Support the show on Patreon: / implantgames IMPLANTgames.com implantgames implant In today’s video I dive in and take a look to see if Psycho Fox is still good. Enjoy!
In 2011 I was in a tough patch in life like we all go through. All of what little game collection I had I sold off for money. I was out of work for that summer and past the time watcing two channels I really began to enjoy. Those being Metal Jesus Rocks, and Implantgames. I watched your reviews on all the games I missed for obscure consoles I owned, mainly the sega cd and Jaguar. Your reviews made me salivate to start collecting once my job rampt back up. I left from Kansas City to a contract job in Seattle Washington with all the retro game stores I could ever ask for. The very first game I spent big bucks on.. a mint copy of Android assualt for the sega cd. I have said this many times and will always remember how your reviews and videos kept me alive. They started the road to building a great collection. The summer of 2011 will always have you in my memory sir. Thank you! The games you have reviewed were the first games on my collection lists, and you have not steered me wrong. Super burnout, and android assualt being some of your best recomendations. I am thankful you started making videos again. Best wishes to you!
This is easily the most sentimental comment anyone has ever left and I really don't have a worthy response. I'm glad everything is well! Throughout my life there have always been shows, movies, games, and songs that have gotten me through life's curveballs. I never thought about my youtube videos offering that for someone else. I am deeply humbled, thank you so much!
Honestly, without Psycho Fox, I don't think Sonic would have existed. Psycho Fox was programmed by Vic Tokai for SEGA, and it is rumoured Psycho Fox was SEGA's first attempt at a replacement for Alex Kidd as mascot. The multiple pathways, momentum-based gameplay, and surrealism all make me think Sonic was meant to be a successor to this game by SEGA themselves (since they liked the idea), but not the entire quadrilogy of Jump Heaven/Speed Hell games, which Magical Hat's Flying Turbo Adventure too is a part of. It's kinda funny, since you wonder if Time Dominator 1st by Vic Tokai was a clapback to SEGA themselves saying "you took our idea and made money and fame from it, and we are taking it back".
You know I played this back in the day and thought WOW! Seems like a cool platformer but DAMN I was never any good at it and never got far and yet I still keep trying, playing lol. Something charming about it. I liked the name and having a FOX as the main character.
Kris, I love this particular series. I always find it fascinating to go back and read reviews of old games. It's interesting to see what was regarded as good that just didn't hold up, or the opposite.
Yeah, I didn't even realize EGM was around back in 1989. The Video Game Critic is obviously not from 1989, but still fun to read what he wrote back in 2002. Time flies!
I just discovered your channel because I was looking for a good Psycho Fox review and I was delighted with yours. Will check the rest of your channel, keep up the good work!
I think your "is it still good" series is much more fitting than general reviews because you take into consideration how fun the game is in the here and now rather than viewing it from the perspective of when the game came out. Keep up the good work, I always enjoy your reviews even if I have 0 interest in the game
Great review on the game. I recently played through it for nostalgia and man was it tougher than I remember but after getting that momentum down it is alright. Well except the ice world, man I died so many times to that area. Something you didn't touch upon which you should is that the bird you get is pretty annoying to use. It has an arc when you throw it meaning that enemies directly in front of you don't get hit, it just flies over them. Also if the bird is NOT on your back then it doesn't count as a second hit. I died so many times when I would press the attack button, the bird would fly OVER the target and then it would hit me and kill me because the bird was across the screen. That was the most frustrating thing in my opinion!!
I love all the different hacks for this game. Every time you get a hack, it changes all 4 characters as well as the birdfly weapon. There's one with Zelda/Mario/Starfox/Pikachu, one with Sapo Xule and his swamp friends (where birdfly is Sapo's infamous stinky shoes), there's a pokemon one with Pikachu/Psyduck/Charmander/Squirtle (where birdfly is Togepi). There's the North Korean hack based on the Clever Raccoon Dog cartoon, a sonic hack with Sonic/Knuckles/Shadow/Tails (where birdfly is a chaos emerald), and a ton of other hacks featuring different Brazilian cartoon characters. Very addicting game.
