Beat every TurboGrafx-16 game - 25/94

[RetroMichel 60]

Here is a thread in which we can express our passion for the magnificent TurboGrafx-16 console by completing its library. This thread is based on Splain's wonderful work on his numerous threads in the Site-run Events & Contests forums. Huge thanks to him for his templates and already written rules, which I edited for the TurboGrafx-16 library.

Why the TurboGrafx-16?

The TG-16 library is full of amazing games that need to be (re)discovered/played. Also, it is a small library (total of 94 NTSC-U/C games), so it's not an impossible feat. Right?

Each game will be worth one point, so the points will be added up as "games completed" in the leaderboard. Feel free to comment as much as you'd like about the games you've completed (or not).

Here are the rules:

• We're beating these games, starting now. All games must be started no earlier than the posting of this thread. (August 15th, 2021)
• There will be no "resets" at the end of the year; this is a focus on completing the entire library.
• Photos are not required but highly encouraged.
• Emulation is OK, but no cheat devices, cheat codes, looking up passwords, etc. Legitimate runs only.
• If you have questions about what constitutes "beating" a game, bring it up and we'll figure it out. (Typical requirements are to get an ending screen or credit roll, on the middle or default difficulty. Or beat the high score. Or win the tournament.) Some games are more obvious than others.

Please respect these rules, but more importantly, have fun!

Title	Beaten By	Notes/Requirements
Aero Blasters
Air Zonk	RetroMichel
Alien Crush		Get 1 billion points.
Andre Panza Kick Boxing
Ballistix
Battle Royale
Blazing Lazers	RetroMichel
Bloody Wolf
Bomberman	Crabmaster2000
Bomberman '93
Bonk's Adventure	Red
Bonk's Revenge	Red
Bonk 3: Bonk's Big Adventure
Boxyboy		Beat level 100.
Bravoman
Cadash
Champions Forever Boxing
Chase H.Q.
Chew Man Fu	Crabmaster2000
China Warrior	Red
Cratermaze
Cyber Core
Darkwing Duck	Red
Davis Cup Tennis
Dead Moon	Crabmaster2000
Deep Blue
Devil's Crush		Get 1 billion points.
Double Dungeons
Dragon Spirit
Dragon's Curse
Drop Off
Dungeon Explorer
Dungeons & Dragons: Order of the Griffon
Falcon
Fantasy Zone
Final Lap Twin
Galaga '90	Red
Ghost Manor
Gunboat
Hit the Ice
Impossamole
Jack Nicklaus' Turbo Golf
Jackie Chan's Action Kung-Fu
J.J. & Jeff
Keith Courage in Alpha Zones
King of Casino
Klax
Legend of Hero Tonma	RetroMichel
Legendary Axe, The	scaryice
Legendary Axe II, The	scaryice
Magical Chase	Crabmaster2000
Military Madness	Red
Moto Roader
Neutopia	scaryice
Neutopia II
New Adventure Island	Dr. Morbis
Night Creatures
Ninja Spirit	scaryice
Ordyne
Pac-Land
Parasol Stars	Red
Power Golf
Psychosis
Raiden
R-Type
Samurai Ghost
Shockman
Side Arms Hyper Dyne
Silent Debuggers
Sinistron	Red
Soldier Blade
Somer Assault	Red
Sonic Spike Volleyball
Space Harrier
Splatterhouse	RetroMichel
Super Star Soldier
Super Volleyball
Takin' it to the Hoop
Talespin
Tiger Road
Time Cruise	Red
Timeball
Tricky Kick
Turrican
TV Sports Basketball
TV Sports Football
TV Sports Hockey
Veigues Tactical Gladiator	Crabmaster2000
Victory Run
Vigilante
World Class Baseball
World Court Tennis	Crabmaster2000
World Sports Competition
Yo, Bro

 

Leaderboard

User	# of games completed
Red	10
Crabmaster2000	6
RetroMichel	4
scaryice	4
Dr. Morbis	1

Edited July 25, 2022 by RetroMichel

[Dr. Morbis 1,814]

Cool idea!  I love the TG/PCE, so I'm going to contribute a few games for sure, starting this week...

[Vectrex28 324]

Would Japanese versions count?

[JeremiahJT 68]

This kind of makes me want to play through Order of the Griffon again, but this time with my new TurboBooster-Plus! I am in the middle of playing through the Master System and Genesis Phantasy Star games and Morrowind right now, so adding another rpg would be a lot.

