I was always a big fan of Herzog Zwei. The music is great and a few of us would play against each other all the time. I think we played it as much as we did Thunder Force. I never liked playing RTS on anything but PC but Herzog was an exception. Really ahead of its time for a console RTS.
Thunderforce 2 was hard yet so amazing to me as a new Genesis owner in 1989. I played some Altered Beast, but a helluva lot of Thunderforce 2. The sound and graphics were the best for that first couple of weeks of the Genesis console here in US. Technosoft proved they were the digital gods of programming.
From what I can find in regard to contemporary reviews of Steeldom in Japan, it was rather mediocre and mostly went under the radar. It looks cool, but it seems that the gameplay was severely lacking.
I thought the music in Thunder Force 3 was catchier, but, Thunder Force 4 was a tour de force for graphics and audio. It pushed Genesis/Mega Drive graphics above what was seen on SNES for similar shooters. It is without doubt one of the best spaceship shoot em ups ever released. I played it not long after its release in the UK and told as many people as I could about it. I still go back to videos on UA-cam to listen to the music and audio for nostalgia. It hasn't been bettered.
@@starfire451 The only criticism you can give Thunderforce IV is slow down on occasion ( although it kind of helps gameplay, kind of like bullet time ) and a lack of a two player mode. Everything else is spot on. I was the same and told everyone I could about it. A shame Thunderforce III never officially came to the UK. I'd recommend Biohazard Battle and Super Aleste on SNES to play as well
Thunder Force 2 is a great game it actually got me into listening to electronic music because of the soundtrack of the game. Herzog Zwei is such an underrated and forgotten game it truly deserves a remake on a newer system. The concept is still cool and I haven’t seen another game like it. The soundtrack was great as well ‘Breach of Contract’ was one of my favorite tracks. Your videos are great and your passion for Sega truly brings back good memories.😎👍🏽
Herzog Zwei was re-released on the Switch last year, complete with tutorials, and online vs play. There is also a spiritual remake called AirMech that is on PC, X360, PS3, X1 and PS4.
Thunderforce 2 started the Technosoft love for me. I didn't really have problems with the over head levels save for the underground/cave one; supposedly there is a path through the caves to each base, but there was one I just could not find, I would always end up sacrificing a life to pass through the solid rock walls Herzog Zwei was initially misunderstood, like most I was expecting another shooter like TF2, but it was so much more. This was a jewel in the collection. I initially missed the overhead stages from TF2 in Thunderforce 3, but quickly got over it. TF3 was an amazing game when the shooter competition was polishing up its act, Whip Rush, Gaiares and M.U.S.H.A. all provided great experiences at the time, but TF3 was the cream of the crop. Thunderforce 4/ Lightening Force as it was known in the U.S., was a showcase; that one stage with the layers of clouds, mountains, and water was just breathtaking. The game was pretty hard too.
Dragon's Fury/ Devil Crash, was my dad's favorite game when I was a kid. Believe it or not, after decades, we are still playing it since the pandemic. It's just perfect! And I'm 40 and he is 70.
When the very first genesis DOS emulator showed up I was desperatedly looking for this game again. It took some time to be able to play it, but I still play it.(never beated it, without a code)
My Dad is 72 and loved it back in the day. I’m now 48 and playing it with my 15 year old son during the lockdown. One of my favourite pinball games of all time. The music reminds me of Yngwie Malmsteen too.
@@SEGA128DC yes, but, something about "Lightening Force" is quite endearing IMO. Something that'd be quite the mistake by today's standards, though it does happen ("Resident Evil Revelaitions", though that was more of a marketing typo), it does not carry the same endearing quality. Plus "lightning" is cooler than "thunder" anyway....
"What could they do with 32Mb?" For Technosoft, it was never about technology... it was all about game design. Even with 2Mb on Genesis they would be doing great
Fun fact: Their slogan on the TF3 box art (japanese) was "World of Technology". Got have resources to use for game design. More memory means better art, additional modes of play, better animation etc.Technosoft made due with what they had. We'd never have progressed to better and better hardware if it was just about the game play. It's symbiotic.
@@joaoclodoaudo5385 V is awesome on saturn, but the polygons didn't age well. Needs a remake. A traditional sprite/artwork version would be interesting. I'd still rather have it on Saturn though.
Thunder Force IV is still my favorite side scrolling shmup to this day, and one of the handful of megadrive/genesis cartridges I kept preciously all these years.
I was so impressed with Thunderforce IV (still today) on how Technosoft managed to move so many sprites on screen and then that many multi layer backgrounds. I don’t remember any other Genesis game moving that many sprites simultaneously on-screen. They sure squeezed the Genesis’ Motorola 68K to the max!
Thunder Force II was the first game I got for my Genesis in 1989. Loved it, and could beat it without a problem. Wish it was included on the Genesis Mini.
Thunderforce 3 is my favourite side scrolling shooter ever. It was also the game that made me buy a megadrive after playing it at my work mates house. I went downtown the following Saturday and got a Japanese import megadrive with Eswat, another great game, and a copy of thunderforce 3. Still play this now as I love the ending and it’s music.
