- Hey all, Scott here. You know, there's this neat
thing that happens whenever I talk about game compilations,
my house catches on fire. (fire blazing) It's happened once before, it's practically a
tradition at this point. But I'm laser focused on safety this time. I have a fire extinguisher on standby, and loads of safe thoughts up here. Before I start, I should probably take all
my flammables off the floor. As much as I love shelves full of games, sometimes you just need
something a bit simpler. Oh my God. Yeah, it's
great to have compilations. Collections of games, all in one package. And we've already taken a look
at game compilations before. Specifically "Sonic Mega Collection," "Mega Collection Plus," "Mario All-stars," "Mario All-stars 25th
Anniversary Edition," "Kirby's Dream Collection,"
"Atari Anthology," "Activision Anthology,"
"Namco Museum" on Xbox, "Namco Museum 50th Anniversary,"
"Namco Museum" on Switch, "Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection," "Dreamcast Collection,"
"Sega Classics Collection," "SNK Arcade Classics Volume
1," "Metal Slug Anthology," "Mega Man Anniversary Collection," "Mega Man Legacy Collection,
"Legacy Collection 2," but not "Sonic Gems Collection." So we should talk about that
before things get weird. Sega has always been quick to make as many of their older games playable, in as many platforms as possible. If they even think you're about to say, I couldn't really go for
"Vectorman 2" right now, they will stop at nothing
to make sure you question why you wanted to play
"Vectorman 2" in the first place. My favorite compilation Sega ever put out was "Sonic Mega Collection"
for the GameCube. It's my favorite for
incredibly shallow reasons. I grew up with this game and
while I had prior experience with Sonic one and two on
the actual Sega Genesis, the presentation of this
competition was so amazing. They had a plethora of extra content and the menus, along with
their music, was just so good. Plus they had "Sonic 3D
Blast" playable here. Sure. It's a bad game, that proves how brave they really were. Mega Collection focused on Sonic
games for the Sega Genesis. You had all the main classic
titles available here alongside some spin-offs. But there was one game
that made total sense to include that was missing, the eighth sin. "Sonic CD," the game
for the Sega CD add on for the Sega Genesis. It was still a classic
mainline Sonic title and it was considered one
of the greatest Sonic games of all time. Only two of these statements are correct. Sonic CDs opening and ending
cut scenes were available in "Sonic Mega Collection." And the game itself was
planned to be included. But why do that, when
you can make an entirely separate compilation? "Sonic Gems Collection,"
released a few years after Mega Collection,
exclusively on the GameCube here in north America while a PS2 release was totally a thing in Europe and Japan. The concept behind "Sonic Gems Collection" was obscure Sonic classics,
and that is so cool. Not only would "Sonic CD"
become readily playable on dear God, anything but a Sega CD or the old PC release,
but it would be available alongside oddball games from
the franchise's history. With stuff like "Sonic's Schoolhouse," "Sonic Pocket Adventure," "Sonic Eraser," "SegaSonic the Hedgehog,"
the educational Sonic games for the Sega Pico, or the
prototype for the canceled "Sonic X-Treme," "Knuckles Chaotix," "Sonic Crackers." No. Three games are the headliners here, "Sonic CD," "Sonic R"
and "Sonic the Fighters." A treasure chest of rare gems. Has Sega ever heard of peer reviews? Listen, I'm sure, these
are all far more obscure than your typical everyday Sonic game, especially in 2005 when this
collection was released, but. This just feels like they
wanted a reason to release "Sonic CD" on modern platforms, threw in a couple of extra
games to call it a collection. And boom, disappointment. This was such a missed opportunity. Like, sure, "Sonic R" and
"Sonic the Fighters" are fun, somewhat obscure releases, but
the concept of a collection going over a franchise's
more unknown releases. And for it to only focus
on three measly games when there is so much more to
pull from, it's disappointing. A lot of the obscure Sonic
games I listed originally, actually were planned for
the collection at one point, but they decided against them
due to technical difficulties, or for just no reason at all. Gems collection also includes
a handful of Sonic games for the Game Gear. Whoa. It's weird they don't count
these as actual additions to the collection and
just label them as extras. Were people that pissed that
Sega called Game Gear games, real games? They're bonuses. They're bonuses! Vectorman one and two are playable. Yep. Some real Sonic gems there. But over in Japan and
Europe, they got more games. They got "Bonanza Bros." and "Streets of Rage" one, two, and three. And never have I've been more
