Twennytoo Five Hundo

In future year AD2022 I apparently logged 500 video games (mostly just played, not finished - can you even imagine). Am I proud of it? Of course not, brother, pride is a sin. Here they are in their entirety in order of play:

Dynamite Düx
Dynamite Düx
Pretty standard stuff for the time, I guess. It's interesting to see what characters Sega were throwing out before they came up with Sonic.
King of the Monsters
King of the Monsters
Replay. Another one where I think I like the idea of it more than I do actually playing it. When characters from it show up in other SNK things I think that's cool!
ESP Ra.De.
ESP Ra.De.
Knocked me for six. What a cool game! Boss health is excessive but that's my only issue. This one really got me itching to go on a run of shmups.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Heartless Lullaby
Vampire: The Masquerade - Heartless Lullaby
I've played all of 10 minutes of this so far, can't say anything.
Strikers 1945 III
Strikers 1945 III
It feels really difficult in these Psikyo joints to claw back your momentum after getting killed. Like, moreso than most other shmups. And I get killed a lot so that's trouble!
Crime Fighters 2
Crime Fighters 2
Played under the name Vendetta. Konami's first real pretty good effort. OTGing people is good and punching people's fingers so they lose grip and fall off the stage: great.
DJMax Respect V
DJMax Respect V
Oh, this is just Beatmania. Well cool, I like Beatmania! Also I'm terrible at Beatmania!
Raging Justice
Raging Justice
Why does THIS game look like this? Who put THEM up to it?
A Hand With Many Fingers
A Hand With Many Fingers
Some decent moments to build up the tension in this, and the subject matter is mildly interesting, but there's not really much else to say about it. It does get a bit on the nose with the "CIA bad" message at points, but well, yeah, they are bad, sure!
Gradius II: Gofer no Yabou
Gradius II: Gofer no Yabou
I'd probably be interested in checking out some of the later Gradius games, but this one didn't do much for me.
Brawl Brothers
Brawl Brothers
Rival Turf 2 - still bad.
Mug Smashers
Mug Smashers
I finished this one but am totally blanking on anything about it.
City of Heroes
City of Heroes
Replay. I've been dipping in and out all year, only at this point that I decided to actually log it. This game is always going to hold a very special place in my heart, even if I've done pretty much all I want to do in it.
Ninja clowns
Ninja clowns
Not much to say about this. Not good.
Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons
Double Dragon II: Wander of the Dragons
This has about as much relation to actual Double Dragon as the movie does. Total slop, don't even think about it.
Abobo's Big Adventure
Abobo's Big Adventure
Fun as a tribute to the NES but it couldn't really hold my attention.
Battle Bakraid
Battle Bakraid
Similar to Battle Garegga, so it's decent enough but not one of my favourites. The number of ships available is pretty good!
Nexzr
Nexzr
I remember this being fairly basic but fun. A lot of these PC-Engine games have good music that is totally overpowered by loud, bad SFX.
Death by Degrees
Death by Degrees
Replay. Bad. Everyone knows it.
Conquest of the Crystal Palace
Conquest of the Crystal Palace
Another NES platformer that wasn't very good. Think I was playing these because they had translations.
Dungeon Magic
Dungeon Magic
Another one where I think it's conceptually really cool but doesn't quite live up to it in play. Maybe I'll give it another shot at some point.
Tecmo Knight
Tecmo Knight
I think the release of this I played might have had a different title but that's the only thing I recall of it.
Tempest 2000
Tempest 2000
This is Video Games.
Two Crude Dudes
Two Crude Dudes
Replay. I finished this as a kid and remember thinking it was cool. Adult me is less enamored with it.
Jackie Chan Adventures: Legend of the Dark Hand
Jackie Chan Adventures: Legend of the Dark Hand
Do celebrities get mad when people make shitty games with their name on them? I would.
Fashion Police Squad
Fashion Police Squad
