Tendo City

First...

Genesis
--
Menacer 6-in-1 - $7, complete - I got this from ebay because there isn't much to do with the Menacer without it, and I couldn't find it locally and this was pretty cheap.


Also, with the Steam summer sale almost over, I got stuff. Quite a bit of stuff. Each games' price is above the name, sorry; I'm not reformatting this just for that...

PC DD - Steam sale
--
$4.49
Ys I and II Chronicles+

$2.49
Eryi's Action

$2.99
Crypt of the NecroDancer

$1.39
The Sun and Moon

$8.74
Battlezone

$3.99
ALLTYNEX Second

$0.99
Defunct

$4.79
Grey Goo Definitive Edition

$2.99
Ginger: Beyond the Crystal

$2.49
Dungeon Warfare

$11.99
Overload (it's like Descent!)

$9.99
Zwei: The Ilvard Insurrection

$5.99
EXZEAL

$4.99
Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight

$11.99
Tokyo Xanadu eX+

$0.74
Cycle 28

$13.99
Senko no Ronde 2

$7.99
Double Cross

$11.99
Gensokyo Defenders

$4.19
Gensokyo Defenders Plus (DLC)

$3.99
The Red Solstice Universe (Solstice Chronicles: MIA; the other game in this pack I already have, but the bundle was cheaper than just the solo game...)

Sega CD
--
AD&D: Eye of the Beholder - $10, disc only in regular jewelcase. This game is the better of the two console ports of this early '90s PC dungeon crawler classic. It's a fairly simple dungeon crawler -- explore dungeon, kill monsters, hit switches, get stuff, repeat. The game is kind of fun, but the in-game map is only semi-useful as it doesn't automap, you have to find the map hidden somewhere in each floor in order for the map to appear. So, mapping yourself, or using maps from the internet, is advised. I got to floor two, and so far apart from the getting lost part it's very easy -- enemies on the first floor are no threat. Still, it's a decently good game. I will say, though, the character creation's got to be either bugged or very flawed, because this game ... lets you set your stats to anything you want, with no penalty. Want every character to have an 18 in every single stat? Go ahead, the game won't stop you. I didn't do that, but did put the stats a bit above where the random generation puts them. But uh, D&D games are supposed to have a points limit... I haven't really played this on PC, is this a SCD-only thing?

NES
--
Puss N Boots - $14, cart only

I got these when they were on sale last week or so.

3DS - Digital Download
--
Puzzle Box Set Up - $4
Severed - This 3DS version is free with the purchase of the Wii U game, I was reminded of this when I saw it in the store.
Art of Balance TOUCH - $4.50, on sale. A good 3DS game in this series.

Nintendo Switch - DD
--
Golf Peaks - used Nintendo Gold Points for, would have been $3. This is a pretty good puzzle game worth getting.
Xtreme Club Racing - $2, on sale. This is a flawed little indie arcade-style racing game. It's kind of fun for a while, but the randomly generated tracks, controls, and graphics hold it back.

Nintendo DS
--
Zoo Tycoon 2 DS - $6, complete
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing - $4, card only. An impressive DS port of the good console game.
Bubble Bobble Revolution - $4, card only.

So, I got a quite expensive thing from ebay, which arrived yesterday. I was thinking of getting a different expensive N64 game, but said 'what am I doing thinking of getting this one when I don't even have that other one I'd definitely like more', and after deciding that sadly it'll never go down in price and I missed my chance at a sanely-priced copy by like a decade, I...

N64
--
Stunt Racer 64 - $175, from ebay, cart only. Yup, I got Stunt Racer 64, Boss Games' final title and a famously rare and pricey Blockbuster exclusive rental only game. This price is good -- the game goes for at least this pretty much all the time, cart only, and also getting the box or manual would at least double that price, or more. Rental copies often ended up cart only, after all. This game was published by Midway, like all four of Boss's games, but they decided to make it rental only for some reason, often speculated to be that they had Rush 2049 releasing at around the same time and didn't want to compete with themselves. Well, Rush 2049 is one of the best games ever made and this isn't so on that level I can understand it, but they should have sold both, because this is at least good for sure. I've played several hours of the game now, and while it makes a not-great first impression, once you start getting used to the loose, skiddy controls I have started to have fun with it. The games' most notable feature probably are its fantastic graphics, and it does indeed have some of the system's better graphics particularly in (the ultra-letterboxed) high res mode (and the frameratete is good and high too, in either resolution!), but the gameplay, while simple, is good. This is a tough game -- if you fall behind you probably won't be catching up, and you need to make money in races in order to upgrade your car or buy new vehicles and can only make money by finishing first or second in the race, otherwise you lose it, so I could see grinding the easier circuits for cash, unfortunately -- but it's fun anyway, so oh well.

It is kind of weird though, seeing this game have real-ish cars which look like sci-fi versions of 1950s vehicles in this somewhat Wipeout or Extreme-G-ish world of tracks on railed floating paths, but while I'd probably like the game more with Wipeout or F-Zero style controls and handling and there's no way this game is really worth the going price, I don't regret getting it at all, it's a good game and it's awesome to finally be able to play this game I've been wondering about for so long -- there were no Blockbusters in my town growing up, so I could never have played it.

I was on vacation last week, but got a couple of moderately interesting things today. Well, the first two are pretty cool at least...

DS
--
Diddy Kong Racing DS - $5, card only. I'm sure the N64 version is better, but it is pretty nice to finally have this.

Genesis
--
Game Genie - $9, cart only - Neat find... though where my Genesis is, I probably won't be able to fit it in the system with a game in it. At least, not with the 32X attached, as it always is. Heh...

Wii
--
Transformers: Dark of the Moon - Stealth Force Edition - Vehicle Combat Game - $2, disc only - The overly long name is presumably to distinguish it from the more ambitious games on other platforms.
Disney Princess: Enchanted Journey - $3, complete - an actual platformer, not a junky minigame collection like most such titles then...

GBC
--
Lego Alpha Team - $4, cart only - This is actually a simple puzzle game.

PSP
--
The Third Birthday - $2, disc only. I've heard bad things about this and the story is a horrible mess, but for this price... I'll try it out I guess.

Nintendo Switch
--
Octopath Traveler - $40, complete. I've gone back and forth on getting this one since its release, but since the later PC version costs just as much and this gets me a physical copy, I went with this, since I finally saw a used Switch copy again - it's been a while.

Playstation
--
Front Mission 3 - $10, complete - I think this was the first game in this series released in the West? It's a good strategy game.

Xbox
--
Mace Griffin: Bounty Hunter - $3, complete - I've heard this game is alright but have never quite cared enough to buy it. Finally did.

Xbox One
--
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor - $3, complete ... I know I have this for PC, but owning physical copies of games is nice.

So, I got a bunch of stuff a few days ago.

Genesis
--
James Bond 007: The Duel - $13, cart only. This is a mediocre game from US Gold. It is a bit uncommon though, and not terrible so I got it.

Nintendo DS
--
Ant Nation - complete, $10
Battles of Prince of Persia - $4, card only
Age of Empires: Mythologies - $4, card only
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team - $4, card only

Game Boy Color (GBC Only)
--
Towers: Lord Banff's Defeat - $5, cart only

Game Gear
--
Journey from Darkness: Strider Returns - $3, cart only

Game Boy Advance
--
Tiny Toon Adventures Wacky Stackers - $3, cart only

PSP
--
WTF: Work Time Fun - $10, complete

Gamecube
--
Grooveriders: Slot Car Thunder - $9, complete

Nintendo 3DS
--
Dead or Alive Dimensions - $15, complete

PC
--
Pacific Storm - $1, complete (jewelcase in paper cover)

Playstation 1
--
Crossroad Crisis - $5, complete

Playstation 2
--
The Adventures of Cookie and Cream - $10, complete - Probably the most interesting game in this batch!

These were all some things on sale last weekend.

Nintendo Switch - DD
--
Party Crashers - $4, on sale
Mario & Rabbids: Kingdom Battle - DLC (the full bundle) - $14

PC DD - Humble sale - in this sale the amount of the discount increases the more games you buy, up to a max of five which gets $85% off. So I got six games and got that price.
--
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom - The Prince's Edition - $12
Hexodius - $1.50
Little Nightmares - $3
.hack//G.U. Last Recode - $7.50
Little Witch Academia: Chamber of Time - $6
Tales of Zestiria - $7.50

What the heck is Mario & Rabbids?

It's a pretty fun tactical strategy game by Ubisoft. Mario characters (Mario, Luigi, Peach) and Rabbid versions of them team up to fight against the rest of the Rabbids. It may sound weird, but it's a pretty good game if you like the genre. Nice graphics, too. The DLC adds a Donkey Kong campaign, which is cool.

Switch
--
Team Sonic Racing - $26, complete

GBA
--
Dynasty Warriors Advance - $6, cart only
Medal of Honor Underground - $3, cart only

Genesis
--
Sports Talk Baseball - $4, cart and case

PS2
--
Ephemeral Fantasia - $16, complete. I got this thinking I was probably overpaying but I'd always been interested in this game even though it's supposed to be pretty average, but looking it up it actually sells for around this much, so I did alright. That'sgood.6

(5th September 2019, 4:31 AM)Sacred Jellybean Wrote: [ -> ]What the heck is Mario & Rabbids?

Ubisoft put together a very fun "strategy" game, with a number of arcadey real time components similar to what they put in Mario RPGs.  Ubisoft really put out a winner with that game, and because Nintendo oversaw it, none of Ubisoft's disgusting shenanigans were allowed.  It's a pure gaming experience.

N64
--
Rampage 2: Universal Tour - $15, cart only. These games are extremely simplistic, but amusing for a bit. I'm sure I won' t stick with it, but Rampage 2 is one of those relatively few US-released, non-sports N64 games I didn't have so I'm happy to have it. I'm sure it will be fun too.

NES
--
NARC - $5, cart only

Xbox
--
Enter the Matrix for Xbox - complete, $0.50 (I had a disc only copy of this, but why not upgrade to a complete copy for this cheap?)


Also I got Interact's Fission fishing controller for Dreamcast ($1.50, with one broken handle on the spinner).

Question, is shenanigan a special ninja eye jutsu? You decide!

Wii
--
Avatar: The Game - $1, complete

Also for $5 I got another pair of (red, Sony brand) PS2 memory cards, and for $10 a grey Dual Shock 1 controller, because I don't have one of those and why not?

Also I got a bunch of stuff in last weekend's Sega digital sale --

3DSDD - these games were all $3 each, on sale from their usual $6. All of the Sega 3D classics stuff was on sale, but I only got like half of them because... I don't know. I intentionally didn't get the ones available in the one physical-cart collection of these we got, but there were a few others I also didn't get. Oh well.
--
Streets of Rage 2 3D - $3
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 3D - $3
Fantasy Zone 3D - $3
Space Harrier 3D - $3 (the original arcade game in 3D, not the SMS 3d game)
After Burner 3D - $3 (the arcade game)

Switch DD
--
Sega Ages Sonic the Hedgehog - $6, on sale
Metagal - $4, on sale

PS2
--
EyeToy: Operation Spy - $3, complete

Wii
--
Lost in Blue: Shipwrecked - $11, complete

GBA
--
Need for Speed Underground 2 - $4, cart only
Need for Speed: Most Wanted - $4, cart only

GBC
--
Mario's Tennis - $3.50, cart only - I've heard a lot about how good this Mario Tennis game is, but have never played it. It's fantastic to finally have it. This one is supposed to have RPG elements, more so than other Mario Tennis games.

Switch
--
Dragon Quest Builders - $33, complete

Wii U - DD
--
Fat Dragons - $0.75 (on sale)
Sky Force Anniversary - $5 (on sale)

I got these two games sometime in the last few months. I forget when, but didn't record them for some reason at the time so I'm doing so now. The first is a game I had from Games with Gold, but that's not real ownership, so I got this to actually own the game.

Xbox One
--
Ryse - $3, complete
Battlefield 1 - $2, disc only

And somewhat similarly, these are some DLC bundles I got a few weeks ago, when Ubisoft and Namco were having some big DLC sales.

Xbox One - DD
--
Soulcalibur VI - season pass, $15
Assassin's Creed Odyssey - season pass, $20
For Honor, season passes 1-3, $44

Also back in August, I got the Forza Motorsport 6 complete DLC bundle for $5, which they were selling at a huge discount before the game and its DLC was all delisted. I only have the game through Games with Gold and don't play that kind of game often, but that's quite cheap for the large number of cars you get and it's the only way to ever use them, so it's worth it.

