Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX - REVIEW

Episode
317 - The remake of Sega's Alex Kidd in Miracle World was recently released and I share my thoughts on if it delivers... or not.
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[@kaitain7595]

I know one thing that is criminal is that Game Sack doesnt have a million+ subs. My fav youtube channel flatout.

[@rufusray]

Agreed. I feel it's an acquired taste for the youngsters.......a taste which i have certainly aquired. My favorite channel to kick back and relax while watching.

[@tepobori]

Literally couldn’t agree more, I love the vibes to these videos. They helped me get all through the pandemic and working from home :)

[@cruz25617]

It feels like a 4.6 million subscribers channel. It's strange to explain. Don't ask how i came up with that number btw lol.

[@V0YAG3R]

no

[@rawritstayl0r866]

Because Dave left

[@falsehero2001]

Gamesack : “Alex no longer looks like a monkey.” Actual game: Alex looks more like a monkey.

[@3dmarth]

For a second, I thought they had added a monkey tail in the remake. Guess it's just a scarf or something.

[@cristinagomez3283]

Wait, Alex isn't black 💀

[@cubeflinger]

Failed janken should result in a boss fight rather than death

[@HHog]

The thing is, it already leads to a boss fight when you rematch the bosses later in the game.

[@MaxDrawsStuff]

I'm still surprised there is no dedicated episode to Streets of Rage 4, knowing how much Joe loves this series.

[@hitmangfx7162]

Individual game reviews are pretty rare from him. He's got a solid format. Something he could easily branch into.

[@MaxDrawsStuff]

@@hitmangfx7162 but as far as I know he never talked about SoR4 even in his standard reviews. Only mentioned that it exists.

[@Ashura96]

@@MaxDrawsStuff I asked him in the last video about SOR4. He said he didn't even finish it. Extremely disappointing.

[@dsgitlin]

@@Ashura96 ooh, that is disappointing. I’ve been playing and loving the DLC.

[@Ashura96]

@@dsgitlin Yeah. I hope he gives the game another go with the DLC, and if I had to guess, he probably quit playing before any of the major game balance patches came out.

[@WrestlingBios]

Literacy Corner needs its own series

[@GT6SuzukaTimeTrials]

AGREED

[@hoffington]

As a 10 year old I could easily get to the last castle now 27 years later I'm finding it tough to do the first few levels 😂

[@zaneiken07]

That 50Hz thing is such a massive oversight by the dev.

[@esmerylan]

That's just baffling to me. Did they think because the Master System was more popular in Europe, they had to base everything on that version? Never mind the system was also huge in Brazil and they had a standard with a 60Hz refresh rate since 1972.

[@kubev]

Yeah, that's just a bizarre choice altogether.

[@jameslarham5936]

I mean I’m from the UK, have an original PAL copy of miracle world and a PAL master system but I still play it at 60hz via a system modification.

[@PlumbDrumb]

yep, that took me from "going to buy it" to "not going to buy it".

[@kevindavidwark]

It takes a shocking level of incompetence to overlook something so basic.

[@derekdash2179]

You should start a box reading podcast…

[@blaat44]

Again, a wonderful read. The raw emotion you put in is baffling and it got me to tears quite quickly. The way you read '7004' is so mind blowing I still need to emotionally recover from hearing it. I will definitely show this to my students at my next gamecover reading session.

[@MuscarV2]

It's 7044... An astounding level of idiocy is needed get that wrong when it's right there, you see it as you type. Seriously, how does this happen?

[@blaat44]

@@MuscarV2 Sorry, I'm autistic.

[@fatherfintanstack8810]

@@blaat44 Nevermind that jackass, there's always someone like that who nitpicks against insignificant errors. Also, kudos to you for being apologetic and polite even when someone was rude as heck to you. Impressive and admirable.

[@blaat44]

@@fatherfintanstack8810 Thank you!

[@NegativeHeadspace]

I'm glad I watched to the end.

[@wimwiddershins]

Ahh, so relaxing. (What the f..)

[@charliemurphy6457]

Ahem, ahemmhmhmhnhnhmhmhm

[@Eric_Plunk]

The WTF moment made me lol in a literal sense.

