Sorry for reviving such an old thread, but I had to because I absolutely love Growl. Not the Genesis port (which isn't terrible, but it's not that great either), but the original arcade game. Yes, it's a blatant Indy ripoff - I swear someone at Taito wanted to make an Indy arcade game but couldn't get the rights - but what makes it shine is the sheer WTF-ness of the whole game.
The Engrish is hilarious ("Get lost you wisp!"). The game throws tons of enemies at you at once, and your animal friends will deliver armaments to you or trample the enemies themselves. Hey, an elephant takes on a tank and wins! When you continue, a giant bed of spikes drops out of nowhere and crushes the enemies on the screen. It's just so over the top and ludicrous.
And the most out there moment of the entire game comes after you finish off the last boss' first form (looks like the Joker wearing a stylish top hat and coat with tails), and his body goes slithering across the screen and cracks open to reveal some kind of space caterpillar or something.
As fan as all the Indy ripping off is concerned, yeah, Gen looks just like Indy (as does one of the other guys), and you can get both a whip and revolver. But you also fight enemies that resemble the Thuggees and a whole mob of angry John Rhys-Davies cosplayers. Multicolored Sallahs ahoy!
Also, here's my nickname for Growl (artwork from the arcade flyer):
Regarding some of the other games listed here... yeah, Earnest Evans sucked. What a shame. I loved El Viento (which EE is the prequel to, at least for the Mega CD), but EE was just terrible. Not a shining moment in Wolf Team's history, that's for sure.
I love Montezuma's Revenge, especially the Sega Master System version. The 2600 version wasn't bad either. Haven't ever played Motezuma's Return, though. And does anyone here remember the hero's name?
Also - has anyone here ever heard of a Konami game for the Famicom Disk System called Almana no Kiseki, aka The Miracle of Almana? Think Indiana Jones meets an early Konami arcade game, Roc 'N Rope. It's not bad at all, but it can be damned frustrating. Check out the first link to see the Indyness of it:
I love Montezuma's Revenge, especially the Sega Master System version. The 2600 version wasn't bad either. Haven't ever played Motezuma's Return, though. And does anyone here remember the hero's name?
Panama Joe! - er, that's the hero in the original Montezuma's Revenge, that is, not the belated sequel. I used to love that game, playing it on my Atari 800XL and on a friend's Apple IIe.
Interesting tidbit: the designer / programmer of Montezuma's Revenge made the game when he was just a teenager - 16, IIRC.
It was summer of '85 and I walked into a store to grab a soda. There were a couple of unmarked arcade games in the corner. I noticed one was an overhead game, like the first Zelda and it was obviously based on Indy. It featured a maze you would walk around and fight off monsters. Simular to Gauntlet. It looked like it had an Aztec theme. It was a no name Japanese game in one of those cabinets where they would just switch the board out to update the game inside. Because of that, I don't know a damn thing about the game. Not even the name. Did anyone else run into this game back in the day? It's been haunting me for years. It was the only place I ever saw it. I don't think I'll ever find out.
Anyone know?
You can talk about a game you've encountered that was an Indy rip off.
Along with Aztec, other early '80s, Indy-type games:
- Pitfall
- Jungle Boy (which was almost identical to Pitfall but with a Tarzan-type character)
- Tutankhamun
- Montezuma's Revenge (with Panama Joe)
- Pharaoh's Tomb (with Nevada Smith)
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my son picked up the adventures of tin tin video game for the wii afew days ago and i could see that being a indiana jones game . i loved the gameplay and the graphics werent that bad . i wish the company that made tin tin would make a indiana jones game.
my son picked up the adventures of tin tin video game for the wii afew days ago and i could see that being a indiana jones game . i loved the gameplay and the graphics werent that bad . i wish the company that made tin tin would make a indiana jones game.
Funnily enough, Spielberg directed Tintin! I saw it myself a few months ago, and thought it was just the spirit of Indy. I haven't played the game, but I suppose I will say the obvious not-IJ-but-like-IJ game: Lara Croft, Tomb Raider.
Discuss.
I haven't played the game, but I suppose I will say the obvious not-IJ-but-like-IJ game: Lara Croft, Tomb Raider.
And I'm saying you really should have before you went and mentioned it.
Tomb Raider has no business within a topic that deals with ripoffs in the actual meaning of the word. When it came out, Tomb Raider was a highly original title that pretty much defined the 3D action-adventure genre for years to come. Sure, the story and setting deal with same high adventure themes our own Dr. Jones is eponymous with, but it's by no means fair to assume he should have exclusivity to the genre.