ThunderForce III was my first side scrolling Shooter on my MegaDrive, and I fell in love with it. My friend already had Herzog Zwei, and I'll never forget our 5h+ duels there. DevilCrush was the best phantasy Pinball game I ever had. Besides amiga's pinball dreams I got much later for PSP. And I had fun playing DevilCrush with Thunderforce or Herzog Zwei BGM by entering the "omakebgm__" password trick. Still looking for a reasonable priced Thunderforce IV or Magican Lord. You did a good job collecting all infos put together. Great Video
Former Thunder Force IV programmer mentioned on Twitter that the game while being on an 8mb cart it was actually 16mb but compressed, that's why when you beat a boss it goes blackout, to load the next stage.
I've watched a lot of these sort of "Every game by this developer" videos. I have to say this the first one where literally everything the company in question put out was amazing.
HZ was some of the earliest battle rts fun I remember having. It took an uncle in his 20's to explain how to play it to us and we were hooked. I showed like 5 other kids to play and we gathered for hours after school having tournaments.
Technosoft is one of my all times favorite game development studio. It was the whole package: great graphics, incredible soundtracks and great gameplay. To me TFIV is the go to game when talking what the Mega Drive was about. I wish they released a Thunder Force on the Mega CD. Especially after seeing Thunder Force III's incredible clone on the PC-Engine Super CD-Rom², Gate of Thunder.
When I rented Herzog I was the same as you and thought it should have been more like the overhead stages on TF2, after exploding a few times I gave up except the music drew me back in and I figured it out the next morning before I had to return the game, it became one of my most favored games ever. The gameplay still holds up, I showed me 6 year old son how to play it and he loved it.
I absolutely love the Thunder Force series. I remember buying TF3 because it had a price cut at my local ToysR'Us ($19.99). I didn't know anything about the game but I fell in love with it when I fired it up. My Grandma (RIP) once heard me playing it and liked the ending them :-)
That’s funny. My parents bought me Thunderforce III at Toy R Us and I specifically remember it being $19.99. I loved the box art so I gave it a shot. Ended up being my favorite Genesis game.
It's probably worth noting that there was a third Compile-developed "Crush" pinball game as well, Jaki Crush. Sadly it was only released for the Super Famicom in Japan. It's still weird that the one Compile game that Technosoft ported was a pinball game rather than a shooter.
Thunderforce III will forever be my best blind purchase. I knew nothing about the game back in 1990 and as an 11 year old loved the art on the box. It ended up being my all time favorite Genesis game.
As far as I'm concerned, Tecnosoft was a perfect 6 for 6 on the Genesis. Every Genesis game they made is a masterpiece. I know it's a minority opinion, but I find Thunder Force II the greatest of them all. The overhead sections weren't bad, and the side-scrolling sections included some of my favorite stages in any shooter.
You're not alone, I spend more time with TF2 than any of the others. Even love the overhead sections but I didn't realize the x68000 version would look so much better until seeing this video. I hope there's a MiSTer core because I've got to play that
Herzog Zwei has two online successors called AirMech and WarMech. Both wonderfully made independent titles that retain the top down strategy appeal of the original.
Lots of great stuff here. Elemental Master is one that surprised me quite a bit. It's got an unusual premise, different game mechanics, and it's a vertical scroller. But it is quite well made and has some nice music. That one was a joy to discover. Thunder Force 4 has that late-80s, early-90s space anime style to its sprite work that I never get tired of seeing. Really nice job on the visuals, and everything else, really.
how did I miss this episode?! Herzong Zwei - a friend and I would let the game sit for an hour+ while we played outside, we'd come back and have enough money to do a big tank rush! So much fun, thanks for reminding me of that memory and letting me ramble. cheers!
TF3 was in the initial batch of Genesis games I got for Christmas along with the console, and the intro screen was one of my first indications that this thing was way more powerful than an 8-bit machine (along with running down the mountain in the second level of Strider). 1990 was a hell of a year for Genesis games. Also always liked Thunder Force 3 more than 4, although both were pretty much untouchable when it came to shooters.
I didn't play any of Technosoft's stuff while growing up - I mostly stuck with Konami and first-party Sega titles. But having played them in recent years, I feel that Thunder Force 4 and Herzog Zwei alone were good reasons to consider getting a Genesis back in those days.
That Starblade Sega CD port is awesome. Played it all the time back in the day, and still fire it up. The visual trickery is very nice and gives the illusion of full polygons. A nice gem in the Sega CD library. Never knew Technosoft handled it. They did a great job!
Lightening Force was my first Genesis shmup, and remains my favorite shooting game to this day. As far as I'm concerned, it's unrivaled in the 16-bit era, and its soundtrack is still one of the best of all time. I was very happy to see it come to the Sega Ages line on the Switch, and top get the official vinyl soundtrack release through Data Discs. Truly, a landmark game.
Great video! Love Techno-soft! I read somewhere on the Internet that Techno-soft was actually the first third-party for the Megadrive. Also read that Hergoz Zweig was a source of inspiration for the creators of Dune II, generally considered the first RTS.
