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DoABarrelRoll

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  1. The Origin of Wonder Boy Let's explore the fascinating story behind a true classic: Wonder Boy In Monster Land or Mônica no Castelo do Dragão, discovering its origins, influences, and its legacy. I'm going to focus on the official location of Tectoy Mônica no Castelo do Dragão because it's the version I played the most, but remembering that the game is practically the same, with just a few graphical changes. It all started with the first game in the Wonder Boy series which is a 1986 platform game published by Sega and developed by Escape (later Westone Bit Entertainment). The game was originally designed for arcades and then ported to Sega's 8-bit consoles. In it Tom-Tom goes on a long adventure to chase King, and rescue his girlfriend, Tina. Adaptations SEGA owned the rights to the "Wonder Boy" trademark, while Westone still had the rights to the original game code. They decided to license their concept to Hudson Soft, who in turn would port the Wonder Boy games to Sega's competitors. This allowed them to earn a small royalty fee for each console port sold, while maintaining good relations with Sega. Hudson Soft adapted the first Wonder Boy for Nintendo's 8-bit system under the name Adventure Island which became its own series independent of Westone's games. After the success of the first "Wonder Boy", the team at Westone, responsible for the original game, began planning a sequel. The creation of the game Wonder Boy in Monster Land by Westone Bit Entertainment was influenced by various sources and inspirations of the time. It was part of the golden age of arcades, when arcade games were on the rise and always sought to attract players by offering an engaging and challenging experience. The RPG aspect of Wonder Boy in Monster Land was influenced by Wizardry and other role-playing games of the 1980s. The game incorporated elements such as character progression, purchasing items, and exploring fantasy worlds. The combination of elements from different genres, such as platform and RPG, was a way to differentiate Wonder Boy in Monster Land from other games at the time. The game became a classic due to its innovative gameplay and its appeal to video game fans of the time. History In the arcade version Wonder Land is a vast blessed land where the inhabitants live happily. However, misery suddenly strikes everyone when monsters led by an evil dragon invade and conquer the land. The peaceful land was now known as "Monster Land", and humans always live in fear and in hiding. So the brave young "Bock or Tom-Tom” (depending on the game's location) decides to embark on a journey to defeat the dragon. In Mônica's version, Captain Ugly, the Master of Manholes, gathered an army of monsters with the Fire-Breathing Dragon as his right-hand man. Only Mônica and her bunny Sansão can stop Captain Ugly's plan. Interestingly, Captain Ugly only appears in the opening screen, even though he is the story's main villain. Ports Mônica no Castelo do Dragão is a small modification of the North American version of Monster Land, released in 1991 on the Brazilian Master System by Tectoy (a Brazilian company that imports and distributes electronic products). The changes include the title screen, the story, the main character being Mônica and the sword being replaced by her stuffed bunny Sansão. Tectoy even made several adaptations of the Wonder Boy series for the Brazilian market, all involving the characters from Turma da Mônica. Gameplay The game itself involves controlling the hero in various stages, facing enemies and acquiring equipment. There are stores to buy items, spells and improvements, as well as secrets hidden throughout the levels. The game combines platform elements with RPG, offering a dynamic experience. The game's graphics were good for the time, with vibrant colors, a good number of sprites, well-designed enemies and a good number of characters on the screen. Everything is very clear and matches the theme of the game. Music Newly hired composer Shinichi Sakamoto faced technical challenges due to primitive audio technology. His approach was to create a chorus effect by layering two channels with a slightly distinct tone, resulting in a richer, fuller sound. Thanks to this cunning and his engaging musical compositions, Sakamoto managed to successfully incorporate one of the components for which the series stood out: its soundtrack. Levels In Monster Land The arcade version has 11 levels, and the Master System version has 12 levels. The developers planned to include a World Map between levels, but it was only in the instruction manual. Difficulty The game is not only fun, it is also known for being quite difficult. Enemies only give you money the first time you defeat them. In other words, you cannot save money. His attack is also very short, any mistake will result in damage to the character. You only have one life, if you lose all your hearts - you will be automatically revived once, after that, it's game over. Hidden Surprises The game also has several hidden surprises to discover, which adds to its charm. There are plenty of treasures and secret passages to be discovered. When you get them all, you will have the option to choose between two crucial items in the game's outcome: a Ruby or a Bell. The Ruby will make the battle against the last boss, the dragon, a little more accessible, while the bell serves as an essential guide to the last phase, a complex maze. To be prepared and equipped in the best possible way for the final battle, it is essential to know every detail of the game. This is only achieved through repeated attempts and practice, as you need to know where to find money, what to buy, and when to make these choices in advance. The general difficulty is high, attacks have limited range and most enemies are agile and can easily surround you. Despite the difficulty, the game has a quality that many other games do not have, which is the ability to make the player want to play it again and overcome their own limits. Progressive difficulty always stimulates the desire to advance. Conclusion Wonder Boy in Monster Land is an interesting story where the console version was more successful than its arcade version, the game was one of the main ones in the Master System catalog, a console that was more successful in Europe and South America than in the rest of the world, much of this is due to the fantastic NES that had revitalized the console market in the 80s after the great gaming crash caused by Atari. As Nintendo had exclusive contracts with game producers, they could not produce games for any other device, making the Master System depend mainly on releases developed by Sega. Even so, the console received great games and marked the childhood of several gamers who had the opportunity to own a Master System. For those who like a good challenge and don't mind replaying a few times until they memorize what to do, Wonder Boy In Monster Land presents a very fun experience.
