Hudson Selection Vol. 3: PC Genjin (Bonk) for PS2 and Gamecube

[Duo_R]

Has anyone checked this one out yet? I had no idea this was released...

http://bonkzonk.com/game.ktn?Game=pcggc

14 years after its debut, PC Genjin is remade for GameCube and PS2 as the third game of four in the Hudson Selection series of game remakes. While the game remains mostly the same as the original, the graphics and sound have been completely overhauled. The graphics are fully 3-D rendered and are similar in design to Yoshi's Story. Bonk has a meaner look and practically every sound effect is spelled out on-screen. Some of the levels are altered. Fruit is not as common and there are no crystal hearts, but lives are much more plentiful. There are three difficulty levels, which after being fully completed, unlock the three original PC Genjin Japanese TV commercials.

System   GameCube & PS2
Developer(s)   Hudson Soft
Players   1
Memory Size   1.35GB disc (151MB used)

Region    Japan    
Name    ハドソン セレクション Vol.3　ＰＣ原人 - Pithecanthropus Computerurus
Hudson Selection Volume 3: PC Caveman       
Publisher(s)    Hudson Soft       
Release Date    2003.12.04       


Overview
14 years after its debut, PC Genjin is remade for GameCube and PS2 as the third game of four in the Hudson Selection series of game remakes. While the game remains mostly the same as the original, the graphics and sound have been completely overhauled. The graphics are fully 3-D rendered and are similar in design to Yoshi's Story. Bonk has a meaner look and practically every sound effect is spelled out on-screen. Some of the levels are altered. Fruit is not as common and there are no crystal hearts, but lives are much more plentiful. There are three difficulty levels, which after being fully completed, unlock the three original PC Genjin Japanese TV commercials.

[ccovell]

I have this game, and it's a lot of fun, but it's a remake of the FIRST Bonk game, not Bonk 3.  It's just called Vol.3 because it's third in a series of Hudson remakes.

[TurboXray]

I bought for my Japanese GC (which I picked up for $20, which was cheaper than buying a swap disc). It's pretty cool. It's a little bit tougher than the original, though that's not saying much

[albinoMithos]

I've heard of it, but I can't find a place selling it anymore.  If anybody has a link (ps2 preferable) it'd be much appreciated.

[Duo_R]

bump for the link.....another "japan get's all the cool stuff" thread....

[ParanoiaDragon]

What's interesting, is at the end of the game, it says To Be Continued.  I sure damn wish they would've remade Bonk's Revenge!!

[quoth09]

I played this on PS2 shortly after it came out. I found it rather enjoyable, but yes, it is only a Bonk 1 remake. There was some extra mode that you could play after you beat it, but I never got back to going back and playing it that much, and then my Memory card got wiped with my save on it  . It was probably just the next difficulty level anyway.

If I recall, there was some extra to the game, where you picked up these giant fruits or diamonds (I don't recall which), and if you got them all, you got an extra life per level or something. I ended up having a severe over abundance of extra lives by the end of the game. Also, it is not as easy to do multiple spins in a row like on the original, so you can get tons of points off of enemies.

I have played all 4 volumes of the Hudson Selection series on PS2, and I got to play Star Soldier on both Gamecube and PSP The PSP version is the same as the console ones (has a vertical mode also), but the other volumes are not on the PSP.

Gamecube or PS2, they are all pretty much worth picking up, with the exception of Lode Runner, which I found mundane and boring, with little improvement or flair over the original.

[Spriggan]

I have one of these but it is for New Adventure Island. Nice job on the remakes I must add. The GFX is superb,

[farankoshan]

Is there a difference between the Gamecube and PS2 versions? (Interface, graphical fidelity, button layout, etc.)
Is one better than the other?

[Tatsujin]

Is one better than the other?

Is that a gotcha question?

[farankoshan]

No, it's not. It's a legit question. (What's a gotcha question?)

I guess I'm considering to track down one or the other. Just was wondering which of the two platforms best presents this tribute collection.

[Tatsujin]

What's a gotcha question?

A catch question

[farankoshan]

What's a gotcha question?

A catch question

Sorry if I'm reading this wrong, Tatsujin. I appreciate the replies. Really I do. But I'm seriously confused as to what you might be implying that I'm saying. It's not a loaded question at all. I'm seriously participating in this discussion, asking which version is better...

Take these two examples for context:

The Mega Man Anniversary Collection
- This was a game that was released on Xbox, PS2 & Gamecube. Put together to celebrate the 15th Anniversary of the classic Mega Man series, it contained Megaman 1 through 8, as well as 2 other games never released in the in the U.S.

Now although the games were perfectly emulated, the Gamecube version had one flaw: the buttons for jump and fire were swapped, and unlike the PS2 & Xbox version, there was no option to customize the buttons or the controls. Because of this, many fans who purchased the Gamecube version were upset and complained that such a major mistake broke the experience of playing the games. This glaring difference is why the PS2 & Xbox versions are considered as better versions of the game.

Resident Evil 4
- This was a game that was released & developed primarily on Gamecube, then later ported to the PS2. Numerous critics have stated that the PS2 version's graphics were inferior to the graphics in the GameCube version. This was not at all fueled by some console preference war, but factually, since the game was developed using Gamecube hardware, and the Gamecube had a specific feature in its processor to deal with lighting and shadows, the PS2 version had to be rebuilt to create suitable equivalents. In some cases in the game, certain gameplay elements had to be changed SPECIFICALLY because of the lighting and shadow problem. Because of this, the Gamecube version is considered the version with the best presentation.



