DF Retro: Blaster Master - An NES Classic Lives On! Plus Genesis, Game Boy and more.
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- With the arrival of Blaster Master on Nintendo Switch, John looks back at the original game, how it worked, what made it special, and how its sequels stacked up. Also... Switch vs NES? Let's do it.
Subscribe for more DF Retro: bit.ly/DFSubscribe
AWESOME video! Thanks for doing this purely with voice over instead of the awkward staring at the camera for 30% of the vid! :) Most others probably don't care but I find this format a lot more interesting, looking at the visuals of the game and research a lot better!
Well, truth be told, the camera is useful in some episodes when I don't have enough material to fill the scene but have something to say.
Herb Roy
Agreed. I hope they make another blaster master game but I think they should make a more darker game written rwalistic graphics similar to super metroid but keep the game side view for the tank and top view for the out of vechile areas
I still own my Nes version and got the 3ds version. Still one of my Favorite games. My son said they should have called it Blaster ReMaster.
Your son is clearly skilled at marketing. Companies struggling with marketing (like Capcom) could use him! 🙂
**snicker**
Okay, that's pretty clever. 😁
The Blaster Master Zero Trilogy has finally done this franchise justice in my opinion. Playing through bmz 1 and 2 before 3 comes out. Great video!
I just discovered BMZ on PS store 2 nights ago and have been enjoying it like I was 12 years old again. Very cool.
@@pingamalingasame man
@@hilvystewy7298 Awesome. You too? Lots of fun.
I love the original story. It's just so stupid that it's brilliant. NES games were severely limited in graphics so anything serious would just look corny and silly so they just kind of went with that. The story is super corny and silly so it matches the graphics perfectly.
One of the best of the NES era. I think a lot of people who didn't grow up with NES games can't appreciate how ahead of its time this was in many ways.
Also, that overhead Sophia gameplay looks like it has great potential. I hope they try that again in a future game, because with better controls and level design I could see that being really fun.
Weird I am just now seeing this as I've been subbed to DF for a while. This was a great video! You should do more of these!
I teared up when I heard about BMZ - the switch was, and still is my favorite nintendo system ever and as a handheld fanatic it was the best of everything - and now my favorite NES game, one of my top games ever is getting a sequel that finally looks like it'll do the original justice? was just one of those "best timeline" moments.
And now, years later we got a crazy amazing trilogy out of it. It'd be fun to see you guys revisit this now that the trilogy is complete.
I remember getting this game as a kid and really liking it, but it is so brutally punishing that I couldn't get very far before being returned to the title screen to start over, and there was no save system. I love this series. Keep up the good work.
One of my all time favorite games. All these years later I still play it a few times a year.
Happy to see this series continue. Hate when classics become forgotten to time
Very well done! Loved all the background info! I did not have an NES but when the original Blaster Master was available on the Wii VC, I snatched it up. I still enjoy it today. I have the Genesis version and I have to agree with what you said. I later found out about the PS1 version and play it on my PS3. I also have the Wii War version and you nailed it also about the poor style of the visuals. I will be picking up Zero for my 3DS.
EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT VIDEO!!! Very well done DF. I loved it!!
Isn’t it awesome that the original Blaster Master, some other retro Blaster Master, and Blaster Master Zero are available on the 3DS? I love that.
Blaster Master zero on the Switch is awesome! It was one of favorite games on the NES and now on the Switch. The HD rumble is amazing also. when you jump into that pink goo it feels like your jumping out of jello COOL!!
I played this when I was a little boy! My neighbour had it on the nes.
dunno if you talked about this or plan to, but Inti has published development documentation for both Blaster Master Zero and Blaster Master Zero 2. And there's some interesting info, like a more detailed design of the tank, inspirations for Jason redesign, references to other Sunsoft games...
I really love the Genesis one, maybe even more than the original, it's definitely more difficult but I like that they removed the top down sections
Vapor Trail baby!!!!! One of the best pieces of music ever.
