City Connection & Freedom Force retrospective: Gun it! | NES Works

[@owenitzura]

Fun Fact: The tune that plays when you hit the cat is a German waltz called "Flohwalzer", meaning "Flea Waltz". The reason it was used in the game is because in Japan, this tune is also known as "Neko Funjatta", which means "I stepped on the cat".

[@nickfish2759]

THANK YOU! I've heard this song in so many arcade games and I had no idea what it was.

[@billkendrick1]

👍

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

A song called "I stepped on the cat" feels like it should be VERY distinct, and probably sound awful.

[@WeirdoOfWeirdos]

... I want to ask why it has that name, but something tells me I don't want to know.

[@Fragenzeichenplatte]

@@WeirdoOfWeirdos Maybe it's the sound of stepping on a dog?

[@Matt-tx5cb]

Somehow my 6 year old became fan of City Connection, she discovered it on the Switch NES app. Kids love hatchbacks I guess!

[@velarantube]

From my personal experience, children love this game. Ever since I picked this up at Lionel Playworld back in '88, it's been popular with practically everyone who saw me play it, but especially the young'uns. One of the only two games I own more than one kid has actually *begged* to borrow! Still a big fan myself, some 33 years on.

[@casualslax]

@@velarantube What's the other game if you don't mind me asking?

[@velarantube]

@@casualslax Not at all. The other one is NES Super Mario Bros. 2! People I know(and sometimes didn't, like classmates I never talked to from school or barely was even aware of the existence of; like a dude's *grown mom* in my trailer park who'd never even talked to me before but wanted to trade me her *husband's* copies of NES Kung Fu and Donkey Kong Jr. for this game!) have taken a shine to SMB2 ever since I got it from K-Mart around Dec. '88! On my walk home from the store, my best friend's little sister offered to do all my homework and take out the trash at my place if she could borrow it for a whole day! Dang. I *just* bought this! I haven't played it yet! Sign of things to come, I guess. It seems to be a staple of family gaming in more recent years, as well. A close friend just added Switch Online so their 7 year old can play SMB2 with rewind and save states. (Trying to spare his old-school NES from potential rage-fuelled tantrums as I understand; tho it seems the current generation doesn't throw hissies like a lot of us did bitd... This particular child also seems super well behaved even in the face of repeated attempts to last more than 3 minutes or so at Ghosts N' Goblins, so worry seems misplaced. :-/ Just being overprotective of their childhood memento, I'd wager...) I've assisted more than a few people in (re-)acquiring a NES over the years who mentioned that this game was a primary driving force for getting the system. In fact, when the Mini(NES Classic) came out, a buddy phoned immediately to find out the fidelity of the NES emulation specifically so he could have a good facsimilie of SMB2 for his kids until he was able to get the real deal. Oddly, I've noticed that the versions in All-Stars, Advanced, etc... don't seem to command that much devotion. Guess the imitations just feel a bit off... I whole-heartedly back all the enthusiasm I've encountered with this installment myself as it's my personal favorite SMB game 'cuz of the tight controls, multiple characters with various different stats/abilities, focused exploration, frenetic boss battles and charm to spare.(Love Shyguys in particular! Bought Yoshi's Island just 'cuz I was jazzed to see 'em return. So relieved that game was great! :-)) Like no Mario before or since, really. I've played pretty much all of 'em, and enjoyed quite a few,(Currently playing through New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe and liking it quite a bit, in fact.) but I find myself returning to Sub-Con more than any other Mario 'world'.

[@casualslax]

@@velarantube Ah, SMB2 was great and it was very accessible to people who didn't game often. I remember the hype surrounding SMB3 being bigger than SMB2 but SMB2 absolutely drew in more casual gamers than 3. I think something about the gameplay mechanics of part 2 sparked something in those who had previously enjoyed Donkey Kong in a way that SMB1 (and subsequently SMB3) didn't.