Japanese developers had so much experience with Yamaha FM chips in mid-to-late 80s arcade board games, they ran laps around Western developers when it came to Mega Drive music drivers. Even the '89 to '91 games from top Japanese devs had tunes that absolutely crushed (almost) anything being produced by UK and North American devs, who often had to rely on pitiful sound drivers included with the SDK that Sega of America provided teams.
Yes technosoft is my favorite of all time for shooters, and I agree with you x, few games have ever surpassed thunder force 4. I do love thunder force 5 as well, never had a chance to play 6. And nobody does graphics, sound, and presentation better than them. I miss having them around, I can only hope someone either does a new game, or makes a collection.
So many good memories of herzog zwei once understanding how to play....seriously felt like some sort of clever-clogs once matey and myself eventually figured it - absolutely top game!....and that sound track!
@@SegaLordX originally that was how i felt - but seriously; if you've never played it before - work it out (man its simpler than command and conquer!) And absolutely enjoy a great game especially 2 player!
Truly great stuff! Technosoft games were a big part of my experience as a Sega Genesis owner and the Thunderforce series has aged incredibly well today. I'm just sad that I was an idiot and sold all my original games :(
Thunderforce 3 is my favourite shmup of all time it's incredible. Everything from the graphics, music, stage design, power ups, parallax scrolling is perfect. I wish they would re release it remastered with HD graphics and plenty of extras. They could remaster 3 and 4 and release them together that would be insane.
Thunder Force II was really hard back then. I had no idea how to progress in it when I was a kid. But I finally figured it out in my adulthood and made it to the 2nd level finally! TF3 was much better. I always wondered why they changed TF4's name in the west to Lightening Force.
Thunder Force III has a refined beauty to it, and to this day is one of my all-time favorite shooters. The soundtrack is incredible. One the best on Genesis (or anywhere IMO). Thunder Force IV does not have the same elegance, but holy shit is it awesome. It is a bad-ass metal album that pushes the Genesis to its absolute limits. I freaking love these games. Thank you Sega Lord X, love the video 👍
Technosoft is a huge asset to the Gen/MD library. Thunder Force IV alone makes it so. TF3 is wonderful as well and a great gateway shooter. Elemental Master is great too with that awesome endgame charge up beam you get, every game has impeccable music. These are some of those timeless gems you can use to show friends today, what makes the Gen/MD worth playing and appreciating, every system has games like that, that are showcase worthy. "Stand up Against Myself"!
Thx 4 this excellent Roundup for one of my most beloved VG-Company. Please do more (complete) Overviews in the Future. I still hope, that the Talents behind TS will come together once more for Thunder Force 7 or an Company- Collection🔥...R-Type Final 2 shows😉
I loved sooo much TF II back then. I was amaze. Because back then, that was the sh*t. It's easy to judge the game (TF II) by the standards now, but again, baaaack then, it was just incredible. Love the over the top view because it was different and challenging. Was a perfect game: incredible graphics, great use of colors for the limited Genesis, perfect use of the sound chip both in music, effects and voice overs. I even finished. I'm playing it this weekend on my PS mini, and then the III and of course the IV. Thanks for the video, and brought me back to good old times! Long live Sega!
Watching Thunder Force 3 here makes me wonder if TechnoSoft had a hand in developing Gate of Thunder on the PC Engine. I've never played TF3 but I LOVE GoT and so many of it's assets seem fairly familiar here. Great video as always!
I hope to see a "so and so, on the sega master" series. I loved these. I watch konami, data east, and the turbografx ones that you make. My favorite series of video topics
My 3 best games ever on Mega Drive are the first Sonic, Thunder Force 4 and Dragon's Fury. Tecnosoft made me dream for months when I was 12 and 13 years old. Thunder Force 4 is still the best 2D shooter on Earth today in my eyes. Last Resort and Pulstar on Neo-Geo are superb. But we get tired of it faster, a notch less powerful, less adrenaline. Thunder Force 4's music is amazing, and the MD's FM sound is perfect. You just have to make the digitized voices clearer in a superior version. The graphics are still crazy today. Even on a Neo-Geo, stage 1 above water could with its multiple planes pose problems for good programmers, because it doesn't make a lot of planes natively. Toshio Ozono left to join the stars in 2014. I would have liked to say a big thank you to him for Thunder Force 4 and Dragon's Fury, the 2 cartridges that turned the most in my Mega Drive at the time with Sonic 1. It was awesome. Best shooter 2D on the best 2D machine =) Thanks Ozono
Thunder Force III was one of my first Genesis games. I picked up for the sole reason of having some variety on my games, and I wanted a shooter... Man, I LOVED that game to death. I played so much that I could end it without losing 😅 Music, graphics, control... Everything was just neat-o.
Thunder Force 4, best shoot em up. Period. Foro those who like the soundtrack of this game, go on UA-cam listen to the guitar cover of some dudes. They are perfects.
Thunder force 4 is the best horizontal shooter ever made. Still playing it after almost 30 years. I think there was another shooter for saturn by technosoft called blast wind.
