Twinkle Tale for Sega Mega Drive

February 28, 2013 by stopXwhispering

I recently bought this amazing shooter from FredJ, it’s called Twinkle Tale for Sega Mega Drive! It was released exclusively in Japan in 1992, developed by Zap Corporation and published by WAS (Wonder Amusement Studio). I’ve never heard of any one of these two, but they sure did a great job with this game!

Twinkle Tale is an overhead shmup, but it’s different since your character is walking around on the ground and you can walk in all directions. There are chests to open, narrow paths to follow and different roads to choose from (they all lead to the same end though). At first glance it looks like a fantasy RPG (and you all know how fond I am of RPG’s… >_<) but when you start shooting, feeling the fluent controls and experiencing the amazing graphics and sprites it all changes and you can’t do anything but love this game! ^_^

Since I still can’t record gameplay from my japanese Sega Mega Drive I had to use my iPhone to try and take some screenshots..

You can set the game to various difficult levels, I started on normal, but it was still pretty difficult.. The controls are pretty simple. You have a magic attack which is limited unless you pick up power-ups for it, but 3 is the maximum you can carry. You shoot with the B button and you can change between 3 various shots with C.

The first shot is straight forward and powerful, the second one spreads wider and is a bit less powerful, the third shot is a homing shot that aims directly towards any enemies but is pretty weak. This third one is the one I ended up using mostly during the stages since it took out all the smaller foes and medium foes quickly, but on the bosses I preferred the strong shot. You can level up all your shots to a maximum of lvl 3. If you get hit you loose one lvl of the shot you have equipped. You will quickly find power-ups though, since there are a lot of chests and stuff that carry items in all the stages.

You have three life bars, once you get hit three times it’s Game Over. However you have a couple of credits. You will encounter mobs of enemies coming at you, goblins throwing sticks, bats, mages, giant stone golems, skeletons, gargoyles and various other creatures. The enemies are very varied and well made and you encounter new ones on each stage.

You will also encounter various obstacles throughout the stages, like falling rocks in narrow paths, shooting arrows from the walls etc.

I made it as far as to the second boss on my first couple of credits. I made a few stupid mistakes, like walking right up the path where the boss would come from, thinking that was the way out, and he killed me instantly >_< I bet my second attempt will go much better! I just had to stop to write about it first ^_^ I also took some picture from the manual. It looks like it’s torn all around the edges but that “rip” is actually printed on the paper, I guess to make it look old?

And here’s the first boss, a three headed dragon-lion-thingy:

And the second boss, a giant floating knight casting lightning:

This game is pretty rare, and it wasn’t cheap, but I’m really happy I bought it. It’s an awesome addition to my collection and it has great replay value! I will continue my attempt to advance past the second boss after this post ;D

Secret Sega prize!

February 3, 2013 by stopXwhispering

Today the secret prize has arrived to theSegaDude who won the contest!

For those of you who were curious, then here is what it contained! :D

I actually waited until the winner was announced to decide what the package should contain, since I wanted to optimize the prize for whoever would win ^_^ Since theSegaDude is a Sega collector, the price was Sega inspired! :D

First of all a game, that I don’t think he already had in his collection: Tiny Toons Adventure: Busters Hidden Treasure

Then I made SEGA coasters with perler beads! :D

And then I also made a few artworks from Sega characters such as Sonic and Opa-Opa from Fantasy Zone (which is theSegaDude’s avatar) ^_^

Check out the unwrapping of the prize on theSegaDude’s site! :D

Package in the mail today! Atari, Sega, PC Engine & Atomic Robo-kid!

November 21, 2012 by stopXwhispering

Today I got two packages in the mail. It was a treat since I had totally forgot what it was that I had bought ^_^ (Yes my memory is sometimes like the one of a goldfish >_<) Anyway, the first package came in a padded envelope, inside was this really convenient box for the size of a CD case! (Yes, small details and things like this amazes me…)

And in the package was also what looked like a 10.000 ¥en bill?!

But this turned out to be a printed thank-you-for-buying-note! Really clever ^_^ Thank you Game Sensei! It was a true pleasure doing business with you :D And below you can see that the game I had bought was Atomic Robo-kid for PC Engine!