  2. How Final Fight was made The story behind the creation of "Final Fight" involved a team of developers who faced many obstacles and made creative decisions that shaped the iconic game it is known today. The narrative behind this process reveals the inspirations, influences and challenges the developers faced in creating one of the most remarkable games in the beat-'em-up genre. After the release of "Forgotten Worlds" in 1988, Capcom began its search for the next project. It was in this context that the conception of a new side-scrolling action game began to materialize. The team wanted an immersive and exciting experience for players. In that sense, Yoshiki Okamoto, the director and mind behind "Final Fight", found inspiration in the emerging arcade scene. The "beat-'em-up" genre was on the rise at the time, with titles such as "Double Dragon II: The Revenge" gaining prominence. Okamoto decided to create his own interpretation of this style of play. Drawing on many elements of double dragon such as setting, story and gameplay. It is worth remembering that Capcom planned to release the sequel to its Fighting game Street Fighter, but due to the scarcity of rom chips in the world, it focused on creating Final Fight. In this context, the idea of "Final Fight" arose. The team conceived an action game packed with action and distinct elements. However, due to memory constraints, developers had to get creative in optimizing available resources. The conception of urban scenarios, inspired by works such as "Streets of Fire", directed by Walter Hill, began to take shape. The choice of Capcom's CPS-1 board represented a turning point. Equipped with a 10 MHz Motorola 68000 processor and the ability to display 4096 colors simultaneously, this card played a key role in the creation of "Final Fight". The CPS-1 stood out not only for its power, but also for its modular approach that facilitated component replacement, optimizing costs and streamlining game development. The Creative Process and Collaboration The game's development team has worked tirelessly to create endearing characters and immersive environments. Okamoto and his team were very inspired by the movie "Streets of Fire", to mold characters like Cody Travers, in the creation of scenarios, names of enemies and etc . Creating these elements involved full collaboration between team members. Initially, Ryu and Ken, from "Street Fighter", were considered as protagonists. However, player feedback and the quest for originality prompted a creative revamp. The "Hugeand Awesome" Approach One of the central approaches in conceiving "Final Fight" was the notion of "huge and incredible". The team recognized that visually imposing characters were endearing to players. This led to the creation of characters larger than the standard for side-scrolling games at the time, allowing them to stand out on screen despite memory limitations. The fictional city of Metro City was meticulously crafted, blending 1980s urban aesthetics with elements of the cyberpunk genre, resulting in an immersive environment that has captivated players around the world. Metro City also served as the setting for the game "Captain Commando" in the future. Mike Haggar, a former wrestler turned mayor, is galvanized into action when his daughter, Jessica, is kidnapped by the Mad Gear gang. Her courage propels him to rescue her and cleanse the city of corruption. Cody Travers, Jessica's boyfriend, joins the mission to rescue Haggar, bringing his street-fighting techniques and knife skills. Guy, a martial arts master and friend of Cody's, also joins the fight, adding a strategic dimension to the team. Cinematic influences are noticeable, with characters inspired by figures such as Jean-Claude Van Damme. The soundtrack also pays homage to the band Guns N' Roses. The game not only attracted attention for its continue screen, but also contained curious references. The antagonist gang, Mad Gear Gang, originated from Capcom's racing game "Led Storm", released in 1987. Members of this gang were named after musicians such as Slash and Axl (Guns N' Roses), Simons (Kiss), Abigail (King Diamond), Sodom (German band of the same name), Roxy (Roxy Music), Damnd (The Damned ), Billy (Billy Idol), Sid (Sex Pistols) and Poison (homonymous band). Braving the streets of Metro City, players encounter the formidable stage boss Hugo Andore, inspired by fighter André the Giant. Levels The game features six levels each with a distinct theme such as The Slums, The Park\Subway, The West Side, The Industrial Area, The Bay Area, Uptown. Each level is filled with enemies that players need to defeat in order to progress. Technical and Creative Challenges The team faced numerous technical and creative obstacles