It's impressive that even if Bionic Commando didn't have the grappling arm mechanic, it would still have loads of innovations in nonlinear platforming.

@GuiltyKit

Жыл бұрын

I replayed it years ago during the PS3 era and was amaaaazed how smooth the bionic arm still feels to use. For its time it was like sorcery.

Blaster Master, Guardian Legend, and Zelda II were my favorite games on the NES as a kid. These last two videos have brought back all kinds of nostalgia. I did, eventually, beat Blaster Master as a little one, but it tooks years of playing it off and on, slowly making a bit more progress at a time. By the time I FINALLY got to the last two zones, it was smooth sailing as I'd pretty much mastered it by then. It was such a blessing when Blaster Master Zero came out and had save slots.

The thing that stands out to me on blaster master is that soundtrack man, easily one of the best on the NES

The fact that Bionic Commando ReArmed feels even more like a Metroidvania with just a few tweaks to the 8-but version shows how in line with that genre Bionic Commando is.

@gnussyflarkin

Жыл бұрын

I don't have the same love for ReArmed, but you make a good point. I think that's actually why I didn't like ReArmed so much; I was really hoping for a more standard graphical remake.

@DefendYoungstown

Жыл бұрын

I dug ReArmed as well. From the surprise song switch for the top down sections to the loving nods to the comunication sections notorious Engrish (such as "explod"), it was pretty much a standard graphical upgrade... except the boss fights. Those all got upgraded. Especially the Albatross.

@sofubisamurai

Жыл бұрын

It’s a shame there’s no way to play it anymore.

@feitclub

Жыл бұрын

@@sofubisamurai I thought it was on Steam (in certain regions, but not mine)?

@gnussyflarkin

Жыл бұрын

@@sofubisamurai - Oh, has it vanished into the ether? That's quite unfortunate. I just looked to see if it was on Steam and didn't see it there. I played on PS3 but think I removed it from my hard drive. That's really unfortunate indeed.

"Killing Hitler has never felt so satisfyingly non-linear" What about Inglourious Basterds?

(Oh hey, Dominion Tank Police!) Both of these games have enjoyed re-treads that do a lot to address some of the flaws in the NES originals. Bionic Commando ReArmed is worth a try as is Blaster Master Zero.

Thumbs up for the Tank Police clip at the start. Love that! Blaster Master was a game that I loved and hated. It was the 4th NES game I ever owned. I loved it because the graphics, sound and the game itself is really good. I hated it because there was no password or battery backup for how long the game is and the weapon downgrade when you take damage. In the late game the weapon downgrade mechanic can completely kill a run if it happens at the wrong time. It was very frustrating when that happened!

Just a non-gimmicky breakdown of some classic gaming. Your effort does not go unnoticed and is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

One fact I know about Blaster Master. By now enthusiasts generally know, I think, about how the game was localized to change it from a story of saving a planet from invaders to that of a kid trying to rescue a pet frog from mutants. In gameplay, for the most part, only one thing was changed. In Area 4, after you get the key, you have to go to a room with a lock, leave your tank, and platform on foot down a winding series of platforms to get to the locked door from the other side. In the Japanese version, the platforms were replaced with a giant heart-stopping plunge, with a ladder at the bottom to grab onto to save your feeble protagonist's life! The ladder isn't up close to the wall either, it's some ways away, meaning it'll probably take a player a life or two to pull off the trick. It feels almost like a kaizo kind of trick. StrategyWiki's page on the game has a map of the original area: strategywiki.org/wiki/File:Blaster_Master_map_4-F(FC).png

It's so funny that they didn't bother to change Jason's hair to brown in the ending graphic for Blaster Master. I guess they imagined that the game was unbeatable and no one would see it anyway.

I remember being so confused when I finally saw the Bionic Commando coin-op after playing the NES game.

You were really on fire for this one

Glad to see Metroidvania works return.

Blaster Master, Guardian Legend, and Bionic Commando are a trifecta of a good time all three are really good and fun

I love that your intros look like they were filmed in 1988

Mild spoilers for those who haven't finished Bionic Commando. I remember finishing this game and being taken aback by a part of its ending. There is a screen that's akin to a postcard with a date stamp on the top left. That date appears as 1989.4.7. Knowing that it was made in Japan, i know now that it was likely meant to be read as July 4th, 1989, but as an American, I read that as 1989, April 7th, and that happened to be the exact day I beat the game for the first time! It shook me and left me wondering if the NES had a way of knowing what the date was. I fired up the game and went through it again the next day, and of course, I got the same exact screen, thus learning that it was just a crazy coincidence. Still, though, a wild coincidence that has stuck with me for the last 30+ years!

