ADK

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19 Aug 2006, 07:11 PM
NeoZeedeater

ADK

I don't know what happened to game developer ADK/Alpha Denshi but they had a long and impressive run. I'm not sure exactly when they were founded either. A company called Alpha released the arcade games Super Bond and Talbot in 1982. I haven't been able to determine if it's the same company.

The earliest Alpha Denshi games I'm aware of are the arcade games Champion Baseball and Exciting Soccer. They were published by Sega in 1983 and had sequels soon afterwards.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...onBaseball.png

While it was surpassed by other soccer games I can't think of another one from its time that's as good. It's also kind of funny that Exciting Soccer rips off that tequila song for its music.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...tingSoccer.png

Here are their other pre-Neo geo arcade games. The names of other publishers are in brackets.

Bullfighter(Sega, 1984)
I don't why a hockey game is called Bull Fighter especially since Sega also released an actual bullfighting game called Bull Fight the same year.

Equites(Sega, 1984)
In this shooter you are kind of like a Transformer; you can change from land robot to spaceship. I like it.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...er/Equites.png

High Voltage(1985)
I didn't play this rail shooter until yesterday on MAME but I am very impressed. The pseudo 3d landscape effect is really nice and the action is a lot of fun. It doesn't look very good in screenshots though.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...r/highvolt.png

[b]The Koukouyakuh[b/](1985)

Splendor Blast(1985)
This racing game is dizzying to play but pretty wild. It looks a lot like High Voltage and probably uses the same engine.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...r/splendor.gif

Meijinsen(SNK, 1986)

Super Stingray(1986)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...erstingray.png

Kyros(World Games, 1987)
This is a quality overhead view beat 'em up where you take on all sorts of ghouls and creatures.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ater/kyros.png

Sky Soldiers(SNK/Romstar, 1988)
I loved this shooter back in the day. The segmented sprite bosses were cool too.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...er/skysold.png

Time Soldiers(SNK/Romstar, 1988)
This is a Commando-ish game where you fight through different periods in history to rescue your comrades.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...imesoldarc.png

The game was licensed to Electrocoin which released versions for the Atari ST and Amiga with the pluralization dropped(Time Soldier). There was also a C64 version although I'm not sure if it was released in stores.

I believe the Sega-published SMS version was developed by Alpha Denshi but I'm not totally sure. Like many arcade conversions of its time it wasn't a straight port. The level design was different. In some respects I like its design more than arcade game.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...er/timesms.gif

Gang Wars(1989)
What Japanese arcade company didn't make a street themed beat 'em up in the late '80s? This was decent but it didn't stand out in any way aside from being able to set a few stats for your character(power, guard, speed).
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...eater/gang.png

Sky Adventure(SNK, 1989)
This is similar to Sky Soldiers and one of the best vertical shooters of its time. It holds up quite well today too.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ter/skyadv.png

Super Champion Baseball(SNK, 1989)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...erchampion.png

STED: Iseki Wakusei no Yabou(KAC, 1990)
This one's a Famicom RPG. It seems kind of Phantasy Star-ish from what I remember but it was all in Japanese. I should check to see to there's a translation.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...eater/sted.png

1990 marked a shift in focus for the company. They began to focus exclusively on SNK's new Neo Geo console/arcade format. I remember reading on the neo-geo.com boards that Alpha Denshi designed the Neo Geo hardware too but I can't find the info now. If anyone knows anything about that please share.

Here are their Neo Geo games:

Magician Lord(1990)
Now this is the kind of game I wish the Neo Geo had more of: dark action/platformers. This one of the reasons I loved the system's early days so much. It had variety before it turned into the King of Fighters/Metal Slug rehash system.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...gicianLord.png

Ninja Combat(1990)
I thought this beat 'em up was treated a little too harshly by reviewers back in 1990. It was pretty intense and the graphics were amazing.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...injacombat.gif

Blue's Journey(1990)
This platformer reminds me of both the Wonder Boy(the look and shops) and Super Mario Bros.(object throwing and character size changing) series'. It's a great game.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...ater/blues.gif

Crossed Swords(1991)
When I first played this it reminded me of the old Punch Out! with the semi-transparent main character. This was even cooler though as the levels scrolled and you fought various creatures.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...er/crossed.gif

Thrash Rally(1991)
A neat overhead view racer.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...hrashrally.png

World Heroes(1992)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...orldheroes.png

Ninja Commando(1992)
Another awesome overhead view action game.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...jacommando.png

World Heroes 2(1993)

World Heroes 2 Jet(1994)

Aggressors of Dark Kombat(1994)
Also known as ADK for short.

