Nice Package! (Mizzurna Falls, PlayStation)

I've been obsessed with Mizzurna Falls since I first read an article about it on the now-defunct Eastern Mind blog a number of years ago.

You might think it piqued my interest because it's often described as being something of a precursor to the 2010 cult classic, Deadly Premonition. In reality, the thing that initially attracted me to Mizzurna Falls, which released in Japan (and only in Japan) in 1998, was its captivating cover art.



There's just something about its wintry landscape, and the illuminated town that's nestled among its shadowy mountains and trees, that made me want to own and play this game.

I also was drawn to its odd title and even odder subtitle (the latter being "Country of the Woods and Repose"). And then, of course, I couldn't help but find the Twin Peaks-esque story--that focuses on the mystery of a missing girl--and open-world gameplay alluring.

Another intriguing aspect of Mizzurna Falls: it was developed and published by Human Entertainment, the same company that gave the world the classic survival-horror title, Clock Tower.



Not that the two games are at all alike. Oh, Mizzurna Falls has an unsettling air about it, but I wouldn't say it ever even approaches the terrifying heights of Clock Tower.

Given the above, it shouldn't be too surprising to hear this game's instruction manual is a bit quirky. My favorite spread is the one highlighted above, which details the titular town's map.

I also like the pages near the end of Mizzurna Falls' manual, which offer up English and Japanese lyrics to the title's theme song.

For some dumb reason, I failed to take a photo of the Mizzurna Falls game disc when I snapped the others showcased here. I'd take one now, but I didn't bring the CD with me when I left Seattle early this year. (It's currently in storage--and won't be reunited with me until sometime this summer.)

I can tell you that you're not missing a whole lot. The disc basically depicts the same scene printed on the Mizzurna Falls manual cover--only in black and white rather than in color.

Oh, well, the gameplay embedded on that disc is what's important, right? And Mizzurna Falls' exploration-heavy gameplay is--or at least seems to be, I've only played a small portion of it so far--pretty special.



I'll try to share some more detailed impressions of Mizzurna Falls once I get my hands on its CD again in a month or two. At that time, I'll also scan its instruction manual and share the resulting images in a future installment of my "Manual Stimulation" series.

In the meantime, I'd highly recommend reading the Eastern Mind blog post I linked to earlier. It's more than a review; it offers up all sorts of background information and in-depth analysis that help explain why Mizzurna Falls is so impressive--especially for a 19-year-old game.

See also: previous 'Nice Package!' posts about The Adventure of Puppet Princess, Moon: Remix RPG Adventure, Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke and PoPoLoCrois Monogatari.

My most popular posts of 2016

I know this is a pretty self-serving write-up, but I'm publishing it anyway in the hopes it'll make folks aware of some interesting posts they missed earlier in the year.

Which posts, you ask? The ones on this blog that earned the most views in 2016, that's which ones.

Oh, and I've decided to put them in alphabetical order rather than in order of most views to least--in case anyone's curious.

CIB Sunday: World’s Longest 5 Minutes Limited Edition (Vita)

Five overlooked Japanese GameBoy games you need to play as soon as possible

Five overlooked Japanese PlayStation games you need to play as soon as possible

Four reasons I'm planning to nab one of those adorable Nintendo Classic Mini: NES consoles once November rolls around

How to succeed in Pocket Card Jockey without really trying (or, here's what you need to do if you suck at this quirky 3DS eShop title)

Let's chat about Zero Time Dilemma's cover art

Manual Stimulation (KiKi KaiKai, PC Engine)

Nu-Bo, Nuubou, Noobow, New--oh, whatever...

Six 3DS games I'm looking forward to playing at some point in 2016

Some of my favorite SNES games in honor of the system's 25th anniversary

I'm planning to publish follow-ups to a few of the above in 2017, by the way. Can you guess which ones?

Other than that, thank you for viewing these and all of my other blog posts so many times this past year. I greatly appreciate it, as always.

My favorite games of 2016 that weren't actually released in 2016

Well, this is the last of my "favorite games of 2016" posts.

