Virtual Console Releases for 6/4/07. I am Error!

June 4, 2007

For six months, clas-sic games have flowed at a steady rate into the gaming reservoir that is the Wii Shop Channel. And this week WiiTM fans will see that pool of games hit a new high-water mark, as Nintendo adds a wave of new entries: Nos. 97, 98, 99 and 100. Why not dive in and see what treasures you find?

The four new clas-sic games go live at 9 a.m. Pacific time. Nintendo adds new games to the channel every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii PointsTM to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week's new games are:

Milon's Secret Castle® (NES®, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone - Comic Mischief, 500 Wii Points): It is a world where music is the language of the people. An evil warlord from the north arrives and captures the castle. The princess is imprisoned deep within the castle, and the world's musical instruments are taken and hidden away. Our hero, Milon, takes it upon himself to fight the warlord, rescue the princess and recover the people's musical instruments. He has only his wits and the magical Bubble to aid him on his quest. Help Milon along the way by looking for hidden doors, finding secret items and defeating fierce enemies. Make sure to look for the shops inside the castle, where you can buy hints and valuable items. Whenever Milon finds a Music Box, he will be transported to a bonus stage. Each instrument you find will add a layer to the background music. Try to grab all seven instruments to create a performance worthy of a music-themed game.

ToeJam & EarlTM in Panic on Funkotron (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone - Comic Mischief, 800 Wii Points): During ToeJam and Earl's trip back home, a number of Earthlings hitchhiked on their spaceship and are now infesting planet Funkotron. ToeJam and Earl must track down the Earthlings in order to capture them in large jars and ship them back to Earth in spaceships. It is also their funky mission to find 10 beloved objects belonging to Lamont the "Funkapotamus," the source of all funk in the universe, so they can persuade him to return to his favorite funk-filled planet. ToeJam and Earl must use their "funk powers," such as Funk Move and Funk Scan, to assist in evading and capturing the Earthlings.

Dead Moon (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone - Mild Fantasy Violence, 600 Wii Points): This side-scrolling shooter includes a total of six scenes spanning areas from Earth to the moon. The story begins with a comet discovered in the vicinity of Pluto that is headed on a sudden collision course with Earth. Mankind narrowly succeeds in diverting the comet's course, and it crashes into the moon. However, investigations into the damage uncover that what hit the moon was not a comet, but a gigantic mother ship. Power up your ship, destroy enemies and fight your way through the bosses in an attempt to reach the moon's core and protect Earth from alien invasion. Enjoy the unique world of Dead Moon, including various stages with beautiful backgrounds, a power-up system that increases your attack as well as your defense and bosses that have you altering your ship's direction to fight them.

... and the 100th game in the Wii Shop Channel:

Zelda IITM - The Adventure of Link® (NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone - Mild Fantasy Violence, 500 Wii Points): Link returns to Hyrule to search for the Triforce and to awaken Zelda from an endless sleep. Embark on a quest to find the Triforce of Courage and save Hyrule from ruin. Learn magic spells, talk to people in towns to get clues, collect items to increase your power and explore six palaces where the underlings of the evil Ganon await you. This sequel to the Adventure clas-sic uses a side-scrolling visual engine unique to the series for more technical combat, and features more in-depth world roaming as Link encounters townsfolk while on his quest.

I'm not very excited, I must say.

Milons Secret Castle is a great game, it's one of the many NES games that I wanted to see released on the VC.  I am definitely downloading it along with Dead Moon.:)  I still think that they should have released a better game to celebrate their 100th release.

Too bad I already own Zelda II on the Collector's Edition, huh?Fortier

Eh, so do I.  I'm still buying it on the Wii.

And for the many who don't own the Collector's Edition, the VC is a pretty viable option.

[QUOTE="Fortier"]Too bad I already own Zelda II on the Collector's Edition, huh?m0zart

Eh, so do I.  I'm still buying it on the Wii.

And for the many who don't own the Collector's Edition, the VC is a pretty viable option.

Why would you buy it again?

Too bad I already own Zelda II on the Collector's Edition, huh?Fortier

Same here, except having already played it, I wouldn't buy it since it's my least favorite entry in the series.