One thing I pride myself on as an old school gamer was that I was one hell of a dedicated kid! Battle toads and thunder force II were a few of the most difficult games I actually finished multiple times! Ask me to try now though, my aging ass wouldn't even be able to get half way through! lol
I loved Dragons Fury! The sequel was ok but the first one was amazing to me. Thunder force is such a great series as well!! Another great video from you. Been watching and subbed for awhile now. You constantly take me to my childhood and love that 😎 take care👍
Thunderforce 4 was amazing . I remember seeing it running in the game shop stunned then going home to bug my mum saying it was the best megadrive game and i NEEDED it 😂
Thunder force IV was so so so good in fact in my opinion its the best side scrolling shooter ever. (Yes better than R-type) never finished it mind, bought it on switch literally the other day and still it beats me .
Thunder Force IV was a $50 metal album that came with a free game.
Amen
Check out sebdoom !! This guy makes awesome TF-remixes and TF4-stylish metal tracks!
That title music is so bad ass
The drums, man. No one beat Technosoft's drums.
edit: unintentional pun
@@diemdem3076 sebdoom? I can't find such videos in UA-cam.
I love how he says "I WILL catch you next time", almost like a threat.
i know right, getting PTSD
Better him than Dog The Bounty Hunter
You're obviously guilty of something 🙄
I am now almost certain those will be the last words I ever hear.
Next time Gadget, i promise ill get you, next time!!
Thunderforce IV: the reason I bought a Megadrive and the best 2D horizontal shooter ever!
My reason was Shinobi 3. I can absolutely agree Thunderforce IV is the best 2D horizontal shooter ever. Cheers to that!
Thunder force iv is good.. As it thunder force v and vi. But wheres the love for technosofts hyper duel
Thunderforce IV, Shinobi 3, Streets of Rage II for me the Genesis-defining games!
@@diemdem3076 top games right there..
I was always a big fan of Herzog Zwei. The music is great and a few of us would play against each other all the time. I think we played it as much as we did Thunder Force. I never liked playing RTS on anything but PC but Herzog was an exception. Really ahead of its time for a console RTS.
I really didn't know what to make of it at first. It took awhile, but I finally got the hang of it. Really unique game for its time.
Thunderforce 2 was hard yet so amazing to me as a new Genesis owner in 1989. I played some Altered Beast, but a helluva lot of Thunderforce 2. The sound and graphics were the best for that first couple of weeks of the Genesis console here in US. Technosoft proved they were the digital gods of programming.
I'm still blown away by Thunder Force 4. Steeldom looks cool, I've never seen that one. It looks like it would have tough controls.
From what I can find in regard to contemporary reviews of Steeldom in Japan, it was rather mediocre and mostly went under the radar. It looks cool, but it seems that the gameplay was severely lacking.
They made another similar game called Hyper Reverthion for both the Saturn and PS1.
Thunder Force IV is a freakin' work of ART. Easily one of the best looking and sounding games on the Genesis/MD.
Thunder Force IV is my favourite game ever. Its just amazing
Same!
It's the best!
The only game I kept when I sold my Megadrive back in 1996. I still have it today.
Same as Sega Lord X. I recommend Thunder Force IV to anyone who would listen at the time. Favourite horizontally scrolling shoot em up
Yes definitely definitely it is . The music is so so good also.
Thoe not sega megadrive i was hoping for a shoutout to technisofts 'hyper duel' i xall it the arcade verion of thunderforce IV
It is also available on the eShop on the Switch, along with Thunder Force AC.
I thought the music in Thunder Force 3 was catchier, but, Thunder Force 4 was a tour de force for graphics and audio. It pushed Genesis/Mega Drive graphics above what was seen on SNES for similar shooters. It is without doubt one of the best spaceship shoot em ups ever released. I played it not long after its release in the UK and told as many people as I could about it. I still go back to videos on UA-cam to listen to the music and audio for nostalgia. It hasn't been bettered.
@@starfire451 The only criticism you can give Thunderforce IV is slow down on occasion ( although it kind of helps gameplay, kind of like bullet time ) and a lack of a two player mode. Everything else is spot on. I was the same and told everyone I could about it. A shame Thunderforce III never officially came to the UK. I'd recommend Biohazard Battle and Super Aleste on SNES to play as well
Thunder Force 2 is a great game it actually got me into listening to electronic music because of the soundtrack of the game. Herzog Zwei is such an underrated and forgotten game it truly deserves a remake on a newer system. The concept is still cool and I haven’t seen another game like it. The soundtrack was great as well ‘Breach of Contract’ was one of my favorite tracks. Your videos are great and your passion for Sega truly brings back good memories.😎👍🏽
Herzog Zwei was re-released on the Switch last year, complete with tutorials, and online vs play. There is also a spiritual remake called AirMech that is on PC, X360, PS3, X1 and PS4.
@@lazarushernandez5827 I’m gonna check out AirMech thanks!!
Thunderforce 2 started the Technosoft love for me. I didn't really have problems with the over head levels save for the underground/cave one; supposedly there is a path through the caves to each base, but there was one I just could not find, I would always end up sacrificing a life to pass through the solid rock walls
Herzog Zwei was initially misunderstood, like most I was expecting another shooter like TF2, but it was so much more. This was a jewel in the collection.
