Title: Technos Collection 1
System: Evercade
Price: $19.99 (lol)
Release Date: Early 2020

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Prelude

This cart is a Myth and Legend. What was once a very overlooked cart of pretty typical brawlers became somehow, the most coveted Evercade cart of them all. You won’t be getting this for MSRP, and you’d honestly be better off buying stuff like Crisis Force or Akumajo Densetsu before a copy of this.

This cart happened to be my first non bundle pick due to a certain game. Which compelled me to in part, get an Evercade? Let’s find out!

Presentation

Good news! All but one of these games are NES games, and the exception is a SNES title. It’s a weird aftermarket hybrid of JP/EN ver, but otherwise the rest of the games are the typical US releases. All run and sound perfectly and as they should without issues. Yay! Not much else to note here, and a compilation I’ll note in a bit consists of most of the games here, meaning I’ve kinda already covered most of these before…

Gameplay

If you have a Switch/PS4, the Kunio/Double Dragon Brawler Bundle covers a good chunk of these games. Super Double Dragon and V’Ball are the only exclusions from that set. Thus if you want a hyper indepth look at some of those games and what I thought of them years ago, look there in that review. Nevertheless…

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Renegade (NES)- Technos’ first NES game! It’s a pretty solid port of the arcade brawler, and for an early example of the genre it manages to be incredibly fun. Jump kicking is the way to go to win at this charming game, but it may take a bit of getting used to the directional attack buttons before you manage to get anywhere.

The level designs here are a lot more simplified compared to the arcade, and thus that makes an already short game incredibly breezy to play, but in a fun way once you get the hang of the directional attacks and jumping mechanics. There’s also two other difficulty levels here, and they’re particularly nasty, especially with the final maze of the game, but they’re worth a replay for those who are daring a devilish challenge. The worst part is still the fact the game just cuts to credits the minute you finish the final boss off!

Double Dragon (NES)- A lot of people like this version of the arcade classic, and I think the port has grown on me slightly over the years. I also think it’s pretty terrible compared to many other versions due to silly choices, such as the lack of a 2P mode outside of an incredibly stupid fighting mode, a really stupid experience system that locks your good moves away behind artificial padding, (there was no need for this, it doesn’t make the game more fun or exciting when you unlock new moves, the arcade version was fine without this system) and lame level design changes compared to the original Arcade version.

Seriously, you have platforming stages to deal with here, and they are awful. Bad, bad, bad. The later games did them better, even if they get annoying at points too. The music is at least catchy here, and with save states the lack of continues is less of a frustration, but I honestly feel the Game Boy version is the superior 8-bit Nintendo version of the game, since at least that has no EXP system and the level designs feel a lot better. Shame that wasn’t the one we got though, but this was a smash hit back in the day so I see why. Tough for me to like this NES versions much with the other better versions you could play elsewhere, though.

Super Dodge Ball (NES)- The same flickery mess it has always been, (well, until the aforementioned bundle) but still immensely fun. This is the 2P US version, but this is a wonderful time with friends and against the CPU. Pass, throw, and do running jumps to destroy your opponents to the point angels leave the bodies.

Really, this game is just good fun. Multiple difficulty levels, a game that clicks very well once you get used to how the super moves work, and an excellent title to pull out on the VS for a friend to play. Shame it isn’t a translated version of the JP edition with four player support, but this is still a darn good game, one of the best sports games on NES!

Double Dragon II: The Revenge (NES)- This is more like it! Co-Op, better level designs than the arcade, (More stages! Platforming that isn’t as bad! Fun bosses!) and just better controls all around, even if it goes back to the weird renegade style attack system, I ultimately liked how this played way more than the first game. The version here is the US version, which doesn’t let you beat the game unless you play on the hardest difficulty, but even that isn’t too tough, especially with save states helping you out. (or beating up the other player in Game Mode B and stealing their lives)

Just a great time either alone or with a pal, this is easily the best of the NES Technos brawlers, and my only real gripe is I wish it was the slightly more fair Famicom version here. This pretty much took everything that was wrong with the first NES game and fixed it.

River City Ransom (NES)- Another game in the same Kunio series as Renegade and Super Dodge Ball, River City Ransom is a co-op action adventure game where the main goal is to rush to the other high school and free your girlfriend after beating the leaders hiding around town. Takes the concepts from other NES Technos games and makes an interesting RPG hybrid out of it, though I don’t find it nearly as polished or fun as Double Dragon II.

The jumping can be incredibly annoying still, gaining enough money for upgrades can be a bit of a pain, and sometimes finding the next boss gets a little confusing. Still, this is a fun co-op game and well worth being on the cart, even if I think some of the Japan only sequels are a bit better.

Super Spike V’Ball (NES)- Now this is why I bought a cart and partly, the Evercade itself. This game was crazy fun on the NES I had handed down from a family member, and while it was on a combo cart with Nintendo World Cup, (a game that can’t be here due to including two no-no phrases in the title) this was the game that held my interest way more.

You play it like a typical volleyball game at first, but mashing the button while returning the ball can be done to really trip up the opponent, leading to a lot more enjoyable back and forth moments with the ball than say, Nintendo’s Volleyball. Billy and Jimmy are even here, even if on the field they don’t like anything they would in their own series!

Sure enough though this game is a four player game and yep, it’s four players here on Evercade VS as well. Even without me being able to get four people in my room though, V’Ball manages to be quite a blast with just two people, and even against the CPU! Well worth playing through and getting to grips with, and a must play if you own a VS.

Crash N The Boys: Street Challenge (NES)- Another weird reskin of a Kunio game, and this is an assortment of athletic events. Complete in a gauntlet, try to beat the other team, go to a shop between rounds, and see who wins the championship. Pretty typical stuff, more fun with friends compared to fighting the AI, and really the only thing I find noteworthy about it here, is that the turbo button feature of the Evercade makes playing against the AI incredibly funny due to just how much it trivializes the button mashing games.

Still, this game is forgettable, and the hockey game they advertised in the ending would have been a more enjoyable sports pick.

Super Double Dragon (SNES)- Oh hey, I reviewed this in full before! Still, this Evercade version is indeed Return of Double Dragon, so rejoice! Proper difficulty balancing and more fun combat from the Japanese version here, rather than the sloppy US release.

Still an incomplete oddball of a game, but my points in the other review still stand; Return of Double Dragon is an incredibly fun game with a friend, bogged down a bit by slowdown and stuff just randomly happening due to the complete axing of the game’s story and cutscenes. There’s still a lack of variety with enemies, but the moves are way too fun to pull off for me to even mind that much. Still, I think it was smart to pick this over NES Double Dragon III.

Conclusion

Ultimately, Technos Collection 1 is a cart I can already say you should not buy. The aftermarket prices for it are insane and Arc System Works decided to go for a Super Pocket for their library, which includes a good chunk of the games here. Sadly, NES Double Dragon II is somehow missing and there’s no multiplayer, but at least you get V’Ball and Return.

Still, from the context of when I bought this for MSRP back in 2021? This is a pretty decent set of games! All rather short and repetitive, and very similar in genre, but stuff like V’Ball and Return of Double Dragon more than make it worth the MSRP value, and on the VS it becomes an outstanding co-op cartridge due to all the multiplayer games on it.

The Technos Super Pocket will be more accessible and the right way to play these on the Evercade ecosystem, but I’ll be missing the VS support the most, and thus this collection still has a little bit of special value on that fact alone.

I give Technos Collection 1 a 7 out of 10.