Fun throwback shooter - I'd never heard of it but a friend said hey, you might like this and they were right. Nice!
Batsugun
Batsugun
Cool game. Iceman's post-mission dialogue is incredible.
Fight'N Rage
Fight'N Rage
Genuinely astounding effort for one guy. Awesome combo system, this was walking the Streets of Rage 4 walk before that game existed. Only problems I have with it are the lighting is a bit much at times and the main girl leans way too hard into anime fanservice for my taste. Genuinely really good game.
Border Down
Border Down
I don't think I really got this one. Might need to replay.
9 Monkeys of Shaolin
9 Monkeys of Shaolin
Another free PS+ game. Serviceable beatemup, it's way longer than it needs to be but the combat is decent and I had replayed Sifu a few days before so I was in the mood for more kung fu.
Cho Ren Sha 68K
Cho Ren Sha 68K
Didn't get anywhere near finishing it, but it did seem really cool. I need to play it more.
Mace Griffin: Bounty Hunter
Mace Griffin: Bounty Hunter
A friend and I make a point of occasionally playing through games in what we affectionately call the Dumbass genre (see: much of the Xbox 360 catalogue). This is one of the ones we didn't feel like finishing.
Metal Black
Metal Black
Darius Gaiden's little brother. Great atmosphere and boss designs makes up for slightly subpar gameplay.
Treachery in Beatdown City
Treachery in Beatdown City
Thought this might be cool but as soon as I saw the battle system I nope'd straight out. Not in the market for turn-based beatemups, sorry.
The Cyber Shinobi
The Cyber Shinobi
Decidedly less cool.
Kyouryuu Sentai Zyuranger
Kyouryuu Sentai Zyuranger
A much worse NES platformer that I played for the license.
Warriors All-Stars
Warriors All-Stars
It's fine, but I'm not really sure why it exists. What reason is there for not just putting all these characters into Warriors Orochi instead?
Chaos Field
Chaos Field
Game was fine, but the thing that stuck with me the most was the music.
Way of the Passive Fist
Way of the Passive Fist
Cool stuff here, almost rhythm-game like. Some of the bosses can be frustrating but I had a good time with it.
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker
Just rewatch the movie, which is very good, instead of playing this game, which is very bad.
DJ Boy
DJ Boy
Bad. Move on.
Guardian Heroes
Guardian Heroes
Probably would have liked it a lot if I played it at the time of release, but this ended up being a big-time disappointment. Just felt sluggish and killing things took forever. Obviously looks awesome, though.
Sengoku 3
Sengoku 3
Supremely frustrating game because it looks and sounds absolutely awesome - they are clearly pushing the Neo Geo to its absolute limit - but it plays like complete ass. It takes two full attack strings to break open an item barrel. Every aspect of gameplay is coated in extra thick molasses.
Violent Storm
Violent Storm
Konami's best effort by a country mile, probably because it's just a Final Fight remake in all but name. Super punchy and satisfying to play, absolutely awesome soundtrack accompanies the carnage. Buy me Violent Storm or go to hell!
Warrior Blade: Rastan Saga Episode III
Warrior Blade: Rastan Saga Episode III
Fairly standard beatemup but the Conan aesthetic is very strong here. Has that one great track that's in Taiko as well.
Warriors Orochi 4
Warriors Orochi 4
I started this but then realised I could get the Ultimate version instead. Whoops!
Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 2
Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX 2
Copen's gameplay is switched up to make him more melee-focused and he loses some of his movement options. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. Definitely a step down from the first game, but I like Brigade's design.
Kaze Kiri: Ninja Action
Kaze Kiri: Ninja Action
You walk along a perfectly straight level and then you fight a boss. Way too long for how simplistic it is, but you do have way more moves than I would expect.
Mega Man Battle & Chase
Mega Man Battle & Chase
Not really a kart racer guy but this seemed decent enough. Did you know Yoshinori Ono of SF4 fame was the composer for this? Crazy!