I initially missed the overhead stages from TF2 in Thunderforce 3, but quickly got over it. TF3 was an amazing game when the shooter competition was polishing up its act, Whip Rush, Gaiares and M.U.S.H.A. all provided great experiences at the time, but TF3 was the cream of the crop.
Thunderforce 4/ Lightening Force as it was known in the U.S., was a showcase; that one stage with the layers of clouds, mountains, and water was just breathtaking. The game was pretty hard too.
Dragon's Fury/ Devil Crash, was my dad's favorite game when I was a kid. Believe it or not, after decades, we are still playing it since the pandemic. It's just perfect! And I'm 40 and he is 70.
When the very first genesis DOS emulator showed up I was desperatedly looking for this game again. It took some time to be able to play it, but I still play it.(never beated it, without a code)
My Dad is 72 and loved it back in the day. I’m now 48 and playing it with my 15 year old son during the lockdown. One of my favourite pinball games of all time. The music reminds me of Yngwie Malmsteen too.
This video lightened my mood today. As if it was a real Lightening Force.
OMG
LOL!
Sega of America should of never changed the name from Thunder Force IV...
@@SEGA128DC yes, but, something about "Lightening Force" is quite endearing IMO. Something that'd be quite the mistake by today's standards, though it does happen ("Resident Evil Revelaitions", though that was more of a marketing typo), it does not carry the same endearing quality. Plus "lightning" is cooler than "thunder" anyway....
i always thought of it as pushing out a giant turd.. the lightening force
Herzog had some of the best music on the megadrive. Loved this when I was a kid. It’s one of the first real time strategy games ever made.
Herzog Zwei is one of my favorite games. Such a cool RTS.
Only good against a 2nd player though. The AI was terrible.
you should try Herzog on the MSX - Herzog Twei was a great continuation on the first part.
@@pcjohn0308 Yeah, I had loads of fun playing it with friends.
@@Vampier Honestly, I never knew there were more games! I always thought it was odd it was called zwei!
"What could they do with 32Mb?"
For Technosoft, it was never about technology... it was all about game design. Even with 2Mb on Genesis they would be doing great
So true
Fun fact: Their slogan on the TF3 box art (japanese) was "World of Technology".
Got have resources to use for game design. More memory means better art, additional modes of play, better animation etc.Technosoft made due with what they had. We'd never have progressed to better and better hardware if it was just about the game play. It's symbiotic.
With 32MB compressed they could do a better thunderforce V on the genesis
@@joaoclodoaudo5385 V is awesome on saturn, but the polygons didn't age well. Needs a remake. A traditional sprite/artwork version would be interesting. I'd still rather have it on Saturn though.
@@vram1974 I really love TFV, super fun. But I also agree with you.
Thunder Force IV is still my favorite side scrolling shmup to this day, and one of the handful of megadrive/genesis cartridges I kept preciously all these years.
I can't even tell you how many hours I put into Thunder Force 3 and 4. Those games are schmup perfection.
I was so impressed with Thunderforce IV (still today) on how Technosoft managed to move so many sprites on screen and then that many multi layer backgrounds. I don’t remember any other Genesis game moving that many sprites simultaneously on-screen. They sure squeezed the Genesis’ Motorola 68K to the max!
Tecnosoft made some of the best musics on the Genesis, hands down.
Crazy people want to buy all 5 original Thunder Force Games.
Thunder Force II was the first game I got for my Genesis in 1989. Loved it, and could beat it without a problem. Wish it was included on the Genesis Mini.
Thunderforce 3 is my favourite side scrolling shooter ever. It was also the game that made me buy a megadrive after playing it at my work mates house. I went downtown the following Saturday and got a Japanese import megadrive with Eswat, another great game, and a copy of thunderforce 3. Still play this now as I love the ending and it’s music.
Every time I hear the name "Thunder Force II" I automatically hear "pew pew pew pew" in my head...magnificent.
I always hear 'this is excileeza, lotto good luck' 😆
Thunder Force 3 and 4! Incredible music!
I really like Elemental Master and Thunder Force 4 both are my favorite shooters on the Genesis.
ThunderForce III was my first side scrolling Shooter on my MegaDrive, and I fell in love with it. My friend already had Herzog Zwei, and I'll never forget our 5h+ duels there. DevilCrush was the best phantasy Pinball game I ever had. Besides amiga's pinball dreams I got much later for PSP. And I had fun playing DevilCrush with Thunderforce or Herzog Zwei BGM by entering the "omakebgm__" password trick. Still looking for a reasonable priced Thunderforce IV or Magican Lord.
You did a good job collecting all infos put together. Great Video
Former Thunder Force IV programmer mentioned on Twitter that the game while being on an 8mb cart it was actually 16mb but compressed, that's why when you beat a boss it goes blackout, to load the next stage.
:O
I didn't know that ! It's reassuring and it explains a lot...
I've watched a lot of these sort of "Every game by this developer" videos. I have to say this the first one where literally everything the company in question put out was amazing.
The most intense personality in the community. I love it.
HZ was some of the earliest battle rts fun I remember having. It took an uncle in his 20's to explain how to play it to us and we were hooked. I showed like 5 other kids to play and we gathered for hours after school having tournaments.