throughout development. The scarcity of memory required optimizations in graphics and animations to fit the available space. Haggar's or Andore's walking animations only show their legs moving, rather than also including their arms, as well as Guy taking up less memory space when walking than when neutral. Several characters such as Poison and Elgado have had their attack and walking animations reduced. Some sounds were eliminated and intros between stages were also left out. Additionally, the team faced time and resource constraints. With only four pixel artists working on the game, there was pressure to create high-quality graphics within the limitations. Techniques such as cropping and pasting images were employed to optimize memory usage and create visually striking characters. Conclusion and Legacy The development of "Final Fight" was a journey marked by creativity, innovation and overcoming technical challenges. The team managed to create a game that would become a classic, with memorable characters, engaging gameplay and a unique atmosphere. The choices made during development shaped the game and contributed to its enduring legacy in video game history. The Impact of "Final Fight" In addition to conquering arcades, "Final Fight" left an indelible mark on video game culture. Its traditional fighting style, memorable characters, and atmospheric urban environments influenced a number of subsequent games. Additionally, the game served as a source of inspiration for future developers looking to create exciting beat-'em-up experiences. In short, "Final Fight" is a testament to the power of creativity, team collaboration and the ability to overcome challenges to create something truly special. Its impact lives on in the gaming industry to this day, and its legacy lives on through gamers who still appreciate its classic mechanics and intense action. When any arcade that had one of these machines was released, several players commented on its difficulty and large sprites, in addition to having a great soundtrack. The game was so famous that when a version was released for the Super Nintendo, it forced Sega to launch a beat 'em up in weight on the mega drive, which led to the creation of Streets of Rage, but that's a topic for another video. imagefinalfight.jfif
  3. Good Day, I never thought that many of the street fighter 2 stages were based on real locations, after discovering this I made a list of the locations that served as inspiration. If you know any other scenarios of another game in the street fighter series post in the topic. Ken and Zangief's stage are inspired by the movie Hard Times (1975) staring Charles Bronson (includes the fights that happened in these scenes). Ryu - Matsue Castle , Shimane, Japan, Guile - F-16 Fighting Falcons, Nellis Air Force Base, USA Ken - Hard Time Movie Balrog - Las Vegas Strip, Las Vegas, USA , Golden Nugget Sagat - Reclining Buddha, Angthong, Thailand M. Bison - Ayutthaya Historical Park, Thailand Blanka - Amazon Houseboats Chun li - Shopping District, taiping road M. bison - Temple Ramayana Dhalsim - Jaipur, Rajastán, India
  4. Good day, I finished Super Mario 64 after decades and it's awesome to see how smooth the gameplay is, the level design holds attention, the songs stick to the head and even with old graphics the game doesn't look bad. This is one of those classics games that leaving the graphics aside is really good game even in today standards, awesome game.
  5. Guys, I finished doing the second and final part with all the Nintendo 64 trailers. There's a lot here that are from the vhs explaining the mechanics and gameplay of some games like Banjo Kazooie, Mario 64, Diddy Kong Racing, Donkey Kong 64 and others.
  6. I wanted to remember the songs and the beautiful sprites that this game had at the time of release. The game is still fun, has infinite continues for those who do not want to start the game from scratch when dying. I didn't play the Gameboy Advanced version to know the differences and know which version is better. Just know that I prefer this game to the second The Mysterious Circus that despite allowing 2 simultaneous players, for me does not have the same level design fun and the songs are also not so remarkable.
  7. I just played donkey kong country from the Super Nintendo. Very good game, with stunning graphics for the season and with a very good soundtrack. I loved the levels you could use rambi (Rhino) and jumping and sticking everyone. But I remember being the weakest Donkey Kong in the SuperNes trilogy, especially when compared to Donkey kong country 2, that was the pinnacle.
  8. The game is fun but it is repetitive. i never got to finish it.
  9. i'm currently only with xbox one fat, playstation 3 and psvita.