[@velarantube]

@@casualslax I'd say you're right regarding differences b/w 1/3 and SMB2. There were a few unhappy players who didn't like the control/style changes bitd amongst my local gaming community. Two stick out to me most vividly. Firstly, my eldest cousin came over the weekend I got 3, eagerly popping it in the NES, then getting confused, then annoyed. I distinctly remember her saying"*This* again? The last one was *so* cool. Why are they back to *this*? It's just like the first one!" I was kinda surprised and went something like "Dude, this isn't *bad* or anything. I, ya know, like the first one. It's fun..." Even the Hammer Bros. Suit failed to impress. She left that night without bothering to ask to borrow the game.(I was secretly relieved; I wanted to get some time on it before I started the loan outs!) Then, my next door gaming pal crept over at like 7:45 in the morning before school wanting to play it really bad, but was disappointed by the 'throwback' style. When we came back from school he proposed playing Super C instead... Most everyone else seemed to take in stride, albeit a little puzzled as to why exactly 'SMB1' controls were back.(Everybody in my circle seemed to accept this eventually; when World came out, none of us were surprised by the now definitive, 'classic' gameplay.) Imagine anyone griping about SMB3, right? Considered one of, if not *the* the absolute, bestest Mario, like ever to practically everyone. As time goes by, the faces grow more incredulous when I mention this stuff. :-) Re: Hype over 3 vs. 2. You definitely remember correctly! 2 was *big* with celebratory mugs, clocks, calendars, pajamas, t-shirts, sweatpants, clocks, lunch boxes/thermoses, comics, bedroom paraphernalia like bedcovers and wall stickers,magazine covers, a TV show, etc... 3 had all that and *way* more! It had a movie that was basically a 90-minute commercial. Cereal, McDonald's Happy Meal Toys, non-stop ads on TV and Radio everywhere, a dedicated Mario Day, you name it! Regarding the, Donkey Kong/SMB2 crossover appeal, I'd never thought of that, honestly. That's a great observation! The more I reflect on this, I do believe there is a correlation amongst those I know/knew who loved DK and SMB2. Those fans seemed to be the most nonplussed by the switchback. Now, the next time I talk to some people about old school Mario, I'm gonna bring this up and see what responses I get!

[@Technosphile]

I know you didn’t ask, but every Wednesday I get to the office and get everything going for the day. I plug in my phone, check emails and texts, and KZbin subscriptions. And there’s Parish, every week. Seeing a new NES Works each week is as pleasant as that first sip of coffee. Thank you for your dedication.

[@AverageDrafter]

That City Connection Dude is amazing as an artifact of what some localizer thought was a "cool American dude" in 1988. Cheerful Blonde Brooding James Dean.

[@Ginormousaurus]

He reminds me of Shane Gooseman from The Adventures of the Galaxy Rangers.

[@JazGalaxy]

I love the chaste kiss on the cheek and the “aw gosh” expression of the hero’s face after he just lethally shot six dozen men.

[@juststatedtheobvious9633]

I'll never understand how NES developers decided American boys hated girls but would risk anything for chaste G-rated kisses from them? It seems like they were working through their own issues...

[@RamuneRabbit]

@@juststatedtheobvious9633 Well even girls back then would play the meta game of trying to get the kiss from April O'Neil in Turtles 2. I'll never forget when my childhood friend switched my controller with her's after beating Baxter, only for her Ex-Turtle to end up receiving April's gratitude! Her jaw was WIDE! 😅

[@jonnyeh]

3:50 I was an "American" (actually Canadian) Mappy fanatic, due to some sketchy 64-in-1 Famicom cart that I somehow received as a present when I was a kid.

[@starlightwitch12]

City Connection (the Clarice one) is so famous in some countries because it is so common in bootleg Famiclone cartridges, including those 1000 in 1 cartridges that had the game on repeat.

[@Kawa-oneechan]

Can confirm, I had it on my 370-in-1 back when I was but a child.

