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Chohmakaimura
超魔界村
18 Oct 1991 |
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Back in the early days of the Super
Famicom, all eyes were on Nintendo's wonder console. So when the third chapter of the Makaimura series was announced as a SFC exclusive, hype reached boiling point.
Unsurprising really: by 1991 the original Makaimura
(1985) was a worldwide
icon, and Daimakaimura
(1988) was doing serious rounds on the Mega Drive (Aug 89) and Supergrafx
(July 90).
When the game was eventually released in August 1991 it met all initial expectations: the visuals are detailed and colourful, and
the SFC's sound chip churns
out the main theme with lavish strings and clarinet
samples.
But then comes the horror: gone is the speed, structure and balance of the previous two installments - all there is left here is a slow and overlong console platformer.
The
problems are many. First off, Arthur can no longer shoot
up or down - instead he can now 'double jump', an absurd
and nonsensical change that serves little
or no purpose besides making the eccentric backgrounds more manageable.
The pace has been halved: the game requires
a slower and more tactical approach, with a lot of waiting.
Gone are the cut-throat speed runs of Daimakaimura (1988), and pinpointing enemies above, next and below you
before you've even landed from a single jump.
A new 'bronze' armour and a few extra weapons do present a
little variety, but since most of them are useless they bear meager distraction through the dragged-out stages.
All 7 levels take about an hour to clear - and since (like its
predecessors) it has to be cleared twice, the game
can take well over two hours to finish. Sometimes
your mind wanders off and away - usually while you're waiting
for the screen to stop swaying and/or rotating. |
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Fuck
Mode 7. It is a dumb and pointless thing, especially
in this kind of game. The entirety of Stage 4 (above, middle) is wasted
on this shallow artifice - it immediately
destroys any kind of rhythm or tension that was built up prior.
When it boils down to it, Chohmakaimura is
a good platform game, easily one of the best of its
period on SFC. It's just that when directly compared to its predecessors it's a slow,
inept, and poorly thought out effort.
Newcomers to the series loved it, but in the same
vein as the SFC
Akumajo Dracula (1991) its designers seemed to have
lost focus, turning to technological trickery for kicks
- forgetting in the process that all that was required
of them was to make the game tight.
At least the
Akumajo Dracula series survived and lived
on. This mediocrity caused the very heart of the
Makaimura
series to falter and die.
Rating:   |
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In the grand tradition of hastily recycling SFC classics onto the Game Boy Advance, Chohmakaimura got itself a new lease of
life in July 2002, in the form of Chohmakaimura
R.
Capcom have never shied away from this process, releasing near-identical
ports of Final
Fight (1989) and Magical Adventure (1992) for the GBA - and surely enough,
Chohmakaimura R remains faithful to its SFC
parent: it is just as slow and sluggish.
But to be fair it does present 4 new 'Arrange Mode' stages, each one is a direct
tribute to Makaimura
(1985) and Daimakaimura
(1988) originals with a few nice little
touches thrown in.
These bonus stages do go down quite nicely. They provide a minimum amount of originality in what
could easily have been a pointless and shallow
re-release.
Still, there isn't enough 'new' here to save the medium
and long-term gameplay from tedium. Not just that, the visuals are seriously truncated by the GBA's low resolution (240x160) - it just doesn't look as good as the SFC original.
So be warned: this
one is worth a look only if you are a hardened Arthur
aficionado, looking for a quick taste of something new. |
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Chohmakaimura
超魔界村
SUPER FAMICOM |
DETAILS
| Format |
Super
Famicom |
| Released |
18
Oct 1991 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SHVC-CM |
| Size
(cm) |
19
x 10.5 x 3 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.16 |
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Closure
for the original Makaimura
trilogy; and the end of an
era.
A good game, just nowhere
near as good as its predecessors.
SFC cardboard packaging, 8Mbit
cartridge, 32-page colour
booklet. |
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Chohmakaimura
Kōryaku Guide Book
超魔界村
攻略ガイドブック
GUIDE BOOK |
DETAILS
| Format |
Magazine
Pull-out |
| Released |
18
Oct 1991 |
| Publisher |
Tokumashoten |
| Product
ID |
no
ISBN# |
| Size
(cm) |
25.7
x 21 x 0.2 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.06 |
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Promotional
pull-out 'Capture Guide Book'
included with the 18 Oct
issue of 'The Family
Computer' magazine.
Features detailed and illustrated
coverage of every stage except
the last.
28 pages, full colour, Japanese. |
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Chohmakaimura
Kanzen Kōryaku Hon
超魔界村
完全攻略本
TOKUMA INTERMEDIA MOOK KANZEN KŌRYAKU
HON SERIES |
DETAILS
| Format |
Guide
Book |
| Released |
Nov
1991 |
| Publisher |
Tokumashoten |
| Product
ID |
ISBN4-198211116 |
| Size
(cm) |
21
x 14.8 x 1 (A5) |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.23 |
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'Complete
Capture Book' release from
Tokumashoten, featuring in-depth
sections on the entire game.
