Tesujin & Tetsujin Returns

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avanteproject
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Tesujin & Tetsujin Returns

Post by avanteproject » Tue Jul 12, 2011 3:41 pm

Anyone else really like these games? I completed Tetsujin (aka Iron Angel of the Apocalypse) and I'm now playing through the sequel Tetsujin Returns. I really love the dark atmosphere of these games with the ambient soundtrack and gritty style of graphics.

I've heard people bitch about the controls and speed but I think this was done purposely to really put you inside the robot. Same with the border that limits some of your view.

Anyway these are probably my favourite games on the 3do and they should be in everyone's collection!
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Post by Trev » Tue Jul 12, 2011 4:11 pm

3DOKid already started a thread on this just last week ...

http://www.3do.cdinteractive.co.uk/view ... t=tetsujin
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Re: Tesujin & Tetsujin Returns

Post by 3DOKid » Tue Jul 12, 2011 9:39 pm

avanteproject wrote:Anyone else really like these games? I completed Tetsujin (aka Iron Angel of the Apocalypse) and I'm now playing through the sequel Tetsujin Returns. I really love the dark atmosphere of these games with the ambient soundtrack and gritty style of graphics.

I've heard people bitch about the controls and speed but I think this was done purposely to really put you inside the robot. Same with the border that limits some of your view.

Anyway these are probably my favourite games on the 3do and they should be in everyone's collection!
Don't get me wrong. They aren't good. But I really enjoyed them too. I think it's the same reason I like 1950s Scifi books. It's so simple but engrossing you can't go wrong :)

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Post by avanteproject » Wed Jul 13, 2011 11:03 am

Sorry, didn't even notice the other topic. It's good to see others do like these games.
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Post by Trev » Wed Jul 13, 2011 2:54 pm

They have good atmosphere.

Ever play Kileak for the Psx or Robotica for the Saturn? They are similar style games and released around the same time.
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Post by CRV » Wed Jul 13, 2011 2:57 pm

If you play them back-to-back, you'll see how much of an improvement the sequel is.

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Post by Martin III » Tue Sep 11, 2012 8:39 pm

Trev wrote:Ever play Kileak for the Psx or Robotica for the Saturn? They are similar style games and released around the same time.
Oh no.

I was just thinking about getting these games, so I peruse the old threads only to find this.

Robotica is hands down the worst Saturn game I've ever played. It's unbearable. Please tell me the Iron Angel of the Apocalypse series is not that similar to it. At least tell me the levels aren't so horribly cramped as Robotica's.

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Post by Austin » Tue Sep 11, 2012 9:54 pm

Robotica is hardly unbearable. It plays well, has decent visuals, and sounds fine. Its problem is that it's extremely monotonous. The game doesn't change throughout the entire playthrough, save for a couple of texture changes and a few new enemies.

Also, Robotica isn't really that comparable asides from a stylistic point of view. It's a mindless, run 'n gun romp through and through. The Iron Angel games are pretty different, featuring more adventure elements if I recall correctly. Part 2 has more fast-paced action than the first as well, IIRC.

On a side note, neither's framerates are particularly good.

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Post by Trev » Tue Sep 11, 2012 10:46 pm

I like Iron Angel better than Robotica. I do think the levels are a bit "cramped" as you call it, and the games share some visual styles, but at least Iron Angel has more variety. Like Austin said, Robotica is monotonous. With Iron Angel, I wanted to keep playing (in spite of the games less favorable aspects) to see what happened next. Robotica on the other hand was fun for a bit, but quickly grew stale.

If you hated Robotica, I suspect you may not care for Iron Angel that much. The sequel is better though, less cramped, even more variety, etc...
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Post by Martin III » Wed Sep 12, 2012 3:45 am

Hmm... The thing is, I'm a sucker for playing video game series in order as much as I can. I know it's illogical, but I worry that if I play The Return, I'll like it enough to seek out the original, and it won't be as good as playing them in order.

I'll have to sit on this a while. You guys' input is definitely helpful and much appreciated, though!

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Post by Martin III » Sun Sep 30, 2012 1:04 pm

After some hard thought, I decided that with the information I had, there was no way I would buy Iron Angel of the Apocalypse even if emulation was not an option. This is my threshold qualification for (nervous grin) emulating a game I don't own, something I rarely do. So for curiosity's sake, plus an extra glimpse at whether the sequel might fit my interest, I downloaded a rom of Iron Angel of the Apocalypse.

