Top Imports - Sony Playstation

[Kroogah]

So many games out there....it's good to narrow the list down. :-D

Beatmania Best Hits
Capcom Generations 1-4 (#5 came out here as SF Collection 2)
Dance Dance Revolution 5th Mix
Gradius Gaiden
Guitar Freaks (and the 2nd Mix Append)
Metal Slug
Namco Museum Encore
Policenauts
Pop'n Music 6
Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus
Sunsoft Memorial 1-5

[maxlords]

That's one of the systems I've yet to have started importing for, due to the fact that I don't like to hard-mod my systems and my PSX is 2000 miles away, so I don't want to mod my PS2. I hear Zanac X Zanac and Cowboy Bebop are good though!

[Kid Fenris]

Funny, I've heard that the Cowboy Bebop PlayStation game is utter garbage.

Anyway, I suggest Gunners Heaven. It may be a rip-off of Gunstar Heroes, but it's also an enjoyable little action/shooter in its own right.

[Funk Buddy]

The only ones I have are GunCon games, I'm not sure of the titles at the moment. I don't even own a US PS game and never have. Well... I take that back, I had 4 sealed games from an auction I won, but I sold them.

[Dire 51]

Definitely Gradius Gaiden, Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus and Namco Museum Encore. Gradius Deluxe Pack is a good one too.

[Boboduo]

Vib Ribbon is a good one.

[Kroogah]

*smacks self in head for forgetting Vib Ribbon*

I can't wait for Mojib Ribbon....

[devilman]

I've not played many PS1 Imports but I'd go for Guitar Freaks and Ore No Ryouri (My Cooking). The latter is nuts - like a chef's version of Tapper. ;)

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

My import collection - which is actually a pretty sizable chunk of my meager Playstation shelf - consists largely of gooey creamy retro goodness. The Japanese love their retro-arcade compilations, and SO DO I.

Namco Museum 2 (JP edition - has a different game on it than Super Pac-Man)
Namco Museum Encore
Nichibutsu Arcade Classics
Irem Arcade Classics
Space Invaders Collection
Superlite 1500 3-In-1 Arcade Classics (Taito games: Qix, Crazy Balloon, Space Chaser + updates of all 3)
Capcom Generation 3 (which led to my current addiction, Pirate Ship Higemaru)

@ Yashiro - what's on those Sunsoft comps? Anything I should be interested in? :-D

[Kroogah]

Higemaru ROCKS.

Wow, there's a Sunsoft Memorial Volume 6 now. Each game in the series contains 2 Famicom games (ripoff, but at least the price is low)

Vol. 1 - Ikki & Super Arabian
Vol. 2 - Route-16 Turbo & Mystery of Atlantis
Vol. 3 - Madura no Tsubasa & Toukaidou Gojuu-San Shi
Vol. 4 - Blaster Master & Ripple Island
Vol. 5 - Raf & Hebereke
Vol. 6 - Battle Formula & Gimmick

[Dire 51]

PDF - If you love the arcade Higemaru, try tracking down the Famicom game Higemaru Makaijima. It's got the same style of gameplay as the arcade, but the whole world has been fleshed out. You now travel from island to island (at least one of which is themed after Ghosts 'N Goblins) and do all sorts of stuff. At the very least, you can download the ROM from my site The Ghoul Realm (#4 in my sig).

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

Excellent! I'll be a-downloadin' that tonight and trying it out on the old PS1 NES emulator. (I love that thing!)

[Achika]

Ore No Ryouri (My Cooking). The latter is nuts - like a chef's version of Tapper. ;)

:cheers: I second that one.

[Dire 51]

PDF - Let me know what you think of it! I just got my hands on the actual Famicom cart recently, and I've been playing the hell out of it.

[DDCecil]

Is it just me, or do the Sunsoft Memorial games have a horrible buzzing sound that doesn't go away?

Internal Section - Gets my vote for the greatest Square Non-RPG, just edging out Einhander.

Twinbee Taisen Puzzle Dama - Great puzzle game, and comes with the original Taisen arcade game, Taisen Pazurudama as a bonus!

[ArnoldRimmer83]

The Famicom Higemaru game is pretty cool, but without knowing Japanese, it's impossible to tell what you're supposed to do next. Here's hoping a translation is made some day.