I downloaded Dead Moon today.  It was my first time playing it and it was actually quite enjoyable, unlike Ordyne.

Lazy Impressions:

You pilot a bulky ship with a lot of speed (press the start button to adjust your speed with the d-pad) and 4 different weapons to destroy enemy fleets including the Vulcan, Lazers, Wave, and Rings.  Each weapon can be upgraded 4 times, including your sub-weapons, the homing missiles and your sheild. Dead Moon has a decent scoring system based on accuracy and enemy damage, which will be factored on to your Bonus points at the end of each stage. Enemy fleets and squadrons smother the screen from every direction in Gradius like fashion, if only a bit more hectic.  Speaking of Gradius the game has a few bosses that are quite similar, they even come equiped with "shoot the core" weak points.  Each stage also has a mid-boss and some, more than one:twisted: Dead Moon is definitely one of the better looking games from the TG-16 VC catalog.  With a good sound track, balanced game play, and frantic shmup action; Dead Moon is a pleasent surprise waiting to be discovered by fans of the genre.

I downloaded Dead Moon today.  It was my first time playing it and it was actually quite enjoyable, unlike Ordyne.

Lazy Impressions:

You pilot a bulky ship with a lot of speed (press the start button to adjust your speed with the d-pad) and 4 different weapons to destroy enemy fleets including the Vulcan, Lazers, Wave, and Rings.  Each weapon can be upgraded 4 times, including your sub-weapons, the homing missiles and your sheild. Dead Moon has a decent scoring system based on accuracy and enemy damage, which will be factored on to your Bonus points at the end of each stage. Enemy fleets and squadrons smother the screen from every direction in Gradius like fashion, if only a bit more hectic.  Speaking of Gradius the game has a few bosses that are quite similar, they even come equiped with "shoot the core" weak points.  Each stage also has a mid-boss and some, more than one:twisted: Dead Moon is definitely one of the better looking games from the TG-16 VC catalog.  With a good sound track, balanced game play, and frantic shmup action; Dead Moon is a pleasent surprise waiting to be discovered by fans of the genre.

Spirit_of_87

So what's the word on Toe Jam and Dead moon? Worth it? gaminggeek

Toe Jam & Earl is a decent game with an awesome sense of humor, I owned it on Genesis tho I'm not sure it was the exact same game.

Yeah, I have it on the collection as well, which I can play on my Wii, why get it again.

dvader654

I already own one other original gold copy of each of the games on the Collector's Edition, as well as the hardware to play them on, so one might say "why own the collector's edition at all?"  The disc is owned as part of my Zelda collection, but I like consistency and convenience of having playable copies all in one place without having to disturb the collection itself.  I consider that kind of convenience to be worth the $5, and I don't have to worry about constantly shifting around the collection and damaging the carts, boxes, discs, etc.  Same thing applies to ALttP, I own the original SNES version and the GBA version.  I was glad to own it again on the Wii.  It's not worth it for everybody I guess, but I like having those things all in one place, and I think the Wii visuals are improved if just by looking better on my HDTV than they do using the original consoles.

This kind of convenience isn't exclusive to the Wii.  I have the original Symphony of the Night, yet I was happy to pay a paltry price to download it again on the 360.  It was well worth it not to have to pull it down again.  And despite owning that and the original TG-CD version of Rondo of Blood, I'll still be buying the Castlevania bundle of the two games for the PSP as well.

Keep me updated once Tetris Attack is announced. Than we're talking!

I'll get a Wii just for this game!!! I mean it! That's how much I want to play this again.

Keep me updated once Tetris Attack is announced. Than we're talking!

I'll get a Wii just for this game!!! I mean it! That's how much I want to play this again.

ASK_Story

Apparently the DS version (Planet Puzzle League) is the definitive one.  You should get that instead, especially since you have a DS already 

[QUOTE="dvader654"]

Yeah, I have it on the collection as well, which I can play on my Wii, why get it again.

m0zart

I already own one other original gold copy of each of the games on the Collector's Edition, as well as the hardware to play them on, so one might say "why own the collector's edition at all?" The disc is owned as part of my Zelda collection, but I like consistency and convenience of having playable copies all in one place without having to disturb the collection itself. I consider that kind of convenience to be worth the $5, and I don't have to worry about constantly shifting around the collection and damaging the carts, boxes, discs, etc. Same thing applies to ALttP, I own the original SNES version and the GBA version. I was glad to own it again on the Wii. It's not worth it for everybody I guess, but I like having those things all in one place, and I think the Wii visuals are improved if just by looking better on my HDTV than they do using the original consoles.

