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NEC TG-16/TE/TurboDuo => TG-16/TE/TurboDuo Discussion => Topic started by: nat on January 18, 2008, 06:30:27 AM
Title: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 18, 2008, 06:30:27 AM
So I got the CD port yesterday.
I just thought I'd post a few comments on one of the most often-panned arcade ports on the system (alongside Altered Beast) seeing as how I played through a good majority of the game on my first try. Unlike Altered Beast, which IMHO is unjustly criticized because of it's difficulty, GA doesn't fare so well.
First, the good. The music is great. Awesome. I love it. I challenge anyone to find any shortcomings in this category. The game also has cinemas and intros unique to this port. They remind me quite a bit in style of the Valis III cinemas, and it's no small wonder seeing as how they were done by the same group. They are of good quality, I don't know, maybe even better than the Valis III cinemas. The title screen. Looks really nice, pretty much like the Genesis version. Yeah I know it's a weird thing to comment on, but I'm really grapsing at anything here. Up until this point you think the game is gonna be awesome. You've seen the intro cinema, you've seen the title screen, heard the music... What could possibly be so bad?
Well, let's get into it. Let's start with the in-game graphics. I'd heard rumors the graphics in this game looked like a Master System game. Well that's an exaggeration as they are too good to be found on the SMS. Too many colors, that kind of thing. But just barely. Believe it or not the graphics in this game have fewer colors than the Genesis port which, as runinruder put it, is inexcusable. The detail level is atrocious. The backgrounds are so bland it's not even funny. Everything is in shades of brown or tan, EVERYTHING. Except the green leaves on the trees. Sprites are small and pretty ugly for the most part. Imagine the nicely detailed and superbly shaded sprites in Keith Courage. Now, imagine the opposite of that and that's what you will find in Golden Axe. Better yet, just imagine the sprites found in the sidescrolling-view (the "distant perspective") parts of Genpei Toumaden and run with that idea. While the graphics are pretty bad, the graphics in GT are worse overall, so it's not the worst that I've seen. I might even be able to give the game a pass in this regard if the scrolling and animation didn't blow donkey nuts. This game scrolls more roughly than any other game I've ever played. They would have been better off going the Energy route and just changing the scene when you reached the edge of the screen. What the f*ck happened here? The animation is also horrendous- when you jump the animation of your character flying through the air must have a framerate of about 2 FPS.
For some reason I was expecting the gameplay to suck, which it actually didn't for the most part. All negatives aside, the game is very playable. Much more so than something like Genpei. It's not "perfect" and probably not as good as the Genesis port but once you get past the jittery scrolling and framerate from Hell you get into the groove. I played through quite a bit of the game before I got a Game Over at which point I got hungry so I turned it off and made dinner. I do, however, plan to go back today and play it some more. It's probably worse than any other console port, although I've only played the Genesis one so I can't really make that statement. If a SMS port exists, this version might actually be better. If you're a fan of classic SEGA arcade games however, then GA CD is a must-buy for the cinemas and music alone. Just be prepared for the shockingly bad graphics and scrolling. Although if you're like me, you'll probably find a small piece of yourself become attached to it.
When all is said and done though, I wish NEC Avenue had handled the reprogramming of this one.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 18, 2008, 06:35:14 AM
There is a Golden Axe for SMS, but it's not what you think:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: GUTS on January 18, 2008, 06:39:24 AM
I was always disappointed with Golden Axe on Genesis because of how much smaller everything was (I used to play the arcade game like a mother f*cker when I was a kid), while Altered Beast seemed a lot closer to the arcade version, retaining the huge sprites. I almost bought the PCE version more than once, thank God I never did.
Not to get off subject, but Nat did you ever play Golden Axe III? That one gets terrible reviews from retards all the time, but I loved it and thought it was miles ahead of the first two (Genesis versions, not arcade).
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Tablet on January 18, 2008, 07:08:42 AM
There is a Golden Axe for SMS, but it's not what you think:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYbYb8ZrY5o
That is Golden Axe Warrior.
