/vr/ - Retro Games

[Anonymous No.1517425]

So I just recently came into possession of a SNES and a N64 including some games for both, all free. I've been having a lot of fun playing games that remind me of my childhood. But this fuckin game right here, I never knew it existed and I've been loving it. Is this game considered underrated, overrated, terrible, or a classic? Regardless of its rep I'm still going to love it, im just trying to figure out how I was out of the loop on this one

[Anonymous No.1517429]

The sequel is called Soulblazer, it's quite different but falls into the same vein of exploring and building a city in the process.

There are some lesser games in this series called Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma. They are beloved so there's a limit to what I can say about them, but I found them to be completely terrible, YMMV

Try to play the japanese actraiser, its slightly harder and thus more fun

[Anonymous No.1517438]

>>1517429
I'll definitely look into soulblazer. But as far as it being the sequel, isnt there an actraiser 2? Curious if you've had any experience with that one

[Anonymous No.1517440]

Sorry I forgot to answer your question, actraiser is one of those games that is hard to find fault with, it's unique in it's overall design, and the lofty theme and relative ease of completion makes it satisfying all around. It's ironic that the japanese are so much better at making 'white' entertainment than actual white people.

Soulblazer is actually better, and for the same reasons, but bear in mind that popular opinion is based entirely in morons agreeing with each other, there's a large gap between an objective description of an experience's merits and how large groups of people feel about it, and this is especially true when you add in age differences.

The 20-somethings that predominate this board like things because they have been repeatedly told it is good, and not because they have personal, formative experiences with the quality of the game.

When actraiser came out, the quality of snes release software was so high that it was merely seen as "good."

[Anonymous No.1517442]

actraiser 2 is simple hardomodo without the strategy sequences

there's no question it has some merits, when played with savestates, but I can't recommend it to anyone on a cartridge, just due to the learning curve, some people really like that though

It's not strictly shovelware, but it's definitely a cash-in on the name.

[Anonymous No.1517454]

>>1517425
yuzo fucking koshiro.
i hope you will enjoy it as much as i do OP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuxeyAU15NE

[Anonymous No.1517460]

>>1517425
>Is this game considered underrated, overrated, terrible, or a classic
Classic, maybe underrated if only because it is not as high profile as the first party franchises or the Square RPGs.

Fucking great game, regardless of how popular it is/was.

[Anonymous No.1517464]

>>1517440
>When actraiser came out, the quality of snes release software was so high that it was merely seen as "good."
Yeah, this. It's good -- town sequences could use more depth, combat sequences are too easy, good music, decent variety for the tech level -- but there were so many good games around then that it didn't have a chance to stand out that much.

These days there's so much shovelware trash that anything with good fundamentals really stands out in contrast, and there's more infrastructure to publicise good games.

[Anonymous No.1517469]

That soundtrack man... Anyways, yeah that game is held in pretty high regard, but it skips under the radar enough that you don't often hear the obnoxious overrated/underrated arguments. A lot of times it's one of the first games people come across when going deeper into the Snes library.

[Anonymous No.1517474]

>>1517440
Thanks for all the input man, I appreciate it and I'm going to go on a hunt for soulblazer.

>>1517454
I definitely enjoy it, thanks! Im actually causing lightening storms and shooting things out of the sky to it as we speak

[Anonymous No.1517479]

>>1517464
>town sequences could use more depth, combat sequences are too easy

I couldnt agree more, but when that thought crossed my mind I wasnt sure if I was just holding it up to the light of todays standards or if snes was really capable of being more in depth. If so, what are some games that fulfill those expectations?

[Anonymous No.1517482]

>>1517479
>if snes was really capable of being more in depth.
That's what I meant by tech limitations -- the SFC ROMs were really limiting. Actraiser had only 16 Mbits!

There is a possibility to make a deep game with simple rules like 囲碁 but from a game design standpoint that's one of the most difficult things to accomplish.

[Anonymous No.1517592]

In real life I remember no one liked this game.

20 years later on the internet and I see it's become considered one of the greatest games ever.

[Anonymous No.1517597]

Both this and Soulblazer were 2 of my earliest hardcore gamefests. Remember getting Actraiser on my 11th bday and skipping school to play through it. Soulblazer I rented and played basically the whole two days straight. So much fun.