@chaseman94

Жыл бұрын

Then what's the deal with the 2010.8.2. at the end ?

@SynopsisGrim

Жыл бұрын

@chaseman94 Seems like that is the current day in that games setting. The dates are around 20 years apart, and it mentions that time had elapsed, so perhaps Joe is reminiscing of the time he got rescued. He also implied that there is more to the story, maybe hinting at a sequel that never came to fruition.

@chaseman94

Жыл бұрын

@BossRushMode too bad we never did get a direct sequel to the NES game. The 1st Gameboy game was pretty good.

@janlentan892

Жыл бұрын

When the date is written year-first (as it is often in Japan), it is meant to be year-month-day, so you _did_ read it correctly as April 7th.

That VHS look he uses when recording himself is just magic. I've never really been a fan of this retro tactic, but it fits this whole... Art?.. so perfectly, I can't help but smile at the start of every episode. THANK YOU JEREMY. Beautifully done, as always.

that cold open lmao

Blaster Master is a series that's passed me by, but I greatly enjoyed Bionic Commando back in the day and didn't even think to associate it with Metroidvania until now... perhaps because I never really got far along in it to beat it and familiarize myself with its mechanics. Only ever played it at a friends house and I was like... 6-8 at the time, so we mostly just went into different stages and shot enemies and swung around. One of these days I'll go back and clear it- if I had seen Hitlers head explode (unless they changed that for the PAL version?) I might've been a very different boy today.

Always nice to revisit Blaster Master. And Clash at Demonhead next time?

@Subfightr

11 ай бұрын

Yeah. Until you play it again. I got it again on the switch... Annnnnnd all the other versions, ugh, I don't know how I did this back in the day! I was just forcing myself to play it, after about 2 hrs of suffering, I gave up. How about you? As always, these videos do make me appreciate these games none the less .. ugh... Maybe I'll force myself to give it another go.

Bionic Commando is one of those few games I had as a kid (NES games weren't that common in my small town, so most of them were outsourced by family trips to bigger cities on vacations). I played this game to heart, loved every second of it and it was crucial (alongside Zelda II) in my journey learning a new language. It's my most fond memory and one of my favorite games ever, I even bought Re:Armed twice.

Tank Police! Feel the power that we've got! 😁One of my all-time faves. And after doing Bionic Commando, now I'm curious what you'll say about the NES Strider once this series catches up to it.

9:04, shooting the guy while dropping down- that's some pro level BC gameplay. Hahahaha, nice!

Dominion Tank Police clip in the intro!!

Two bangers back to back, they are both essential games for Metroidvania fans and they both had superb reimaginings on modern systems that hold well to their original design but have enough new to them to enhance them even further, and at the same time demonstrate how well the originals hold up.

Shout-outs to you going for "Captain Lad" instead of going for how he's modernly localized as Nathan "Rad" Spencer. Most of the MVC crowd just calls him Spencer. That's the same energy as calling Dr. Thomas Light "Dr. Right"

Too bad we didn't get the side-scrolling BLASTER MASTER tank sequences (less the back-tracking) with the top-down GUARDIAN LEGEND exploration sequences/map-layout combined. Perfect game.

Bionic Commando and Blaster Master! This might be the most Jeremy-geared episode ever!

Two great games that each were quirky in their own way. The platforming with the arm in Bionic Commando was super fun. Some of the game elements were pretty odd though. Weird dialogue, trying to figure out which communicator is used in which area, etc. I also remember specifically that stage with the red barrier that you need the 3-way gun to destroy. If you didn't have the 3-way and didn't know the button combination to leave an area, you were basically 'soft locked' on that stage. Blaster Master falls just shy of a true masterpiece. The gun downgrading when you got hit was frustrating. The enemy hit boxes in the overhead stages were a bit sketchy as well. Other than that just the difficulty for some of the later bosses is my only gripe. I've still never beat it without using the pause trick -- something to shoot for one day.

Dominion Tank Police, yay!!! 😄

Whew. Trolling the depths of the unknown, the under-appreciated, and the misbegotten is great fun and all, but sometimes it's nice to dive into some solid classics for a change, eh?

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

"It's like a warm blanket"

Dominion Tank Police, nice.