This is the SMS port, i find it too choppy to actually play but hey it was the SMS
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: td741 on January 18, 2008, 07:12:16 AM
It's been a while since I played the SMS port (of Golden Axe, not Golden Axe Warrior) but from what I remember: -single player -can only play the male warrior. (Instead of selecting your character, you select the magic you can use.) -controls were decent (many SMS games are plagued with lousy controls) -graphics were very good for the SMS (magic worked okay, backgrounds were pixelly but decent, animation was fine but some moves might be missing) -sound was relatively okay for an SMS game (music was a good approximation, no yelling.)
Aside from the Arcade, I think the VGA PC (DOS) version of Golden Axe ended up being best. 2 Player, In tact Graphics, music was okay (with sound card), yelling was done via the PC Speaker but was intact. I was disappointed by Amiga Version (hampered mostly by single-fire-button)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Necromancer on January 18, 2008, 07:27:51 AM
PCE Golden Axe is single player as well, isn't it? That alone is enough to turn me off.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Michael Helgeson on January 18, 2008, 08:25:31 AM
Yea I had the Master System version. If you ignore the fact the other 2 characters are missing its not a big deal,as you get a Conan style ending on the game which is worth it.It does move a little choppy,but visually still looks closer to the arcade then the Pc Engine one. The Pc-Engine one was obviously created from the ground up,everything looks reworked. They seem to be missing trow on Pc-Engine too,or at least I have not managed to trow anyone. I like all 3 ports though,each has something different to offer.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 18, 2008, 08:39:07 AM
Not to get off subject, but Nat did you ever play Golden Axe III? That one gets terrible reviews from retards all the time, but I loved it and thought it was miles ahead of the first two (Genesis versions, not arcade).
I had that game before my Sega Classics Collection disc went bad. LOVED THAT GAME.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 18, 2008, 08:40:36 AM
Not to get off subject, but Nat did you ever play Golden Axe III? That one gets terrible reviews from retards all the time, but I loved it and thought it was miles ahead of the first two (Genesis versions, not arcade).
No I avoided it because everyone hated on it all the time.
I think it's available on the VC. If it is I'll download it and give it a try.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nodtveidt on January 18, 2008, 08:57:01 AM
You know, nat...you posted this in the wrong forum. :D
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 18, 2008, 09:04:36 AM
You know, nat...you posted this in the wrong forum. :D
Actually that was intentional.
It's part of my ongoing campaign that the two forums are redundant and need to be merged.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: guyjin on January 18, 2008, 09:12:35 AM
Golden Axe 3 has some interesting features, but it's nowhere near as good as the original. an average beat-em-up.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: gekioh on January 18, 2008, 09:26:04 AM
I agree w/ Guts about Golden Axe III. I think its killer. Love it to death, my personal favorite GA.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: WoodyXP on January 18, 2008, 11:26:52 AM
Golden Axe CD could have kicked some major ass. I wonder if SEGA paid the developers to sabotage the game... it's that horrible, IMO.
And yeah.. Golden Axe III kicks ass.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 18, 2008, 11:28:59 AM
Golden Axe PCE will always be one of my favorite PCE titles, since it was the first CD game I saw and of the first I owned. The cinemas and other non-gameplay elements made me appreciate all versions of Golden Axe all the more.
Its ironic that its the textbook example of how to do a CD version of a classic arcade game right... except for the core game itself. Too many CD games are basically a cart/card port with CD music added.
Some of the background art/graphics is alright on its own(its shaded better than many other PCE games), but like Strider ACD the various flaws combine to tarnish the overall experience. The actual gameplay isn't too far off of the shallow original.
Since its cheap, its worth buying even just to watch the cinemas using the debug trick, let alone for the cool soundtrack.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 18, 2008, 11:43:48 AM
The actual gameplay isn't too far off of the shallow original.
That's right, I found the gameplay mostly intact.