  10. I just played donkey kong country from the Super Nintendo.
  11. Good morning to all, I was seeing some advertisements of the current games on Youtube and hit me a longing for those old commercials that passed very rarely on open PC. I made a list of several from the time of the Nintendo 64, but I already have others almost ready from the time of the Master System and the Super Nintendo. To be clear I will not talk about all the commercials only some that I found interesting and even dull (so they drew attention both for the good and for the bad). The video already begins with that humor well 90's in the commercial Mario Kart 64, with a boy giving indiretinhas to another girl at the end of the commercial. Even has a very interesting commercial only made in Australia for Mario Kart 64. mario kart 64 00:00 To be clear I took commercials from several countries since in Brazil did not spend so much on TV in relation to the advertising of games. Continuing, then there's a Super Smash Bros classic with Mario kicking Yoshi and kicking one of the most famous series of all time, now because Mario kicked Yoshi nobody knows for sure, kkkk. But the commercial is legal and out of the ordinary. super smash bros 6:10 Going through other commercials we fall into a very strange in which I even have difficulties to explain what is happening, I'm sure it would never be approved these days. creepy american commercial 9:57 We even have commercial of the horrible SuperMan 64, kkkk. I don't know how they had the guts to spend money doing a commercial for this game. superman 64 10:57 Super Mario 64 has a lot of good stuff, including him coming off the tv and going to have milk. super mario 64 12:32 The Legend of zelda has a number of Japanese commercials showing the reaction of several players and in the end has a commercial of a Brazilian vhs tape well made up. The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time 17:11 The majoras mask I think is kind of dull. The Legend of Zelda Majoras Mask 28:55 The yoshi story is pretty notionless. Yoshi's Story 42:49 This boys are looking through a hole in the bathroom, kkkk, as if they were seeing slightly different things on the other side, kkkk. Star Fox 45:29 And at 46:05 another commercial that was made for Australia and again I found it well done. And this is classic too two agents (one from Sega and another from Sony) begin to kidnap several employees of Nintendo, kkkk. Star Fox 46:34 Second round of Super Mario commercials 64 Super Mario 64 56:05 There's an interesting commercial for the Chinese Nintendo 64 (Ique). Ique 58:25 There are some very different ones from Paper Mario. Paper Mario 1:01:00 We have the amazing Nintendo Squad 64, kkkk, followed by two seniors arguing about video games. 01:02:43 Nintendo Squad 64 Those of Mario Tennis I liked quite a lot, different from the game that I'm not much of a fan. Mario Tennis 1:03:46 Then we have a sequel with several commercials of Mario Party 1, 2 and 3. All are good, but there is one that puts security at the door because the whole neighborhood wanted to play Mario Party 2, this is the best in my opinion, there is another like children sleeping during the day for making owl at mario party and so on. Mario Party 1, 2 and 3 01:06:53 This one about Kirby is very bizarre. Kirby 64 1:12:31 F-Zero X has several guys dressed as the characters in the game. F-zero X 1:16:01 Then we pass Jet Force Gemini. Some donkey kong 64 commercials in which the monkeys seem to be pretty violent and troublemakers. Donkey Kong 64 1:19:37 Automobili Lamborghini (game that at the time I found very difficult) also has its commercial along with an ugly doll of the Emblem of Titus. Automobili Lamborghini 01:20:00 Then a string of commercials for the Banjo Kazzoie and Banjo Tooie series, with bears flying, jumping out of airplanes and stuff like that. Banjo Kazooie/Tooie 1:21:57 And more for the final 1080 Snowboarding, Diddy kong racing,Turok, Resident Evil 2, Goldeney 007, Turok 2, Hey you Pikachu (In that the dog ta talking and I liked it, 1:27:00). Pokemon Stadium with them dropping pokemons in a stadium. Pokemon stadium 1:28:13 Then there's Star wars Rogue Squadron, Mortal Kombat 4, Pokemon Snap, NFL Blitz, 007 The World is Not Enough. The commercial of the Color War is too good, super recommended, this gave work to do. Nintendo 64 Color War 1:33:30 Lastly Perfect Dark with an actress I was curious to know who it was. Perfect Dark 1:34:29 I know you're missing battle tanx and a few more. I'm doing part 2 and then I'm going to run to make some specifics for other consoles. It's hard to do, but it's so much nostalgia together that it's worth it.
  12. I really do not know how to explain to you, since other games of the style like jetmotor or even riptide are quite different (focus more on speed and I think this two are more arkade). I think the best way to know is to really play.
  13. I prefer video games, but there are days that we are so tired that movies are a good one, you sit enjoyed the movie and have a more relaxing experience (depending on the movie).
  14. Are a way to destress and live different experiences from our routine. We do in GTA what we would never do in real life.
  15. Wave Race 64 and Mario Kart 64. Good and short games. Im in a retro vibe.
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