Capcom Generation 2: Chronicles of Arthur - Review - Vol 2
カプコンジェネレーション第２集 魔界と騎士
Format: Sega Saturn
Publisher: Capcom
Developer: Capcom
Release year: 1998 (Japan Only)
Genre: Arcade Collection / Platformer
Additional Information: Gameplay screenshots and videos taken from the arcade versions of Ghosts ‘n Goblins and Ghouls'n Ghosts and SNES version of Super Ghouls'n Ghosts. Capcom Generation 2 was played on a PAL Sega Saturn with a region and 50/60hz switch.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock since the 1980s you will have likely heard of or at least played one of the titles in the Ghosts ‘n Goblins series. Capcom Generation 2, is a collection made up of the first three titles in the series which includes the two arcade games of Ghosts ‘n Goblins and Ghouls ‘n’ Ghosts along with the Super Nintendo released Super Ghouls ‘n’ Ghosts.
Known as Makaimura in Japan, the name roughly translates into Spirit/Hell Village. The Japanese name being slightly truer to the series due to its frustratingly hard difficulty curve and the fact that every game in the series has to be finished twice in order to see the true ending.
Not only does Capcom Generation 2 feature nigh on perfect ports of all three games, but each game also includes a selection of art galleries, background history and hints and tips to view, along with remixed music to listen to for some of the soundtrack.
Ghosts'n Goblins
The first title in the series saw its release in 1985, notorious in the arcades during the 1980s it took some serious skill to finish the first level, let alone the entire game. You played as the Knight Arthur who must rescue the kidnapped Princess Prin Prin and save the day.
Big Gargoyle = Princess kidnapping time
Surviving the zombie onslaught at the start of the first level was one thing, then there is the small matter of the rather troublesome red gargoyle before you even face the goblin boss at the end of the first stage. Partly this was down to the rigid game mechanics of the time with Arthur only having the ability to attack left and right, along with a fixed jump that doesn’t allow you to stop in mid air. Combine this with the fact that Arthur can only take two hits, the first hit stripping poor Arthur down to just his underwear with the second turning him into a pile of bones.
The red gargoyle the downfall of many a player
While graphically it looks some what dated these days, the 2D sprites still manage to hold a certain amount of charm. The game itself is still very playable and with the player granted unlimited continues to finish the game in this collection, it’s certainly nowhere near as hard as it seemed back in the arcades. Once you start learning the layout for each level the difficulty also gets much easier, but it requires patience and a mistake in this game will always cost you.
Bizarrely in some ways the difficulty of the series spurs you on, as you find that each time you progress in the game, this sense of achievement keeps you coming back for more. Even if you do end up dying 30 times before reaching the mid level checkpoint.
The rather easy goblin lord boss
Interestingly the first game treats the second play through, more as a round two like those seen in arcade shooter titles. As the player has to defeat the final boss Astaroth before they are given a bad ending so to speak and them must complete the game a second time to get the good ending. In the later titles in the series the player is prevented from fighting the final boss until they have finished the second play through.
Ghouls'n Ghosts
The second title in the series is by far the best game in the franchise that features Arthur. Released in the arcades in 1988, it takes all the best elements of the first game and improves them in every way. Asides from the vastly improved graphics and sound, Ghouls’n Ghosts features faster gameplay, new weapons and armour, along with Arthur gaining the ability to attack above and below him.
Arthur taking advantage of the new directional and magic armour attacks
Power ups are now hidden in treasure chests which can be found by jumping or running over secret points to cause them to appear. Once opened the player is either treated to a power up or an evil wizard who will attempt to cast a spell on Arthur. If he succeeds the game provides a comedy moment with Arthur temporarily being changed into a duck or old man. The new golden armour found in chests also rewards Arthur with a super attack, making the games far easier.
The red gargoyle’s body count from the first game
The difficulty is also much fairly balanced than its predecessor making it far more fun to play. The stage design is also far more impressive with thunder storms, burning villages and the crystal cavern being some of the stage design highlights of the game.