While I don't hold the same nostalgic feelings for it like you do, it sounds like you have similar feelings about it overall.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 18, 2008, 12:06:08 PM
I wonder if it is against some law to have a two-player version of Golden Axe on CD. When they took the two player Genesis version and put it on the Sega Classics disc, they purposely made it single player only, probably to obey the laws at the time. Damn Republocrats!
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ParanoiaDragon on January 18, 2008, 12:58:20 PM
The problem is, that this game was done by Renovation(not Laser Soft, who were resposible for the Turbo CD version of Valis 3, Reno did the Gen Valis 3). More often then not, atleast on the Turbo, Renovation games tend to suck. Exile is probably their best game, as it's pretty damn clean, & nice to look at(note, that Exile 2 was by Riot). Final Zone 2 was also done by Reno, & it's ok, nothing spectacular. There are others that aren't even worth mentioning, like Death Bringer.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Keranu on January 18, 2008, 02:54:35 PM
I wonder if it is against some law to have a two-player version of Golden Axe on CD. When they took the two player Genesis version and put it on the Sega Classics disc, they purposely made it single player only, probably to obey the laws at the time. Damn Republocrats!
Whoa, what the hell? I never realized that, what's the point?
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: WoodyXP on January 18, 2008, 04:38:08 PM
I wonder if it is against some law to have a two-player version of Golden Axe on CD. When they took the two player Genesis version and put it on the Sega Classics disc, they purposely made it single player only, probably to obey the laws at the time. Damn Republocrats!
Whoa, what the hell? I never realized that, what's the point?
My only guess is they cut out the second player to make room for ghey-ass, CD-Quality SFX. "OUCH!!" :lol:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 18, 2008, 04:40:40 PM
I actually don't have a problem with no 2 player option in the Turbo version. 95% of the time I play games I play by myself, the other 5% of the time is with my wife and she wouldn't be into something like Golden Axe. It's usually Bubble Bobble, Mario Party, Bomberman, that sort of thing.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 18, 2008, 04:43:39 PM
Multiplayer was removed because due to system limitations at the time, the system could only hold one player. The second player would have to stream directly from disc, and considering 90's console CD access times, it would be unplayable and thus was scrapped.
This of course is 100% bullshit but sounds more logical than anything anyone else has put out so far.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 18, 2008, 04:54:45 PM
Quote from: WoodyXP
My only guess is they cut out the second player to make room for ghey-ass, CD-Quality SFX. "OUCH!!" :lol:
Bad guess.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: WoodyXP on January 18, 2008, 05:18:38 PM
My only initial guess is they were not sure how to manage the systems ram well.This disc is after all one of the first.
I want to hear what Mr. Redifer has to say, unless you're the same person of course. So, Joe Redifer.. bring your bitch ass out here and let's hear it. 8)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Michael Helgeson on January 18, 2008, 06:29:28 PM
Surely more then Joe are allowed to guess though ? :( I'm sure Joe's will be the most awesome though,it usually is.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: WoodyXP on January 18, 2008, 06:45:50 PM
I'm sure Joe's will be the most awesome though,it usually is.
I hope so... I'm rolling out the red carpet and handing an invitation to this little cunt. It better be good. 8)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 18, 2008, 08:03:49 PM
It was a bad guess to assume that having two players takes up more memory on the disc. The only other things that were changed about the game were the redbook music (which would actually free up memory since chip music wouldn't need to be loaded into RAM) and some better sound effects that were taken from the arcade. Streets of Rage (also on the same disc) had this same treatment with the voices but remained two players. So I really don't think the sound had anything at all to do with it.
Michael's guess is a little bit better (about not knowing how to mess with the RAM properly, etc)... but then again Streets of Rage has two players intact. I don't think it was a technical issue. Either someone f*cked up when porting over the game to the CD (they had to slice it up for the RAM banks) and forgot to set it right or they turned it off due to the "No two player Golden Axe on a CD" law.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 18, 2008, 08:09:34 PM
I think it's because Golden Axe f*cking sucks, and they KNEW it f*cking sucks, so they made the obvious choice of doing a half-ass port and still making enough for drinks and pizza.
