Anybody a Sega Saturn Import Expert? I need HELP!!!

[Anthony1]

Ok, here is the situation. I have a Sega Saturn and I love it. I've been in the process of trying to get my hands on all the best U.S. Saturn games. I have most of the best ones so far.

What I don't have are the imports. From what I understand, the vast majority of premier software for the Saturn never made it to the U.S. The thing is, that the titles of the Sega Saturn Import games are so foreign to me, and you just don't see screenshots of these games anywhere. So it's really really hard for me to know which Saturn imports to go after.

Plus the prices of the Saturn imports on Ebay are pretty damn high. So I would hate to buy a crappy import game for the Saturn for huge bucks, just because I don't know what the best games are.

So what I would like to know from a Saturn Import Expert, is what are the best Saturn Imports in the following genre's:

1. Run and Jump Games - Games that would be similar to Clockwork Knight, Astal, Bug!, etc, etc.

2. Action/Adventure - Games like Shinobi Legions and Skeleton Warriors

3. Classic Shooters - Games like Darius Gaiden, etc, etc,

4. Racing games - Games like Daytona, Sega Rally, although I would imagine that all the best ones did actually make it to the U.S.

5. Any any other great games from other genre's. Although I must say that I'm not the biggest Fighting Game fan, nor am I a RPG fan. Although I do like Action Role Playing games like Zelda, Crusader of Centi and stuff like that.

Any help that anybody could provide on this would be greatly appreciated, because I'm just lost when it comes to the Saturn imports.

Oh, one other thing.....Does anybody know any websites where they would have screenshots of these Saturn imports? It would be awesome if I could see some pics of these Saturn imports.

[IntvGene]

Gaijin Punch's site is quite nice to browse through the titles. He's got all the scans of the covers, and you can see the screenshots of them there. He's also got some info like rarity, genre, Japanese required, etc.
http://dynamic5.gamespy.com/~japangaming/

This thread is also recommended reading for starters, in case you already haven't read it:
http://www.digitpress.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=16926

[Vroomfunkel]

Well, I will update this later to make a fuller list .. but off the top of my head:

Run and jumps:

Steamgear Mash (great and cheap!)
Tryrush Deppy (not so cheap)

Shooters:

Twinkle Star Sprites has to be one of my absolute favourites. Great game, on any system, but the Saturn version does excel. Not cheap either, but I love it!

Racing games:

Chase HQ and SCI .. two brilliant games on one disc. Don't be fooled by the silly prices some import shops try to charge for this. It can be had for as little as $15 - $25 from the good ebay sellers (e.g. mark.in.japan)

Other: I would also recommend Bomberman Fight! (although I am a big Bomberman fan, so perhaps I am bound to say that!). I like Puyo Puyo Sun also, great puzzler. Princess Crown is supposed to be a great action adventure, but I can't comment yet. Will be getting it soon though :D

Vroomfunkel

[digitalpress]

We have an import forum that not only handles these kinds of questions rapidly but also has many of your answers already stickied at the top of the forum!

>> shuffle <<

[geelw]

i happen to have a new/sealed darius gaiden here for $20 if you're interested, plus other saturn imports here: http://gametz.com/user/geelw.html , in case you're interested. cheaper than ebay, and i'm a lot more reliable, lol...

[Parodius]

Shooters: To really grasp how many shooters were released on Saturn go to:

www.videogameimports.com

Top of the page there are three choices:

Format: Pick Saturn
Category: Traditional Shooter
Region: Japan

30+ pages of shooters with 4-6 on each page. Interesting to get a grasp of what's out there, look at box covers, etc.

[Funk Buddy]

You can check this site for some info, but it looks like the database is down at the moment.

http://www.jvgfanatic.com/

I believe most of the platform type games came to the US, your best bet is shooters for sure.

I'll do some looking and give more info later.