So I tried this game out tonight, and it was a blast!! A great horizontal shooter, with this cute Atomic Robo-kid sprite and cool powerups! It was really fast and fun!

Below follows a montage with screenshots and gifs I made from gameplay footage ^_^ All images are clickable to view larger :)

I got to the second boss, but then I got a Game Over after having used up all my continues >.< It was quite hard, but I will try to give it another go soon ^_^ In the second package I got two Sega games, Gangster Town for Sega Master System and Slime World for Sega Mega Drive. I’ve been looking for Slime World since I saw that TheSegaDude had gotten it ;D And I finally found a decent japanese copy of the game. Can’t wait to try it out! :D

I love the boxart for Slime World!! I have no idea what Gangster Town is.. it was dirt cheap! so I bought it…

Two other games were hiding in the second package! Star Wars Jedi Arena and Millipede for Atari 2600! Millipede also had a manual, something I was not even aware of when I bought it on Ebay ^_^ It’s huuuuge compared to the actual game haha! :D

The Millipede manual actual contains some hints to this incredibly frustrating game ;D It says:
Make sure you keep your eye on the millipede while you’re getting rid of the other pests. The millipede can sneak up on you if you’re not careful (NO SHIT!) so keep it under control.
… Each insect has its own unique sound so listen closely and you can anticipate what will be coming next! (I actually did not know that! Did you?)

My Castlevania Collection!

October 10, 2012 by stopXwhispering

So what’s on this shelf.. well I have scanned all of my Castlevania games, so let’s start with the 8-bits and move forwards ^_^
edit: now my collection is taking up two shelves ^_^

edit: Now I’ve moved into a bigger game room and my Castlevania collection takes up an entire glass cabinet ^_^ And I’ve gotten this pretty Castlevania bit art frame from Cave of Pixels :D

Castlevania Collection

Castlevania Simon Belmont pixelart

Nintendo NES Castlevania games

Castlevania
The first Castlevania adventure for the NES. I have found a nice complete copy ^_^ I also have a rental box copy from Yapon that was released here in Sweden.

Castlevania II Simon’s Quest
I got a complete PAL version of the second Castlevania adventure for the NES, Simon’s Quest :)

Castlevania III Dracula’s Curse
This one is complete in box and in quite nice condition.

NES – Castlevania

NES – Castlevania Yapon rental case

NES – Castlevania Simon’s Quest

NES – Castlevania III Dracula’s Curse

Castlevania reproduction / hacks

Castlevania Blood Moon
This is not an actual release, it’s an NES reproduction cart with a fan-made hack of the Castlevania game.

Castlevania Chorus of Mysteries
This one is also an NES reproduction cart with a fan made hack.

NES Hack – Castlevania Blood Moon

NES Hack – Castlevania Chorus of Mysteries

Famicom & Famicom Disk System Castlevania

Akumajou no Densetsu 悪魔城伝説 (Castlevania III Dracula’s Curse)
The third Castlevania game, released for the Famicom.

Akumajou Special Boku Dracula-kun 悪魔城すぺしゃるぼくドラキュラくん
A cute platforming spinnoff of the Castlevania series. Released for the Famicom by Konami. I have it complete in box in really nice condition but just scanned the cart for the Famicom collection.

Akumajou no Dracula 悪魔城ドラキュラ (Castlevania I)
The first Castlevania adventure for the Famicom Disk System. I have this one complete with the outer plastic box and manual, but scanning the complete package with that box looks terrible >_< So I just scanned the inner case with the game and inlay.

Dracula 2 The Accursed Seal (Noroi no Fuuin) ドラキュラII呪いの封印 (Castlevania II Simon’s Quest)
The second Castlevania game on Famicom Disk System. Same here I have it complete in box with manual, but scanned the inner case with game and inlay.

Akumajyou Densetsu (Castlevania 3)

Akumajou special Boku Dracula-kun

FDS – Akumajou Dracula (Castlevania)

FDS -Dracula II (Castlevania Simon’s Quest)

Castlevania on MSX

Akumajou Dracula
I just bought this from another Castlevania collector. Since I’ve recently gotten myself an MSX system I thought it was time to invest in a copy of the Castlevania game for it ^_^ I’m not sure however whether my MSX is an MSX 2 or not.. I hope I will be able to play it o_O

MSX 2 – Akumajou Dracula

MSX 2 – Akumajou Dracula back

Castlevania on Sharp X68000

Akumajou Dracula
I just got Castlevania for Sharp X68000, I’ve been hesitating a lot on this one since I don’t own the system to play it on. I’ve also heard that the Sharp X68000 is quite rare, expensive and difficult to obtain. So I won’t be able to play it for probably quite some time :( But at least the beautiful box is now gracing my Castlevania Collection shelf..

