-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom |OT| Pepelogoo in Wonder World [Now on PC]
- Thread starter Mega Man Zero
- Start date
The IP rights of Wonder Boy are super confusing, let me clarify a bit:
This game IS a licensed sequel to the old games, and they've paid for the rights. Due to Sega's arrangement with Westone, the rights to the names "Wonder Boy" and "Monster World" are owned by Sega, but everything else, including characters, lore, music, etc was owned by Westone (and later transferred to LAT after Westone folded), and that's what they've licensed here.
The weird character swapped versions that Hudson did were actually not because their arrangement didn't afford them the rights (as most people assume), but because Hudson wanted to be able to own their own IP. In changing the characters, they could then make their own "sequels" without having to pay Westone (as they did with Adventure Island). They COULD have used the Westone characters, they just chose to swap them for ones they could OWN.
Last edited:
It's kind of a mash-up of influences from the different WB games. The controls and level design feel a lot more like WB in Monster World, with a heavier feel and less slippery controls. Whether or not that's a good thing is kind of a matter of preference (I personally love the slippery, arcadey platforming of WB3, but it can be divisive). But it does have those great transforming mechanics of WB3, as well as inventory-based traversal puzzles like WBiMW.
If feels like there's a lot to explore and a ton of puzzles. It holds your hand enough early on that I haven't seen anything particularly tricky, but I'm impressed with the design at least.
WB3's remake is an especially beautiful game, and I don't think the art style of this one holds up, but there's a lot of polish and unique detail in this one, and I'm totally blown away by how far its come over the last few years.
The game is great so far. Currently only exploring the deep part of Misty Woods after beating the mushroom boss there, so still early doors.
Switching between my specials seems a bit fiddly. I thought pressing LB or RB would quickly flick through them instead of bringing up that awkward wheel-selection thing.
Also, can somebody kindly tell me what the rainbow drops do? I don't want to use one in case I accidentally waste it.
Switching between my specials seems a bit fiddly. I thought pressing LB or RB would quickly flick through them instead of bringing up that awkward wheel-selection thing.
Also, can somebody kindly tell me what the rainbow drops do? I don't want to use one in case I accidentally waste it.
So how are the music? Can't wait to hear the yuzo koshiron and michiru yamane ones!
Man it will be long until the game arrives here!
Man it will be long until the game arrives here!
Ahh I didn't have many things to put on my amazon wishlist (that's how my in laws want to do christmas) so I put this game up on it. Now I can't play it til Christmas~
I'm glad the game seems to have turned out well. Can't wait to play it and I hope the game does well.
I'm glad the game seems to have turned out well. Can't wait to play it and I hope the game does well.
GOT THEM ALL
From back left to back right:
Adventure Island (MSX)
Wonder Boy (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (SMS)
Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (Genesis)
Monster World IV (Mega Drive)
Adventure Island (NES)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Genesis)
Wonder Boy (C64)
Wonder Boy III (Game Gear)
Saiyuuki World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (Famicom)
The Dynastic Hero (Turbo CD)
Revenge of Drancon [Wonder Boy] Game Gear
Super Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Amiga)
Monster World Collection (PS2)
Monster Boy (Nintendo Switch)
Monster Lair (Turbo Grafx CD)
Dragon's Curse (Turbo Grafx 16)
Bikkuriman World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (PC Engine)
Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap (Nintendo Switch)
Adventure Island (PS2)
Wonder Boy (Arcade)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Arcade)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Arcade)
GOT THEM ALL
From back left to back right:
Adventure Island (MSX)
Wonder Boy (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (SMS)
Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (Genesis)
Monster World IV (Mega Drive)
Adventure Island (NES)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Genesis)
Wonder Boy (C64)
Wonder Boy III (Game Gear)
Saiyuuki World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (Famicom)
The Dynastic Hero (Turbo CD)
Revenge of Drancon [Wonder Boy] Game Gear
Super Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Amiga)
Monster World Collection (PS2)
Monster Boy (Nintendo Switch)
Monster Lair (Turbo Grafx CD)
Dragon's Curse (Turbo Grafx 16)
Bikkuriman World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (PC Engine)
Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap (Nintendo Switch)
Adventure Island (PS2)
Wonder Boy (Arcade)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Arcade)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Arcade)
Woah.
You'll be mortified to know this is only my second ever time playing one of these games!