I got a Game Boy Pocket. For $25, I got the system - it's the seethrough clear model - with a purple carrying case cover thing. It's in good but not perfect condition, the screen has a few small scratches but it's pretty minor. I've always thought of the Pocket as kind of pointless -- it's just a smaller Game Boy, after all, with a slightly less blurry screen, and I have the original model and the GB Color (as well as the Advance and Advance SP), but while it probably won't be my top GB of choice... yeah, this thing is kind of nice. Versus the Game Boy Color, I noticed the screen is bigger -- the Pocket is small, but has the same 2.6" screen size of the original GB, while the Color uses a 2.3" screen. You can tell the difference. On the other hand, the small size makes for worse comfort than the original GB -- this thing's small. The battery life is poor as well, with only ~10 hours on two AAA batteries, well below what any other Game Boy model gets. I'll need to get some rechargeable AAA batteries, I've never needed to have any.

Also:

Nintendo 64
--
Pokemon Stadium 2 - $28, cart only. This is a pretty decent price for this late N64 game, mostly because the label's scratched up. I know you can get this game cheaper on ebay, but how many of those are actual real copies, versus the nearly-identical fakes of pricier N64 games like this that flood that site? Yeah, for a definitely real copy of this game I think this is a fine price.

ABF, you're the only person I've ever met online that complained that the Pocket is too small and less comfortable than the brick boy.

I mean, different tastes I suppose, but for my part I find the pocket a lot more comfy to hold because it's smaller. I mean, my hands, they can close together, and touch each other, without any great discomfort. That's just me though.

I do love that the kept the screen the same size as the original model. Frankly, I love everything about the pocket. However, the clearer screen does result in one compatibility issue.

In Link's Awakening, the game uses an odd effect to simulate "fading" It's used when you get the instruments, and it's used to blend the credits of the designers so they look like they're fading in and out. (This effect isn't used in the ending credits of the DX version.) The effect makes use of the characteristics of that original screen, where the pixels have a rather lengthy shift time compared to modern displays. So, it just sort of flashes the screen and credits back and forth, a "flicker". On the original model with it's slow pixels, this results in a smooth fade, but on newer screens, you can see behind the curtain, and the flicker's plain as day.

That said, I still prefer playing on newer screens. While my old Light Boy does it's duty in lighting things up, that blur hurts gameplay in pretty much all of those old games, since the slow pixels make any movement "smudge" the things on screen. So, I picked the tradeoff. I use newer screens to avoid blur even if LA's "blending" effect is ruined because of it.

So I just directly compared playing a few of the same games on my original GB, GBP, and a GBC.

Blur - This is pretty bad on the original GB. You eventually get used to it, certainly, but it blurs a lot when anything moves. Blur is much less, but still noticeable, on the GBP. It's very low on GBC. I was surprised at how much the GBP screen blurs, I thought it'd be very similar to the GBC but it isn't; while it looks good, it does have definite noticeable blurring.

Screen visibility and clarity (being able to make things out) - poor on original GB. It gets better if you remove the screen protector and look directly at the LCD, but never matches the newer systems. You really need to get the angle right, to get light on the screen at the correct angles to be able to see well. Whenever I go back to using the original GB, my first reaction is 'this is so hard to see, how did I ever tolerate that? And I didn't even have a screen light!' (and still don't, in fact not for the original Game Boy), but then I start to get used to it. The GBP dramatically improves on this score, and has almost as much clarity as a GBC. It isn't as good, though -- the GBC screen is definitely smaller, but you have an even greater viewing angle in the same light than the GBP, and even better screen clarity. The GBC seems to reflect light the best of maybe any Game Boy model -- the GBA is much darker! On the GB and GBP you can adjust screen brightness with the contrast knob, but the GBC stays at a default which works very well. It's kind of neat to adjust this to make the screen brighter or darker depending on light conditions, but this isn't absolutely essential.

Screen size - similar 2.6" on GB and GBP. 2.3" on GBC, but the more reflective color screen helps make up for that. The larger screens are nice, and it's more noticeable on the Pocket because of its small size, though.

Sound - The original Game Boy has a significantly louder speaker than the GBP and GBC, which have somewhat similarly quiet ones. The larger size of the orignal system allows for a better speaker. Of course all are better with headphones, but I've never used headphones on a handheld with any regularity, so this does mater.

Buttons and comfort - the original GB's larger size makes my hands touch less while holding it, which I find more comfortable. It is quite a bit bigger, but with its larger buttons and d-pad it definitely has the best buttons of the bunch. All three are fine but I often do like larger controllers and this is no exception. There is a limit of course -- the Game Gear, for instance, is too big -- but the GB hits that balance well.

Build quality - This is an obvious one, the orignal GBs are legendary for how well they are built. They have one weak point, the screen -- over time the connection starts to mess up, and some lines on the screen will die. This is usually a fixable problem if you know what you're doing (though I have not tried to fix the two dead lines on my GB), but it's worth mentioning. Mostly the GB is really well built, though -- as a kid I remember dropping my GB onto a dirt road, and it didn't even reset! The game continue playing just fine. In contrast, the GBP started the new Nintendo era of okay but not amazing build quality. This coincides with when Nintendo moved production from Japan to China -- original GBs were made in Japan, GBPs and beyond China. It's a not nearly as durable system that would surely not survive the drop test very well; I don't want to try it! I have dropped GBCs before, and they didn't break but do turn off. As for durability, I have two original Game Boys, and both work fine, dead lines aside. I have three GBCs, and only one works right -- one is totally dead (first the screen failed, then the rest of it), and a second one has broken audio. The one I use is the third. This GBP works well.

Battery life - the GBP claims 10 hours on two AAAs. Original Game Boys are weird, an early GB manual seems to say 15 hours, but I'm pretty sure mine says 35 hours. The 'how long do handheld systems actually last' rabbit hole is deep and confusing, though -- here are a couple of pages for reference I was just looking at: https://nerdlypleasures.blogspot.com/201...-line.html https://www.wired.com/2012/09/battery-test/ (note that for the original GB, the actual number is about double what this test says due to interference - see https://www.wired.com/2012/07/3ds-xl-rea...tery-test/ ) Sadly that second link test did not test the Pocket. Too bad. But by these sites, we see that thanks to using AAA batteries the GB Pocket gets very poor battery life. With normal alkaline AAAs, that 10 hour number is probably an upper bound. The Color can get up to 35 hours in ideal situations, but only in original GB games -- in GBC games, it drops probably to the ~12-15 hour estimate I believe I have often heard. GBC games use more power than original ones. As for the original GB, 20-31 hours looks like a good estimate, depending on situations, or maybe slightly better possibly. So yeah, with the Pocket you'll be switching batteries a lot more often than other systems. On a per-battery basis the Color and original may have similar battery lives (playing GBC games and such on the Color of course), but the original uses four batteries instead of two so you swap half as often. And that would match with my memories, that I had to swap batteries a lot more often with the Color. Even if you end up using the same number of batteries, it's pretty annoying. And then the Pocket is even worse than the Color, by a good margin in fact! Sure, I can buy rechargeable AAA batteries (I never have because I've only needed rechargeable AAs) and probably will, but still if I use this thing much I'll be swapping often, won't I. That's not great.

Quote:I do love that the kept the screen the same size as the original model. Frankly, I love everything about the pocket. However, the clearer screen does result in one compatibility issue.

In Link's Awakening, the game uses an odd effect to simulate "fading" It's used when you get the instruments, and it's used to blend the credits of the designers so they look like they're fading in and out. (This effect isn't used in the ending credits of the DX version.) The effect makes use of the characteristics of that original screen, where the pixels have a rather lengthy shift time compared to modern displays. So, it just sort of flashes the screen and credits back and forth, a "flicker". On the original model with it's slow pixels, this results in a smooth fade, but on newer screens, you can see behind the curtain, and the flicker's plain as day.

That said, I still prefer playing on newer screens. While my old Light Boy does it's duty in lighting things up, that blur hurts gameplay in pretty much all of those old games, since the slow pixels make any movement "smudge" the things on screen. So, I picked the tradeoff. I use newer screens to avoid blur even if LA's "blending" effect is ruined because of it.

Yeah, there are a few original GB games that use its blur/flicker in order to do visual tricks. One famous one for that is the Japanese-only (and expensive) shmup Chikyu Kaiho ZAS, which I don't have but would like to get sometime. I'm not sure if that is the same trick you're talking about or not, though... but are you saying that only the original GB can handle this LA blur-fade, and even the GBP's still-somewhat-blurry screen doesn't display things correctly? What do you mean by a "newer screen" -- anything newer than original GB, GBA, DS, or what? You're definitely right that if you play GB games which rely on flicker in an emulator the effect doesn't work at all, but I'd think it'd work on any of the older handhelds? I guess you're saying otherwise, though, and I guess I'm not sure...

Or see Nemesis and Gradius: The Interstellar Assault. In this playthrough, look at how horrible it looks with the bombs and shield and such flickering constantly! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMvbvav_zlY Needless to say it does not look like that at all on a Game Boy. The bombs, shield, and those stars moving past you in the intro sequence, and such all should look solid, not blinking, because the game uses the flicker to make them appear lighter in color. Trying it now with the original cartridge, any actual Game Boy -- up through the GBA SP -- displays this correctly, with a solid image. However, the Super Game Boy does NOT -- much like that emulator footage, on the TV the game's all flickery. That's pretty interesting. I can't easily check the Link's Awakening ending, so I don't know how that displays on the various models.

So yeah I'm not sure which the best model of Game Boy is, but I do know that the one I'e used the most in recent years i the GBA SP for everything. Having this GB Pocket is nice though, I finally have all of the models... except for the GB Light, but with its prices I doubt I'll be getting one of those anytime soon... I'd only want to pend that kind of money on something I really want/would find useful.

The audio quality of the Gameboy line is another rabbit hole. I found a site that covers everything from audio glitches in early model GBCs to which ones suffer from the most interference. The GBA also has a few odd audio issues. If you pause the game in Link's Awakening, there's some odd audio artifacts in the notes on the menu that aren't present on older systems.

https://aquellex.ws/goodies/tutorial/gam...omparison/

I'd say the flicker effect starts to become noticable starting with the Gameboy pocket, but it really stands out from the Gameboy Color onward. Oh, and on the Super Gameboy it also becomes very apparent, since that video is being fed into CRTs which don't blur in that way. (For clarity, I don't mean a side to side or vertical blur, but rather a blur THROUGH TIME!... from one frame to the next...

(7th October 2019, 11:19 AM)Dark Jaguar Wrote: [ -> ]The audio quality of the Gameboy line is another rabbit hole.  I found a site that covers everything from audio glitches in early model GBCs to which ones suffer from the most interference.  The GBA also has a few odd audio issues.  If you pause the game in Link's Awakening, there's some odd audio artifacts in the notes on the menu that aren't present on older systems.

https://aquellex.ws/goodies/tutorial/gam...omparison/

Interesting, I didn't know about that stuff, I don't think.  Other than volume, I don't think I've ever noticed differences in audio between different GB models, though I'm far from an audiophile.  It is pretty interesting that they have small differences like that.

Quote:I'd say the flicker effect starts to become noticable starting with the Gameboy pocket, but it really stands out from the Gameboy Color onward.  Oh, and on the Super Gameboy it also becomes very apparent, since that video is being fed into CRTs which don't blur in that way.  (For clarity, I don't mean a side to side or vertical blur, but rather a blur THROUGH TIME!...  from one frame to the next...

Hmm, do you mean all of the flicker effects?  If so, I guess I'm just not noticing it on any of the actual Game Boys; as I said, I thought those Gradius: The Interstellar Assault bombs and shield and such looked just fine on my GBA SP, unlike the flicker of emulators or the SGB.  Or maybe I'm just not noticing it?  I mean, I do rarely actually notice the difference between 30 and 60 fps, and such...


So, though, I got a bunch of stuff today... how about I start with the most interesting?  One of the places I went today had gotten a bunch of pretty interesting complete in box Game Boy games in, and I got a couple.  It's always kind of shocking how expensive GB games with the boxes are, but they're valuable -- the prices I paid are actually good, getting these on ebay would have cost even more!  These two games, like many GB titles, are somewhat uncommon complete in box; most people threw away their Game Boy boxes, sadly.  They had more than this, but I got these two because I don't own the games and they looked like the most interesting of the bunch.  (The guy there said that he was going to ebay a few particularly valuable ones, such as some wrestling game that is expensive for some reason... huh.)  I may get a few more whenever I'm there next, but that'll be a bit.

Game Boy 
--
Castelian - complete in box (with poster), $25.  This is a port of a puzzle-platformer game also known as Tower Toppler, also released on other consoles such as the Atari 7800 and more.  It's a pretty frustrating game that relies on memorization, but has some ideas...
Solomon's Club - complete in box, $40.  This game is the GB spinoff of Taito's Solomon's Key.

Switch
--
Daemon X Machina - $40, used (but complete).  I wasn't going to get this one so soon, but after seeing it on for this price I decided to go for it because I liked the demo and have wanted to play more of the game. 