I'm sorry the previous pair--here's one, and here's the other, if you've yet to read them--were so 3DS-centric, by the way. The fact is, other than the couple of hours I put into the Chrono Trigger DS port early this year, most of my "gaming time" in the last 12 months was devoted to 3DS titles.

Aside from the occasional "old" game, I mean.

Speaking of which, the titles discussed below, all of which were released before 2016 (most were released years, if not decades, before), are the ones I enjoyed the most this year.

Dragon Buster II (Famicom)--No one's ever going to call this one of the Famicom's best games. Hell, only a handful of folks are likely to call it one of the system's many overlooked gems. Still, there's no denying it's an intriguing title that's worth exploring if you've had your fill with that 8-bit console's "classics."

Just make sure you don't go into Dragon Buster II thinking the experience is going to be on par with, say, The Legend of Zelda or Faxandu or Crystalis. This cart has nothing on that trio in pretty much any area--music, graphics or gameplay. I spent a good number of hours with it in 2016 anyway, though, because I find its stark, dungeon-crawling action strangely captivating.

You see, Dragon Buster II is one of those games that offers players very little information. You're plopped into labyrinthine stage after labyrinthine stage with no map and no direction or assistance other than "find the key that'll allow you to leave." Said key is hidden inside a random enemy, which means you have to stalk each cavernous locale until it appears.

That Dragon Buster II compels despite its barebones premise, and despite its low-rent visuals and utter lack of backing music, goes a long way toward explaining why I devoted so much time to it this past fall.

Great Greed (GameBoy)--I've been meaning to play this Namco-made RPG (known as Bitamina Oukoku Monogatari in Japan) ever since some kind soul brought it to my attention in the comments of an earlier post--or maybe it was on Twitter or Facebook?--a number of years back.

Why did I wait until 2016 to bite the bullet and give it a go? I honestly don't know, although I have a feeling I dragged my feet for a good, long while because I was turned off by Great Greed's one-on-one, Dragon Quest-esque battles.

I'm now kicking myself for being so foolish, as the enemy encounters here are both snappy--and not just because there are so few participants--and a lot of fun. On top of that, the game's soundtrack is shockingly good and its many environments are wonderfully atypical for the genre. (My favorite is an old record factory--complete with spinning disks that have to be strategically traversed.)

Admittedly, the text in the North American version is rough--to the point of being nonsensical most of the time--but even that generally adds to Great Greed's charm. Sadly, I've yet to beat the game, but I'm planning to do just that early in 2017.

Monster Manor (3DS)--My 3DS Activity Log says I've put more than 35 hours into StreetPass Mii Plaza games so far this year. Almost all of that time was spent with the Prope-made Monster Manor, I can assure you.

Although it's not a game you can play for long, all of my five- and 10-minute stints with it apparently added up over the course of the last 12 months.

Monster Manor's the only StreetPass Mii Plaza title I still return to with any regularity, by the way. (Well, other than Puzzle Swap.) Why? I love its part Tetris, part RPG gameplay, for starters. I also love its wacky assortment of guns (the weapon of choice in Monster Manor). Its colorful cast of ghoulish baddies is a plus, too.

Sigh, I'm going to be so sad if this kind of experience isn't replicated on the Nintendo Switch.

SaGa Frontier (PlayStation)--It's been years since I last played SaGa Frontier. Which is a shame, as this weird, non-linear RPG is one of my all-time favorite games. As for why I returned to it earlier this year, that would be the fault of a guy named finchiekins. He approached me a few months ago about playing SaGa Frontier concurrently, with the goal being to record a podcast about it in 2017.

Sadly, I'm nowhere close to completing my playthrough of Lute's story. Still, I'm getting a kick out of revisiting some of my favorite locations in the game, like Koorong, Manhattan and Shrike. I'm also having a blast reacquainting myself with Kenji Ito's rocking soundtrack. More than anything, though, I'm loving SaGa Frontier's mind-blowing battles, which to this day make me giddier than those found in pretty much any other RPG.

Honestly, if I could play this on my Vita, I'd probably plunk more hours into it than any other game in 2017.

Which games--old or new--did you enjoy the most this past year? Share your thoughts and feelings on them in the comments section that follows.

