zbinks

At $40, a game that looks and plays like A Link to the Past would really need to be a transcendent masterpiece that plays flawlessly.

https://www.nintendolife.com/scoring

Keep in mind, when you don't have the staff or resources to review everything (or even close to everything), you do have to choose which games get a review and which don't. It's only natural for the site to do a bit of cherry-picking. It's certainly better for the reviewer (Who wants to spend days playing, analyzing and writing about a game they despise?), and the readership is likely to be more engaged with an article that provides a solid recommendation, than about something that falls in the range of "not bad" to "abysmal", though there are certainly exceptions (Ex: Balan Wonderworld).

When it comes to the games that haven't been reviewed, I think you'll find that there are way more games, in that mix, that would have been 1's - 6's, than 7's - 10's, even with shovelware removed from the equation.

I may be showing my age a bit, but I remember when "Doom-like FPS" was just "FPS".

https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews?score=6%2C5%2C4%2C3%2C2%2C1&system=switch-eshop%2Cnintendo-switch

Speaking of ROMs, I'd certainly appreciate a little more coverage on Hamster's new Arcade Archives releases.

The envelope looks a bit beat up around the corners, so I wouldn't hold out great hope that the magazine is still pristine.

I'm not saying it will, but this looks like it should fall well within the limitations of what Switch hardware can handle.

I get that Super Contra (Arcade) isn't currently available as a standalone, but I wish we could give it a standalone rating separate from the Anniversary Collection. That's probably more annoying to me than the compilation being included on the list.

Either way, Contra is one of those rare series where the Arcade originals really don't hold a candle to their NES ports, except in appearance.

The Cowabunga Collection didn't even merit an Honourable Mention?

I hope they realize that the gaming demographics for Shredder's Revenge and The Cowabunga Collection may be quite a bit different than those for a "AAA" title based on the same franchise.

No Longer Human has an interesting visual style, but it also looks like it might be nigh-unplayable unless you've already taken the red pill and have figured out how to manipulate the laws of physics within the Matrix.

Wouldn't Metroid II: Return of Samus be a better candidate for an HD-2D remake? Game Boy graphics don't upscale well, and I think the fanbase might be a little more receptive to that game being modified vs. Super Metroid.

@Daz1380

A. Because the devs actively want to make retro-styled games and there are enough gamers that actively want to buy retro-styled games to make such an endeavor worthwhile.

B. Because the development of "showcase" games for modern consoles requires a substantial amount of pecuniary and non-pecuniary resources and there aren't that many devs that have the necessary amounts of both.

@JayJ

Purely monochrome games, of any variety, can be considered 1-bit because each black or white pixel can be stored as a single bit, either a 0 or a 1.

...and looking at this a second time, it's evident that this cabinet is not designed to support TATE mode with the built-in controls.

Many of the games that are most closely associated with cocktail style cabinets are games that tend to benefit from TATE mode support, because they tend to be more vertical than horizontal, with controls placed on the shorter ends of the cabinet.

I can't figure out why they designed this cabinet the way they did or who the target audience is that would want such a thing.

Kinda weird to see a cocktail style arcade cabinet with a two-player SFII style control layout. I can't imagine actually trying to play two-player SFII on this thing, though, between the poor viewing angle and the way too close together P1 and P2 controls.

I'm pretty sure my first exposure was through a Playchoice 10 arcade cabinet.

If they've managed to re-license their 8 / 16 bit Batman / Superman games for re-release, then my money is clearly their money, and I just don't know it yet.

It'd also be pretty awesome if Inti Creates could get a shot or two with some of their other in-house franchises, too, ala Blaster Master. Maybe an updated Spy Hunter?

"No lives, no retries, no repeats"

No thanks.

The SNES port of Fighter's History seems somewhat pointless when you can buy and play the arcade version (Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Fighter's History) on the Switch for $2.00.

You could buy a few working 2600s or brand new Hyperkin RetroN 77s for less than this.

Pole Position II and Karateka for the Atari 7800.

What a piece of trash!

I'm somewhat surprised that, in 30+ years since Street Fighter II first came to prominence, that Capcom never tried to go back and "fix" the original Street Fighter. If the gameplay was a little faster and the controls a little (or a lot) tighter, the game would have been absolutely mind-blowing for 1987. The game was revolutionary in many ways and, with the benefit of hindsight, hugely influential, but the poor performance makes it such a chore to play.

Usually, WayForward offerings are no brainers, as are decent Contra-style run n guns, but I'm feeling a bit ambivalent about this one. I just really can't get into the art-style or general vibe this game is putting out.

There is an endless array of classic arcade games and other arcade-style fare that are perfectly suited for play sessions of 30 minutes or less. That none of them made this list is a glaring omission.

It'll never happen, but I kinda wish we could get something akin to the Cowabunga Collection for Robocop, or at least the Data East arcade game and Genesis version of Robocop vs. Terminator. Pretty please?