Game Gear
--
RoboCop 3 - $7, cart only

NES
--
Swords & Serpents - $5, cart only

Also for $7, I got an almost complete in box copy of StarTropics, one of my favorite NES games.  Previously I only had a loose cart, but this copy has the box and manual.  It's only missing that letter that's supposed to be attached to the back of the manual, but oh well, this is pretty cool as is.


And these last four games were $9 total, buy 4 $5 games for $10 at Gamestop (these is the only things here I got there.)

Xbox 360
--
Fuse - complete
Mafia II - complete Greatest Hits edition, with a second disc with all the DLC addons on it


Wii
--
Carnival Games Minigolf - complete

DS
--
Theme Park - cart only

(and not in that deal)

COP: The Recruit - $4, card only.  This Ubisoft game has fairly impressive polygonal 3d environments for the DS.


Also I got a few digital games that are on sale recently. These first two I got today.

Wii U DD
--
Vektor War - $0.79

Switch DD
--
Anodyne - $1 - This is supposed to be good and is on sale for really cheap.

PC DD
--
Age of Empires: Definitive Edition - $10, Windows Store. This remaster of AoE 1 has a pretty nice graphical overhaul, but I didn't want to pay full price for it, particularly not on the Windows Store. This was affordable enough that I went for it.

Civilization VI & its first expansion The Gathering Storm - $20 and $15, respectively. This sale finally got me to get this game, though there is also a second expansion that I'll get another time, when its on sale for cheaper.

Xbox One
--
Samurai Shodown (2019) - $40, new. Gamestop has cut the price on this one, so I decided to get it. Well, the game is as promised -- it's a very good, classic '90s style fighting game, with okay but not great 3d graphics and great, traditional gameplay. I like that it doesn't have a focus on nearly impossible (for me) combos; it's mostly just carter-circle and half-circle moves. This game plays like something from the '90 but modernized a bit, and I can see why it has been talked about as being a much more accessible game than most of the top fighters, because it is. That doesn't mean it doesn't have a high skill ceiling, though, because it clearly does. The AI is mostly easy, except for the super-frustrating final boss (classic SNK boss stuff there!), but in the so far somewhat rare cases where I actually find another person online to play against I mostly lose... but feel like I kind of have a chance, something I wouldn't in a lot of the 2.5d fighters around these days. So yeah, this is a really good game which I will definitely be playing quite a bit more... though it would be better if more people were playing it online. (I presume things are better on PS4, but I don't have one of those so oh well.)

SNES
--
King of Dragons - $70, cart only. This was expensive, buyt this game is expensive. Looking online you can get this game for as little as $45, but there are repros so paying a little more -- and you can pay more than this online for copies too -- is reasonable; it's not a cheap price for the game but is fair. The game is interesting too, with more going on than your average 4th-gen Capcom beat 'em up in some ways. There are five characters who are each different, a level-up system, and more. I guess it's kind of a (not nearly as good) predecessor to Capcom's two great Mystara D&D beat 'em ups? With a game like this, one the one hand, sure it's fun to play, but on the other hand, it costs a lot of money. Whether it's "worth it" or not is an open question, but it is a game I've wanted for years so I am glad to have it, even if I wish I'd gotten it years ago when the cost would have been way lower...

PS1
--
Army Men 3D - $6, complete - the first of the three PS1-only third-person-shooter Army Men games. I've always wondered why the 3D/World War series was PS1-only while the other series -- Sarge's Heroes, Air Combat, the PC overhead games -- were all multiplatform... it's odd. Some of that may be that these are not as good as the others,m but still... strange. Ths game's nothing special for sure, but some elements of it do feel like taking the first PC game into 3d. Why, then, not also make a PC version?
Austin Powers Pinball - $4, complete
Star Wars: Masters of Teras Kasi - $10, complete - the infamous(ly bad by all accounts) 3d fighter. I usually see it for more than this. I've never played this game before... I wonder what I'll think. If it plays like Tekken like I kind of expect, I doubt I'll like it, but we'll see I guess.

Xbox
--
Pure Pinball - $2, disc only

N64
--
NASCAR 2000 - $3, cart only - the other N64 NASCAR game; I see NASCAR 99 constantly but this one much less, for the N64 anyway. I finally found a copy for the collection.

Wii
--
Barbie and the Three Musketeers - $6, complete - This is a 2.5d platformer.

Wii U - You know, there are only about 160 physical-disc Wii U games... that's not many!
--
Lego The Hobbit - $2.25. complete
Lego Marvel Super Heroes - $2.25, complete
Scribblenauts Unmasked - $2.25, compelte

SNES
--
Mechwarrior - cart only, $9. This game is a port of the first PC Mechwarrior game, which was made by Dynamix and is far, far less remembered than Activision's all-time-classic sequel from a few years later. It's supposed to be good enough, but I've never played the PC game. Well, this SNES port is similar, except, of course, downscaled and simpler I am sure. It's a first-person mech sim/action game, sort of like the later console (Saturn/PS1) versions of Mechwarrior 2 I imagine. Anyway, this is an interesting thing and I've kind of wanted it for years, but only if I saw a copy and this is the first copy I can remember seeing myself. The second SNES Mechwarrior game, Mechwarrior 3050, I got years ago and like; that one is isometric, kind of like Desert Strike but more fun than that game. This is a quite different thing less well suited for the SNES, but it looks decent to good for the time at least, so that's nice. (This game, Mechwarrior, is PC and SNES only, but Mechwarrior 3050 was also released on the Genesis under a different name, Battletech. I have no idea why they changed the name, but I have it on SNES.)

I also saw a loose cart copy of Chrono Trigger for $100. I did not buy it and still don't own that game.

Wow Chrono Trigger is that expensive now? I'm glad I picked it up when it was new.

Checking ebay, the cheapest one I see (that's the actual game and not the flood of fakes they bizarrely don't shut down) sold for $62, and loose copies are going for as much as $140, so yeah, it's a valuable game. That price fits with what I see these days locally, though --where in the early '00s local prices were well under ebay values, now ebay is often cheaper and local stores more expensive. They rarely go way over ebay values, but they go by mid to upper-mid ebay prices, not minimums... but there is an advantage to buying locally, in that you can see the actual item before buying it, probably have a much better ability to return it if it doesn't work, etc., so I do think it still makes sense to buy locally often. Also, way fewer fakes when I buy locally!

In general though, there is no doubt whatsoever that digital games are slowly killing, or at least greatly reducing the marketshare of, physical ones. The amount of floor space in stores for videogames is far less than ti was even five years ago, and it'll probably continue to drop. PC games have dropped to near zero space in stores of course, and while consoles are not that low yet they are dropping. It's a sad thing to see; sure, I like buying games digitally too -- I mean, see the list that makes up the rest of this post! -- physical media is most definitely better.

... That said, over the past week I've gotten a bunch of digital Nintendo games. Note: with one exception, which is noted, all of these games are on sale, or were when I got them. The sale prices are listed.

Nintendo 3DS - DD
--
Edge - $0.50 - I have this on PC, but not in stereoscopic 3d...
Conveni Dream - $3 - a very basic and simple game, this is too simple and easy I think.
Samurai Sword Destiny - $1.50
Digger Dan DX - $0.40

Wii U - DD
--
RTO 2 - $1 - Oddly, the first and third games in this series are on the 3DS (and are much less cheap than this even on sale), while the second game is on Wii U. Huh.
Hive Jump - $0.75 - This is a decent, if repetitive, side-scrolling shooter/action game. First released on Wii U, it's on other platforms now, but despite worse framerates here I got this one since it finally went on sale and I've kind of been interested in it ever since its release. The game does have Gamepad support -- there's a helpful map of the stage there. I assume on other platforms you'd need to hit a button to bring that up. I was thinking about also getting the Switch version, which is also on sale (for $1), but after playing this decided not to; I'm fine with the framerate here and like the map.
Super Mario Advance 4 - Super Mario Bros. 3 - $8 (not on sale). I got this because this version of the game is the best one -- it includes all of the bonus stages which, on an actual GBA cart, require rare and in some cases Japan-only E-Reader cards to play. That this game has E-Reader-exclusive stages is incredibly stupid, but it does. Fortunately this version includes all of them. (Note: I do not own, and never have owned, an E-Reader.)
Steel Rivals - $0.70

Switch - DD
--
ACA NeoGeo Zed Blade - $4
Utopia 9 - A Volatile Vacation - $1
The World Next Door - $3
ACA NeoGeo Aero Fighters 2 - $4
Flowlines VS - $0.50
Build a Bridge! - $3
Revenge of the Bird King - $0.09
Quest for the Golden Duck - $0.20
#RaceDieRun - $5

Bro what r u doin typin bout games @ 4am, get sum sleep

YOU get some sleep! ... Yeah!

... So uh, I haven't been posting in this thread but have been buying probably way too many games. I guess I should just list everything, this will be long.

I got this first batch on 10/24. Thes are all more Nintendo eShop games that were on sale at the time.

Nintendo Switch DD - on sale
--
Blue Rider - got free with Nintendo gold points, would have been $5
Xenon Racer - $8.50
Arcade Archives: Moon Cresta - $4
Arcade Archives: Terra Cresta - $4
Cosmic Star Heroine - $4.50
UTOPIA 9 - A Volatile Vacation - $1

3DS DD - on sale
--
Ambition of the Slimes - $3
Mercenaries Saga 3 - $3
Mercenaries Saga 2 - $3
Adventure Labyrinth Story - $3
Adventure Bar Story - $3.50

Wii U DD - on sale
--
PONCHO - $5
Journey of a Special Average Balloon - $0.50
Triple Breakout - $0.50
Spheroids - $1

And these are from 10/27.


Xbox 360 DD - on sale
--
TOW - Things on Wheels - $1

Xbox One DD - on sale
--
Voodoo Vince: Remastered - $4

Then this is from 10/31, from the Steam Halloween sale.

PC DD - Steam sale
--
Anna's Quest - $2
The Last Tinker: City of Colors - $2
Earth Defense Force 4.1 Wingdiver the Shooter - $3
Munin - $0.50
Senran Kagura Bon Appetit! - $8
Senran Kagura Peach Beach Splash - $20

Then this is from 11/1. These are physical games.

Game Boy Color
--
LEGO Stunt Rally - $2, cart only

Xbox
--
Headhunter Redemption - $7, sealed

And these are from 11/5, more physical games.

Game Boy
--
Word Zap - $18, complete
Go! Go! Tank - $22, complete - I have this game already cart only, but the box and manual and poster are nice and it does have link play, so I'm fine with also buying this. GB game boxes are not common! Most people just threw them out...

PS2
--
Shox - $4, complete

Xbox One
--
Moto Racer 4 - $10, complete - I love the first two games in this series a lot, but while these newer one are nowhere near as great as they were, this game is still decent fun and usually costs more than this.

SNES
--
Pinball Dreams - $4, cart only - I'd forgotten this was from DICE...
Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers - $10, cart only - a decent side-view beat 'em up.

PSP
--
Untold Legends: Warrior's Code - $5, complete

And then most recently I got even more digital Switch games. I got all of these between 11/7 and 11/10 (yesterday).

Switch DD - on sale
--
Preventive Strike $0.01
Mad Age & This Guy $0.40
Hyperide $0.20
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Night Slashers $4.00
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Wizard Fire $4.00
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Gate of Doom $4.00
Car Quest $5.00
Sweet Witches $3.00
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Nitro Ball $4.00
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Super Burger Time $4.00
Johnny Turbo's Arcade: Joe & Mac Returns $4.00

... Yeah, I probably should stop buying so many games for a bit. It is almost the holidays though, so a lot of things go on sale which are interesting... and on that note, I was playing some Gate of Doom and Wizard Fire, and they're pretty fun games, I definitely like them. Well worth getting!

I haven't gotten nearly as much recently, but have picked up a few games...

3DS
--
Monster Hunter Stories - $7, card only. This is a pretty good price for this late DS RPG. This game is a spinoff of Capcom's Monster Hunter franchise which is a traditional RPG instead of an action-RPG. It has very nice graphics for the 3DS and a maybe too simple rock-paper-scissors-inspired battle system, but seems good.

DS
--
Neves - $4, card only. This is a tangram-style puzzle game.

Nintendo Switch
--
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night - $25, complete - I probably should have gotten this on PC or Xbox, but this version is a bit cheaper and supposedly has been patched, so hopefully it's better now than it was at launch.
Psyvariar Delta - $20, new

Xbox One
--
Anthem - $9, complete ... why not. I have to know...

