The three Sega 3D Classics announced yesterday have been (as expected) confirmed for Japan with 3D Bare Knucke II (Streets of Rage II) coming first in 28 April priced at ¥800 (+ tax). No dates for 3D Gunstar Heroes nor for 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 yet but expect them soon!
Three more Sega 3D Classics have been announced on the Sega blog with 3D Streets of Rage 2 (Bare Knuckle in Japan) for July, 3D Gunstar Heroes for August and 3D Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for September. No news on a Japanese release but I can’t possibly imagine that there won’t be (it will be at http://archives.sega.jp/3d/ when it does come).
After releasing thirteen digital 3D Classics in a little under twenty months, it was inevitable that Sega would eventually release a retail collection. The only snag is that only six of the thirteen games are included (Space Harrier, Fantasy Zone, OutRun, Bare Knuckle, The Super Shinobi II and Ecco the Dolphin) although the package does include two unreleased Master System games (OutRun 3D and Space Harrier 3D) and superlative artwork by famed Pokémon artist Ken Sugimori.
Unlike the bulk of ZX Spectrum compilation tapes I used to buy in a bygone era which usually featured a token highlight alongside a handful of duff games, Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives features no such duff games. Clearly the cute-em-up Fantasy Zone is the worst of the bunch but largely by default due to the lack of centralisation of your ship Opa-Opa and due to the quality of the other titles, the best of which are games that I’ve previously raved about (Space Harrier and OutRun).
One game that I’ve largely ignored until now is The Super Shinobi II (Shinobi III in the West) which not only is one of the better games in this collection but also one of the very best action platformer games on the 3DS. Bare Knuckle (Streets of Rage) whilst a little short (a general theme) is an excellent retro brawler with Ecco the Dolphin rounding off the original releases as perhaps the slowest starter but ultimately delivering one of the more unique videogaming experiences.
It’s the two new games that hold the most intrigue and both Space Harrier 3D and OutRun 3D play significantly different to their namesakes featured on here being more stripped down in comparison playing more (for the better) like Virtual Console games complete with 8-bit graphics and sound although if you own the other games individually, you’ll have to make up your own minds whether to bite. For me, I can’t wait for Volume 2 with Blade Eagle, Missile Defense and/or Zaxxon!
8/10
Review by Bri Bri. For more information on Sega 3D Fukkoku Archives please go to http://archives.sega.jp/3d/archives/