I unfortunately can't comment on any Playstation imports at the moment, but I can safely say that Namco Encore is probably a must own just for Rolling THunder alone. Rolling Thunder is one of the best arcade games of all time.

[AB Positive]

Say, with a hardmodded psOne... would you be able to play Vib Ribbon? Is there anything one would need to know? sorry for asking here, but it seemed better to do here than make it's own thread.

-AG

[nate1749]

The search tool does work! Nearly 2 years old, but whatever...

I'm just wondering what you're favorite Japanese only (never came to usa) games are. I think I might want to collect a few, but don't know what the "greats" are.

Nate

[dj898]

how's between Raiden Project and Den Den DX?

cheers

[Push Upstairs]

Metal Slug

I have this. I figured that the Japanese version would include the blood that became "sweat" in the US version. Great cover art as well

Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus

I wasn't aware this was on the PSX....does it cost less than the Saturn version?

[junglehunter]

I've not played many PS1 Imports but I'd go for Guitar Freaks and Ore No Ryouri (My Cooking). The latter is nuts - like a chef's version of Tapper. ;)
Is that cooking game the one that was featured on one of the Playstation Jam Pack demo discs? LOL

I loved that game, but it was a bit hard with the language barrier. The icons helped somewhat. And chasing that little punk kid down who stole was fun. :D

[Trevor Belmont]

Haven't played it, but I've heard Panzer Bandit is pretty cool if you're into beat-'em-ups.

[Dire 51]

Metal Slug

I have this. I figured that the Japanese version would include the blood that became "sweat" in the US version. Great cover art as well

There was no US version of Metal Slug, just Metal Slug X.

[bargora]

Nichibutsu Arcade Classics has Frisky Tom, Crazy Climber and Moon Cresta (plus updated versions), all of which are available individually as well--and it may cost less to buy the three separate discs than to buy the compilation.

Image Fight & X-Multiply is some neat-o shooting fun, but hard hard hard.

Cyberbots is a wacky little Capcom 2D fighter--but instead of musclebound d00dz & h0t ch1x (or monsters), it features fighting machines.

I also recommend Vib Ribbon (which works fine on my hard-modded U.S. PSone), Internal Section and Gradius Gaiden.

[Push Upstairs]

There was no US version of Metal Slug, just Metal Slug X.

There is a plain "Metal Slug" for PSX?

Because all i have seen (and own) is "Metal Slug X"

I like the blood, i miss the prisoner names (in Japanese), but i think the artwork is much funnier and goes with the game.

[Dire 51]

There is a plain "Metal Slug" for PSX?

Yep. It was released at the same time as the Saturn version, and it's a pretty spot-on port of the NG original. Obviously there were a lot of animation frames cut, and there's some horrendous load times, but if you can get past all that it's pretty good.

I reviewed it a while back on the OPCFG... check it out here (http://www.geocities.com/opcfg3/mspsxreview.html).

[Push Upstairs]

I might have to find me the Saturn version of "Metal Slug".

[Dire 51]

Make sure you get a 4 meg RAM cart to run it, though - you need one for MS.

[dj898]

get Kamenrider-V3 and if that turns out to be too pricy get Kamenrider... :p

useless tidbit: the guy in Kamenrider is none other than segata sanshiro himself...

[Push Upstairs]

Make sure you get a 4 meg RAM cart to run it, though - you need one for MS.

My import device is a 4-in-1 cart.

I hope its one of the "fixed" ones that also functions properly as a 4 meg RAM.

[Dire 51]

My import device is a 4-in-1 cart.

I hope its one of the "fixed" ones that also functions properly as a 4 meg RAM.

Hmmm... guess all I can really say here is "good luck!" *nods*

[Aussie2B]

The search tool does work! Nearly 2 years old, but whatever...

I'm just wondering what you're favorite Japanese only (never came to usa) games are. I think I might want to collect a few, but don't know what the "greats" are.

Nate

Hmmm, I wonder how I missed this topic before? Anyway, from what I've read, pretty much everything in this list is Japanese-only, or at least significantly different from the US release (like Namco Museum Vol. 2 with a different game in place of the US's Super Pac-Man).

Anyway, despite that I got a whole shelf of PlayStation imports, I don't have much to recommend. o_O Most of my games are simple Japanese versions of games that got US releases (be it on PlayStation or on another console, like all the King of Fighters ports).