I loved that you talked about my favorite NES game of all time Bionic Commando. I fell in love with it when I bought my first copy back in 1991 from the local pawn shop along with Top Gun the 2nd mission. My second copy to replace the one my friend claimed he lost it when i loaned it to him I bought brand new in box from Montgomery Ward in 1993 for $10 then traded it in 2 years later along with my entire NES collection console and games to Funcoland to buy another Sega Genesis to replace the one my cousin stolen from me and sold to a pawn shop for some cash. I bought it again in 1996 when I started collecting NES games when I got my driver's license and could drive myself to all the Funcoland stores in the Houston area. Now Blaster Master when I first rented a few months after I got my NES Power Set back in 1989 I hated it, when my friend had a copy and came over to play with me it started to get interesting but still hard, once I had my own copy by 1993 I was able to go through the whole game and beat it. I confess yes I cheated using a Game Genie but I wanted see the whole game from start to finish and I did so one weekend at my cousin's house over the course of 3 hours. I love Domimion Tank Police too bad there never was anymore anime aside from it's follow up series New Dominion Tank Police but I guess Ghost in The Shell was the big money maker for Masamune Shirow.

I was never able to beat Blaster Master on the NES, but I have finished the remake a few times to make up for it.

Two masterpieces

I’m extremely happy you are making time for the Metroidvania series. I’m finally wrapping my head around how you’re tackling all of the projects you have going on. Impressive as always, my dude.

Blaster Master is an example of a series that was made far superior thanks to the Zero reboot. That trilogy is amazing!

I don’t know WHY developers at this time felt we needed sine wave weapons… maybe to show off their math skills? But nothing was more frustrating than upgrading your gun to top level -- and then being completely unable to hit the enemy right in front of you.

@abraveastronaut

Жыл бұрын

It's a way of giving you a "wider" shot without requiring more sprites.

Both of these games were among my favorites! And ReArmed was AMAZING! Thanks Jeremy!

Two great games. 😀👍🎮

Seeing that one part in Rygar where you have to just... know to try and grapple up offscreen to climb up and progress just rekindled a 30+ year rage in my heart. lmao Another great video, ty! Blaster Master was so great when you were the tank. And then... oof.

@goranisacson2502

Жыл бұрын

Yup. I don't recall how we ever figured that out back in the day- wouldn't be surprised if we just read the answer in a magazine somehow because HOW were you to know?

I was unfortunate enough to play Black Tiger back in the day. Brutally hard game that ate money like nothing else

@CSGraves

Жыл бұрын

I had the stage 1 music stuck in my head for DECADES. Playing it via MAME so many years later, I could hear just how accurately the tune was burned into my memory.

Ooh this is gonna be a good one. Can’t wait till I have time later to watch

Black Tiger is such an underrated game!!

Two fantastic games. Thanks for this, as always!

Ah, Bionic Commando. I remember playing it when I was a kid, and it was good times. Still is, really. Though the Remaster for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 is also still good times, and it's soundtrack still slaps today...

Bionic Commando 🤝 Ninja Gaiden Turning mediocre arcade games into all-time NES greats

Games like Blaster Master get praise for mixing vehicle and on foot sections. But I honestly think games are better when developers put all their efforts on one genre. Make the best damn tank game possible. Or he best on foot shooter.

This is the only popular NES game I never owned or ever played......maybe if I play it ......I can finally get out this matrix

@gnussyflarkin

Жыл бұрын

I'd recommend it. It's really a shame you couldn't experience it back in the day because it was amazing. I would play through it at least once or twice a week to see how quickly I could speedrun it. Truly a fantastic game. I think you will enjoy it.

Are the CDi Zeldas Metroidvanias? There is an overworld, but it's just a map that takes you to the starting points of different areas where you do exploratory platforming in areas ridden with enemies and environmental hazards, progressing in the game opens up new areas on this map and increases the size of your life bar, the enemies can be farmed for money that is mostly used to stock up on supplies that you need to traverse certain areas, and the games are strong on atmosphere.

@DantePlaysOldGames

Жыл бұрын

Modern Metrodvania purists probably wouldn't say so, since the definition has gotten more rigid over time, but I think they're in the same essential genre. The 2D CD-i Zeldas especially, as you're regularly reaching areas where you need something to proceed that you don't have, then finding it later, then returning to the earlier area to make new progress. The top-down CD-i Zelda feels more like a, well, "Zelda-like".

I wonder if killing Hitler with a bazooka to the cockpit is based on Gundam having Char kill the final Zeon leader with a bazooka shot through her ship's bridge window, right in the face?

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

It is certainly Redolent™!