Saturn - all three of these games are scratched up, but (at least mostly) working. They would have cost more in good condition.
--
Andretti Racing - $5, complete. This disc has a few points where you can see light through it so it'll probably crash somewhere, but I played a few races and they worked, so it's not a total loss. The game is mediocre though, doubt I'll be playing too much of it...
NASCAR '98 - $5, complete. Particularly when I got this game at the same time. NASCAR may be unexciting, but with a racing wheel this game is fun, and it plays well. The game has much better graphics than Andretti Racing (note: both games are from EA), much shorter load times, better controls and gameplay, and a much smaller save file. It's got fantastic box art, too -- the way the cars go over the usually solid white bar on the left side of the cover is really cool. I'd been wanting this game for its box and it's great to have it. This game's alright, if you have a wheel.
True Pinball - $15, complete. This one would go for at least twice this much in better shape, but as it is I'll just be lucky if it runs... though this Digital Illusions pinball game looks fairly average, like all their titles, so at least it's not an amazing game with a disc all scratched up.

I picked up the Sega 4 player adapter for Genesis, the second model with the confusingly lower model number that has a "EA compatible" mode. I also got another two 6 button controllers. Well, I did get a multitap. I'm going to need them.

Oh yes, I picked up a Genesis Classic. Three reasons for that, and they're all exclusive ROMs sitting on it for me to rip and stick on a Flash cart. I'm most looking forward to Wily Wars.

I think I only have like three actual Genesis controllers, plus one junky third party one with a four foot cord, or such. Oh well, I rarely need that many anyway.

As for the Genesis Classic, it looks like a nice unit, I just don't think I'd have much of a need for it... though as a way to get not-as-expensive copies of roms for some of those more expensive games if you don't have them and want those, sure, that makes sense.


So yeah, this update is going to be big. (I really should go back to more, smaller purchase posts, instead of ones this long...) First, I've got to cover everything I've gotten over the past week; I've been busy, lots of stuff is on sale around Thanksgiving after all. Gamestop had their first B1G1/B2G1 sales in QUITE some time, for example... and I got things, some thing s which would have been cheaper if I got them digitally (even considering the sale), but I bought physical copies of anyway because I like physical media when I have the choice. (Plus, money spent digitally is gone forever, while a physical product can be sold if you really dislike it. I don't usually do that, but still, having the option is good.)

And then second, there's a particularly expensive thing I bought earlier this year which I really need to finally admit to buying, and list the games I've gotten for it.


So let's start with recent digital purchases. I got all of these between the 25th and today.

PC - DD
--
Kuraburo Kai - $1.24
Journey of Haha - $1.00
The Vagrant - $1.59

Also, Valve is discontinuing the Steam Controller and marked it way down to clear out their remaining stock, so I ordered one. With shipping, the case, and the dongle-holding battery cover it totaled $21, but if I actually find it usable that's a reasonable price. It hasn't arrived yet but did ship, so my order at least went through; they have cancelled some as they took more orders in than they had remaining controllers. Well, I'll see how that turns out.

Nintendo Switch - DD (all of these listed prices are the sale prices, these games were all on sale.)
--
REKT! High Octane Stunts - $2 - This is a pretty mediocre attempt at something like a Rush game stunt arena. It's kind of neat to see, but ends up feeling bland.
Green Game: TimeSwaapper - $0.30
Red Game Without a Great Name - $0.30
Laser Kitty Pow Pow - free with Nintendo Gold points, would have been $0.30
Shalnor Legends: Sacred Lands - $1. This is a simple 2d Zelda-styled game. It's interesting enough to be worth a dollar.
Ding Dong XL - $0.25 - This is a very cool early '80s style game with a laser-light aesthetic and super simple but addictive gameplay. You hit a button or two to make circles move between the top and bottom of the screen. That's it... but objects moving across the screen will end your game if you hit one. The game seems extremely simple at first, but has some nice depth and risk-reward gameplay - you get an extra point if ou get really close to an object but don't quite hit it. There are also one or two circle modes. Very cool stuff, this game is good.

Xbox One DD (on sale)
--
The Disney Afternoon Collection - $5. I chose to get this on Xbox over Steam. I have three of these games already on NES of course, but the DuckTales and Rescue Rangers sequels are really expensive and this is not. It is unfortunate that this collection wasn't released on any Nintendo systems, I'd rather get it there, but oh well.

Nintendo 3DS - DD (all games on sale)
--
Super Strike Beach Volleyball - $2.50 - it's one of those "Family" series games.
3D After Burner II - $3. The Sega Super Scaler games look really cool in 3d!
3D Streets of Rage - $3. While side-scrollers like Sonic mostly look the same in 3d, Streets of Rage 2 looks pretty nice thanks to the isometric graphics, so I got this one too.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy - $12. Despite its popularity on the DS, I've actually never owned or played any of the games in this series, until now, because I've been very skeptical of how much I'd like the games. Well, all of the 3DS games are on sale, well all of the US-released ones (there are three more games in this franchise on the 3DS in Japan that Capcom did not localize, I didn't remember that until today...), and after thinking about it last time they were on sale but not getting any, this time I got the first one, the trilogy collection of the first three games. If they go on sale again and I actually play and like this maybe I'll get the other three later.

Vita DD (on sale)
--
MeiQ: Labyrinth of Death - $3

PS3 DD (on sale)
--
Elevator Action Deluxe - $5

Wii U - DD (on sale)
--
6180 the moon - $2. This is also on 3DS and PC, but I picked this version. It's a clever indie platformer.


Now, physical games I got in the past week.

Saturn
--
True Pinball - $15, complete. This game sells for well over this online, so it was a good price. The disc is scratched up like those other Saturn games, but thankfully works. This is a Digital Illusions pinball game, and I never cared too much for their style of pinball games (Epic Pinball is so much better than Pinball Dreams!), and that is still true unfortunately; I find this game probably the least fun of the three Saturn pinball games I have now. Still, it's okay and nice to have I guess.

Xbox One
--
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair - $15, new. I really love the first Yooka-Laylle game; it is one of the best 3d platformers this generation, the haters are very wrong! That said, this new second game is quite different, it's a 2.5d platformer in the Donkey Kong Country (or DKC Returns) vein. This game does look great too, but I do hope they make more games like the first one, it was exactly what I wanted and is amazing. Anyway, I got the first game on GOG, but decided on this for the second because it was the cheapest and it is nice to have it in a box. Also, as a 2.5d game it should run fine on consoles.

The rest of this section is that Gamestop sale stuff. The Friday to Sunday sale was buy 1 get 1 free on Wii, Wii U, DS, Vita, PS3, and X360 games, and buy 2 get 1 free on Switch, PS4, X1, and 3DS games. Yeah, the 3DS still rates in the "current consoles" bunch according to Gamestop, I guess. Good for it, I still love mine.

First, B1G1 games.

Wii
--
Dream Pinball 3D - complete, free in B1G1 (would be $3)
Ghostbusters: The Video Game - complete, free in B1G1 (would be $15)
Professor Heinz Wolff's Gravity - complete, $5
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games - $10, complete
Cabela's Survival: Shadows of Katmai - $3, complete
The Simpsons Game - free in B1G1, would be $15

Xbox 360
--
Kinectimals: Now with Bears! - complete, free in B1G1 (would be $5)
Red Dead Redemption - Game of the Year Edition - $25, complete

Vita
--
Tales of Hearts R - $22.50, cart in generic case

Nintendo DS
--
n+ - card only, free in B1G1 (would be $5)

and the B2G1 games.

Xbox One
--
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice - complete, free in B2G1 (would be $28). I doubt I can handle this game, but... I want to try anyway.
Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet - free in B2G1 (would be $22.50) The anime was horrible, but this game sounds solid...
Okami HD - $18, complete - I have this on PS2, but it'd be nice to play with upgraded visuals.

Switch
--
Super Neptunia RPG - $40, complete. I probably shouldn't have gotten this give my general thoughts on this franchise, but... got it anyway. Well, this game is different from the past ones, it's a side-scrolling RPG, which is interesting. This is definitely cheaper digitally now, but then I'd be stuck with it forever like the ones in the franchise I have on Steam....

Nintendo 3DS
--
The Alliance Alive - complete, free in a B2G1 (would have been $20) - the sequel to The Legend of Legacy.
Cut the Rope: Triple Treat - $6, cart in generic case
Rune Factory 4 - complete, $25 - Farming games are another kind of game I've long been very skeptical of my interest in, but thanks to this sale I finally convinced myself to try this one. It's part farming game and part action-RPG, and is very anime (in good and bad ways). It seems alright I guess.


And lastly, that very expensive system I bought earlier this year. Everything I've gotten for it is from ebay.

So, back in June, I got... an Atari Jaguar, with Jaguar CD. As is typical for that setup, it cost over $600, despite the proof that the CD part was working being somewhat flimsy. Well, of you check them on ebay, Jag CD systems sell for over $400, working or not; the things are notoriously failure-prone, so they are about as expensive broken as they are working. Why not just get a Jag? Well, I know that I'd always regret it if I got a Jaguar without the CD addon... so I took the gamble and got this. Well, the Jaguar works perfectly, but that CD system broke. It worked mostly fine for a few weeks, but why the end of a month (by late July or so) the laser was clearly dying; actually using it again seems to have killed the poor thing. I only got three Jag CD games, but I was using the VLM a fair amount - I may not be much of a music person, but that thing is pretty amazingly cool, the Jaguar CD one particularly. Well, finding new lasers for the Jag CD is easy as the laser assembly itself is a common part, but you need to solder the original ribbon cable on to the new laser assembly to use it as that is custom. So, I got the new laser and have left it sittig in the system un-connected ever since because of that soldering issue. It'll probably work once fixed and looks like very easy soldering (six points on nice big connections, no little wires or soldering to chips or anything), though, so I need to do like that thread of DJ's from recently said and actually learn to solder. Hopefully I'll do that soon...

Anyway, the system came with the Jaguar system, the (failing laser) CD addon, two controllers (one working fine and one with a d-pad that does not respond to some directions), the cart game Iron Soldier, the Myst demo disc cd for the Jag CD, the RFU, a composite AV cable, and two power supplies for both parts. I tried to fix that second controller and it seems quite possible (I got those directions to respond after some cleaning), but unfortunately one of the screws in it is stripped and won't come out, so I can't really take it apart to fully clean it properly. Oh well, at least the other controller works great. I find the Jaguar controller surprisingly comfortable; I'd heard a lot of bad things about it, as everyone has, but it's actually kind of nice, with good-feeling buttons and a fine d-pad and ergonomics. It should have had shoulder buttons, but works well, apart from the same problem that all of the early 3d consoles have, that lots of games would be far better with an analog controller but this thing only has a d-pad on it. And unfortunately, unlike the 3DO, Saturn, or PS1, the Jag never had any kind of analog controller released for it, so all games are sadly d-pad only. It is an issue in some games. Otherwise it's good though. As for the system, it looks nice enough, I kind of like the (very '90s) styling. The carts aare nice, with handles on them, and every cart has an EEPROM chip in it to save data. Yes, EEPROM, not battery. The Jaguar is the first console with exclusively flash memory based saving, which is a pretty awesome thing. These EEPROMs were mostly really tiny, saving only a few things, but are very welcome to have regardless. That every game saves makes this system feel next-gen (like N64/PS1/etc.) even when the games are last-gen computer ports. On the other hand, thanks to some serious hardware bugs and design flaws, the Jag has major problems making good 3d graphics; it's hamstrung versus its theoretical power because devs have to waste lots of power just making sure the screen displays correctly and such. Still, it is at least comparable to the 3DO, and when it's at it best it clearly beats that system, probably. 3DO visuals are MUCH more consistently decent than Jag graphics are, though.

Games I have:

the VLM, or Virtual Light Machine (CD) - built in to the Jaguar CD is a light synthesizer which plays animations along to music CDs. This was made by Jeff Minter, also of Tempest 2000 fame, and is incredibly cool. You can change between 81 different animations freely by hitting two-number combinations on the keypad; that makes this work a lot better than most console visualizers do, being able to switch freely is great. There is something about the low-resolution animations this thing reates that looks really cool, I like it more than Minter's later work on the Xbox 360 visualizer.

Iron Soldier - cart only, came with system in early June. This pretty good mech action game is slow-paced but has a good sense of style and good gameplay and controls. It's one of the better games on Jaguar.

Myst Demo (CD) - disc in paper case. This game was a packin with the Jag CD, so that's complete. It's a very tiny bit of Myst, showing that yes, this game runs just fine on the Jaguar. Playing this with a mouse is a lot better than a gamepad, though, and I've never been a Myst fan, so once I repair my Jag CD, despite the system's very small library, getting the full version of this one won't be high on my list.