Five overlooked Japanese PlayStation games you need to play as soon as possible

Most folks who love the original PlayStation know all about Japan-only gems like Harmful Park, LSD: Dream Emulator, Rakugaki Showtime, Slap Happy Rhythm Busters, Vib-Ribbon and Umihara Kawase Shun.

There are a lot of other PSone imports that are worth picking up and playing, though--and many of them are far more affordable than the titles mentioned above. Here are five such games. (Bonus: all of the following can be enjoyed without knowing a lick of Japanese.)

Engacho!--I know why people ignore this game even after they become aware of it. It's gross--and not in a Mortal Kombat kind of way. No, this colorful puzzler is gross in an "it's full of boogers and spit and smelly armpit hair" kind of way. The thing is, the brain-teasing gameplay that surrounds all of this grossness is not only fun and challenging, but unique. To learn more about it, read my Engacho! review. (If you'd also like to get a glimpse of this game's outer case, disc and manual, check out my post, "What in the hell does Engacho! mean, anyway?"

Gussun Paradise--Although I can understand why a lot of Westerners shy away from Engacho!, I'm completely flummoxed that they treat Gussun Paradise in the same manner. For starters, the latter game was made by the masters at Irem. Second, it's a single-screen platformer à la Don Doko Don and all kinds of other Taito releases. Third, its graphics are so cute and colorful it's hard not to grin like an idiot while basking in their glow. For more information on this Gussun Oyoyo spinoff, and to see some snapshots of its packaging, peruse this old post about it.

Lup Salad: Loopop Cube--If adorable games tend to give you toothache, you may have to see your dentist for a root canal after playing this puzzler-platformer from 2012. Not only are its sprite-based characters, blocks and backdrops as precious as can be, but the same can be said of its ear-pleasing soundtrack. You'd do well to try Loopop Cube (or Lupupu Cube or Rupupu Cube) even if the description and screenshot above give you pause, though, as the block-pushing and -matching gameplay at the center of this title will entice even the biggest haters to waste many an hour on it.

Mad Panic Coaster--All of the Japan-only PlayStation games that have been discussed up to this point are unquestionably enjoyable affairs. The same can't be said of Mad Panic Coaster. So why on earth have I included it here? Because it's so damn weird--it's basically an on-rails racer that's set on a bunch of themed roller coasters--that it's worth playing even if it can be maddeningly frustrating and difficult at times. If you're a collector of import PSone titles, by the way, do yourself a favor and hunt down a complete-in-box copy of Mad Panic Coaster. Its instruction manual (ogle scans of it here) alone will make you appreciate your purchase.

Susume! Taisen Puzzle-Dama--For whatever reason, Konami's long-running Taisen Puzzle-Dama never made waves outside of Japan like other match-two and -three titles from the same era. You know the ones I'm talking about: Columns, Magical Drop, Puyo Puyo and their ilk. That's too bad, as the various iterations of Taisen Puzzle-Dama I've played--including this one and one that features the company's TwinBee characters--are a blast. That's partially because of its frantic puzzling action, of course, but it's also because of its wacky cast (see above) and sense of humor.

Can you think of any unfortunately overlooked or ignored Japan-only PSone games that people in other parts of the world really need to play? If so, share them in the comments section of this post.

Shall We Do It? (Great Greed, Kingdom's Item Shop, Onyanko Town and SaGa Frontier)

I know it's no longer surprising to hear me say I haven't spent much time playing games in recent days and weeks.

Unfortunately, it's the truth--and has been for a while now. That's mainly because I went from being acceptably busy to ridiculously busy earlier this year when I was promoted at work (from senior writer to managing editor). Before, I pretty much never brought work home with me; now, I work basically every weekend and also some weeknights.

And when I'm not working, my attention's often pulled away from playing games to take care of all those boring things nearly everyone has to do on a daily basis--cleaning the house, cooking dinner, exercising, yadda yadda yadda.

Oh, and I have to maintain this blog.

I was able to shove most of that aside just long enough the last two weekends to put in some time with the following titles. Keep reading to hear what I think of those experiences.

