider public consciousness over the last few years.
As Marvel's movie franchises continue to play to the tastes of the mainstream, it's cast of characters again command a relevance in the zeitgeist of 2017, the whispers of which, resonate through when playing either of the games mentioned above, or indeed the wonderful crossover 'X Men vs. Capcom'.

So playing the 2D Fighters in my own collection is taking up a lot of my time at the moment. I'm getting to the stage that I understand the repertoire of moves for many of the characters I fight as, so now I'm just trying to perfect the timing and combos. I'm unfortunately tempted to rotate each game regularly in my playlist, rather than sticking to one and perfecting my moves or honing my skills with a particular character. That's been a problem for me for some time. I suffer from FGS... Flighty Gamer Syndrome. I'm rarely able to focus on one game long enough to be able to play it to my full potential. And these are games that are made to be mastered!

So what games are rocking my world at the moment? Let's take a look!

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