 

If it still has not been beat in a few months I will probably reconsider.

[RetroMichel 60]

8 hours ago, Vectrex28 said:

Would Japanese versions count?

Sure, as long as the game is the same with no content added/removed.

[Red 343]

Ha ha, I was considering starting a thread for this in the fall, except with a 3 month time limit like the Sega Master System one.  I'm not sure how popular having the shorter time limit was, so maybe it's for the best that I'm not running it.  It's been a long time since I've actually played any TG-16 and I've been meaning to set it back up for a while, so expect some contributions from me soon.

[Dr. Morbis 1,814]

Okay, let's start things off right.  I was going to get going on Elevator Action tonight, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to play through the best game on the Turbo (undisputable; can't be argued ) and make it the first game completed out of the gate.  So here it is, New Adventure Island is done:

 

[Sumez 2,218]

On 8/16/2021 at 5:46 AM, RetroMichel said:

NEC fans

[Gex 90]

Oh snap! I'm on this

[Gex 90]

@RetroMichelno CD games??

[John198X 55]

I'm kinda Turbografx'd out at the moment, but I looked back at every game I've marked myself as 'beaten' over the past few years to see if I could find anything that could have a questionable victory condition. Thankfully, it wasn't much:

Alien Crush - Technically has an ending that triggers when you would roll the score over at 1 billion points. It consists of two lines of text on a black screen. Supposedly it would require keeping a game of pinball going for about 40 hours to see legitimately. I'd personally consider this ending an easter egg rather than a realistic goal meant for the player. The default high score is only 1 million points, which is pretty puny. If one would like to set their aim higher, Speedrun.com uses categories for reaching 5 mil, 10 mil, and 25 million points that could serve as goals, though those seem to be chosen simply because they're big round numbers... /shrug

Devil's Crush - Once again has an ending that triggers when the score would roll over at 1 billion points. It's slightly more elaborate this time. I think it's significantly less hours of pinball than Alien Crush, but I still wouldn't consider it a goal for the purposes of this thread. Default high score is once again only 1 million points, but Speedrun.com has categories for 5, 10, and 25 mil.

Bloody Wolf - This game also contains 'Bloody Wolf 2' and 'Bloody Wolf 3.' Okay, not really. Upon finishing the game, you are given a code to use for your next playthrough. Entering it adds a '2' to the title screen, but it's really just another loop but everything is faster. Finishing that will provide a code for '3,' which another speed-boosted loop with the ability to hover (hold a jump as long as you'd like). In short, the first loop is the whole game.

Ninja Spirit - The Arcade mode and PC-Engine mode the player has to choose at the title screen have a big gap in difficulty (basically one-hit deaths vs a few-hit deaths), but I'd call them equally valid routes to complete the game.

[RetroMichel 60]

1 hour ago, John198X said:

I'm kinda Turbografx'd out at the moment, but I looked back at every game I've marked myself as 'beaten' over the past few years to see if I could find anything that could have a questionable victory condition. Thankfully, it wasn't much:

Alien Crush - Technically has an ending that triggers when you would roll the score over at 1 billion points. It consists of two lines of text on a black screen. Supposedly it would require keeping a game of pinball going for about 40 hours to see legitimately. I'd personally consider this ending an easter egg rather than a realistic goal meant for the player. The default high score is only 1 million points, which is pretty puny. If one would like to set their aim higher, Speedrun.com uses categories for reaching 5 mil, 10 mil, and 25 million points that could serve as goals, though those seem to be chosen simply because they're big round numbers... /shrug

Devil's Crush - Once again has an ending that triggers when the score would roll over at 1 billion points. It's slightly more elaborate this time. I think it's significantly less hours of pinball than Alien Crush, but I still wouldn't consider it a goal for the purposes of this thread. Default high score is once again only 1 million points, but Speedrun.com has categories for 5, 10, and 25 mil.

Bloody Wolf - This game also contains 'Bloody Wolf 2' and 'Bloody Wolf 3.' Okay, not really. Upon finishing the game, you are given a code to use for your next playthrough. Entering it adds a '2' to the title screen, but it's really just another loop but everything is faster. Finishing that will provide a code for '3,' which another speed-boosted loop with the ability to hover (hold a jump as long as you'd like). In short, the first loop is the whole game.