Vid Grid (Jaguar CD) - $15, disc in paper case. I got this in later June. This game was a packin with the Jag CD, so that's complete. This puzzle game has you trying to put together a puzzle while watching a music video. Basically, figure out where all of the squares of the screen go before the video ends and you win. There are eight or nine rock music videos to wach. Obviously I don't much care for the music, but at least this isn't a sliding tile puzzle game - you can pick up and put down tiles anywhere. It gets hard later, as tiles can be mirrored too. I got through level one before stopping, and then my CD laser gave out. This game is okay for what it tries to do.

Cybermorph - cart only, got from ebay a few days after the above game, for $12.50. This very unpopular title was a launch game for the Jag, and it's ... good! Really, Cybermorph is a fun flight action game with solid controls, okay to good visuals (the short draw distance aside), and good design. Flat-shaded 3d grahics like this were very unpoular at the time, but have turned out to age really well, much more so than a lot of early textured 3d has.

Around this time I also got a Memory Track (memory card) cart for the Jaguar, used for Jaguar CD games to let them save. I got a new, unopened one for $50 and then opened it. The Jag CD does not have any storage onboard, for any CD titles to save the memory cart is required. Given how few JCD titles there are though, one will most certainly be the only one you'll ever need.

A couple of days later in late June, five games arrived I got all from the same seller.

Checkered Flag - $17, cart only. This very unpopular racing game has a lot of problems, and I'm not going to call it good; it isn't, the controls are kind of awful and the featureset is shamefully thin - this game doesn't even save your best times! Come on. Still, though, despite its serous problems I find this game fascinating. It's a Virtua Racing clone that is far worse than the game it copies thanks to its bizarre controls (the longer you hold the d-pad direction down, the more you turn. It's very hard to get used to.), very low framerate, and limited options, but there is something here I kind of like, under all the problems...

Club Drive - $33, complete. Club Drive is another infamous Jaguar racing game, but it's much better than Checkered Flag, I think. This game also has seriously limited options, you have five tracks, two modes (lap race or collect-the-stuff), and that's about it apart from a two player mode as there is no championship or anything and only ever zero or maybe one computer opponent (the collect-the-stuff mode has no opponent in single player and the other one maybe one car, or maybe it's also just a timetrial unless you're racing against another person), but the flat-shaded graphics look nice, I think the controls work fairly well (it does some interesting things - pressing diagonals does a sharper turn than just left or right, to try to make up for not having an analog stick), and the gameplay and handling style is somewhat reminiscent of my old favorite, San Francisco Rush. There's even an SF track here! I wouldn't be at all surprised if Rush's developers had this game in mind, at least a little bit, when making that one. I wish this game had more features, with AI cars to race against, a circuit mode, etc., but what's here is interesting. Oh -- and while the framerate is low, it is definitely higher than Checkered Flag's and that makes a big difference. Having fewer cars on screen perhaps helps. Also, this game does save your best times.

Tempest 2000 - $63, complete. And here it is, the main reason most people consider getting a Jaguar, one of my all-time favorite games, Tempest 2000. I have very much wanted this original version of T2K ever since I became a fan of the game back in the early '00s, instead of just some of the ports, and I'm really happy to finally have it. This game is amazing and is easily one of the best games of the generation, period. T2K is a strong candidate for making my 'best console games ever' top list. This Jaguar version does have some framerate isseus at times, but it's not a big deal and the gameplay is exceptional. The music is really impressive, too. Lots of Jag games have weak audio, but not this one!

Blue Lighting (CD) - disc in paper case. This game was a packin with the Jag CD, so that's complete. Blue Lighting is another often-derided Jaguar title. This is another knockoff of a popular Sega game done not nearly as well as Sega would, but in hthics case it's After Burner they take ideas from. This game is a sequel/remake to a Lynx game, but most everyone likes that game more. Well, I don't have a Lynx yet, but I found this game reasonably fun. It is very hard, though, and unforgiving - if you crash that's it, you lose that plane. You kind of need to restart if you mess up at all. There is saving, but still, it's a very hard game, from the few levels I played. Once I get a working system again I will play this game more, but from what I played I thought that it was flawed but on the edge of good.

Hover Strike: Unconquered Lands (CD) - $28, disc in paper case (no outer box; this had one, it wasn't a packin, just the other three I have are). Hover Strike first released on a cartridge, but I got this CD version because it's improved over the cardt - it has better graphics with lots of textures and farther draw distance, a better framerate, more levels, some little FMV sequences, improved music, improved controls with nice hover physics (you slide around like a hover-tank would) and maybe more. Based on this version, this is a pretty good game. This is a fun first-person tank action game I was quite enjoying, until my CD laser died. The game is pretty easy, but fun enough that I didn't mind all that much. The cart version sounds much less good though, but I haven't played it. (This game and Battlemorph are the two most often praised original-lineup Jag CD titles, I think. I'll get that one eventually, once I have a working system again.)

Kasumi Ninja - $34.50, complete. I got this game in mid July. This fighting game is known for being not very good, but I had no idea just HOW terrible it is! Seriously, Kasumi Ninja should be criticized more than it is, this game is really, really bad. Once you get used to it it gets silghtly better, but the problems here are far too deep to save. Here's what is probably the worst thing about it: the controls. So, in this Mortal Kombat-style fighting game, you ... can't hit buttons while in the air. No, in order to jump kick, you have to press jump plus attack while you were on the ground. Then, you will do a jump-kick. If you just press up-forward to jump, though, you'll just jump and cannot do anything in the air until you land. I had no idea this game was like this until I played it, but it's a horrible way to make a fighting game! It's not much fun beyond that, either. The other MK-style fighter on Jag i supposed to be a lot better, but it also costs a lot more so i don't have that one.

The next five games I got from the same seller in mid July.

Evolution: Dino Dudes - $25, complete. This game is a port of The Humans, a PC/amiga/SNES.etc game. It's like Lemmings, except that you control your little guys directly, and not a cursor. This is an okay, but slow and challenging, puzzle-platforming game. The graphics look the same as they do on computer. It has password save, but it does use that EEPROM chip for something - it'll save the last level password you got, so you can continue that way. That's nice at least.

I-War - $41, cart and box (no manual). I-War was high on my list of Jaguar games I wanted to buy after getting the console, because I remember thinking that this game looked cool from when I first saw it in EGM back in the mid '90s, and had to know if it actually is, despite reviews at the time being very hard on it. Well... yeah, it's good. I-War is another tank action game, except this one is much more of a maze exploration game - you explore levels, looking for collectables while killing turrets and such. It has flat-shaded 3d graphics, which the Jag does well, and has a good framerate and good techno music soundtrack. It saves your progress as expected and is definitely fun. It's simple -- you can only shoot stragiht and not strafe, so strategy is limited until you get the homing weapon powerup well into the game - but fun. I think this game deserves a better reputation than it's gotten.

Ruiner Pinball - $41, cart and box (no manual). This one's much less good; not one of my better purchases, for sure, from a gameplay standpoint (financially, this game sells for this much or more for sure.). The Jaguar has two pinball games, this and Pinball Fantasies. This game is not from Digital Illulsions, but plays a lot like that game, way too much like it. Like that game, it's zoomed way too far in, so every time you hit the ball the flippers vanish off screen. You kind of gert used to it with time, but the zoom, and constantly moving camera, are pretty awful. The two tables are of only average design as well. It's maybe okay once you get used ot it, but I'd much rather play a better game.

Val D'Isere Skiing and Snowboarding - $21, cart and box (no manual). This game is a heavily enhanced remake of Tommy Moe's Wnter Extreme for the SNES. The character sprite is similar, but the super high speeds and scaling-sprite mountain are very much not! Indeed, at first this game feels overhwelmingly hard, as you have tight time limits, narrow gates to go around or through, and lots of obstacles you can barely see before you crash into them as you barrel down the mountain at high speed. The Jaguar does scaling sprites quite well, something sadly few games show off, but this one does and it looks good. I wish you had a better sense of what's coming at you, but it is a good game despite that.

Zoop - cart and box (no manual), $33. This was another Jag game I very much wanted to have. Indeed, this is the definitive console version of Zoop! Why is that? Well, because it's the only one with high score saving. Zoop is a decently good mid '90s puzzle game, and it was released on many platforms, but all of the others don't save, not even the Playstation version. That this one saves your high scores is a big deal in a score-based puzzle game with nothing to play for other than points, I think. Zoop gets super hard quickly, which some people dislike as endless games of it are nearly impossible, but I find it pretty good while it lasts so I don't mind that. This is a good to great game, I think. It looks about the same as it does on any other format, but the clean look is nice and it plays well. And, again, score save.

Spacewar 2000 - $35, complete (in plastic case, not cardboard, but I think that's how it was sold). I got this game in late July. This is an unfinished homebrew game originally made in the early '00s. It's a space dogfighting game, you versus numerous enemy ships trying to shoot you down. As a beta it is very impressive, as the space combat is fun and graphics look nice... but it's extremely buggy and crashes constantly. Many features are missing, too. It's really too bad that the developer didn't finish it, what's here is good, but it's too broken to be anything above average overall. The somewhat newer homebrew game Battlesphere has a lot of the same ideas but is finished, but that game is insanely expensive now so I definitely don't have it, and won't anytime soon.

And the two most recent Jag games I've gotten have been recent homebrew titles I got new direct from AtariAge. I got games for other systems along with these, which I will list at the bottom of this post.

Jeff Minter Classics - I ordered this in September, but it arrived a month later; AtariAge takes quite some time. This cart was $70 new, complete in box and with a mini-poser. This cart includes three games: Llamatron 2112, Revenge of the Mutant Camels, and Gridrunner, all ported over from the Atari ST, like a whole lot of Jaguar homebrew. I don't want most of those ST/Amiga-to-Jaguar homebrew ports, but this one was a must-have for me because Llamatron 2112 an old favorite of mine; the game is truly exceptional, and has been my favorite Robotron-style game since I first played it in the early/mid '90s. I'm happy to finally own the game on a cart, and with some proceeds going to Minter. AtariAge publishes some legit, licensed games and some unlicened repros or remakes of other publishers' games without their okay (basically, they apublish new homebrew titles for classic systems, and new ports of popular classic arcade games or old cancelled games for those same systems), but this one is legit. As for the port, it's a flawless version of the ST game only held back by the controls -- sadly there is no keypad optioon for aiming ,so the only way to play in the twin-stick style that you want to is awkwardly by holding two controllers. It works, but is not ideal.

At this same time I also got a reproduction 6-button Jaguar controller from AtariAge, new. These are very siilar to Atari's original 6 button controllers, except they cost a whole lot less and are almost as good. The d-pad had a few issues, but I fixed that so now it's great. I';m not sure if I like it more than the first controller though; it has more buttons, as it has shoulder buttons (copying 4 and 6 on the keypad) and XYZ buttons (copying 789 on the on the keypad), but only a few games are specifically programmed for them. Other games benefit for sure, depending on what they put on those five keys, but the controller is also a little bit smaller than the regular Jag pad, and while most would probably prefer this size, I might like the larger size better. Still, it's fantastic to have and means I have two good controllers.

And last and most recently, also from AtariAge:

Rebooteroids - $70, new from AtariAge, complete in box. I got this a week or two ago; ordered like three weeks before that, but well, AtariAGe. This game is an Asteroids-style game from a couple of years ago. This is a true new game, not some old computer port to Jag like most Jag homebrew is these days, and it's good (there is a certain other Jag homebrew dev who makes terrible games, I have avoided those so far.). It's not GREAT, but it is good. This game has a nice visual style and good, classic Asteroids-style gameplay, but with a level-based structure, an ending when you finish all the stages, and some resulting actual progression. Visually the system can do far more than this I am sure, as it's closer to the computer ports than the games which look the best on Jaguar, but it looks nice enough and plays well. This game was out of print for quite a while, so when they finally made some more copies I made sure to get one. It's kind of borderline about if it's worth this kind of money on a gameplay front, but it's fun enough so... sure.

Overall, the Jaguar is a highly interesting system with utterly fascinating games, both good and bad. Jaguar games often feel very low budget, like they were made by only a few people with way too little time and money, because often that is exactly how it was. That's not always good, but the Jag's style of game is an interesting one and some of the games I really do like, not only the exceptional classic Tempest 2000 but also games like I-War, Iron Soldier, and Zoop. Hover Strike: Unconquered Lands and the CD visualizer are also really good, though that CD drive is so expensive and unreliable that sane people would never buy one. Heh.

So far though, my moist played Jag games are Llamatron 2112 in Jeff Minter Classics, and Tempest 2000. And when I had that working CD drive for a month, the VLM is what i used it for the most by far. Well, I always knew that the Jeff Minter stuff was a big part of why I needed to wn a Jaguar someday.. and despite the expensse I don't regret it, it's really interesting and sometimes good. I get why people bash this system and it deserves some of it, but I like some things about it for sure regardless.


And last, those other AtariAge homebrew titles I got along with the Jag games above.

