Ghouls'n Ghosts ARCADE EDITION for the SEGA MegaDrive - STAGE 2

[@PONTOCRITICO]

This work is incredible and very faithful to the arcade. The small disparities don't affect the integrity of the work and, in some respects, are better than those in the arcade, as they are more aesthetically pleasing additions than those chosen at the time. It's not even a question of the use of hardware, but of observing how to make the most of what you have. It's lovely to see the Mega Drive still causing such positive surprises.

[@shiningphantasy1393]

Seriously impressive; back in 1989 we were wowed by the Mega Drive port of Ghouls and Ghosts and thought the visuals were about as good and close to the arcade as was reasonably possible, but your version is a massive improvement and in some cases may even look nicer than the arcade.

[@albertoluna4302]

aMaru espero que el proyecto no este cancelado. Es el mejor hack que se ha hecho para Mega drive. Si esta cancelado por favor dilo públicamente, gracias por todo.

[@TheSaturatio]

Absolutely amazing job. If you do not put them side by side, it seems like a pixel perfect conversion. Congratulations!!

[@kennylauderdale_en]

A new way to experience a game I played to death as a kid. I love it.

[@seanjenkins4654]

This is one that seriously deserves a lot of attention still, in some parts, it looks completely upgraded, and in some other areas, it looks better than the arcade

[@GreyMatterShades]

Wow! Not only is it a huge improvement over the Genesis original, it even looks better than the Arcade version. Awesome job! 👍

[@TurboXray]

That's a bit of an exaggeration. As amazing as the MD has, and it is, the arcade has more colors, more details, more frames, and is higher res.

[@chev9632]

​@@TurboXray, Yes, he may have exaggerated the statement, but in this comparison shown, some details are more interesting in the mega drive.

[@zabustifu]

@@TurboXray More colors and a higher resolution don't automatically make something look better. Some of the MD color choices look better to me, like at 2:30. The MD colors are also more contrasted, which make things more readable to me. In the end, it's a matter of tastes.

[@ostiariusalpha]

​@@TurboXraySomeone has to say "Whoa there now" when enthusiasts start getting carried away. Thank you for your service.

[@GreyMatterShades]

@@TurboXray My comment was based on the second side by side comparison shown in this video, which shows this version beside the arcade version. While the arcade hardware is unquestionably more powerful than the MD, in my opinion, this new MD version looks better than the arcade version.

[@paulngo4631]

This game was my favorite game as a kid. Honestly the upgrades are awesome.

[@SnotlipsTM]

It's a great time to be a GNG fan, first the NewWaveToys Replicade and now this awesome conversion! God Speed!

[@f.k.b.16]

You are not allowed to make it look better than the arcade! 🤣 Seriously, some parts do look better. Like the buildings at 2:30 and the water at 3:23... The contrast and color choices are great! Amazing work!

[@damin9913]

Sega genesis was always better then the arcade🤣

[@johndough8115]

@@damin9913 Not even close. The Arcade machines have vastly superior Hardware to the Genesis.. which is why its very difficult for a faithful Arcade accurate conversion.

[@StrikeValkyrie]

Even though this was said somewhat jokingly I do believe that many Sega Genesis arcade conversions were better than the arcade. Graphics are important but gameplay and extra features often made the home versions more fun and all around better games. Atomic Runner was actually graphically superior to it's arcade source. Altered Beast, although color-reduced, had an extra scrolling foreground layer of graphics missing from the arcade and more options for players. Golden Axe had extra levels and played arguably better. Graphics aren't everything and getting to play a game whenever you want and having extra gameplay options made many arcade ports superior!@@damin9913

[@Heaven-dy9lj]

Yes I prefer the Megadrives more stark pronounced graphics over the arcade. They're more pleasing to my eye.

[@ThatOldTV]

Incredible work! You're making a dream come true.

[@arciks11]

Very interesting to see the compromises in the visuals that still had to be made due to Genesis being weaker than arcade. (smoke stacks, extra background details, the color pallete) But it is done incredibly well and still feels quite "Arcade Perfect" so to speak.