Ninja Spirit - The Arcade mode and PC-Engine mode the player has to choose at the title screen have a big gap in difficulty (basically one-hit deaths vs a few-hit deaths), but I'd call them equally valid routes to complete the game.

For the two Crush games, I'd consider getting 1 billion points the true ending. I know, I know, these games are very time-consuming. In fact, I'm currently playing Devil's Crush. I save my game once in a while when I'm at the top of my game (when I have many lives and I have many points). So far, I'm at 100 million points, so it's doable, only very long. Very good game, however, I just hate how luck plays a huge role in pinball.

I'd be completely fine with Bloody Wolf beaten only one time. No need for a second and third playthroughs.

Thanks for the useful information. I will update the main thread right now.

[John198X 55]

19 hours ago, RetroMichel said:

For the two Crush games, I'd consider getting 1 billion points the true ending. I know, I know, these games are very time-consuming. In fact, I'm currently playing Devil's Crush. I save my game once in a while when I'm at the top of my game (when I have many lives and I have many points). So far, I'm at 100 million points, so it's doable, only very long. Very good game, however, I just hate how luck plays a huge role in pinball.

I'd be completely fine with Bloody Wolf beaten only one time. No need for a second and third playthroughs.

Thanks for the useful information. I will update the main thread right now.

I think it'd be an awesome personal accomplishment to reach one one of the Crush endings, and it'd be really cool to have someone here do that. I personally don't have the will to do so , which is probably a factor in why I'm equivocating it more to reaching a kill screen than completing a loop (if comparing it to a stage based score-chase game, like Donkey Kong or Pac-Man). Either way, more power to you!

Of American card releases, I can personally confirm Bomberman, Bonk's Adventure, Bonk's Revenge, Bonk 3, Cadash, China Warrior, Dragon's Curse, Dungeon Explorer, Magical Chase, Neutopia, Splatterhouse, Tiger Road, and Vigilante all have endings that can be reached even with my limited skills. I'd give at least a weak recommendations to all of those, even China Warrior, but not Tiger Road...

I would never want to attempt Tiger Road without the save feature enabled by having a CD unit or TurboBooster (or playing in an emulator that provides the functionality) that basically makes for infinite continues. I'm not sure I can think of any other action games on TGX let you save like this. With just a base system, you can continue a few times before being sent back to the title screen... which is not unordinary, but this game is brutal. It barely resembles the arcade game (though I kind of like the cute style), and I found it to be super cheap and obnoxiously difficult.

Edited August 20, 2021 by John198X

[Red 343]

I thought I'd start off with some of the less popular titles and I beat Darkwing Duck today.  It has a well deserved bad reputation.  The stages are very bland and seem like they shouldn't be difficult, but the slippery controls make simple platforming a chore.  Luckily, extra life and continue items respawn when you lose, so it doesn't take too long to get through.

Also tried China Warrior and Moto Roader.  Not crazy about either of them, but I may go back to them tomorrow.

Next day edit: If one loop is good enough for China Warrior, consider it done.  Not crazy about this one either.  There's not much variety in the stages and the stiff controls make a few of the bosses a pain.  Luckily you can stockpile health and just exchange blows with those bosses until they run out of health.

Edited August 22, 2021 by Red

[Red 343]

Okay, I kept going and beat all three loops of China Warrior.  Although they throw more at you in the second two loops, they seem a bit easier since they also give you many, many more health power ups.

[RetroMichel 60]

Air Zonk is now beaten. I highly recommend this game. Very dynamic gameplay with, honestly, an unforgettable soundtrack. I kept humming and whistling the themes of this game since I played it a few weeks ago. I decided to do a full playthrough yesterday and I got it. I played it on "sweet mode", the easiest mode, which gives you 5 lives at the start instead of 3 ("spicy mode") or 1 ("bitter mode"). The game has very colorful graphics with a lot of animation going on. However, one thing I was not particularly a fan of is some enemies and bosses themselves. I know, it's purely a Japanese thing to put weird things/objects as enemies in games, but sometimes it felt so random. I get that it is meant to be original/funny, but I would have liked the game to be more thematic sometimes. Still, this is not a huge complaint. I can say I loved Air Zonk and I will definitely play it on harder modes. Great exclusive and honestly a must-have for every TurboGrafx-16 owner.

