Japanese language games we might have missed, with nice art

Dicer · 02/24/2017, 11:10 PM

I mean non typical games the usual English player would never bother checking out due to the moon language barrier...

Checked out a bit of Moonlight Lady, I have NO idea what the fuck is going on except there is girls and a bird, but damn if the sprite work isn't pretty top notch, reminding me of SNES sprite work
Spoiler: this is the end stuff, so if you don't wanna see the ending.

What other games feature really good art but we might be ignoring due to the barrier of language?

CrackTiger · 02/25/2017, 10:34 AM

Private Eyedoll has the best 16-bit RPG graphics, but it's technically a digital adventure. Not for the novice gaijin.

Digi.k · 02/25/2017, 05:48 PM

somewhat the pc engine's version of seiken densetsu aka secret of mana.

I also thought the girl transformation scenes were a positive nod to Sailor Moon, even the music sounds similar.

CrackTiger · 02/25/2017, 07:08 PM

It's hard sifting through hundreds of screenshots, but here are some good examples. There are so many things that you can't judge from screenshots, but playing the game feels like it's more from the 32-bit generation. Definitely nothing like it for Genesis or SNES.

Dicer · 02/25/2017, 10:10 PM

Damn that looks pretty stellar...

BigusSchmuck · 02/25/2017, 11:15 PM

Another game that needs a fan translation.

elmer · 02/26/2017, 08:06 AM

Quote from: guest on 02/25/2017, 07:08 PMIt's hard sifting through hundreds of screenshots, but here are some good examples. There are so many things that you can't judge from screenshots, but playing the game feels like it's more from the 32-bit generation. Definitely nothing like it for Genesis or SNES.

Wow, that's absolutely beautiful!

NoSexGex · 02/26/2017, 03:12 PM

Quote from: BigusSchmuck on 02/25/2017, 11:15 PMAnother game that needs a fan translation.

Agreed, and this one especially stands out too

shubibiman · 02/26/2017, 03:57 PM

Private Eye Doll is a great game indeed. And it pretty much needs to be translated for non japanese speakers to enjoy it.

NecroPhile · 02/27/2017, 10:33 AM

Mmm, those look nice. I gotta add 'em to the ever growing list of shit to buy.

geise · 03/01/2017, 12:14 PM

I played through it. Was quite enjoyable even with the language barrier. I sadly have no time to play through it again.

cccmar · 03/02/2017, 11:55 AM

Quote from: guest on 02/25/2017, 10:34 AMPrincess Minerva has the best 16-bit RPG graphics, but it's technically a digital adventure. Not for the novice gaijin.

The SFC version is more or less 90% done, Dynamic Designs have been working on it for a while. There are quite a few good-looking/sounding PCECD games that look/play much worse on SFC, NES or other platforms, but these other versions are usually more popular for one reason or another (and I guess it also has to do with the fact that hacking CD games is usually more annoying).

CrackTiger · 03/02/2017, 02:03 PM

Quote from: cccmar on 03/02/2017, 11:55 AM
Quote from: CrackTiger on 02/25/2017, 10:34 AMPrincess Minerva has the best 16-bit RPG graphics, but it's technically a digital adventure. Not for the novice gaijin.
The SFC version is more or less 90% done, Dynamic Designs have been working on it for a while. There are quite a few good-looking/sounding PCECD games that look/play much worse on SFC, NES or other platforms, but these other versions are usually more popular for one reason or another (and I guess it also has to do with the fact that hacking CD games is usually more annoying).

Sorry, that post was about Private Eyedoll. I started writing about Princess Minerva but didn't have time to do both.

elmer · 03/02/2017, 03:02 PM

Quote from: guest on 03/02/2017, 02:03 PMSorry, that post was about Private Eyedoll. I started writing about Princess Minerva but didn't have time to do both.

So, just checking, what you actually meant was ...

Quote from: guest on 02/25/2017, 10:34 AM~~Princess Minerva~~ Private Eyedoll has the best 16-bit RPG graphics, but it's technically a digital adventure. Not for the novice gaijin.

If so, that makes sense.

I took a look at the screenshots from Princess Minerva and went ... huh???

It doesn't look particularly good.

CrackTiger · 03/02/2017, 03:42 PM

Princess Minerva has some really nice stuff and a bunch of simply above average stuff. It's worth playing because of how unique it is compared to other JRPGs.

The SNES version is a pretty good port and has a surprising amount of CD content intact.

NecroPhile · 03/02/2017, 03:44 PM

Quote from: elmer on 03/02/2017, 03:02 PMIt doesn't look particularly good.

What? Have you gone blind?!?

CrackTiger · 03/02/2017, 04:12 PM

The best way to see some of Princess Minerva's more impressive stuff is the autoplay demo on one of the Hyper Catalog discs.

elmer · 03/02/2017, 04:31 PM

Quote from: guest on 03/02/2017, 03:44 PMWhat? Have you gone blind?!?

Hahaha!

Yep, sorry, I was only judging it by the quality of the in-game screengrabs on PC Engine Bible and the work-in-progress videos of the SNES translation ... not those fanservice pictures that I hadn't seen.

It doesn't look bad ... but certainly nowhere near the level of style that I'm seeing in those Private Eye Doll screengrabs.

SamIAm · 03/02/2017, 06:36 PM

Private Eye Doll certainly has some luxurious portraits.

The game is composed of three chapters, with the second one split into two large sections IIRC. The first chapter is excellent. It has the best pacing and progression of any adventure game I've ever played, and is literally the only time in recent memory that I was not able to put down my controller for hours on end. If the rest of the game had been this good, I'd be shouting about it from the rooftops.

Unfortunately, the thrill-around-every-corner pace isn't really there in the next two chapters. It tends to take longer to trigger events, and when you do, they're often quite mundane compared to the first chapter's. It's far from boring, don't get me wrong, and I appreciate that they tried to mix up the format and settings. It's just that it's suddenly so much more standard.

If any programmer wanted to tackle this, I'd be interested in translating, but you've got a tough situation where nearly every line in the game is voiced, and some scenes don't have text boxes. Basically, you would have to embark on a massive dub project with probably a good few hours worth of dialogue to record.

The first three PC-FX Anime Freak discs each contain one very long and exclusive Private Eye Doll anime episode. They connect into one story, and it's not bad. If anyone ever made a translation of the game, I'd hope that these would be subtitled and released at the same time as a supplement.