[@ajsingh4545]

Sega just used a small rom size for the game for cost cutting like with other earlier Sega games. Hence they couldn't fit detailed art work in that small rom size and had to cut and simply most of it. Super grafx version uses double the memory and it's much closer to the arcade. Mostly about space limitations

[@sweetamiao]

Wow! Isn't this amazing? Has been waiting for your video for so long and this totally worth the wait. If not put side-by-side with the arcade I can't tell the difference. When played next to the original MD version, it looks like a comparison between MD and arcade.

[@ACESpark]

Oh damn, one of my favourite games on the Megadrive, which I ended up still overall preferring compared to arcade just based on game feel alone, always looked a lil bit dated due to its time of release. But this is just such super impressive work so far!

[@locadoradaraimundinha2024]

Great Job, I can't wait to test it on my channel. true megadrive wizard.

[@-TRIPLE_A-]

One of the all-time greats, better than the original?! Amazing stuff, keep up the great work!

[@chev9632]

What a beautiful work, I've been following it since the beginning. Please continue, your hack is almost a new port.

[@JackyWade]

Almost? Yes, it is.

[@Dirk1Steele]

Just wow. I thought level one was a big step up. This may be even better. I wondered how the flames would look near the end as they were a bit weak in the MD original but now they look superb. Keep up the great work!

[@timvangenechten5258]

The original port on the genesis was already an amazing port. This one is even more amazing. If you would have put that on an arcade machine back in the day then no one would have known it wasn't an actual arcade board.

[@abcmaya]

This is so close to the arcade , I want to create an arcade cabinet for it.

[@Munkymall]

Fantastic work. Please stay motivated as you’re doing an unbelievably job. I had a Megadrive in 1990 and at the time was blown away by sega’s version- this is on another level . What is the file size like…?

[@amaru1818]

The file size is currently at around 6 Mbits, but it's full of blank space, and I'm not overwriting the original assets.

[@seanjenkins4654]

@@amaru1818u know I thought u might have stopped on this project, I can’t find the forum post on sega 16 anymore

[@lordhiryu]

Maravilloso como siempre!!!! Un trabajo totalmente artesanal y lleno de cariño!!!! Enhorabuena!!!

[@ErMcValdemar]

I always considered the second level the worst in terms of backgrounds in the SEGA edition of the game. You finally gave justice to this beautiful level, so close to the arcade and perfectly fitting colors. What an amazing job!

[@gaialily6846]

Amazing, even better than arcade ! More contrast and details. Happy to see you back. Thanks aMaru !

[@abcmaya]

Amaru where are you!!! =* (

[@PhoticSneezeOne]

God bless aMaru! He´s back!!!

[@format_c5993]

Excellent work, as usual !

[@JaimeMargary]

Your version makes it seem like there are many eyes in the background fire, similar to what we see in the stage boss. I thought "Wow, what a cool detail I never noticed in the arcade version!" until I saw the arcade version didn't have it. This is one way in which, to me, you've actually improved over the original.

[@victorcardoso4516]

wonderful!!!

[@Myako]

Damn, this just keeps looking better and better! Any chance of a demo ROM, please? 😊🙏🏻

[@airic21]

WOW youre still doing this project i remember this a while back..... Great job :) hope youre able to complete this and its overall harder then the original.

[@jameskiely5518]

This is the most impressive "hack" I have seen on any system. I really hope this is still in the works.

[@supion_]

Good to see project is still going on. Can't wait to see it finalized.

[@ShadowArtist]

It's looking amazing so far, I look forward to when you finish this! **I want play this so much!**

[@YeoWren]

A real visual delight for the eyes, I can't wait to watch the "behind-the-scenes details of the hacking process". =) I'd never noticed that the boss wasn't positioned at the same height on the ground in the arcade version and the MD one. And for once I think the MD adaptation makes more sense. It almost looks like he's floating just above the ground when he's supposed to have all four legs touching the ground (2:02). It's a disturbing perspective, what do you think about it?

[@amaru1818]

Actually the MD version didn't change the position of the boss, it simply made the pavement a bit higher. I agree with you that it is super annoying to see Cerberus almost floating in midair, but faithfulness to the arcade is still my main goal. I considered for a short while to change the position of the boss, but this would also alter the gameplay, which is not what I want.