Dolphin Blue
Dolphin Blue
Metal Slug-ish. Not as good as any of those but still okay!
Gal Gunvolt Burst
Gal Gunvolt Burst
More Gunvolt Burst. It's still easy, still fine to zip through if you have 20 minutes.
Undercover Cops
Undercover Cops
The title of this game is so funny. It's like a weird post-apocalyptic setting! Undercover cops for what?!
Anyway it's decent, it's Irem so everything has that slightly Metal Sluggy look.
Pu Li Ru La
Pu Li Ru La
A lot of bright, creative designs but the gameplay is very basic. Can't hate though, fun name to say.
Dragon Quest Heroes II
Dragon Quest Heroes II
Leans more towards Dragon Quest than it does towards musou for my liking. Takes forever as well.
Elemental Master
Elemental Master
This is what I wish wizards in movies and stuff were like. Just firing huge amounts of magic shit at everyone constantly. Doing a highest level Dragon's Dogma spell 50 times a minute. ZAP
Double Dragon II: The Revenge
Double Dragon II: The Revenge
Mainly played this port to hear the music. Sadly not as good as I was hoping, but this version also has a bunch of low-rent cutscenes where the Brothers Lee are Kenshiro clones with turn of the 90s anime hair. Dope.
Strikers 1945 II
Strikers 1945 II
More of the same. The cover art for these is really cool though, right?
Super Double Dragon
Super Double Dragon
Really disappointed with this one. It looks good, I love the parry system and the animations that come out of it, it's really satisfying to catch a strike and then kick the shit out of the guy, but it takes 100 years to kill anything at all. A slog in the purest sense. Really sad.
Renny Blaster
Renny Blaster
A brawler that has a pretty extensive movelist for a two-button controller, but sadly this doesn't stop it being janky and dull.
After the War
After the War
I think the C64 might not be the best system for this genre.
M.U.S.H.A.
M.U.S.H.A.
Really tough in parts, but still a really cool game. Honorary Amemiyacore.
Enderal: Forgotten Stories
Enderal: Forgotten Stories
Replay. I'd started this aaaages ago and gave it another bash this year. It's very impressive, but there really is only so much you can do with Skyrim. It's a great effort but it's just not built on a good base.
B. Rap Boys
B. Rap Boys
This, D.D. Crew and DJ Boy form an unholy triumvirate of terror.
Burning Fight
Burning Fight
Replay. SNK tries a Final Fight rip but with added ripoff music. Okay, but again feels like they can't keep up with the curve.
Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back
Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back
Another free on PS+ trap. Whilst I was playing this a friend sent me a message asking if I was OK and they were right to do so.
Warriors of Fate
Warriors of Fate
Another Three Kingdoms one. Not awful, but there's not much in the way of variety so I didn't feel like finishing it.
Giga Wing 2
Giga Wing 2
Fine I guess, but it can be really hard to make out what's actually going on in these polygonal ones.
Thunder Force VI
Thunder Force VI
These polygonal entries don't ever really seem to have the oomph of their 2D counterparts, but it's still a good game and I had a big smile on my face when the one boss shifts into TFIV player form and Lightning Strikes Again starts playing.
Crisis Beat
Crisis Beat
A very basic 3D beatemup, but you can smash enemies into tons of stuff or smash enemies with tons of stuff, so that's good. I like the main guy's brown leather jacket/red gloves combo!
Legend
Legend
This Legend has been entirely forgotten by me.
Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn
Shaq Fu: A Legend Reborn
This game can fuck right off. Honestly.
Gunbird 2
Gunbird 2
Same as Gunbird.
Battletoads
Battletoads
A better beatemup than the original game is, but still not particularly great.
Batman Forever: The Arcade Game
Batman Forever: The Arcade Game
Obviously very funny to look at but it plays like ass.
Midnight Fight Express
Midnight Fight Express
Hilariously edgy and kind of janky but it has that same fun quality of a Hotline Miami where positioning, prioritisation and full use of all your tools pays off big. Also very satisfying in its scrambliness when you don't do any of those and are just using everything around you on the fly.