ashamed of living in Ohio. This compilation pulls a lot from "Sonic Mega Collection Plus,"
specifically the menus. And there's not much in terms of extras that are really all too groundbreaking. I always wanted this collection as a kid, I mean, I had "Mega Collection," of course I wanted "Gems
Collection" as well, I was only human. For years this game eluded me. I never saw it in person, never saw it for sale, new or used. And one day I said, I
can't live like this. I clicked a certain button on eBay and "Sonic Gems Collection"
was finally mine. Of course, ever since I bought this I see this game for sale everywhere, and that always happens to me. Again, I never see for sale
ever, when I finally find it and buy it it starts
appearing (beep) everywhere. Calling on games, don't pull
a Sonic Gems Collection, that bugs me. Getting to play this
compilation was a cool feeling after all this time,
but the games included are mostly polarizing. If you love one of the games in this pack, it's likely you won't like
a good chunk of the rest. And the fact that, they could've
gone so, so much farther with the idea of rare
gems all they did was throw a couple of Game Gear games in here, and some Sonic games that
was sort of hard to find ways to play at the time,
that you may or may not like. I'm not a fan of this compilation. It's a fine way to play these games, It's just always going to
feel like it was an excuse to re-release "Sonic CD" and nothing more. Well, we're over with one
Sonic compilation so far. Let's rinse our mouth out with "Sonic Jam" on the Sega Saturn. "Sonic Jam" was one of the
first major Sonic compilations. And it was basically a
way for a Sega to get something Sonic related out on the Saturn. There wasn't a ton of
Sonic games on the system, so Jam was released to satiate the lust. This is a collection of Sonic
one, two, three, and Knuckles. You can attach Knuckles
to the other games. You have new normal and easy
modes which alter stage layouts or just shortens the
overall game experience by removing levels, I don't know. The games themselves play amazingly. They are near perfect recreations of the original Genesis games. And of course, it has "Sonic World." This was a preview of what
a 3D Sonic game could be. It's nothing special, but
it's incredibly charming. And it's kind of easy to just get lost in this small little hub world. It's such a cool and yet,
often forgotten piece of Sonic's tree history,
or history in general. The "Sonic World" hub has
small little missions to complete within it and it is how we access the bonus content, like
commercials and artwork. This was, and honestly still
is, an incredible compilation. You can tell, they put so
much work into this release. It just makes me wish this
hub world and commercials were included in something
like Sonic Gems Collection. But, thank God it has "Vectorman 2." Let's finish up the Sega talk
with one more collection. "Sega Genesis Classics" on the PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. You know, when this was
announced I was pretty into it. I loved "Sonics Ultimate
Genesis Collection" on 360 and PS3. And this seemed like it was that again. Popping it in and... That's kind of right. So there are a good handful
more games in Genesis Classics compared to Ultimate Genesis Collection. But oddly enough, some are missing like, the "Ecco the Dolphin"
games and the "Sonic 3" and "Sonic & Knuckles." Now Sonic three and Knuckles
have been in legal limbo for a while, since Sega
just completely gave up on those games. The "Echo" games are
odd ommissions though, but whenever, I only play
those, like once a week I'm fine popping the old
collection in for 'em. Overall, this is a fun way to
be introduced to these games, or relive memories of them. There are tons included. They run fine enough. You get different filters and borders. You can turn off the borders. And a lot of cool features are included, like rewinding the games, plus online multiplayer for some titles. But "Sonics Ultimate Genesis Collection" just had more oomph to it. It felt like there was more passion and professionalism behind it. All the extras, unlockables,
and overall style made this a much better experience. "Second Genesis Classics"
with its 3D user interface, omitted games, and a lack
of attention to detail, make it feel amateurish and cheap. Like, instead of using
the actual game box arts, they just plastered the game
logos on stock Genesis boxes. Like come on. The nineties room set up is kind of cool but it looks so dated visually. It's obvious they weren't
given much of a budget for this and while we can appreciate they want it to do something
more than just a simple menu. At that point, don't even try. You didn't have the budget