[@caseyhayes4590]

I picked up an SMS for the first time at the end of the 16-bit era and this title still was fun to me nearly 10 years out of date. It wasn't a jaw a dropping 8-bit masterpiece like Wonderboy III The Dragon's trap or Phantasy Star was, but it's a top 20 game on the platform.

[@mykreevesofficial]

Love the stop motion intro, so unique but does the job really well.

[@ytmhcubed]

That ending made it all worth it. Do more. Please. (Please.)

[@Jesse__H]

The first sentence you read during Literacy Corner activated my phone's Google Assistant and it searched for "The Moon" when you said Miracle World. Literacy Corner makes Google as sleepy as it makes me 😅

[@bischoffdev]

I would definitely watch Gamesack back of the box description reading episodes!

[@Alucard1191]

I don't know why the dramatic readings of the backs of boxes is so entertaining, but it is definitely my favorite recurring end bit. I love it!

[@MSMPersonal]

I'm not sure you know the JanKen matches are scripted, you just have to write down what they are after the first attempt. And the surprise boxes don't have "Ghosts most of the time". It's a rotation. First you get a bracelet, then you know it's a ghost, then you know it's a 1UP. So when you know it's a ghost, get ready to run! But the reward is great, because you know you'll get a life next. If you skip it, then you delay getting your next life and your next bracelet, bad idea. I always finish this game with plenty of lives and way too much money.

[@tonk82]

Quite frankly... the janken was always a bad desing choice. Yeah, they are fixed, but the idea of having to dai sometimes, write it down and repeat, is quite cheap.

[@NoeLPZC]

I used to do the "sprite memory overload" trick to get rid of the ghosts (though of course, at the time I didn't understand what was going on - I just knew that if you released the ghost then quickly punched two boxes with cash inside the ghost would disappear).

[@Brabbs]

Thats some nice attention to detail!

[@turbinegraphics16]

Just pick a rock, paper or scissors and use it the whole game, you only die after losing 3 times.

[@nemesis3587]

Yeah, I suprised how many people couldn't figure out that easy thing. I still remember JanKen matches pattern, if they are not randomised in this remake it is easy to remember after one playthrought. And ring, ghost, extra life rotation is easy to figure out as well.

[@kyurkus1]

Hey Joe, thanks for keeping Game Sack running, It brings me Joy!

[@Triggermappy]

can we have the last part as a series as well and put in a playlist? seems like something good to listen to to fall asleep

[@yadspi]

I lost it when you started reading the barcode and P.O. numbers!

[@robertbarker5802]

Why in the world would you base a modern game on a PAL 50 hertz version???

[@Chaos89P]

Definitely something the devs need to be asked. I'm sure NTSC ROMs are easily available in Europe.

[@nicholasthetaylor]

@@Chaos89P Definitely ask the developers, but try to be kind. I don't think it's down to rom availability because an NTSC rom and PAL rom are mostly the same. It's the console itself that either runs at 50hz or 60hz. There is the occasional game that is PAL optimised e.g. Robocod but most are just the NTSC releases running on slower hardware, especially early games while the Master System's primary market were NTSC regions. The Master System found real success in PAL regions because games cost £20-30 instead of £30-£60 of the Megadrive, especially with the popularity of the Game Gear Master Gear convertor and Megadrive Powerbase convertor to assist game sales. There is a distinct contrast between Capitalist countries like USA and (more Communist/Capitalist balanced countries what's now known as) Socialist countries like Great Britain where in USA the most powerful and impressive is best, whereas UK has tended to lean towards a balance between capability and cost.

[@Chaos89P]

@@nicholasthetaylor If given the opportunity to do ask, I would at least try to be no less than cordial.

[@leadme2thebliss21]

I'm playing the new Wonder Boy remake on the Switch and loving it!

[@Greenalink]

About the 50hz part. I did a frame by frame comparison with the original's true 60hz. On frames he does not move, there is a chance he is still able to have his sprite updated and of course, there are times where he does not move for 2 frames, not just 1 frame.

[@TheHandheldGamer]

I loved this game. It was a lot of fun! A much improved game over the original. Good times!

