Arcade vs Console 5 

What are some arcade ports you'd like to see covered?

This new "Take On Joe" Intro is awesome 👍

"Rampage" for the Lynx uses the system's link cable to play with up to 4 players simultaneously. Having actually done this a few times, it may just be my favorite way to play the game. Having the ability to "hide" from other players by trying to avoid their screen adds some strategy to the play. Incidentally, it started as a different game but was licensed and converted into a "Rampage" port. Thanks for posting!

Gamesack covering a Atari 2600 version of a game. In 10 years I've been watching this channel I believe this might be the first time.

You were joking, but Amiga developers were often only handed some screenshots (I.e. photos) and a vague description of the gameplay as a starting point, as those were rather low budget and low priority ports.

That end sketch confirms it Joe loves Greendog so much it's in his DNA.

I enjoyed the Alien Storm segment. I have a ton of nostalgia for the early pre-SNES Genesis years. The system didnt entirely have an identity beyond arcade ports and EA PC ports, but you could tell everyone involved was figuring out the system at the same time. The best games came after Sonic, of course, but those early years were a lot of fun.

I give this channel props. They have NEVER asked for subscription or likes. Been watching them for years, and this has always been the standard. Keep on making great videos Joe. Let the 300k people that really think you deserve their attention be your badge of honor.

There was a flaw with the Sega SG-3000 FM sound that meant if you played PSG sound at the same time it distorted. The Master System fixed it, but a lot of games wanted SG-3000 compatibility.

I like when i go to youtube to watch something for breakfast (it's morning in my time zone) and there is fresh new GameSack episode to play.

Hey Joe,glad that you're featuring some Amiga stuff. As I'm sure you know,most arcade ports to this system are absolute balls but it's a very capable 16 bit computer with some amazing original games.

Joe just got a new Amiga. Well, new for him, that is.

I absolutely LOVE Time Soldiers. I realize it's 99% nostalgia, but I love rotary knob games and it has, I guess... a vibe that I love. ALSO THAT SCREAM (as you noted)

The Rampage segmemt made me wanna see a miniature Joe dressed in a monkey suit, climbing a comically sized cabinet of games, punching out all the ones he despises. 😂

Just to be that guy, Rampage on the Lynx supports 4 players via comlynx cable and 4 Lynx's. It's pretty good multiplayer, though hard to keep track of other players.

Love the animated intro Joe.

Would love to have Dave to run in once. Or an update on him. Miss that guy.

Nothing like my morning coffee with a new episode of Game Sack before Church.Thanks Joe!

What a cool episode comparing the arcade ports. I never played the original Rampage, just Rampage World Tour on N64/PS1. Love the Mega Man 2/Greendog skit at the end.

is it me? or is it that a new GameSack video pops up just when i need one?

Damn, that Lynx port of Rampage just crushes the others visually. Holy shit.

This episode is for me. Arcade gaming is in my blood. My first NES games were Rad Racer and Mike Tyson Punch-Out! I wanted all the arcade ports. Double Dragon, Golden Axe, Heavy Barrel, Final Fight, Mortal Kombat-I hated using all my quarters. After they would announce an arcade port on my console, I’d get so excited! Next gen has always fascinated me.

In the tradition of eating things while watching GameSack, I wolfed down a can of black beans with copius amounts Tabasco. Don't judge me yo. It's the middle of the night and I don't wanna cook.

24:31 In Master System’s Vigilante, you can attack while jumping by pressing up (punch) or down (kick) right after leaving the ground. It’s harder, but it’s doable.

I loved the fun facts above the master system fm sounds in some of these games being unheard back in the day.

its so weird seeing things in the game world jitter as the screen scrolls.

Joe is always happy when playing Greendog

I actually got a copy of that Rampage for the 2600. It’s definitely an attempt to dumb down graphics and game to it’s most basic form well still resembling the original. It’s actually pretty cool on a technical level

TIME SOLDIER was so great in the time in arcade, that time travel thing, all the weapons & the 12 directions rotation stick ! EPIC'87 Game !!!

SMS Rampage brings back great memories.

Although they also had a 2 player version of the Alien Storm cabinet, it was a 3-player game in the arcade.

Two things, 1.) That skit was short but I laughed pretty hard. 2.) I am so going to mod my NES to make that noise when it can’t read a cart.

It's been years, and I still enjoy this show, Joe.

Loved the ending: I'm a blowing nes catridge believer and you can't change my mind.

Fantastic episode. I love Master System, so it was great to see it feature in every segment. Rampage on the MS is one of the best titles on the system.

God dayum dude. The production quality still amazes me. IDK what to say after watching you for over 10 years except great fucking job as always.

Hey, thanks for showing me your Sack 👍

Thanks Joe! This was fantastic as always! I was obsessed with the ATARI game ROADBLASTERS. A fun mix of racing and vehicular combat. It was ported to the LYNX, GENESIS and I think a few other systems. Might be worth including in a follow up to this video!

