Wonderboy III: The Dragon's Trap REMAKE

[jlued686]

Looks like it's being unveiled tomorrow. There's a countdown timer on the official site:
http://www.thedragonstrap.com/

Developed by Lizardcube, which is Omar Cornut from Media Molecule and Ben Fiquet.

Who?
Lizardcube was founded by:

Omar Cornut / Coder (past lives at Media Molecule "Tearaway" bits of "Dreams", Q-Games "Pixeljunk Shooter" series, "Soul Bubbles", bits of "WiLD", creator of "dear imgui", "meka", etc.) http://www.miracleworld.net

Ben Fiquet / Comic & Animation Artist (past lives on "Soul Bubbles", "Powa", "Les Chevaliers de la Chouette", working with Dreamworks, Zodiac Kids etc.) http://www.benfiquet.com

Here's some art:

[DragonmasterDan]

I hate the art style in the promotional material

[SignOfZeta]

I think I the art is fine, I'd be more likely to question the point of a remake in the first place. 

[CrackTiger]

Is this licensed by Sega? That other Monster World game wasn't last I heard and it has major talent involved. If this is a fan project, they shouldn't be hyping it.

[jlued686]

I'm guessing that since this is a legit developer this probably isn't a fan project.

[EmperorIng]

I'm guessing that since this is a legit developer this probably isn't a fan project.

Well, "legit developer" is a funny term these days. The makers of the new Monster Boy or w/e it's called are "legit developers"... of mobile games, despite having the input and assistance of Yuzo Koshiro et al. from Sega's back catalog of cool dudes.

Given the fact that Monster Boy is in essence a remake/spiritual sequel of Dragon's Trap, it's an odd choice to flood the market with two similar games, assuming they even release near one another.

[jlued686]

By legit, I meant two dudes with actual resumes and not just hobbyists.

[jlued686]

The trailer is up:

A good curse makes a good game (or so they say)! turned into a half-human, half-lizard monstrosity by the Meka-Dragon, a lonesome adventurer is facing the challenge of a lifetime! In search for a cure, our mutated anti-hero will explore the many traps of Monster Land... and defeat many stuff-throwing, curse-wielding dragons. How many more transformations can one hopeful body survive, as it turns into a Lizard, a Mouse, a Piranha, a Lion, and a Hawk... The six different forms of our shape-shifting hero make up the cast of this non-stop action-adventure platformer!

Featuring
◾A huge interconnected world!
◾6 playable forms for our shape-shifting hero, with different abilities!
◾Dragons of all kinds! A Zombie Dragon! A Mummy Dragon! A Samurai Dragon!
◾An eye-patch wearing shop-keeper pig who may or may not provide a sense of warmth and direction!
◾Beautiful, hand-drawn animated graphics!
◾A memorable soundtrack, based on Shinichi Sakamoto's originals, re-imagined and recorded with classical instruments!
◾...and more to be announced!

History
A cult classic
We took on making a modern version of the 1989 Master System / PC Engine cult classic created by Westone (Ryuichi Nishizawa, Takanori Kurihara, Hiromi Kurihara and Shinichi Sakamoto). With the help of Ryuichi Nishizawa (Westone), Shinji Fujiwara (LAT), and a relentless commitment of DotEmu to untangle a bunch of documents covered in pixellated dustwebs, we have licensed the IP to create this new version (a first since 1994).

[xcrement5x]

That trailer looks pretty sweet actually.

[Gredler]

Bra fucking vo, looks great.

[poponon]

looks cool - maybe i can convince my non-retro gaming friends to give this one a shot . I think i'll stick with pce version tho

[Dicer]

[CrackTiger]

Glad it's licensed. The visuals aren't what I want, but unique enough and not off-putting like the Bonk remakes, that I'm interested in playing it at the right price.

I still really want to do a proper 16-bit remake for PC Engine.

[SignOfZeta]

Fucking hell. That looks amazing.

[johnnykonami]

Watched this earlier, looks really nice!  I wonder if the animation is finished though, looks like it could use a couple in between frames here and there.  Not sure about the music, I'd have to hear more of it but remakes always seem to think doing an orchestral/classical version of the original music is the way to go.  I'm not sure that's always a good fit and if anything kinda lends itself to sounding generic.  In any case they put a lot of work into it and I'll definitely buy it should it show up on Steam.

[Gredler]

Watched this earlier, looks really nice!  I wonder if the animation is finished though, looks like it could use a couple in between frames here and there.  Not sure about the music, I'd have to hear more of it but remakes always seem to think doing an orchestral/classical version of the original music is the way to go.  I'm not sure that's always a good fit and if anything kinda lends itself to sounding generic.  In any case they put a lot of work into it and I'll definitely buy it should it show up on Steam.

I hope they prioritize gameplay over animation frame count. I often have argued with art directors, especially on fighting games I've worked on, that too many frames can ruin the feel of a game.

Killer instinct and street fighter have recently proved that sometimes less frames goes a long way to capture the snappy feel of certain games.

I was really pleased to see the fluidity of animation paired with snappy animations.

Dark souls and monster hunter this is not, and often current developers can prioritize fancy art and animation over gameplay, rather than marrying the two with compromise

[BigusSchmuck]

This looks really cool. I only hope its better than the Duck Tales remake.

[technozombie]

I'm not a big fan of the art style, not that its bad, I just don't like it as much as the style of the Monster Boy game. I'm definitely interested in seeing how this turns out.

[ParanoiaDragon]

That looks dope!  I do agree, the art style for Monster Boy is more up my alley.  Still, this should be cool.  Looking forward to hearing how they handle the soundtrack, though, like others have said, not sure about it being orchestral.  I know I've always wanted to try my hand at the tunes, like so many other projects I've thought about over the years.