Oh my god, this is the game I've been trying to remember the name of for the past six years. I've tried describing it to people but nobody else seemed to remember this. Thank you! This takes me back.
great game! and great review as always...I could not help but to notice around 2:01 on the video...those statues look remarkably similar to the toonki statue you can morph into in Mario 3. Mario 3---1988....Psycho fox...1989. I love how your review-type videos show continuous gameplay and does not flash back and forth between face time and an overabundance of flashy animation or clips and art meant to be humorous. Keep it Up!
So what you are saying is, I'm a lazy editor?! :D You know, those statues looked familiar to me but I couldn't quite place it. I'm sure there are a few other nods to SMB1 and 2 that others might notice as well. Such a cool game!
Great review! Picked this up in Vegas. It was expensive, but I needed a reason to play my Master System. My only criticism of your review is I'm surprised you never mentioned the "sister/companion" game to Psycho Fox, Kid Kool for the NES. It's the same engine and developers, though. There's also DecapAttack for the Genesis.
I've never really heard of this game until now. Thanks, Kris. By the way, do you have a TG-16? Cause this game really does remind me of a lot of platformers on that system such as Keith Courage and of course, Bonk's Adventure.
I've owned a TG-16 along with Keith Courage and the Bonk games back in the day. Currently I do own a PC-Engine but my library is quite small at the moment...
Great video as always! I really like Psycho Fox and always have - It's definitely my favourite in the "trilogy". There are definitely better platformers on the Master System though. I'd say Land of Illusion is probably the best!
I just purchased a MD Powerbase Convertor and this game (£6) with 9 others which lve paid for.They're cheap as chips here in England U.K right now especially the unboxed Carts.l had a MS 2 back in the very early 90s and it was my first ever console.l use to play it before catching the school bus ,I'd get up an hour before the bus left just to try and progress on Captain Silver or Lucky Dime Caper ,heck there were many others,great memories.Time to rekindle those memories now. Thanks for the review chap. :)
I'm surprised this game is $100, damn. I remember buying this in 2008ish for almost nothing. Got Pyscho Fox, R-Type (SMS) and Teddy Boy along with SMS and NES systems for $17 off eBay.
Psycho Fox is doing a sumo stance while stating "Dosukoi", a common chant to show how powerful you are, in this case, Psycho Fox is showing how tough he was to go through the game. redfreesias03.tumblr.com/post/127586529231/what-does-the-word-dosukoi-mean-as-in-dosukoi
Even though im focussing on Nes collecting right now (lots of nice games i still want to buy to play) I am looking to buy this one to, it looks like a very nice sms game. I passed on it multiple times due to its price. I am hoping to snatch it now for cheap.
I came across Psycho Fox in a bargain bin after I'd passed down my Master System to my sons to play on. I was really pleasantly surprised by it, definitely an unexpected pleasure. The vibrant and colourful visuals, reasonable level design and learning curve made it a great game to play alongside my kids.
I LOOOOVE Psycho Fox. One of my all time favourite games. We would sit up all night rotating the controller to see who could advance to the next level. Magic!
The ending is a bit strange. Psycho Fox is a sumo wrestler for some reason, doing some traditional display I think the grand champion usually does. I don't know too much about it, but I've seen it a few times. He's saying "dosukoi!", which is a sumo exclamation of sorts. I'm sure you've heard E. Honda say it in Street Fighter II. My cousins had this game. They were the only ones I knew that had a master system and would play this, Wonder Boy, and Alex Kid in Miracle World every time I went to their house. After all these years, I still haven't gotten my hand on a Master System, but will definitely be looking if I can find some stores that might have it next time I visit back home. The nostalgia would blow my mind to get those. I remember being frustrated by the jumps too, especially not being able to move the screen back to gain momentum to jump over long pits or water. I liked beating it with trying to stick to only one of the characters per run, also adding to the replay value.
If you have a Genesis (which I assume you do?) the PowerBase Mini ($45) and PowerBase Mini FM ($70) are pretty much cheaper than a SMS console these days.
Psycho Fox, I liked. Fun to play, yes. Easy to complete, not so. I never managed to complete the game. I love Sonic Chaos, which I can only complete with Tails, a lot more. The catchiest background tune in Sonic Chaos is Mecha Green Hill Zone. Psycho Fox remains at the bottom of great Master System games in my opinion. I've forgotten all about Psycho Fox, so the game has gone into outer oblivion. For clever gamers only.
