Hi, I am addicted to weird/"interesting" ports/versions of games. Let's look at some examples!

[Skunk]

I really liked the port of Street Fighter Alpha 1 to the GBC. Most handheld fighting game ports of that era were pretty bad; but while it's graphics are predictably weak, SFA plays surprisingly accurately for the GB hardware. Of course I have to mention then SFA3 for GBA, and the masterful port of Last Blade/Last Blade 2 to the NGPC.

 

[samred]

Did anybody already mention the Neo Geo Pocket/Color? Those things got so many demake ports.

Here's Sonic Pocket Adventure, which was the first plays-decently attempt at recreating Sonic 2 (though not its exact levels) on a portable device.



SNK vs. Capcom had a game, and King of Fighters had one on the normal Neo Geo Pocket and this one on Neo Geo Pocket Color:

 

[TheMoon]

Need for speed hot pursuit 2 was a different game afaik on ps2 compared to xbox/pc/gamecube.

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Wasn't that just a case of EA Black Box making the PS2 version (=best version, best visuals) and the Xbox/PC/GCN versions were another studio but the game itself is actually the same?

 

[Kain-Nosgoth]

Megaman and Megaman 3 on DOS :





it's really bad

 

[Deleted member 34949]

Turok Evolution (GBA) is a pretty good Contra/Metal Slug type of game.



Also the Wii version of Rodea the Sky Solider is way better than the Wii U/3DS versions.

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Turok 2 on GBC is similarly styled as a run & gun. Interesting little compliment to the console/PC versions.

In addition to the aforementioned GBC Harry Potter RPGs, Griptonite also did the DS versions of Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions and Spider Man: Web of Shadows, both of which are surprisingly decent Metroidvanias.

There's also the JP only demake Capcom did of Gargoyle's Quest II. Capcom pretty much remade the NES game for GB using the original GB game's engine. Interestingly enough, this version has two new levels and a new ability Firebrand can get, too. It's my preferred version of GQII.

 

[Qikz]

I'm so glad I got to grow up with a GBC then a GBA. The things people did with the GBA is insane. It has to be one of the most versatile systems for graphics of all time. It had literally everything.

 

[Funky Dude Sparks]

Far Cry Vengeance Wii

Not a good game but a interesting version of far cry. I played it from start to finish and it is kinda fun in a trashy way

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I tried to play Far Cry 1 a month ago and it was so damn hard. There's a difference between trial and error and mutiple ways to execute a situation.

I cannot get myself to play this game or Far Cry 2 for that matter, no matter how I try to psyche myself for it

Has someone ever tried to mod the abilities that were in Far Cry Vengeance into the PC Far Cry?

Also there was an Xbox OG version of Far Cry 1 that was the same as Far Cry Vegeance? iirc

 

[ghostcrew]

What about Guitar Hero/Band Hero on the DS...

 

[Uncleslappy]

The Madden games on Wii (at least the first few) had a really fun two-on-two game built in. IIRC you passed and caught with motion controls.

 

[TheMoon]

Here is some footage of Splinter Cell Chaos Theory on GCN with the GBA connectivity. That's how all three games handled this. Double Agent dropped that feature, however.

 

[Harlequin]

The PS2 version of Tomb Raider: Underworld had entire sections that were completely different. Different level layouts, different puzzles, etc. (And of course, downgraded graphics.)

This is the beginning of the Mexico section from the PS3/360/PC versions:


This is the beginning of that same section from the PS2 version:

 

[Paradox House]

Driver 3 on the GBA manages to be very impressive and kind of repulsive at the same time. Like, I'm glad it exists, but I'm not itching to play it anytime soon.

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It was very impressive but the limitation in view meant you had as much vision as a 2D game but no where near the level of control.

 

[Dev]

Super Mario Bros Deluxe for GBC. It was my first experience of the original SMB, so the cropped screen didn't bother me at all.
Both the full original game and lost levels were included, alongside a mode where you race Boo, and heaps of other little features. There's even multiplayer racing another player I'm pretty sure.

If only the screen wasn't cropped I'd consider this the definitive way to play SMB.

