Namco's Genpei Toumaden for NES

[StriderKyo]

Genpei Toumaden was an NES rpg by Namco based on the Genpei war between the Genji (Minamoto) and Heike (Taira) clans which was immortalized in the novels Yoshitsune (from which George Lucas basically ripped off Star Wars) and Heike Monogatari, as well as various histories:

http://www.vgmuseum.com/pics5/genpei.html

Has anybody played this, either through emulation or legitimate means? Is it worth tracking down? How exactly does the gameplay work? It looks like a fairly traditional rpg, but that "computer boardgame" title screen makes me wonder.

It doesn't look like the best game ever or anything, but the subject matter definitely has my interest piqued.

EDIT: Further looking around has also turned up an arcade version, which looks to be more of an action game. There's also a PC Engine version, which I'm guessing is based on the arcade game.

http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?...G&game_id=1208

EDIT2: THere was also a sequel, and I'll be damned if this one doesn't look familiar:

http://www.vgmuseum.com/images/02/genpei2.html

Wasn't that released for the North American TG-16 as Undead Samurai or something equally preposterous? Not that I especially care, since the NES version is still what I'm most interested in.

[Punky Skunk]

Eh, I can't help on the NES game, but I can say (since I was semi-interested in the series) that the first game is called Genji and Heike Clans (or something like that), and is found on Namco Museum Volume 4. The gameplay is a mishmash and is pretty sloppy. You've a Gauntlet style mode, a small sprite action mode and a large sprite action mode (there might even be more). The sequel, or Samurai Ghost, is just a regular action game like Legendary Axe, and it's pretty good. The sword-swinging is the coolest element, and has a pretty creepy atmosphere.

[jiji]

I'm familiar with the series, and the original arcade version and the PC Engine sequel are both pretty fun, though the sequel is the more consistently good experience. The arcade game is good for pick-up-and-play fun, but it tends to get old kind of quickly. I haven't really touched the NES version ("port" might be too strong a word).

Interestingly enough, before Namco made the NES Genpei, Konami developed and published a blatant ripoff of Genpei Toumaden called Getsu Fuumaden. It even has the same old lady with her crystal ball. It's actually rather good, and it reminds me of Castlevania.

http://www.vgmuseum.com/pics5/getsufuu.html

[NeoZeedeater]

I have played the arcade/PC Engine Genpei Toumaden via emulation. It was good but kind of generic. Samurai Ghost wasn't bad either. I never bothered checking out the Famicom game because of the text barrier(I highly doubt there's a translated rom for it).

Another arcade game by Namco that reminds me a bit of Genpei is Mirai Ninja.

http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?game_id=1988

[StriderKyo]

Thanks for the impressions, guys. I'll defintely check out Namco Museum 4, if only out of curiosity (since I imagine it's dirt cheap). The NES version looks like it's entirely in kana, so the language barrier shouldn't be a big deal.

I remember Samurai Ghost getting bad reviews, but if I see it cheap one day I may pick it up.

[gameoverDude]

Samurai Ghost is actually decent. I bought it expecting something a bit like Kenseiden (one of my SMS favorites). The control is just a little bit loose compared to KSD, but vastly improved over Genji & Heike. It's better than the reviewers say it is.

Genji & Heike is a downer IMO. The Gauntlet perspective scenes simply don't belong in it and in fact drag the game down. These scenes are the ones I want to get overwith so that I can go to the next side-scroll battle. The control here leaves a lot to be desired.