I have to say, I'm loving this game. It doesn't feel cramped at all, partly because unlike Robotica, there are a lot of wide-open areas, but mainly because of the slow speed everything moves at. This definitely isn't your typical run-and-gun game; in fact, it feels more like a dungeon crawler than a first person shooter. This really hit home when I got stuck running around in circles on levels 2 and 3, prompting me to restart from the first save point and dig out - you guessed it - the graphing paper. :D You just can't rely on finding the level maps, I've found.

I can see why this game is reviled... You pick it up expecting a pick-up-and-play first person shooter, and instead you get a gentle-paced labyrinth. But me, I love dungeon crawlers. The weird, artsy movie sequences and atmospheric soundtrack are great, too. It's too bad about the poor quality, boxed-in graphics and the nasty frame rate, but this is good fun, and I'll overlook technical failings for that.

If "The Return" is an improvement over this, then I'm definitely getting my hands on a copy. In fact, I'll probably buy a copy of the original just out of responsibility for having enjoyed the rom so much.

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Post by Trev » Sun Sep 30, 2012 4:33 pm

That's awesome that you are enjoying the game! :)
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Post by Martin III » Fri Oct 05, 2012 5:17 pm

I'm up to level 21 now. One problem, I have to say, is I'm really sick and tired of the Jaws (the things that look like carnivorous trash cans). Bad enough that the only way to beat them is with repeated hit-runs, dealing one hit each run, but the developers had to make them take eight hits to destroy. And then they exasperated the matter times ten by making it so even exact hits don't always register! It takes over half my maximum ammunition supply just to get rid of one of the damn things. I don't know what they were thinking when every other enemy in the game offers at most a reasonable challenge.

Anyway, gripe over... I really like the way they introduced the turbo charge and radar. It feels like you're almost always seeing something new in the game. The level designs are interesting, too, though some of them overuse symmetry a bit.

Gotta go now... I still have to figure out how to stop them from jamming my transmissions with the android... :)

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Post by Martin III » Thu Oct 11, 2012 2:22 pm

Finished the game last night. Man, did I get hung up by the onslaught of Jaws on level 22. The level 24 boss is pretty interesting/tough, though the game's technical limitations are a royal pain in that fight: the poor frame rate, the interval-based turning, the discrepancy between the visual range and the range of your fire, the inability of Tetsujin to move forward if a corner of wall outside his peripheral vision is in the way. Kind of weird, too, that the only way to win is by taking advantage of the fact that the boss only moves when he's in Tetsujin's visual range. Pretty funny that while all the other bosses become a joke once you get the laser, this boss is still tougher than the final boss.

Pretty surprising how easy the stage 5 levels are. Hardly any enemies, and the boss is the easiest in the game. I guess the navigation element was supposed to be the challenge there, but that part's a cinch if you use graphing paper. Man, I love old school dungeon crawling.

The final story sequences were totally worth making it to the top of the tower. There's a chilling tone to the cinemas in this game in that the only two characters who ever talk do so only in calm, emotionless tones. Still, I'm left with several questions (MAJOR SPOILERS ALERT):

1.Why didn't the scientist get rid of the original Tetsujin before turning his focus on building and testing the new one? The video journal seen on level 24 certainly doesn't give the impression that he was taking the problem of the original Tetsujin lightly.
2.Given his behavior, I have to assume Tetsujin Mark 2 wasn't created with the brain data of the scientist. Why aren't we given any indication of whose brain data he was created from?
3.Did Tetsujin really destroy himself along with the tower at the end? ...Never mind, I guess that question will be answered in the sequel, won't it? :lol:

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Post by BEARD! » Thu Dec 20, 2012 12:03 am

So i'm playing the first Iron Angel game and i'm stuck on level 24. I've killed the boss and now i'm just wandering in circles between levels 19 - 24. Anyone got any advice on where i should go next?

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Post by Martin III » Fri Dec 28, 2012 4:11 pm

Sorry for the late reply; I couldn't remember that part for sure so I wanted to take the time to check it out via my save.

That part can be confusing, but after you head down to level 19 and defeat the boss, you need to head directly South. Keep going that way, and you'll hit a cutscene and be immediately taken to level 25. Yep, that's it! (A door had blocked your way there on your first time through level 19, but it unlocks once you beat the boss.)

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Post by BEARD! » Fri Jan 11, 2013 12:46 am

Cheers Martin, I don't know how I missed that lol. Anyway, I think I'm at the end boss, but I keep getting my ass kicked :)

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Post by avanteproject » Tue Jan 22, 2013 9:04 pm

I'm glad others are enjoying Tetsujin as well! They really are quite underrated.
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