X68000 – Akumajou Dracula

Castlevania handhelds

Castlevania II Simon’s Quest Tiger handheld
Here’s a handheld version of the Simon’s Quest Castlevania game. It’s really nothing like Simon’s Quest for the NES, it’s a very basic sidescrolling beat ’em up, but still a nice edition to the collection ^_^

Castlevania Symphony of the Night Tiger handheld
Much like the Simon’s Quest Tiger handheld, this is also just a side-scrolling beat ’em up game, though a bit more advanced with more options.

Simon’s Quest Tiger Handheld

Castlevania Symphony of the Night Tiger handheld

Nintendo Game Boy Castlevania

Dracula Densetsu トラキュラ伝説 (Castlevania Adventures)
The first Castlevania game for the Game Boy. I wrote a bit about this game here. One thing that baffles me about this game is that hearts = health, where is the wall chicken?! I have this game in PAL edition as well, however only the loose cartridge.

Dracula Densetsu II トラキュラ伝説II (The Castlevania Adventure II Belmont’s revenge)
The second Castlevania game for the Game Boy. Great adventure, great music. Shouldn’t be missed out on, all the Castlevania Game Boy games are completely new adventures, not just ports of the NES/Famicom games. I have this in PAL as well, but just the cartridge.

Akumajou Dracula Shikkokutaru Zensoukyoku 悪魔城ドラキュラダークナイトプレリュード (Castlevania Legends)
Probably my favourite Castlevania adventure for the Game Boy. I made a video of where I finished it here. Really hard final boss! But thanks to the password system I managed to go back and finally beat him ^_^ Great music in this one! Like most Castlevania games ;D You should really check out my video just to listen to the first stage song, a great remix of the Daylight music from Simon’s Quest! Also the Final Boss brings back the Vampire Killer theme song but in a new version, it’s kickass!! What are you waiting for? Go put on that video in the background to listen to those awesome tunes! ^_^

Castlevania Legends
I also have the PAL edition for Game Boy.

Castlevania II Belmont’s Revenge
This is the same as Dracula Densetsu II, but the PAL release :) I’m still missing the first one in PAL release, but it’s still the same game so I can play the Japanese one meanwhile ^_^

GB – Castlevania Adventures JP

GB – Castlevania Adventures II JP

GB – Castlevania Legends JP

GB – Castlevania Legends

Game Boy – Castlevania II Belmont’s Revenge

Nintendo Game Boy Advance Castlevania

Akumajou no Dracula 悪魔城ドラキュラ (Castlevania)
The Famicom Mini Edition. Castlevania re-released for the Game Boy Advance in Japan.

Castlevania NES CLASSICS
The NES Classics edition for the Game Boy Advance. Also contains a re-release of the first Castlevania game for the NES.

Castlevania Harmony of Dissonance
The third Castlevania adventure for the Game Boy Advance. There was a Game Boy Advance release that contained both Aria of Sorrow and Harmony of Dissonance but I haven’t been able to find it yet in decent condition.

Castlevania Aria of Sorrow
My favourite Castlevania adventure for the Game Boy Advance. You can collect the enemies’ souls and gain their powers! :D IT’S AWESOME!

Castlevania Circle of the Moon
Also for the Game Boy Advance, also a great adventure with some memorable tunes ^_^

GBA – Castlevania Famicom Mini

GBA – Castlevania NES Classics

GBA – Castlevania Harmony of Dissonance

GBA – Castlevania Aria of Sorrow

GBA – Castlevania Circle of the Moon

Super Nintendo SNES Castlevania

Super Castlevania IV
The first Castlevania game for the Super Nintendo and I’ve finally found myself a complete copy ^_^ Haven’t gotten around to scanning it yet.. but I will :)

Akumajou Dracula 悪魔城ドラクラ (Super Castlevania IV)
The first Castlevania game for the Super Nintendo / Super Famicom. This is the Japanese release.