Great Greed (GameBoy)--Until a couple of years ago (right before I bought a copy of Bitamina Oukoku Monogatari, the Japanese version of this portable RPG), I was completely unaware of Namco's Great Greed. Which is too bad, as I now know I would've loved working my way through it as a teen. (It was released in Japan in 1992 and crossed the pond the next year.)

Why? The main reason is the battles. They're as snappy as you're ever going to get in a turn-based RPG on the GameBoy. All of them are one-on-one tussles (the game's protagonist versus a single enemy) and they move along at a nice pace thanks to the fact that commands are mapped to the system's A and B buttons as well as its control pad. (A prompts you to attack, B causes you to dodge and the d-pad casts magic.)

On top of that, Great Greed has a surprisingly stunning soundtrack. And then there's its undeniable weirdness. Some of the themes and other things you'll encounter while playing it: time travel, flan enemies, environmental pollution, corrupt politicians and dungeons set in abandoned record factories. In other words, it's basically the best game in existence.



Kingdom's Item Shop (3DS)--I've got to be honest: I paid little attention to this ASOBOX- and PUMO-developed game between the time publisher Circle Entertainment announced and released it. In fact, it wasn't until someone asked me (in the comments section of this recent post) if I'd bought Kingdom's Item Shop that I was made aware of it.

That push prompted me to do a little digging, which brought me to the screenshot above. As soon as I saw that, I was hooked. That's because the scene in question reminds me of an old PC Engine CD title I've had my eye on for years: Monster Maker. Granted, the games are nothing alike--Kingdom's Item Shop is more of a store-running sim with some fun, fast-paced battles thrown in for good measure, while Monster Maker is a full-on, traditional RPG--but that's never stopped me from salivating over a game before.

Anyway, Kingdom's Item Shop is a whole heap of fun. There's no question it has that "mobile game" feel, but at least the feeling here is of quality rather than "cash in." Those fights I mentioned a couple of sentences ago are the highlight, by the way. They're not what you're used to, though; in this adventure, you give commands to for-hire combatants and then race around the battlefield picking up items and ingredients dropped by your foes.

Then you take your haul back to your shop and use those components to concoct enticing products--drinks, food dishes, weapons, clothes and more--for the titular kingdom's inhabitants to snap up. There may be more to the experience than that, but for the moment, that's it as far as I'm concerned. And I'm more than OK with that.

Onyanko Town (Famicom)--I've been curious about this Micronics-made and Pony Canyon-published cartridge for ages now thanks to its adorable box art. Why I waited until a couple of weekends ago to play it for the first time, I can't say.

Am I glad I've finally experienced it? In a way, yes. I say that because Oynanko Town's graphics, while simple, are miles better than what I'd expect from a developer that's never before pinged my radar. (I especially like the sprite of the dress-wearing mama cat that serves as the game's protagonist.) Its gameplay, which reminds of Namco's classic Pac-Man, also surprises.

On the other hand, Onyanko Town is far from a perfect game. While the main backing tune is catchy, it's also piercing and wears out its welcome after just a few minutes. Even worse is the slowdown that regularly brings the action on offer here to a crawl. That's a big deal because the point of the game is hunt down your baby kitten and then bring him (or is it a her?) back home without being accosted by the many dogs and butchers who roam each of the cart's expansive stages.

The latter issue is especially disappointing, as I could see Onyanko Town being held up as a treasured classic, or at least a hidden gem, if it weren't sometimes so frustratingly slow.

SaGa Frontier (PlayStation)--It's been a long time since I've played this wackadoodle, late-1990s RPG. So why am I returning to it now? Because my friend finchiekins suggested it.

OK, so there was more to the decision than that. After all, SaGa Frontier is one of my all-time favorite games. What can I say? I adore its absolutely bonkers, combo-filled battle scenes, which did the overkill thing way before Disgaea and its ilk entered the picture. Also, its Kenji Ito-composed soundtrack is beyond fabulous and deserves to be discussed right alongside the music created for two other Squaresoft greats, Final Fantasy V and VI. Finally, there's something undeniably cool about being able to play through an RPG multiple times using different protagonists.