Crossed Swords II(1995)
This was only for Neo Geo CD.

World Heroes 2 Perfect(1995)

Master of Syougi(1995)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2.../syougineo.png

Ninja Master's(1996)
This doesn't seem very popular compared to other SNK fighters but I thought it was quite good.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...njamasters.png

Over Top(1996)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...er/overtop.jpg

Heading into the late '90s ADK began developing for the Neo Geo Pocket. In 1998 they released Melon-chan Growth Diary and Master of Syougi.

Those were for the original black and white system. The following were for the Neo Geo Pocket Color.

Master of Syougi Color(1999)

Party Mail(1999)

Dokodemo Mahjong Color(1999)

Crush Roller(1999)
This game makes me curious. It's a port of an obscure 1981 arcade maze game by a company called Kural Samno Electric(it was licensed to Williams for the West and renamed Make Trax). Why would this of all games get a remake? There's no credit to Kural on the game. It makes me wonder if Kural was the original name of ADK.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...rushRoller.gif

Neo Poke Pro Yakyu(1999)

Dynamite Slugger(2000)
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...iteslugger.jpg

ADK planned on developing more NGPC games but the plugged was pulled on the system. The rumored Magician Lord sequel interested me the most.

So, what are your thoughts on ADK/Alpha Denshi? Please add anything I missed.
19 Aug 2006, 07:24 PM
Tain

Quote:

High Voltage(1985)
Splendor Blast(1985)
Sky Soldiers(SNK/Romstar, 1988)
Sky Adventure(SNK, 1989)

Like in every NZE thread ever, I have some games to check out.

<3
19 Aug 2006, 07:27 PM
Opaque

Ninja Commando looks interesting. I'll have to hunt down a ROM.
19 Aug 2006, 07:28 PM
Yoshi

I'm definitely a fan of their Neo Geo efforts, specifically Magician Lord and Ninja Masters. Crossed Swords was interesting at the time but has aged terribly.
19 Aug 2006, 07:30 PM
kingoffighters

I didn't like Blue's Journey much.

My favorite ADK game is Ninja Master's. A reallly fun 2D fighter, it belongs in a compilation somewhere. I still have this NG home cart, and I will probably keep it forever.
19 Aug 2006, 07:37 PM
Recap

Glad to see you still making more of these. Talbot was indeed by Alpha Denshi, but no clue about Super Bond. Maybe it has another name in Japan?

There are some other earlier Alpha Denshi games - Make trax or Jump Bug from 1981, for instance. Other omissions include the couple of NGCD-only games Zintrick and Crossed Swords II. Some other protos, too.

Edit: Just found you mentioned CSII already. The company was bought by SNK soon after the Neo-Geo boom, by the way. Every ADK's IP belongs to SNK Playmore these days.

And would have loved to see a mention about this developer's obsession with time travels and ninja themes. Ninja Combat, Ninja Commando and World Heroes are kind of related each other.
19 Aug 2006, 08:04 PM
NeoZeedeater

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recap

Talbot was indeed by Alpha Denshi

Thanks. It doesn't surprise me. I just couldn't find any confirmation that Alpha and Alpha Denshi were the same.

Quote:

There are some other earlier Alpha Denshi games - Make trax or Jump Bug from 1981, for instance.

So does that mean Kural Samno is the same company as Alpha Denshi or did they just publish Crush Roller/Make Trax in Japan?

Are you sure about Jump Bug? I only see Hoei's name on the Japanese arcade game and Rock-ola's on the North American one. The Arcadia 2001 port says licensed by Coreland(Hoei's later name) too.
19 Aug 2006, 08:09 PM
Aurora

I used to love World Heroes SO much. Memories...
19 Aug 2006, 08:30 PM
Kev

It seems these guys and Visco Games were about the only consistent developers outside, what, Nasca?

I remember hearing rumors years back that Splatterhouse 3 and Xexex were supposed to head to the AES... any truth to that?
19 Aug 2006, 08:34 PM
Yoshi

As heavenly as a Neo Splatterhouse sounds, that seems a little far fetched.
19 Aug 2006, 08:51 PM
Kev

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yoshi

As heavenly as a Neo Splatterhouse sounds, that seems a little far fetched.