I know its not all that retro, but I'd personally LOVE a DF Retro episode on the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series
Morrowind DF Retro PLEASE! :)
I remember playing Blaster Master on phone and "Wow, these graphics are amazing." My how things change
It's unfortunate I never grew up with that Sunsoft title. Instead, I grew up with another Sunsoft title: Gremlins 2, which also had empty backgrounds during boss fights.
Also, Journey to Silius. Too bad this game never took off as a franchise.
Gremlins 2 was one of my favorite NES games.
It's interesting to note that Silius originally started off as a Terminator game, but they couldn't get the rights to the franchise.
The batman game (also developed by sunsoft) could've been something else if they couldn't get the batman rights
Just bought blaster master zero 2 for Nintendo switch! Now I can play the original NES blaster master, blaster master zero 1&2 all in one place!!!
Anybody else with kids start singing the Sophia the First theme everytime they hear Sophia III?
As much guff as I've given Inti Creates over the years beyond the music in their MM games, yeah, I have to admit that Inti has finally made a game here that succeeds on all fronts in my eyes. I kind of gave up on playing games in the last few years however, so I picked up both soundtracks. Great stuff.
What issues did you have with most of inti creates games? I'm a newer fan of their work and I'm curious what your thoughts are or were.
and he never answered...
Can you reply already?
@@mortenera4423 JFC. The difficulty. I don't fucking care if a game is challenging, I want it to be fun. The MNMZ games aren't freaking fun, they're a pain in the ass. I mean Mega Man Legends is easy as hell and it's a ton of fun. There, satisfied?
I never found Megaman Zero that hard of a game
Of all the NES games I played and I love older games I'd never seen this game before. So I seen this video and just bought blaster master zero straight away. Love it :)
One mistake...Ninja Gaiden released in 1989 shortly before the Sega Genesis. I was just really starting to get into gaming back then. By that time I had an Nes and Sega Master System. While I enjoyed gaming, I was very casual (arcades was a different story). I used to hate hearing "Just like the arcade game!" It wasn't until I got Ninja Gaiden and brought it to my then best friends house that I saw something truly revolutionary.
His parents bought him a Sega Genesis and I never looked at gaming the same again. Here, right before my eyes- "Just like the arcade" had new meaning to it and it was dead on accurate. I got my Sega Genesis that Christmas and almost entirely dropped the 8-bit stuff completely. Minus of course Ninja Gaiden and Super Mario Brothers 3. Back on subject...
I received Blaster Master...I don't know for a birthday or Christmas...maybe I traded someone for another game. That's right, I traded Punch Out for it and was very happy with the trade. I loved Punch Out but there is only so many times you can beat it and it's very limited after three or four playthroughs. Blaster Master on the other hand was fantastic and hard as nails. It took me months to complete it without any Nintendo Power guides. I wound up getting the Nintendo Power guide a few months after beating it and played through it again...what a revelation that was! What a time to be alive and young!
We need a DF Retro about Mega Drive's addons 32X and Sega CD... maybe even about the Mega CDX... I know so little about them... but I'm so curious about them either...
only onteresting thing I know is that the 32X is like an "overlay" where a cable is used to put images generated by the 32X and the Mega drive together.... without it the game "works" but just barely.... if so
...
Thanks for an awesome video john. :) The resolution choice is a really weird one.when doing retro inspired games today 270p is the only resolution to go for since it scales perfectly to 540p 720p 1080p and even 4K screens. It's a shame since the artifacts are so distracting during gameplay.
270p is quite a bit higher than the classic resolutions though. Doesn't really look "right" in terms of pixel density. The real issue is LCD screens and their inability to display different resolutions.
Blaster Master and Metroid defined my childhood
Mine too along with Simon's Quest and MegaMan.
This was my favorite Nes game
looks like a tiny overlooked gem on the nes, i'll be play it now
Hey, Digital Foundry, you might want to update your video to include the just released sequel to Blaster Master Zero that is called Blaster Master Zero II, just saying.