The batch of games I got in early October (ordered a month earlier) was:
Jeff Minter Classics (Jaguar) - $70, complete in box
Jaguar 6 button controller reproduction - $60, new
Halo 2600 (Atari 2600) - cart and manual, no box - $30. This one was a must-have once I got stuff from AtariAge. It's a solidly fun top-down action game. The game is really quite easy once you get used to it and badly needed difficulty options, but otherwise is a fun title which looks nice and plays well.
Sheep it Up! (Atari 2600) - cart and manual, no box, free - AtariAge had a summer sale where everythingwas discounted a bit and you could get one of two 2600 games free with your purchase, and I chose this one. It's a very simple vertical platformer, try to keep jumping up as far as you can betwen tiny little platforms. It's solid stuff, but you get only one life per game and it gets very hard really quick so it gets frustrating fast.
Ratcatcher (Atari 5200) - $45, complete with box. I like the 5200, so I had to get some 5200 stuff. I chose to not get the "reproduction" cancelled classic game and Atari 8-bit computer ports, because those are very much legally grey at best, and stuck to some original homebrews and one canceleled game actually finished by the original programmer. This one is the one fully original 5200 homebrew game I have. There aren't many, the system doesn't have that big of a fanbase. The game is a solid single-screen platform-action game.
Tempest (Atari 5200) - $35, cart and manual (no box available). This is that finished game from Atari itself. Tempest was in development for 5200 back in '84, but was cancelled incomplete. Well, decades later the original programmer helped finish the game in the '00s for release from AtariAge. It's a good port for the hardware, and plays well, particularly with the traqckball which it supports. Getting used to Tempest on a trackball takes some time but I do think it's the better way to play this game. Obviously this game has nothing on T2K, but it is a fun one to play once in a while and I'm glad to have it. I wish they had a box available, but oh well.
Xari Arena (Atari 5200) - $45, complete with box. Xari Arena is another cancelled Atari original title not released back in '84. It's a weird hybrid of Pong and Breakout, and is pretty unique. The box the fans made for it's nice as well. I'm not sure if Atari actually licenses any of AtariAge's stuff, but they certainly don't care so I was okay with getting an Atari game. This is also another game with trackball support, which is part of why I got it. The 5200 trackball is a fantastic controller!

Then in mid November (ordered late October), I got two games:

Rebooteroids - $70 (Jaguar) - complete. As above.
Castle Crisis (Atari 5200) - $40, complete. This one is a homebrew remake of Warlords for the Atari 5200. It supports both controller and trackball. It looks pretty much just like the original arcade game, but has some new features and modes so it's not just a knockoff port. This is a good version of one of the best games of the early '80s. With a four-port 5200, you can even play it with four players. The 2600 version with two sets of paddles would be a much easier choice there, but for anyone who actualy has four working 5200 controllers (I do not...) that'd be a cool thing to do.


So yeah, I got four 5200 games over the past few months. I'm glad to finally get a few more games for that console, I still really like it despite all of its issues!

I got these today.

Saturn
--
NHL '97 - $4, complete

3DS
--
Hometown Story - $6, complete

PC
--
MegaTraveller 2: Quest for the Ancients - $15, complete - This is a game from the early '90s. It's a really cool find - it's a rpg/strategy game published by Microprose! I haven't heard of this game, but it looks like pretty interesting stuff.

Genesis
--
Hit the Ice - $15, complete. This is a sports game, but it's somewhat desirable - this is actually a really good price for the game on Genesis.

Nintendo DS
--
Moon - $4, card only - one of the relatively few DS FPSes.
Puyo Pop Fever - $4, card only
Tank Beat - $4, card only - a somewhat odd strategy style game where you don't directly control a tank, but instead tell it what to do with the touchscreen.

Also, during that B2G1/B1G1 Gamestop sale, I also bought some games online from them. Of course, getting used gamse from Gamestop online means you mostly get loose carts, so I didn't buy anything not worth getting loose at their prices. Well, most of the games were indeed loose, but fortunately two did come complete. Either way, the games showed up a few days ago, so here are the titles I got:

B1G1 games
Nintendo DS
--
Pokemon Conquest - $22.50, card only

PS Vita
--
Valhalla Knights 3 - $12.50, cart in generic case - I think the first game is probably best... this one has issues, and some way too creepy elements.
Stranger of Sword City - $12.50, cart in generic case - another first-person Vita RPG from Experience.
Earth Defense Force 2: Invaders from Planet Space - free in B1G1 (would be $12.50), cart only
Akiba's Beat - free in B1G1 (would be $12.50), cart only. This is kind of a sequel to Akiba's Trip, but it's very different -- it has Tales-style battles, no stripping enemies (instead you fight monsters), and some Persona influence... but without the quality of Tales or Persona games. It's okay but flawed.

Wii U
--
Fast & Furious: Showdown - disc in generic case, free in B1G1 (would be $12.50)

B2G1 games

Nintendo 3DS
--
Metroid Prime: Federation Force - free in B2G1 (would be $22.50), complete

Nintendo Switch
--
Dragon: Marked for Death - $28, complete
Lumo - $18, cart in generic case

PS2
--
Shifters - complete, $10

PS3
--
EyePet - $2, disc only (EyeToy game)

Game Boy
--
Pyramids of Ra - $12, cart only. Now this is kind of a weird one. Not the game -- the game is a good, if quite challenging, logic puzzle game -- but no, the publisher. So, this logic puzzle game set in Egypt was published by... Matchbox? Like, the toy car company? Wait, what? Why Matchbox? How strange! Looking it up, Matchbox only published two games, a NES game quite sensibly about Matchbox cars and this thing that has absolutely nothing to do with their main product, the cars. How bizarre. (as an aside, as a kid I always called them "Matchbox cars", not "Hot Wheels", as the generic term for all small cars of that size, so I guess I've always liked Matchbox more than Hot Wheels... not that they are different anymore, the same company owns them both now. Corporate mergers... ah well.)

Game Boy Advance
--
Super Monkey Ball Jr. - $4, cart only. I wonder, is this version better or worse than the N-Gage version? That one has better graphics than the GBA could manage but horrible controls. Hopefully this is better, if only by a bit; it's still Monkey Ball on a d-pad, so it's sure to be not good.

Sonic Battle - $6, cart only. This is an interesting one -- it's an isometric 3d fighting game, with the Sonic characters. It's got some nice 3d for the GBA and definitely is quite unlike the other GBA Sonic games... and it's suppose to be decent too, so when I saw it I had to get it.

Saturn
--
SimCity 2000 - $3, disc only. This may be a dpad-only console version of this great PC classic, sadly with no mouse support and with plenty of slowdown, but it is a pretty interesting version -- it has changing graphic tilesets as time passes, something the PC game does not. Neat stuff.

Surprisingly enough, the GBA version of Monkey Ball is... actually good? Wait, what? Sure, it's far worse than it is on GC because you're stuck to a dpad, but it plays well. This makes that N-Gage version I have look even worse... that one controls abysmally!

Anyway...

First, I saw a few weeks ago that I had not found any Sega Master System games this year, and that's a system I have bought at least one game for every year since I bought it, so I decided to get some online. After some looking, I ended up with getting these four from a US seller, and they showed up a bit ago. Prices are decent but probably not the best.

Sega Master System
--
Penguin Land - $22.50, complete (a good puzzle-platformer)
Taz-Mania - $23.50, complete (European import game; this is entirely different from the awful Game Gear Taz game, it's decent and is much more like the Genesis one.)
Alien 3 - $24.50, complete (European import game; similar to the SNES/Genesis game, but downscaled a bit. Some people prefer it to this 16-bit versions.)
Donald Duck: The Lucky Dime Caper - $24.50, cart and box (no manual). (European import game; this game I have on Game Gear ,but SMS versions of games also on the GG are way better here in most cases due to greater screen visibility, as the resolution is much higher on SMS. The Lucky Dime Caper is totally playable on SMS, but still this version definitely benefits. This is one of the better GG platformers, and it's also good here.)


Next, I got these a few days before Christmas, from one of the area Gamestops. They had a 'buy 4 $5 games for $10' sale so I got stuff. These eight games were two sets of 4 for $9 games, after the (soon to be cancelled as Gamestop circles the drain, but not quite done yet) Pro discount. Original prices were between $3 and $5.

Xbox 360
--
Way of the Samurai 3 - complete
Shadowrun - complete
Carrier Command: Gaea Mission - complete
History Great Battles Medieval - complete

Wii
--
The Bigs 2 - complete

Wii U
--
Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition - complete (with Gamepad enhancements)
Batman: Arkham Origins - complete (this one's just a straight port)

Nintendo DS
--
Danny Phantom: Urban Jungle - cart only (this is a shmup, not yet another licensed platformer)

also:

PC DD
--
Obduction - $10.50 - I got this one thing from the Steam sale so far (the latest game from the Myst people). Probably will get more later.


Then for Christmas, I got a game (wasn't really expecting it, but I got one)!

Nintendo Switch
--
Fire Emblem: Three Houses - new


Then after Christmas, I'd heard that the Gamestop in the Maine Mall is closing, so I went there to check it out. And yeah, it's closing. They said stuff about "the rent is too high", but the Maine Mall is mostly doing fine, it's only companies that are struggling that are moving out... like, obviously, Gamestop, a company that clearly keeps edging closer and closer to bankruptcy. So, the other two area stores are staying open for now, but the most prominent one will be gone. That's not good for Gamestop, but probably will be good for Best Buy (as the only store left at the mall that sells videogames)... oh well. I'll miss it.

Anyway, when I went, used games were 40% off and new ones less. Only 20% off for new games on Nintendo platforms. On top of that then I still have that 10% Pro discount. So, I got this stuff:

Xbox One
--
Mirror's Edge: Catalyst - $6, complete
Resident Evil 2 (2019) - $18, complete
State of Decay 2 - $16.80, complete
Warriors Orochi 4 - $12, complete

Playstation Vita
--
Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd - $9, complete

Nintendo 3DS
--
Fire Emblem Echoes - $18, complete

Nintendo Switch
--
Neo Atlas 1469 - $21.50, new (half the discount here from the other ones)


And finally, and in some ways most interestingly for me, at Goodwill I found... a original Game Boy light magnifier, High Frequency branded, for $5. And after putting batteries in the thing, it actually still works, the bulbs are still good! I wasn't really expecting that, that's cool. It definitely brightens and expands the screen, which is kind of cool.

First, I got some stuff back on the last day of the Steam holiday sale, 1/2 I think. I paid for part of this with a $20 Steam gift card I got for Chirstmas.

PC DD - Steam sale
--
Noitu Love 2: Devolution $1
Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak $10
BAFL: Brakes Are For Losers $2
Rose in the Twilight, A $5
SG/ZH: Schoolgirl/Zombie Hunter $10
Eternity: The Last Unicorn $5
Mushihimesama $8
DoDonPachi Resurrection $12
Kagura Douchuuki (Touhou Doujin Project) $7
Gato Roboto $4
Zenohell $1
Zenodyne R $1

I got a few digital things on Nintendo as well.

Nintendo 3DS DD- on sale
--
Of Mice and Sand - $4
European Conqueror 3D - $1
80's Overdrive - $5

Switch DD - on sale
--
Commander Keen in Keen Dreams - $1. ... Yes, there is a Switch port of Keen Dreams, of all things. It released last year, and I didn't know about it until this sale. How bizarre! I know Keen Dreams has different ownership from the rest of the series (because it was a Softdisk game, not Apogee), but still, it's really bizarre that this exists. I think this is the first console Keen game since the terrible GBC game, so despite its mediocrity compared to the rest of the series, this is clearly the best console Keen game!


Then a couple of days ago I got some more games from that closing Gamestop. The discount has increased, but selection has gone down as expected. I still found a few things to buy.

Nintendo 3DS
--
New Super Mario Bros. 2 - $12 (after all discounts), card only
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D - $10, new (after discount). I know this version of the game adds some features versus the original, but I'd never quite wanted to buy it because of my ... mixed... opinions about the game. Well, at this price I finally did.

Xbox 360
--
Carnival Games: Monkey See, Monkey Do - $4, complete (Kinect game)

Xbox One
--
Sine Mora EX - $4, complete
Prey (2017) - $4, complete

I think it would be helpful if these got sorted in a more subjective way, from "goodest" to "worsterer".  Seeing so many bad titles on there just kind of makes my eyes glaze over.  It's an impressive collection, to be sure, but a "better than N-Gage" version of Monkey Ball is still a version I'm never going to play, because the one on Gamecube exists.