Yeah i liked this game, didn't own it but a friend had. I was really good with the tiger. Somehow the tiger gave me the right flow, to traverse the levels superfast. When i tried to move slow with caution... i died much more often ^^
I just want to put random signs all over my community that says "Round End." I wonder how many people would actually get it? I can't afford to be giving out free flag poles, stairs made out of square blocks, and castles with fireworks. So "Round End" will have to do. ;)
This is an enjoyable review of a very good game. However, there's no way Psycho Fox is anywhere near being the best platform game on the Master System. The Master System library is stuffed full of top class platform games: it's one of the genres in which the system really excels. As good as Psycho Fox is, it's a second tier title by (the admittedly high) Master System standards. Castle of Illusion, World of Illusion, the first two Asterix games, both Donald Duck games, Sonic 1 and 2, Alex Kidd, etc. are all at least a level above this. Still a good review but ranking this game as a contender really does a disservice to the excellence of platforming options on the system.
What is happening at the ending? That is all sumo. Trust me, look up sumo and its traditions and that is 100% sumo. And I just realized that in the desert is a, wait for it, desert rose. Now I'm going to have that Sting song in my head.
My friend had this when I was growing up so I got to spend a lot of time with it back in the day and also later on through emulation. Never understood the high praise for it and still think it's one of the most overrated titles on the system, it looks cool and can be fun early on but the reliance on leaps of faith and memorisation just suck the fun out of what should be a skill based platformer.
Hi Kris, you call this game great, replayable, and the best on the Master System. I'd like to know if you still feel that way in 2019. I really thought the lack of set pieces, music, enemy variety, and abundance of blind jumps would make this an awful game.
I honestly think the only redeeming quality this games has are it's graphics. Everything else is "meh" at best. Especially the speed, which is either too fast or too slow.
With the exception of the brilliant Rastan and Asterix, the Master System and its terrible games traumatised my childhood. Psycho Fox was one of those terrible games. Thank goodness for Nintendo!
As someone who grew up with the SMS, I can't say i hate a game on the console more than this one...My Hero might be close, but yeah, I don't get the love this game gets. It's garbage.
In 2011 I was in a tough patch in life like we all go through. All of what little game collection I had I sold off for money. I was out of work for that summer and past the time watcing two channels I really began to enjoy. Those being Metal Jesus Rocks, and Implantgames. I watched your reviews on all the games I missed for obscure consoles I owned, mainly the sega cd and Jaguar. Your reviews made me salivate to start collecting once my job rampt back up. I left from Kansas City to a contract job in Seattle Washington with all the retro game stores I could ever ask for. The very first game I spent big bucks on.. a mint copy of Android assualt for the sega cd. I have said this many times and will always remember how your reviews and videos kept me alive. They started the road to building a great collection. The summer of 2011 will always have you in my memory sir. Thank you! The games you have reviewed were the first games on my collection lists, and you have not steered me wrong. Super burnout, and android assualt being some of your best recomendations. I am thankful you started making videos again. Best wishes to you!
This is easily the most sentimental comment anyone has ever left and I really don't have a worthy response. I'm glad everything is well! Throughout my life there have always been shows, movies, games, and songs that have gotten me through life's curveballs. I never thought about my youtube videos offering that for someone else. I am deeply humbled, thank you so much!
Lovely message!
Honestly, without Psycho Fox, I don't think Sonic would have existed. Psycho Fox was programmed by Vic Tokai for SEGA, and it is rumoured Psycho Fox was SEGA's first attempt at a replacement for Alex Kidd as mascot. The multiple pathways, momentum-based gameplay, and surrealism all make me think Sonic was meant to be a successor to this game by SEGA themselves (since they liked the idea), but not the entire quadrilogy of Jump Heaven/Speed Hell games, which Magical Hat's Flying Turbo Adventure too is a part of.
It's kinda funny, since you wonder if Time Dominator 1st by Vic Tokai was a clapback to SEGA themselves saying "you took our idea and made money and fame from it, and we are taking it back".
That ending is a depiction of the beginning of a traditional sumo match, complete with the floating roof and leg stomping!
So weird!
