Manual Stimulation: Son Son II (PC Engine)

Considering how wonderfully colorful Son Son II the PC Engine game is, you could be forgiven for assuming Son Son II the PC Engine instruction manual follows suit.

Unfortunately, it doesn't. Or at least it doesn't do so fully. Instead, it does so in fits and spurts.



Its first few pages are a perfect reflection of that. Although the spread seen below features three really nice illustrations, the rest of the acreage on hand is mostly white space and black text.



That's less true when it comes to the spreads that follow, but even then it'd be hard to argue that there's a whole lot more black and white on those pages than there are colorful pieces of art.



At least the pieces of art that are there are easy on the eyes. Granted, I've rarely come across a drawing of a collectable in-game item I didn't like, so maybe I'm alone in finding them appealing.

(Speaking of game items, my friend, Jess, recently published a great blog post about Capcom's long history of silly, strange and intriguing power-ups. I'd definitely recommend reading it if you find such things interesting.)



I also really like the enemy depictions that are showcased in the scan above. The only thing I don't like about them is there are only 11 of them.

Oh, well, at we got those 11, right?

See also: previous 'Manual Stimulation' posts about Don Doko Don, Parasol Stars and Parodius Da!

Nice Package! (Son Son II, PC Engine)

As is true of a surprising number of PC Engine games, I turned up my nose at Son Son II for a good long time before coming around to it.

Which is strange, as in many respects it's the kind of game I usually fall in love with at first sight. After all, it's a platformer, its protagonist is cute as can be and it's slathered in bright, beautiful colors.

So why wasn't I a fan of this 1989 release until recently? One odd reason is that I used to really dislike games with HUDs or status bars that cover large swaths of the screen, which is very much the case for Son Son II. (To see what I mean, check out a few of screenshots over at pcengine.co.uk.)



Thankfully, I was able to put those negative feelings aside when I gave the game a second chance a year or two ago. And during that particular playthrough I came to the conclusion that Son Son II's actually pretty great.

Why? Although I described it as a platformer earlier, it is not a straightforward one. The focus here is on exploring each stage's long, winding and secret-filled maps. That makes the experience a lot more interesting than your typical side-scroller.

In the case of Son Son II, it also makes the experience quite a bit tougher than it would be otherwise, as the game is the opposite of a cakewalk.

Still, it's very much worth playing and owning. The latter's especially true when you consider Son Son II's packaging--i.e., its cover art and HuCard label.

Speaking of the former, which can be seen in this post's first photo, it's easily one of my favorite examples of PC Engine cover art.

It gives potential buyers and players a great idea as to what they're going to see and deal with when they boot it up on their trusty PC Engines.



I've got to admit I'm a bit disappointed the artists and designers at NEC Interchannel (the game's publisher; Capcom developed it) simply copied and pasted Son Son II's main illustrated onto its HuCard label.

At least they decided to change things up while producing its instruction manual--a sample page of which is showcased in the snapshot above.

Don't worry, I'll show off the rest of it in an upcoming "Manual Stimulation" post. I'll warn you now, though, that Son Son II's manual, while lovely, is distressingly short. Oh, well, anything is better than what we get these days, wouldn't you agree?

See also: previous 'Nice Package!' posts about Hana Taaka Daka!?, KiKi KaiKai and Parodius Da!

Five favorites: non-Hudson, non-Konami, non-Namco, non-Taito PC Engine HuCards

I know, I know--the premise of this post is completely ridiculous. Why on earth would you limit such a list rather than open it up to include all of the PC Engine's non-CD games? Because I didn't want it to include the usual suspects (you know, like Galaga '88, Gunhed, Parasol Stars and PC Genjin), that's why.

As you read through this post, by the way, please keep in mind that the games mentioned here represent a selection of my personal favorites for the system in question. In other words, I don't necessarily think they are among the PC Engine's "best," although that may be the case when it comes to one or two of them.