Man, I knew how to pick losers: Amstrad CPC464; Game Gear; Amiga 1200. The Amstrad was particularly notorious for botching arcade ports.

The amiga always struggled with arcade ports. It took good programmers to get the best out of it and they were usually working on original games

Wow you actually covered an atari 2600 version of a game. Cool.

Every little while I'm reminded of Alien Storm, which I saw footage of once on Larry Bundy Jr.'s channel and am always trying to figure out what game it is, only to learn and forget again a few months later XD

To answer your question at 8:30 the japanese title is ブレイゾン which would suggest it's supposed to be pronounced "Blazon" or possibly "blaze on" rather than "bla zeon"

Joe has not thought of Madonna in decades. He googled her for this video and cried in horror when he saw her new face.

Amazing stuff, Joe does it yet again. A king amongst men. Thanks, Joe, for keeping this channel going as it is much appreciated.

Just the thing I needed to relax after a 9 1/2 hour shift, Can now just watch and have fun, so good. Probably the only retro gaming show i watch anymore is game sack. Love learning about these and i have been getting back into my old sega genesis days. Streets of rage 2 as skate on 4k is awesome to play!

I've heard that there were Master System adapters available in Japan back in the day, so it's possible that a limited number of people heard the non-Japan released FM soundtracks back then. I'd imagine info on US games would have been published in some video game magazines over there as well.

Girl: "OH? big" Ice cream cohen: "I'm a BIG"

5:43 That moment made me chuckle. "that tank is so annoying" Boom.

Ending man, it's tradition at this point.

The boss voice in Vigilante sounds like Popeye 😂

That ending was just pure humor. Imagine being perfectly okay with that happening.

Shock troopers on Neo Geo perfected the overhead run and gun formula started on Ikari Warriors and Time Soldiers. Just holding down fire locks you in the direction you’re shooting.😊

Few things make me happier on a Sunday morning than some Sack in my face.

300K subs. Awesome! Congrats!

Joe's consistently delivering excellent quality videos on them retro games.

Amazing video and amazing before and after pics of Madonna. Well done, Joe!

idea for an episode; x-men or comic book themed video games

I love these arcade to console episodes.

The reason you don’t usually hear both the PSG & FM together is due to a technical issue with the original Japanese FM add-on. The register to enable both simultaneously wasn’t implemented correctly until the later JP Master System, meaning that all retail games set the soundtrack to FM only for compatibility. The only game which sets the register to use both is the fanmade hack of Sonic 1 on the SMS by Valley Bell.

I love it how Joe's doing retro games videos predominantly, because he can't grasp analog stick controls :D!

We’re so lucky to have these ever two weeks

I remember always wanting Vigilante from seeing the screenshot on the back of the Turbografx 16 console box.

Sick intro. Also, a Rampage arcade cabinet was at this store my mom frequented when i was really young. I remember it being quite the event when i would get a quarter for it.

Ah, Amiga versions, my childhood. Usually ported very cheaply by three guys, with the music done by a friend who did electronic music as a hobby hence not caring about being authentic, he just wanted to put his own tunes out there, it's why you get things like the RoboCop music many of you know from the GB port of the 1988 Arcade. This also explains why a lot of games would be music *or* sound effects, as the composer was used to having all four channel to themselves. Better games would either use three and leave one for sound, or put higher pitched instruments on a shared channel as it's less obvious when they get supressed by SFX. Without sprite limits to contend with you could usually sling everything on screen (and look good in screenshots), but at the cost of performance. Crushing the viewport was common so you could save some power and didn't have to rescale the game for PAL and NTSC, but the games were often developed in PAL-land leaving the speed feeling a bit too fast and jerky in NTSC like Rampage here. Generally it could do okay on on 80s arcades if the budget was there (the port of Golden Axe is perfectly servicable), but these were games made to a price point of £15 and often lower, so you were unlikely to get parity with the consoles.

The Sega Mark III FM Sound Unit can't mix both the PSG and FM audio at the same time, that's why almost every FM game avoided PSG audio. Most mods and the actual Japanese Master System do mix it, but alas, the precedent was set.

I played so much Rampage on the C64 before I even knew it was an arcade!

Joe! Thanks for giving us so much Sack over the years! I always look forward to getting a faceful from you every 2 weeks! From another Denver Native, have a great one man!

I would love to see you cover Sonic the Fighters. Considering the fact that there’s the original Arcade, the Sonic Gems Collection port on Gamecube, the HD port on Xbox 360/PS3, and then the port in Lost Judgment and Like a Dragon Gaiden. There are some interesting differences between all the versions and even extra features strung throughout. It’s definitely my most desired game to see covered by you.

Grew up in a tiny place on a mountain in Serbia. A guy opened a little arcade, and had a few (absolutely counterfeit) cabinets: Airwolf, some helicopter game I never managed to find online, Rolling Thunder, Strikers 1942 and the greatest arcade multiplayer game ever - Time Soldiers 😂 The first game I beat on one token! Defined my damn childhood haha

That intro is amazing. Who made that?