What do you mean, subjective? If you're talking about scores, after playing some of a game I often do put a number (which I may change anytime) by the game in my collection spreadsheet, I just don't generally share the spreadsheet. If you'd find it interesting though I could post parts of it in one of the forums here perhaps, sure... If you mean 'why do you buy so many not great games', it's because I want then despite that, but I'm sure we all know that already. :p

Nintendo Switch DD - this stuff is all on sale in a sale which ends momentarily.
--
Island Maze $1.50
Fe $5.00
Aegis Defenders $8.00
Barrier X $0.94
Nonograms Prophecy $2.00
Croixleur Sigma $8.00

Nintendo 3DS DD - on sale
--
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon $5.00

So, several parts here.

First, I got some final titles from that closing Gamestop.
Xbox 360
--
Enemy Front - $0.60, disc only
Quantum Theory - $0.30, disc only

Wii
--
Punch-Out!! - $2.50, disc only

PS Vita
--
Lego Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin - $1, card only

Xbox One
--
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun - $1.30, disc only


After that, yesterday I got some games from a couple other places.

Xbox One
--
Bladestorm Nightmare - free in a B2G1 (would have been $15)

Nintendo DS
--
Chrono Trigger - $35, card only

Wii
--
Mario Super Sluggers - $15, complete

Game Boy
--
Terminator 2: Judgment Day - $4, card only

Nintendo Switch
--
Astral Chain - $40, complete


Also... I've gotten back into buying older import Japanese games. I have spent quite a bit now so I should stop, but some stuff has arrived so I'll list some here.

First I got two new consoles -- an original black and white WonderSwan for $24 (clear green color), and a SwanCrystal for $87 (bluish top, white bottom). Both are in great condition. The Swancrystal is the second model of Wonderswan Color, with an improved screen that's much better at reflecting light. I got the b&w one first, then the crystal a few days later. I don't regret getting both of them because the SwanCrystal's definitely better, with a much less blurry screen, but it is interesting to also have one of the original ones, to see how the games look on the original system. The Wonderswan is an okay little handheld, emphasis on "little" -- the thing is TINY! Too small in fact, probably; had the thing released here, I think it'd have gotten criticism for being so tiny. The tiny little buttons are not as comfortable as Game Boy Color buttons either, much less an original GB or Neo Geo Pocket Color. Also the absence of a headphone jack (without a quite rare accessory I don't have) or backlight are unfortunate; I've taken to clipping my booklight to the WS/SC.

The graphics are kind of nice, though -- the system is 16-bit, and the B&W system has 8 shades of grey, twice as many as a GB. It can do sprite scaling too, it seems, though very very few games make use of that. The B&W WS released in March '99 and was competing against the color GBC and NGPC so it had to sell based on something other than just its low price and numerous licensed anime titles from first party Bandai, and things like the nicely animated 16-bit graphics and scaling racing games show some of that. It is neat that you can use the system horizontally or vertically also, and some games make use of that well.

As for the Wonderswan Color, or the SwanCrystal in this case, the WSC released in late 2000, only six months before the Game Boy Advance. It's pretty much the same thing as the Wonderswan but in color, s to the graphics are nice but not quite on the GBA's level (though the gap in 2d graphics is not that huge, it is there), and the audio is far behind it -- GBA audio is not the best, but this is much more GBC than GBA, it's the same as the B&W Wonderswan. I can understand how the WS Color/Crystal failed pretty badly compared to the GBA; the WS is better competition to the GBC, despite its lack of color, than the WSC is to the GBA. This is reflected in the libraries -- the B&W WS had 120 games release for it in a year and a half, while the WSC had 87 in the three years after that (20 of them backwards compatible with a B&W Wonderswan). The B&W system has better genre variety too; the WSC library is VERY heavy on anime adventure, RPG, and strategy games, and is largely devoid of action games apart from some not-so-great licensed fighting games (Digimon, One Piece, Guilty Gear) and ONE, yes ONE, platformer -- the Rockman EXE platformer (I don't have it). At least the B&W system has five platformers, which is a little better. The color system does have a few shmups though. Then Square reunited with Nintendo in '03 and the Wonderswan was dead. Oh well. The things have some nice design elements, but overall... they're just okay -- the buttons are tiny, no headphone jack or backlight option, games (particularly on the WS Color) are mostly anime license titles and Bandai is not exactly the best developer or publisher regardless, and such. Still, it is a kind of cool thing to have and I do like some of the games.

As for games, here's what I've gotten so far.

WonderSwan (B&W, run on either system in B&W)
--
Densha de Go! - $12, complete
Rockman & Forte: Mirai Kara no Chousen Sha - $65, complete (sadly, while the box is nice, this game lives down to its poor reputation.)
Kaze no Klonoa: Moonlight Museum - $20, cart only. (This one, however, lives up to its good reputation. This is easily the best WS game I have.)
Ochan no Oekaki Logic - part of a lot of 3 games for $16 (this is a decent Picross knockoff.)
Gunpey - part of that 3 game lot, cart only. (you've got to have this one if you get a Wonderswan! The later DS version is better, but this is good.)
Bistro Recipe - complete, ~$12. An RPG with a cooking theme and timing-style battles.
Chocobo no Fushigi Dungeon for WonderSwan ("Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon") - $5.60, cart only. This is a Wonderswan port of the PS1 game of the same name, but portable. It's a decent, if a bit buggy, little Mysterious Dungeon game.
Chaos Gear: Michibi Kareshi Mono - complete, $14. This is a strategy game with cards.
Sennou Millenium - complete, $17. This is a logic puzzle game. Looks tricky but maybe good.

Wonderswan Color (for the SwanCrystal)
--
XI [sai] Little - part of that 3 game lot, cart only (the PS1 version of this puzzle game was known as Devil Dice in the US.)
One Piece Grand Battle: Swan Colosseum - complete, $14. This is a mediocre, and simple, fighting game - it uses one attack button and one jump button, with button combinations for moves. They clearly were somewhat inspired by Smash, but while this is okay it's nowhere near Smash's level. The graphics are nice though.
Uchuu Senkan Yamato - $23.50, complete. This game is a strategy game based on the classic anime of the same name. It looks like it could be good. There is also a decent little 3-level shmup mini-mode present which is alright. The strategy game also works on a B&W Wonderswan, but the shmup is color-only.
Inuyasha: Fuun Emaki - complete, $6. I liked the Inuyasha anime so I decided to get the WSC games (well, two of the three of them, so far). This one's part story and part action-RPG.
Inuyasha: Kagome no Yume Nikki ("Kagome's Dream Diary") - $14, complete. This one is part story adventure and part more traditional RPG, though there is a lot more adventure than combat. It follows the story of part of the anime. Pretty nice visuals.
I also got a bundle, for $26, of four cart-only Digimon games for the WSC: Digimon Tamers: Battle Spirit (a fighting game, much like the One Piece one above but with Digimon; this is the first of three games in this series on the WS.) and three traditional RPGs - Digital Monster D Project, Digimon Adventure 02: D1 Tamers, and Digimon Tamers: Digimon Medley. D1 Tamers is B&W-compatible, the others are not.

That's what I have for Wonderswan so far; I've gotten these 17 games for it since late last month. I think that's about enough for now, I'll play these more before eventually getting more WS games sometime later.

I have also gotten games for other classic consoles, most notably the TG16/CD and Saturn, but I'll list those another time.

So what have I gotten recently?
First, some games I got a bit over a week ago:

NES
--
Gremlins 2 - cart only, $17. This is a good top-down action game from Sunsoft. Nice find!

N64
--
South Park Rally - cart only, $11.50. This is more just one I got for the collection, since I want all the non-sports N64 games... as far as US games go, I'm getting fairly close to that now. Though maybe it'll be decent, who knows?

Neo Geo Pocket Color
--
Puzzle Bobble Mini (aka Bust-A-Move Pocket) - $11.50, cart in plastic case. This is a game I own already, got it back when I got my NGPC I believe, but the copy I got back then has a major issue, the chip is corrupted or something and and it won't save any times for any of the levels. I got this in the hopes of getting a fully working copy... and it is! That's fantastic. This is a good handheld version of Bust-A-Move. This title and cart version was originally the European version, but it also was sold in the US as a part of the blister-pack NGPC rerelease in '03 or so.

Xbox One
--
Vikings: Wolves of Midgard - complete, free in a buy 2 get 1 free (the paid titles are the Switch games below)
Gears of War 4 - $5, complete

Wii U
--
Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark - complete, $5

Nintendo 3DS
--
RPG Maker Fes - cart only, $5 - this package is disappointing, in part because the vast majority of its DLC stayed Japan-only and thus it feels very limited, but there's probably enough amusement here for the price I paid.

Nintendo Switch
--
Ittle Dew 2+ - $18, complete
Dusk Diver - $28, complete

Also, I got a few things from ebay within the past week.

Atari Jaguar
--
Super Burnout - $82 (including shipping), complete. This game is a scaler-style racing game, and has some of the most impressive graphics on the Jag -- it's a 60fps super scaler style game with super smooth animation and scaling and good gameplay. The game is fairly basic in design, as two lines of scaling objects approach along the sides of the road on each track with little variation, but what's here is good; it's not the developers' fault that the budget was clearly small, and they pulled off a nice technical feat. At the time of its release in '95 this was probably the best scaler-style racing game on a console, and it's still good. Expensive, but good.

Also for $40 I got a Sega Saturn 6-player multitap. I have been thinking about getting one for some time, but what really sealed it was when I got some Saturn controller extension cables for my new setup (see the pictures in the other thread, there should be some there), since the distance is a bit too much for the Saturn otherwise... only to find that for some bizarre reason, and I don't know if this is only these cables or all of them, only regular, dpad-only Saturn controllers work with these extension cables! It's a really bizarre limitation, but it's true -- the 3D Controller, wheel, and joystick all don't function with these extension cables. So in the hopes of getting something that would work, I got this US 6-player multitap... and it works great! The thing has a long cable and any controller works when attached to it. What a lifesaver. It enables 3+ player multiplayer as well, and maybe I'll use that sometime, but I got it for the controller extension first.

Get TWO Saturn Multitaps, then get Saturn Bomberman.  Then get a large collection of friends willing to tolerate your retro gaming madness long enough for a few rounds.  Then report back to us.

Heh. That might be nice, but the large collection of friends part will be tough...

(Also US copies of Saturn Bomberman are pretty expensive, but Japanese ones are cheap-ish. It looks like it has a language barrier for the menus, but that'd probably still be better than spending ten times more for a US copy...)

... So I got some stuff.

Assassin's Creed - Nintendo DS, NDS - $4.00, cart only

Legend of Zelda, The: Link's Awakening [2019] - Nintendo Switch, NS - $40.00, complete. I didn't want to pay full price for this one, but for this price I'm sure a remake of one of the best games ever would easily be worth it, sure! From what I have seen of the game I don't expect to like it more than the original, but still it looks pretty fantastic.

Harvest Moon: Magical Melody - GameCube, GCN - $13, complete. Apparently this is the best of the GC ones.

DuckTales - Game Boy, GB - $4, cart only. I have this for NES, but still this is a pretty cool find.

Sports Trivia - Game Gear, GG - $2.00, new and sealed. ... I don't know, why not...

The Simpsons: Road Rage - Game Boy Advance, GBA - $4, cart only.

So I ... bought some stuff. Gamestop had a buy 2 get 2 free sale on PS3, 360, Wii, Wii U, 3DS, and Vita games last week, so I got a bunch from the remaining area stores. Plus, I got some games from a few other places, and found some interesting stuff.

Digital download
--
Sorcery Saga: Curse of the Great Curry God PlayStation Vita, PSV - DD (PSN) $4.50

Physical games
--
Inuyasha: Feudal Combat PlayStation 2, PS2 $8.50, complete

Revenge of Shinobi, The (2002) Game Boy Advance, GBA $8.00, cart only

Oregon Trail 4th, The PC $1.00, jewelcase only
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone PC $1.00, jewelcase only

Double Dragon 3: The Arcade Game Game Boy, GB $48.00, complete in box - this game sells for way more than this online!
Battletoads Game Boy, GB $13.50, cart only (this is not a port of the NES game, it's an original title. The NES port is called "Battletoads in Ragnarok's World".)
Shanghai Game Boy, GB $2.00, cart only

Superman (1990) Genesis, Gen $8.00, cart only
Dinoland (aka Dino Land) Genesis, Gen $18.50, complete

MegaTagmension Blanc + Neptune VS Zombies PlayStation Vita, PSV $15.00, cart in generic case

Haunted House (2008) Wii Free in a B2G2 (would have been $5), complete
Need for Speed Carbon Wii Free in a B2G2 (would have been $10), complete

My Frogger: Toy Trials Nintendo DS, NDS $5.50, complete
Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 Nintendo DS, NDS $5.00, cart only
Camping Mama: Outdoor Adventures Nintendo DS, NDS $5.00, cart only
Donkey Kong: Jungle Climber Nintendo DS, NDS $20.00, cart only

Culdcept Saga Xbox 360, X360 $7.50, complete
Hot Wheels: World's Best Driver Xbox 360, X360 $7.50, complete
Angry Birds Trilogy Xbox 360, X360 Free in a B2G2 (would have been $5), complete
Stoked: Big Air Edition Xbox 360, X360 Free in a B2G2 (would have been $3), complete

Pokken Tournament Wii U $7.50, complete - I got this one because the Switch version, while better and with more characters, also costs a LOT more.
LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes Wii U Free in a B2G2 (would have been $5), complete
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Wii U Free in a B2G2 (would have been $5), complete

Yo-Kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits Nintendo 3DS, 3DS Free in a B2G2 (would have been $15), complete
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call Nintendo 3DS, 3DS $7.00, cart only
Bravely Second: End Layer Nintendo 3DS, 3DS $7.50, cart only
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate Nintendo 3DS, 3DS $20.00, complete
Ridge Racer 3D Nintendo 3DS, 3DS Free in a B2G2 (would have been $10), cart only

These games I got almost two weeks ago now, on Tuesday the 10th, in what turned out to be the last semi-normal day around here before the coronavirus really arrived. I should have listed them sooner but didn't.