Technosoft is one of my all times favorite game development studio. It was the whole package: great graphics, incredible soundtracks and great gameplay. To me TFIV is the go to game when talking what the Mega Drive was about. I wish they released a Thunder Force on the Mega CD. Especially after seeing Thunder Force III's incredible clone on the PC-Engine Super CD-Rom², Gate of Thunder.
I'm impressed by your thoughtful yet prolific nature; these are well-made videos that come out ALL THE TIME. Nicely done.
When I rented Herzog I was the same as you and thought it should have been more like the overhead stages on TF2, after exploding a few times I gave up except the music drew me back in and I figured it out the next morning before I had to return the game, it became one of my most favored games ever. The gameplay still holds up, I showed me 6 year old son how to play it and he loved it.
Bro did you make this for me?? I literally spent the weekend playing TF and Herzog lol!!
This one has been baking for almost a year. Pulled it out because I was listening to Herzog Zwei music the other day.
I listen to the soundtracks of Thunderforce 3 & 4 and Herzog Zwei at least weekly in my car
I absolutely love the Thunder Force series. I remember buying TF3 because it had a price cut at my local ToysR'Us ($19.99). I didn't know anything about the game but I fell in love with it when I fired it up. My Grandma (RIP) once heard me playing it and liked the ending them :-)
That’s funny. My parents bought me Thunderforce III at Toy R Us and I specifically remember it being $19.99. I loved the box art so I gave it a shot. Ended up being my favorite Genesis game.
@@Joryo1 That's awesome. This series is so underrated!
I clicked as fast as I could! Makes me want to rock out the Thunder Force IV soundtrack on vinyl!
Some of the best music on the machine.
@simon jalbert CRAW! would be more accurate 😝
It's probably worth noting that there was a third Compile-developed "Crush" pinball game as well, Jaki Crush. Sadly it was only released for the Super Famicom in Japan. It's still weird that the one Compile game that Technosoft ported was a pinball game rather than a shooter.
Jaki Crush is hella good to. I've somehow ended up liking it more than Devil's Crush on PCE, which is something I didn't think was possible.
Thunderforce III will forever be my best blind purchase. I knew nothing about the game back in 1990 and as an 11 year old loved the art on the box. It ended up being my all time favorite Genesis game.
Technosoft and Compile; two early developers of Genesis games whose efforts were consistently excellent and always worth getting excited about.
Dragons Fury has to be the best pinball game, I played that game to death.
Truth
The version running on Coregrafx or PC Engine from NEC looks better somehow.
Did you ever entered "omakebgm01" to "04" as password? Tracks from Thunderforce 2 & 3, Herzog Zwei and Magican Lord as BGM for the main table
@@alexandermeisinger9478 no, I didn't know about that. I remember using technosoft & devilscrash as passwords, but can't remember what they gave you.
@@jessop- AFAIK was those 5 or 10 balls to play with
I just want to say that you have some of the best retro videos on UA-cam. Keep up the great work!
As far as I'm concerned, Tecnosoft was a perfect 6 for 6 on the Genesis. Every Genesis game they made is a masterpiece. I know it's a minority opinion, but I find Thunder Force II the greatest of them all. The overhead sections weren't bad, and the side-scrolling sections included some of my favorite stages in any shooter.
I have to agree, I remember when I first played Thuder Force, I lost my damn mind..lol
You're not alone, I spend more time with TF2 than any of the others. Even love the overhead sections but I didn't realize the x68000 version would look so much better until seeing this video. I hope there's a MiSTer core because I've got to play that
Herzog Zwei has two online successors called AirMech and WarMech. Both wonderfully made independent titles that retain the top down strategy appeal of the original.
Lots of great stuff here. Elemental Master is one that surprised me quite a bit. It's got an unusual premise, different game mechanics, and it's a vertical scroller. But it is quite well made and has some nice music. That one was a joy to discover. Thunder Force 4 has that late-80s, early-90s space anime style to its sprite work that I never get tired of seeing. Really nice job on the visuals, and everything else, really.
Techno soft were the gods of the shoot’em up !
I had Thunderforce II at the Christmas after launch. Man I absolutely loved that game and actually liked the overhead areas and the variety!
your narration matches the topic sooooo well - love this channel
how did I miss this episode?! Herzong Zwei - a friend and I would let the game sit for an hour+ while we played outside, we'd come back and have enough money to do a big tank rush! So much fun, thanks for reminding me of that memory and letting me ramble. cheers!
TF3 was in the initial batch of Genesis games I got for Christmas along with the console, and the intro screen was one of my first indications that this thing was way more powerful than an 8-bit machine (along with running down the mountain in the second level of Strider). 1990 was a hell of a year for Genesis games.
Also always liked Thunder Force 3 more than 4, although both were pretty much untouchable when it came to shooters.
Whoa! I didn't know there was a version of Devil's Crush on the Genesis! Thank you for bringing it to my attention. 😁
Find one ! It's one of the best cartridges you can find on Earth today =)
Herzog zwei was a great 2 player vs game. Fun times I had playing against my buddy back then.