Like I said, it's a rumor, but it's one I've heard time and time again. Supposedly Gamepro announced the game back in the day, but have yet to find what issue it was or would've been in.
20 Aug 2006, 01:26 AM
PKBMax

I've been playing a lot of Ninja Commando and I'm really enjoying it. The Street Fighter-like specials really make the game.

It also has some of the greatest Engrish ever.
20 Aug 2006, 02:49 AM
haohmaru

I have never been able to confirm, anywhere, that Magician Lord II was ever even in development. The first was one of the best platform games ever, IMHO. I loved Crossed Swords as well - especially considering the limitations of the hardware that it was on.
20 Aug 2006, 03:33 AM
dr dunkenstein

Magician Lord was the first Neo Geo game I ever played and it's probably still my favorite. I used to like World Heroes 1 and 2 a lot, but those games really suck now. It's still amazing to me how well SF2 has aged, and how terrible the knock-offs are now.
20 Aug 2006, 09:36 AM
FX

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aurora

I used to love World Heroes SO much. Memories...

Same here. WH2 is one of the best games I've ever played. Deathmatch for life!
20 Aug 2006, 10:57 AM
Lordmrw

Seeing alot of those games brings me back to middle school, where almost every corner store had one of those 4 in 1 Neo Geo arcade machines.
20 Aug 2006, 01:08 PM
RoleTroll

I liked Ninja Combat, Magician Lord, etc. The pre-fighter era was great, even if the games weren't as great as the best on SNES/Genny. World Heroes was great, though. Blue's Journey was disappointing - I really, really wanted to love that game, too.
21 Aug 2006, 01:03 AM
Shou

A Magician Lord NGPC sequel was announced during the endtimes of the original SNK, along with Ikari: The Return and others.
21 Aug 2006, 01:26 AM
StriderKyo

Holy crap, Shou. I thought you gave up games or something.

ADK was indeed a solid dev. Magician Lord is legendary. Ninja Combat wasn't bad, especially the gigantic screen-filling nunchaku. But it was behind other beat 'em ups at the time - it came out like 2 years after Final Fight. Still, I agree, I remember being surprised at how harsh the reviews at the time.

Did they do the Alpha Mission games as well? I want to say that they did.
21 Aug 2006, 01:34 AM
PKBMax

Alpha Mission II was SNK.
21 Aug 2006, 03:16 PM
Beefy Hits

I didn't know they were behind so many Neo Geo games. I remember Sky Soliders from the arcades years ago as a kid. Great game. They also did Twinkle Star Sprites for the Neo.
21 Aug 2006, 03:24 PM
Frogacuda

SMS Time Soldiers is my favorite of the games mentioned in this thread. God I love that game.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeoZeedeater

STED: Iseki Wakusei no Yabou(KAC, 1990)
This one's a Famicom RPG. It seems kind of Phantasy Star-ish from what I remember but it was all in Japanese. I should check to see to there's a translation.
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...eater/sted.png

There is a complete translation

http://www.romhacking.net/trans/217/
21 Aug 2006, 03:32 PM
Giga Power

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shou

A Magician Lord NGPC sequel was announced during the endtimes of the original SNK, along with Ikari: The Return and others.

Yeah. At least thats the rumor. KOF R3 was coming as well. :(

Quote:

Originally Posted by haohmaru

I have never been able to confirm, anywhere, that Magician Lord II was ever even in development. The first was one of the best platform games ever, IMHO. I loved Crossed Swords as well - especially considering the limitations of the hardware that it was on.

I've never really understood the hype over Magician Lord. It's a good game but I don't like it anywhere near as much as the rest of the Neo crowd does. Rumors have went around for YEARS about MLII and I've never ever seen anything I would consider solid proof. So I'd simply chalk it up to being nothing more than a fangasm.

And on the general subject of ADK- I've always loved Crossed Swords. Hell the sequel is the reason I snatched a Neo CD and it's always been a game I've considered to be one of my favs on the system.

Ninja Masters is f-ing awesome. No idea why no one else seems to like this one, but I consider it on the same level as Samsho and Last Blade as far as being a quality weapon based fighter, it only fails compared to these games perhaps in the characters/art department. The game kicks ass. Massive amounts.

For a second I was thinking that they worked on Kizuna, which is also a fav of mine...but they didn't.
21 Aug 2006, 03:41 PM
kingoffighters

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giga Power

Ninja Masters is f-ing awesome. No idea why no one else seems to like this one, but I consider it on the same level as Samsho and Last Blade as far as being a quality weapon based fighter, it only fails compared to these games perhaps in the characters/art department. The game kicks ass. Massive amounts.

