Tag Archives: Osamu Kasai

Keith Courage in Alpha Zones, PC Engine

Keith Courage in Alpha Zones is a single-player platform game with action elements, developed by Advance Communication Company and published by Hudson Soft in Japan (in 1988) and NEC in North America (in 1989).

When the PC Engine was launched in North America in 1988 – as the TurboGrafx-16 – THIS was the pack-in game that greeted new owners. Not R-Type, not Turrican, not Ghouls ‘N Ghosts – nor any of the other great games on the system – but Keith bloody Courage in bloody Alpha Zones… History has noted that NEC (the manufacturer of the PC Engine) missed a MAJOR trick there, possibly even contributing to the console’s under-performance in sales, and eventual demise.

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Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Sega Saturn

Konami‘s brilliant PlayStation game, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, was released for the Sega Saturn in 1998, but it was only ever released in Japan (under the title “Akumajou Dracula X: Gekka no Yasoukyoku“). Thankfully, an English translation patch is available to make the game playable to those who can’t read Japanese. The patch – created by ‘Knight of Dragon’ – also features numerous bug fixes and improvements.

For those who’ve never played Symphony of the Night before: it is a direct sequel to Rondo of Blood and is rightly regarded as one of the best Castlevania games in the long-running series (if not THE best).

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Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, PlayStation

One of the best Castlevania games, Symphony of the Night on the PlayStation is a brilliant mix of platforming and Level-Grinding Role-Playing, with some wonderful graphical moments and evil gameplay touches.

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