Topic: Kunio-kun appreciation thread

I don't know if there is anybody else interested in this series.

As a kid, of course I had Nintendo World Cup, oblivious to its origins and significance. It was later that I discovered it belonged to a series heavily localized in the West.

Now I want to start (finally) playing the games in the Kunio-kun: The World Classics Collection, but that's a collection of Famicom/NES games only. I'll have to resort to other means in order to play entries of other systems, like Super Famicom of course, PC Engine, Mega Drive or Game Boy.

I just wanted to open a thread to discuss about the series itself, ask for recommended games...

I've been reading a little about its history and games' plots (I'm affraid I'm not going to follow it in games, because although I know some japanese, texts in Japanese games tend to scroll automatically and that doesn't give me enough time to carefully read them), and I find this lore fascinating. And the localization choices funny.

What do you think about Kunio-kun and his world? What are your favorite games? Any hidden gem?

Oh cool, a Kunio-kun thread.

I never played river city ransom growing up but had emulated Kunio-kun as a kid so I'm fond of the series. Working through the world classics collection currently. Jidaigeki is my favorite, but that is because I'm a period film nut.

Cool, someone posting!

So are you enjoying the collection? I haven't started it yet. Too much backlog. But I really want to.

Would you say the text-heavier games are difficult to follow story-wise? And to the texts scroll automatically or they let you decide when, like RPGs do?

I think the hidden gem is Crash 'n' the Boys: Street Challenge
This was an amazing and very fun competitive game.

I went to a lot of trouble 20 years ago to find a physical copy for the NES.

Oh and regarding Nintendo World Cup:
The original game in the Kunio-Kun World Classics collection is not very good compared to the western release of Nintendo World Cup. A lot of fixes where made in NWC which made the game much better. Like limiting how many super kicks you could make each half. That being said, if anyone is up for it, I would love to take you on in an online battle. You can add me if you feel like it: SW-6288-1124-2133

@Aneira I understand the Japanese version of Nintendo World Cup has an actual story and an intro missing in the West, which is nice. But as a game I already played it on Game Boy I guess I'm not spending much time in it.

Crash 'n the Boys is a game often mentioned, because it had a localisation. But what about the ones that didn't? Any really good one there?

Changing the subject, do you have any problems with texts playing these games?

@Moroboshi876 I like the collection but I have recently put my switch away due to joycon drift so I'm back on the 3ds for now. So just playing the 3ds game (yeah I know its the sequel but that's fine) for now. I honestly didn't pay attention the the text scrolling when playing as the font is large enough of on the switch that I don't have to break my eye to read it. I'll try to remember to pay attention to that next time. I thought it was just button presses as you go, but like I said I wasn't really paying attention to that so I don't want to say for sure and be wrong .

@Ryu_Niiyama What I meant was not the size, but the scrolling speed, because being in Japanese I need a little time to try to understand it. If it's too fast I can't.

I know I can check it myself, but I was just curious.

What 3DS game are you playing? Tokyo Rumble? Rival Showdown? Knights of Justice?

They were on sale last week, but I missed it because I wasn't sure about paying that still high price for digital (in Europe 3DS Kunio-kun games are digital only). When I finally had wrapped my mind the sale was already gone.

Big fan of the Kunio games. I was introduced to it from River City Ransom when I played that game as a kid with my brother. I also played Renegade back in the day as well and back then didn't know the two were connected. I then played Nintendo World Cup and Super Dodgeball and by then I figured that the three games (River City Ransom, Nintendo World Cup, Super Dodgeball) were at least made by the same people since they all had the same graphical style. It wasn't till years later that I discovered they all belonged to the same series in Japan at least.

By the time Crash N the Boys came out they attempted to link all the games together from that point on with Crash and such (which is evident with the coming soon trailer for Ice Challenge at the end of Street Challenge) but never came to be with the company folding.

Also not many know this but Double Dragon is related to the Kunio series as it was done by the same creator hence why in the NA version of River City Ransom their is a spot that the Double Dragon theme is played.

As for the collection, now that we are getting the Mana Collection localized I really hope they localize the Kunio Collection as this was the other collection, Mana being the other that I really want for my Switch.

playing jidaigeki 2. Sorry, I misunderstood what you were asking for the text.