But to get to some Japanese-only recommendations... Art Truck Battle is a hilarious semi sim where you gotta beat the competition to deliver your goods. The best part of the game is the great male Japanese singing. The sequel has a Japanese woman singing, but it lacks the punch of the original and isn't nearly as funny. You also get to completely customize your truck (hence the "art"), and you even get a button for cursing at your opponent in Japanese. :)

Ganbare Goemon: Ooedo Daikaiten is just another great Goemon game with 2D side-scrolling graphics with some 3D elements thrown in (and very impressive looking 3D Impact battles). Most Goemon games have a theme, and this one's theme is recycling. o_O

Not to be confused with the US King's Field (which is in fact King's Field 2 in Japan), King's Field never saw a US release. If you love the series, this is an excellent addition. It definitely shows its age a bit (it's from 1994, I think; one of the very first PlayStation games), but it still plays great.

And I don't know if anyone here but me likes dating sims (let alone playing dating sims completely in Japanese), but both Mitsumete Knight and Zutto Issho seem quite fun.

Finally, I should point out that while not exclusive to PlayStation or Japan, Rockman X3 is a nice alternative if you don't want to fork out the dough for Mega Man X3 for SNES.

[Dart]

No one has mentioned Tobal 2 yet?

[Lemmy Kilmister]

Make sure you get a 4 meg RAM cart to run it, though - you need one for MS.

My import device is a 4-in-1 cart.

I hope its one of the "fixed" ones that also functions properly as a 4 meg RAM.

It'll work. I use to play X-Men vs. Street Fighter all the time with my 4-1 cart.

[nate1749]

Thanks Aussie2B, I'll try to get a hold of some of those titles - especially that truck one =)

Nate

[Dimitri]

I'll second Ore no Ryouri, that game is freaking bonkers!

I recently picked up a little gem called Kitchen Panic, it's a really interesting 2D plafromer, where you play as a potato. With spin moves!

And if you're looking for absolutely awful games (that are great in their awfulness) track down a copy of Exector. It's a really early release, and easily one of the worst games ever made, plus it was done by the same people that did Guilty Gear (Arc System Works).

[InsaneDavid]

And I don't know if anyone here but me likes dating sims (let alone playing dating sims completely in Japanese), but both Mitsumete Knight and Zutto Issho seem quite fun.

By any chance have you played the Refrain Love games? I haven't been able to find a review anywhere.

[Aussie2B]

Nah, can't say that I have.

[ubersaurus]

My picks:

Metal Slug-pretty good port of the arcade game, and it's pretty cheap now with the recent budget rerelease.

Soukyugurentai-has a bit more slowdown than it's saturn counterpart, but it's leagues cheaper, and has an extra ship you can use. Excellent shooter, one of the best I've ever played.

Gradius Gaiden-I don't believe there's enough good to say about this one. It's the Gradius game for people who don't like Gradius games. It's a fine shooter any way you look at it.

vib ribbon-music game. That you can use your own cds on. I don't believe I need to say anything more about this one.

Dragonball Z Legends-Yeah, I'm amazed too. It's the lone good Dragonball game, if only because it doesn't try to be a standard fighter. Get your team of characters to hit the other team enough to fill the "balance bar" at the bottom of the screen, allowing you to do a super attack that will hurt someone on their team. Kinda easy in story mode, the insanity of multiplayer and the hard challenge levels make it a nice pick.

[slownerveaction]

Three I haven't seen mentioned yet:

Umihara Kawase Shun - Great sequel to the SFC original. Superb little 2D platformer.

The Cameraman - a.k.a. Gekibo, or Photograph Boy. Port of the PCE game where you play a photographer getting all sorts of weird and wacky pictures. Has an extra level and two player option added -- and it's way cheaper than the PCE Hucard to boot!

Ganbare Goemon: Uchuu Kaizoku Akogingu - Yet another 2D Goemon game, in the same style as the first SNES one (Legend of the Mystical Ninja).

[klausien]

Make sure you get a 4 meg RAM cart to run it, though - you need one for MS.

My import device is a 4-in-1 cart.

I hope its one of the "fixed" ones that also functions properly as a 4 meg RAM.

It'll work. I use to play X-Men vs. Street Fighter all the time with my 4-1 cart.