[@seanjenkins4654]

@@amaru1818your on a roll here man, here’s a good question did this game display in 256 mode originally? If it did, couldn’t there be a way to mod the 320 mode into the game

[@rodrigoalves-cg6xv]

This is the coolest Genesis project I ever saw. It looks better than the Arcade!

[@Rod_Zaramella]

Amazing! Keep up with the good work! Will be a very nice addition to the community.

[@abcmaya]

An Update. Thank You!!! And it looks incredible!!!

[@ArtemioUrbina]

This looks amazing, you are doing a great job. Thank you

[@pasletemps6358]

Vous avez réalisé un travail impressionnant, merci pour le temps et la passion que vous investissez dans cet incroyable projet.

[@RetroSegaDev]

Amazing work! In total shock by just how much you've changed via a hack!

[@sonicboy1995]

Please, dont stop and continue working!

[@raycastello2532]

Best hack ever, I hope you follow through, my suggestion is simple. Keep going, the result is amazing!!

[@DobuitaDave]

Wow! Ghouls is my fav game on Megadrive. The MD version plays better than the arcade & Supergrafx version. This looks amazing! Hopefully you can release a demo like Mega R-type...maybe lol! Awesome work!

[@XaviDJ]

Ánimo aMaru, esperamos alguna noticia del trabajo que haces, es increíble y estoy seguro que puedes conseguir ayuda por medio de los otros programadores. Son un montón y estan haciendo trabajos con Final Fight MD, Vigilante, Golden Axe, Castlevania, KOF MD, Street Fighter Omega y muchos más, estaría genial ver tu trabajo finalizado. ÁNIMO 🙌

[@harlandmct]

This and RTYPE are my most anticipated projects! I wonder if anyone has tried remixing the soundtrack for a bit more oomph.

[@malcolmogilvy4885]

Lad that is looking trully awesome just love your work and dedication wishes ima could have learned how to create games in life nevermind something ima be starting soon but 8bit with the Commodore 64 as love that SID music yet the MegaDrive stole my heart from the Commodore 64 and AMIGA back in the early 90's even now Ima just love retro gaming can not wait to play your finished work you are truly AWESOME keep up the great work countless must be dying to play your vamped up version it is so close to the Arcade a few wee things missing like skulls and burning buildings but who cares it is EPIC can not wait totally inspiring

[@fialhojacson]

I hope it gets finished. Got me eager to play it again. It is gorgeous.

[@f3rns]

This is beyond words. Amazing

[@emphatic001]

You possess a great deal of skill. Beautiful work.

[@Something9008]

Glorious - better color choices than the arcade! I love how it pops.

[@Mekaneckpain]

It's coming along nicely. I can't wait to own this.

[@rap3d]

Amazing!!

[@zeedee3929]

Beautiful, wonderful work!

[@lucauva6576]

That's incredible...but on this video I see a trick ti defeat "the Devil"...After he lanched a skull from the mountain, wait a moment ad he comes by the ground and Arthur is free to shoot him.... WooooooW....I'm waiting for 30years!!!!! WooooooW

[@evilashxero]

I really hope you're able to finish this. It's coming along really well. Maybe you should put up a Patreon or something like that to keep ya motivated. ;p Seriously though... I'd donate. This looks awesome.

[@kirgeez-gaming]

Just fantastic I can't wait to see how you complete the other stages.

[@dirkvandijk6112]

IMO the aMaru mod pops more than the original Arcade version; sure some details are lost but it seems sharper and with more vibrant colours. Outstanding work !!!

[@wetrucken1689]

If I had this version as a kid i would have lost my shit old one was good but DAM!! this one is a masterpiece!!! I would defiantly buy this game!!!!

[@dytallixx1268]

wow this looks really impressive. nice work!

[@wwjnz9263]

That looks awesome. I was wondering how this project is going. Great stuff!

[@bredmaster]

incredible. keep up the great work, its appreciated. All that detail...Out of curiosity, what's the file size of the game for just level one and two now?

[@amaru1818]

It's currently around 1 extra megabit for stages 1+2. I am not reusing ROM space for the original graphics assets, thought.

[@mankrip-]

Your colors are better than the ones from the arcade version. Impressive.