The Ninja Warriors
The Ninja Warriors
Replay. Superseded by the remakes but this is still okay. Obviously the music rules.
Dead Island Retro Revenge
Dead Island Retro Revenge
An interesting deviation from the standard belt scroller formula, but not very engaging beyond that.
Mad Stalker: Full Metal Force
Mad Stalker: Full Metal Force
I don't really remember anything about this, but I shelved it, so I must have thought it was decent enough to go back to at some point.
Robo Army
Robo Army
Another kind of drudgy SNK effort but worth a look for KOF history reasons.
Gaia Crusaders
Gaia Crusaders
Impressive amount of playable characters by the end of the game but otherwise not really all that great, I thought.
Mega Man 8-bit Deathmatch
Mega Man 8-bit Deathmatch
The amount of work that's gone into this is insane, and it wasn't for nothing: this game is very cool! I need to play more.
Guardians: Denjin Makai II
Guardians: Denjin Makai II
Much better than the original. Weird, kind of grotesque designs and Winkysoft doing a Winkysoft as hell soundtrack. Final boss music just sounds like a Masou Kishin track, which is a-OK by me.
Cyvern
Cyvern
It's fine. I don't like that title though.
Double Dragon IV
Double Dragon IV
Trying very hard to be the NES games, but not quite managing it. A bit sad about this one.
Summer Carnival '92 Alzadick
Summer Carnival '92 Alzadick
Extremely short game apparently made for a game dev contest? Well, it's cool anyway!
The Warriors: Street Brawl
The Warriors: Street Brawl
Nothing like the PS2 game, but a lot like a whole bunch of garbage beatemups. Don't bother with it.
Vice: Project Doom
Vice: Project Doom
I played the Japanese version, Gun-Dec. Ninja Gaiden-ish for the most part, there's also some driving stages that are essentially on-road shmup sections. Had never heard of it before this year, it's cool!
Ninja Combat
Ninja Combat
Another Neo Geo release that feels like a relic for the time.
Out Zone
Out Zone
Kind of cool, but just a little too annoying for me.
Kiaidan 00
Kiaidan 00
All I remember is that it was a mech game. I finished it, so it must have been decent!
The Ninja Warriors
The Ninja Warriors
Replay. Remake of the arcade game that is better than the arcade game. Love to see it! Only complaint is it doesn't have Daddy Mulk.
Crime Fighters
Crime Fighters
Genuinely awful. Konami were really not good at this early on.
Gekido
Gekido
Don't have much to say about the game, but Joe Madureira should be outlawed.
Takeda Shingen
Takeda Shingen
Not great. Interesting for its setting, I guess.
Uppers
Uppers
Got suckered in by the Hiroaki artwork. Lackluster beatemup for anime perverts. I'm good, thanks.
Hakai-ou: King of Crusher
Hakai-ou: King of Crusher
Some sections ended up just being way too frustrating for me to actually finish this game, but everything up to that point was absolute top notch kusoge. Amazing how janky and low-rent one game can be. Highly recommended.
​The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors
​The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors
A good remake of the good remake. Japanese title is better.
Silent Dragon
Silent Dragon
Memory not found. I'll take your word for it.
Twin Hawk
Twin Hawk
Just not that engaging after playing a bunch of games that were the same thing but better.
Mystical Fighter
Mystical Fighter
Don't remember much, other than it being pretty bland outside of the player character being a kabuki guy, which is cool and more games should do.

4 Comments


1 year ago

I adore the dedication to adding notes to everything, even if they're just like two words. Hachoo sweep.

Bayou Billy is one of the most unfun NES games I ever played, goddamn what a slog-filled and mean-spirited game.

1 year ago

Damn this is impressive

1 year ago

Did you complete Ring Fit?!

1 year ago

@Vee this took me days lol
@Dalaamclouds that's not the word I'd use but thank you!
@letshugbro good lord no. new years resolution though!


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