for a nice looking room. That's okay. Just go for a simple and clean 2D menu like Ultimate Genesis did There are some nice features like changing filters and borders something "Ultimate Genesis
Collection" didn't have. But I'll always take it in comparison because it just felt like
a more substantial package. It had cool unlockables and the borders were
sort of annoying, yeah. But they made unique ones for every game. That's kind of cool and annoying. Here, it's just basic ones
and there's nothing to unlock, no bonus features, and the menu is ugly. Plus all the things you
can change with it like, the time of day, why? Comparing this to Sonic's
Ultimate Genesis Collection's interface is the
definition of less is more. Also the Nintendo switch
version is missing the "Wonder Boy" games. Well, if you want to actually be happy, we can try something else. So why not "The Legend of
Zelda Collector's Edition" on the Game Cube. This is a weird one. This disk was available through
GameCube console bundles, Nintendo power subscriptions,
loyalty programs. This was fundamentally a carrot on a stick for Nintendo fans. If you buy a GameCube we'll give you something to do with it. The box isn't formatted like
normal Game Cube box art with the logo in the top right corner. And the name itself is sort of bizarre. Just "The Legend of Zelda
Collector's Edition." Why not name it something like, The Legend of Zelda Collection? Popping it in we have
access to the original "Legend of Zelda," "Zelda
II The Adventure of Link," "Ocarina of Time," and "Majora's Mask." Yep, the two NES and N64
games, no "Link to the Past" on Super Nintendo, no "Link's
Awakening" on Game Boy, no "Oracle of Seasons and
Ages" on Game Boy Color. Why not include these games as well? I mean, you have to draw
the line at some point with adding games, but this is
like a sandwich with no meat without "Link to the Past." I mean, all the games
are fully playable here, it may not be the best way to play them considering Majora's mask has
a severe case of running well. But if you only had a Game
Cube and you had this disc, you got a ton of value here. These are three of the most
beloved games of all time and "Zelda II." We even get a playable 20-minute demo of "The Wind Waker" plus
two videos, and that's it. I mean, I can't really complain, but it's just kind of a bizarre release. So "Zelda Collector's
Edition" is too weird for me. If this game was a human, I'd (beep) run. I think I want to go back to old reliable, the Namco Museums. "Namco Museum Remix" on the Wii is how I realized I wasn't
deaf, but I may be soon. (upbeat music) This game's volume is intensely high. I mean, it makes sense. They really want you to
hear as many little details in these games as you can. (video game beeps) Only nine games are here, and the selection is really
lackluster and strange. No "Pac-Man," "Galaga,"
"Ms. Pac-Man, "Rally-X," nothing like that. But thank (beep) for "Pac & Pal" I mean, I like "Pac-Mania"
and "Dig Dug," "Gaplus" is the criminally under
looked sequel to "Galaga" and it's amazing. (indistinct) but a Namco
Museum feels really incomplete without "Galaga" and "Pac-Man." Instead of these games, we
have five remixed titles, what are these? Wii mini games that aren't interesting. "Namco Museum Remix" feels more like a Wii mini game collection
along the lines of "Wii Play" than a Namco Museum. And why are these remix
mini games based on arcade games not playable
in this collection? Why is there "Rally-X
Remix," but no "Rally-X?" Namco later re-released remix as "Namco Museum Megamix"
with double the arcade titles and one more remixed mini game. And this is more like it. See, Megamix has a legitimately
good lineup of arcade games. It no longer feels like
the quality of the lineup is lessened by the focus
on remix mini games. This is a solid collection. This is "Namco Museum Remix." But to truly appreciate
a "Namco Museum" title, we have to look at more of them. So here we go. "Namco
Museum" on Game Boy Advance. Just a simple collection
including "Ms. Pac-Man," "Galaga", "Galaxian," "Dig
Dug," and "Pole Position." No frills, no reason in hell
to play this game now but, for the time this was great. They just had the games to work on the Game Boy Advance screen quite well. Giving you options to play all zoomed in, or with the full arcade screen in view. With "Ms. Pac-Man," "Galaga"
and "Dig Dug," in my opinion, those are the most played
Namco arcade classics and having them portably
was icing on the cake. But I didn't have this game
as a kid, I had this game. "Pac-Man Collection." Four "Pac-Man," the original "Pac-Man," the puzzle game "Pac-Attack," the isometric game, "Pac-Mania,"
and "Pac-Man Arrangement. The game where Kinky,
the ghost joins the fray. Arrangement is a fun
spin on typical Pac-Man, with tons of gimmicks added. I remember playing this game