[@johndough8115]

Fantastic Job. The only thing I recommend fixing... is to put the missing light-blue "Highlight" dots on the blue slime, that is under the mountains of skulls (3:18). Its the highlights that make the stuff look round and gelatinous. I like the red hue shift in the skulls / stage. It looks better... The Salmon (pinkish) colors of the Rock wall at (3:51) sort of clashes with the colors of the Wooden top beams. In the Arcade version, the colors chosen for the wall, are closer to the colors of the wood, and the rest of the structures. Overall, excellent work !

[@johndough8115]

How difficult would it be, to make a Level Editor ? It would be wild, to have a few new stages...

[@abcmaya]

i understand what you mean about the highlight. I wanna learn how to change the sprite just so I can add the highlight for the main characters in Altered Beast.

[@johndough8115]

@@abcmaya You can see the highlights, on time-mark 0:11 and other places on that level.

[@abcmaya]

@@johndough8115 you're right! sharp eye. glad you noticed.

[@amaru1818]

You're absolutely right, it would be a lot better if I could restore the light blue highlights to the blue slime. Unfortunately I don't have that extra slot in my palettes. Reintroducing that would mean sacrificing something else in the backgrounds. Concerning the rock walls, I actually like that pinkish shade because it contrasts with the overall yellowish tone of the stage. I might play around with a colors a bit more, though. Thank you for the suggestions.

[@PekMinister]

aMaru... GO GO GO! BTW, there is a bit of garbage (aka wrong sprites) forming the Red Arremer, for a second, wen it starts moving from the skull pile, on the second 0:57. This hack is amazing! Keep up the good work!

[@amaru1818]

I'm glad you noticed, you're definitely right. This is due to the fact that the whole tileset for the Arremer is too large, so I decided to split it in two parts. The first part is loaded initially for its idling pose, then when Arthur walks beyond its sitting place I overwrite the first tileset with the second. The first of the frames used for the flight animation uses tiles that are not loaded fast enough, and thus we see the garbage. This can be fixed, and I will do it at some point.

[@albertoluna4302]

Felicidades aMaru por tu trabajo, estaba pensando si no habría sido mas fácil crear el juego desde cero con un motor grafico mejor? Vas a publicar un video pronto con mas novedades?

[@Alexandreismael22]

Impressionante!!

[@lgmxvideossubtitulados1813]

Just Impressive!

[@BringerOdeath77]

Only thing missing is the snoke on the windmills! Everything else looks amazing!!

[@damin9913]

Way better then the Arcade!

[@georgebradley6521]

Subscribes just for this

[@tiagoandriotti4183]

When the port looks better than the original... DAMN!

[@74Amighista]

Wow, your work is fantastic .

[@stefanswiss3760]

I just have to tell you how impressed I am with your work Best of luck for the rest Gg

[@brazilmugenteam]

Fantastic work!

[@Devilhelll]

fantastico!!!!

[@anjodaharpa8757]

The transition between the mountain/lake background and the burning city it's so abrupt, look the great black space at 3:30, is possible put some background element in there?

[@amaru1818]

This is going to be very difficult. That is a point where I'm swapping a lot of the tiles in VRAM, as well as the colors in the palettes... I might think of a solution to make it appear less abrupt later on, but I won't be able to replicate more faithfully the arcade there.

[@BPlayReview]

Lots of praises for your work on the conversion to near arcade-like graphics as its supposed to be. Personally, I have no criticism on the whole aspect on what you've done so far especially the last section which are a massive improvement and who would've thought tile swapping could do great effects on flickering flames, but based on your description and your previous video post regarding the small details such as the smoke and skeletons, will there be a revisit to add these if it doesn't affect the performance as seeing so much happening in the last section could've created a major slowdown?

[@amaru1818]

Adding smoke columns and horse skeletons is still in my TODO list and definitely feasible.

[@a11danielvv]

BRUTAL!

[@Marcos_Santos_Alpha]

Uow!😮

[@PhoticSneezeOne]

I also think that the genesis soundtrack could be tuned to arcade levels as well. Didn´t hear something the Genesis couldn´t potentially do. Maybe Savage Regime? ;)

[@thehumbleone1983]

Wow incredible just amazing with what you have done looks great love it 👍

[@filevans]

can you combine this with the mega cd arcade music patched version which has been released?