GOT THEM ALL
From back left to back right:
Adventure Island (MSX)
Wonder Boy (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (SMS)
Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (SMS)
Wonder Boy in Monster World (Genesis)
Monster World IV (Mega Drive)
Adventure Island (NES)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Genesis)
Wonder Boy (C64)
Wonder Boy III (Game Gear)
Saiyuuki World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (Famicom)
The Dynastic Hero (Turbo CD)
Revenge of Drancon [Wonder Boy] Game Gear
Super Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Amiga)
Monster World Collection (PS2)
Monster Boy (Nintendo Switch)
Monster Lair (Turbo Grafx CD)
Dragon's Curse (Turbo Grafx 16)
Bikkuriman World [Wonder Boy in Monster Land] (PC Engine)
Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap (Nintendo Switch)
Adventure Island (PS2)
Wonder Boy (Arcade)
Wonder Boy in Monster Land (Arcade)
Wonder Boy III: Monster's Lair (Arcade)
Holy Fuck. That's an awesome collection.
I texted my 40 year old sister that I got the new Monster Boy game and, despite not having played a video game in 30 years, she is coming over right now to play Monster Boy.
I can't say enough how much I love Wonder Boy, it is hands down, without a doubt my all time favorite gaming series. I have so many cherished memories from when I was a kid playing this game, especially with my sister. I remember when I was very little, my sister and I figured out that the game had *stats*. There is a cloud in round 2 before the muffin man boss after you climb the ladder to the left where you can jump over and grab some extra coins. Thing is, you can't reach that cloud unless you have bought at least one boot upgrade, which lets you run faster. I saw my sister grab the coins on one play session, and on my following play session immediately after, I couldn't reach the cloud, and it was my sister who figured out that it was the boots that made us jump further. From there, we figured out that swords made you stronger, armor made you take less damage, etc. It blew our fucking minds. This was 1988, we were like 5 years old, we had never seen anything like that before. All the games we'd played before had like temporary power ups, and were space shooters. This was, to us, our Zelda.
We played THE SHIT out of the game for years and years and years, without any guides, and uncovered every damn thing about that game. Including the not at all obvious side quest to get the ruby that weakens the meka dragon.
LOL without realizing it, I notice I called the round two boss the "muffin man boss." That's what my sister and I used to call him as kids, he's actually a mushroom. When we'd get to him, we'd sing "Do you know the muffin man, the muffin man, the muffin man..."
Side note: I have never, ever beaten Wonder Boy in Monster Land. I can get the Meka Dragon down to red health, but not once has my sister or I ever finished him off.
To add to my wonder boy stuff, I actually have a REAL wonder boy cabinet. I got it from a warehouse back around 2001 that was junked, and gutted it and restored it. About a year ago, when I got the Wonder Boy 1 PCB, I finally put it back in the cabinet and brought it back to original life:
This was a really cool moment for me. I love these games so much.
This was a really cool moment for me. I love these games so much.
So I started playing this, have only gotten like 40-50 minutes in so far after my first session, but I can tell this is gonna be a jolly old time. Love the aesthetic.
OP
OP
There is an option to turn the ring menu off and just scroll through.
Manual says rainbow drops have an irresistible smell and are essential for loot masters. Whatever that means. Maybe for gear upgrades at the smith
I can't tell if you genuinely mean this or are being sarcastic, but HCG almost always only covers games that he's really passionate about from what I've seen (I've only followed his content the last year and a half or so). I tried the Ys series for the first time, and soon this game, in large part based on his recommendations. This game also follows that mold.
Plus he's Canadian! Doesn't get much more trustworthy than that =]
The Music is incredible. Like, so good... I know this is not 100% a SEGA game but this game reminds me of why I was always a SEGA fan. It feels totally 90's SEGA to me.
Fake edit: beaten...
Fake edit: beaten...
I heard about the pedigree for the (only?) three composers from this game last night - genuinely stoked to try it out eventually, just for the music alone. I'll probably play this alongside or just after I finish up Dragon Quest XI.
There are SOOOOO many call backs to previous game's music. That's the very best part. As the series went on, games would remix songs from the previous games in subtle ways. It was neat to hear a tune in Monster World IV that originated in Monster Land, for example. The little call backs to previous games made it feel cohesive, like something special.