[@therealquinnzack1819]

This, and stuff like Exerion, Battle City, and a ton of others awww yeeah😎

[@moldyonionz]

I was literally thinking about the bootleg cartridge I had growing up!! I always call it my action 52 bootleg hahah - it had city connection on it and a lot more

[@RndStranger]

I've got a lot of details to fill in on City Connection since I happened to just do a bunch of research on the Famicom game a couple of weeks ago. According to the Famicom manual, Claris is on her worldwide rampage looking for a boyfriend. She's also 15 years old and is from California. The castle backdrop is Neuschwanstein in Germany, though I think it's not from the best angle.

[@PandaXs1]

her boyfriend is apparently in the NES version of the same game, how sneaky

[@Tryphen]

The company City Connection itself has done a lot of good work in bringing back classic Jaleco titles as well as releasing OSTs for a lot of games from SNK/Namco/Taito/Capcom. Clarice herself makes for a fun mascot. I'm still impressed they got the license to do a near complete Sunsoft soundtrack that included the Warner Bros licensed games.

[@NanoGamingGamer]

City Connection is one of my favorite games of all time. The best arcade game ever.

[@BenCol]

Also getting Blues Brothers vibes from City Connection. More than just alliterated titles - the never-ending hordes of cop cars, the disregard for proper car physics, and the Johnny B. Goode esque music put me in mind of Jake & Elwood. Only thing is they drove a much cooler car.

[@zachreddy]

That could make an excellent romhack

[@JoJoTheOtter]

I love City Connection! I was so excited when it came to Nintendo Switch Online. I immediately showed my sister the next time I went to visit and she got to play it like the old days.

[@Level1Sword]

The bikini girls just casually posing during a gun fight... That's the NES era for ya.

[@TheSmart-CasualGamer]

That's the 80s for you as a whole really.

[@rootbeer_666]

There was a Cruisin’/City Connection cabinet at a local Big Lots where I grew up. I never got to play it but I loved the look of it. And a few decades later, I’d like to have a City, especially with the mini bike that stows rather nicely in the rear hatch. And then you bring up Castle of Cagliostro. Such a fantastic movie, the chase scene was great and man I’d love to explore the ruins that Lupin ultimately raised from the deep.

[@bl6799]

Gonna go out on a limb and say that vista with the castle in the forest is supposed to be Schloss Neuschwanstein. Decidedly un-city, Jaleco.

[@bfish89ryuhayabusa]

That's what I was thinking. Right down to insisting on including the word "schloss".

[@HydraSavior]

Came for vague memories of a rental of City Connection. Stayed for Jeremy's headcanon that City Connection is a sequel to Lupin III.

[@kamulecPL12]

Your videos are so relaxing, man, I'm always looking towards watching them after a long day. Keep em coming

[@PandaXs1]

I had to play City Connection a lot on virtual console because....reasons, so I'm glad at least someone can appreciate the game for what it is.

[@littleterr0r]

City Connection is one of those games that was disappointing to me as a kid but now I like more then ever for its quick pick-up-and-play style.

[@sjspirtos]

City Connection, One of my favorite NES purchases when I was a kid. Still love it to this day.

[@velarantube]

It's in my NES right now. And when it it isn't being played, it rests on top with my other beloved Paks like Castlevania , CV3: Dracula's Curse, Spy Hunter, and the Contras. Always a great go to game. Once people try it, they like it.(Well, most, ime.) Should've been an arcade mega hit, imo. Oh well, still the best $23.10 I ever spent!

[@thingnumbertwo2]

City Connection was a favorite of mine as a kid; love seeing your take on it here. Gonna have to load that one up one of these days and see if I can get through a loop of it.

[@velarantube]

Do it! It's as good as as you remember! Gonna haveta master that 180 degree jump swerve if you wanna guarantee that second loop, though... ;-)

[@Riz2336]

Both of those games seem pretty good

[@THEmuteKi]

I don't know if I'm a fanatic for City Connection but I sure do love me some comfy Honda hatchbacks and creative reinterpretations of Tchaikovsky piano concertos, so close enough!