[@spiritualcalmality8631]

Love the ASMR at the end. Though I think you should close your DS next time so we don't overhear that Professor Layton puzzle you're working on.

[@borcklaser9234]

I knew you would read the Registered and Trademark symbols out loud.

[@SilverShion]

I was between this game and Asha in Monster World. My love for the Wonder Boy series won.

[@patrickhein6986]

I picked both. :-)

[@pb879]

@@patrickhein6986 both were awful.

[@patrickhein6986]

@@pb879 That´s your Opinion, not mine.

[@pb879]

@@patrickhein6986 😭😭😭😭

[@0Fyrebrand0]

_"Alex no longer looks like a monkey."_ Uh, I beg to differ.

[@BriBCG]

They even added a tail!

[@RubyQuidam]

I feel like this remake is a love letter to the franchise, but the problem is that is love letter written as fans for themselves. I know the Spanish development team love Alex and wanted to be as faithful as possible but come on, this isn't the 80s, they should have done something to somewhat fix the slippery controllers and the 50hz display.

[@Nandru85]

The 50hz is a non-issue, since that what they had over there

[@RubyQuidam]

@@Nandru85 I know that in PAL regions they had to play at 50hz. And that's terrible but it they didn't mind, oh well...

[@allluckyseven]

@@Nandru85 Yes. Had.

[@jbfarley]

@@Nandru85 objectively an issue, sport

[@Fattydeposit]

Spoiler warning: 'ROCK' and 'SCISSORS'. That's it. That's the secret to the only 'random' battle in the whole game.

[@charliekahn4205]

It's faithful to the original

[@kins749]

This game was the reason I bought an SMS, still fun today

[@strain42]

I would've preferred if they'd used their fun new art style to just make a brand new game in the series or at least a remake that didn't feel like it had to stay SO true to the original.

[@acecarrera1]

Love WTF in silence part.

[@dwood78part23]

Thanks for doing a review.

[@joegutierrez8248]

The music at the end where Joe was reading sounded like something straight out of Secret of Mana.

[@Jordan3DS]

It's a song from Professor Layton, specifically when you're solving puzzles

[@FoxMcCloudFF7]

Greendog... the TRUE Sega mascot!

[@flemmingpedersen567]

Hearing him bitch about bad framerate, while watching it on a pal tv-set: "I can't see the problem".

[@bittersweetjesus]

The devs are from Europe and based the game on the original PAL version

[@flemmingpedersen567]

@@bittersweetjesus Yeah - that was the joke I was making...

[@robjackson4050]

that ending skit is the best one in my opinion

[@ianbaggins5063]

So glad you mentioned the judder/50Hz issue. I grabbed this game earlier in the month and instantly hated it because of how awful it "feels" to play. Which sucks as I enjoy the game otherwise but the scrolling/judder issue just ruins it outright for me. I'm hoping for a patch to fix this.

[@MadX8]

Agreed. I was about to buy it on Switch but i won't because of this. Thank you so much for mentioning this

[@mayormccheese2641]

Been a long while since I’ve watched Game Sack, glad to see it’s just as good

[@shadowhaze23]

Oh man I’m pumped to watch this video I was thinking about you when I saw this game come out as you’ve mentioned it before. You gotta do the new ghouls and goblins when you can. All right time to enjoy another awesome episode of Game Sack!

[@S.Madman]

It's hilarious that you read the back cover of that game, because in 1990 I did the exact same thing.

[@xenos_n.]

It feels so weird playing this ancient style game with these new beautiful graphics, it doesn't feel right. They really shouldn't have created the actual gameplay so close to the original and done something new, but then also added the original game. It wasn't really worth the money I spent on it but, oh well, it's cool to have in my collection.

[@atomicskull6405]

The remake had a Brazilian dev team and this game is considered a classic in Brazil, for some reason.

[@xenos_n.]

@@atomicskull6405 well it's considered a classic because the Sega Master System never died in Brazil 😂

[@arcadeperfectreviews2653]

Man hearing that Prof Layton music takes me back to my Dsi days

[@spunkyfidget70]

When I saw the ending credits had a Layton game as part of the used music tracks, I knew in my heart we were in for another Literacy Corner.