[Medic_wheat]

It was a fun short animated clip of nothing else.



Is it me or does that cloud enemy remind you of Zonk with the totally RAD sunglasses?

The game art reminds me more of a flash game honestly. With that said I'll wait and see what comes of this. Maybe there will be a new game to play. Maybe not. It's all up to licensing and ability to distribut the game once completed.

[jeffhlewis]

Oh man, this is one of the pillars of my childhood. They better not mess with the soundtrack!

Looks cool from the early trailer stuff, I'll definitely give it a shot...I'm a bit more excited for Monster Boy though.

[technozombie]

There is a new 17 minute video up on youtube. The game is looking pretty good IMO.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MjJ4kqbnga0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Digi.k]

art style reminds me of those 1980's tv animated kids shows.

[TheClash603]

Reminds me of Angry Birds, not fan.

[BigusSchmuck]

I'm sorry, but the remake for the one of the best pieces in this game doesn't sound all that great. :/
http://www.thedragonstrap.com/blog/post/201611_ThePiranhaMan/

[wildfruit]

It looks over done. In fairness im not a huge fan of the series. Only ever played rentals of the master system ones. Didn't sway me to buy.

[LostFlunky]

I'm sorry, but the remake for the one of the best pieces in this game doesn't sound all that great. :/
http://www.thedragonstrap.com/blog/post/201611_ThePiranhaMan/

I would agree - the remade song lost the essence of the original.

[blueraven]

Unbelievably Awesome. I love the artwork. This game has been moved to the top of my want list.

WOW

[jlued686]

DotEmu, developer and publisher specializing in modern releases of beloved retro games, and Lizardcube, are thrilled to reveal an exciting new feature in our Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap remake: the "Retro" Feature.

Whether you're a purist touting the idea that "it was better in the old days" or a futurist who digs 21st-century graphics and remastered soundtracks, this enhanced version of Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap satisfies all persuasions. With the Retro Feature you can switch in-game from HD to 8-bit anytime, anywhere. If you have fond memories of piano key neckties and talking Trans Ams, the Retro Feature lets you go back in time with just the press of a button!

Nostalgists can load their last save from 1989 by entering the password scribbled on their geometry homework, or join millennials in beginning an adventure that defined an entire gaming generation!

Wonder Boy : The Dragon's Trap will be available this spring on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

https://youtu.be/qwy351pLXas

[DragonmasterDan]

https://youtu.be/qwy351pLXas

While the HD sequences animate smoothly and use nice colors I HATE the art style. It looks like WonderBoy III: The Dragon's Crap.

[Xtrasmiley]

Man, I'll have to disagree. I think it looks awesome and it just moved to my must buy list...

[PukeSter]

The instant graphic switch button from 8-bit to modern styles is crazy impressive, just like Halo Anniversary. Does that mean it's somehow the same engine?

[CrackTiger]

The instant graphic switch button from 8-bit to modern styles is crazy impressive, just like Halo Anniversary. Does that mean it's somehow the same engine?

No it means that Halo and WBIII are using the R-Type engine.

[Gredler]

No, not the same engine.

Looking great, DotEmu is killing it right now - good for them!

[esadajr]

Good news is this will be on PC, some day

[jlued686]

Introducing...WONDER GIRL!



https://youtu.be/_pUOJzNUdRE

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2017/03/22/wonder-boy-the-dragons-trap-has-a-new-playable-hero/

[xcrement5x]

Introducing...WONDER GIRL!



https://youtu.be/_pUOJzNUdRE

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2017/03/22/wonder-boy-the-dragons-trap-has-a-new-playable-hero/

This is a cool addition, the amount of love they're putting into this really shows.

[CrackTiger]

I'd much rather play as HU-WOMAN. Hopefully she has female variants of the beast forms.

[Michirin9801]

I'd much rather play as HU-WOMAN.

So would I, just like I would prefer to play with the PCE music, that's a mod that needs to happen!

[esteban]

I must admit that I am curious about how this will turn out.

[exodus]

my buddy is making this. he can switch graphics and sound on the fly because he makes incredibly good tools!

[technozombie]

Crazy that you can use passwords back and forth between the master system version.

[technozombie]

Anyone get this yet? I'm  still busy with Legend of Zelda,  but I'm tempted to buy it just to make my kids play it.

Sent from my ZTE A2017U using Tapatalk

[Gredler]

I am considering it. I have been playing blaster master, and haven't had the incentive to do more of the similar in Zelda after taking gannon out (~80 shrines, ~120 korok seeds).

If there were a physical version of this I'd have to go get it for sure, I am hesitant about buying stuff digital but if that's the only option I might have to bite on this one.

[jlued686]

I just bought it on the eShop website and will play it as soon as I get home. I've seen a lot of positive reviews and impressions this morning, so I'm pretty excited to play it.

[Joe Redifer]

I've bought it and played 1 hour and 45 minutes so far. I'm on the Lion Man part. The retro mode runs at 60fps unlike the SMS which ran at 30fps because it is a weak little system that's just not powerful enough for the 60fps blazing mega speed.

[CrackTiger]

I guess that they made to make it run at 60fps to keep the switch-mode in sync.

I don't remember there being a 60fps option in the PS2 Monster World Collection.

[jlued686]

Played it up through the merman part. I absolutely love it. I found a secret area, which was crazy hard, but everything else plays just like the original.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Grabbed it this morning before heading to work & played it for a few minutes, seems dope!

[technozombie]

Played it up through the merman part. I absolutely love it. I found a secret area, which was crazy hard, but everything else plays just like the original.

Was the secret area something that was in the original or something they added?