It appears that these are finally shipping.

Now can we get one that has the original Genesis controller design and X,Y,Z buttons that mirror the look and feel of Sega's A,B,C buttons. My right thumb would thank you.

@Angelic_Lapras_King

When I see articles like this, I often wonder how many world record hi-scores and gaming feats, particularly from back when the game was first released and at the peak of it's popularity, have simply been lost to time, because they weren't properly witnessed and / or recorded.

@Clyde_Radcliffe

"Reggie is becoming like someone who can't let go of their ex after they broke up many years ago... 🥱"

With their umpteenth "Reggie" article in the last month, you could probably say the same thing about NintendoLife.

Single credit gameplay is an odd choice for a 90's arcade beat 'em up homage with a relatively high pricetag. Even the console versions typically offered some continues.

So much for it being a Switch console exclusive.

"Michael Jackson isn't credited with composing the music for the game, and SEGA has previously denied his involvement, though other sources have claimed that his removal from the project is due to child molestation allegations. Buxer also claimed in 2016 that the musician wanted his name removed himself "if they couldn't get it to sound better"."

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/06/brad-buxer-reconfirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack

It very well may be Buxer, not the Michael Jackson estate, that won't sign off on allowing these songs, if he's trying to get his name removed from the credits because he's displeased with the way they sound in the game.

"Michael Jackson isn't credited with composing the music for the game, and SEGA has previously denied his involvement, though other sources have claimed that his removal from the project is due to child molestation allegations. Buxer also claimed in 2016 that the musician wanted his name removed himself "if they couldn't get it to sound better"."

https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/06/brad-buxer-reconfirms-michael-jacksons-involvement-with-sonic-3s-soundtrack

Given that last sentence, it wouldn't surprise me if it's Buxer, himself, that is the source of the impasse.

Saturday Night Slam Masters!!!

NHL '94 with current and/or retro rosters, please.

Keep in mind, too, that information about this project is being distributed behind a Patreon paywall, so the argument that no cash is changing hands is not entirely accurate.

Let's not beat around the bush. To the letter of the law, unless the developers secured a license or written permission to use Capcom's IP, this project is very much illegal.

Capcom may choose not to pursue legal remedy against the developers, but they are well within their rights to do so, and would be very likely to prevail, regardless of whether any money had been exchanged.

As a relatively early SNES beat 'em up, it's OK, but on the Switch there are just too many other, better choices. It's kinda weird that the secondary protagonist is a palette-swapped Village Person, too.

As for Final Fight 3, it's the worst of the series, by default, thanks to Mike Haggar's ponytail and bicycle shorts.

@Sonos

They all seem to be retired/semi-retired wrestlers that have used these names and likenesses outside of the WWF/WWE. It's possible licenses were negotiated directly with the wrestlers or their estates at a reasonable cost to the developer/publisher.

I don't really care which development teams worked on this, so long as it plays well and at feels, more or less, true to the originals.

This may or may not be a copyright violation, but if it's even a half-competent effort, Nintendo should sign 'em up and give them some work.

Mat Mania is on the Switch, via Arcade Archives, and while it is downright primitive by modern standards, it controls well and moves very fluidly. I would easily place it on this list above World Championship Wrestling, which has a lot more moves and character choices but gameplay is very slow and stiff by comparison.

Tecmo World Wrestling is the best wrestling game of the 8 bit era. Period.

Super Fire Pro Wrestling X Premium should be the SNES representative for that particular series and it's probably the best wrestling game of the 16 bit console era. There is a learning curve, as Fire Pro controls take a little getting used to to get the timing down right. That being said, there are better, more recent entries in this series that aren't on Nintendo hardware. I really wish the Switch could get a port of Fire Pro Wrestling World, but Spike seems to have no interest for whatever reason.

Virtua Pro Wrestling 2 for the N64 uses the same basic engine as the other AKI wrestling games, but it has it's own quirks that set it apart from the WWF and WCW entries. In certain ways, I like it better than it's NA counterparts.

I wouldn't really bother with any of the post-No Mercy games on this list.

Retromania is a much better arcade-style wrestling game than WrestleMania: The Arcade Game. I do wish we could get genuine ports of WWF Superstars or WrestleFest, but the licensing isn't likely to happen.

@Would_you_kindly

Better than kitandkrystalife, no?

@PortuGuy

Easier said than done, when you're dealing with proprietary formats like the Switch game cards.

@NinChocolate

All of the playable characters, especially April, seem a little diminutive, too.

I'd rather have another sequel (of sorts) to the classic line-up from the Genesis / Mega Drive days.

@Yosher Ms. Pac-Man cabinets generated over $1 billion in revenue in the 1980's and it's among the highest grossing arcade games of all-time.

I get more of a Battletoads vibe from this game than Final Fight or Streets of Rage.