Title: Jaleco Collection 1
System: Evercade
Price: $19.99
Release Date: Early 2021
Prelude
Going back in time a bit from our last review, we have another look at Jaleco’s lineup, in the form of their console games! A mix of NES/SNES games here, we get a few titles from their early days of the NES to the end-times of the SNES. Some titles here may seem like repeats to what we saw on Jaleco Arcade, but they’re pretty different than what you may expect!
Presentation
A mix of NES/SNES titles, means the usual NES/SNES emulation quality on Evercade, which is pretty good.
A cartridge update edited some of the games on the cart, but not in any way that would impact emulation quality, mainly being done to get rid of Licensed by Nintendo text strings.
Gameplay
We did some Arcade stuff last time, now for the console collection’s lineup of games! You know the drill by now.
Bases Loaded (NES)- The start of Jaleco’s famous NES Baseball series! The Japanese version was infamous for some nasty and hilarious bugs such as overpowered bunts, but this US version is a lot more balanced. All in all, a very simple 8-bit baseball game with pitching that takes a while to get used to, and some solid batting now that you don’t have those bugs to deal with. I honestly wish one of the sequels got picked over this first game, but this still makes for some very basic baseball action.
City Connection (NES)- A port of the Arcade game! A very interesting case where the US version removed an aspect most might not notice, and that comes in the form of the high score display on the title screen. Thus, chasing scores is a bit harder than it would have been in the Japanese version, but you can blame that on a fancier title screen. Still, the rest of the game is mostly the same besides the protagonist getting changed from a female driver to a male painter.
In terms of what you do in City Connection, the main objective of each stage is to run over every line of track to paint it white, all while knocking out cop cars with paint cans and dodging pesky obstacles like cats and spikes along the way. Lots of fun scoring opportunities here, from being able to combo the cop cars for more points, and surviving to further stages to see how far you can get. Still a simple score chaser at the end of the day, but a pretty decent one, even if I’d wish we got the Arcade version instead. Maybe the Genesis port could hit a Jaleco Console 2?
Astyanax (NES)- Last time we covered the Arcade version, but this NES version was the one I have fond memories with, and thus implored me to seek out this cartridge shortly after I got my original Evercade! See, this very game was my first ever CIB NES purchase, proudly acquired for $10 at a local game store back when NES collecting wasn’t so darn crazy. Maybe it was the stupidity of the box art or the Ninja Gaiden-esque photos on the back of it, but I decided to pick it up, take it home, and was pretty darn impressed by what I played!
Over a decade later on Evercade, and I’m still rather impressed by NES Astyanax, especially compared to the Arcade original. It truly is a unique rendition, with only the concept of a weapon growing in power being directly lifted from the Arcade game. In truth, this port goes for a Ninja Gaiden-esque structure, with several action stages, cutscenes between acts, and boss battles with incredibly tricky patterns, and while it comes nowhere near the quality or polish of those Tecmo classics, this is still a very fun action game that would be pretty high up on my personal favorites for the console if it weren’t for some nasty difficulty spikes midway through the game. Seriously, once you get to the Marshy level, don’t hesitate to spam those save states, you’ll need them.
Considering we don’t have Tecmo on Evercade, I think Astyanax here is a pretty fine alternative besides that aforementioned difficulty spike. Give it a spin, even if you happened to not care much for the Arcade version! Or if you really like this version, don’t expect the Arcade version to be anywhere near as enjoyable as this little NES gem.
Totally Rad (NES)- Now here’s the other Aicom NES action game! While Astyanax remixed a concept from an Arcade game, Totally Rad goes for more of a run and gun approach, with charge shots, multiple magic abilities and special moves to pull off (performed as you would in say, a Castlevania game with Up + B), and just a lot of variety with how you can clear these stages. Some magic forms give John different benefits depending on the situation to make those tougher platforming areas easier, or you could just rely on a simple health refill and stick to your human form.
All of these different options add up to making Totally Rad feel way more balanced and more enjoyable overall than Astyanax, so if you felt as if NES Astyanax could feel a bit cheap and wanted something more fair while still maintaining an action game feel, well here’s a better balanced alternative, and the best NES game of the cart by far.
Super EDF: Earth Defense Force (SNES)- We covered the Arcade version last time, and SUPER EDF for the SNES is pretty much that game but with four extra weapons! They’re pretty nifty, and add a bit of an extra layer to the gameplay, but sadly the local co-op is gone. Still, this is remarkably solid for an early SNES port, though with the original game being pretty generic and safe, this port won’t blow you away.
Nevertheless, just like the original game, this is a solid shooter. EDF still manages to be very score heavy with plenty of chances to get point bonuses, and there’s even an in-game local leaderboard still kicking around, but outside of the new weapons and a slightly nerfed presentation, this really isn’t much of a shmup to write home about. I will give this port credit for the new weapons not being throwaways at least, and I found the four to be pretty darn fun to experiment with, honestly helping to make this one even easier than the original Arcade version! Ultimately a very safe, but decent little shooter, though if you want a co-op experience to fully beat the game, go for the Arcade version. If you want a fun solo shmup with scorechasing, go for this port.
Rival Turf! (SNES)- The first in the Rushing Beat Trilogy, (soon to be a four part series) you take control of two brawlers, who must set out to rescue Rick’s sister from evil forces! Interestingly, via a firmware update this collection replaced the US version of the game with the Japanese version, which even sports an english translation of the Japanese exclusive cutscenes! So weirdly, we now have a better version of the game here, since the core gameplay is identical across both versions.