 

[TheMoon]

Super Mario Bros Deluxe for GBC. It was my first experience of the original SMB, so the cropped screen didn't bother me at all.
Both the full original game and lost levels were included, alongside a mode where you race Boo, and heaps of other little features. There's even multiplayer racing another player I'm pretty sure.

If only the screen wasn't cropped I'd consider this the definitive way to play SMB.

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They played exactly this in last year's Nintendo World Championship

 

[Davevil]

Dragon's Lair for NES: one of the worst game ever

 

[Syril]

The Legend of Spyro Eternal Night on GBA is legit an awesome action game.


I never played it myself but Street Fighter Alpha on the Game Boy Color always looked really impressive.

 

[fieldafar]

Already mentioned, but the earlier Harry Potter games were different depending on which platform you played it on. Loved the Game Boy Color version as a kid, it was a fairly decent RPG (but it did have a bug where you couldn't progress through the game if you did something before you were supposed to).

 

[apozem]

Call of Duty released a couple Nintendo DS ports. You aimed with the stylus. It was weird.

 

[Phediuk]

Street Fighter 2 for the ZX Spectrum

 

[TheMoon]

The Legend of Spyro Eternal Night on GBA is legit an awesome action game.

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wtf those moves :O

 

[Rösti]

Super Mario Bros. Special, a Hudson-developed port of SMB1 for Japanese home computers, namely the NEC PC-8801 and the Sharp X1. Neither computer supported true scrolling, thus it breaks up each level into different screens. It also, strangely enough, includes items and enemies from Donkey Kong and Mario Bros. arcade.

PC-8801: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txcEMPakkPg

Sharp X1

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I know most people dislike Super Mario Bros. Special but I think it's a quite entertaining game (the PC-8801 version anyway). Very difficult but good level design.

My contribution: The Zeebo version of Resident Evil 4. It's something alright.

 

[Draggyrider]

PES on the Wii





Pointer controls were amazing and the biggest change to football games in the last 10 years. Dribbling was kind of bad, but the passing was amazing. You can pass exactly where you want it, and make the off-the ball players run exactly where you want them too. Shame it never caught on. Maybe they will re-implement it for Switch.

 

[Stopdoor]

Has the DS version of Viva Pinata been mentioned? It's essentially the same game as the original 360 version, front-loaded with some lame tutorials. But ultimately it's pretty much the best version of the game, because touch controls are a blessing, load times for all the shopping and menus are way faster than on 360, and they cut out the romancing minigame which was pretty much this constant annoying roadstop that way overstayed its welcome on the console versions.

The graphics are the only downgrade and of course they still have an awesome lo-fi charm to them.

What a great game!

 

[Morfeo]

This is a great thread - and i just read through it all. Really impressed and surprised by some of the mentions like Street Fighter for the Speccy (wtf?), and that great-looking Max Payne-game.

Anyways, my pick, although already mentioned, would be Medal of Honor for the gba, which is a great Commando-style game.

Oh, and i just bought a version of that Game Boy port of Red Arremer 2 thanks to this thread lol.

 

[boi]

So in 2006 scans in the Official PlayStation Magazine showed up of this game:

Which is The Elder Scrolls Travels: Oblivion for the PSP. A version of Oblivion for the PSP. It was later axed.

I found some videos for it on YouTube, but im not 100% sure if those are legit.

Anyway, what could have been.

Edit: Apparently the videos are legit. Check it out:



Also, the Amazon description back then:

"Oblivion comes to the PSP with all your favorite free-form gameplay, unprecedented graphics, cutting edge AI, character voices by acting legends Patrick Stewart, Sean Bean, Terrance Stamp, and Lynda Carter along with its award-winning soundtrack. Gamers can choose to unravel Oblivion's epic narrative at their own pace or explore the vast world in search of their own unique challenges. After the mysterious and untimely death of the Emperor, the throne of Tamriel lies empty. With the Empire ready to crumble, the gates of Oblivion open and demons march upon the land laying waste to everything in their path. To turn the tide of darkness, you must find the lost heir to the throne and unravel the sinister plot that threatens to destroy all of Tamriel."