Oh, and III as well.
By the way, I think Blaster Master 0 on Switch is one of the few games that feature HD rumble
NO DOUBT NO DOUBT NO DOUBT
Excellent software.
Shame I can't program. I always wanted a Blaster Master (tank mode only) cross-over with Solar Jetman, and the M308 Gunner (from Metal Storm on NES) as a another selectable character.
Loved the video, great job! Wiiware one looks pretty cool, though. I wonder if later on, its not so drab. PS1 is also very drab....why???? Original had such bright colors.
Hardware limitations for the most part
I personally liked Overdrive more than Blasting Again, Even more so on the overhead dungeon portion in the game you couldn't strafe in Blasting Again. one thing I do agree on is that the level designs were bland. but I never had a problem with it.
I agree with John, Blaster Master Overdrive doesn't have a good presentation.
I have that worlds of power book lol.
Why would they use non-integer scaling? Any benefit or reasoning? Is it still used on the zero 2 and 3?
Blaster master zero 3 comin soon wooh
It kind of reminds me of Strange Things
Blaster Master Zero is just a remake of the original. Would have really like a new game.
you do know zero 2 is a new game right?
Zero is a Remake but it's most definitely not the same game. Way more power ups, levels are more varied with new enemies and mechanics and a whole new secret ending with another level and vehicle.
6:12 Ooh, that looks fun. What game is that?
Note to Self: Watch whole video before asking questions...
Medachod 6:17
So Blaster Master Zero II is a game now.
Compared to BM Zero, it is a longer, more difficult game. Several of the weapons have been replaced, others were nerfed.
There's a 3 out now
Why european studios in the 90s were so morbidly obsessed with BEES and FALLING DROPS as enemies????
Right? It's always water drops and bees. Usually in maze-like levels.
METAL GEAR SOLID 3 DF RETRO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think that water drops might hurt europeans in real life.
FinalBaton Doesn't hurt the Irish, it rains here non-stop xD
lol. true +Stephen Cullen
Overdrive looks like a new grounds flash game...
You know why? Because it’s a 2D game without pixel art graphics or 2.5/3D models and environments. Think about it, Newgrounds and Flash games don’t rely on pixel art, but also aren’t 3D in any way. Instead, they use graphics like Overdrive. Therefore, Overdrive looks like a flash game because it tried to do the 2D style with higher resolution graphics.
While it’s still not a good game, it doesn’t look like a flash game because it’s bad, it looks like one due to graphical style.
Brian Donegan I never said they couldn’t, I just said they’re rare and the main examples of games using that style I could think of were flash games. I actually don’t even really like the 3D Models in 2.5D environments look that much.
The Wonder Boy remakes are amazing too by the way, I love the artwork.
I've been gaming since Super Mario World.. and never once have I heard of this game. Great video!
Well, it came out before Super Mario World ;)
I played the original as a kid , loved me some blaster master .
Absolutely in my top 5 NES games of all time. Blaster Master is one of the most memorable games in the NES library for me, and it doesn't get nearly as much love as it deserves.
Joshua Norden
It's one of my top nes games that I still play till this day, but it gets it's respect especially by the true hardcore gamers, why u think they made blaster master zero? Now here's hoping they make another game but with a more mature, gritty darker game instead of the 8 bit graphics.
@@redcrimson1028 , Blaster Master Zero 2 and 3 are indeed darker than Blaster Master Zero, but they still retain the same game engine as that game.
@@paxhumana2015 I know
Never honestly heard of this, but it looks fun. Great video :)
@Remy Dean damn does anyone care?
This channel has turned into so much more than just fps comparisons!
Blaster Master: Blasting Again is definitely my favorite entry in the franchise (blasphemous I know).
But I grew up on the NES game. And always wished for more guidance and save points. And BMBA delivered. Also I really enjoyed it for its story of the next generation dealing with the return of their parents enemies.
So *this* is where that NES tune that every single AVGN-wannabe uses comes from...