When this was first announced, they did so by playing a banjo recreation of the sidecrawler's dance, which got me excited that there would be some call backs. But around that time, much of the zeitgeist around Wonder Boy focused on Wonder Boy III (and still does largely) while I've always been a very firm believer that Wonder Boy in Monster World is the best game in the series. So I wasn't necessarily too hopeful that there would be remixes from that game in this.
Holy shit i'm so happy to be wrong. It's everywhere. What an outstanding soundtrack.
The best stuff in the game doesn't come from the "famous" musicians like Yuzo Koshiro. The best stuff in the game is the insane remixes from previous wonder boy games.
Yea, he's a hype man. Most of his content is collection brag videos or vapid soundbytes posing as reviews or impressions. He gets posted now and again in various threads and I've yet to find any of them offer any value.
That said, the game is solid so far and deserving of praise. Still in the early hours where you are led by a leash during the gated expository world tour phase, but it's been a good ride. Though I am forced to bypass other map routes, obvious secrets, and free exploration until the game decides I have earned and succeeded at handling all the fundamental skills, the hoops I am forced to jump through so far are well constructed and entertaining. Mix of puzzles and action that is neither devious nor braindead. Gorgeous game and a great throwback to the 8 and 16 bit days with modern aesthetics so far. Seems like there is a lot of game here, especially if interested in a 100% run.
I never thought in my life I'd hear a remix of this in a new Wonder Boy game:
I can't believe it. I love this song so much, it gives this feeling of being in an impossibly vast and empty world. It's used in Monster World so well because it's both the underwater ocean theme, and the ice tundra theme, both areas which are the furthest reaches of Monster World that actually require a bit of effort to unlock. When you get to them and this music starts playing, it feels like you're at the end of the planet.
I can't believe it. I love this song so much, it gives this feeling of being in an impossibly vast and empty world. It's used in Monster World so well because it's both the underwater ocean theme, and the ice tundra theme, both areas which are the furthest reaches of Monster World that actually require a bit of effort to unlock. When you get to them and this music starts playing, it feels like you're at the end of the planet.
To give a heads up about what this feels like to really old school Sega fans, this is basically like if Zelda went away for 20 years after Link to the Past, then came back just as good as before. I'm not lying when I said that, growing up, these games were seriously my favorites. In another, more fair world, they would have gotten the recognition they deserved when they were new. We're so lucky to have a new game.
Absolutely! (And more fun than the Zelda games of the time too, imo.) I particularly love monster world 3 and 4, though I'm no where near the fan you are!
I won't get to play until the weekend, but I'm glad impressions are overwhelmingly positive. Wonder Boy in Monster Land was the first game I ever played, and Monster World was one of my favourites of the 16-bit era, so I'm expecting this game to be pretty damn special to me.
Holy shit, this makes me so happy. I swear if there's a version of Last Dungeon/Sky Castle I'll probably scream; that's like the signature theme of the series for me.
Holy shit, this makes me so happy. I swear if there's a version of Last Dungeon/Sky Castle I'll probably scream; that's like the signature theme of the series for me.
There are LOTS of call backs, it's so cool. Beyond the music, too. Like, the boss I called "the muffin man" who is in most Wonder Boy games? Totally here too!
I really liked the Dragon Trap remake because I love wonderboy, but like I've said, Monster World is by far my favorite entry in the series. And despite having a transformation gimmick in this game, this is totally Wonder Boy in Monster World-2. It looks and feels and plays just like Monster World. Monster World IV was a pretty different game over all, so this feels like the first real follow up to Wonder Boy in Monster World ever.
Last edited:
OP
OP
I hope Hudson (LOL, I know, they're with Konami now) will do an HD remaster of Super Adventure Island II.
OP
OP
I like how this isn't an item of the dungeon type of game where you just use the latest item for the latest dungeon. I always have to keep all the transformations in mind.
Even in the old Wonder Boy games there were always pieces of equipment that had special properties that made them ideal to switch in and out at certain times. Like boots that weren't very fast at walking, but let you climb 3 times as fast. It paid off to really know all of your abilities. Wonder Boy III was really much more basic in that only the last dungeon really experimented with switching between forms, but Wonder Boy in Monster World was a lot better about giving you lots and lots of unique and useful abilities.
This simultaneously feeling like a sequel to Monster World and Dragon's Trap lets them finally explore what they teased in that last dungeon of WB3, with the more involved and complex design of Monster World.