Akumajou Dracula XX 悪魔城ドラクラXX (Castlevania Vampire’s Kiss)
One of the rare Castlevania titles. This is a japanese release, complete and in great condition. The PAL version is really hard to find.. but I’m looking ^^

Castlevania Dracula X Evil Trevor
This is a hack of Castlevania Dracula X featuring the sprite of Trevor Belmont from Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. I just bought this one from another Castlevania collector, and it’s sealed. Quite annoying since I’d like to try it.. but I will most likely open it up soon ;D

Super Castlevania IV

SFC -Castlevania 4

SFC -Castlevania Dracula XX (Vampire’s Kiss) JP

SNES – Castlevania Dracula X Evil Trevor

SNES – Castlevania Dracula X Evil Trevor back

Sega Mega Drive / Genesis Castlevania

Castlevania The New Generation
This Castlevania game was only released on the 16-bit sega. This one is PAL for the Sega Mega Drive, complete and in awesome condition ^^ It was also released in Japan and for the Genesis. It also goes by the name “Bloodlines”.

Castlevania (The New Generation)
I also got this Russian pirated version of Castlevania The New Generation. I think the cover is really cool ^_^ That image from the first Castlevania is one of my favorites :) The case is much smaller than regular Sega Mega Drive boxes.

SMD – Castlevania New Generation

SMD – Castlevania The New Generation Pirate

SMD – Castlevania The New Generation Pirate back

PC Engine Castlevania

Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo 悪魔城ドラキュラX 血の輪廻 (Castlevania Rondo of Blood)
This is a rare Castlevania game called Rondo of Blood for the PC Engine! :D I also have a PC Engine duo (which reads CD’s) now so that I can play it, great game! Super hard! I uploaded a video of the intro here >>

Akumajō Dracula X: Castlevania Rondo of Blood
This is a reproduction of the PC Engine game made by PCE Works. Beautiful packaging ^_^ They also had a limited edition box that was stunning a while back, but I heard about it too late so it was sold out :(

PCE – Castlevania Rondo of Blood

Castlevania Rondo of Blood third boss

PC Engine – Castlevania Rondo of Blood reproduction

Nintendo 64 N64 Castlevania

Castlevania
The first Castlevania game for the Nintendo 64. Definitely not a favourite.. Castlevania games really should stay in the 2D platforming genre…

Castlevania Legacy of Darkness
When I finally bought Legacy of Darkness for the N64 I realized it was the same game as Legend of Cornell in Japan.. XD

Akumajou Dracula Mokushiroku 悪魔城ドラクラ黙示録 (Castlevania)
I have the N64 Castlevania game in it’s Japanese release as well.

Akumajou Dracula Mokushiroku Legend of Cornell 悪魔城ドラクラ黙示録レゲンドオブコーネール (Castlevania Legacy of Darkness)
This is the Japan release of Legacy of Darkness for the Nintendo 64, same awkward 3D adventure as most N64 games>_<

N64 – Castlevania

N64 – Castlevania Legacy of Darkness

N64 – Castlevania JP

N64 – Castlevania Legend of Cornell JP

Nintendo DS / 3DS Castlevania

Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow
The first Castlevania game for Nintendo DS. It’s decent and back to 2D platforming ^_^

Castlevania Portrait of Ruin
Another Castlevania game for the DS, I got this new (that’s why it’s scanned with plastic around). Also a good 2D platforming Castlevania adventure :)

Castlevania Order of Ecclesia
This one is also brand new, another Castlevania game for the DS. This one however I had the game cartridge for previously so I have played it and got pretty far, and it was great! But then I got stuck >_<

Castlevania Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate
Got the new 3DS Castlevania game which is a spinoff of the Xbox game Lords of Shadow. They added excessive use of 3D in this game, they could have just stuck to the traditional 2D platforming experience, it would have been better!

DS – Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow

DS – Castlevania Portrait of Ruin

DS – Castlevania Order of-Ecclesia

3DS – Castlevania Lords of Shadow Mirror of Fate

Sega Saturn Castlevania

Akumajou Dracula X – Gekka no Yasoukyoku (Castlevania Symphony of the Night)
This is Symphony of the Night, which was also released for the Playstation 1. It also came out on Sega Saturn in Japan.