for hours on end as a kid. "Pac-Mania" was a nice change of pace from regular "Pac-Man." And "Pac-Attack" I can
appreciate it because it's a really clever way of
taking the ideas and mechanics of Pac-Man and turning them
into a Tetris like puzzle game. However, I had no damn clue what I was doing in this game as a kid. I just thought the way the box dropped was kind of satisfying. So I'd played this from time
to time and fail immediately. I have a nostalgia it for this collection, but my God, looking back
I would've so preferred "Namco Museum" on GBA instead. I mean "Pac-Man Collection"
has some neat games but at the end of the day, (beep) Pac-Man is (beep) Pac-Man. Three of these games are
basically the same thing. Namco Museum had "Ms. Pac-Man,"
which is the best version of Pac-Man, plus a variety of
other games I really loved. Plus, what the hell kind
of a box art is this? I always had a soft spot
for the arcade compilations. I mean, without them, a
lot of these arcade games I'd have to buy a small portion of land to own just one cabinet. It's nice to have them readily available in a collection playable
on a game console. "Midway Arcade Treasures"
was a series of games released for the GameCube, PS2 and Xbox. And each one has a different age rating. There's something for everybody here. Arcade Treasures one focuses on the old, old school arcade games,
stuff from 1980 to 1990, we got "Klax" and more here. It's in decent lineup, "Smash-TV,"
"Paperboy," "Gauntlet," "Rampage," "Joust," "Root Beer Tapper." There are 24 games here,
which is a great amount. However, I'd be more into this
if the menu wasn't atrocious. What the hell am I looking at here? So they use vague symbols
and just show game play in the center to portray
what you're selecting. Why not use text? What if I don't know what
this gameplay is representing. All this screams early 2000s, the formatting on the menus
and extras isn't that great, but hey, they tried. I never made a midway
arcade treasures game, so I'm not one to talk. At least they got another
whack at this with "Midway Arcade Treasures 2." Would you believe a game with
a cover like this is rated M? That's because this compilation focuses on later arcade games, when
intestines were really in. Stuff like "Mortal Kombat"
two and three and "Narc." Okay, this rating makes sense. This menu, oh my God. This
menu is so much better. Plus the extras get a huge upgrade. In Arcade Treasures one,
they were hell bend on using comic Sans and
defining the word format. Oh man, let's check out
interviews for "Root Beer Tapper." Oh. Well, "Arcade Treasure 3"
focuses on racing titles, which means, it definitely
lacks a lot of the variety we had in one and two. Although, we do have a
lot more modern stuff. It's pretty cool to have "Hydro Thunder," and "San Francisco Rush" here. Though, my standards
of cool, may be lower, because I've been staring at compilations of mostly games like this. Well, let's see what extra
features this collection has. Well outside of this
collection having one extra and it being a trailer for this. And this is a decent collection. All of these are pretty good though, I think two is the most well-rounded. It has the best bonus material,
and the games are great. But weirdly enough, this is a re-release of
"Midway Arcade Treasures 1." It originally looked like
this, but after two came out, they reprinted the cover
to look more in line with later releases. Renaming it as "Midway
Arcade Treasures 1." I always find it weird
when the first installment of something as the number one in it like, they know another one's going to happen. I'm in hell. "Capcom Classics Collection Volume 1," a collection of random
Capcom arcade games, "Street Fighter II," "Final
Fight," "Ghosts 'n Goblins," it's, is fine. It didn't necessarily blow
me away, but it's not bad. I think I just prefer a lot of
Capcom's home console stuff. Their arcade games,
I'm not as attached to. So, so I'd rather talk about something I have stronger feelings towards. Like "Data East Arcade
Classics" on the Wii. Yeah, I like this game solely
because it is $60 used. I paid that, and what did I get? "Side Pocket." The best game in this collection by far is the arcade version of "Burger Time." Other than that, I mean, what? "Bad Dudes," "Caveman
Ninja," that's about it in terms of well-known games
and you couldn't hear it. But I used quotation marks on well-known. It's a decently put together collection, but Data East is just not the
neatest video game company in my opinion. They're one of the first to license their games out
to damn near anybody. That's why you see their games on those cheap mini consoles and whatnot. And all those cheap mini
consoles really advertise the hell out of the fact
they got the Data East to put their games on them. Nobody gives a (beep) about
Data East games, I'm sorry. At least Taito has more
