Jack Bros. (Shin Megami Tensei ) - All Virtual Boy Games

[Jonnas]

Yeah, Star Soldier (which I played on the NSO last year) is what this reminds me of! Same developers, I take it?

That game definitely needed a way to make obstacles and environment more obvious to the player.

[Cube]

V-Tetris

• JP release: 25th August 1995
• NA release: N/A
• Developer: Locomotive
• Publisher: Bullet-Proof Software

Like other Tetris games published by Bullet-Proof Software (until recent collections), this was a Japanese exclusive Virtual Boy game, although entirely in English. Your first game of Tetris through this will look immensely bland, with pretty much no stereoscopic 3D. There’s not even any difference to any of the blocks, which isn’t a fault of the red/black display. That said, it’s a solid version of Tetris.

The second graphic option for the main mode and the other modes do have backgrounds that make use of layers, yet the game never comes close to looking as nice as Panic Bomber, which shows how lovely flat puzzle games could look using the Virtual Boy’s features. V-Tetris does have one unique mode of Tetris.

In Mode C – also called Loop Tetris, you can use the shoulder buttons to move the plating area around, which loops like a cylinder. It’s similar to the “3D” mode in Pokémon Puzzle League, yet it does a terrible job at visually showing what is happening. The strangest thing is that this is on the Virtual Boy, they didn’t need to use curves to sell the effect – put the middle two colours on the “top” layer and have the blocks to the side further back. This mode essentially gives you areas in the side to dump stuff in (you score lines that are made in the visible area) and is much easier.

Fun

Remake or remaster?

This seems like a good version of Tetris to recreate in Tetris Effect, especially for the Loop Mode.

[Dcubed]

It’s a shame that this version of Tetris isn’t included in Tetris Forever (given that it’s primarily a Bullet Proof Software collection); but I suppose writing a brand new VB emulator for the sake of a single game is outside the scope of the project for Digital Eclipse.

Edited Wednesday at 11:41 AM by Dcubed

[Cube]

Mario Clash

• JP release: 28th September 1995
• NA release: 1st October 1995
• Developer: Nintendo
• Publisher: Nintendo

If there was a game that should have been a pack-in title instead of Mario’s Tennis, then Mario Clash is definitely the perfect title for the job. It shows off the Virtual Boy’s 3D really well (even starting with a lovely cutscene with many layers of clouds), is short and sweet and repayable. It would have been a far better first impression than Mario’s Tennis.

Mario Clash is a sequel to the original Mario Bros. arcade game, where you have to use koopa shells to eliminate all memories on each level. The levels are small boxes, so you can see everything happening at once, with two floors at the front and two at the back. The layout changes slightly for each level, with more enemies being introduced as the game goes on.

Some enemies need to be attacked from the side, but most can only be attacked from the opposing platform, aiming towards or away from the camera. The 3D works well to help you judge the timing of your throw, and it’s nice to come up with new tactics for each enemy. That said, the game starts adding loads of enemies and it’s very difficult, although you can start from any level you want to practice. It’s a really fun game.

Fun

Quote

This is really Miyamoto’s Mario Bros vs. game with Mario beset on all sides by zipping Koopas. Besides moving from platform to platform, you can step back into the screen to dodge flying shells and other turtle-derived shrapnel.

Super Play #33

Remake or remaster?

It’s surprising that a port or remake of this was never a minigame in a 3DS Mario game or released on the eShop. A WarioWare Microgame was based on it in the first WarioWare and WarioWare Gold.

[Dcubed]

I have actually played this one briefly when I was in Japan.  It's a fun little sequel of sorts to the original arcade Mario Bros that gets a bit of a bum rap for being exactly that.

It's essentially a 1980s Golden Age score-attack focused arcade game released for the Virtual Boy in 1995.  Not hard to see why it wouldn't catch on.  Still fun though, and an interesting look at a timeline where Super Mario Bros never happened; where Nintendo carried on with the original Mario Bros lineage instead.

Edited 21 hours ago by Dcubed

[Ashley]

9 hours ago, Cube said:

where you have to use koopa shells to eliminate all memories on each level.

 

[Cube]

Jack Bros.

• JP release: 29th September 1995
• NA release: October 1995
• Developer: Atlus
• Publisher: Atlus

Jack Bros. is a game that is part of the Shin Megami Tensei franchise, and the first game in the entire franchise to make its way to North America (Europe would have to wait another decade for its first Shin Megami Tensei game). It stars Jack Frost, Jack Lantern and Jack Skelton (who was originally Jack the Ripper) as they try to make their way back to the fairy world before Halloween runs over.

The game plays like a twin stick shooter, with the left D-pad moving and the right D-pad shooting in four directions. It’s very smooth and plays really nicely. Your aim is to make your way through mazes, with each world consisting of multiple floors. There’s a very strict time limit so you’ll need to complete all floors of each world quickly. You also have no health in the game, instead, getting hit will take away precious time.

As there are puzzles to solve and lots of wrong routes – the game likes to play tricks on you, especially late on – you’ll run out of time a lot. Each world is a case of working out things as you go and committing it to memory for your next run. It gets very difficult, but is always enjoyable.

The 3D effects are really night, with the walls of the maze sticking out and the maze below visible underneath. Their depth effects aren’t vital to playing, but are an example of how they can make a game look nice. As the game uses textures, each world still gets a unique look despite only having red and black. Jack Bros is one of the highlights of the Virtual Boy.

Fun

Quote

Most of the early releases are simple games, but not Jack Bros. After choosing one of three characters you set off to find the keys to escape from 60 levels of dungeons complexes, all peopled by enemies and spiked with traps. Could be a goody.

Super Play #34

Remake or remaster?

This would make for a great downloadable title. It doesn’t need the 3D so some colour and some depth of field effects for the below mazes would look great.