You know I played this back in the day and thought WOW! Seems like a cool platformer but DAMN I was never any good at it and never got far and yet I still keep trying, playing lol. Something charming about it. I liked the name and having a FOX as the main character.
Kris, I love this particular series. I always find it fascinating to go back and read reviews of old games. It's interesting to see what was regarded as good that just didn't hold up, or the opposite.
Yeah, I didn't even realize EGM was around back in 1989. The Video Game Critic is obviously not from 1989, but still fun to read what he wrote back in 2002. Time flies!
DeCapAttack is a re-skin of Magical Turbo Flying Hat Adventure.
It is :)
I just discovered your channel because I was looking for a good Psycho Fox review and I was delighted with yours. Will check the rest of your channel, keep up the good work!
Hey man, thanks!
I think your "is it still good" series is much more fitting than general reviews because you take into consideration how fun the game is in the here and now rather than viewing it from the perspective of when the game came out. Keep up the good work, I always enjoy your reviews even if I have 0 interest in the game
Thanks man, glad to hear it :)
Great review on the game. I recently played through it for nostalgia and man was it tougher than I remember but after getting that momentum down it is alright. Well except the ice world, man I died so many times to that area.
Something you didn't touch upon which you should is that the bird you get is pretty annoying to use. It has an arc when you throw it meaning that enemies directly in front of you don't get hit, it just flies over them. Also if the bird is NOT on your back then it doesn't count as a second hit. I died so many times when I would press the attack button, the bird would fly OVER the target and then it would hit me and kill me because the bird was across the screen. That was the most frustrating thing in my opinion!!
Good eye with the Bird as well. It isn't something I really noticed but I should have investigated further!
I always found this game really endearing. There's nothing spectacular about it but it's just a really solid game.
You pretty much hit the nail on the head. Not spectacular, but extremely solid :)
I love all the different hacks for this game. Every time you get a hack, it changes all 4 characters as well as the birdfly weapon.
There's one with Zelda/Mario/Starfox/Pikachu, one with Sapo Xule and his swamp friends (where birdfly is Sapo's infamous stinky shoes), there's a pokemon one with Pikachu/Psyduck/Charmander/Squirtle (where birdfly is Togepi).
There's the North Korean hack based on the Clever Raccoon Dog cartoon, a sonic hack with Sonic/Knuckles/Shadow/Tails (where birdfly is a chaos emerald), and a ton of other hacks featuring different Brazilian cartoon characters. Very addicting game.
Heard of this game but i never knew it was this cool. Thanks for this video!
No problem, thanks for the comment!
Oh my god, this is the game I've been trying to remember the name of for the past six years. I've tried describing it to people but nobody else seemed to remember this. Thank you! This takes me back.
All of this remind me so much of decapattack.. Even down to the momentum.. But I loved that game so this one looks right up my alley
If you enjoyed Decap Attack, then Psycho Fox is a must!
great game! and great review as always...I could not help but to notice around 2:01 on the video...those statues look remarkably similar to the toonki statue you can morph into in Mario 3. Mario 3---1988....Psycho fox...1989. I love how your review-type videos show continuous gameplay and does not flash back and forth between face time and an overabundance of flashy animation or clips and art meant to be humorous. Keep it Up!
So what you are saying is, I'm a lazy editor?! :D You know, those statues looked familiar to me but I couldn't quite place it. I'm sure there are a few other nods to SMB1 and 2 that others might notice as well. Such a cool game!
I only noticed it because I had just played Mario 3. Nope not a lazy editor, just a reviewer that entertains and informs with out the need for filler!
Great review! Picked this up in Vegas. It was expensive, but I needed a reason to play my Master System. My only criticism of your review is I'm surprised you never mentioned the "sister/companion" game to Psycho Fox, Kid Kool for the NES. It's the same engine and developers, though. There's also DecapAttack for the Genesis.
I've never really heard of this game until now. Thanks, Kris. By the way, do you have a TG-16? Cause this game really does remind me of a lot of platformers on that system such as Keith Courage and of course, Bonk's Adventure.
I've owned a TG-16 along with Keith Courage and the Bonk games back in the day. Currently I do own a PC-Engine but my library is quite small at the moment...
Discovered this game randomly in 2014 and loved it. Amazing game!
2014 was a good time to find it, this game is bizarrely expensive these days!