Sega Saturn – Akumajou Dracula X – Gekka no Yasoukyoku

Sega Saturn – Akumajou Dracula X – Gekka no Yasoukyoku back

Playstation Castlevania

Castlevania Chronicles
A PAL edition of the Castlevania Chronicles for the Playstation 1 (PS1)

Castlevania Symphony of the Night
A mint complete edition of a PAL SOTN. Here’s where the Metroidvania style of Castlevania games began. I like it alot ^_^ I especially love that they went back to 2D platforming instead of messing around with awkward 3D..

Akumajou Dracula X Gekka no Yasoukyoku (SOTN)
I recently bought a Japanese copy of Symphony of the Night from a fellow Castlevania collector.

PS1 – Castlevania Chronicles

PS1 – Castlevania Symphony of the Night

PS1 – Akumajou Dracula X Gekka no Yasoukyoku

PS1 – Akumajou Dracula X Gekka no Yasoukyoku back

Playstation 2 Castlevania

Castlevania Lament of Innocence
First Castlevania adventure for the Playstation 2. Here they went back to 3D, however I must say it looks better than on the N64 ;D

Castlevania Curse of Darkness
Another Castlevania game for the PS2. Forgot to remove that stupid sticker on the front before scanning >_> too lazy to scan again..

Castlevania キャッスルヴァニア
This is Castlevania Lament of Innocence from Japan. I don’t usually collect the same game for various regions, I’m usually satisfied with having just a copy of the game so I can play it. However, this was a Castlevania game and I got it pretty cheap so I couldn’t resist it ;D

Castlevania Lament of Innocence
The same goes for this NTSC version of Lament of Innocence. So now I have three XD It’s interesting though to see how different the three artworks from various regions are :)

PS2 – Castlevania Lament of Innocense

PS2 – Castlevania Curse of Darkness

PS2 – Castlevania Lament of Innocence JP

PS2 – Castlevania Lament of Innocence JP back

PS2 – Castlevania Lament of Innocence US

PS2 – Castlevania Lament of Innocence US back

PSP & PS3 Castlevania

Castlevania The Dracula X Chronicles
Mint PAL edition for the PSP. This one I was particularly happy about when I got since I would be able to play the rare Rondo of Blood adventure that had been released long ago on the PC Engine, but NOW that I HAVE a PC Engine I am looking for the actual Rondo of Blood for the PC Engine. Soooooon it will most definitely be a part of my Castlevania collection :D edit: I now possess the PC Engine version too ^_^

Castlevania Lords of Shadow Collection
I found this collection for PS3 on a sale, had to get it since it was Castlevania, even though I hardly ever play on my PS3 ;D

PSP – Castlevania The Dracula X Chronicles

PS3 – Castlevania Lords of Shadow collection

Nintendo Wii & Xbox 360 Castlevania

Castlevania Judgement
This is the only Castlevania game I know of for the Wii. I don’t really play the Wii that much, but now I have to try this game out ^_^

Castlevania Lords of Shadow
And finally a Castlevania game for the Xbox 360 (achievements!! :D). I’ve played it a bit, and it’s like all other new games, an adventure game in 3D.. I really do prefer my Castlevania games to be 2D :(

Castlevania Lords of Shadow 2
I also have the second game in the LoS series. Haven’t even bothered trying this one out yet though… I miss the oldschool Castlevania games >_<

Castlevania Belmont Limited Edition
My latest Castlevania acquisition was this Belmont limited edition for the Xbox 360. It was just so pretty ^_^

Wii – Castlevania Judgement

Xbox 360 – Castlevania Lords of Shadow

Xbox 360 – Castlevania Lords of Shadow 2

Xbox 360 – Belmont Castlevania limited edition

Castlevania Soundtracks

Castlevania Circle of the Moon Soundtrack 悪魔城ドラキュラ白夜の協奏曲オリジナルサウンドトラック
The original soundtrack for Circle of the Moon to Game Boy Advance. This one is amazing! Here are some of my favorite Castlevania songs! :D

Castlevania The Dracula X Chronicles Soundtrack 悪魔城ドラキュラ Xクロニクルオリジナルサウンドトラック
I also have the original soundtrack from Japan for the PSP game: Castlevania The Dracula X Chronicles. This is a 2-disc collection, quite nice ^_^ It bugs me that they put the cover image in the wrong direction..

