good import shooters for older consoles

[ubersaurus]

So I'm planning on going to Japan in May, and given that I'll be stopping at game stores while I'm there, I'd like to have some titles in mind to track down. Famicom, Super Famicom, PS1, Saturn, PC-Engine, Megadrive, etc. stuff that I can't get domestically, and ideally, stuff that won't cost me an arm and a leg!

I'm looking primarily for shooters, and to a lesser extent puzzlers and platformers, really anything that doesn't require extensive knowledge of japanese. Thus far I have Devil World, Gradius 2, Star Wars, and Hirakke Ponkiki for Famicom, Magical Drop 3 for Saturn, Alien Crush for SFC, and a couple PS1 games.

[Pilotwings]

Hi (sengoku blaede)aka sengoku ace 2 great horizontal shooter with 2 player mode saturn. (Dodonapachi) great vertical bullet dodger with 2 player mode saturn. (Gynoug) horizontal and (musha aleste) vertical for megadrive.

[Poofta!]

how long are you staying for? ill be there end of june. and id actually be very interested in picking up some too for ps1 and others... im keeping an eye on this topic =]

[Kid Fenris]

Get Spriggan for the PC Engine/Duo. It's part of Compile's whole MUSHA/ALESTE line, and it's one of the best 16-bit shooters. It's tough but fair, and the levels are varied and well-designed, with lots of unique touches, like fellow robot pilots who swoop in to help you (and get blow away if you don't protect them). Your weapon's determined by the combination of colored spheres you pick up, so you've got about a dozen different options, and plenty of chances to grab new power-ups. It'll run you about thirty-five bucks/3800 yen, but it's worth it.

In fact, most of the shooters I saw over there weren't cheap. Games like Philosoma or Two-Ten Kaku were priced low, but if you want Dodonpachi, Prikura Daisakusen, Batsugun, and other sought-after shooters, expect to pay anywhere from 3000-6000 yen for each.

Famicom games were also overpriced in general, especially compared to Super Famicom stuff. (1500 yen for a loose Wurm/Vazolder? Screw that.) The only place I saw with deals on Famicom carts was a Book Off bookstore, which was apparently clearing out its SFC/Famicom stock for 100 yen a cartridge. So shop around.

Cheap games:

Sakura Columns (Saturn)
It's essentially Puzzle Fighter with Columns and a story mode (which you can ignore, because it's all in Japanese). The Dreamcast version is better, but it's also considerably more expensive.

Gunners Heaven (PSX)
A fun little Gunstar Heroes rip-off (for the first few stages, at least). The pricing on it varies, so hold out until you see it for 1500 yen or less.

Wonder Project J2 (Nintendo 64)
An amusing raise-a-robot-girl simulation, provided you can get past the shitty "exploration" levels. Runs about 1000 yen.

Battle Tycoon (SFC) and/or Flash Hiders (PCE CD)
They're not quite A-list fighters, but both have interesting one-player modes where you level-up your character and equip different weapons. Flash Hiders runs about 2500 yen, but Battle Tyccoon should be dirt cheap.

Lightning Legend (PSX).
Another goofy fighter, it's got a fun mode where you collect all sorts of game-changing items.

Cyberbots (Saturn or PSX).
An underrated Capcom mech fighter. You could always MAME it, but the home versions added a robotic Akuma.

Expensive games:

Panzer Bandit (PSX)
It'll cost you 5000 yen at the least, but it’s the only game in town if you want an enjoyable rip-off of Guardian Heroes. (Until Castle Crashers hits, that is.)

Harmful Park (PSX)
Solid, cutesy shooter from a little-known developer called Sky Think Systems. Not easy to find, but better than most of the genre offerings on PSX.

One final bit of advice: No matter what you decide to get, price it on eBay before you go shopping in Japan. A lot of the stores over there are fully aware of what the rare and/or great games will fetch online, and their in-store prices reflect that. Sometimes, you'll actually pay more for a game in Japan than you will on eBay.

[ubersaurus]

I went there 2 years ago, so I know their general pricing concepts(although I found a number of things much cheaper than on ebay or import shops). I just don't have a good idea of what games are worth snagging out of the thousands these shops carry. Outside, of course, of the really well known stuff(like the aforementioned Devil World and Gradius 2).

[TurboGenesis]

Some games to look for:

Nexzr (Duo SCD)- This game was used in the 1993 carnival tourney - ebay prices are major rip off - the game can be had for 5000 yen all day.

Over Horizon(Famicom) - I have only heard good things about this horizontal from Hot-B! I've not played and cannot find it anywhere.

Crisis Force(Famicom) - I happen to find this one. Its Konami vertical shoot them up. Has great Konami sound and tight game play. The game is HARD though. Konami code gives extra lives. It is also offers 2 player simultaneous play - another Konami trademark ;) though I've not had anyone play it with me yet.