And in the end, that's what counts right?
Rastan > Golden Axe.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 18, 2008, 08:50:18 PM
rASStan 1 is pretty good. I prefer the SMS version over the arcade as far as actual gameplay is concerned. The arcade is a bitch. rASStan 2 sucks doggy balls.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 18, 2008, 08:52:00 PM
It was a bad guess to assume that having two players takes up more memory on the disc.
Now now.. you're a not mind reader my friend. I didn't assume that. But yeah.. you're pretty much on point, IMO. You notice that the system doesn't access the CD when the SFX play.. so you know those files are getting stored somewhere in memory. Poor memory management more than likely lead to the game not having a second player.
Then there's the theory that the folks who put this CD together didn't have access to the final build of Golden Axe... blah blah blah...yeah.. it's hard to tell what the f*ck really happened. But it's all good, really.. since nobody wants to play Golden Axe with me anyway... ahahahah.. :lol:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nodtveidt on January 19, 2008, 01:44:17 AM
The voice samples are probably stored in the ADPCM buffer.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 19, 2008, 02:37:02 AM
Rastan, in any incarnation, sucks. A lot. I will not have Rastan bullshit polluting my GA thread.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: sunteam_paul on January 19, 2008, 04:49:45 AM
Rastan was one of my fave arcade games (despite how bloody hard it was) and the SMS version is fantastic. Don't be dissin' Rastan.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 19, 2008, 05:15:56 AM
In all fairness, I've never played the SMS version, so I'll give you a pass.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 19, 2008, 05:32:20 AM
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 19, 2008, 08:22:04 AM
I got Golden Axe III today on the VC. GUTS is right, it's pretty good!
I got to the Gate of Fate then I got a Game Over. I must have been close to the end, though. Or maybe not. Who knows.
I really like the music in GA III. It's not abrasive like a lot of Genesis sound.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 19, 2008, 11:15:10 AM
Golden Axe 3's music is pretty quiet and mellow, but it has some really well constructed melodies in there. I have an arrangement of one of the tunes on my hard drive somewhere. It is great!
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 19, 2008, 12:45:08 PM
I got Golden Axe III today on the VC. GUTS is right, it's pretty good!
I got to the Gate of Fate then I got a Game Over. I must have been close to the end, though. Or maybe not. Who knows.
I really like the music in GA III. It's not abrasive like a lot of Genesis sound.
I'm no beat 'em up/hack 'n slash expert, but I've always felt that most games in the genres are centered around decent, ranging from okay to good and that there aren't too many unbelievably good or terrible titles.
Which is why I've wondered over the years how Golden Axe III MD could really be so bad, since it seems easier to make an average beat em up/hack n slasher than it is to make a real hunk of garbage.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ceti alpha on January 19, 2008, 12:47:54 PM
Quote
Golden Axe 3's music is pretty quiet and mellow, but it has some really well constructed melodies in there. I have an arrangement of one of the tunes on my hard drive somewhere. It is great!
Agreed. If you find that arrangement send it over. :mrgreen:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: SNKNostalgia on January 19, 2008, 02:57:25 PM
I guess a lot of people didn't like it so much because it is very different than the first two GA games. It does have a different BG style with a lot of moving parallax. It plays really different as well from the moves, control etc.... Also, GA3 never made it to the US other than the SEGA Channel. I played it on the Genesis Collection for PS2 and enjoyed it somewhat, but not nearly as much as GA 1 and 2. I still like to play my 4-in-1 Sega CD Classics Collection with SOR 1, GA 1, Columns, and Revenge of Shinobi.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 19, 2008, 03:22:37 PM
I guess a lot of people didn't like it so much because it is very different than the first two GA games. It does have a different BG style with a lot of moving parallax. It plays really different as well from the moves, control etc.... Also, GA3 never made it to the US other than the SEGA Channel. I played it on the Genesis Collection for PS2 and enjoyed it somewhat, but not nearly as much as GA 1 and 2. I still like to play my 4-in-1 Sega CD Classics Collection with SOR 1, GA 1, Columns, and Revenge of Shinobi.