For a second I was thinking that they worked on Kizuna, which is also a fav of mine...but they didn't.

Yup, NM is awesome. This is one of the few fighters that I can play over and over against the computer. The problem is that so few people have played it and the ugly characters/art kinda scares gamers away. I love NM and now I find the characters/design to be awesome, even if it is alittle on the dark and ugly side.

Kizuna Encounter is really fun too, I prefer this over most of Capcom's Vs fighters.
21 Aug 2006, 06:53 PM
Shooting Love

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beefy Hits

They also did Twinkle Star Sprites for the Neo.

Yeah, that's what I thought too.
Are we mistaken?
21 Aug 2006, 06:59 PM
NeoZeedeater

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shooting Love

Yeah, that's what I thought too.
Are we mistaken?

No, you guys are right. I just missed it. My mind was probably blanking the game out because I wasted money importing the DC version. ;) I should have tried the Neo rom first. It's probably fun two-player but I didn't care much for it single player.
21 Aug 2006, 07:16 PM
Shooting Love

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeoZeedeater

...My mind was probably blanking the game out because I wasted money importing the DC version. ;)

That's exactly why I remember the game so clearly!
I've got the Saturn and Dreamcast revs.
...
So unnecessary.
:bang:
22 Aug 2006, 12:28 AM
kingoffighters

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shooting Love

That's exactly why I remember the game so clearly!
I've got the Saturn and Dreamcast revs.
...
So unnecessary.
:bang:

Not to one up you... but I got the Neo Geo AES cart and the Saturn rev. :bang:

But I love the game, it is unique and super fun 2p.
22 Aug 2006, 07:36 AM
Shou

Quote:

Originally Posted by StriderKyo

Holy crap, Shou. I thought you gave up games or something

I pretty much have. Recently, I bought back some hardware and nostalgic games. Don't have a 360, doubt if I will get a Wii, may get a PS3 just for the port of VF5 which I play in the arcade.
22 Aug 2006, 01:00 PM
Dolemite

I knew of ADK but didn't know they were responsible for so many cool games. There's several on that list that I really have to hunt down the ROMs for. Ninja Combat looks especially cool.

And I know people will be shocked, but I've never played Magician Lord. But the way everyone in creation carries on about it, I guess I better give that one a try as well.

Oh, and Crush Roller sucked. Sort of a Pac-Man clone. I remember playing it in an arcade when I was a really little kid, but it was horrible on the NGPC.
22 Aug 2006, 04:06 PM
Giga Power

Quote:

Originally Posted by NeoZeedeater

It's probably fun two-player but I didn't care much for it single player.

Playing TSS with another person who is pretty good at the game can be some of the most fun you'll ever have with a controller in your hand.
23 Aug 2006, 05:40 AM
Manic Miner

Wasnt Galaxy Fight also by Alpha? Or is that the American name?
23 Aug 2006, 06:27 AM
arjue

Frogacuda is on the money, Time Soldiers was hot shit.

Man, after everyone of these threads you make I just have to go play some of the mentioned games. Good show Neo.
08 Sep 2006, 07:24 AM
Steve

World Heroes series I have so many fond memories with them -- I'm not shy to admit they're probably my favorite video game franchise of all time. At the end of the day I am always up for a round of WH, 2, 2 Jet or Perfect (BTW it's just WH Perfect, there's no 2 anywhere)

Hanzou, Fuuma, Mudman and Dio reappear 10 years later in Neo Geo Battle Coliseum. The world still waits for a World Heroes 3. At least me anyhow
08 Sep 2006, 08:16 AM
BonusKun

Quote:

Originally Posted by Giga Power

Ninja Masters is f-ing awesome. No idea why no one else seems to like this one, but I consider it on the same level as Samsho and Last Blade as far as being a quality weapon based fighter, it only fails compared to these games perhaps in the characters/art department. The game kicks ass. Massive amounts.

For a second I was thinking that they worked on Kizuna, which is also a fav of mine...but they didn't.

Yeah out of all the ADK titles I recall back in the day, Ninja Masters was way ahead of it's time. The game has a really deep control system and I always found new ways of working combos and setups for each character the more I played.

It's got enough blood and gore to make the old MK fans a lil happy I suppose but overall it's one of the older Neo titles that has aged very well. It's a very violent and Dark Themed game so I think the artwork was spot on for the game in general.