This kind of convenience isn't exclusive to the Wii. I have the original Symphony of the Night, yet I was happy to pay a paltry price to download it again on the 360. It was well worth it not to have to pull it down again. And despite owning that and the original TG-CD version of Rondo of Blood, I'll still be buying the Castlevania bundle of the two games for the PSP as well.

I'm in a simlar position.  I own quite a few games, but am willing to re-purchase them on VC (or various collections...like the Sega Genesis collection for example).  After all, while all still in working order, a number of my systems are older then many of the posters at this web site.  I readily jump at the chance to put my older stuff into storage to protect it, and still be able to "play them". Added to this is the ability to make room for the newer systems.  Yes, like m0zart, I also own a TG-16 with Rondo of Blood, and I too will be standing in line day one the get that PSP bundle...(though I don't currently own an English language version of Symphony of the Night.  Only own the import Saturn version right now. ;) )

Spirit, if I own none of the shmup games on the VC yet, which two of them would you reccomend above all others? Im looking to get back into the genre and need some friendly advice. Dead moon loks cool but im sure one of the others is better.

GodModeEnabled

Honestly, if I had to choose only two of the current shmups on the VC it would have to be Gradius and Gradius III:D  But since this about what you might enjoy then, I will break them down for you in groups.

Super Star Soldier, Soldier Blade, and Blazing Lasers: 

Ok.  Lets get something out of the way first, Blazing Lasers/Gun Head has nothing in common with Super Star Soldier or Soldier blade.  For some reason the games are often mentioned together as part of a series.  Which, they are not.  Blazing Lasers was developed by Compile (Aleste, Space Megaforce) while the Soldier series is developed by Hudson.  They are only similar in looks and certain game-play elements.  Super Star Soldier and Soldier Blade share the same weapon mechanics but, only that Soldier Blade improves on those mechanics with bombsand supers/special attacks.  Soldier Blade also has more manic bullet patterns than Super Star Soldier and both have a moderate difficulty level as well as, a good sense of speed (the speed of your ship is adjustable)  Both games feature cool looking Mech bosses, a decent soundtrack, lots of enemies and replay value.

Blazing Lasers is a little bit more off the wall when it comes to scenery and themes.  One moment your fighting Mechs and ships and then all of a sudden you are in the some desert waste land blowing up Moai Heads, shooting floating brains, or even giant colorful bubbles.  But, it's this erratic spontaneous behavior that gives Blazing Lasers it's charm, the sound track is pretty quirky as well.  While the game starts off slow in terms of bullets and enemies, things begin to pick up quickly after a few stages and soon the enemies start zipping by you by the dozens.  Blazing Lasers has four weapons to choose from, a generous bomb stock, and adjustable ship speed.

R-Type and R-Type III:

When I think of the R-Type series I think of it as the "thinking mans shmup," for the lack of a better term.  The reason why is, because it's more strategical shooting than straight up blowing $#!t up.  The stages feel more like actual obstacle courses, the bosses are push overs and it's more than likely that the obstacles will kill you over and over (Ask Gameing Geek).  Playing any R-Type game is like playing a shoot em' up with handcuffs on.  There are far too many restraints in the cluster phobic environments, and you pilot a slow and bulky ship.  R-Type introduces the pod mechanic, which can be manipulated in many ways, as an extension of your ship, a shield, or a Gradius like option.  I find each of it's practical uses useless.  I don't really have a lot of positive things to say about this series but some people seem to like it for some reason.  I guess if I had to recommend one it would be the original R-Type, which is actually quite enjoyable.