I enjoyed blaster master but to this day never managed to finish it.... probably due to the limited continues. bionic commando I did eventually get to the end of, at least that one's more forgiving with continues if you know how to farm for them in the top-down areas. definitely a lot of fun once you get the swinging mechanics down! also love what capcom did with rearmed, updating the visuals, music and gameplay/QOL stuff for more modern standards.

I remember in the late 80's there was a paperback entitled 'How to Win at Nintendo', & being perplexed that the author stated that the last enemy couldn't be beaten... to this day I wonder if he never timed the shot right to kill Hitler, or if he actually tried to kill that last big cyborg dude when you're just supposed to escape before the place self-destructs?

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

You CAN kill the final cyborg, but it's not worth it!

@CSGraves

Жыл бұрын

@@JeremyParish I didn't know that was possible... then again I never tried!

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

Unless you get really lucky, you'll die trying. I did it once but ran out of time on the escape...

Blaster Master seems overdue for release on Nintendo Switch Online. The save state function would make the game so much more manageable.

@PaulSoth

Жыл бұрын

It was added four years ago.

@zubizuva

Жыл бұрын

@@PaulSoth Like I said, I'm glad that added Blaster Master to NSO four years ago. ;)

you have a clear and concise way of putting things....how long does it take you to script one of these videos?.....and ..what do you do when you aren't doing these videos?....(lawyer?....teacher?)......I've watched so many.....just curious......

Bionic commando was awesome, I like playing the english patched japanese rom

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

Hacked by my friend Chris Covell to rightly restore Captain Ladd to his true Nazi-shooting glory

a fellow Tank Police Enjoyer, I see

Ah, remember when fighting fascism was considered noble? Halcyon days.

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

Don't believe the far-right minority's disinformation campaigns-it still is.

@gnussyflarkin

Жыл бұрын

@@JeremyParish - Fair enough. I live outside the USA now and it just seems that everything I see is uber right. I shall do my best to be positive!

@Iohannis42

Жыл бұрын

Lake Wokebegone days.

@NotABot55

Жыл бұрын

@@JeremyParish True, though most of us fight fascism with more words and protests and less rocket propelled grenades to the head...

@bluedistortions

Жыл бұрын

It isn't that fighting fascism isn't noble anymore, it's that the definition of a "fascist" has devolved into "anyone who doesn't support complete corporate / governmental authority." It means the opposite of what it used to.

I loved blaster master on the nes, though the get hit and lose gun power thing was super annoying. Usually just gave up after losing it all late in the game.

Loved both these games as a kid when emulation became a thing back in the day and found out how both games where restranslated (mostly blaster master) I wanted to play the originals but never could find

There was some snes game that the character used the grapple arm. Cant remember which one. Either way nice vid.

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

Umihara Kawase. It’s much more technical than BC.

@RetroPlayer4000

Жыл бұрын

@@JeremyParish ahh thanks for the reply sir. Keep up the good work. Hope you are doing well

I really hope Festers Quest for NES is found in this series somewhere?

@JeremyParish

8 ай бұрын

Yes, when I get to that part of the chronology

@JGRICH61

8 ай бұрын

@@JeremyParish great. I am really enjoying your series. One of the best ever. The reason I bring up Festers Quest, is that he had a projectile gun attack that fired in a wavy pattern - not unlike the gun fire in Master Blaster while in top-down. Must have been an influence on.... Sunsoft?(was it they who made FQ?)

@JeremyParish

8 ай бұрын

Yeah, Fester's Quest was based on Blaster Master. They were made by the same developer.

I want a way to play Bionic Commando on modern hardware. Original or Rearmed. Or both. Both is good.

Blaster master is a real love hate for me. Great game but the zero save options is so brutal I just bother with it anymore but casually in real hardware. The GBC sequel is far more approachable for that little tweak alone. I’ve never liked or grasped guardian legend the pacing and rest puts me off.

I love Blaster Master. The music is great to listen to. Also while Japanese version had a dumb idea in area 4 where you had to make a blind leap to a single ladder...I just landed on the key door and unlock splat. Reason for the 5 continues was cause of rentals legality. Japan won, but US lost. It's why ocarina of time is so SLOW...the zero series is amazing, but blasting again for psx is the definitive for what the nes lacked. ...Genesis had....NO!!!

Hell yeah tank police

Was that an Appleseed snip?

@MrERLoner

Жыл бұрын

Nevermind. DTP

Algorithm comment

Punching Nazis in games is always cool

@JeremyParish

Жыл бұрын

Also recommended in real life, seems like a hoot

*Blaster Master is fucking amazing.*

@rettro6578

Жыл бұрын

Love the switch version!