of a recognizable legacy, with "Space Invaders" and "Bubble Bobble." "Taito Legends" focuses on
just that, and then some. See this compilation
has some classic games, and fun presentation. "Data East Arcade Classics"
was kind of the bare minimum. Sure they had artwork as bonuses, but the way they presented
it was just kind of boring. "Taito Legends" makes history fun. 3D models of the arcade machines, full video interviews with developers, essays on Taito, artwork,
they have it all. Including "Space Invaders Part 2." The first game was such a success, let's see how they up the ante. (video game beeps) This is a great
collection, lots of variety and just gaming history goodness. It's well organized and put together, "Taito Legends" is what I want out of an arcade game compilation. There is a second edition release later and I don't have that, but again I never trust a game
compilations that already knows it'll get a sequel. "Taito Legends" is the gold standard. They waited and made another one when they found it necessary. But what if a sequel
comes out the same day as the first volume? This is stupid. "Mega Man X Legacy Collection," and "Legacy Collection 2,"
both released simultaneously on July 24th, 2018. "Legacy Collection 1" focused on Megaman X one, two, three and four. While "Legacy Collection 2" focused on five, six, seven, and eight. You know, and these are
both great collections. Sure, "Legacy Collection 2"
is obviously the stinkier one of the bunch, but both are well laid out. Great filter and border options. Museum features with videos. A brand new mode where you
fight two bosses at once, great stuff. But let's talk about the fact that these are two separate games. Was this just so there would be parity between the classic "Mega
Man Legacy Collection" games and the "X Legacy Collection" games? I mean the classics got two volumes, X should have two as well. Was it because they didn't
want to put everything in one package for a higher
price and instead just made them available separately for $20, so then more people then
have to think about buying at the very least, one of them? Was it so then they could
just copy and paste most of the museum extras from one
collection over to the other, so you just ended up
asking, why did I buy both? Why did I buy both? I'll tell you why. See originally I was just going to pick up "X legacy collection 1,"
because that was the one with the good games. I bought it on the Nintendo e-shop and realized I accidentally
bought two by mistake. So I have both, good for me. You know what else had a
similar release strategy? "Atari Flashback Classics"
on the PS4 and Xbox one. They released them via two
volumes at the same time. And I asked the same
question as many others. Why, you couldn't fit all
these Atari games on one disc? They're Atari games. They're are minuscule. They're the size of my
respect for these collections. Why separate them via two volumes? And a third one released later at that. Thankfully, all these volumes
were compiled into one for the Nintendo Switch release. This is how things should be. This is "Atari Flashback Classics" on the Nintendo switch, 150 games here. And I only care about like, five of them. I mean, this is the most
extensive Atari collection yet. And if you want to get into
this era in gaming, here you go. This is the compilation to
get, because it really sells how lame a lot of the
games were back then. I can appreciate the simplicity
of these classic titles, but even the biggest Atari
head on the planet will say, yeah, mostly these games are trash. But 150 games available,
and most of them being lame. And that's honestly a pretty
spot on portrayal of Atari. Even games I love, like "Breakout," that game only works well with the original paddle controller. For some reason, they never
put effort into tweaking the controls to be fluid
with a standard thumb stick. It's always too sensitive
or not sensitive enough. There's not a ton more available
to play around with here. Then just a bunch of Atari games. I'd say this is worth the money in terms of quantity of games alone. But I think "Atari Anthology"
was the better compilation. I don't know of any games
"Atari Anthology" didn't have, that this one added that
makes a big difference. Plus the bonuses. Atari Anthology had way cooler ones. Flashback Classics just has the manuals and some achievements. Might as well try out some
other Atari collections I happened to have. I found these for quite a
while but never played them. "Retro Atari" and the "Atari
Greatest Hits" collections for the Nintendo DS. "Retro Atari" is all about
taking these old school games, and making them cool again. Hopefully. This game is more focused on
recreating these classic games with touch controls in mind. And I have to say, "Pong" and
"Breakout" work far better with a touch screen, than
