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Christuserloeser
Joined: 17 Sep 2006 Posts: 6
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Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 5:40 pm Post subject: What are the most interesting NES prototypes ? |
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Someone asked me this question and I thought I'd pass it on to you guys. What are the most interesting NES prototypes discovered so far and why ?
- From those featured on the main site I'd say these got to be mentioned: Earthbound, Sunman, Bio Force Ape, but I'd like to hear about some other games you think are noteworthy for one reason or another. |
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Skrybe Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 1610
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Posted: Tue Nov 26, 2013 11:18 pm Post subject: |
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Some suggestions:
California Raisins: This was one of the most visible unreleased NES games, due to it being based on a big franchise, and getting a lengthy review in Game Player's plus some full-page magazine ads before finally getting cancelled. Also, it was an incredible fluke that the copy that was eventually dumped didn't end up lost forever.
Final Fantasy 2: Noteworthy simply for being a Final Fantasy game.
Hit the Ice: This one's amazing on the grounds that someone actually attempted to make a hockey RPG.
Sunman: There's the Superman angle, of course, and the fact that this is a very good game that went completely unreleased anywhere. |
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TheRedEye The Internet's Frank Cifaldi
Joined: 26 Aug 2003 Posts: 4192 Location: Oakland, CA
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 12:59 am Post subject: |
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Sunman is notable for being a Kenji Eno game. Eno was a really interesting designer with a really notable body of work who lived hard and died young. |
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Kid Fenris
Joined: 17 Sep 2003 Posts: 300
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 5:03 am Post subject: |
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Secret Ties struck me as an interesting case: a decent enough side-scroller based on a Japanese comic, slated for North America with altered names and everything, but ultimately not released anywhere.
I imagine there's a good story behind that. I assume Vic Tokai was banking on their success with Golgo 13 and nabbed a lesser-known license from the same creator. Perhaps they even commissioned the game specifically for America, despite its manga origins. |
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Johnny Undaunted
Joined: 08 Sep 2003 Posts: 306
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 3:09 pm Post subject: |
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I don't remember if it was ever covered by this site, but Time Diver: Eon Man was interesting for the sole fact that it got a full walkthrough published on Nintendo Power. |
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kap Minister of Paranoia
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 2103 Location: I hate you.
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 8:01 pm Post subject: |
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Skrybe, you managed to list the four games that immediately popped into my head. |
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KingMike
Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 898
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 9:37 pm Post subject: |
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Skrybe wrote: | Some suggestions:
California Raisins: This was one of the most visible unreleased NES games, due to it being based on a big franchise, and getting a lengthy review in Game Player's plus some full-page magazine ads before finally getting cancelled. Also, it was an incredible fluke that the copy that was eventually dumped didn't end up lost forever.
Final Fantasy 2: Noteworthy simply for being a Final Fantasy game.
Hit the Ice: This one's amazing on the grounds that someone actually attempted to make a hockey RPG.
Sunman: There's the Superman angle, of course, and the fact that this is a very good game that went completely unreleased anywhere. |
I don't know if I'd say California Raisins was a big franchise as much as it was simply the Capcom name (which might ultimately be the reason it was canceled, it just wasn't in the same league as Capcom's internally developed games).
Time Diver was also the only released game to turn up on a pirate cart years before a genuine proto was found. |
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TheRedEye The Internet's Frank Cifaldi
Joined: 26 Aug 2003 Posts: 4192 Location: Oakland, CA
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Posted: Wed Nov 27, 2013 10:41 pm Post subject: |
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I'm not convinced Time Diver Avenger is a "pirate" cart. The only other game that Nitra published was another Taito game with a different title, they might have been official. |
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shawnphase
Joined: 22 Dec 2005 Posts: 216 Location: baltimore, md
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 5:12 am Post subject: |
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id have to agree with time diver eon man. it had a bunch of replay value too, i think ive went back and played it several times. sunman too. and of course, bio force ape. lets just consider any fully or close to fully built games that either came out eventually or we have heard of as fair game, i would have to say all of them are fairly interesting in their own ways. |
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billscat-socks
Joined: 17 Oct 2008 Posts: 50
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 11:10 pm Post subject: |
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Here's a boxed Timer Diver on Ruten auctions:
http://goods.ruten.com.tw/item/show?21311250382468
Sunfaded like hell, but it definitely has a more official look to it than most pirate boxes. I still have a hard time believing Taito struck up a deal for an exclusive Taiwan release, though. Maybe a former Taito employee did a backdoor deal with some pirating outfit and Nitra was born? |
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BMF54123 Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 743 Location: Henderson, NV
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Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 11:13 pm Post subject: |
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The game wasn't even developed by Taito in the first place, they were just the publisher. It's entirely possible that the original developer (A.I) sold the game to Nitra after Taito backed out. |
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Skrybe Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 1610
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 3:13 am Post subject: |
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Sardius really needs to get that copy of Time Diver Avenger he bought ages ago dumped. |
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KingMike
Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 898
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2013 3:13 am Post subject: |
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Then how about the other game they published, Insector X (with a different name)? |
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etabeta
Joined: 21 May 2007 Posts: 70 Location: Italy
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Posted: Sun Dec 01, 2013 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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KingMike wrote: | Then how about the other game they published, Insector X (with a different name)? |
for the record, the different name was "Queen Bee V"
and I'd love to hear the real story behind Nitra too |
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mrdomino
Joined: 16 Aug 2005 Posts: 167
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DarkTetsuya
Joined: 05 Sep 2003 Posts: 80
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Posted: Tue Dec 24, 2013 9:01 am Post subject: |
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I know its not NES but how about that Ninja Gaiden proto for the Megadrive?
As for strictly NES...only ones I have that aren't already listed are Bio Force Ape and the 'Virus' proto (that as I recall wasn't that from Gamemaster Howard Lincoln's archives of Nintendo stuff??) though I don't know how much they'd qualify as 'interesting'... |
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Skrybe Staff
Joined: 28 Aug 2003 Posts: 1610
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Posted: Tue Dec 24, 2013 8:38 pm Post subject: |
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Howard does have a copy of Virus, but the versions that have been dumped didn't come from him. |
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DarkTetsuya
Joined: 05 Sep 2003 Posts: 80
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Posted: Tue Dec 24, 2013 9:06 pm Post subject: |
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oh my bad! I just seem to recall him having one. |
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KingMike
Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 898
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Posted: Wed Dec 25, 2013 7:12 pm Post subject: |
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Three Virus protos are dumped from carts once bought from a collector who won at least two of them from ebay, and the fourth is a PC10 proto from a PC10 machine someone here bought on ebay (which also contained the unreleased PC10 version of Bases Loaded, though that doesn't get mentioned much because it's not as popular a game). |
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Pemdawg
Joined: 25 Oct 2006 Posts: 255 Location: Neenah, WI
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Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2013 2:26 am Post subject: |
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KingMike wrote: | and the fourth is a PC10 proto from a PC10 machine someone here bought on ebay (which also contained the unreleased PC10 version of Bases Loaded, though that doesn't get mentioned much because it's not as popular a game). |
I helped get those PC10 protos out Lucky that I had just gotten into PC10 at the time, and was scouring ebay for bits and parts when I found the cabinet with those in. A friend online bought the cabinet and dumped the ROMs. Very proud to have been involved in that. |
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