[Anonymous No.1517610]

>>1517425
I heard Actraiser 2 is a superior action game.

Soul Blazer isn't really a sequel, more of a spiritual successor? It has more in common with the Illusion of Gaia or Terranigma imo. It is very good, and it has the "world rebuild" element that the actraiser uses.

[Anonymous No.1517708]

>>1517482
>simple rules like 囲碁
Japanese rules are stupidly complicated. 围棋 has superior elegant rules.

[Anonymous No.1517726]

>>1517708
Japanese rules assume that the players have honor and aren't unreasonable. This is not the case for 支那 dogs.

[Anonymous No.1517740]

>>1517610
Soul Blazer, Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma are part of one series, along with The Granstream Saga.

[Anonymous No.1517745]

>>1517726
If I play you under Japanese rules I'll dispute every group just to waste your time.

[Anonymous No.1517802]

Lots of misinformation floating around this thread.

Soulblazer is not a sequel to ActRaiser. ActRaiser 2 is a sequel to ActRaiser. Soulblazer is often referred to as part one of the unofficial Soulblazer Trilogy (Soulblazer, Illusion of Gaia, and Terranigma) because those three games are all top down action RPGs with similar themes, conventions, and world design. ActRaiser, while it does share many themes with Soulblazer, is an entirely different game (a side scrolling action game with a Sim City-esque town building RPG section).

ActRaiser is generally held in high regard by enthusiasts familiar with games of that era, but it was not terribly popular at the time of its release. It's a textbook 'hidden gem' of the SNES library.

Most fans will emphasize the excellent music, challenging and rewarding side scrolling levels, and religious symbolism when speaking of it. The town-building sequences are controversial: fans will say that it was fun and a nice break from the difficult side-scrolling levels, while others will criticize this part of the game saying that it breaks up the action.

The sequal, ActRaiser 2, drops these townbuilding sequences and adds a lot of maneuvers to the avatar making combat a bit more complex. ActRaiser 2 is quite a lot harder, but is also generally highly regarded despite/because of the lack of townbuilding sequences.

[Anonymous No.1517824]

>>1517802
You know-it-all!

[Anonymous No.1517854]

>>1517429
>The sequel is called Soulblazer

um no. besides both being developed by Quintet, ActRaiser is NOT a sequel to nor does it have any other connection to Soul Blazer or the Soul Blazer Trilogy (which itself is loosely connected, and not really a trilogy either)

>There are some lesser games in this series called Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma. but I found them to be completely terrible

so besides having no idea what you're talking about, you have shitty taste too?

[Anonymous No.1517862]

>>1517425

The sequal to ActRaiser is called Soulblazer, but it SUCKS.

ActRaiser 2 (SoulBlazer) doesn't even have a sim / city-building level, which is the BEST part of the game.

Don't even bother with ActRaiser 2 (Soulblazer)

[Anonymous No.1517918]

>>1517862
> hating on Soublazer AND ActRaiser2
> thinks the sim / city-building is the BEST part of ActRaiser
> honestly thinks SouBlazer is a direct sequel to ActRaiser

OP, don't listen. All of those games have a lot of street cred in retro gaming circles and for good reason. Give them a try if you want to. They're not bad. Quintet is a sadly unknown game developer.

[Anonymous No.1517984]

>>1517862
this

[Anonymous No.1518159]

>>1517429
lol wtf
>sequel is soulblazer.

there is a game called actraiser 2 you know. also previously mentioned, soulblazer/gaia/terranigma was developed by quintet. not sure if bait

[Anonymous No.1518252]

>>1517862
Are you actually insane? Considering they actually MADE Actraiser 2....

[Anonymous No.1518259]

>>1517862
Holy shit, this is the funniest post on all of 4chan right now.

[Anonymous No.1518608]

ActRaiser is a really good and fun game. The music is great and the action sequences are exciting. The city building part is sort of fun but can get very annoying and frustrating.

Soul Blazer, as someone else mentioned, is also a fantastic game. Didn't know it was considered a sequel to ActRaiser, though.

[Anonymous No.1518664]

>>1518608
Ya but soulblazer/actraiser2 blows. It's all 2nd rate action and 0 town building