Have SaGa Frontier's graphics stood the test of time? Hardly, but let's be honest: a lot of people considered it hideous when it first saw the light of day. In that context, I'd say it's no more ugly today than it was back then. Plus, I've always found its character sprites and (somewhat poorly) pre-rendered enemies rather appealing. Even if I didn't, I'm pretty sure I'd still look at SaGa Frontier lovingly thanks its many other positive traits.

See also: previous 'Shall We Do It?' posts

Nice Package! (Moon: Remix RPG Adventure + UFO: A Day in the Life, PlayStation)

I can't say for sure which "modern" game system boasts the biggest and best selection of odd and off-the-wall titles, but I'm inclined to suggest it's the original PlayStation.

Admittedly, arguments could be made in favor of the Famicom (NES), the DS and even the PC Engine, but at the moment I'm leaning toward Sony's maiden console thanks in large part to the pair of games that serve as the focus of this post.

In case this is the first you've heard of these titles, both are wackadoodle adventures conjured up by the wizards at Love-de-Lic, Inc. That name may ring a bell if you're a fan of some other out-there games, like Chulip, Giftpia, Little King's Story and Chibi-Robo! Not that Love-de-Lic developed those titles, mind you. They were made--in part, at least--by former Love-de-Lic employees, though. (Those staffers went on to form Punchline, skip and Vanpool.)

Love-de-Lic itself produced just three games during its disappointingly brief, five-year existence. One was 2000's L.O.L.: Lack of Love, a head-scratcher for Sega's Dreamcast. The others were the titles highlighted in the headline above--1999's UFO: A Day in the Life and 1997's Moon: Remix RPG Adventure.

I spent a number of years pining for Moon: Remix RPG Adventure before I finally bought it. That's because complete-in-box copies tend to be pricey. 

I lucked out and nabbed the one you see here for a veritable steal some months ago while perusing the wares of one of my favorite eBay vendors.

It isn't in pristine condition, mind you, but it's in good enough condition that I'm more than happy with the purchase.

Anyway, I really like Moon: Remix RPG Adventure's whimsical disc label, showcased in the photo above, for whatever reason.

Don't get me wrong, it's instruction manual is nice, too. It's definitely a bit on the "uh, wow" side, as the focus of the following snapshot should make clear, but that's part of its charm, don't you think?

Sadly, I've yet to even slip my Moon: Remix RPG Adventure disc into my adorable Japanese PSone system. I hope to rectify that soon, but I've said that many times before, so who knows when it'll actually happen.

Hell, it's possible the game's fan translation, which has been in the works for ages now, will be out before give this pick-up a go. Oh, well. 

I know for sure I'll play my copy of UFO: A Day in the Life before its fan translation sees the light of day. That's because, as far as I know, no one is working on a fan translation of this curious Japan-only release.



Which is too bad, as both Hardcore Gaming 101's and Wikipedia's write-ups about the game make it sound awfully interesting.

In particular, UFO's Wikipedia entry suggests the adventure on offer here is at least somewhat Chulip-esque. That intrigues me for reasons I can't quite explain, as the month I spent with that 2002 PS2 title a couple of years ago was trying at best.

Here's portion of the entry in question, should any of you want to read it: "UFO: A Day in the Life puts the player in the role of an extraterrestrial attempting to save a group of 50 fellow aliens who have been stranded on Earth. The player must navigate areas that humans and animals inhabit, unable to actually see the alien he or she is trying to rescue. To this effect, the player must use a device called 'COSMIC,' a kind of camera, to reveal the creatures. As more aliens are rescued, more areas open up and different times of day are available for exploration."

Honestly, though, even if UFO: A Day in the Life proves to be a smelly turd of a game, I want to play through as much of it as I'm able at some point in time.

Have any of you played either of these Love-de-Lic products? If so, what did or do you think about them? Let me and others here know in the comments section below.

Also, if you'd like to see a few more snapshots like the ones above, pay a visit to my Flickr photostream.

See also: previous 'Nice Package!' posts

Nice Package! (Valkyrie no Densetsu, PC Engine)

I've had kind of an up and down history with Namco's ancient Valkyrie no Densetsu (aka Legend of Valkyrie). Early on, it was the kind of gaming experience that caused me to wrinkle my nose in disgust. In recent months, though, my reaction to this antiquated adventure title, first released as a Japanese quarter-muncher back in 1989, has softened.