I didn't realize that it was on the Sega Genesis Collection. I'm going to have to try it out now. 8)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ceti alpha on January 19, 2008, 03:28:49 PM
Quote
Rastan, in any incarnation, sucks. A lot. I will not have Rastan bullshit polluting my GA thread.
LMFAO!! :clap:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 19, 2008, 04:58:46 PM
Here is the Golden Axe 3 tune. I think it is an OverClocked ReMix arrangement, but I don't know who did it. Gets a bit lame with the synth-sax after about halfway through, but gets better again. http://www.joeredifer.com/crap/Golden_Axe_III_-_Beat_the_Beat.mp3 - 3.36MB
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ceti alpha on January 20, 2008, 03:56:41 AM
Quote
Gets a bit lame with the synth-sax after about halfway through
haha. Gotta love the cheesy midi synth sax. 8)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: spenoza on January 20, 2008, 06:34:53 AM
Golden Axe 3 is a little cheap. The timing on the jump attack is a little odd but the enemies get it right every time. Fun game, but meaner than the earlier ones.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 20, 2008, 07:13:29 AM
I got the jump attack down pretty good yesterday.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: spenoza on January 20, 2008, 10:12:31 AM
I think it's just that the female character isn't as good as in previous games.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 20, 2008, 10:18:16 AM
Multiplayer was removed because due to system limitations at the time, the system could only hold one player. The second player would have to stream directly from disc, and considering 90's console CD access times, it would be unplayable and thus was scrapped.
This of course is 100% bullshit but sounds more logical than anything anyone else has put out so far.
Its probably as simple as the console could'nt handle the extra sprites.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: spenoza on January 21, 2008, 02:10:26 PM
It couldn't handle them loading them from CD where it could loading them from cartridge? Nope, that ain't it. Try again. I think it was just laziness on the part of the programmers, either that or limitations in how much game data they could store in system RAM at any given time.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: OldTurboBastard on January 21, 2008, 03:15:02 PM
It couldn't handle them loading them from CD where it could loading them from cartridge? Nope, that ain't it. Try again. I think it was just laziness on the part of the programmers, either that or limitations in how much game data they could store in system RAM at any given time.
Actually, What I'm refering to is the maximum of 64 on-screen sprites that the turbo GPU can handle simultaneously. I don't think the transfer of data from media to RAM has much to do with it - the GPU could'nt handle the sprites regardless of whether the data for them could be stored in RAM. The turbo could handle larger sprites, but not as many as the genesis (which I believe could handle 80 smaller sprites). Hence the two player mode on the Genesis port. Could it be that the hardware just could'nt handle it on our beloved turbo??? GASP!!!
Programmers get "lazy" when hardware limitations make things difficult to pull off..... If i have to come up with some ingenious algorithm every time I want to get around the hardware limits i am gonna be less likely to do it. Having said that i've seen the golden axe port and i'm sure a better job could have been done on the PC engine port. Two Players??? I'm sure it could have been done by sacrificing other in game sprites or using some other compromising method.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 21, 2008, 03:39:09 PM
Quote from: OldTurboBastard
Hence the two player mode on the Genesis port.
But not the Sega CD version of the same game, which is what we're trying to figure out.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nat on January 21, 2008, 05:25:58 PM
It couldn't handle them loading them from CD where it could loading them from cartridge? Nope, that ain't it. Try again. I think it was just laziness on the part of the programmers, either that or limitations in how much game data they could store in system RAM at any given time.
Actually, What I'm refering to is the maximum of 64 on-screen sprites that the turbo GPU can handle simultaneously. I don't think the transfer of data from media to RAM has much to do with it - the GPU could'nt handle the sprites regardless of whether the data for them could be stored in RAM. The turbo could handle larger sprites, but not as many as the genesis (which I believe could handle 80 smaller sprites). Hence the two player mode on the Genesis port. Could it be that the hardware just could'nt handle it on our beloved turbo??? GASP!!!