87 pages, Japanese. |
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Capcom
Generation Dai 2 Shū Makai to Kishi
カプコンジェネレーション
第2集 魔界と騎士
SEGA SATURN |
DETAILS
| Format |
Sega
Saturn |
| Released |
15
Oct 1998 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
T-1233G |
| Size
(cm) |
14.2
x 12.4 x 1 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.10 |
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The
second Capcom
Generation pack contains
perfect replicas of the 3
main installments of the Makaimura
series:
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Makaimura (1985)
- Daimakaimura
(1988)
- Chohmakaimura
(1991)
Each title is presented with
interactive art galleries,
sound tests, hints, trivia,
and more.
CD
case, Sega Saturn CD-ROM disc,
colour manual, spine card. |
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Capcom
Generation Dai 2 Shū Makai to Kishi
カプコンジェネレーション
第2集 魔界と騎士
PLAYSTATION |
DETAILS
| Format |
PlayStation |
| Released |
23
Sep 1998 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SLPS-01585 |
| Size
(cm) |
14.2
x 12.4 x 1 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.10 |
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Capcom
Generation Dai 2 Shū Makai to Kishi
[Capcore]
カプコンジェネレーション
第2集 魔界と騎士 [カプコレ]
PLAYSTATION |
DETAILS
| Format |
PlayStation |
| Released |
15
Mar 2001 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SLPM-86778 |
| Size
(cm) |
14.2
x 12.4 x 1 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.10 |
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Capcom
Retro Game Collection Vol.2
カプコン
レトロゲーム コレクション Vol.2
PLAYSTATION |
DETAILS
| Format |
PlayStation |
| Released |
30
Mar 2005 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SLPM-87360 |
| Size
(cm) |
21
x 15 x 1 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.18 |
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Chohmakaimura
R
超魔界村R
GAME BOY ADVANCE |
DETAILS
| Format |
Game
Boy Advance |
| Released |
19
July 2002 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
AGB-ACJJ-JPN |
| Size
(cm) |
13.5
x 8.5 x 2 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.06 |
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Another
run-of-the-mill GBA re-release
of a Super Famicom title.
Predictable stuff then, but
it does include an original
'Arrange Mode' with 4 original
stages.
Standard GBA packaging, 32Mbit
cartridge, colour manual. |
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Chohmakaimura
R Kanzen Kōryaku Guide
超魔界村R
完全攻略ガイド
CAPCOM KANPEKI KŌRYAKU SERIES 18 |
DETAILS
| Format |
Guide
Book |
| Released |
Nov
1991 |
| Publisher |
Tokumashoten |
| Product
ID |
ISBN4-198211116 |
| Size
(cm) |
21
x 14.8 x 1 (A5) |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.23 |
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Official
'Complete Capture Book'
for the GBA Chohmakaimura R.
Features detailed breakdowns
of every stages, including
the GBA-exclusives.
111 pages, Japanese. |
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Capcom
Classics Collection
カプコン
クラシックス コレクション
PLAYSTATION 2 |
DETAILS
| Format |
PlayStation
2 |
| Released |
2
Mar 2006 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SLPM-66317 |
| Size
(cm) |
19
x 13.5 x 1.4 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.18 |
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Capcom
Classics Collection
カプコン
クラシックス コレクション
PSP |
DETAILS
| Format |
PSP |
| Released |
7
Sep 2006 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
ULJM-05104 |
| Size
(cm) |
17.7
x 10.5 x 1.5 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.08 |
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Capcom
Classics Collection [Best Price]
カプコン
クラシックス コレクション [ベストプライス]
PSP |
DETAILS
| Format |
PSP |
| Released |
13
Sep 2007 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
ULJM-05280 |
| Size
(cm) |
17.7
x 10.5 x 1.5 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.08 |
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Capcom
Classics Collection [Best Price]
カプコン
クラシックス コレクション [ベストプライス]
PLAYSTATION 2 |
DETAILS
| Format |
PlayStation
2 |
| Released |
11
Oct 2007 |
| Publisher |
Capcom |
| Product
ID |
SLPM-66852 |
| Size
(cm) |
19
x 13.5 x 1.4 |
| Weight
(kg) |
0.18 |
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'Chohmakaimura',
'Makaimura' and 'Capcom' are registered trademarks of Capcom Co.,
Ltd.
'Super Famicom', 'Game Boy Advance' and 'Nintendo' are registered
trademarks of Nintendo Co., Ltd.
'Sega Saturn' and 'Sega' are registered trademarks of Sega Corporation
'PlayStation' and 'Sony' are registered trademarks of Sony Corporation
Chohmakaimura TM & © 1991 Capcom All Rights Reserved
Page content, design & layout © 2012 Arcade Gear |
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