Reminds me of a more proto-Ardy Lightfoot. Neat.
Great video as always! I really like Psycho Fox and always have - It's definitely my favourite in the "trilogy". There are definitely better platformers on the Master System though. I'd say Land of Illusion is probably the best!
People have been recommending Land of Illusion for a while now, I think it's time I finally pull the trigger :)
I got my Master System on Christmas 1988 and remember this game but never played it. Now it's almost 2019 and after playing this game I'm hooked.
I just purchased a MD Powerbase Convertor and this game (£6) with 9 others which lve paid for.They're cheap as chips here in England U.K right now especially the unboxed Carts.l had a MS 2 back in the very early 90s and it was my first ever console.l use to play it before catching the school bus ,I'd get up an hour before the bus left just to try and progress on Captain Silver or Lucky Dime Caper ,heck there were many others,great memories.Time to rekindle those memories now.
Thanks for the review chap. :)
Glad I picked this gem up before it skyrocketed in price.
I'm surprised this game is $100, damn. I remember buying this in 2008ish for almost nothing. Got Pyscho Fox, R-Type (SMS) and Teddy Boy along with SMS and NES systems for $17 off eBay.
Psycho Fox is doing a sumo stance while stating "Dosukoi", a common chant to show how powerful you are, in this case, Psycho Fox is showing how tough he was to go through the game.
redfreesias03.tumblr.com/post/127586529231/what-does-the-word-dosukoi-mean-as-in-dosukoi
Also, is the "psycho stick" a gohei? I wonder how much of the game's "weird" imagery makes perfect sense if you're accustomed to Shinto...
Oh might be.
Even though im focussing on Nes collecting right now (lots of nice games i still want to buy to play) I am looking to buy this one to, it looks like a very nice sms game. I passed on it multiple times due to its price. I am hoping to snatch it now for cheap.
Good luck! I am surprised this one has become so expensive.
I came across Psycho Fox in a bargain bin after I'd passed down my Master System to my sons to play on. I was really pleasantly surprised by it, definitely an unexpected pleasure. The vibrant and colourful visuals, reasonable level design and learning curve made it a great game to play alongside my kids.
Awesome man :)
I LOOOOVE Psycho Fox. One of my all time favourite games. We would sit up all night rotating the controller to see who could advance to the next level. Magic!
That jumping sound would get rather annoying I would think since it gave me a headache just from the video. But great review as always!
I never really noticed the jumping until you and a few others mentioned it haha.
I like getting to use different characters with specialized technique's! enjoyed Kris an it sounds great no crackles or pop z lol
Haha, sound issues should be behind me for a while, I hope!
This is a great review dude
This is a game I must of missed but looking at it, it reminds me a lot of kid cool. Reskin possibly?
Just awesome good memories and is great game
Just sent this video on my suggested - this game looks like an 8bit version of Magical Hat on the megadrive - I loved that game, this looks good.
I never even knew this existed. Will give it a go tonight.
How did it go?
It went about as well as could be expected, thanks for asking....I played for 5 minutes, said "Hmmm, not too bad", then did something else. :)
The ending is a bit strange. Psycho Fox is a sumo wrestler for some reason, doing some traditional display I think the grand champion usually does. I don't know too much about it, but I've seen it a few times. He's saying "dosukoi!", which is a sumo exclamation of sorts. I'm sure you've heard E. Honda say it in Street Fighter II.
My cousins had this game. They were the only ones I knew that had a master system and would play this, Wonder Boy, and Alex Kid in Miracle World every time I went to their house. After all these years, I still haven't gotten my hand on a Master System, but will definitely be looking if I can find some stores that might have it next time I visit back home. The nostalgia would blow my mind to get those.
I remember being frustrated by the jumps too, especially not being able to move the screen back to gain momentum to jump over long pits or water.
I liked beating it with trying to stick to only one of the characters per run, also adding to the replay value.
If you have a Genesis (which I assume you do?) the PowerBase Mini ($45) and PowerBase Mini FM ($70) are pretty much cheaper than a SMS console these days.
best Master system game ever Wonderboy 3 the dragons trap :)
Great video, thank you.
Anytime!
