Introduce yourself...

[Tupin]

Did I really forget to introduce myself? I was a long time lurker of Famicom World and registered a while ago, but only recently started posting because I had a renewed interest in Famicom.

[FamicomFreak]

Well either way welcome new lad!

[Drakon]

hi people.  I'm a retro system/game collector.  Basically I'm a huge hardware freak.  I can't stand the following:

1: emulation.  I can't stand emulation, to me it's nowhere near the same experience as playing on the actual hardware on a proper crt tv and sound system.

2: clones.  Although clones are quite a flattering form of hardware.  Playing on them is like playing on the cheapest possible hardware revision.  So they're more of just something to keep around to show that a system is so awesome it's worth cloning.

3: bad hardware revisions.  For example the sega genesis/megadrive model 2.  Sure it looks sexy, but the sound quality is terrible.  Apparently even the model 1 has different revisions that produce worse quality sound.

4: bad setups.  Hey let's play my 1983 system on a new hdtv hur hur hurrrrr.  Of course that's gonna make it look terrible.  These systems were designed to be played on a 4:3 crt television.  So that's what I play them on, one of the best crts I was able to come across.  And for sound....just a straight amplifier.....nothing funny.  Simple bass/treble/volume adjustment is all you should have.

Here's the things I love:

1: getting the most out of what your system can do.  As most people know by default a sega genesis or neo geo don't do s-video.  And if you're like me and live in the land of non-rgb tvs this creates a slight barrier.  So what's the solution?  I built a rgb to s-video circuit and oh damn, does my sega ever look sexy now.  I love getting the most out of what a system was intended to do.  Stuff like internally modding a system for picture/sound quality doesn't feel right.  But if there's a port on the back that pumps out rgb then just build yourself an adapter/converter.  And for sound?  stereo please.  I bought a neo geo mvs mv-1f board because I can plug it into a standard jamma rig, but I can ALSO get stereo sound out of it from pins on the side of the board.  Heavenly.

So because of that I collect the actual hardware to play these games.  I picked myself up an AV famicom a while back becuase....well.....there's just too many good games for that system....and it's just darn sexy.  Anyway here's the current lineup of expensive systems I own

2 super famicoms
AV famicom
japanese megadrive model 1 HAA 2510 (not the asian one)
gameboy advance sp model 1 (yes I love it lol)
slim ps2
ketsui arcade pcb
neo geo mvs mv-1f board
street fighter 2 world warrior 911101 cps1 arcade board (with kick harness)
currently borrowing a raiden dx arcade pcb from a friend

so what gets the most playtime?  In order:

1: ketsui
2: neo geo mvs.  I was surprised by this wonderful system because I never grew up with one or around anyone who had one.
3: super famicom
4: tie between my megadrive and AV famicom

And you may ask how do I play this arcade stuff?  Do I have a cab?  Nope.  Cabs have a few problems.

1: you're right infront of the screen.  I like being able to lay down on a couch or bed and relax while playing a game

2: cabs are expensive.  Period

3: cabs are stupidly heavy and take up a lot of space

so what do I use?  I built myself a supergun.  I can play arcade games on my bed comfortably.  The screen is huge and it looks better than most arcade screens.  And the sound is amplified so it sound better than most cabs.

Also I'm a cartridge nut.  CDs get scratched and then that's it no more game.  And cartridges have no loading time.  And I like how cartridges have limited space so it forces the game creators to be a little more creative than simply giving you a pre-rendered avi cutscene.

oh yeah here's the famicom games I play all the time

1: rockman 2
2: mario usa
3: sometimes mario 3 but the above two games keep stealing my attention

so yeah....that's me in a nutshell.  I love my famicom and play it almost daily.  Any classic game appreciator should own one of these boxes of fun

[FamicomFreak]

Awesome introduction! I welcome you hardware geek!! I hope you can stick around here for a while.

[namakubi]

Hello there, brand new to the boards, but not new to Nintendo. Been a huge NES fan my whole life, have a collection of over 100 games, and just NOW, after a few years of owning a Generation (gag) Nex, I've finally procured an actual model 1, red and white, round button Famicom in top condition and working order.

Now that I have an actual working system, I really want to jump head-first adding Famicom games to my collection, but I want almost only Japan only games. As awesome as Super Mario Bros. 3 is, I own three copies for my NES, so I'd like to go after rarer, harder to find stuff that didn't make it over the Pacific.

So far, I have:

-Goonies
-Konami Wai Wai World
-Konami Wai Wai World 2
-Getsufuu Maaden
-Ganbare Goemon
-Ganbare Goemon 2
-Yume Penguin Monogatari
-Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 2 (Kid Niki 2)
-Asmik-Kun Land
-Armadillo
-Layla

And either have already ordered or will eventually be getting:
-Devil World
-Astro Boy
-Boku Dracula Kun (Kid Dracula)
-Splatterhouse Wanpaku Graffiti
-Castlevania 3 (due to the sound chip)
-Kaiketsu Yanchamaru 3

Anything else "Only in Japan" I should be on the look-out for? I prefer games in the platformer / adventure genre, and less text-intensive. Thanks!

[JC]

The two lists here will get you through 1991: http://www.famicomworld.com/forum/index.php?topic=468.0

[nintendodork]

Where and how much did you get Splatterhouse for?

[namakubi]

I'm eventually getting it, I haven't found it yet. I DO have an import store in Seattle that has me on their call list if they get it in, so the first copy they get in I can pick it up.

[JC]

Pink Godzilla?

[namakubi]

Pink Godzilla?

Haha, yeah. They're pretty great. A little pricey, but you can sometimes find good deals.

[JC]

Very pricey, imo. But I bought something there to support them. Our retro game stores have too quickly died out in America.

[Tupin]

I must recommend Choujin Sentai Jetman, even if you don't like the Power Rangers.

You do have some good stuff to start out with, I also suggest you pick up a Disk System, that will get you a lot more awesome options. If you don't mind having a US released game Gryzor (Contra) and Dragon Ball: Shenlong No Nazo (Dragon Power) are worth getting just to see the differences.

[namakubi]

Yeah I was thinking about getting some titles that were released here just for the changes, that's why I'll pick up Castlevania 3 on the Famicom, I might get a disk system, but is there anything worth getting for the disk system that we didn't get in the U.S. on cart? Nazo No Murasame Jo is the only game that's Japanese exclusive that might push me over to getting a disk system. Anything else?

[nintendodork]

SMB2j...Get it.  Love it.  Don't spend $250 on a cart.  Get the disk for about $15

[namakubi]

Very pricey, imo. But I bought something there to support them. Our retro game stores have too quickly died out in America.

Haha yeah, I thought they were pricey, but then I compared their prices to a few pawn shops in the University District and they seemed fairly reasonable by comparison. At any rate, they're usually a last resort if I can't find what I'm looking for on ebay or amazon marketplace.