There was mention of Spriggan (PCE CD)- there are two Spriggan games on PC engine. one is vertical and one is horizontal. I am curious of the horizontal one as Compile never did any other horizontals but the Spriggan game. One of them was also the Summer Carnival 91 official soft.

[Kid Fenris]

I went there 2 years ago, so I know their general pricing concepts(although I found a number of things much cheaper than on ebay or import shops).

A lot can change in two years; for example, Famicom games were relatively cheap back in 2004.

And it's not as though you won't find all kinds of great deals; just make sure you don't pay $100 for Panzer Bandit or $200 for Zanac X Zanac, which the Nakano Mandarake store seemed to think were fair prices.


Some games to look for:There was mention of Spriggan (PCE CD)- there are two Spriggan games on PC engine. one is vertical and one is horizontal. I am curious of the horizontal one as Compile never did any other horizontals but the Spriggan game. One of them was also the Summer Carnival 91 official soft.

Spriggan Mark 2 is the horizontal one, and it isn't nearly as impressive as the first Spriggan, which is an Aleste-style vertical shooter (and the Summer Carnival 91 title).

To make things simple, this (http://cgi.ebay.com/UK-PC-Engine-Turbo-Grafx-Duo-CD-Spriggan_W0QQitemZ200094899818QQihZ010QQcategoryZ7 2501QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem) is the Spriggan you want. Its full title is Seirei Senshi Spriggan, or Spirit Soldier Spriggan.

And yes, Crisis Force is hot shit.

[ubersaurus]

If it makes you feel better, I couldn't FIND zanac x zanac when I went. Granted the only major cities I visited were Takamatsu, Kyoto, and Okayama, but still, jack and shit on that front.

Makes sense on the price front, and I certainly could see a major difference in terms of pricing just between stores in the areas I went. 1500 yen for a boxed copy of Gunstar Heroes for game gear vs 3000 elsewhere!

Know of any good Super Famicom games? Only one I'm aiming to pick up is the gundam fighting game(which my buddy and I used to play in emulation all the time back in the day), but there has to be other good Japan exclusive games.

[bust3dstr8]

If you want shooters for PC-Engine the list could get a bit massive@_@

I'll try to list good shooters you can find for under 5000 yen.

HuCard:

1943 Kai
Parodius
Salamander
Super Star Soldier
Gunhed
Kyukyoku Tiger
Final Soldier
PC Denjin
Galaga '88
Detana Twin Bee

CD-SCD:

CD Denjin
Cho Aniki
Ai Cho Aniki
Cotton
Winds Thunder
Gates of Thunder
Kiaiden 00
Macross 2036
Spriggan
Star Parodier


Some other games that are English friendly:

Jackie Chan, Devil Crash, Pomping World, Kunio Dodgeball, SHubibinman3,
Bomberman '94, Ninja Ryukenden, Makyo Densetsu

[smork]

And it's not as though you won't find all kinds of great deals; just make sure you don't pay $100 for Panzer Bandit or $200 for Zanac X Zanac, which the Nakano Mandarake store seemed to think were fair prices.

Nakano Madarake is weird. I've seen some horrid prices, but I got some good deals there, too -- got my Mars Matrix for something like 2700 yen and NGCD Twinkle Star Sprites for around 4000. Last I was there they had a Rakugaki Showtime for under 10K as well, plus a Radiant Silvergun for around 11K, both of which are way below typical Tokyo prices.

[Tron 2.0]

Famicom
Gunac
Goardic Gaiden/Gaurdian Legend
Salamander/Note this one has the different endings depending on your score.
Crisis Force
Zanac/Keep in mind FDS only.

[ubersaurus]

But I know a number of those games are available domestically. I already own them on their US counterparts :P

[RadiantSvgun]

Gunbird for saturn. Wolf Fang for psx or saturn is a good shooter that doesn't break the wallet.

[TurboGenesis]

I'd like to have some titles in mind to track down. Famicom, Super Famicom, PS1, Saturn, PC-Engine, Megadrive, etc. stuff that I can't get domestically, and ideally, stuff that won't cost me an arm and a leg!

I think ubersaurus is looking for Japan exclusives ;)

Some other borderliners:

Twinkle Tale(Mega Drive)
Prikura Daisakusan (Saturn)

Both these titles offer the same game play. Overview run and gun style game play. Both good games. Both NEVER in USA.

[Tron 2.0]

But I know a number of those games are available domestically. I already own them on their US counterparts :P

Ahh i see still, Salamander for the famicom is worth it for the different endings.

While the nes version doesn't have them.

[lkermel]

Sorry to advertise my site again, but I have a bunch of PC Engine/Super Famicom games there that may interest you.
On the super Famicom side, I'd recommend:

Macross : Scrambled Valkyrie (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?mac)
Kidô Sôkô Dion (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?kid)
Pop'n TwinBee (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?pop) (only came out in Japan and Europe)
Marchen Adventure Cotton 100% (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?cot)
Flying Hero (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?flh)

Do not hesitate to also look at my PC Engine HuCard (http://www.vgden.com/vgden_hu.htm) and CDRom (http://www.vgden.com/vgden_cd.htm) sections.