[Red 343]

Played some Galaga '90 today.  Beat the final boss in the top path, which I'm assuming gives the best ending.  Simple, but fun shooter.

Here are pictures of the other games I've beaten so far.  It's amusing how the ending of the first loop of China Warrior says CONGRATULATIONS, but the third loop says GIVE UP! and won't let you play a fourth loop.

And here's Darkwing Duck:

[RetroMichel 60]

Splatterhouse is beaten. This is the game that made me buy a TurboGrafx-16 console at first. I was so curious to see how gruesome and shocking the game would be for its time, and honestly, while I understand it might be scary, even today, it is not THAT graphic. However, it is important to know that this game was released in 1990 on the TG-16. For its time, there is no denying how much this game had a major influence on mature games by introducing such horror and yes, violence, in a video game.

While the gameplay of the game is not perfect (jumps can be clunky sometimes), it plays very well generally and it is a very fun gaming experience. The soundtrack plays a huge role to set the horrifying tone of the game. It does it very well. No music becomes too much repetitive and the songs fit with each stage/area they accompany.

I will not spoil any information about the game's story, as some of you may not have played Splatterhouse, but this is the thing that kept the most my attention. There are some very unique and interesting twists in the game that keep you on the edge of your seat. I always wanted to progress in the game and see what will happen next.

Splatterhouse is great, and honestly, absolutely a must-have for the TG-16.

[Sumez 2,218]

Yeah, it's a very faithful port, it's kinda crazy it only made it to PCE at the time.

[John198X 55]

I don't exactly know why I like Splatterhouse so much. Yeah, it's pretty simplistic, plays kinda stiff, and the fire guys in the last stage have no animation and look weird. 

But the aesthetics and presentation are just perfect, and the difficulty is relatively mild - just enough to keep you fully engaged. Once you learn it, it's an easy 20ish minute playthrough, but it's on a very short list of games that I can always revisit and enjoy every single moment.

[Red 343]

What should the win condition for Military Madness be?  I beat the first 16 stages, which gives you an ending.  You can keep playing after the ending and you'll go back to the first map, but the starting armies are now different.  The manual refers to these as the "advanced stages".  Should beating all of these stages be required?

[the_wizard_666 995]

4 hours ago, Red said:

What should the win condition for Military Madness be?  I beat the first 16 stages, which gives you an ending.  You can keep playing after the ending and you'll go back to the first map, but the starting armies are now different.  The manual refers to these as the "advanced stages".  Should beating all of these stages be required?

If it gives a "true" ending, yes.  If the ending is the same, I would say no.  But it's not my call to make either, nor do I know enough about the game to comment one way or the other for this specific case.

 

[Sumez 2,218]

Wouldn't that be like requiring Second Quest in Zelda, or two loops of Castlevania? AFAIK the NES completions thread doesn't do that, even though both of those are great.

[the_wizard_666 995]

5 hours ago, Sumez said:

Wouldn't that be like requiring Second Quest in Zelda, or two loops of Castlevania? AFAIK the NES completions thread doesn't do that, even though both of those are great.

Those games have the same ending for both quests.  You could also bring up listings like Ghosts 'n Goblins, which requires the true ending after the second loop, or Arkista's Ring, which requires four loops to get a true ending.  The NES thread requires the true ending to be reached in those cases.  There are also grey area titles like the Taxan "three endings" titles, which are pretty much the same thing with a challenge blurb that changes between completions.  I believe those only require one loop to cross them off, as aside from challenging the player to another loop, those endings are otherwise identical between loops.  I would say any game with multiple loops should follow that same criteria - if the ending is the same (or has a minor difference that doesn't change the ending as a whole), then one loop should suffice, but in the case of games with a fakeout ending before a true ending, the true ending needs to be reached.  And in the case of multiple endings requiring different criteria to reach, I would consider any ending that requires playing a full game to reach a legitimate finish, and that getting all of them is not really necessary. 

[Sumez 2,218]

11 minutes ago, the_wizard_666 said:

There are also grey area titles like the Taxan "three endings" titles, which are pretty much the same thing with a challenge blurb that changes between completions.

That's what Ghosts 'n Goblins does too, though, so I think that's a curious distinction.
Ghouls 'n Ghosts and Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts are a lot more up front about requiring two loops to even get to the final boss.

Either way I agree with most of what you're saying, and if Military Madness says "FIN" after the first loop that sounds like an ending to me