11th September 2011, 1:24 PM
Earthworm Jim Special Edition on Sega CD
So this was a tough one, deciding which version of this game to get. I had played the SNES version as a kid and just assumed it was the superior version. Doing some research, I found that while the SNES version had much better sound and a higher color count (and some completely different art in parts), it had a lot of sound effects and a level removed. I assume they cheaped out on getting a larger cartridge size from Nintendo, because that stuff should have fit in, say, a 32Mb cart. However, I also found out there was a Sega CD edition that added in a new level, a new weapon, and extended parts to a number of levels. Also, it had even better music than the SNES version. I also checked out the XBox Live Arcade version. That version looks amazing and sounds amazing, except they replaced the voice actors for some reason and the new voices sound... wrong. Also, they didn't put in any of the bonus content from the Sega CD version for some reason, like they forgot about it.
I recently found it and I have to say it's very nice. The color palette may be lower, but it's hard to tell because they used a lot of nice tricks in the Genesis game to sneak more colors out of it. As a result, it looks a lot better on standard A/V than with any s-video mod, since it depends on the blurring to create more colors and transparencies. The game still looks very richly colored and the graphics are still amazing. The background art they changed on the SNES version actually seems to fit the levels better on the Genesis version, especially in Heck.
The music is simply amazing. Nicely enough, like many Sega CD games, the music is in the form of standard CD tracks so I could easily rip the whole sound track. The sound effects are nice quality as well. The new content past where the old levels would normally end is pretty creative, like wandering around as Jim without his suit on ramps and so on. There are load times, but as with most Sega CD games of this kind, they're almost beyond noticing. The loading times occur during the little cutaway title cards between levels, finishing the loading just as the 5 second little ditty ends. The worst that can be said is the music tracks don't "loop" cleanly, a normal issue on the Sega CD, but it's a small price to pay for such high quality music which otherwise is as smooth as silk worms. If you can find it, I'd recommend this version as probably the best you can find. The PC version is based on this version PLUS SNES level high color palettes and a higher resolution, but that one's even harder to find and is a real pain to get working on a modern PC. If they'd add in the Sega CD content and the original voice samples to the XBox Arcade version, I'd recommend that one in a flash though.
I also picked up Sylpheed for $4, and that's one impressive little top down shooter for Sega CD. I wasn't aware the Sega CD added Super FX level 3D capabilities to the Genesis (or maybe that was done with creative programming), but it looks nice. The opening is incredible looking, using some clever positioning to make the ships look really nice even though they're at Star Fox level graphics, and it's so much smoother. However, that opening MAY be a misleading FMV for all I know, since the gameplay itself is entirely overhead, unlike Star Fox.
So this was a tough one, deciding which version of this game to get. I had played the SNES version as a kid and just assumed it was the superior version. Doing some research, I found that while the SNES version had much better sound and a higher color count (and some completely different art in parts), it had a lot of sound effects and a level removed. I assume they cheaped out on getting a larger cartridge size from Nintendo, because that stuff should have fit in, say, a 32Mb cart. However, I also found out there was a Sega CD edition that added in a new level, a new weapon, and extended parts to a number of levels. Also, it had even better music than the SNES version. I also checked out the XBox Live Arcade version. That version looks amazing and sounds amazing, except they replaced the voice actors for some reason and the new voices sound... wrong. Also, they didn't put in any of the bonus content from the Sega CD version for some reason, like they forgot about it.
I recently found it and I have to say it's very nice. The color palette may be lower, but it's hard to tell because they used a lot of nice tricks in the Genesis game to sneak more colors out of it. As a result, it looks a lot better on standard A/V than with any s-video mod, since it depends on the blurring to create more colors and transparencies. The game still looks very richly colored and the graphics are still amazing. The background art they changed on the SNES version actually seems to fit the levels better on the Genesis version, especially in Heck.
The music is simply amazing. Nicely enough, like many Sega CD games, the music is in the form of standard CD tracks so I could easily rip the whole sound track. The sound effects are nice quality as well. The new content past where the old levels would normally end is pretty creative, like wandering around as Jim without his suit on ramps and so on. There are load times, but as with most Sega CD games of this kind, they're almost beyond noticing. The loading times occur during the little cutaway title cards between levels, finishing the loading just as the 5 second little ditty ends. The worst that can be said is the music tracks don't "loop" cleanly, a normal issue on the Sega CD, but it's a small price to pay for such high quality music which otherwise is as smooth as silk worms. If you can find it, I'd recommend this version as probably the best you can find. The PC version is based on this version PLUS SNES level high color palettes and a higher resolution, but that one's even harder to find and is a real pain to get working on a modern PC. If they'd add in the Sega CD content and the original voice samples to the XBox Arcade version, I'd recommend that one in a flash though.
I also picked up Sylpheed for $4, and that's one impressive little top down shooter for Sega CD. I wasn't aware the Sega CD added Super FX level 3D capabilities to the Genesis (or maybe that was done with creative programming), but it looks nice. The opening is incredible looking, using some clever positioning to make the ships look really nice even though they're at Star Fox level graphics, and it's so much smoother. However, that opening MAY be a misleading FMV for all I know, since the gameplay itself is entirely overhead, unlike Star Fox.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)