Posted by Paleface on October 27, 2016 at 14:53:40 EST.
HAMSTER Corporation has announced a new wing of their long-running "Arcade Archives" series of $7.99 classic arcade game ports on PS4: the "ACA Neo Geo" series (they haven't clarified what "ACA" stands for--maybe "Arcade Classic Archives"?) will consist of NeoGeo ports exclusively, with the first, ACA NEOGEO THE KING OF FIGHTERS '94--as it is rendered on the PSN Store--out today. Good range of options (note that you have to go one to the left to disable the default fuzzy graphic filter, and you need a PS4 touch pad to access the pause menu, which could be a drawback for those with arcade sticks that don't have touch pads), with added Score and Time ("Caravan") modes complete with leaderboards--but no online multiplayer like the excellent "NEOGEO STATION" line of ports by M2 on PS3 had. Those were also going chronologically (Hamster says Sam Sho (1), Fatal Fury, World Heroes, Alpha Mission II, and Metal Slug are coming before the end of the year, and Neo Turf Masters and Nam-1975 in early 2017), but only got up to 1996; Hamster seems to be going along just fine with these somewhat less elaborate Arcade Classics ports at their lower price point, so maybe they'll manage to get further into the meat of the NeoGeo titles. Then again, they seem content mostly to stick with very early titles in their main Arcade Archives series, so who knows. And I wonder if this signals the end for the more expensive, very elaborate--fancy menus, online matchmaking, trophies, etc--if initially buggy series of later NeoGeo game ports to PS4 and Vita by Code Mystics; Metal Slug 3 and Last Blade 2 made it out, but nothing has been seen or heard of Garou since it was announced in July. Hamster's lower budget approach probably *is* the smarter way to go. ACA Neo Geo PSN Blog and Store links inside.
The announcement on the PSN Blog
ACA NEOGEO KOF '94 for PS4 on the PSN Store
Follow Ups:
so far hamster's "ports" have all just been MAME emulation, no? Also, all the nicer ports are going to Steam, I think, so that'll still be there! (n/t) (exodus) (15:39:30 10/27/16 EST)
Is Hamster's approach really better? Because I have little interest in these older arcade titles. These digital download services would be well served with something like the Criterion Collection, where only the finest titles get rereleased. That, or PS2 style ROM collections. (n/t) (Rockman Pocket) (16:10:18 10/27/16 EST)
That would be my preference as well; or at least, release the big ones first, then fill in the rest later. But if you're a company looking at this in financial terms, maybe it's different: if you're confident you have a sufficient audience even for your less popular titles, you might want to start with them, because you figure once someone has KOF 98, they'll figure they don't need 94; but if 94 is all that's available yet, they might just plunk down for it while waiting for the bigger title. That approach seems not to have worked for M2's Neo Geo Station series on PS3--it petered out in the 1996 titles--but those games were also I think $15--twice as expensive--and have the look of having been much more expensive to produce. So maybe the start slow strategy didn't work at that price point. But Hamster has been selling even older, much more obscure games in their Arcade Classics line for years at $8, and doing pretty decently with them, if the number of ratings for them on the PSN Store is anything to go by. The long game *has* been working for Hamster so far, apparently. (n/t) (Paleface) (17:36:34 10/27/16 EST)
Ah: "The 'ACA NEOGEO' series is short for Arcade Archives NEOGEO." 8P And another page on their site has a kind of tagline for it near the top: "for PlayStation 4 | Every month, new game" That sort of regularity would be quite encouraging! (Paleface) (01:08:16 10/28/16 EST)
those Hamster Arcade Archives titles tend to be impulse insomnia purchases. I regret most of them as I rarely go back but they provide a few nights of entertainment. There is one exception, City Connection, which I play incessantly, and also got Vani really into which I consider a very happy moment. Oh, I have zero interest in these SNK ports. I have so many ways to play these now it's insane. I think I'd maybe be tempted on a SamSho II port with online matchmaking like they had on 360, same for releases of 98UM and 02UM but I have those again on PC. (n/t) (twelvest) (20:11:43 10/28/16 EST)
If you don't write the book on "all those download-only and compilation KOFs on Sony systems" then nobody will. Get to work! (SignOfZeta) (15:55:55 10/31/16 EST)
Nah! : P (n/t) (Paleface) (05:23:17 11/01/16 EST)
Code Mystics' (online multiplayer) version of Garou now is out on PS4 and Vita. : ) (n/t) (Paleface) (13:03:24 12/05/16 EST)
Hamster's PS4 version of Samurai Shodown is out now. : ) (n/t) (Paleface) (16:31:00 12/12/16 EST)
SNK is doing a new series of Japanese PS2 games on North American PS4, which they are calling their "'PS2 Games' initiative." The first one, which came out yesterday, is Fu'un Super Combo, which was NeoGeo Online Collection v.8 on the Japanese PS2, with ports of the NeoGeo games Savage Reign (aka Super Tag Battle in Japan) and the sequel, Kizuna Encounter. (Paleface) (12:06:43 12/21/16 EST)
SNK have released a free KOF 98 costume for Athena in KOF XIV, and four more free KOF XIV themes for PS4. (n/t) (Paleface) (03:00:49 12/22/16 EST)
"Fu'un Super Combo," a Japan-only PS2 compilation of SNK's NeoGeo fighting games Savage Reign and Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle, has just come out in PS4 in North America--a very faithful conversion of a very faithful port. Was reminded that I don't like the rather awkward Savage Reign, but Super Tag Battle is such savage fun. (n/t) (Paleface) (12:31:55 12/25/16 EST)