Here after just picking up Blaster Master Zero 2. The original has been one of my favorite games since I was a kid. This is a solid retrospective. Good job!
Growing up in Russia with a famiclone, I knew this game by its pirated name, BACK TO THE FUTURE 4. Oh yeah.
It seems oddly fitting, somehow.
The people behind Sunsoft games in the NES days were outright masters of the hardware. It is a shame that Sunsoft isn't still making games today, Blaster Master Zero is a game they contracted out. I will be buying Zero on my Switch as soon as eShop goes back up. Also Blaster Master Blasting Again is imo an underrated game, I had a lot of fun with it and though it had some quirky issues, I felt was a pretty good 3D game for the series.
I was really impressed, not to mention surprised at how great Blaster Master Zero was.
I also kinda like that you actually get a whole damn extra chapter with all new content for collecting all upgrades.
Usually today, developers would never dare to lock that much content away from casuals.
These DF Retro videos are always so nice to watch.
Something that I think would be a nice series to look at in a future DF Retro video, a look back at Sonic's Mega Drive games after Sonic Mania releases, similar to this video about Blaster Master.
Blaster Master Zero is a fantastic game. Definitely a must buy for all Switch owners. Can't wait to see if they can make a proper sequel for it.
Water droplets hurt you in Blaster Master 2? Of course that's a thing in a game developed in Europe. For some reason every single european platformer of that era has deadly water droplets.
Great video! I've only ever played the NES game, but I love it. I actually took the time to map out every part of the sidescrolling overworld on graph paper, so I've committed a pretty decent amount of the game to memory, lol. That said, it's nice to see that Zero has an in-game map. I'll have to give that a shot!
3:37 Does it really say "Let's anime"? That is hilarious.
Ian Baranek Nah, thats just for the video. The North American release had no text in the opening cutscenes.
Plus anime really wasn't a established term back then, it wasn't until the 2000s, the word anime became mainstream. Before then many companies used different terms like Japanimation, Manga Videos or Comic Videos.
WindyCornerTV Also, if it was established back then they likely would have maintained the anime inspired Metafight plot line.
Great episode as always. I've always loved Blaster Master and a lot of SunSoft titles. Also, though Blaster Master Boy might not be a true Blaster Master game, it makes up for it with the excellent RoboWarrior/Bomber King soundtrack composed by Takeaki Kunimoto.
please please PLEASE more DF retro! been watching from the start and absolutely love this series! i can't get enough!
I was obsessed with this game as a kid. Rented it every other weekend.
Blaster Master overdrive really does look and feel like an early 2000’s flash game. I swear, I played one just like it back then.
Why the hell can't Inti Creates manage to get their simple looking 2D games to run at 60 fps on the 3DS?
Have you even seen Azure Striker Gunvolt? That is anything but simple.
I love the Blaster Master series. You hit the nail on the head for the lowdown on some of the games in the series. Blaster Master, Original is no doubt a classic all time favorite. It is defiantly my favorite game for the NES next to the original LoZ. I did not care for the Sega,Game Boy Color and Wii interpretations. Blaster Master Blasting Again is actually a decent game. I loved it. Blaster Master Zero is fantastic! It was the second game I bought for the Switch next to LoZ Breath of The WIld. I would indeed like to see a modern 3D take on Blaster Master. I just don't want it to suck.
The original is one of my favorite games of all time. Used to rent it from the video store when I was a kid every weekend. The music is amazing. The remakes are pretty good as well.
18:45
What game?
Vapor Trail
How to achieve 60fps for nes-games?
The hilariously sad part?
That music you're playing during the "bomberman" spinoff game?
Jaleco.
RoboWarrior...
Especially annoying game.... and not even a good ending :(
LOTS of blowing things up though!
This was good 👍 Thank You, i learned everything i was hoping to learn when i clicked on this video.
To this day i still haven't killed the final boss on the NES but i love this game to death, too bad Sunsoft hasn't done anything new these days :( the game still looks very good today, thanks to the excellent use of tiling.
