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@sammyb_z

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Reviewing and showcasing 100% authentic games on original hardware. Shots from the collection of retro and import games. Occasional variety posts.

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Received a grail I've been hunting for years. Forgotten Worlds (Capcom, 1988) serial matched #67 board paired with some Axunworks spinners that fit the Astro City panel. I actually refrained from from ever playing this game or any of the ports before owning this despite seeing numerous footage beforehand. Claimed a 1CC as well with the score on the last pic.

A quite famous game that doesn't need much introduction. It got port treatment to a large number of consoles and PCs of varying quality. Also some copycat games such as SCAT (Final Mission). Forgotten Worlds was the first game Capcom released on the CPS1 hardware. With music from Tamako Kawamoto, she produced a brilliant score as she did with other Capcom classics.

A rare gem that lives up to the hype and grail status.

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#arcade #pcb #jamma #retrogaming by @sammyb_z

66

4

3 months ago

Finally picked up Big Fight: Big Trouble in the Atlantic Ocean (Tatsumi, 1992) rounding out my beat em up collection and coming near to the end.

A unique take on the genre, allowing a fighting game versus mode and the feature to play as the bosses you beat on the previous stage. Features giant sprites and impressive parallax scrolling. You can also route your run with various branching paths keeping each one fresh.

I have a large backlog of PCBs to post on here for 2026 and hope to catch up with more frequent posts and clear the backlog. 🙏 by @sammyb_z

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7

7 months ago

A major grail get here - Denjin Makai - 電神魔傀 (Banpresto/Winkey Soft, 1994) After stupidly passing on this game when offered it from my good buddy neoretro75 5 years ago I realized how good of a game it is too late and how common it is to not have original ROM labels on this release. Not to mention how elusive this title can be.

The predecessor to the very popular Guardians/DM2 which is widely hailed as one of the top beat-'em-ups of all time. This game plays in a more classic style, featuring smaller movesets but retaining a focus on solid fundamentals. It is the more difficult of the two games.

The roster of 6 characters also differs from Guardians, one of the major being that Girulian - a playable character in that game, is the final boss in this one. A rechargeable energy bar is still used for the special attacks in this title just like the sequel and each character still boasts a fairly large moveset, especially when including the ultimate attacks available at "red" health. It also still has the amazing team up attacks.

The sound in this game also features a solid soundtrack from Noboru Yamane, I find myself coming back to listen to this one more than Guardians but both are fitting for their games. Lots of chunky sfx in this that give a meaty effect. It also "borrows" a couple sounds including the "Go! go! go!" sound effect from Cadillacs and Dinosaurs and a remix of "Eye of the Tiger" which is excellent to hear.

The graphics feature large, detailed sprites and equally beautiful backdrops to complement the visuals.

After only seeing this game pop up twice in a 5 year period (one of them needed repair) this game may be compared to the Rapid Hero of rarity in the beat em up genre.

#arcade #retrogaming #importgaming #candycab #arcadegames #banpresto #winkeysoft #denjinmakai #guardians #電神魔傀 #retrogames #pcb #japangames #japanesegaming by @sammyb_z

70

7

a year ago

A re-pick up, and a new 1CC! Finally got the advanced course clear on Armed Police Batrider. Sold this game over 15 years ago and got it now for over 7x the price 😂 I never had the JP B version back then. Also got the artset this time around too. Link to the clear video here:

https://youtu.be/AQunkDzSXGU?si=kTkVEkDNlRGu5OMl

I got the clear with Strawman as that is who I always used back in the day. The last boss gives me tons of trouble as his patterns are all RNG. It's also fun to play as Bornnam, Miyamoto, Grasshopper, CarPet, and Shorty. I think I'm going to do some runs with those different characters later and trigger some Garegga bosses. This game has a ridiculous amount of content.

#arcade #pcb #1cc #armedpolicebatrider #raizing #8ing #retrogaming #arcadegaming #importgaming #importgames #jamma #shmups #candycab #candycabinet #shmup #battlegaregga #cave #retrogames #arcadegames by @sammyb_z

120

7

a year ago

Been a while since I posted, going to start posting the backlog of pick-ups and clears!

Starting with a long wanted game - 悪魔城ドラキュラ aka Haunted Castle (Konami, 1987)

A unique entry for the Castlevania series as a game released for arcades.

Whip/Mace/Sword your way through six stages as Simon Belmont, with one of his most interesting sprite iterations. All the usual Castlevania enemies and motifs are here but appearing in this game's style; love it or hate it.

Excellent spritework and music as to be expected from this series. The gameplay has been met with mixed reviews. I believe a large part of this is from players trying the International versions under the Haunted Castle name, where the balance of enemy damage is obscenely high.

I recommend playing this JP version if you get a chance. I celebrated the pick up with a 1CC to stage 2-3.

#arcade #retrogaming #importgaming #candycab #arcadegames #konami #castlevania #悪魔城ドラキュラ #retrogames #pcb #japangames #japanesegaming #1cc by @sammyb_z

97

18

a year ago

Giant batch of recent gets over the past year. Really focussing on recovering games I sold a long time ago regrettably, and of course fleshing out the collection with games I've been missing in a series or just games that have been on the want list for a long time. The games I regretted selling most here were Eliminate Down, Metal Gear Solid, and Pokemon Crystal. Great to have those back and play them again.