Some of the impressive boss monsters found in Ghouls’n Ghosts
Despite being an arcade release a large number of gamers may be more familiar with the home ports such as the Mega Drive version of this title. Certainly in the UK the Ghouls’n Ghosts arcade machine, was far less common in amusement arcades than the original game was. Ghouls’n Ghosts is by far the best game in Capcom Generation 2 and if you’ve never played it before, then you are in for a real treat.
Super Ghouls'n Ghosts
The third game in the series Super Ghouls’n Ghosts was the first title not to be developed for the arcades, instead it was developed exclusively for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
As this was a home console only release, Super Ghouls’n Ghosts is noticeably larger than the previous two instalments in the series. Despite the increase in game length, it still feels a little short for a title only released on a home format.
A selection of the new power ups added for the third game
The game itself is also an odd mix of the previous two titles in terms of gameplay. Graphically it’s just about on a par with Ghouls’n Ghosts and while Arthur can now double jump and enhanced his normal attacks with the new green armour, he loses the ability to attack above and below him. The speed of the game is also noticeably slower and as a whole plays more like Ghosts’n Goblins rather than the superior sequel. The biggest problem with the original Super Nintendo release however was the huge amount of slowdown that plagued the game.
Fortunately, Capcom have addressed some of the slowdown for the Capcom Generation 2 version, while there is still some present in this release it is noticeably improved. The only slight downside with this version is that the Sega Saturn runs the game at a higher resolution than the original SNES did resulting in Super Ghouls’n Ghosts not displaying at full screen. Asides from this minor bug bare this is a perfect port of the SNES version.
Collection Round Up
All in all Capcom Generation 2, is a very complete package and well worth the cost of admission for Ghouls’n Ghosts alone. It’s also a perfect example of how retro collections should be done correctly as it keeps the feel and spirit of the original games without making needless changes or adding in additional bugs from poor emulation.
Certainly it would have been nice to give you a fully arranged soundtrack for each game. Indeed. it’s slightly odd that Capcom choose to only arrange three tracks for each game and then only make them available via the collection menu and not in-game. There is also no reason why Capcom couldn’t have also included the Gargoyle’s Quest spin-off series in this pack. Especially as the third Gargoyle’s Quest game Demon’s Crest is arguably the best game in the entire Ghosts’n Goblins franchise and one of Capcom’s best Super Nintendo games.
If you have never played any of the Ghosts’n Goblins games before or are a big fan of the series, then Capcom Generation 2 is well worth adding to any Saturn collection. That said, the series isn’t for everyone and the difficulty may prove too much for some people if you don’t have the patience of a saint. From the videos and screenshots provided you will probably know if this is a game you will enjoy or not. It’s well worth trying the series out at least once, even if you don’t think it will be your cup of tea, as you can’t truly appreciate the legendary difficulty of the series until you’ve played it.
Also available on
If you don’t have a Japanese Sega Saturn you can also look to pick up Capcom Generation 2 for the Japanese PSone. While the collection didn’t receive a USA release, Virgin Interactive did however, publish the first four Capcom Generation titles in a surprisingly nice four disc box set package released in Europe called Capcom Generations.
The downside with the European PSone release is that it only runs at 50hz so has the rather dubious honour of running slower than the original arcade releases, it also features a cut down collection section from the Japanese release. Amusingly however, the included manual for the European release appears to have been done in a bit of a hurry as it’s full of incorrect translations and spelling errors, along with a number of screenshots taken directly from the Japanese manual.
All three games are also included on the Capcom Classics Collection for PS2 & Xbox this release is missing the bonus material from Capcom Generation 2, but all three games are decent conversions. The same can also be said for the PSP release of Capcom Classics Collection Reloaded.
More recently the arcade release of Ghosts’n Goblins can be found on Capcom’s Arcade Cabinet for PS3 & Xbox360. Finally, Super Ghouls’n Ghosts is available for both the Wii and Wii U Virtual Console for download. At the time of writing the arcade release of Ghouls’n Ghosts is not currently available for purchase on PS3, Xbox360 & Wii U.
Review by Random Gamer Riven.
Twitter: RDGamerRiven
E.mail: randomgamerriven@gmail.com
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