[@gurleyman104]

I can't stress enough how much I enjoy these individual game reviews!!

[@SpartanX360]

I had a nostalgia trip playing this game so much fun but harder as I remembered in my childhood.

[@offbeatuser]

I’m surprised you haven’t done the new ghosts n goblins game…

[@bootmonster]

Before I buy, does the patch released within the last few days fix the stuttering/ 50fps issue?

[@patrickhein6986]

I bought the Collectors Editon for the Switch and I find it Ok. The Janken is still annoying but beside this I had fun playing it.

[@n0vi]

"Someone's got to stop heeyim" the accent jfc

[@justinm6392]

Dude I know you get hundreds of comments but I just want to say you’re awesome

[@andyjee86]

Yes I've played it. I also played it in 1993 when i got a master system for my 7th birthday. I've no idea how i played this game at that age. It is rock solid. Just tried the dx version (now age 38) and I've still got no further.

[@gc8972b]

Joe: Hey, wait.. Alex: What is it? Joe: I've got a new complaint..

[@CaptSpeirsB744]

Best part about these reviews is the honesty. Not gonna waist a dime on this pile of 50 Hz poop. Ok, a dime, but anymore than that...ok, quarter, Ill give a quarter buy that's it.

[@faselei7774]

Bit of a shame they didn't port over the 'continue mode' from the original that cost $400 each time but you kept your items. Anyway great review as always!

[@0zn79]

Is the boat an Opa Opa? Can't remember about original... nice touch!

[@deathofkings5633]

Holy shit I didn’t even catch that. And I got the game.

[@NYCJoeBlack]

5:39 Love the logo design/animation!

[@ultraflamz64]

This game looks interesting. Got the original game days before this one came out for some reason. But I will pick this one up eventually.

[@maxpower10k]

Don’t you hate when that happens? lol I played through the original Destroy All Humans and literally the next week the remastered one came out. Like 🤦‍♂️

[@Shorai_3]

As a Dragon Ball fan, I owe it to myself to get this.

[@SgtSega]

The music was because the game is super popular down in Brazil.

[@ExcelsiorTech]

Please dramatically read every box cover. :-D

[@andrewfryer6187]

So when is the audio book collection for game descriptions coming out?

[@frankbull1126]

They could have kept the rock paper scissors and made it determine if you get a bonus or perhaps whether you have to fight a boss or skip it instead.

[@MrPoestyle]

With Joe's soft voice .... I FEEL ASLEEP!!

[@danchristian7282]

Saturday @ midnight, that's my jam!

[@jak3w]

CAN WE GET A COTTON REMAKE REVIEW?, I'm loving it, it looks so good on my switch

[@MosoKaiser]

Janken... Well, at the very least that's a descriptive name for that boss mechanic!

[@chrismyghostwriter]

Literacy Corner is my favorite ending!

[@BriBCG]

I always thought some of these remakes were simply adding graphics layers on top of the original emulated game. The fact that it's 50hz pretty much confirms that. Makes me wonder how hard it would actually be to tweak the physics or change the framerate. (also why pick the pal version that wouldn't run right on any modern display)

[@mws3779]

Just got my PS5 copy today, what a nostalgia rush. The new version is done very well although Alex's controls are a bit slippery although the original had some similar issues. The trick sliding under some objects work just like on the original. All together not bad for the price. I love how I can take the DVD sleeve out flipping around and make the DVD case look much like the original artwork on the cartridge case years ago.

[@deathofkings5633]

I think that’s the best GameSak ending skit yet 😂

[@bradleyanderson8311]

I usually don't watch the ending sketches, but this one was gols

[@Shiro128b]

Neat. This game was built into the master system 2 and the only game I had for some time after getting one so I played it lots. Thanks for the memories!

[@dbzeh6837]

Love the post credit scene

[@GiggaVega]

Nice, I was wondering if you were going to talk about this one based on its whole history.

[@HKT-4300]

Them just starting off with a PAL rom for no fuckin reason makes me want to scream

[@Dan_Capone]

It was a trick to make the game artificially longer since they were scripted, so you only had to play again and again until you knew the sequences by heart (or you read a guide, I guess). Once you know them all the game is pretty short. I guess they should've changed them for the remake because the modern gamer is pretty different and expects different things from games.