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#retrogaming #classicgaming #consolegaming #importgames #importgaming #retrogames #retrocollective #japanesegames #ファミコン #スーファミ #famicom #superfamicom #nes #snes #nintendo #gameboy #sega #ps1 #pcengine #terracresta #忍者龍剣伝 #streetfighter #chocobosdungeon #ストリートファイター #ghostintheshell #lionking #鳥人戦隊ジェットマン #tmnt #pokemon #metalgearsolid by @sammyb_z

61

8

2 years ago

Re-picked up Ketsui (CAVE, 2003) after selling it nearly 20 years ago.

A manic danmaku style shmup released from Cave in the middle of the company's life, it seemed to signal the turning point of the developer really hitting their stride. The game features a fairly straightforward system that rewards aggression and proper routing. The closer you are to the enemy you destroy with your spread shot, it then maxes out the score multiple to 5, which can then be 'sucked in' by switching to your lock-on shot. The system is nearly identical to Progear no Arashi but it doesn't feature the progression sub-system which is greatly appreciated.

Choose between two ships, Tiger Schwert - Slower ship, larger spread shot and Panzer Jager - Faster ship, direct shot. I feel like Tiger does more damage so I usually stick with that ship but both are very viable and offer a balanced experience.

The entire game is very streamlined and feels very no-nonsense yet intense, which is to make note that this is a shmup that actually features a decent story(!) In the year 2054, chaos spreads over the globe as global warming finally exacts its toll on Earth: the ice caps quickly melt, causing a tremendous series of cataclysms and for entire nations to disappear under the sea. The near apocalyptic setting and the quickly depleting resources of the remaining dry lands force nations into constant war, eventually culminating into World War III. After investigation, the source is tracked back to EVAC Industry co. ltd, an arms dealer who's been reaping tremendously high profits from the situation.

Featuring an atmospheric, moody and amplifying soundtrack from Manabu Namiki, it perfectly matches the beautiful pre-rendered sprites and background graphics. The whole game could be described as gritty.

I managed to 1CC this back 18 years ago, but currently only making it to stage 5 upon return so I need to shake off a spot of rust. For me, this is definitely in the top 3 of CAVE's library.
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#arcade #pcb #cave #jamma #shmups #ketsui #arcadegames #importgaming #retrogaming #arcadegaming #shmup #shooters #retrogames #importgames #retrocollective #candycabinet #candycab by @sammyb_z

89

3

2 years ago

Yen goes down, games collection goes brrr 💱🪽

First batch of recent game pickups

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#retrogames #retrogaming #importgaming #importgames #classicgaming #classicgames #retrocollective #sega #nintendo #pcengine #famicom #superfamicom #snes #nes #snowbros #battletoads #athena #konami #capcom #ducktales #sunsoft by @sammyb_z

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6

2 years ago

New pickups for this #cps2tuesday 🟩⬛ glad to finally have an all in one board for an easy way to pop in ssf2x at any time.

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#arcade #jamma #arcadegaming #retrogaming #candycabs #candycabinet #importgaming #retrocollective #streetfighter #cyberbots #poweredgear #armoredwarriors #capcom #cps2 #arcadegames #importgames #retrogames by @sammyb_z

68

1

2 years ago

Recent game pickups! Very glad to have Bazorder, legit Sylphia and complete the Yanchamaru trilogy.
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#importgaming #importgames #retrogames #retrocollective #retrogaming #japanesegames #famicom #superfamicom #nintendo #nes #snes #pcengine #ninjaturtles #tmnt #renandstimpy #valis #monsterinmypocket #ごきんじょ冒険隊 #快傑ヤンチャ丸3 #地底戦空バゾルダー #tonkinhouse #irem by @sammyb_z

61

4

3 years ago

Finally received Raiden DX (Seibu Kaihatsu, 1994) the crowning jewel in the Raiden series of shmups.

This game is a 'remix' of sorts of their earlier release of Raiden 2. You can select your course route after starting. Alpha mission is a single course with no breaks and only one boss, if you play perfect and no-miss no-bomb it carries on to following stages. An odd design choice for the training stage but a fun one to play. Bravo route is basically the first 5 stages of Raiden 2 with some slight tweaks. Mission Charlie which has all 8 stages with some new extra difficult ones added to DX, with an unlockable extra difficult final stage.

Raiden always felt like the most classic shmup out their to me so happy to get the quintessential release in the series. The PCB has two release as well, with the 1994 version shown here having a superior sound chip. by @sammyb_z

67

8

3 years ago

Picked up Viper Phase 1 NV (Seibu Kaihatsu, 1995)

A space shmup from the creators of the Raiden series. A nice variation from the military scenarios from their other releases.

This game was released with 3 different revisions with large differences: Old version - secondary weapons had limited ammo, slower bomb deployments, medal collection. The USA and New versions fixed these issues.

Featuring a beautifully polished soundtrack, it is a bit more upbeat than the standard melodic tracks of the Raiden series.

The difficulty level is the standard level of HIGH from all Seibu Kaihatsu games. Overall, a game that will keep your attention for the ages.

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#arcade #pcb #jamma #seibukaihatsu #raiden #viperphase1 #セイブ開発 #アーケード #基板 #importgaming #classicgaming #arcadegames #arcadegaming #retrocollective #candycabinet #candycabs #importgames #japanesegames by @sammyb_z

79

5

3 years ago