I hope this helps :)

[GaijinPunch]

I've got tons of info on this stuff on my site (and info in the forums). A few notes:

-Playstation Dodonpachi is superior to the Saturn one. Costs more too! Neither are "arcade perfect" but are considered to be "good".
-Gunbird PSX sucks as it has no tate mode.
-Price not only on Ebay, but make sure you cover all the stores before buying. Prices do vary
-Word on the Spriggan advice... it's gotten somewhat cheap too

Mandarake in Shibuya has done away w/ a lot of their 32-bit and 16-bit stuff (no Saturn section) but I assume the Nakano one is still somewhat in tact.

[ubersaurus]

I've managed to pick up some stuff so far(and haven't even hit Osaka or Kyoto yet!) that I've had for cheap!

Famicom:
Over Horizon
Super Xevious
Star Luster
Lagrange Point
Geimos
Argus
Exerion

Super Famicom:
Parodius
Gundam Wing Endless Duel

PC Engine:
Dragon Spirit
Gradius
Dead Moon
Final Blaster
Mr. Heli

PC CD:
Terraforming
Super Darius
Sidearms Special

Saturn: Dodonpachi

Megadrive:
Whip Rush

N64:
Sin and Punishment

Also got a boxed Turbo Duo R for about 12900 yen, which seemed to be a pretty good price compared to what I've seen on ebay for em. Haven't seen another one, so it's just as well I picked it up :P

[TurboGenesis]

Famicom:
Over Horizon


:frustrated:
I have been looking for this game for too long - I have no luck locating it online :(

You'll have to bring this by when you are return to the states ;)

[djsquarewave]

Kidô Sôkô Dion (http://www.vgden.com/sfc.htm?kid)
Released in the US as Imperium with some changes.

I have a bit of a soft spot for Dangerous Seed on the MD, but...well, I can't guarantee you'll like it as much as me.

FC Exerion and Geimos are pretty dire. Other than that it looks like you've made mostly pretty good choices. :) I'll second the reccomendation for FC Crisis Force. And if you see it at a reasonable price at all, buy Recca on sight. Most insane shooter on the FC by a wide margin, with a price to match...

[ubersaurus]

Released in the US as Imperium with some changes.

I have a bit of a soft spot for Dangerous Seed on the MD, but...well, I can't guarantee you'll like it as much as me.

FC Exerion and Geimos are pretty dire. Other than that it looks like you've made mostly pretty good choices. :) I'll second the reccomendation for FC Crisis Force. And if you see it at a reasonable price at all, buy Recca on sight. Most insane shooter on the FC by a wide margin, with a price to match...

I've seen one copy of Recca, for about 25,000 yen. I already have a repro of it for the NES, so I'm not too concerned.

I've picked up some more stuff cheap, that kicks. I've got one more day, but I can't imagine finding much more.

Famicom:
Maniac Mansion
Ballblazer
Arkanoid(w/ controller!)
Crisis Force
Castlevania 3
SMB3

Super famicom:
Sonic Wings

PC Engine CD:
Nexzr(for 2900 yen, shit yeah!)
Gradius 2

Saturn:
Xmen vs Street Fighter
Vampire Savior
Sexy parodius
Real Bout Special

Also a boxed AV Famicom for about 6000 yen. I saw one in another city later for 4000, which sucks, but everywhere else has been about 8000-9000, so this seemed like a reasonable buy at the time.

[ubersaurus]

Last minute additions:

Tetris(japan only famicom version)
Salamander Collection(for saturn)
Macross(famicom)

Where would one go to get a step down convertor, and what's the voltage I need? I know I don't necessarily need it, but in case I forget to unplug a console sometime, I'd like to be sure it's not going to explode.

[GaijinPunch]

No converter necessary for Japan<->North America

[Tron 2.0]

I've managed to pick up some stuff so far(and haven't even hit Osaka or Kyoto yet!) that I've had for cheap!
Famicom:
Lagrange Point


I hope you know japanese becuse that title has no walk through.

I've eyed that game for some time but becuse there is no, walk through for it i've pass it up many times.

[ubersaurus]

I hope you know japanese becuse that title has no walk through.

I've eyed that game for some time but becuse there is no, walk through for it i've pass it up many times.

I bought it based on the fact it was 50 yen and had cool cover art XD

I have a friend who knows japanese and always looks for a chance to have new stuff to read, so hell, he'd probably be interested in playing it.

[Tron 2.0]

I bought it based on the fact it was 50 yen and had cool cover art XD

I have a friend who knows japanese and always looks for a chance to have new stuff to read, so hell, he'd probably be interested in playing it.
Kewl, maybe ask your friend if he could make a walk through for it then.

I've herd it's a good rpg... beside useing the RC9 chip for graphics and sound.