I didn't play any of Technosoft's stuff while growing up - I mostly stuck with Konami and first-party Sega titles. But having played them in recent years, I feel that Thunder Force 4 and Herzog Zwei alone were good reasons to consider getting a Genesis back in those days.
That Starblade Sega CD port is awesome. Played it all the time back in the day, and still fire it up. The visual trickery is very nice and gives the illusion of full polygons. A nice gem in the Sega CD library. Never knew Technosoft handled it. They did a great job!
Lightening Force was my first Genesis shmup, and remains my favorite shooting game to this day. As far as I'm concerned, it's unrivaled in the 16-bit era, and its soundtrack is still one of the best of all time. I was very happy to see it come to the Sega Ages line on the Switch, and top get the official vinyl soundtrack release through Data Discs. Truly, a landmark game.
Great video! Love Techno-soft! I read somewhere on the Internet that Techno-soft was actually the first third-party for the Megadrive. Also read that Hergoz Zweig was a source of inspiration for the creators of Dune II, generally considered the first RTS.
Japanese developers had so much experience with Yamaha FM chips in mid-to-late 80s arcade board games, they ran laps around Western developers when it came to Mega Drive music drivers. Even the '89 to '91 games from top Japanese devs had tunes that absolutely crushed (almost) anything being produced by UK and North American devs, who often had to rely on pitiful sound drivers included with the SDK that Sega of America provided teams.
So true
Yes technosoft is my favorite of all time for shooters, and I agree with you x, few games have ever surpassed thunder force 4. I do love thunder force 5 as well, never had a chance to play 6. And nobody does graphics, sound, and presentation better than them. I miss having them around, I can only hope someone either does a new game, or makes a collection.
TF V is awesome! Very joyful to play, I even cried! VI, however, feels cheesy(not made by technosoft)
Herzog Zwei was the first RTS game in my opinion didn't know Tecno Soft was behind it and Sega owns this now.. cool we need an re-make of this game.
So many good memories of herzog zwei once understanding how to play....seriously felt like some sort of clever-clogs once matey and myself eventually figured it - absolutely top game!....and that sound track!
Me too. I think a lot of people hated on that back then because they had no clue how to play it.
@@SegaLordX originally that was how i felt - but seriously; if you've never played it before - work it out (man its simpler than command and conquer!) And absolutely enjoy a great game especially 2 player!
Great video, you brought me back sweet Sega Genesis memories.
Loved thunderforce series so much
Man that 5th stage music in TFIII is freaking awesome.
Truly great stuff! Technosoft games were a big part of my experience as a Sega Genesis owner and the Thunderforce series has aged incredibly well today. I'm just sad that I was an idiot and sold all my original games :(
I don’t always play Technosoft games. But when I do, the neighbors get to jam along to the music with me.
Well said.
Yes..... exactly. Thunder Force IV soundtrack is outstanding
it is impressive how much you pump out high quality content. Love your videos. Keep it up!
Thunderforce 3 is my favourite shmup of all time it's incredible. Everything from the graphics, music, stage design, power ups, parallax scrolling is perfect. I wish they would re release it remastered with HD graphics and plenty of extras. They could remaster 3 and 4 and release them together that would be insane.
I’m glad that I can revisit some of these games on my Switch through Sega Ages. Herzog was one of my favourite on my MegaDrive.
Thunder Force II was really hard back then. I had no idea how to progress in it when I was a kid. But I finally figured it out in my adulthood and made it to the 2nd level finally! TF3 was much better. I always wondered why they changed TF4's name in the west to Lightening Force.
Starblade reminds me of Silpheed. I had Silpheed on the Sega CD and was blown away at the time of all of the polygons. It was a lot of fun too.
It's these uploads that cheer up a cold night.
Renovations, Technosoft, and Wolfteam were some of my favorite companies back in the day
It's cool that Wolfteam still lives on as Tri Ace. You can see their style of game in things like Valkyrie Profile and Resonance Of Fate.
We are long overdue for a Thunder Force 7 or at the very least a Thunder Force compilation with all games from 1-6.
That would be phenomenal and throw in hyperduel as a cheeky bonus unlockable..
@@hardcoredelta only if the guys from technosoft did it(including music).
I have both thunder force 3 and devils crush MD on my mega drive! So much childhood nostalgia
Thunder Force III has a refined beauty to it, and to this day is one of my all-time favorite shooters. The soundtrack is incredible. One the best on Genesis (or anywhere IMO).
Thunder Force IV does not have the same elegance, but holy shit is it awesome. It is a bad-ass metal album that pushes the Genesis to its absolute limits.
I freaking love these games. Thank you Sega Lord X, love the video 👍
Technosoft is a huge asset to the Gen/MD library. Thunder Force IV alone makes it so. TF3 is wonderful as well and a great gateway shooter. Elemental Master is great too with that awesome endgame charge up beam you get, every game has impeccable music. These are some of those timeless gems you can use to show friends today, what makes the Gen/MD worth playing and appreciating, every system has games like that, that are showcase worthy.
"Stand up Against Myself"!
Herzog Zwei is one of my favorite games on the console along with Ghouls n Ghosts, Streets of Rage, and Gunstar Heroes!