Akumajou Dracula Famicom Best Soundtrack 悪魔城ドラキュラファミコン・ベスト
This is a collection of all the soundtracks from the first three NES/Famicom games. Some of the best Castlevania tunes ^_^

OST – Castlevania Circle of the Moon Soundtrack

OST – Castlevania Dracula X Chronicles PSP Original Soundtrack

Akumajou Dracula Famicom Best Soundtrack

Akumajou Dracula Famicom Best Soundtrack back

Charity game collecting!

September 24, 2012 by stopXwhispering

Recently I stumbled upon a retro gaming blog focusing on purchasing games through charity organizations. I don’t remember the name of the blog, I accidentally closed the tab after following a link to Oxfam’s webshop where they indeed had some retro games! I found three neat Sega Mega Drive games there in great condition to a very decent price, between 3-5 GBP each, and the money goes to charity! :D The games I got there were Earthworm Jim 2, Mega Games 2 and Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Wow.. only sequels o_O I also got Space Invaders Anniversary for the PS2 ^_^

There was of course a lot of crap as well, but it’s worth checking out once in a while, here’s a link to Oxfam’s webshop >>

I have also gotten a bunch of other Sega Mega Drive games recently, Asterix and the Power of the Gods was apparently a quite rare one according to retrocollect.com. I also got Pocahontas which was supposed to be a fun Disney game, however I got stuck on the first screen of the game and couldn’t get any further.. I might give it another go soon though. Also got True Lies since it’s starring Arnold Schwarzenegger! and Cheese Cat-astrophe starring Speedy Gonzales, a fun platformer. Revolution X was a game based on Aerosmith, you get to see some cutscenes where they are performing but apart from that you are just steering a cross around and shooting guys popping up everywhere, it got kinda boring after a while.. Alisia Dragoon was however a cool platformer where you’re a girl with a dragon. I also got Mega Games 6, it had World Cup Italia, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, The Revenge of Shinobi, Super Hang-On and Columns in it.

I also got a few Master System games this last week.
Dragon the Bruce Lee Story, a platformer where you run around as Bruce Lee, no music just crappy sound effects, slow movement speed and lack of kung-fu moves…
Spiderman Return of the Sinister Six was pretty cool though, I loved shooting Spiderman’s web and swinging around ^^
Back to the Future Part III sucked just as much as AVGN said it did.. I couldn’t get past the first stage either..
The Flash was fun and really fast! Just like the Flash should be ^_^ Made me think of the Big Bang Theory and Sheldon when I was playing it.. zoom zoooom!
Mercs was just like Commando or Ikari Warriors, but the music wasn’t anything special. You had only one life, but quite a lot of health.
Tom & Jerry the Movie was a platformer where you play as Tom and you have to chase Jerry, and if you make it to the end of the stage he actually catches Jerry (even though he never manages to do that in the series!?) It got kind of repetitive after a while and the steering was really stiff..
Aztec Adventure was fun until I died and realized i had to start all the way from the beginning again!! wtf.. I was really into it, changing weapons to get further ahead on the Zelda-look-a-like map areas but as soon as I died they put me all the way back at the beginning of the maze, then I gave up…
Running Battle was at first sight like a Streets of Rage kind of beat’em up until my boyfriend who was trying it out realized he had a gun as well (!) and then it got super easy just shooting all the foes in their faces ^_^
Cyborg Hunter is a platformer where you run around on different levels trying to pick up items that you needed to advance, but the problem was that you had to take an elevator to get to the different levels to search for the items, but the elevators where so hard to maneuver, we couldn’t figure out how to make it go up or down or even how to exit it, it all seemed to happen randomly.. maybe we just couldn’t figure out the controls.. I dunno..

So that was it for my latest Sega purchases, let me know if there’s any game in particular you’re interested in seeing a deeper review of and I’ll make one ^_^

Alex Kidd in Shinobi World for Sega Master System

September 17, 2012 by stopXwhispering

I recently got a few new Sega Master System games, one of the was Alex Kidd in Shinobi World. I love the Alex Kidd games, so I was excited to try it out. However, on the second stage I got stuck… Watch my video below to see how I dealt with it!