It's certainly true that the line between homage and blatant imitation is thin and sometimes very blurry, but Ms. Croft is definitely someone who stands on her own shapely legs with this issue.
In fact, if you look at Indy's most recent major forays into video gaming, you might even make an opposite argument. It's him who owes that existence to Lara.
One of the worst aspects of Instruments of Chaos is the enemies...No I'm not talking about the Germans spies or the Arab swordmen..I mean the ****ing BIRDS! Seriously,In the India level it's damn near impossible to get the door open with out falling due to being hit by one of those freakin' birds! Gah!
Oh..and the first level of Egypt has got to be one of the most frustrating levels of all time.Friggin' sand storms!
In regards to Screw Attack,It just hasn't been the same since Tom and Liz left.Tom and Craig played off each other really well and Liz was damn hot.Damn shame they decided to leave.
I beat the actual cartridge game on the Sega Genesis. I don't really, honestly hate a lot of games (very few actually.) but this game infuriated me to the point that was contemplating to smash it into pieces and throw it out . But I didn't. So now it sits on my shelf with the rest of my games and it will stay there for the rest of time. I will never play it again....
And I'm saying you really should have before you went and mentioned it.
Tomb Raider has no business within a topic that deals with ripoffs in the actual meaning of the word. When it came out, Tomb Raider was a highly original title that pretty much defined the 3D action-adventure genre for years to come. Sure, the story and setting deal with same high adventure themes our own Dr. Jones is eponymous with, but it's by no means fair to assume he should have exclusivity to the genre.
It's certainly true that the line between homage and blatant imitation is thin and sometimes very blurry, but Ms. Croft is definitely someone who stands on her own shapely legs with this issue.
In fact, if you look at Indy's most recent major forays into video gaming, you might even make an opposite argument. It's him who owes that existence to Lara.
Understood and noted, Finn. My apologies--and you do have a point with the more recent games {Infernal Machine, Emperor's Tomb, and Staff of Kings}, as the style is very similar to that of Lara's own adventures.
Then again, as you also said, modern video games would not exist at all if not for the exploits of Lara Croft--Indy is merely one of many pixel-kiddies who followed in the wake of a much bigger revolution.
Well, there's my rambling finished. I'm off for dinner.
In fact, if you look at Indy's most recent major forays into video gaming, you might even make an opposite argument. It's him who owes that existence to Lara.
Absolutely. Modern Indiana Jones games are in fact highly derivative of games like Tomb Raider and now Uncharted. Sure, games like those owe a tremendous aesthetic debt to the Indy movies and old serials, but even when they've been good, Indy games of the past two decades have been disapppointingly content with cloning the gameplay of antecedents and throwing on a fedora.
Just seems like it'd be more appropriate if Mister "Adventure Has A Name" would do the leading rather than the following in the action/adventure genre. I'm okay with Fate of Atlantis remaining unseated as the best Indy game since it's just that good, but it's pretty pathetic that after all these years they haven't been able to put together an action/adventure (the genre intuition would tell you the character is better suited to) Indiana Jones video game that rises above "competent Tomb Raider knockoff." And apparently we have to wait six years between these mediocre offerings because at LucasArts it's all Star Wars, all the time.
Absolutely. Modern Indiana Jones games are in fact highly derivative of games like Tomb Raider and now Uncharted. Sure, games like those owe a tremendous aesthetic debt to the Indy movies and old serials, but even when they've been good, Indy games of the past two decades have been disapppointingly content with cloning the gameplay of antecedents and throwing on a fedora.
Just seems like it'd be more appropriate if Mister "Adventure Has A Name" would do the leading rather than the following in the action/adventure genre. I'm okay with Fate of Atlantis remaining unseated as the best Indy game since it's just that good, but it's pretty pathetic that after all these years they haven't been able to put together an action/adventure (the genre intuition would tell you the character is better suited to) Indiana Jones video game that rises above "competent Tomb Raider knockoff." And apparently we have to wait six years between these mediocre offerings because at LucasArts it's all Star Wars, all the time.
It would be nice if LucasArts got out of "Star Wars Mode" that they constantly operate in and show a little more focus to the Indy. My perfect example is Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings. What a disappointingly mediocre game. It seems like hardly any time was spent on it at all.
Considering how well received FOA was, I'm surprised LucasArts never tried to revisit the adventure game genre for Indy. Obviously it wouldn't be in the style of FOA anymore, but there are more modern adventure games, like Heavy Rain, Indigo Prophecy, Dreamfall, etc. Why not a new Indy adventure game, with some action bits thrown in, rather than yet another platform jumping game? I love the TR games, but the Indy games in the TR style always felt like poor imitations of TR.