Just to note, Metal Slug is a 1 Meg game. I haven't tried it with my 4 Meg cart though as it came with the 1 Meg. I do know that KOF '96 for instance does not work properly with a 4 Meg Cart.

[Lemmy Kilmister]

Make sure you get a 4 meg RAM cart to run it, though - you need one for MS.

My import device is a 4-in-1 cart.

I hope its one of the "fixed" ones that also functions properly as a 4 meg RAM.

It'll work. I use to play X-Men vs. Street Fighter all the time with my 4-1 cart.

Just to note, Metal Slug is a 1 Meg game. I haven't tried it with my 4 Meg cart though as it came with the 1 Meg. I do know that KOF '96 for instance does not work properly with a 4 Meg Cart.


Well, I don't know if he's using the same exact ramcart as me, but the 4 in 1 cart I have has a switch that you can toggle between 1 and 4 megs of ram.

[Push Upstairs]

Mine does not have a switch.

I'm not exactly sure how it would switch because i dont really own any games that require either a 4 or 1 Meg cart to play.

[Luke]

Harmful Park...if you don't mind forking out the dosh. :)

It is a silly-shooter like Parodius but with food.

Luke

[PS1Expert]

This post could make me go insane. There are a TON of Japanese-only PS1 releases that are so good. Tell me a genre and I'll list a few. Shooters of course are my favorite and there are a lot of them. I think I own 1200+ Japanese PS1 games, and I usually only keep the playable ones (I won't ever play those dating sims or hard-to-understand strategy/rpgs or even those pachinko games). Japan has more DDR games than the US, they have Martial Beat which is like DDR with karate moves. Someone mentioned Gunners Heaven which is probably my favorite game on the PS1. Japan has cool accessories like ZXE-D Legend of Plasmatlite which comes with robots that you assemble the way you want, plug them into the PlayStation and then your robot appears on screen and you can fight with it. They have the Blockids release which comes with a special controller (it's a dial like used on Arkanoid). In fact, this controller works on both of the Arkanoid releases in Japan giving it a real arcade feel! And I love Arkanoid! I don't play the Japanese RPGs, but I did fall in love with Popolocrois RPG and completed it! There's even some games that were supposed to come out in the US or Europe but only were released in Japan. (Mortal Kombat 2 is one....awesome game....Beavis & Butthead in Virtual Stupidity another....etc)

Should I list a bunch of games and you guys can ask what they are?

[Cryomancer]

Just to throw this info out...

4-in-1s are supposed to function as either a 1M or 4M automagically, however some of the earlier models have problems with some 4M games. The most popular one was Vampire Savior I think, and the fix for this is often called "vampire mod" because of that. There's a wire to solder and trace to cut, and then it will work, there's guides out there, try googling for "vampire mod" ect. omnedon did mine for me, and it works great! (enjoy the free plug)

edit: just noticed that i gave saturn advice in a PSX thread...today one of our ps2's is magically gaining the ability to play ps1 imports and backups, so I'll throw my suggestions in here after that happens.

[PapaStu]

I'll second Ore no Ryouri, that game is freaking bonkers!

This is a hilarious game. I cant praise it enough. I've only got a few imports (Vib, Ore no, and some DDR) but they are all excellent.

[StealthLurker]

1. Bokanto Ippatsu! Doronbo: great cartoony, 70s super robot inspired vertical shooter

2. Gear Fighter Dendoh: Giant robot side scrolling beat'em up... with special moves much like that in Sengoku 3. Also full 3D battles in stage end bosses.

3. Strider 1&2: Strider 2 is your 2D gameplay set in a 3D backdrop sort of thing. Some cool effects, level design and bosses.

4. Zanac Neo: Also comes with the original zanac and some variations. Another very colorful shooter, with lots of enemies, sound effects and very nicely remixed songs from the original. Fast paced, heavy action shooter.

[Dimitri]

I think I own 1200+ Japanese PS1 games, and I usually only keep the playable ones (I won't ever play those dating sims or hard-to-understand strategy/rpgs or even those pachinko games).

You, sir, have my utmost respect. I'm currently standing at 21, gotta pick up the pace. :P

A couple I picked up recently:
GUNbare! Game Tengoku - The Game Paradise 2. Video-game-themed shooter where one player plays it shmpu-stype and the other plays with the Guncon. Definitely worth seeking out, if not a bit short.