[@EduDBrand]

This is sorcery!!! Awesome

[@DeadlyGamingLV]

This is looking amazing. :)

[@krisrikourt575]

Amazing and beautiful. Very good work aMaru !!!! If there is a way to support you (by donation, patreon, something else...), please, let us know. Keep up the good work. =)

[@Pito23]

Wow awesome job!!!

[@kalvinravn8431]

Incredible!!!

[@slashrose3287]

Amazing work, outstanding.... just one question: there are quite a few colours changes respect to the arcade counterpart, both in sprites and background, it's due to MD palette costraints or artistic choices ?

[@CplEthane]

I used to believe that the 4-palette limit of the Megadrive was a huge handicap for the system especially when it comes to arcade and other such ports, but it really _isn't_. Case in point, go take a look at the current attempt to port Symphony of the Night to the Megadrive. By taking the effort to implement a smart application of a limited color set, the difference isn't as drastic as you'd think.

[@slashrose3287]

​@@CplEthane I agree....especially when you have a genius art helper like Pyron ;-)

[@chev9632]

I like the freedom he had with some colors, "copying" the same color scheme from the arcade isn't always the best way, and the amount of colors that Mega has is enough to work with, just use your creativity.

[@amaru1818]

Indeed, whenever there's a strong difference wrt the arcade this means we hit the MD color limitations, and so I had to come up with an alternative color scheme.

[@danibusvlc]

Brrrrrr this is awesome. Capcom, what are u waiting to give this guy a license a sold game yourself?

[@raycastello2532]

🤩

[@erich3784]

Awesome job.

[@slightlytwistedagain]

The most impressive thing about this is that your choice in colours are superior to the arcade version, even with the limited onscreen colour palette. I do think you need to increase Arthur's animations matching the arcade so he looks more fluid.

[@amaru1818]

Thank you, improving Arthur's appearance (detail/color) and animation is definitely something I'll have to focus on at some point. This will entail a major rearragement of the use of the first two palettes, though, so it will take a lot of careful planning (as usual, improving one aspect requires sacrifing something else).

[@slightlytwistedagain]

@@amaru1818 I would have also suggested increasing the enemy explosion animations, but I don't know if you will have enough vram to do it.

[@fabianologfatec]

sub earned, eager to see the end of this unbelievable job, and to play a demo ROM too 😏

[@deano72]

Brilliant work💕. Looks amazing

[@tecnosofttechnosoft3426]

Very great work, thanks !

[@Crystallums]

I don't know why Capcom wouldn't do things right from the start... This hack is just how Ghouls'n Ghosts should always have been. 😄👍🍻

[@nathandaniels4823]

Capcom didn’t make the Genesis version, Sega did. Two things to keep in mind: 1) they were limited by ROM size and 2) they were limited by time. Companies generally had a few months to push games out and it was crucial to keep ROM sizes as tiny as possible. Since no consumers had the ability to compare home and console versions directly like we’re doing here, the devs (including Yuji Naka) prioritized getting the feel accurate over every last pixel. Considering those limitations, Sega did a fantastic job and the universally stellar magazine reviews at the time proves it.

[@Crystallums]

@@nathandaniels4823 Totally true... I had forgotten! I remember reading a while ago that Capcom only licensed the Genesis/MD versions, but it was Sega itself who was in charge of developing them. On the other hand, the time and size of the Roms was a truly limiting aspect for the games, because even though the console had the capacity to make a more than faithful port, many times it was not possible due to cost issues and commercial agendas.

[@Yuzoboy]

This is excellent work! Out of interest, how much more storage space did you need compared to the original Megadrive version for this stage? I'd imagine the original release was partially bound by the cartridge size.

[@solarflare9078]

He replied in a comment that Stage 1+2 added an extra megabit

[@rowjelio]

How did i miss this 4 months ago? Amazing work my man, keep it up!!

[@moisesbr3987]

Impressive! Looks great, very close to arcade. Congratulations!

[@chazzw5388]

I always knew with more memory and effort from the programmers Genesis version could have done this too!