Programmers get "lazy" when hardware limitations make things difficult to pull off..... If i have to come up with some ingenious algorithm every time I want to get around the hardware limits i am gonna be less likely to do it. Having said that i've seen the golden axe port and i'm sure a better job could have been done on the PC engine port. Two Players??? I'm sure it could have been done by sacrificing other in game sprites or using some other compromising method.
You're nuts. I remember this shit from the Genesis vs. Turbo thread a few months back. You have some whacky preconceptions about the Turbo hardware.
Golden Axe barely has any sprites on screen at all at any given time. Not even close to the limit. The Turbo is fully competent to handle a few sprites in a two-player version of Golden Axe with plenty to spare. One more wouldn't make an ounce of difference. If you think this is due to some inherent hardware limitation, you're living in la-la land.
I think the "laziness" in the case of the Turbo version is just that-- pure laziness. When you see how lazy they were with the in-game graphics, it's no small wonder.
It's a much bigger mystery why the SEGA CD version of the game lacks the two-player mode, considering a 2 player version of the game had already been created for the system. Laziness was obviously not the issue-- it would take far more work to remove the 2 player functionality than to just leave it in.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 21, 2008, 06:02:26 PM
You're nuts. I remember this shit from the Genesis vs. Turbo thread a few months back. You have some whacky preconceptions about the Turbo hardware.
Golden Axe barely has any sprites on screen at all at any given time. Not even close to the limit. The Turbo is fully competent to handle a few sprites in a two-player version of Golden Axe with plenty to spare. One more wouldn't make an ounce of difference. If you think this is due to some inherent hardware limitation, you're living in la-la land.
Although anyone familiar with a few Turbo/PCE games should know that Golden Axe would not be a challenge sprite-wise, a good example would be Riot Zone, another 2 player beat 'em up.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Joe Redifer on January 21, 2008, 06:08:18 PM
It's the law against two-player Golden Axe games on CD, I'm tellin' ya! But no one believes me. :(
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 21, 2008, 06:10:45 PM
You're nuts. I remember this shit from the Genesis vs. Turbo thread a few months back. You have some whacky preconceptions about the Turbo hardware.
Golden Axe barely has any sprites on screen at all at any given time. Not even close to the limit. The Turbo is fully competent to handle a few sprites in a two-player version of Golden Axe with plenty to spare. One more wouldn't make an ounce of difference. If you think this is due to some inherent hardware limitation, you're living in la-la land.
Although anyone familiar with a few Turbo/PCE games should know that Golden Axe would not be a challenge sprite-wise, a good example would be Riot Zone, another 2 player beat 'em up.
Uh, are you being serious, or are you joking :D Riot Zone is 1 player. Double Dragon 2 is 2 player however, as is, I believe, Galaxy Detective Gayvan...I think. And River City Ransom! :D
Oh, might I add, I have never been able to play Golden Axe: The Duel. No copy works in my Saturn, I've tried multiple copies ](*,)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Kitsunexus on January 21, 2008, 08:34:20 PM
Once again:
R0X0RStan > Golden Ass
:P
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: nodtveidt on January 21, 2008, 10:56:40 PM
It couldn't handle them loading them from CD where it could loading them from cartridge? Nope, that ain't it. Try again. I think it was just laziness on the part of the programmers, either that or limitations in how much game data they could store in system RAM at any given time.
While it might be laziness, it would certainly not be unfeasible to say that it couldn't be done on the CDROM due to lack of memory. There's not as much memory available when you use a CDROM, since data has to be loaded into RAM. With ROM, all the memory of the ROM is available at once, so if you have an 8MB ROM, you can access it all at any given time. The same can't be said for a CDROM, since you only have a limited amount of RAM available (256KB on the Duo, 768KB on the Sega CD).
