Of the fifteen games listed in the "Coming Soon" column in this issue, all but three were given a North American release: Gradius (HuCARD), Salamander (HuCARD) and Super Schwartzchild (CD/SCD). Now, Kogado's Super Schwartzchild would have required a lot of work to be localized (epic cinemas and storylines would have to be translated, for starters)—leaving me to wonder if TTi was truly considering to invest their resources in a strategy game with such an involved story. To further confuse matters, the screenshots appearing in the column are from Lady Phantom (1991, SCD), not Super Schwartzchild. Lady Phantom was also a hex-based strategy game, but it featured mechs. A third possibility is that "Super Schwartzchild" was supposed to be listed as "Super Daisenryaku" (1990, CD), yet another hex-based strategy game that was being considered for localization.
But what about those two Konami games?! TG-16 fans across the hemisphere rejoiced at the prospect of seeing Konami's titles over here—and this was well before Gradius II (SCD) and Dracula X (SCD) were even on the horizon! Alas, the only Konami titles that reached North America were imports. Since we are already on the subject of imports, I should mention that of the seven games profiled in "Games Around the World", only Neutopia II and Hit the Ice were localized for North America. I suspect that the only reason why Hit the Ice was brought over here was to beef-up the TG-16's emaciated library of sports titles. Yes, folks, it's time for another round of sports follies.
Continued below…
Table of Contents for TurboPlay #11▲
- 01 Cover: Introducing the DUO. Artist: Van Arno.
- Ostensibly inspired by the soon-to-be-released TurboDuo console, this illustration is a real gem that actually pre-dates Wolfinger's "Monitaur" mascot for GameFan. The pair of sweaty, muscle-bound beasts depicted here are striking (if not disturbing). It is truly a shame that pop-art like this didn't appear more frequently in the print media.
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- 02 Advertisement: Cadash (1991, HuCARD).
- "The hit Taito arcade game is now available exclusively for the TurboGrafx-16! 1 or 2 player action! Choose from 4 different characters!"
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- 03 Table of Contents for issue #11.
- "Don't hesitate—take a look below, then turn the page and enjoy."
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- 04 TurboMail: Letters from our loyal readers. 04 05
- "The mailman came while you were away, and he had some pretty important letters. Do you want to hear about them?" Topics include: Where's the special game in Chew Man Fu? Will Astralius be localized? Can TG-CD play Japanese PCE CD games? Has Lords of the Rising Sun been cancelled?
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- 06 Advertisement: Champions Forever Boxing, André Panza Kick Boxing (1991, HuCARD). 06 07
- "Crush the world's greatest fighters with your thumb. So what are you waiting for? Chicken?"
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- 08 TurboPlay Contest: Previous Winners & New Contest. 08 09
- "Again, the artistic TG-16 crowd showed its abilities, competing for top honors—and prizes—in our second annual drawing contest. We've got the winners on display, and we'll get you ready for the next contest."
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- 10 Coming Soon: Game Previews. 10 11 12 13 14
- "There's so much going on in the TG-16 world, we can't even start talking about it here. A new system, upcoming games, contests and more." Titles include: Camp California, Dragon Slayer: The Legend of Heroes, Falcon, Gate of Thunder, Ghost Manor, Gradius, Gunboat, Loom, Lords of the Rising Sun, Order of the Griffon, Prince of Persia, Salamander, Shadow of the Beast, Shape Shifter, and Super Schwartzchild (note that Lady Phantom is pictured in the screenshots, not Super Schwartzchild).
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- 15 TurboTips: Codes, Tips and Tricks.
- "Here are more of those tricky tricks that get you to the deeper corners of your games." André Panza Kick Boxing, Bloody Wolf, Impossamole, King of Casino and Yo, Bro!
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- 16 Closer Look: TurboChip and TG-CD Game Reviews. 16 17 23
- "The TurboPlay review crew gives you the bottom line on Ballistix, Night Creatures and TV SPORTS Baseball."
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- 18 Games Around the World. 18 19 20 21 22
- "They just came off the game boat—titles that you can only buy as imports. Donn Nauert features the hottest of the hot, fresh from Japan." Titles include: Daisenpu Custom, High Grenadier, Hit the Ice, Neutopia II, Power League IV, Valis IV and World Jockey.
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- 24 Feature: TurboPlay Rates the Games, Volume II. 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
- "There are tons of titles for the TG-16 owner to buy, but which are the best? Our editors have put their heads together to come up with ratings for all of the games currently available. See if your scores match ours."
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- 31 Advertisement: Totally Turbo Mailorder.
- "Billed as "The Total Source for TurboGrafx-16", Totally Turbo was a mail order outfit selling TG-16 hardware and software at steep prices."
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- 32 Advertisement: Parasol Stars: The Story of Bubble Bobble III (1991, HuCARD).
- "Get ready for some finger-searing action as Bubby and Bobby blast their way onto the TurboGrafx-16!"
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TG-16 SPORTS FOLLIES: ROUND THREE…▲
For all of you sports fans out there, here is another sharp-looking advertisement for your viewing (and reading) enjoyment:
"Crush the world's greatest fighters with your thumb." 01 02
"He's lean. He's mean. He's André Panza and he's out for blood. Every move he makes is from digitized film footage from his greatest kicks and punches. So you're not fighting some namby pamby, make-believe video kick boxing creep. You're duking it out with the master, 3-time World Kick Boxing Champion André Panza…
Ali, Norton, Holmes, Frazier and Foreman are ready to pound your face…er, thumb. You can be them or battle them. Each champ looks and fights like the real thing. Ali floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. Foreman puts his weight into devastating round-house punches…"
So what are you waiting for? Chicken? Then get Champions Forever Boxing and André Panza Kick Boxing and start rearranging some faces with your thumb."
What can I say? All of the stuff written about André Panza is corny as hell, and I love it. Clearly, NEC was desperately trying to compete with Sega's extensive library of officially licensed sports titles. Unfortunately, NEC's attempts to promote these games as "hard", "gritty" and "cutting-edge" fall flat. Folks didn't take Van Damme seriously (despite his awesome debut in the film Bloodsport), so why would they pay any heed to André Panza, who was a non-entity as far as North America was concerned?
Now, I have already commented extensively on NEC's misguided promotion of TG-16's sports titles at the expense of other genres (read my former musings), so I won't repeat myself. Suffice it to say, here we are, two issues later, and nothing has changed. NEC continues their follies with an advertisement for two more lackluster sports games: Champions Forever Boxing and André Panza Kick Boxing. At least the ads look kool-as-hell, I will give them that much credit. And don't forget, sports fans: He's mean. He's lean. He's André Panza…what a namby pamby!
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THREE GAME REVIEWS TO REMEMBER…▲
Speaking of lackluster games, check out the reviews for TV SPORTS Baseball, Night Creatures and Ballistix. Next to these games, André Panza Kick Boxing is lookin' better and better! Personally, of all the aforementioned games, I would have loved to try TV SPORTS Baseball the most. Unfortunately, as you are probably aware, TV SPORTS Baseball was never released. For this article, the reviewer had a (nearly) completed version of the game, apparently, but TTi was struggling financially and was never able to publish it. Instead, they opted to grace us with games like Night Creatures and Ballistix. Only a few brave souls (i.e. masochists) champion Night Creatures these days. Ballistix, on the other hand, is largely forgotten and will probably never attract a cult following like that of Night Creatures. Don't forget sports fans: You have the mark of the bat upon you!
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