Gradius and Gradius III:

The Gradius series is my favorite series, including it's spin-offs, aliases and parodies (Life Force, Salamander, Nemesis, Interstellar Assault, Parodius, Otomedius etc...)  It started my love for the genre, although some may call it an obsession.:evil:  Possibly the most recognizable ship in all of gaming, the Vic Viper is a force to be reckoned with.  The original Gradius introduced a power up weapon system, including lasers, double, missiles, shield, and a mega crush.  It also introduced the use of options a widely used mechanic in many of the current shoot em ups.  With a rocking soundtrack, replay value, good level of difficulty, and some manic bullet patterns in the 2nd loop;  It's not surprising that the NES version of Gradius has aged remarkably well.

The SNES version of Gradius III is a great game and although some may not like the heavy slowdown, It actually makes the game playable.  Many found the Arcade version of Gradius III un-playable, the slow down in the SNES mitigated the level of difficulty and made it possible for all to enjoy.  One of the best shmups of the SNES era, along with Axelay, also by Konami. 

Ordyne, Bio-Hazard Battle, Galaga and Xevious:

Not worth downloading unless your curious or are a fan of the genre.  Yes, Galaga and Xevious are classics but, they are not worth your Wii points.

Final Verdict:

The Seven games that I listed are all worth a download, but it comes down to what kind of shmup player are you?  Strategic, Horizontal, Vertical, Manic, Traditional, etc...   I say pick one from each group, I would go with the original R-Type, Gradius III (if the slow down does not bother you if not, get the original)  and either Soldier Blade or Blazing Lasers.  Each of these games can be pretty tough if you play them the right way, that means no continues.  Of course there are different ways to approach each game; you can play for score, 1cc (One credit clear, no continues), No Miss/Perfect Play (self explanatory), or you can credit feed....... which is a big NO, NO.

You can see game play footage here although they are quite short.

[QUOTE="ASK_Story"]

Keep me updated once Tetris Attack is announced. Than we're talking!

I'll get a Wii just for this game!!! I mean it! That's how much I want to play this again.

bugsonglass

Apparently the DS version (Planet Puzzle League) is the definitive one.  You should get that instead, especially since you have a DS already 

Will do so this week! :P

But I like the character-themed Tetris Attack better. Sure the DS has online, but nothing beats the nostalgia of good childhood memories and Nintendo characters.

[QUOTE="m0zart"][QUOTE="dvader654"]

Yeah, I have it on the collection as well, which I can play on my Wii, why get it again.

armouredpriest

I already own one other original gold copy of each of the games on the Collector's Edition, as well as the hardware to play them on, so one might say "why own the collector's edition at all?" The disc is owned as part of my Zelda collection, but I like consistency and convenience of having playable copies all in one place without having to disturb the collection itself. I consider that kind of convenience to be worth the $5, and I don't have to worry about constantly shifting around the collection and damaging the carts, boxes, discs, etc. Same thing applies to ALttP, I own the original SNES version and the GBA version. I was glad to own it again on the Wii. It's not worth it for everybody I guess, but I like having those things all in one place, and I think the Wii visuals are improved if just by looking better on my HDTV than they do using the original consoles.

This kind of convenience isn't exclusive to the Wii. I have the original Symphony of the Night, yet I was happy to pay a paltry price to download it again on the 360. It was well worth it not to have to pull it down again. And despite owning that and the original TG-CD version of Rondo of Blood, I'll still be buying the Castlevania bundle of the two games for the PSP as well.

I'm in a simlar position. I own quite a few games, but am willing to re-purchase them on VC (or various collections...like the Sega Genesis collection for example). After all, while all still in working order, a number of my systems are older then many of the posters at this web site. I readily jump at the chance to put my older stuff into storage to protect it, and still be able to "play them". Added to this is the ability to make room for the newer systems. Yes, like m0zart, I also own a TG-16 with Rondo of Blood, and I too will be standing in line day one the get that PSP bundle...(though I don't currently own an English language version of Symphony of the Night. Only own the import Saturn version right now. ;) )

I'll downloading a few duplicates myself.  Usually then I'll throw the carts away...I never thought I'd ever throw out Super Mario World, Castlevania or Ghouls and Ghosts for the SNES, but once they are on the VC what's the point in having them anymore.  I actually tossed my launch SNES out and kept the couple of carts I own(Starfox and Zombies Ate My Neighbors) that didn't come out on VC or released on compliations.  Once Majora's Mask comes out I'm getting OOT and MM on VC and the collector's edition is going to be ebayed.