I agree. I began to play "The Infernal Machine" yesterday and it was like a very glitchy version of Tomb Raider. I mean do like the game because it was nice to find after I remember playing as a child. And the game has kept me hooked, going to finish it.
Absolutely. Modern Indiana Jones games are in fact highly derivative of games like Tomb Raider and now Uncharted. Sure, games like those owe a tremendous aesthetic debt to the Indy movies and old serials, but even when they've been good, Indy games of the past two decades have been disapppointingly content with cloning the gameplay of antecedents and throwing on a fedora.
Just seems like it'd be more appropriate if Mister "Adventure Has A Name" would do the leading rather than the following in the action/adventure genre. I'm okay with Fate of Atlantis remaining unseated as the best Indy game since it's just that good, but it's pretty pathetic that after all these years they haven't been able to put together an action/adventure (the genre intuition would tell you the character is better suited to) Indiana Jones video game that rises above "competent Tomb Raider knockoff." And apparently we have to wait six years between these mediocre offerings because at LucasArts it's all Star Wars, all the time.
While I agree with the sentiment, the only Indy game that's remotely similar to Uncharted since its release is Staff of Kings. And that was supposed to come out at the same time as the first Uncharted. At this point I'd love a Indiana Jones clone of Uncharted.
It may not be true for books and comics but more often than not: build a good game and they will come.
And to be fair to Staff of Kings... the proper version was supposed to be the Xbox/PS3 release.
Considering how well received FOA was, I'm surprised LucasArts never tried to revisit the adventure game genre for Indy. Obviously it wouldn't be in the style of FOA anymore, but there are more modern adventure games, like Heavy Rain, Indigo Prophecy, Dreamfall, etc. Why not a new Indy adventure game, with some action bits thrown in, rather than yet another platform jumping game? I love the TR games, but the Indy games in the TR style always felt like poor imitations of TR.
They did. Indiana Jones and the Iron Phoenix was in development between 93-95 but unfortunately it wasn't to be.
It was summer of '85 and I walked into a store to grab a soda. There were a couple of unmarked arcade games in the corner. I noticed one was an overhead game, like the first Zelda and it was obviously based on Indy.
Sounds like that was "Tutankham" (sic). You would go through four mazes, collecting keys to unlock treasure, and shoot monsters coming at you - though only left or right. It was Egyptian themed, but I can see how the coloring (and 1985 graphics) would throw you.
Sounds like that was "Tutankham" (sic). You would go through four mazes, collecting keys to unlock treasure, and shoot monsters coming at you - though only left or right. It was Egyptian themed, but I can see how the coloring (and 1985 graphics) would throw you.
I'd have to agree with that assessment. Another Indy-ripoff that came to mind was Bally Sente's Snake Pit, but there aren't any mazes to be found. It's more like Robotron: 2084.
Been almost three years since I've been here. Wow. Hadn't realized it had been so long. Anyway, I stumbled across this thread, and read what I'd posted way back when:
Quote:
Originally Posted by dire51
Also - has anyone here ever heard of a Konami game for the Famicom Disk System called Almana no Kiseki, aka The Miracle of Almana? Think Indiana Jones meets an early Konami arcade game, Roc 'N Rope. It's not bad at all, but it can be damned frustrating. Check out the first link to see the Indyness of it:
If you've clicked those links, you've probably seen the "scorpion card" that came with the game. It's one of the more common cards packaged with it (the same one, which I scanned, came with my copy). There are three others as well, which can be seen here. Hardcore Gaming 101 did an article about it too, which also shows the scorpion card.
Here's a nice big scan of the cover artwork, from my personal copy. I didn't own it at the time I made that post (I'd played a friend's copy way back when), but in the time since I've acquired one along with a Famicom Disk System.
As said before, it can be very frustrating to play at times, and the plot is a direct lift from Temple of Doom. But it is fun. Chances are, though, unless you have a Famicom and working Famicom Disk System plus the game, or know your way around an NES emulator and have an FDS BIOS file plus ROM, you may never play it. Even if you do have an FDS plus the game, the FDS is notorious for its lousy drive belt, and the game is on a floppy disk. So eventually, they're going to fail. It's just a matter of time.
Luckily, the good folks over at the NES Dump have given us a way to play it that requires none of that. All you need is a working NES or a clone console like the RetroDuo, along with this. I ordered a copy from them a little while back (cart only, though, because it was cheaper), and it plays just fine on both my NES and my kids' RetroDuo.
. But I didn't. So now it sits on my shelf with the rest of my games and it will stay there for the rest of time. I will never play it again....
And the game has kept me hooked, going to finish it.
