Best Of Saturn
Blast Wind #BestOfSaturn
This is the third week in a row showcasing a Saturn shmup, and this time it’s TechnoSoft’s Blast Wind. Released in Japan in January 1997, its limited print run means…
Best Of Saturn
Best Of Saturn
Best Of Saturn
Hyper Duel #BestOfSaturn
Partly inspired by the ThunderForce series, Hyper Duel is a 1993 TechnoSoft arcade horizontal shmup that got a Japanese Saturn release in late 1996. Man one of the highly experimental…
Best Of Saturn
DoDonPachi #BestOfSaturn
Oh, Cave. Your bullet hell shmups are such a delight, and DoDonPachi is no exception. Hitting the Japanese Saturn in late 1997, players choose from three ships each with a…
Best Of Saturn
Prisoner of Ice #BestOfSaturn
Based on the Cthulhu mythos created by HP Lovecraft, the 1995 PC and Mac point-and-click Prisoner of Ice got a Japan-only Saturn release at the very end of 1997. Presented…
Best Of Saturn
Hissatsu! #BestOfSaturn
Based on a very long-running Japanese period drama, Hissatsu! is a side-scrolling action game very much in the vein of the Shinobi series. You and your associates travel from town…
Best Of Saturn
Phantasmagoria #BestOfSaturn
Ohh, what a game. Coming in at a massive eight CDs, the recently fan translation patched Phantasmagoria has you, as writer Adrienne Delaney, solve the mystery of the creepy old…
Best Of Saturn
Horror Tour #BestOfSaturn
A Japanese MYST-style point-and-click horror adventure, Horror Tour (Zeddas: Servant of Sheol for the PC and Mac English release) takes place in the maze-like Rodvydel Castle. The castle was taken…
Best Of Saturn
Haunted Casino #BestOfSaturn
A red label title, the Japan-exclusive Haunted Casino is an odd mix of castle exploration and gambling. You arrive at the haunted casino and must find the gambling rooms —…
Best Of Saturn
Frankenstein: Through the Eyes of the Monster #BestOfSaturn
Released exclusively in Europe in 1997 as a port of the PC original, Frankenstein: Through the Eyes of the Monster is a point-and-click adventure. You take on the role of…
Best Of Saturn
Virtua Fighter Remix #BestOfSaturn
Virtua Fighter Remix was an AM1 attempt to remake the Model 1 original on the ST-V Titan arcade board. This Saturn conversion hit worldwide in mid-1995. Gameplay remains unchanged from…
Best Of Saturn
Gunbird #BestOfSaturn
Gunbird is a Psykio arcade conversion released exclusively in Japan very late in 1995. One or two players choose from five characters and blast their way through this vertical scrolling…
Best Of Saturn
DonPachi #BestOfSaturn
Developed by Cave and hitting the Japanese Saturn courtesy of Atlus in early 1996, DonPachi is a bullet-hell shooter and the first game in the DonPachi series. Select one of…
Best Of Saturn
Johnny Bazookatone #BestOfSaturn
Early 1996 saw Johnny Bazookatone land on the Saturn. A tough little 2D platformer with some run-and-gun elements, it sports pre-rendered visuals that scream “made in the 1990s.” Johnny’s out…
Best Of Saturn
Quarterback Attack with Mike Ditka #BestOfSaturn
November 1995 was bountiful for Digital Pictures fans, as the firm released what would be their entire Saturn catalogue that month — including the peculiar Quarterback Attack. Essentially an FMV…
Best Of Saturn
Nippon Daihyou Team no Kantoku ni Narou! Sekaihatsu Soccer RPG #BestOfSaturn
In mid-1998, SEGA collaborated with Enix to bring you the delightful Soccer RPG: the crossover you never knew you needed. (Full title: Nippon Daihyou Team no Kantoku ni Narou! Sekaihatsu…
Best Of Saturn
Silhouette Mirage #BestOfSaturn
Silhouette Mirage appeared on Japanese Saturns in late 1997 courtesy of fabled software house Treasure. A fast-paced action platformer, the gimmick here is that the heroine possesses traits of both…
Best Of Saturn
Fantastep #BestOfSaturn
April 1997 saw the Japan-only release of Jaleco’s Fantastep, a 3D adventure game featuring 2D sprites. Heavy on the language barrier, the adventure is more of a point-and-click affair and…
Best Of Saturn
Crows: The Battle Action for Segasaturn #BestOfSaturn