Gah I couldnt contain my excitement until tommorow! Gradius III may be one of the best games I ever played period. It is perfect. It has been a LONG time since I felt that state of gaming euphoria and zoned into a game completly. The graphics are lush and alive, the soundtrack is AMAZING and the gameplay is finely honed and tight. This is some of the best money I ever spent playing a game and I know ill be playing this off and on all the time.

I didnt manage to beat the game....cause well its hard. But I got sort of far I think, I passed this giant bubble part and then went into this earth part where I had to shoot out the earth in front of me and make my own path while this ships were chasing me from every angle lol! I got to the boss of there and he traps you inside two giant laser beams and then shoots this criss cross ray that you have to stay in between and time it right. Argh, he keeps killing me. He has three orbs in the center and I can only get him down to one so far.

I also downloaded the original Gradius which I didnt like because you have to keep pressing a to fire instead of holding the button in (hurts my hand) and its a lot harder it seems. Well ill keep trying it, but so far Gradius III is perfect I dont care about the original in comparison. I also downloaded R-type which im gonna go try in a minute and post impressions on it later.

I wish I remembered the konami code or something to give you extra lives in gradius III because the game is so awesome I just want to see it all, ill have to keep going tooth and nail with that hard ass boss I suppose.

I think im now converted to the schmup camp o_0

GodModeEnabled

I am glad to hear that you are enjoying the greatness of Gradius III and the awesome genre that is shmups!:D

That is one of my favorite bosses and I love how they make fun of their own Boss designs in Gokujou Parodius, instead of the two laser beams, it traps you with two horiozontal streams of cake frosting!!!

You can see the similarities to the Gradius III boss

The original Gradius is a great game but, Gradius III improves on the original formula by leaps and bounds. It's good to play and experience the original..... never forget your roots.  You can hold down the fire button in Gradius but your rapid shot is still too slow, that is why it is good to equip your ship with speed 2x and 3x if you are feeling brave.  This will allow you to fire your weapon at a faster rate, especially if you have two options and a laser.  By the way, how are you approaching the order in which you power up?  I like to start with speed 2x, missile, option, option, laser or shield, option, option, laser or shield, and finally one more speed up.  Did you know that there is a weapon edit mode in Gradius III?  You can select different weapons when you are choosing your type formation.

Here is a neat trick :)   Pause the game during game play and press: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, and see what happens next....... works on both games in different ways.:twisted:

After all these years I am still discovering things in the original Gradius, check the VC sleeper thread for more info on that.

The VC is an awesome gate way to the world of shoot em' ups!  But, there is so much more out there to be discovered in terms of space shooters that it will literally suck you in, it's like crack.:D

I am glad to hear that you are enjoying the greatness of Gradius III and the awesome genre that is shmups!:DThat is one of my favorite bosses and I love how they make fun of their own Boss designs in Gokujou Parodius, instead of the two laser beams, it traps you with two horiozontal streams of cake frosting!!!You can see the similarities to the Gradius III bossThe original Gradius is a great game but, Gradius III improves on the original formula by leaps and bounds. It's good to play and experience the original..... never forget your roots.  You can hold down the fire button in Gradius but your rapid shot is still too slow, that is why it is good to equip your ship with speed 2x and 3x if you are feeling brave.  This will allow you to fire your weapon at a faster rate, especially if you have two options and a laser.  By the way, how are you approaching the order in which you power up?  I like to start with speed 2x, missile, option, option, laser or shield, option, option, laser or shield, and finally one more speed up.  Did you know that there is a weapon edit mode in Gradius III?  You can select different weapons when you are choosing your type formation.Here is a neat trick :)   Pause the game during game play and press: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, and see what happens next....... works on both games in different ways.:twisted:After all these years I am still discovering things in the original Gradius, check the VC sleeper thread for more info on that.The VC is an awesome gate way to the world of shoot em' ups!  But, there is so much more out there to be discovered in terms of space shooters that it will literally suck you in, it's like crack.:DSpirit_of_87