a standard controller. Now, "Asteroids" and
"Tempest" are a nightmare with a stylus, what are you gonna do? "Atari Greatest Hits" is
more of a standard collection with a pretty medium selection. just a bunch of Atari games,
but they actually give us a ton of options to play around with. All the standard Atari 2600 switches and new controls for the arcade games. Plus, there's a trivia
game and even a recreation of "Army Battlezone," a
simulator Atari created for the military to train with. In volume two, we have video interviews, and a whole Atari 400 computer
emulator, that is so neat. Sure, video files aren't
the greatest on the DS, but back then I would
have geeked out over this. It was so cool when DS games played video. I love how they give you
the option to use the stylus for some of these games,
as it just works so well. There's something oddly endearing about playing these games on a DS screen. I really liked these
releases as a big fan. I should go to their website,
atari.com slash (screams) one. Well, let's keep the
good times rolling with "Intellivision Lives!" on the Xbox. I mean, Intellivision was one
of the biggest competitors of the Atari 2600. I'm sure their compilation
will be on par with something like the "Atari Anthology." (video game beeps) What the (beep) am I doing? The Intellivision had a
controller with a keypad, meaning half the time
we have to bring it up on screen to use it,
and half of these games are two player only, cool. They organize the modeling too. I have to jump around
between different genres. There's some unreleased stuff
and some extras which is nice, but I hate to say it, I don't think I'm that
into the Intellivision. I'm 22 and said what? But something I can really
get behind is obviously "Rare Replay" on the Xbox one. Initially released as a $30 collection of 30 of Rare's titles. They are most known for the
"Donkey Kong Country" games, "Banjo Kazooie," "Perfect
Dark," "Conker's Bad Fur Day," "Battledtoads." They have had quite a
history and "Rare Replay" is all about celebrating that. Minus Donkey Kong. Yeah, obviously working with Nintendo and then being bought by
Microsoft will do that to you. But this is one of the greatest
values in all of gaming. Of course not all of
these games are winners. I mean, they go all the way
back to the early eighties. But it brings so much variety this way. It includes NES games and Xbox 360 games. That's so cool. It's so fun to skim through these titles, and watch all the interviews. I think this was the
collection to popularize the rewind feature on retro games, which, don't tell the purists,
is a nice little option. This is an excellent release, a perfect way to celebrate
Rare's 30th anniversary, and a no brainer for any Xbox One owner. In fact, it's really the only
reason I am an Xbox One owner. This is my favorite game on the console. But we can end on a high note. Remember when I said
"Sega Genesis Classics" was the last Sega collection
we'd look at today? Guess what I forgot? "Sega Smashpack" on the Game Boy Advance. It includes "Golden Axe." Okay. "Sonic Spinball." Why? And "Ecco the Dolphin." No kidding? Not only is this a very
odd group of friends at a house party, but
imagine if those friends ran like (beep) on a Game Boy Advance. This, this is bad. Why only three games? And at that, why these three games? And at that, why did they run so poorly? Okay. I lied. We need to salvage us all. "Donkey Kong Classics" on the NES. (upbeat music) It's Donkey Kong. (upbeat music) I did it. I talked about game compilations
without committing arson. I'm cured. I'm more than just my addiction. I will never cause
another fire ever again. Time to celebrate. (upbeat music)
This might be the first time he’s created a video where he alluded to making it (like when he says “we might return to this topic in the future”).
And next week he'll release "Game Complication Complication" Complication Vol 1 & 2.
You never know, he could even talk about Ubisoft board games.
Can't wait for Scott to cover the Sonic Classics Collection for DS in part 3
I loved Sonic Mega Collection, I remember playing through the old Game Gear games and thinking "huh these aren't too great", but this video just highlights just how much Sega loves re-releasing Sega MegaDrive/Genesis games. Sonic Jam's Sonic World was also something that blew my mind as a kid, loved just running around in it.
If looking at pure exclusives to the console, I think Rare Replay is the only game that is still exclusive to the Xbox One, it's also neat having a lot of games that aren't backwards compatible with the 360 on one disc.
Hey, he didn’t burn his house down again
FINALLY ITS HERE
"Because the first time, my house burned down."
I hope in part 3 he talks about the Midway collection in Lego Dimensions. He had at least one copy in the bargain bin games episode.