[@Malacefire]

^^; damn game sack always a great time with your videos but I always get extra excited to see what you do for your end credits O.o its like the marvel movies of retro games lol you never fail to deliver

[@thegreathadoken6808]

"I don't think I missed any platforms there and if I did, who cares?" I CARE, JOE! Why have they forsaken Stadia?

[@TheLakabanzaichrg]

Da footure in gaemin!

[@Apav]

That escalated quickly

[@donnerblitzen1388]

I completed this game just recently and LOVED IT. Anyone who is turned off by the physics of the game, there is an option to turn the sliding off, making it more "Mario"(it even says this may effect gameplay - it doesn't IMO). It is classic game hard. My favorite level is janken's castle. That is where the game shines IMO. Was definitely worth the purchase.

[@mxggo9046]

You read with the voice of an angel.

[@Horos_de_Vega]

I had a VERY GOOD time playing this remake. 👍

[@Zeldaschampion]

I am wondering if Joe just randomly picked a Professor Layton song at the end or has he actually played the games.

[@paranoidgenius9164]

I think the control system is intentional, it's meant to be frustratingly challenging , then when you beat the game for the first time, the satisfaction you can get from it is something else. Not having to sit through eye candy cutscenes or pressing a button to trigger another cutscene, like watching a character squeeze through a skinny gap between 2 boulders, I'm a retro freak & I find myself, playing retro games can over weigh when it comes to more engagement & hand to eye coordination.

[@GMMXX80]

Its just not the same without Dave. Console Wars was able to come back with Pat after Greg left that took getting used to and warmed up to but, this was also meant as a Duo, solo, it doesnt seem to work seeing as its identity was started out as a duo.

[@animejoe4041]

Adding a simple double jump would have improved this game by a lot.

[@TheGunmanChannel]

It just went on Steam sale, I think I'll skip it. The physics look frustrating.

[@darrinfromvault801]

You'd think after all these years his name would be changed to Alex Ballsdrop Your move on bad jokes, Joe

[@GameSack]

LOL that's... pretty bad.

[@Nandru85]

Alex middleagedman

[@TheBeird]

It’s certainly a game made with love, which goes a long way for me. Still bloody frustrating though

[@TrevRockOne]

Another fine episode from Game Sack.

[@deathproof8732]

Admit it Joe you only make these videos to do your acting skits at the end

[@aaa-ix5nj]

Joe claims not to be a big fan of Sega Mascots but he can't go 5 minutes without mentioning Fantasy Zone :) Keep up the great work Joe!

[@inceptional]

Man, the ending is so good.

[@rinsatomi9527]

Alex looks full time 100% stupider and the ukuleles are for the birds Sad to see that 35 years later this is what we get, at 50hz

[@sproins]

I wonder if they intentionally kept the pixel art inconsistencies. Some assets have black outlines, others don't, and some fall somewhere in-between.

[@davidsantiagoalonso]

i think the wall climbing skillls really needed three nods, not two (IMO)

[@dravenlee4473]

Just finished this game. I didn't grow up with the SMS game but was always jealous and wanted to play it. It's not the remakes fault but man, I can't imagine playing the game without unlimited lives. All of the instant and cheap deaths would send me into a rage. Outside of that, I enjoyed the graphics, music and the combat was satisfying. The unlimited lives option is almost required though - Especially at that god awful spike part.

[@arashnikoubashman6946]

Everybody talks about the janken, but what about those horrible slippery controls? Makes me so uncomfortable just looking at it

[@Resvrgam]

Yeah. That’s what killed it for me: Alex flies around like a s pastic monkey and it’s infuriating when you need accuracy for tight jumps. The 1-hit death makes it even more insufferable. This is just a poorly designed game with a pretty coat of paint.

[@GameSack]

I talked about those too.

[@jbfarley]

I'm sorry that you're deaf

[@arashnikoubashman6946]

My bad, Joe mentioned it, but it’s just so irritating

[@MrGamecatCanaveral]

More stages?! Hell yeah

[@ThomasHostvedt]

All I want to know is, “Would Dave White Approve”?