If I wanted fucking pretty-eye'd fluff in a fighter I'd fire up Pocket Fighter.

~BonusKun
08 Sep 2006, 08:09 PM
gameoverDude

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve

World Heroes series I have so many fond memories with them -- I'm not shy to admit they're probably my favorite video game franchise of all time. At the end of the day I am always up for a round of WH, 2, 2 Jet or Perfect (BTW it's just WH Perfect, there's no 2 anywhere)

Hanzou, Fuuma, Mudman and Dio reappear 10 years later in Neo Geo Battle Coliseum. The world still waits for a World Heroes 3. At least me anyhow

I'd take a WH3 anyday. SNKP should use a full 6-button layout for this one instead of using the 2-button strong hits from WHP.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manic Miner

Wasnt Galaxy Fight also by Alpha? Or is that the American name?

Galaxy Fight is from Sunsoft, not ADK.
08 Sep 2006, 08:46 PM
Jeremy

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aurora

I used to love World Heroes SO much. Memories...

Ditto. I spent many a long day in arcades beating those games. The home ports were pretty good, and it's cool to be able to play World Heroes on a portable thanks to the Nomad.
08 Sep 2006, 08:53 PM
kingoffighters

Ninja Master's >>>>>> WH. The only thing I like about WH is Death matches, and some of the characters (like Mudman). Otherwise, the fighting mechanics is too old school, whereas, NM is still very much playable. But some of the characters are downright ugly.

So, let's have a NM2 before WH3. :)
09 Sep 2006, 12:13 AM
gameoverDude

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingoffighters

Ninja Master's >>>>>> WH. The only thing I like about WH is Death matches, and some of the characters (like Mudman). Otherwise, the fighting mechanics is too old school, whereas, NM is still very much playable. But some of the characters are downright ugly.

So, let's have a NM2 before WH3. :)

That's the one thing WH Perfect is missing. :( Redrawing the characters shouldn't be too much to ask given that there are fewer in WHP (16) than in a typical KOF title, but I'm not sure I'd bet on it.

SNKP could come up with a new idea or two for death matches, such as one with objects being thrown into the ring that would need to be ducked under or batted away with some move.
09 Sep 2006, 12:23 AM
Melf

Was Ninja Commando MVS only, or did it get an AES release?
09 Sep 2006, 12:04 PM
NeoZeedeater

There's an AES version. It's probably pretty expensive like most of them.
09 Sep 2006, 12:15 PM
Dyne

check your pm's neo. i may have found a translated STED: Iseki Wakusei no Yabou but i think it's against the rules to post the links.
09 Sep 2006, 01:29 PM
kingoffighters

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melf

Was Ninja Commando MVS only, or did it get an AES release?

Ninja Commando came out on AES and Neo CD. I didn't like it that much, kinda meh.
09 Sep 2006, 01:43 PM
Kidnemo

Great thread as always.

Time Soldiers, the top down racing games, and crossed swords are all good times.
10 Sep 2006, 03:01 AM
Videodrone

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frogacuda

SMS Time Soldiers is my favorite of the games mentioned in this thread. God I love that game.

Agreed. One of my all-time favs. Mamy fond memories of playing that game at the local Y when I was in sixth grade. Love it so much bought a Time Soldiers kit (with controllers and all) a few years back. Still need a cab for it, when I get some extra money.
10 Sep 2006, 12:09 PM
Kidnemo

Quote:

Originally Posted by Videodrone

Agreed. One of my all-time favs. Mamy fond memories of playing that game at the local Y when I was in sixth grade. Love it so much bought a Time Soldiers kit (with controllers and all) a few years back. Still need a cab for it, when I get some extra money.

The game is amazing and I remember that was the first time I saw a game with those rotary joysticks.

One of my arcade cabinets at some point in its life was a Time Soldiers cab as it had a bunch of the paperwork, a partial overlay, and some other misc crap from the kit inside.
11 Sep 2006, 01:13 AM
Aurora

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve

World Heroes series I have so many fond memories with them -- I'm not shy to admit they're probably my favorite video game franchise of all time. At the end of the day I am always up for a round of WH, 2, 2 Jet or Perfect (BTW it's just WH Perfect, there's no 2 anywhere)

Hanzou, Fuuma, Mudman and Dio reappear 10 years later in Neo Geo Battle Coliseum. The world still waits for a World Heroes 3. At least me anyhow

I love you so much.