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[Fear and wonder]

Anyone played the Resident Evil port for the ds? I couldn't get into it, but it had a few new things like a knife button and the ability to do a 180 degree turn.

 

[Powerpuff]

Street Fighter Alpha 2 was released on SNES. The cartridge uses an additional chip (SDD1) but the game was probably still to much to handle for the old SNES. The game was simplified compared to the arcade version or the 32-bit ports but still looks good. It suffers from some loading times during the decompression process by the chip between the rounds but the game still plays good during the playable phases.

 

[Deleted member 26746]

So in 2006 scans in the Official PlayStation Magazine showed up of this game:

Which is The Elder Scrolls Travels: Oblivion for the PSP. A version of Oblivion for the PSP. It was later axed.

I found some videos for it on YouTube, but im not 100% sure if those are legit.

Anyway, what could have been.

Edit: Apparently the videos are legit. Check it out:



Also, the Amazon description back then:

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wasn't that oblivion psp leaked not long time ago?

 

[Dead Man Typing]

Anyone played the Resident Evil port for the ds? I couldn't get into it, but it had a few new things like a knife button and the ability to do a 180 degree turn.

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Yes it's a great version of the game.
It has the original scenario with 0 minigames as well as the Rebirth / remix scenario. The remix scenario moves items around, adds minigames and changes enemy locations. It's a nice way to play the game and you can skip the door loading screens.

I'm sad they didn't do the same for RE2.

I love downgraded versions of games. It's always interesting to see how close a simpler version can get to the feeling of the original.

Another DS game that succeeded in capturing the spirit of the console version was Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword. With just the touch screen, a single button and holding the DS in book style, you had a game that really captured the rapid attack / defend action that made Ninja Gaiden on Xbox such a great action game.

 

[Mzo]

The PC Engine CD is the king of the weird ports, especially with anime cutscenes thrown in.

R-Type CD
Strider
Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari (River City Ransom)
Double Dragon 2

Prince of Persia has an awesome Sega CD port with anime cutscenes.

 

[Stranger Things]

Demakes are pretty cool. I'd totally play a clunky, blocky textured 90's version of Bioshock.

 

[Aomame]

The Force Unleashed had some interesting differences between platforms because it released across generations (i.e. on both PS2 and PS3). Many of the choices made were simply to compensate for the system's lack of power, but the Wii version was the only one with a 2v2 versus mode.

Small nitpick but the deathday party was in sorcerer not chamber

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It absolutely wasn't: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Deathday_Party
It happens in October of 1992, which CoS covers.

What about Guitar Hero/Band Hero on the DS...

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I work at a popular used games retailer. Up until recently we still had these kicking around.

 

[Rotobit]

I've been watching a few videos from this channel lately, it's fascinating to learn what Nintendo decides to change or fix in its ports. I didn't know they added Maple to LttP on the GBA, for example, and Super Mario 64 DS deserves a full-scale port to a system with an analog stick considering all the extra content.

 

[manzoman96]

Super Mario Bros Deluxe for GBC. It was my first experience of the original SMB, so the cropped screen didn't bother me at all.
Both the full original game and lost levels were included, alongside a mode where you race Boo, and heaps of other little features. There's even multiplayer racing another player I'm pretty sure.

If only the screen wasn't cropped I'd consider this the definitive way to play SMB.

Click to shrink...

This was my first experience with the game too! Actually, it may be one of the first games I ever played along with Pokemon. They should definitely give this version an updated release on Switch! All the cool multiplayer features would be perfect for it!

 

[Simone]

Street Fighter Alpha 2 was released on SNES. The cartridge uses an additional chip (SDD1) but the game was probably still to much to handle for the old SNES. The game was simplified compared to the arcade version or the 32-bit ports but still looks good. It suffers from some loading times during the decompression process by the chip between the rounds but the game still plays good during the playable phases.

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I haven't personally tried, but a couple of months ago a guy on Reddit said that the VC version on N3DS doesn't have all those loading screens anymore.