Now then, I hope I've made it clear why I'm asking such an innocent and valid question, considering the differences between systems. So now that I've given enough reason for my question, can someone please answer it? Because I own both a PS2 and a Gamecube, and in a forum like ours that's filled Hudson-lovers, I would imagine people here would be able to carefully & fairly scrutinize the ports & explain which version presents the better tribute to our beloved Hudson games.

So which system's version (GC or PS2) of the Hudson Selection offers the best experience for these 4 Hudson tributes?

[ParanoiaDragon]

AFAIK, they're exactly the same.  The only difference I think I heard, was loading is a little quicker on the GC.  Also, it's probably easier to get it to run on a GC.  I have the Star Soldier remake on GC, & IIRC, you just pop in a disc, & then pop in the game.  But for PS2, you have to do the slide key trick, unless you're is modded?

[kamiboy]

Are those ugly red crosses super imposed on dead enemies really necessary though? Otherwise looks head and shoulder above most 3D remakes of 2D games.

Speaking of which, has anyone played the 3D remake of Rondo of Blood on the PSP? It is an atrocity. Good thing they had the sense to include the original in there as an unlockable. But in order to get it they force you to play the remake for a bit. Just enough to make you appreciate the original that much more.

[farankoshan]

...it's probably easier to get it to run on a GC.  I have the Star Soldier remake on GC, & IIRC, you just pop in a disc, & then pop in the game.  But for PS2, you have to do the slide key trick, unless you're is modded?

I get you. It's more of a procedural difference, if you intend to do swap-disc-tricks when playing them.

But, I own a freeloader for my cube, and I have a JPN PS2 to play games from JPN, so I'm interested in the gameplay and interface differences.

AFAIK, they're exactly the same.  The only difference I think I heard, was loading is a little quicker on the GC...

Is loading then, the only difference?

[Bernie]

AFAIK, they're exactly the same.  The only difference I think I heard, was loading is a little quicker on the GC.  Also, it's probably easier to get it to run on a GC.  I have the Star Soldier remake on GC, & IIRC, you just pop in a disc, & then pop in the game.  But for PS2, you have to do the slide key trick, unless you're is modded?

Wait..  are you saying I could possibly play this game on my US Gamecube, without having it modded?

[esteban]

AFAIK, they're exactly the same.  The only difference I think I heard, was loading is a little quicker on the GC.  Also, it's probably easier to get it to run on a GC.  I have the Star Soldier remake on GC, & IIRC, you just pop in a disc, & then pop in the game.  But for PS2, you have to do the slide key trick, unless you're is modded?

Wait..  are you saying I could possibly play this game on my US Gamecube, without having it modded? 

Yes. You need to get the boot loader disc (or whatever it is called). I have US GC + Japanese imports (including the game this very thread is about).

I don't know how much a Japanese GC would cost now, though. You might look into it.

[TR0N]

AFAIK, they're exactly the same.  The only difference I think I heard, was loading is a little quicker on the GC.  Also, it's probably easier to get it to run on a GC.  I have the Star Soldier remake on GC, & IIRC, you just pop in a disc, & then pop in the game.  But for PS2, you have to do the slide key trick, unless you're is modded?

Wait..  are you saying I could possibly play this game on my US Gamecube, without having it modded? 

Free loader or action replay can work for playing imports on a gc.

[Tatsujin]

What's a gotcha question?

A catch question

Sorry if I'm reading this wrong, Tatsujin. I appreciate the replies. Really I do. But I'm seriously confused as to what you might be implying that I'm saying. It's not a loaded question at all. I'm seriously participating in this discussion, asking which version is better...

I'm sorry. wasn't thto intend to create any confusions here
Just wanted to imply that both of the ports are absolutely terrible and awful, and not even worth to compare to each other, since non of 'em would win just the littlest price of anything.

[Mathius]

So this is all I'd need to play Japanese GC games???

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Action-Replay-Nintendo-Gamecube-/320893197237?pt=Video_Games_Accessories&hash=item4ab6b99bb5

[Tatsujin]

Lol 45 bucks, rather get a loose jpn cube for half or even less of that price.

[TR0N]

So this is all I'd need to play Japanese GC games???

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Action-Replay-Nintendo-Gamecube-/320893197237?pt=Video_Games_Accessories&hash=item4ab6b99bb5

LOL that's over priced try amazon 

[farankoshan]

Wow! That's a deal! (watch out for falling sarcasm.)

But, the one thing to remember about JP games is that though you may be able to boot it up using a freeloader, if the game needs a memory card, you can't use a US memory card. You need a JP formatted memory card.

Games like Mr. Driller Drill Land are affected by this and thus, become virtually unplayable without a way to save.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Ok, that's something I never heard about, that really sucks!  I never noticed since all I have is the Star Soldier remake.  I almost got the Adventure Island one, but held off for some reason.  Didn't care about the Lode Runner remake.

[Mathius]

I definitely wasn't going to pay that. I was just posting that auction as an example. Thanks for the info.