[@Larry]

Maybe Jaleco also thought a chaotic maze game starring a cute car would appeal to Americans because of the popularity of the Herbie movies? But, it seemed to have done well, Core Design make a total knock off of City Connection for European home computers called CarVup.

[@robintst]

I had a cracked copy of CarVup on my Amiga here in the States. Loved that game, thought it put City Connection to shame and had way more personality.

[@jeremygreen2883]

It's "butthole" cat! He has his little butt showing when he flies off the screen. It never fails to make me smile.

[@tsvtsvtsv]

freedom force's cutscenes made my jaw drop. more impressive than the game itself, ha

[@absolutezeronow7928]

Nice to see Willow in the beginning clip. Looking forward to when the game based on that movie is shown as part of NES Works. I guess I may have to actually try City Connection on NSO but I don't know if it's the type of game that I'd play for five minutes.

[@JazGalaxy]

I remember really loving that game 30 years ago. But I tried to go back and bounced off of it hard.

[@WeirdoOfWeirdos]

I really liked Mappy Land as a kid, does that make me an American Mappy fanatic?

[@AverageDrafter]

That Freedom Force intro is no joke. I had it for a weekend rental and more or less just watched the intro over and over rather than play the game.

[@velarantube]

That hardcore violent intro set up appears to be the reason literally *everyone* I knew that had a Zapper owned this game.(Tbh, it got me and a friend to borrow a light gun and rent Freedom Force for a day at our local Pic-a-Flic, so clearly it had the same effect on us!) They may not have had Hogan's Alley or even Duck Hunt, but they had this! Easily the most popular 'gun game' in my neck of the woods.

[@RobinZeg]

Ever since it showed up on Switch Online I’ve been waiting for the City Connection video.

[@delaorden]

That cat with the checkered flag really confused me as a kid, I always thought that it was the end of the level or something like that and couldn't understand the gameover screen.

[@SeekerLancer]

I see I wasn't the only one.

[@mymangodfrey]

Ha-I was watching this video on my TV and had to push pause and grab my phone to share the news that there was an American Mappy fanatic in the 1980s. Mappy and Joust were my two golden-age arcade obsessions. During the PS1 era, I probably spent more time playing Midway Arcade Classics (Joust) and Namco Museum (Mappy) than I did playing Resident Evil and Gran Turismo.

[@MercuryCDX]

I grew up with an ancient Famicom multicart bootleg, so my childhood was full of early random third-party Famicom games. Jaleco's output, including City Connection and Ninja Jajamaru-kun, was some of my favorite, uh...mid-tier(?) developers of the time.

[@Ginormousaurus]

Jaleco was the epitome of mid-tier. You never see their games making top ten best lists, but they're usually not bad. The kind of games that maybe weren't worth buying when they were new, but were worth a rental. The company City Connection has done a good job of making Jaleco games available via Virtual Console, Nintendo Switch Online, and Arcade Archives.

[@GamingDreamer]

2:09 My favorite game as a kid, the music still stuck in my head all this years

[@RalphBarbagallo]

At the time, Freedom Force was absolutely incredible. Made me lust after the Zapper.

[@angrytheclown801]

I never have played City Connection. Growing up, I'd walk through the video store, see it sitting on the shelf. I'd consider it and see that heart dotting the i. Then I'd put it back on the shelf believing I wasn't its target audience.

[@rabiroden]

Maybe they didn't change character to appeal to boys... but to girls?? He does kinda look like a sexy shoujo boy right!? ...maybe?

[@angrytheclown801]

@@rabiroden Perhaps, but I doubt it. The same logo seems used in Japan.

[@Zanji1234]

4:51 must be Germany... i kinda see Castle Neuschwanstein there O_o

[@robintst]

That animated scene with the chopper in Freedom Force still looks impressive.