Still, better version of the game or no, Rival Turf/Rushing Beat is a very basic belt scroller, so basic to the point stages take an incredibly long amount of time and you have a very limited amount of moves to pull off. Your typical brawler jump and attack controls apply here, along with an extra move you can pull off by holding a shoulder button and pressing attack. Unique to the Rushing Beat series is the “Ikari” mode, which has your character getting enraged upon taking enough damage, drastically increasing the strength of their attacks for a certain period of time.
Even then, this is so darn basic of a belt scroller that you probably won’t be engaged for long, and the continues are so limited that playing this in co-op (the one big benefit this has over SNES Final Fight) will require a ton of save states to survive the final levels with enemy sponges everywhere.
Brawl Brothers (SNES)- Now this is more like it. Well, sorta. See, Brawl Brothers is another entry in the Rushing Beat series, and another one that was edited in localization. Rather than just changing the story however, Brawl Brothers spiked up the difficulty and added in some very obnoxious mazes during several levels, making a pretty solid sequel to Rushing Beat a lot more infuriating with the challenge level, and outright insufferable once you get to the mazes. You will not be finding your way outta them without a guide from the internet.
Thankfully, even in the original SNES cartridge from back in the day, you could play the Japanese version with a simple button code on the start of the title screen! It isn’t translated like the patched-in Rushing Beat, but you do get the original difficulty brought back, and the mazes are gone when you swap to the Japanese version. With this cheat code, Brawl Brothers, or Rushing Beat Ran as the Japanese version is called, becomes way more tolerable, and helps you appreciate the changes from the first Rushing Beat to this one!
More moves, more characters, more techniques, all combine to add much needed variety to the Rushing Beat formula, actually giving the game more of an identity compared to the first installment. Yet again, this is a co-op compatible game, and while continues are still limited and the game is still tough, I found this one to be far more enjoyable with a friend, and a brawler that ends up being worth a full clear whether solo or with a pal. Just be sure to play Rushing Beat Ran if you want to avoid the headache of the mazes that may harm your friendships!
Operation Logic Bomb (SNES)- Now this is a gem! The final entry in the Ikari no Yousai Trilogy, this top-down shooting game takes the ideas from the first two Fortified Zone games on Game Boy and completely beefs them up. Gone is the local co-op sadly, but instead you have a very enjoyable top down shooter, with plenty of unlockable weapons, tricky room layouts, and underappreciated music to enjoy as you navigate your way through the fortress, figuring out how to progress deeper within and making the most out of every new item you obtain.
This game is incredibly tough, but mostly in a way I found fair due to memorization. Logic Bomb only gets truly nasty near the endgame thanks to some pretty unpleasant bosses, but even those can be satisfying to finally figure out and take down! Still, don’t be ashamed to make use of save states here, as continues are limited and you only get one life per credit, and this is easily one of my favorite SNES games on Evercade! Now if only we had the two Game Boy predecessors…
Super Goal! 2 (SNES)- A strange little soccer game, this SNES version of Jaleco’s soccer series takes the sporting action to 16-bit and makes improvements over the first Super Goal, which was partly a licensed title. Sadly, it still ends up being a pretty mediocre time, and the different plays can even make the game feel a tad complicated at first; the Evercade description even tells you to read the manual, and upon reading it you’ll learn that this is all pretty silly to memorize for the sake of a 16-bit soccer game from a console with many superior representations of the sport available.
Still, I had decent fun with my friend here, but considering even Evercade has a couple of Soccer games that are much better on other cartridges, Super Goal 2 just feels like a big dud to me. I think the simplicity of the NES Goal would have been better, but even that is a lower tier sports game compared to Jaleco’s Bases Loaded series or even their Hoops/Racket Attack titles. Probably my least favorite game on the cart.
The Ignition Factor (SNES)- This is a peculiar one, and I have to admit I still don’t fully get The Ignition Factor. You don’t have your typical action-y feel here, nor any crazy super powers or anything that would make your main character seem like the typical gamey hero going in and saving civilians. No, instead you are a firefighter, and you have the limited skills a real life firefighter would have, and thus have to make the most out of limited resources. Which items do you carefully pick to go into a mission with? Which route is your best bet to find the missing people and get out before the fire gets worse? Any paths that may end up leading to dead ends that waste precious time?
All of these questions and more are big factors of each stage, and I found myself fascinated by this game’s more unique approach, even if the pacing is a little different from what I expected. Still, while it didn’t fully click with me after some good time with the game, I was able to clear some stages and appreciate Jaleco for trying something pretty bold for the timeframe, with only Human’s The Firemen series coming close to this idea from my recollection.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Jaleco Collection 1 is a solid assortment of fun Jaleco games on console. While I do wish some games like City Connection and Super Goal were swapped out for bigger titles like Rushing Beat Shura or Avenging Spirit GB, we still have a good assortment of fun games here, and one that’s well worth owning as a companion cart to the Arcade collection to see more of that quirky Jaleco magic. While Super Goal 2 may be a disappointing dud, and a lot of the NES games are pretty basic, you at least have some pretty darn fun action stuff here.
From good Aicom gems like Totally Rad, and the excellent hidden gem of Operation Logic Bomb, this really is a great set for action games in particular, and one I really hope gets a followup at some point. Jaleco has a lot of great obscurities worth uncovering, and this first collection is just a lovely tease of what I hope we could get in the future!
I give Jaleco Collection 1 a 7 out of 10.