Skate or Die: Tour de Thrash - Game Boy - Cart Only $7.00
Last Ninja, The - NES Cart Only $16.00
Pipe Dream 3D - PlayStation, PS1 - Complete $4.00
Geom Cube - PlayStation, PS1 - Complete $7.00
Crimson Sea - Xbox - Complete $4.00

Additionally, for $35 I got another one of those transforming-dpad Xbox 360 wireless controllers, because I really need another one. It's very nice to have.


And these couple of digital games I just got.

PC DD - GOG spring sale (going on now)
--
Deathtrap Dungeon - $1.00
Jazz Jackrabbit 2 Collection - $2.50

I noticed that a few games are free on GOG as well, most notably Jill of the Jungle, so I added those to my account as well. I've never played beyond the shareware episode of that classic, sadly; I will need to do that!

Over the last few weeks I got a whole bunch of extremely cheap games on sale digitally on various Nintendo platforms. Some of these games are actually good, others not so much, but I find it interesting for sure to look at this kind of stuff...

Note, the DSiWare game are of course actually 3DS eShop purchases, on my 3DS.

Galaxy Saver - Nintendo DSi, NDSi - DD (DSiWare) - 04/12/20 $2.00
From the Abyss - Anonymous Notes Chapter 3 - Nintendo DSi, NDSi - DD (DSiWare) 04/12/20 $2.00
Flip the Core - Nintendo DSi, NDSi - DD (DSiWare) - 04/12/20 $2.00
G.G. Series COSMO RALLY!!- Nintendo DSi, NDSi - DD (DSiWare) - 04/12/20 $2.00
Paper Airplane Chase - Nintendo DSi, NDSi - DD (DSiWare) Nintendo - 04/12/20 $2.00
Phasmophobia: Hall of Specters 3D - Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) - 04/12/20 On Sale $1.50
Ninja Battle Heroes - Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) - 04/12/20 On Sale $1.75
Runny Egg - Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) - 04/12/20 On Sale $1.10
Pirate Pop Plus - Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale Free with purchase of Wii U version

Crystorld - Wii U - DD (eShop) - 04/14/20 $1.60
Pirate Pop Plus - Wii U - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale $2.50
Drop It: Block Paradise! - Wii U - DD (eShop) - 04/14/20 $2.00

NoReload Heroes - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale Used Nintendo Gold Points to get for free (would be $1)
Deployment - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale $1.00
STANDBY - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale Used Nintendo Gold Points to get for free (would be $0.50)
Gunhouse - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale Used Nintendo Gold Points to get for free (would be $1)
Degrees of Separation - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale $2.00
Q-YO Blaster - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/07/20 On Sale $1.00
Smash Rush - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/06/20 On Sale $3.00
Wreckin' Ball Adventure - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/06/20 On Sale Used Nintendo Gold Points to get for free (would be $0.50)
Cycle 28 - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/06/20 On Sale $1.30
Party Golf - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/06/20 On Sale $2.25
MagiCat - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/06/20 On Sale $1.25
Whipseey and the Lost Atlas - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $1.00
ARCADE FUZZ - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.20
Aldred Knight - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.20
PAN-PAN A tiny big adventure - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $1.00
Not Not - A Brain Buster - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.40
Seeders Puzzle Reboot - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.10
Box Align - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.20
Nicky - The Home Alone Golf Ball - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.08
VASARA Collection - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $1.00
Cosmonauta - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.08
Conduct TOGETHER! - Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) - 04/04/20 On Sale $0.01

Additionally I got one physical game, from ebay as you might imagine.

Trevor McFur in the Crescent Galaxy - Atari Jaguar, JAG - 04/06/20 from ebay $37.15, complete in box

So, while I haven't been posting about it like I should, I have been buying some games... mostly digitally of course, can't go to the stores these days for quite obvious reaosons.

Nintendo eshop games

Switch - DD
--
DragonFangZ - The Rose & Dungeon of Time Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $12.50 - Yes, it's another Japanese Mysterious Dungeon (roguelike) game with a very anime plot. It's alright.
Oceanhorn - Monster of Uncharted Seas Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $7.50 - This is a very blatant Zelda clone, but it does do it fairly well. (It's also on phones, but this surely plays much better!)
Venture Kid Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.50 - Okay but not amazing NES Mega Man-style title with NES-style graphics.
Slayaway Camp: Butcher's Cut Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $3.00 - Quality horror-themed puzzle game.
Colorgrid Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 Free with Nintendo Gold Points (would have been $0.50)
Arcade Archives: Ninja-Kid Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $4.00 - This game is simple but fun.
Arcade Archives: Ninja-Kid II Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $4.00 - The sequel's better, I think.
Trancelation Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 Free promotion
Sky Ride Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.00 - Don't expect much from this ultra low budget mess, but looking at what kinds of super cheap games are on Nintendo eshops can be interesting. And plenty are worse than this...

Wii U - DD
--
Zombie Brigade: No Brain No Gain Wii U - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $4.00

Nintendo 3DS - DD
--
Cazzarion Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $2.00 - This ultra low budget game feels like something that should have been a free Flash game 20 years ago.
Ping Pong Trick Shot Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.00 - Okay puzzle/action title with good stylus ball-tossing controls.
Ping Pong Trick Shot 2 Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.00 - More levels for the above.
Bubble Pop World Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.50
Angry Bunnies Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.50 - This is an Angry Birds knockoff.
Collide-a-Ball Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.00 - Decent logic puzzle game.
Dangerous Road Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.50
Hyperlight EX Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 05/03/20 $1.00
3D Retro Dungeon Puzzle Challenge Nintendo 3DS, 3DS - DD (eShop) 04/26/20 $0.40 - This is another one of those oddly minimal things, there's very little game here... it's kind of neat but sure is short! Can't complain much for the money, though.

PC DD - Steam sale
--
Medieval Kingdom Wars PC - DD 05/12/20 $5.59
Alien Rampage PC / Mac / Linux - DD 05/12/20 $2.24 - This is a fun, PC-exclusive 2d platformer from the mid '90s, finally re-released digitally! Fun stuff.
Successor to the Moon PC - DD 05/12/20 $1.19

And lastly, two games I ordered from ebay two months ago from Japan finally showed up! I was wondering if they ever would, so it was pretty cool to see the box in my mailbox today. The outer box was somewhat beat up, but the games inside were fine. They are for WOnderswan, one the original B&W system and one the Color.

Final Lap 2000 (J) WonderSwan, WS 05/15/20 $39.00, complete in box - This game is a racing game from Namco. The gameplay is simple, it's a classic-style scaler racing game, related to the Final Lap games from the '80s. Most reviews of this game I see are negative, but in terms of tech this game is impressive, I think -- the scaling, whether it is hardware or software I'm not sure, is quite good! Indeed, before the Game Boy Advance, only the Atari Lynx with its built-in hardware scaling and the two Final Lap games on Wonderswan, this game and its improved WS Color sequel (which I'll probably get sometime but is much more expensive than this one), have really good sprite scaling. This game is one I've wanted to get for some time, it was high on my list of must-haves for the because of that and I'm glad to have it now.

Inuyasha: Sengoku Nikki (J) WonderSwan Color, WSC (Color Only) 05/15/20 $11.00, complete in box - this is the last of the three Inuyasha games on this system, so I have them all now. It's like the Yume Nikki game I have already but with a different part of the story.

... I really should catch up on game purchases. So, here's the update!


First, some digital PC games I bought back in late May.

Ace of Seafood PC - DD 05/26/20 Seafood Platter bundle; Steam sale Bundle for $4.84
NEO AQUARIUM - The King of Crustaceans - PC - DD 05/26/20 Seafood Platter bundle; Steam sale Bundle for $4.84
Touhou Luna Nights PC - DD 05/26/20 Steam Sale $13.50
Witch-Bot Meglilo PC - DD 05/26/20 Steam Sale $1.70
Horizon Chase Turbo PC / Mac / Linux - DD 05/26/20 Steam Sale $6.00
Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration PC / Mac / Linux - DD 05/26/20 Steam Sale $9.00
SiNKR PC / Mac / Linux - DD 05/26/20 Steam Sale $1.80

In late May I decided to buy a bunch of games from Gamestop's website, because they had a pretty nice sale. It took a while for all of the games to arrive, and as expected many didn't have their cases, but others did, which was great.

Trailblazers Nintendo Switch, NS 05/28/20 Gamestop - Web Order $15.00 Complete
BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle Nintendo Switch, NS 05/29/20 Gamestop - Web Order $18.00 Cart in Generic Case
God Eater 3 Nintendo Switch, NS 06/05/20 Gamestop - Web Order $28.00 Complete
Code Vein Xbox One, XONE 05/29/20 Gamestop - Web Order $25.00 Complete
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin Xbox One, XONE 05/29/20 Gamestop - Web Order Free in a B2G1 (would have been $20) Complete
Children of Morta Xbox One, XONE 06/01/20 Gamestop - Web Order $15.00 New
Kirby: Planet Robobot Nintendo 3DS, 3DS 06/01/20 Gamestop - Web Order $30.00 Cart Only
SEGA 3D Classics Collection Nintendo 3DS, 3DS 05/29/20 Gamestop - Web Order Free in a B2G1 (would have been $15) Cart in Generic Case
Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal Nintendo 3DS, 3DS 06/01/20 Gamestop - Web Order Free in a B2G1 (would have been $15) Cart Only

And here is what I got just in the last few days. It's all digital stuff.

Arcade Classics Anniversary Collection Xbox One, XONE - DD 06/11/20 On Sale $5.00

Spoiler Alert Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $0.10
SEGA AGES G-LOC AIR BATTLE Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale (plus $1 discount - used Nintendo Points) $5.00
Touhou Genso Wanderer Reloaded Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $20.00
BOXBOY! + BOXGIRL! Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale Free with Nintendo Gold Points (would have been $7)
Super Star Path Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $2.50
Lines X Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $0.20
Lines Infinite Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $0.20
Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of Fujisawa Nintendo Switch, NS - DD (eShop) 06/10/20 On Sale $1.00

I almost made it through the Steam summer sale, which ends later today... but not quite. :P

PC DD - Steam sale
----
Venusian Vengeance $1.00
Stronghold Crusader 2 Ultimate Edition $16.00
WE ARE DOOMED $1.00
Kill the Superweapon $2.00
Space Captain McCallery - Episode 1: Crash Landing $1.00
Dorke and Ymp [in RETRO Action SNES Volume 1 bundle] $4.32 for the 4 game bundle
Iron Commando [in RETRO Action SNES Volume 1 bundle] $4.32 for the 4 game bundle
Legend [in RETRO Action SNES Volume 1 bundle] $4.32 for the 4 game bundle
Jim Power - The Lost Dimension [in RETRO Action SNES Volume 1 bundle] $4.32 for the 4 game bundle
BloodySpell Complete Bundle $15.23
KNACK [PC] $0.50
Suspicious Spaceroads $0.80
Poly Bridge $1.60
ALIEN FIELD $7.00
ACTION MAHJONG $5.00
SPACE MOUSE $2.50
Cosmic Cavern 3671 [in Dig Dig Dig bundle] $10.47 for the 3 game bundle
Heiankyo Alien [in Dig Dig Dig bundle] $10.47 for the 3 game bundle
Cosmic Snake 8473/3671(HAMLETs) [in Dig Dig Dig bundle] $10.47 for the 3 game bundle
Super Pilot $6.50
LOVE 2: kuso $2.50
Ghost of a Tale $12.50
Bridador Deluxe Edition $13.00
Mushihimesama V1.5 DLC $4.00
Super Pixel Racers $5.00
Onechanbara Z2: Chaos $10.00
Space Captain McCallery - Episode 2: Pilgrims in Purple Moss $2.00
Turing Test, The $3.00
Train Valley $1.50