The turbo feature on the turbo grafx controllers made Vigilante so much better!

I love Time Soldiers. It was the first arcade cabinet I bought when I started getting a few as an adult years ago. I still play it regularly. There's a lot of nuance to the power-up system, especially in how the P icon gives you rapid fire. It not pnly does that, but also uses your power up meter as a life bar, which you can refill by grabbing another P or any weapon. The tricky part is that you can stack each of the 3 weapons up to 3 times to dramatically increase their power, which makes boss fight dramatically easier. However, getting hit in Power Up mode lowers your weapon meter imstead of losing a life. So, grabbing a new weapon can save your life, but could make you weaker if it isn't the same weapon you were using. It's a great risk-reward mechanic that can affect your routing quite a bit. It also has a random element, where the first stage is randomly chosen from the first 3, and when you clear them all, stages 4 and 5 are then shuffled as well. This makes managing your power ups amd learning what weapons appear frequently in each stage very rewarding, allowing you to stay powered up for pretty much the whole game if you're savvy enough with it. Also, in the Powered-up mode, your weapon bar gradually depletes not as you shoot, but as you move. This rewards you for mastering the rotary controls amd moving efficiently, which is cool. That final stage is nasty no matter how you slice it. There are versions on PSP and the SNK 40th Anniversary collection for Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and Steam as well. These are easy to write off as emulation, but in absence of rotary sticks, it's notable that they handle the controls differently. On PSP, you use the shoulder buttons to cycle through the 12 rotary positions one by one. It can feel very slow and clunky. SNK 40th treats it more like a twin stick shooter with some tweaks. Neither work as well as the rotary stick. There is a new rotary stick controller that only works on PC, although it has its issues, it's as close as there is available in absence of the real deal. The emulators on PSP and SNK 40th are not the same either, and actually screw up the randomization of the levels.

Alien Storm for the Genesis was my guilty pleasure back in the days. It was just like Golden Axe but sci-fi (my setting of choice, as opposed to fantasy). It was really fun to play with my best friend. The 3D shooting gallery stages were quite impressive, with the parallax, all the destruction and some convincingly animated scaling effects. By the time I bought it, it was priced down to $30, so I definitely felt like I got my money's worth with it.

30:38 Joe’s mucus can upgrade games to the next gene. He needs to start blowing his nose on all my PS5 games.

Releasing your inner nerd is a beautiful part of growing up

Rampage World Tour was my jam at the ice rink arcade.

That Blazeon game's mech design seem to be heavily inspired if not blatantly lifted from Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack. I can see Sazabi, Jagd Doga, Alpha Azieru and straight up Nu Gundam with swapped color complete with its fin funnel floating around.

Tonight is a Game Sack night, so you better be ready for some Sack.

Its delightful to have these pop up duing a biut with insomnia Doesnt help it at all, but i think thats a compliment xD Always a banger, joe! You really are more Redif than anyone else. If not the Redifest, then certainly Redifer than the rest

You talked about Rampage for 7 minutes that’s pretty impressive

I remember a videogame magazine showing photos of the Lynx Rampage port. I ended up buying the Lynx at launch because of the 'Amazing Graphics!'

Hahaha that end sketch! 😅 Equal parts silly and brilliant, love it. Oh and the episode was great as well.

It's interesting to see how the developers made the best of what they had hardware wise on these consoles

Now that I've watched the episode, I can properly comment on 😅 Whenever I see those old arcade ports and what people have been doing today with original games in the retrogaming community, I keep wondering: If development time and memory cost weren't an issue, how many of those games could've been "arcade perfect" or nearly so. I mean, for example, when you see people working on ports of Final Fight or Sunset Riders for the Genesis, there was clearly more potential there.

I'd like to see a video of all the Genesis arcade ports. You're awesome Joe

I don't know if you covered Bad Dudes on previous episodes but it's one of the rare times where it has the closest arcade to home port, and the arcade music rocks as well. Toki is also another excellent arcade conversion on the Amiga.

Every time I see gameplay of Vigilante, the main character reminds me of Gohan from Dragon Ball Z. It's the blue clothes with red belt and armbands that does it!

I've been waiting since 6:58 this morning. Longest 2 mins of my life.

The ultimate game - a game that plays itself! What it's all about? Beating the game! Awesome show, Joe!

I thought there were new episodes every week but I now see weeks without an episode.

Rampage was one of my favorite NES games growing up.

There's no sack like Gamesack

i think that "hey come on" sound was used when putting a quarter in the machine sound

That second Madonna picture cracked me up 😂

Every other Sunday morning cardio I got this to listen to.🤟🏻💯

Hey hey it’s mr sack!! Ryan

I wonder at the relevance of Actraiser (his t-shirt). Any theories regarding how he wore it deliberately the way he and Dave used to have somewhat on-theme shirts in older videos? I think Dave might have done their review of it back in the day but it's not very arcade-like or even Game Sack - ish game.

You forgot to credit David Matthews "La Valse Pour Xanadu" for the ending bit. Dave!

I like the differences between the different versions