JUST started playing this game again after I saw the announcement for the remaster for Switch. Such a fantastic game to this day. Can actually stand toe-to-toe with modern games of the same genre or games in general. RIP SUNSOFT
METAL GEAR SOLID 3 SNAKE EATER DF RETRO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THE LACK OF METAL GEAR IS OBVIOUS
METAL GEAR SCANLON
Metal Gear Solid 3 is retro?
An episode about Metal Gear Solid 1, 2 and 3 would be awesome
best mgs game!
I was Sega in the 8-bit era, I had never heard of Blaster Master till the Switch, great game! Had no idea there were sequels! The more you know! Keep it retro folks!
such a high quality content
I like how John considers a lack of respawning in Nes games a 'nice little feature'. One of the reasons the Nes is overrated is the constant respawning of enemies.
Suggestions:
Resident Evil n64
Prince of Persia 1989
Prince of Persia the Sands of Time
Rayman 2
Spyro The Dragon
Metal Gear
Pacman
Killzone
Grand Theft Auto
Silent Hill
Bubsy 3D
To this day Blaster Master has the most memorable soundtrack of any NES game. It's just amazing.
Another interesting episode, even though it's a series I'm not very familiar with.
When I first spotted Blasting Again on a store shelf I bought it immediately and played the whole game in one 8 hour sitting. Blaster Master will always be one of my top favorite franchises.
Someday DF Retro will cover Black for PS2.
NecromancerAdr Hopefully, that game looked amazing, I still wonder how they pulled it off.
The game has some nice explosion effects that blew my away back then. I recently grabbed a copy for the original Xbox (which I didn't know existed) and played on a 360 in an HDTV and it looks even better.
That game had destructible environments.That I did not see for many years after it.
That, and simple things like the off- focus effect you get when reloading your weapon. It's a minor detail, but it's interesting to realize that not many shooters have it.
I remember that and you could also disable that effect by pressing the square button so it would not bother someone.That's how much effort they put into making that game.
Metroid - Dark Alliance (Blaster Master hack) is also a great take on the game! xDD
Blaster Master Zero turned out decently. Blaster Master Zero 2 was a huge improvement and is a must-play.
I think Shantae as a guest character boosted the sells even more :)
30 years later I still remember the theme like if it was yesterday.
I always wondered why people dislike the sequel on the Genesis. After watching this, I now understand.
Thanks for the interesting clip. I'd like to play Blaster Master Zero some other time.
Another excellent episode, John. You never fail to deliver. Have a nice weekend. :)
Thanks for showing an example of Mega Drive/Genesis music that's actually good to help show that the system's reputation for bad sound is undeserved, even if many western developed games for the system like Blaster Master 2 do add to it!
Hi, Do you know the name of the game in the example?
Sounds Great!
If you want to see a Western-developed Genesis game with decent music, look up Jesper Kyd's soundtrack to Batman & Robin. That whole game is a technological marvel, it does a lot of things that technically shouldn't be possible on the hardware.
Tenshi Cat
I thought the music was ok in part two I actually liked it, it wasn't better than the nes soundtrack but it was good
@@AOMINET Super late reply, but it's "Vapor Trail".
If you really want to cellebrate the 30th annaversary of blaster master, i highly suggest just to wait another year before you can finaly do that ,thus 1988-2018.
Question,was the nes originaly NEVER designed with screen scrolling capability? had screen scrolling really to be done in software?
Love the DF Retro format. Keep up the excellent work. Thanks.
my good sir, THIS needs updating.
Wow... didn't even know there are so many versions of the game. Only played the original on nes as metafight. initially I find it shit. but it's good after you managed to power up.
Hey there is now blaster master zero 2 now
Blaster Master was awesome! I wish I still had my original cart!
I want a remaster of Guardian Legends 🥺
another great video from digital foundry! these retro reviews are amazing
The No Doubt counter is off the charts. Don't speak! I know just what you're saying.