Thx 4 this excellent Roundup for one of my most beloved VG-Company. Please do more (complete) Overviews in the Future. I still hope, that the Talents behind TS will come together once more for Thunder Force 7 or an Company- Collection🔥...R-Type Final 2 shows😉
You already had me at "Tec(h)no Soft, but starting with one of my favorite BGMs from Thunder Force III sealed it.
I loved sooo much TF II back then. I was amaze. Because back then, that was the sh*t. It's easy to judge the game (TF II) by the standards now, but again, baaaack then, it was just incredible. Love the over the top view because it was different and challenging. Was a perfect game: incredible graphics, great use of colors for the limited Genesis, perfect use of the sound chip both in music, effects and voice overs. I even finished. I'm playing it this weekend on my PS mini, and then the III and of course the IV. Thanks for the video, and brought me back to good old times! Long live Sega!
played a lot when I was a kid, and today! I like it very much!
Watching Thunder Force 3 here makes me wonder if TechnoSoft had a hand in developing Gate of Thunder on the PC Engine. I've never played TF3 but I LOVE GoT and so many of it's assets seem fairly familiar here. Great video as always!
Thunder Force 3 is my favorite game. Best soundtrack ever ! Nice video !
Thunder Force IV is still a truly impressive 2D shooter. I played it and finished on the Switch SEGA Ages version for the first time.
I hope to see a "so and so, on the sega master" series. I loved these. I watch konami, data east, and the turbografx ones that you make. My favorite series of video topics
My 3 best games ever on Mega Drive are the first Sonic, Thunder Force 4 and Dragon's Fury. Tecnosoft made me dream for months when I was 12 and 13 years old. Thunder Force 4 is still the best 2D shooter on Earth today in my eyes. Last Resort and Pulstar on Neo-Geo are superb. But we get tired of it faster, a notch less powerful, less adrenaline.
Thunder Force 4's music is amazing, and the MD's FM sound is perfect. You just have to make the digitized voices clearer in a superior version.
The graphics are still crazy today. Even on a Neo-Geo, stage 1 above water could with its multiple planes pose problems for good programmers, because it doesn't make a lot of planes natively.
Toshio Ozono left to join the stars in 2014. I would have liked to say a big thank you to him for Thunder Force 4 and Dragon's Fury, the 2 cartridges that turned the most in my Mega Drive at the time with Sonic 1. It was awesome.
Best shooter 2D on the best 2D machine =) Thanks Ozono
Thunder Force III was one of my first Genesis games. I picked up for the sole reason of having some variety on my games, and I wanted a shooter... Man, I LOVED that game to death. I played so much that I could end it without losing 😅
Music, graphics, control... Everything was just neat-o.
有り難う御座います ! Thank you so much !
I feel like Lightning Force/Thunde Force IV was undersold by the American gaming mags that were so important at the time.
Thunder Force AC on the SEGA Astro City Mini is awesome
Everyone should pick one up just to play it in 720P
It's on Switch too if it's only for that game
Amazing in depth review best I have ever seen 👍thank you for this excellent trip down memory lane sir great job 👍
I love Technosofts music, Dragon's Crush/Fury main track for example is a real standout.
God I always enjoy when you upload the quality of your videos are simply the best
thunder force 3 had amazing music for me. really loved it
Thunder Force 4, best shoot em up. Period.
Foro those who like the soundtrack of this game, go on UA-cam listen to the guitar cover of some dudes. They are perfects.
Man I never had a sega, I was a Nintendo boy but with emulation im loving discovering all these great games I missed now that I’m 41
You should take a look in the channel cosmic effect, they have a thunderforce series (all three) in a way you for sure have never seen before.
Thanks
@@reginaldeberhart8521 you're welcome!
Thunder force 4 is the best horizontal shooter ever made. Still playing it after almost 30 years. I think there was another shooter for saturn by technosoft called blast wind.
I believe they did Blast Wind and Hyper Duel, in addition to the continuation of Thunder Force.
@@ravagingwolverine right, hyper duel is another great game
Back in the day I had Blast Wind. Neat shooter! I even had to buy an additional cartridge to get the japanese disc running on my european saturn.
@@ravagingwolverine I just saw a video of Hyper Duel! I need to play it! Seems like Thunderforce meets Arrow Flash
One thing I pride myself on as an old school gamer was that I was one hell of a dedicated kid! Battle toads and thunder force II were a few of the most difficult games I actually finished multiple times! Ask me to try now though, my aging ass wouldn't even be able to get half way through! lol
I loved Dragons Fury! The sequel was ok but the first one was amazing to me. Thunder force is such a great series as well!! Another great video from you. Been watching and subbed for awhile now. You constantly take me to my childhood and love that 😎 take care👍
Appreciate the message. Thank you.
Thunderforce 4 was amazing . I remember seeing it running in the game shop stunned then going home to bug my mum saying it was the best megadrive game and i NEEDED it 😂
Thunder force IV was so so so good in fact in my opinion its the best side scrolling shooter ever. (Yes better than R-type) never finished it mind, bought it on switch literally the other day and still it beats me .
I finished it on the real genesis. Nowadays I doubt myself when playing it again on emulators.