Asuka 120% Special Burning Fest. All-girl fighting game, but this one's different from the likes of Pretty Fighter and Fist in that it's actually a decent game. My friend and I had a blast playing this today...the voices are hilarious, to boot. :)

StealthLurker: Strider 1&2 saw a US release. And Zanac Neo is actually part of the Zanac X Zanac pack...which is mind-bogglingly expensive considering it was a 2002 release. I can currently only wish I owned that one...*drool*

[PS1Expert]

I'll put my list up soon on the website. I forget what games I have. I know Gaiaseed is my most expensive though (and like new).

[roushimsx]

Zanac X Zanac can not get enough love. It's just impossible. Multiple versions of the classic Zanac and the new Zanac Neo...mmm... Compile, I miss you.

Donpachi and Dodonpachi were great on Playstation as well. Donpachi got a budget rerelease so it shouldn't be hard to pick up. Dodonpachi, on the other hand, will cost a pretty penny :(

Raiden DX is superior to Raiden 2 and got a budget rerelease. Easy to find for ~$10

Dezaemon Plus and Dezaemon Kids are enjoyable shmup-makers, with Dezaemon Kids being the better of the two.

Langrisser I & II is a collection of two awesome SRPGs. If you liked Warsong (Langrisser) on Genesis then you should check it out.

and again, Soukyugurentai is the fucking heat. It's the best example of dual plane targeting ever (Xevious, Dragon Spirit, Rayforce, etc), and even with the rampant slowdown it still manages to rock. Sure, it's better on Saturn, but the Playstation version got a budget rerelease and can be had for ~$14 vs the $30-$50 you'll pay for the Saturn version :)

I liked the Beatmania series a good bit. Never got into the IIDX games on PS2 or anything, but I did buy a lot of Beatmania and DDR when that stuff was still coming out. Still have my turntables, too :')

hmm..so yea..i like shoot 'em ups and that's mostly what I import these days, though I'm sure I could remember some more over time.

[PS1Expert]

I mentioned I only play playable games. Well, one RPG I did play and came close to beating was Popolocrois. I am VERY EXCITED to see that it's coming to the PSP! I wish a US version was released on the PS1 though.

[Arthur-Otaku]

Captain Commando, nice and exclusive arcade port

toaplan shooting battle, tiger heli and twin cobra

gunners heaven, nice contra type game

[pragmatic insanester]

choaniki was my first ps1 import, and well worth it.

i haven't had any luck trying to locate a copy of Gear Fighter :(

[StealthLurker]

Harmful Park
http://users.pandora.be/twin-dreams/pics/screens/PSone/harmfulpark6.jpghttp://users.pandora.be/twin-dreams/pics/screens/PSone/harmfulpark7.jpghttp://users.pandora.be/twin-dreams/pics/screens/PSone/harmfulpark10.jpg

Panzer Bandit (like guardian heroes)
http://www.classicgaming.com/reviews/panzerbandit/pbandit9.jpghttp://www.classicgaming.com/reviews/panzerbandit/pbandit4.jpghttp://www.classicgaming.com/reviews/panzerbandit/pbandit10.jpg

(Bokan series)
Time Bokan: Bokan Desu Yo!
Time Bokan: Bokan to Ippatsu
http://www.geocities.com/up_00/bidk/bidk-03d.JPGhttp://www.geocities.com/up_00/bidk/bidk-04g.JPGhttp://www.geocities.com/up_00/bidk/bidk-05h.JPG
These pictures don't do it justice.

Gear Fighter Dendoh
http://spacemul.emu-france.com/images/Playstation/1/17010.pnghttp://spacemul.emu-france.com/images/Playstation/3/17010.png

Ninpu Sentai Hurricanger
http://www.japanhero.com/Graphics/Video%20Games/hurricanger/review-4.jpghttp://www.japanhero.com/Graphics/Video%20Games/hurricanger/review-5.jpghttp://www.japanhero.com/Graphics/Video%20Games/hurricanger/review-1.jpg

Kakuge-Yaro
http://psxmedia.ign.com/media/previews/image/fgc_1.jpghttp://psxmedia.ign.com/media/previews/image/fgc_2.jpg


Lots more good stuff out there...


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[GaijinPunch]

Gussun Paradise I cannot recommend enough if you like Bubble Bobble style games. Pop 'n' Pop is a great puzzle game w/ characters from many of Taito's series.