Psycho Fox, I liked. Fun to play, yes. Easy to complete, not so. I never managed to complete the game. I love Sonic Chaos, which I can only complete with Tails, a lot more. The catchiest background tune in Sonic Chaos is Mecha Green Hill Zone. Psycho Fox remains at the bottom of great Master System games in my opinion. I've forgotten all about Psycho Fox, so the game has gone into outer oblivion. For clever gamers only.
This game was quality back in the late 80s, still a sms classic imo
Yeah i liked this game, didn't own it but a friend had. I was really good with the tiger. Somehow the tiger gave me the right flow, to traverse the levels superfast. When i tried to move slow with caution... i died much more often ^^
this was a game where when you died you put a sledgehammer to your master system
Lmao :D
Psycho Fox was amazing. I miss it
one of the best games on the system
classic! so many secrets
This game was amazing
This is great game..You can actually clear It in about ten mins with one of the secret warps
personally I think the best master system game is Land of Illusion.
Please play and review that game.
It's on the short list of games to import!
Loved this game as a kid.. by the by there are "warps" I guess, through punching certain areas in the sky. Again very Mario-esque but meh !
This was the first game I ever completed
It just might be the first Master System game I beat. Good times!
I just want to put random signs all over my community that says "Round End." I wonder how many people would actually get it? I can't afford to be giving out free flag poles, stairs made out of square blocks, and castles with fireworks. So "Round End" will have to do. ;)
I love Magical Hat no Buttobi Turbo! Daibōken.....
Kinda reminds me of Decap Attack on Genesis. Just not as good.
I'll have to revisit Decap Attack. For some reason I have fonder memories of Psycho Fox, perhaps it's just nostalgia.
This is an enjoyable review of a very good game. However, there's no way Psycho Fox is anywhere near being the best platform game on the Master System.
The Master System library is stuffed full of top class platform games: it's one of the genres in which the system really excels. As good as Psycho Fox is, it's a second tier title by (the admittedly high) Master System standards.
Castle of Illusion, World of Illusion, the first two Asterix games, both Donald Duck games, Sonic 1 and 2, Alex Kidd, etc. are all at least a level above this.
Still a good review but ranking this game as a contender really does a disservice to the excellence of platforming options on the system.
So this proto mascot with attitude
*fantastic game and very expensive now!!*
What is happening at the ending? That is all sumo. Trust me, look up sumo and its traditions and that is 100% sumo. And I just realized that in the desert is a, wait for it, desert rose. Now I'm going to have that Sting song in my head.
Up to 4 money bags? There is at least one level that has 5 bags!!!
What are these animals doing... with no tails?
Yes, it is.
Hi, i still like him.
The jumping sound is annoying though. The worst decision developed made.
Perhaps!
Perhaps!
My friend had this when I was growing up so I got to spend a lot of time with it back in the day and also later on through emulation. Never understood the high praise for it and still think it's one of the most overrated titles on the system, it looks cool and can be fun early on but the reliance on leaps of faith and memorisation just suck the fun out of what should be a skill based platformer.
Hi Kris, you call this game great, replayable, and the best on the Master System. I'd like to know if you still feel that way in 2019. I really thought the lack of set pieces, music, enemy variety, and abundance of blind jumps would make this an awful game.
Haha I love that ending. It makes no sense
better than kid kool, at the very least
your like ceave gaming but without the accent
I'm not a Psycho Fox fan. I hate the momentum/jumping system.
I honestly think the only redeeming quality this games has are it's graphics. Everything else is "meh" at best. Especially the speed, which is either too fast or too slow.
The jump sound is already annoying me.
Yeah, whenever I go back to grab footage from this game I cringe.
With the exception of the brilliant Rastan and Asterix, the Master System and its terrible games traumatised my childhood. Psycho Fox was one of those terrible games. Thank goodness for Nintendo!
As someone who grew up with the SMS, I can't say i hate a game on the console more than this one...My Hero might be close, but yeah, I don't get the love this game gets. It's garbage.
It's not Castle of Illusion so not best platformer.
Yeah, seems I'm going to have to pull the trigger on SMS Castle of Illusion!
+implantgames with the prices of retro games I'd say try in an emulator before buying. I love the game but everyone is different.
I don't understand the appeal of this game. The controls are just trash.
The game sucks.