 

[d1amonddogs]

Anyone played the Resident Evil port for the ds? I couldn't get into it, but it had a few new things like a knife button and the ability to do a 180 degree turn.

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Are you talking about Resident Evil: Deadly Silence? I actually found an old copy of that when I moved a few months ago. I should check it out, especially since I've been playing lots of DS lately.

 

[Rotobit]

I just remembered this "gem" exists:



It was basically a Snake's Revenge situation where Disney hired western mobile developer Superscape (who also ported Oblivion to mobile phones apparently?) to put together a really weird non-canon early mobile mess. It is noteworthy for featuring the caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland though, who never appeared in any of the actual games.

Needless to say it was promptly ignored when Coded and Unchained X were Square Enix published.

 

[Deleted member 1067]

My fav is Max Payne GBA. Such a fun little game that manages to capture both the feel and story of the OG and be a good game on its own terms. Beat it like 15 times lol >.<

Demakes are pretty cool. I'd totally play a clunky, blocky textured 90's version of Bioshock.

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...so system shock 2 >.>?

 

[capitalCORN]

...so system shock 2 >.>?

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What the hell is that?

 

[It’s Time To Go]

What about those call of duty games on the DS?

 

[It’s Time To Go]

Oh Rockband on the PSP! Had DLC and all.

 

[Deleted member 1067]

What the hell is that?

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The game Bioshock is basically a remake of. Came out in 1999.

A better game too.

 

[lazyguy deluxe]

It's also the only version in which you can unlock the original playable 2D prototype for Rayman 2!

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Oh shit, I totally forgot about this.
I'd love to see this for other games as well.

 

[capitalCORN]

The game Bioshock is basically a remake of. Came out in 1999.

A better game too.

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I highly doubt it. Bioshock laid the groundwork for Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Dead Space, Prey, etc.

 

[Deleted member 1067]

Worth noting about Bioshock tho is that JP LeBretton did a demake of Arcadia on the Doom engine. Not sure if he ever released it though.

Edit: yep!

https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/a-c/arcadia

 

[SteveWD40]

The Lord of the Rings games are Diablo clones on GBA

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Came to post this. They were fantastic little Diablo clones, with loot, stats, classes etc...

 

[hyouko]

I highly doubt it. Bioshock laid the groundwork for Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Dead Space, Prey, etc.

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This is not an argument you're going to win. You may not have played the System Shock games (...or the original Deus Ex, from the sound of it), but they definitely laid the foundations for the titles you mention far more than Bioshock; they did multiple-path FPS game play very well and were quite popular in their day. You can credit Bioshock for keeping interest in that style of FPS game alive, but it was not the first game to popularize the idea.

(ed: if you're just trolling, you got me pretty good)

 

[Jesse_and_the_rippers]

Street Fighter 2 for the ZX Spectrum

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"Due to system limitations may not match images in the manual"

Would love to see that manual!

Another great port is Final Fight for the SEGA CD. Had a really cool cd soundtrack, and time attack mode. I was looking for a Youtube video and found a series that looks at lots of multi-port games like this, Double Dragon, Golden Axe, etc.

 

[Virtua]

Far Cry Vengeance Wii

Not a good game but a interesting version of far cry. I played it from start to finish and it is kinda fun in a trashy way

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You are not alone! I loved this game when the wii first came out and played almost all the way through it.

Duke Nukem 64 - it's a 3D remake of the 2D build engine game - totally original 3D environments with the same gameplay as the PC version. Fascinating to see how they did the translation.


Duke Nukem 3D - Saturn - It's a 3D remake of the 2D build engine game - It does not use the N64 version assets and rebuilds the levels in full 3D. Now think about that two different companies built two totally separate 3D modeled rebuilds of the entire Duke Nukem 3D game.

 

[Brhoom]

Here is the developer talking about the ''impossible'' port,


Trust me OP, the video is crack to you. You will learn how many tricks were achieved in order to have the game run on the SNES, no fx chips no save battery, and the slower rom type (I didn't even know SNES cartridges had the slow and fast type of cartridges!)