@Tasuki This was fascinating for me too. And knowing curious facts like Double Dragon II on Game Boy isn't a Double Dragon at all, but the Western version of Nekketsu Kôha Kunio-kun: Bangai Rantô Hen.

@Ryu_Niiyama I understand now: you're actually from Japan, so the language is not a problem, of course. Am I right? Or it's just a nick?

Jidaigeki 2 is one of the three 3DS Kunio-kun games that didn't get a Western release even in digital form (3 out of 6 got localized). Lucky you!

By the way, if you have drifting problems you can check this out

It happens to me too, sometimes, and I usually fix it not by cleaning the sticks -they're clean-, but recalibrating them in the console settings.

Such fond memories of Nintendo World Cup. We played that game so much at my house, it’s kinda insane. I only discovered like 1 or 2 years ago that it’s part of a whole series and I guess it was just a spin off? My mind was blown.

@Spanjard Me too, when I was a kid I didn't even play River City Ransom. My only access to a NES was the one of my best friend, who bought obviously the games that caught his attention. It's a shame, though, that he didn't buy the must-haves, because that NES and its games were given to me a few years ago.

I played Nintendo World Cup there and on my Game Boy. I'm planning on playing both versions soon to make a comparison, because the story parts of the Japanese one make it stand out, aside from the fact that teams are from Kunio-kun's universe's high schools, not countries.

@Moroboshi876 I see, I didn’t know about that difference. I really liked the progression which made you go from one country to the next though. Cameroon lol.

So when is Nintendo World Cup going to be added to Nintendo Switch Online, huh? I would love to replay it; my father threw away the NES and SNES without asking LOL.

I forgot to mention I picked up this a few years ago as well which is another fun game in the series

Cool! And what a westernized cover! I wish new games arrived to Switch too, not only the Famicom ones.

I mean Kunio-kun The World Classics Collection is nice -although I had to aska favor to a guy that lives in Japan part of the year in order to avoid shipping-, but there are a lot more games from other systems, so a second volume could be done. And a third.

And the 3DS exclusive releases might as well get a Switch port. But I don't think they're going to do it. Let alone The World Classics Collection in the West. They'd have to translate so many games it just wouldn't be worth it. If only all this universe was more popular...

And that PS4 cover explains why this series is so obscure outside Japan: all that school gangs thing and the setting itself are so Japanese that when they do release Western versions they heavily localize them, and avoid showing the Nekketsu style designs on the covers.

So if we don't resort to import games all we have is a few early localized games... And also very recent ones, but there's so much in the middle...

@Moroboshi876 Just a nick, per my profile I am an American. I just studied the language. My kanji is still horrible though. Sigh. JLPT in 6 months.

@Ryu_Niiyama I got JLPT 2 in 2011, but after that I didn't continue studying and I forgot a lot, although I try to keep reading manga.

With video games, though, I struggle because when the texts are all in romaji it's actually harder to understand. And RPGs are impossible for me...

@Moroboshi876 Actually the cover art is a throwback to RCR on the NES, the cover itself is reversable.

The reason it's so obscure outside of Japan is due to a few reason. One games like River City Ransom, Nintendo World Cup and Crash N the Boys weren't really advertised in the NES days. Besides Nintendo Power doing a walk through of it I never saw anything else about River City Ransom and even then I didn't notice it till I happen to see it at my local rental store.

Nintendo World Cup did fair a little better since

1) it was included with the NES 4 Score Bundle and

2) It was the official game of the 1990 FIFA World Cup

3) Had a Gameboy port

But still it wasn't advertised too much.

Also besides the graphics there was no connection what so ever to River City Ransom. I will be honest the graphics is what got me to get it cause I was a fan of RCR.

And the other games like Super Dodgeball, Renegade and Crash N the Boys got no advertising as well.

The Kunio games have always been cult classics more then anything.

@Tasuki You're right. Those 3-4 games were known by quite some people, but I'm sure the next dozens weren't localized because the series was too Japanese to export (according to companies, I guess).

Does anybody know the mobile entries?

Are there Kunio-kun games on Steam?