Based on a manga (as so many Japanese Saturn titles are), Crows: The Battle Action for Segasaturn is a very late 1997 Japan-only delight. A beat-em-up featuring super-deformed characters, it…
Best Of Saturn
ThunderForce V #BestOfSaturn
Technosoft’s awesome ThunderForce series arrives to 32-bit gaming, with the fifth installment featuring all-new 3D visuals coupled with traditional 2D gameplay. Master your forward and rear shots and take advantage…
Best Of Saturn
Space Invaders #BestOfSaturn
Dating back to 1978 (!), Space Invaders is a simple game of timing as you try to shoot down a horde of invading aliens that are descending ever closer. The…
Best Of Saturn
Fantastic Pinball Kyuutenkai #BestOfSaturn
Developed by Technosoft and released in Japan in the summer of 1995, Fantastic Pinball Kyuutenkai is an anime-based pinball adventure. Select one of three heroes of Flipperland and play pinball…
Best Of Saturn
Strikers 1945 #BestOfSaturn
World War 2 has just ended, but the belligerents must unite against a mysterious new foe known only as C.A.D.Y. Strikers 1945 is the first of the series, receiving a…
Best Of Saturn
Iron Storm #BestOfSaturn
Iron Storm is a World War II battle simulation game that supports the Saturn mouse. Players command armies and participate in various clashes from WW2. The play field is a…
Best Of Saturn
Mortal Kombat Trilogy #BestOfSaturn
The Mortal Kombat craze had crested by the time Mortal Kombat Trilogy came out in 1997, and of course, the PlayStation and Nintendo 64 versions came out first. Fashionably late…
Best Of Saturn
Riglordsaga 2 #BestOfSaturn
A direct sequel to Mystaria/Blazing Heroes, Riglordsaga 2 never left Japan, sadly. Set years after the events of the original, you play as Mieu and must help a princess escape…
Best Of Saturn
Psychotron #BestOfSaturn
The Psychotron is a 1995 Japan-only port of a 1994 American PC FMV game. The in-game text and original English voices were translated / dubbed, meaning the language barrier is…
Best Of Saturn
Wachenröder #BestOfSaturn
Released mid-1998, Wachenröder is a Japan-only steampunk SRPG. Dark and gritty, the game features quality FMV sequences, very nice still pixel art, and standard 2D SRPG battles that switch to…
Best Of Saturn
Elevator Action Returns #BestOfSaturn
Elevator Action Returns is a game that should have been picked up for Western release. A Ving port of the Taito arcade original, this 2D run-and-gun gem appeared in 1997…
Best Of Saturn
Golden Axe: The Duel #BestOfSaturn
The three 16-bit Golden Axe games were the bee’s knees… so is Saturn Golden Axe: The Duel the cat’s meow? Switching to a 2D 1:1 fighting game, the game retains…
Best Of Saturn
The Lost Vikings: Norse #BestOfSaturn
Sequel to the 16-bit original, The Lost Vikings: Norse by Norsewest is a 2D action platformer featuring prerendered visuals. Here, the player controls three characters and needs to take advantage…
Best Of Saturn
Steamgear Mash #BestOfSaturn
Steamgear Mash is an early Saturn title that really made a case that the latest games don’t have to be fully 3D to be fun. You take command of Mash…
Best Of Saturn
Layer Section 2 (RayStorm) #BestOfSaturn
Playing like its predecessor but making the leap to quasi-3D, Layer Section 2 (a.k.a RayStorm) is the Japan-only sequel to Galactic Attack (a.k.a Layer Section 1 a.k.a. RayForce). The player…
Best Of Saturn
The King of Fighters ’96 #BestOfSaturn
Although only released in Japan, an English language option exists in this SNK port. Making use of the 1MB Cartridge, this is the 2nd of three KoF games on Saturn….
Best Of Saturn
I love Mickey Mouse / I love Donald Duck #BestOfSaturn
SEGA AGES I love Mickey Mouse / I love Donald Duck is a Japan-only SEGA AGES compendium of two Genesis / MegaDrive Disney games, Castle of Illusion and QuackShot. Reproduced…
Best Of Saturn
Bulk Slash #BestOfSaturn
Many of the Saturn’s best games remain locked away in Japan… until they receive the fan translation treatment! Bulk Slash is the hybrid arcade action mech dating simulator you never…