1. Coryoon--The good news about this Naxat-made shmup: it's one of the cutest and most colorful examples of the genre. The bad news: it'll cost you a pretty penny if you want to get your hands on a copy. As such, it's hard to recommend unless you've got deep pockets and also consider yourself a huge fan of horizontal cute 'em ups in the vein of Parodius or, especially, PC Denjin (aka Air Zonk).

2. Gekisha Boy--It's no secret that the PC Engine was home to a lot of weird games. Unfortunately, a good number of them aren't worth more than a few minutes (if that) of your time. This "action photography" title, developed by Tomcat System and published by Irem, is quite the opposite thanks to its ably drawn graphics and its unique-even-today gameplay (that tasks players with snapping photos of interesting people and events while avoiding various obstacles).

3. Hany on the Road--Speaking of weird PC Engine games, this particular HuCard belongs in the "Weird PC Engine Game" Hall of Fame should one ever be created. That's due in part to the game's protagonist, a toddling haniwa figure that looks more than a bit like an anthropomorphic condom, but it's also due to its gameplay, which appealingly recalls (while also approving upon) the platforming antics of classic quarter-munchers like Capcom's SonSon and Konami's Mr. Goemon. (For more on this game, by the way, read my "Great Gaymathon" review of it here.)

Five favorites: PC Engine platformers that don't involve Pithecanthropus Computerus

At first, coming up with a list of favorite PC Engine platformers that don't feature the third wheel in the race of the 16-bit mascots--that would be the "Pithecanthropus Computerus" mentioned in the headline above, who also goes by "PC Genjin" and "Bonk"--seems like a daunting task. After all, when most folks think of NEC's pint-sized system (the Japanese one, at least), the first games that come to mind are Hudson's PC Genjin trio (otherwise known as Bonk's Adventure, Bonk's Revenge and Bonk's Big Adventure in North America).

Think about it for a bit, though, and it becomes apparent that this "little console that could"--because it ably competed with the Genesis/Mega Drive and the SNES/Super Famicom despite the fact that it wasn't a full-fledged 16-bit system--was home to a number of top-shelf run-and-jump (or hop-and-bop) titles.

The five below are my personal favorites. Notice I'm not saying that I think they're the best platformers to grace the PC Engine. Although a couple of them are sure to fit that bill, others are too flawed to be so highly considered. Still, I can't help but like them more than a few of their closer-to-perfect counterparts.

One last thing before I get on with the show, so to speak: I'm not including single-screen platformers--games like Don Doko Don and Parasol Stars--in this post, mainly because they differ pretty substantially from the side-scrolling affairs discussed below.

Bikkuriman World--What a way to start a post like this, eh? I say that because many PC Engine fans likely consider this game's successors, Adventure Island and Dynastic Hero (they're all part of the Wonder Boy series), to be far superior efforts. Although I'd agree with those folks in some respects, I've spent a lot more time playing Bikkuriman World than I have playing either of its follow-ups over the years. I can't really tell you why that is, sadly, although if I had to guess I'd say that it's because I actually like the rather antiquated look--yes, even the Kewpie doll-esque protagonist--and feel of this particular HuCard. Also, I'm a bit of a masochist, which is a must for anyone who wants to tackle this tough-as-nails title.

Mizubaku Daibouken--You certainly don't have to be masochist to enjoy this Taito-made title, which was released outside of Japan as Liquid Kids. That's because this platformer is as cute as can be, what with its bubble-tossing protagonist, adorable enemies (I especially like the ones that look like tottering strawberries) and colorful stages that take players from a lush forest, to (what appears to be) a water-filled cave, to a sandy pyramid. Just because it's cute, though, doesn't mean it's a cake walk. In fact, I've yet to see the end credits of Mizubaku Daibouken--despite spending quite a bit of time with it. My favorite part of this game: Tossing "water bombs" (yeah, I'm not sure what that's supposed to mean either) at anything and everything. Believe me when I say it's addictive.