As for what prompted this change of heart, well, I'd be lying if I said the 1990 PC Engine port's beautiful packaging--its eye-popping instruction manual, especially--didn't play a role.



Really, though, Valkyrie no Densetsu’s cover art, HuCard label and how-to booklet just gave me that last little nudge needed to get me to buy the game.

Before that, I’d actually come around to its initially off-putting visuals and its limited gameplay. The latter was easier to embrace than the former, despite the fact that it pales in comparison to similar offerings like The Legend of Zelda. (Whereas even the first Zelda effort allows you to wander and explore, Valkyrie limits you to a set path—which at times feels annoyingly restrictive.)

Does all of this drool-covered praise mean I’d suggest other folks add Valkyrie no Densetsu to their collections? I guess you could say that—if you own a PC Engine (or some other device capable of playing that system’s credit card-sized cartridges) and if you’re fine with playing games from an entirely different era.

Even if you can shake your head yes to both of those requirements, though, I’d still recommend playing Valkyrie in some form or fashion (such as through emulation) before handing over your hard-earned cash for it.



Thankfully, you shouldn’t find yourself in the poorhouse if you ignore my advice and purchase it anyway, as copies tend to be reasonably priced.

Plus, even if you end up hating the game—or even if you only play it a few times and then decide you’re done with it—you’ll still be able to enjoy its colorful instruction manual, a couple of pages of which can be ogled in the photos found above and below.



There's a lot more where all of this came from, though, believe me. I guess this means I have to hit the scanner soon and produce another "Manual Stimulation" post, eh?

While I get to that, have any of you played any iteration of Valkyrie no Densetsu? Although the PC Engine port is the focus of this write-up, the original arcade version was included on 1997's Namco Museum Volume 5 and it also made its way onto the (Japanese) Wii Virtual Console in 2009.

See also: 'Second Chances (Valkyrie no Densetsu, PC Engine)' and previous 'Nice Package!' posts

6 retro games I'm looking forward to buying and playing in 2016

You all knew this was coming, right? Or at least you had a strong feeling it was coming after you saw (and maybe even read) the posts I published over the last few weeks about some of the 3DS, DS, PSP,  Vita, Wii and even Xbox 360 games I'm looking forward to playing in 2016.  

At any rate, here's a little write-up about six of the older games I want to buy and play between now and the end of this year. 

Bahamut Lagoon (Super Famicom)--I'm not sure how it came to be that I've played at least a smidgen of all of Squaresoft's Super Famicom titles except this one. Oh, and Hanjuku Hero. Anyway, I've been curious about this strategy RPG since it was first released back in 1996, so I figure now's as good a time as any to finally give it a go--especially since I'm currently on a bit of a SuFami kick at the moment. 

Dig Dug II (Famicom)--OK, so I've actually spent a few minutes with this odd sequel to Namco's arcade classic before now. The emphasis should be on "few," by the way. Why haven't I spent more time with it? To be honest, its gameplay, which veers quite a distance from that of the original Dig Dug's, didn't sit well with me. Still, I want to own an actual copy of Dig Dug II (I've only experienced it via emulation up to this point), and I'm desperately hoping the expenditure will prompt me to push past my indifference and find a way to appreciate, if not embrace, this 1986 release.

Kaze no Notam (PlayStation)--Considering copies of this Japan-only PlayStation title, made by those wonderful weirdos at Artdink, cost just a couple of dollars these days, it's ridiculous that I've yet to pick one up. It's even more ridiculous given that it's been on my "to buy" list for ages now. Of course, how could it not be on such a list? It's a game that tasks players will piloting a hot-air balloon, for crying out loud. Granted, this surprisingly recent review of Kaze no Notam makes it sound like more of an "experience" than a proper game, but that doesn't bother me much.

Rhyme Rider Kerorican (WonderSwan)--Here's another old game I've had designs on owning for years. That's easy to understand when you read its credits--namely, that it was developed by the folks at NanaOn-Sha, better known as the makers of PaRappa the Rapper, UmJammer Lammy and Vib-Ribbon. Rhyme Rider Kerorican isn't supposed to be anywhere near as good as those classic PlayStation games, but I want to own--and play--it anyway thanks to its cheery visuals and its "generative melody" (which means its soundtrack changes based on your in-game actions).