Riot Zone could have been made two-player with ease. I have no idea why they decided to kill off one of Riot City's best features. I mean damn, the game is pretty lame anyways, but they could have at least made it fun. Riot Zone is pretty stale without two player support.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Black Tiger on January 22, 2008, 12:33:32 AM
Uh, are you being serious, or are you joking :D Riot Zone is 1 player. Double Dragon 2 is 2 player however, as is, I believe, Galaxy Detective Gayvan...I think. And River City Ransom! :D
Oh, might I add, I have never been able to play Golden Axe: The Duel. No copy works in my Saturn, I've tried multiple copies ](*,)
I've never played Riot Zone. :P :wink: :dance:
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: OldTurboBastard on January 22, 2008, 01:02:13 AM
You're nuts. I remember this shit from the Genesis vs. Turbo thread a few months back. You have some whacky preconceptions about the Turbo hardware.
Golden Axe barely has any sprites on screen at all at any given time. Not even close to the limit. The Turbo is fully competent to handle a few sprites in a two-player version of Golden Axe with plenty to spare. One more wouldn't make an ounce of difference. If you think this is due to some inherent hardware limitation, you're living in la-la land.
I think the "laziness" in the case of the Turbo version is just that-- pure laziness. When you see how lazy they were with the in-game graphics, it's no small wonder.
It's a much bigger mystery why the SEGA CD version of the game lacks the two-player mode, considering a 2 player version of the game had already been created for the system. Laziness was obviously not the issue-- it would take far more work to remove the 2 player functionality than to just leave it in.
OK - so what are those whacky preconcieved notions? not sure I said anything inaccurate. As for the number of sprites- I may be wrong here but I believe a complex character model will take more than just a few sprites - it's not just two sprites for two characters.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ccovell on January 22, 2008, 01:24:07 AM
I just checked a couple of screenshots from Golden Axe arcade, and the player characters' sizes range around 32x50 to 50x60... which quite literally is only 2 sprites on the Turbo! :)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: OldTurboBastard on January 22, 2008, 01:41:16 AM
I just checked a couple of screenshots from Golden Axe arcade, and the player characters' sizes range around 32x50 to 50x60... which quite literally is only 2 sprites on the Turbo! :)
well in that case, maybe they WERE just lazy, hell i don't know.
lazy bastards were probably browsing gaming fan sites when they should have been working hard on the job :-"
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: ceti alpha on January 22, 2008, 04:41:20 AM
Quote
lazy bastards were probably browsing gaming fan sites when they should have been working hard on the job Whistle
hehe. I won't tell if you don't. :-$
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Keith Courage on November 28, 2012, 05:18:58 PM
Just played through this for the first time. The playable character sprites look like crap. What's weird is when the main character performs a dash run attack it looks good and to me the enemies look good. Why not put the time into making the payable characters not look like a cardboard cutout? Oh, also the slow down gets pretty annoying at times.
I did like the music but that was about it. If the sprites had been done better the game would definitely be good enough to play through. I can live with the backgrounds not being so hot considering they were never much to look at in the first place.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: soop on November 29, 2012, 12:16:36 AM
Nah, the game is far more broken that crappy sprites.
The main problem I saw was that the hit detection only targets one enemy at once. In the original, If you were attacking one enemy and a second walked into your sword, he'd get nailed. Now however, they can just walk through your sword and start attacking. That's the most game breaking aspect in my eyes, but there are of course, many.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: esteban on December 02, 2012, 05:06:43 AM
NOTE TO SELF: I gotta re-read this thread when I get a chance. (http://junk.tg-16.com/images/pcgs.png)
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: sonikthehedgehog on December 21, 2012, 03:06:10 PM
Thanks for the review. I've been eying it for a while since it's relatively cheap but I think I'll just pass on it.
Title: Re: Golden Axe CD
Post by: Jibbajaba on December 21, 2012, 05:40:46 PM
Golden Axe for the Genesis is one of my all-time favorites, so the PCE version was definitely not enjoyable for me. I can't say it was a disappointment because I wasn't expecting much. At least the music is cool...