If you really want to know.
Once you're farther in the game you'll find a shop where you can trade them in for hints as to where secrets are.
I just got the dragon. :)
God I can't wait to play this game, but I'm in between jobs and can't bring myself to spend the money. It's more expensive than I thought it would be.
I'm watching my BST thread listing and hoping I can get some money in my PayPal account soon so I can download this. I've been camping in this thread since it was made and your posts are getting me so hyped!
I'm especially happy for you Krejlooc , it's such a great feeling when a game you love is vindicated by a truly great new entry. I hope you and your sister are really loving it! I plan to join you guys soon!
I'm watching my BST thread listing and hoping I can get some money in my PayPal account soon so I can download this. I've been camping in this thread since it was made and your posts are getting me so hyped!
I'm especially happy for you Krejlooc , it's such a great feeling when a game you love is vindicated by a truly great new entry. I hope you and your sister are really loving it! I plan to join you guys soon!
I was hyped for this, and then saw it wasn't out on Steam and doesn't have a locked date yet. My heart is broken.
Never fear, for I wish to dive into the series. Now, I'm kinda aware this is a successor to a series that had a seperate series bounce off of it, so I guess I'd like to ask y'all about that.
- What are the games in the Wonder Boy/Monster World series that are unique games?
- What are the games that were offshot from this? Is it just the Adventure Island series?
- What games are kinda like those, but more like fan-focused inspirations, like Aggelos?
Never fear, for I wish to dive into the series. Now, I'm kinda aware this is a successor to a series that had a seperate series bounce off of it, so I guess I'd like to ask y'all about that.
- What are the games in the Wonder Boy/Monster World series that are unique games?
- What are the games that were offshot from this? Is it just the Adventure Island series?
- What games are kinda like those, but more like fan-focused inspirations, like Aggelos?
It's not really a spiritual successor, it's literally the next entry in the series. Like, officially. Monster Boy is officially part of the Wonder Boy series, the back of the box has the Sega copyright.
Rather than give a run down in this thread, I want to make a general Wonder Boy thread instead, since I'm sure this question will be asked a bunch. The basic run down is that virtually every game in the series plays differently from one another, but there are two distinct "styles" of games. One is a sort of auto-scrolling (sometimes) platformer more like Mario 1, of which there are two games like this - the original Wonder Boy (which indeed was ported to the NES as Adventure Island), and Wonder Boy 3: Monster's Lair. Adventure Island, on the NES, spun off into it's own series without the involvement of the people who made Wonder Boy, continuing this style of gameplay.
The other style of game is denoted by the subtitle "Monster World" in japan, although confusingly this subtitle disappears in the west. There were, basically, Wonder boy 2: Monster World, Wonderboy III: Monster World 2, Wonder Boy IV: Monster World 3, and Monster World IV (which dropped the Wonder Boy name, because you play as a girl). The Monster World games are action RPGs, that play a lot like Zelda or perhaps Maze of Galious/La Mulana if you've heard of those. 2 of the Monster World games are stage based (Wonder Boy 2, and Monster World IV), and two of them are metroidvanias (Wonder boy 3, and Wonder Boy IV). Generally, they all play similarly despite some being level based, and some being metroidvania. It's a less drastic change than, say, classicvania vs symphony of the night. Wonder Boy IV, for example, is basically a super metroid-type remake of Wonder Boy 2, in the same way that Super Metroid retreads lots of the same ground as the original Metroid, just with lots more refinement.
Last year, Wonder Boy III: Monster World 2 was remade as Wonder boy: The Dragon's Trap. Similarly, Monster Boy plays as a metroidvania more like Wonderboy IV: Monster World 3.
In the US, the names of the games changed, like so:
Wonder Boy 2: Monster World --> Wonder Boy in Monster Land
Wonder Boy III: Monster World 2 --> Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap
Wonder Boy IV: Monster World 3 --> Wonder Boy in Monster World
Later adventure Island games, from hudson, became rip offs of the monster world games eventually -- Adventure Island IV on the famicom adopted the metroidvania gameplay of Wonder Boy III: Monster World 2, and Super Adventure Island II similarly plays more like Wonder Boy IV: Monster World 3.
The modern legacy of the Wonder Boy games is Shantae. Wayforward has been very open that the Shantae series is a love letter to the Monster World sub series of Wonder Boy.