Salamander (PC Engine)--I'm a big fan of Konami's output during the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. As such, I've played a lot of their games from those years--especially the ones that are part of the shmup (or shoot 'em up) genre. The odd man (if you can imbue a video game with gender) out here is this Gradius follow-up. Why have I given it the cold shoulder for so long? This is shock a good number of Salamander fans, I'm sure, but the simple truth is that I've never really cared for this game's aesthetics. Also, I've never been all that keen on top-down shmups. (The unquestionably fantastic Pop'n TwinBee for the Super Famicom is a rare exception.) Despite those misgivings, one of my many gaming-related goals for 2016 is to give Salamander a second chance--and hopefully walk away from the encounter with a newfound appreciation for this seemingly unique title.

Shining Force Gaiden (Game Gear)--The first pair of Shining Force titles, which were released for the Genesis (or Mega Drive) back in the early 1990s, are two of my all-time favorite games. Sadly, that love has yet to translate into me picking up copies of this vaunted series' Game Gear spin-offs. Which is a shame, as all three of them look like quality efforts. On top of that, none of these releases seem to be horribly expensive these days, which is a definite plus in this era of skyrocketing retro-game prices.

Are you hoping to buy and play any particular retro games within the confines of this year? If so, let me and others know which ones in the comments section that follows.

See also: my earlier posts about the 3DS, DS, PSP,  Vita, Wii and even Xbox 360 games I'm looking forward to playing in 2016

We're nearly legal (aka The Nichiest Podcast Ever #17 is now available for your aural pleasure)

Are you the sort who likes to listen to silly people chat about video games during your free time? If so, you'll probably get a kick out of the latest installment of The Nichiest Podcast Ever.

What do Anne, Mollie and I blather on about this time around? A bunch of recently released and soon-to-be-released North American games, for starters, Also, a small handful of just-announced Japanese games.

Oh, and all of the above are niche-y as hell, of course.



We also spend a couple of minutes discussing our ever-embarrassing backlogs, with SaGa Frontier 2, We Love Katamari and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D being a few of the games I singled out.

Finally, we pull out our favorite pom-poms and cheer on a trio of titles we think deserve a bit more attention. (Actually, my pick--the fabulously EarthBound-esque Undertale--has gotten a whole lot of love on line as of late, but I bring it up here anyway because I'm enjoying it so much.)

Sound scintillating? Point your Internet browser of choice to radio.morningproject.com--or search for "The Nichiest Podcast Ever" on iTunes, I guess--and have a blast.

Nice Package! (Ore no Shikabane, PlayStation)

Truth be told, I completely ignored the Japanese PlayStation game known as Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke for a good couple of years after I first became aware of it due to its cover art, which I found oddly creepy.



Eventually, I learned more about this Alfa System-developed game, and what I learned prompted me to have a change of heart about it.

Specifically, I learned that Ore no Shikabane o Koete Yuke (Over My Dead Body in English) is an RPG with a really cool art style and an intriguing premise that revolves around the son of a legendary warrior who has been cursed--along with any and all offspring--to age much faster than usual. The only way to get rid of said curse is to kill the demon who put it on you, so that's exactly what you and your spawn are tasked with doing throughout the course of this game (or so I've been told).



Which I guess helps explain why both the box cover and manual cover produced for Ore no Shikabane--or, Oreshika, as it's known in Japan--feature close-up shots of children's faces.



Speaking of Oreshika's manual, it's a real doozy--as in, it's almost biblical compared to your typical, run-of-the-mill PlayStation instruction booklet.

Although most of its many pages are rather boring and are filled with a ton of text (such as the example showcased in the photo above), a choice few feature gorgeous illustrations like the one that can be seen below.

Here's another pretty good example, I think. Plus, the art in the snapshot below includes a bit of beefcake, which is never a bad thing, if you ask me. 

Please accept my apologies for not chronicling via a photo or two the CD that contains all of Oreshika's surely convoluted code. If memory serves, I passed on doing so because the disc in question is of the mirrored-surface-bearing-a-not-entirely-appealing-design variety.



