RSGC0015 - Release Your Old Games, Japan!
I love Japanese video games. They're the reason why, even though I'm in my late 30s, I'm still utterly captivated by the medium. Through rigorous refinement, Japanese game makers helped shape the industry as we know it today. As a result, they have left a lasting impression, a legacy, in the hearts and minds of fans worldwide.
But, for quite some time, it felt as if these companies didn't understand this impact, as they've let some of their lesser known works slip between the cracks. This can be due matters of licensing or other litigious obstacles. Other times its a lack of interest from the mainstream; a poor reception. But more often then not, simply, someone "fumbled the bag" so to speak.
Chapter I: Namco X Not Releasing A Bunch of Their Old Games
When Bandai Namco released their most recent Museum compilation for the Nintendo Switch it was surprisingly threadbare; it was just 12 games. Twelve. Of course, it included Pac-Man - the game that made them a household name in the 1980s - and other staples such as Dig Dug and Galaga. They're undisputed classics, sure, no argument there. Deep cuts, however, they are not.
Namco's catalog has dozens of fantastic games, most of which would remained elusive if I didn't dive deep into retro gaming (and, by extension, collecting). One example of these is 1985's Baraduke, a 2D shooter with lite maze-runner gameplay. It's pretty rad, but somewhat under-the-radar these days. What if you want to play it right now, on real hardware?
Unless you own a prohibitively expensive Sharp X68000 computer along with the sole port of the game; an arcade PCB; or a copy of Namco Museum Vol. 5 for Playstation, it's highly unlikely you're going to be flying through rooms, blasting Octies any time soon. Out of the aforementioned options, the most feasible one is buying Namco Museum Vol. 5. Again, this is to play the game through legal means.
This was, in fact, the main inspiration for this post. There were 8 or so Namco compilations for the PS1. Why is the most extensive collection of Namco classics locked on an almost 30 year old console? Does Namco not value their older IPs? Do they think we just want Pac-man, Dig Dug and Galaga for our shiny current-gen game boxes and to Hell with obscure titles like Youkai Douchūki (aka Shadow Lands)? Or what about the esoteric hack-n-slash Genpei Tōmaden (aka The Genji and Hieke Clans)? Certainly everything that's been previously available (and then some) can fit on a Blu-ray disc or a Switch cartridge, no? Its frustrating, as someone chomping at the bit to own and experience such things. Sadly, Namco is not alone in this regard.
*EDIT (this is old lol) I started writing (and now rewriting) this post about month before the announcement of the Namcot Archive (a collection of Famicom Namco games) for the Switch. It's a neat set but my point, for the most part, still stands.*
Chapter II: The Virtual Console was Disappointing.
Nintendo needs no introduction. Their name is synonymous with video games, built on the fact that they dominated the home console market in the mid-1980s with their Family Computer (aka Famicom) in Japan. A few years later they expanded Westward with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to similar acclaim. While they didn't quite hold the same market share they secured in the 80s into the 90s and beyond, Nintendo still shaped generations with their games.
With Nintendo's fifth console, the Wii, they entered the realm of online game distribution. It was called the Virtual Console and it debuted in November of 2006, with it coming to the 3DS in 2011 and the Wii U in 2013. At launch, NES, SNES, Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis games were available with Turbografx-16 following a few days later.
Eventually, the service would offer western gamers titles that never got released outside of Japan. The first of these was Sin & Punishment for the Nintendo 64, an on-rails shooting game from Treasure. The most notable instance of this, however, was Konami's Akumajō Dracula X: Chi no Rondo (aka Castlevania: Rondo of Blood), a highly sought after title. At the time, it must have been incredible to finally play this without the need to purchase a costly secondhand copy of the disc or an expensive PC-Engine CD Turbo Duo console.
VC had its drawbacks, though. Most notably that when the service had come to other platforms, users were unable to transfer their purchases as the Wii, 3DS and Wii U eShops were separate entities. This lead to customers paying fees to re-download their titles or having to outright buy them again. This was, for lack of a better term, shitty on Nintendo's part. The lack of a universal pricing model, for what were essentially ROMs, didn't help either.
The 3DS and Wii U eShops also offered less games, 184 and 267 respectively, than the original VC's 398.
Between the slow-drip of re-rereleases at launch and anti-consumer practices, VC ultimately squandered its good will and potential.
Chapter III: Sega Does What Ninten-does, Too?
If there's one thing that Nintendo and one-time rival Sega have in common is that, like clockwork, they churn out the same classic titles over and over again. We saw this when the Virtual Console came to the Wii U and were hooked into the slow-drip of Mario Bros. 3, some random black box game, or a re-release of a third-party offering.
Sega is no better. I own Genesis compilations across at least 3 console generations. Their game lists are nearly identical. Golden Axe. Ristar. Phantasy Star II. I can go on. All are fantastic games in their own right, no doubt. I'm a fan. But like so many other Japanese game companies, they’re holding out on us. Yes, many will be placated with the likes of the current-gen Sega Genesis Collection's value (53 games for less than $50) but, I don't know, I can only attempt to play through Comix Zone and Phantasy Star III so many times; I'm sure many others share in this frustration.
A bright spot in Sega's history, however, was the Sega Ages line. The project started off as 3D budget (¥2500 at retail) remakes of their biggest hits that, thankfully, evolved into a series of definitive collections. This was due in part to the work of M2, a company who's MO is masterfully porting older games to modern consoles. Case in point, their 3DS Sega Ages port of Outrun was, at the time of its release, the best way to experience it. Again, as with Namco Museum, the bulk of the Sega Ages line is locked to the Japanese PlayStation 2 library. To further exacerbate this issue, most of later releases have started to become expensive on the secondhand market and Japanese auction sites. Bummer.
It's not all doom and gloom. Publishers like Johnny Turbo's Arcade are keeping classic Data East games alive and, more importantly, available. Price wise, it's pretty fair too. For example, less than $10 USD nets you a download of Night Slashers, a 3-player horror-themed arcade-only beat-em-up from almost 30 years ago. While, no, it isn't the pinnacle of the its respective genre, I absolutely welcome its availability with arms wide open.
We also need to acknowledge the efforts of Hamster Corporation's Arcade Archive. Through them, we have whole bunch of Neo Geo games (well, except for Tengai Makyō Shinden aka Far East of Eden: Kabuki Klash but that's more a Konami problem) and most then arcade-only obscurities available for download on every console, mobile and PC marketplace. It's wonderful time to be alive unless of course you love Tengai Makyō-flavored Samurai Shodown clones, I guess. Hopefully, that'll change soon.
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