[link1110]

RPGs:

First off, there are alot of good multi-disc RPGs, but you need your system MODDED, not a cart, MODDED or you will not be able to get to dosc 2 of those games. NCSX.com still does it for like $30

Now that that's out of the way, some of the best RPGs..
Azel: Panzer Dragoon RPG is pretty good, it's the japanese version of Panzer Dragoon Saga and sells for about $120 less than its american counterpart.

Shining Force 3 part 1-3 is the same, and just like Azel (and any other japanese saturn game) its japanese version can be had at a fraction of the cost of its american version.

Tengai Makyou: The 4th Apocalypse: This is an import-only game. Alot of TM fans hate this game, but I love it and consider it one of my 5 favorite games of all time. It does for 2d anime graphics what FF10 did for 3d realistic graphics (Blows every other game away) and its funny, too.

The Langrisser Games are some more good import only's. Langrisser is one of the best Strategy ROG series around.

Devil Summoner, Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers: The 2 saturn entries in the Megami Tensei series. Basically modern RPGs with occult overtones. Very good.

And I've never played it, but I've heard good things about Linkle Liver Story.

[geelw]

linkle liver story (also called wrinkle river story) is probably one of the best-looking saturn games ever made. it's an action/rpg that's a bit on the easy side, but the art and animation are quite lovely and the music is quite good as well. it can be had fairly cheap, so don't hesitate to pick it up!

[maxlords]

Also, to REALLY get a grasp on shooters, here's a lot of info as well:

http://www.classicgaming.com/shmups/archive/xenofiles_saturn.htm

Best shooters site EVER :D

[GaijinPunch]

I second what Max said. If you want the shooters, go there.

Keio Yuugekitai is probvably the best platformer for the system. Tryrush Deppy, and one of the games within Wonder 3 is good.

I just started playing Black Matrix, a strategy game. It's very fun, but if you can't read Japanese, you'll miss a lot of the story. There is a walkthru which explains the story as it goes along.

[geelw]

I second what Max said. If you want the shooters, go there.

Keio Yuugekitai is probvably the best platformer for the system. Tryrush Deppy, and one of the games within Wonder 3 is good.

I just started playing Black Matrix, a strategy game. It's very fun, but if you can't read Japanese, you'll miss a lot of the story. There is a walkthru which explains the story as it goes along.

it's pretty funny, too. i haven't played it in a while, but i like the part early on when you're basically doing household chores when you think you're gonna go out and fight a battle or two...

[Steven]

I just wanted to add:

Elevator Action Returns

Ace platform shooter!

[Vroomfunkel]

Oh good! I just bought that one ... should be with me this week. Hehe!

Along with Shienryu. And Gun Frontiers: Arcade Gears. Anyone know if that is any good also?

Vroomfunkel

[GaijinPunch]

Yes, both of those are good.

The first of Black Matrix is cool. The only thing is your character gets stronger based on how well you do those minigames. Since they're the first thing in the game, they're a bit hard to get the hang of.

Not sure if they come back or not.

[geelw]

Yes, both of those are good.

The first part of Black Matrix is cool. The only thing is your character gets stronger based on how well you do those minigames. Since they're the first thing in the game, they're a bit hard to get the hang of.

Not sure if they come back or not.

lol- i kept restarting so i'd score hgher and higher before the actual combat. dunno if they show up again, but i have a sneaking suspicion that they do... i'm sure someone here has played more and can offer some info... :D

[ManekiNeko]

Oh good! I just bought that one ... should be with me this week. Hehe!

Along with Shienryu. And Gun Frontiers: Arcade Gears. Anyone know if that is any good also?

Vroomfunkel

You can play Gun Frontiers on MAME, actually. It's kind of a strange game... you fly a six-gun with wings over a distant mining planet, collecting items and blasting away bad guys. It's a science-fiction western shooter, if you can comprehend such a game.

Shienryu is the same as Geki-Oh Shooting King on the Playstation, minus a few features. It's a slightly above average shooter that bears more than a slight resemblence to Raiden II.

JR

JR

[drwily008]

Gotta get Princess Crown, you'll pay alot but it is worth it. Excellent side scrolling RPG style game w/no japanese knowledge needed.