Anyway, I know I say this all the time, but I really am going to do my best to pop this game into my adorable Japanese PSone sometime soon and at least try to stumble my way through its first few hours. After I do that, I'll return here and share my thoughts in some form or fashion.

In the meantime, have any of you played either this game or its Vita-based sequel, which was released in the West earlier this year?

Nice Package! (The Adventures of Puppet Princess, PlayStation)

One of the byproducts of my most recent attempt to learn the Japanese language (don't worry, I'm still working on it, albeit slowly) has been a reignited interest in a certain world-conquering system made by a little company called Sony.

The system in question is the original PlayStation, naturally (OK, so I could've said it was the PS2, but to be honest I've always preferred Sony's first effort in this space to its second), and the focus of my renewed interest in this console has been on its amazingly diverse catalog of Japanese releases.

The game seen below, known outside of Japan as Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure, is a good example. I mean, it's an RPG that stars a female protagonist and features all kinds of sing-songy cutscenes.



My original plan was to buy the North American version of this Nippon Ichi-made game, by the way, but I quickly changed course after I came across (while perusing eBay) the copy shown throughout this post.

Granted, it helped that this particular copy carried a surprisingly cheap price tag. (It was less than $5, to be exact.)



It also helped that I found The Adventures of Puppet Princess' cover art to be rather appealing in its Disney-esque simplicity.

The art produced for the front of this title's instruction manual (see above) is even nicer, if you ask me.



The inside of The Adventures of Puppet Princess' manual is stuffed with similarly adorable illustrations, with the ones shown above and below being but a fraction of what's made available to those who pick up copies of this PlayStation game.



Have any of you played some iteration or other of this lovely little RPG? If so, which version have you experienced, and what did you think of it?

See also: other recent 'Nice Package!' write-ups about Hyakumanton no Bara Bara (for the PSP), PoPoLoCrois Monogatari (for the PSone) and my new 'noble pink' Nintendo DS Lite

Nice Package! (PoPoLoCrois Monogatari, PlayStation)

I've looked upon PoPoLoCrois Monogatari, a role-playing game that was developed and published by Sony Computer Entertainment and first released in Japan in the summer of 1996, with a curious eye for a number of years now.

I refrained from buying it, though, because of the language barrier. Although I was more than happy to attempt to play through Japanese RPGs as a teen, I've become less and less willing to do so as I’ve gotten older.

Or at least that’s how I felt until I returned to my Japanese studies earlier this year. Now that I’ve got the language’s hiragana and katakana syllabaries down pat (again) and I’ve started learning actual words and phrases and grammar, I’m feeling quite a bit more confident in my ability to tackle an adventure like this one.

Which should go a long way toward explaining why I finally picked up the copy of PoPoLoCrois Monogatari that can be seen in the photos scattered throughout this post a couple of weeks ago.

Although I’ve yet to start playing it, I’m planning to do just that soon. (Specifically, as soon as this night class I’ve been taking, on and off, for the last nine months wraps up in a couple of weeks.)

In the meantime, I thought I’d share a few snapshots of the game’s packaging, which, in my humble opinion, is so pretty that it deserves every whistle and catcall thrown its way.



I find the game’s cover art especially appealing, I’ve got to say—although, really, only a person with a heart of stone would consider it anything less than stunning, wouldn’t you agree?



I decided to include the photo above here, by the way, because the sticker that is its focus shows that, at some point in its life, this particular copy of PoPoLoCrois Monogatari sat on the shelves of Tokyo’s world-famous Super Potato game shop.



There’s no need to explain the preceding shot, though, is there? After all, the art that’s splashed across the top side of this game’s disc is nearly as spectacular as the art that peeks through its case—or at least that’s how I see things.

I wish I could tell you why I failed to snap any photos of the interior of PoPoLoCrois Monogatari’s instruction manual, but at the moment I’m unable to conjure up any reasons. Don’t worry, I plan on rectifying matters this weekend, so look for some of the above to be published on my Flickr photostream within the next few days.

While you wait, you likely could do worse than waste a handful of minutes ogling the lovely sticker sheet that was hidden inside the manual in question.