[@YouaNumbahOneRacist]

4:27 another one of those moments where I had to go back and listen much closer. Turns out he didn't say "Full-sized panty-drencher"

[@JeremyParish]

No, but I wish I had

[@Lancetwilight]

I loved City Connection for the music and not much else, yet I still play every time I get the urge to hear it, which is surprisingly a lot. Bought it immediately on the Virtual Console when it became available back on the Wii. Pretty amazing how much nostalgia can make you like a game based on so little. Great episode.

[@Skeletroy]

I love Freedom Force's soundtrack. Kodaka made some great 8-bit metal with this one.

[@Coinspinner2]

I like the channel changing transition, especially when I let a few episodes auto-play in a row.

[@TheGreenMeanie]

Don't forget the Japanese single City Connection by Emmanuel Lewis from 1981.

[@hollisbayesmiller]

The reason you are tasked with driving over every inch of the highway is this: ...after commiting a robbery there are paint cans in your car spilling their contents thus making an easy to follow trail for the police. But if you can manage to get paint over the entire highway, the police will not be able to track your location and bring you to justice.

[@hamitpahpool1787]

If the building collapse whilst all the hostages are still inside...that means Eugene won in the end :(

[@NAJ0202]

I guess Eugene just wanted to watch the world burn.

[@Choralone422]

My best friend back in the 80's had Freedom Force and played the heck out of it! It was the only light gun game he ever played but he really enjoyed it. I was never much of a fan but it did look cool at the time.

[@velarantube]

Similar to my friends' tastes, it seems. Several people I knew who had light guns and multiple Zapper games played this the most by far. The intro(and the blood as you blew people away!) roped people in, it seems.(Me and a friend borrowed a Zapper and rented it for day from our nearby Pic-a-Flic ourselves, and we decided to get this over Double Dribble 'cuz bazooka, helicopter, murder, drool.... :-)) This early title was more popular with my group than the later Laser Invasion, Mechanized Attack, or even the acclaimed Operation Wolf. Maybe it's the appeal of gunning down sackheads? Ya know like in the awesome Rolling Thunder.(another one of my perennial faves.) :-)

[@Toblerone5]

I loved city connection. Played it a ton on the wii

[@SplinterAce]

I was just thinking of buying city connection for the 3ds, that's crazy

[@billkendrick1]

City Connection, as a "territory control" game, always reminded me of Miner 2049er (platformer), and less of Pac-Man. Never really considered Mappy to be similar to any of these, but I guess so...

[@Jayce_Alexander]

I really wish there was some solution to the lightgun problem on modern TVs. I would really love to revisit some of these old light gun games on my AVS or NT Mini, but the only modern solution out there I'm aware of is the HD blaster by Hyperkin, which only works with the NES toploader and Retron 1, and only with Duck Hunt (specifically the Duck Hunt/Super Mario Bros. cart, not even the standalone Duck Hunt cart). There may not have been an awful lot of Zapper games, but I really do miss playing them. Same goes for the Super Scope, which had even less support, but one of my all-time favorite light gun games in Metal Combat. I really miss that game. And although it's super niche, and will probably never happen, I would also love a modern replacement for R.O.B.

[@lh_a-spec]

As odd as it sounds, I've been very excited to see your thoughts on City Connection!

[@owenitzura]

Fun Fact 2: The tunes for the game's levels are actually an 8 bit rendition of "Concerto Pour Piano No.1 Allegro Non Troppo, Opp.23", composed by Tchaikovsky.

[@AQuestionofCharacter]

I understand their love for this game. There's something about the aesthetic that I adore.

[@spindriftprime]

I'm interested in that bit near the end about an "Angular NES cool" style. I hope there will be more about this in future episodes, I'd love to hear more examples.

[@MaidenHell1977]

I KNEW YOU WERE GONNA MENTION LUPIN THE 3RD!! hahaha, I LOOOOOOOOVE The Castle of Cagliostro!!! I love it I love it!!! Great episode!!! Love all that you do, man!!

[@strafer8764]

The City Connection song is just a classical song they took.

[@DefendYoungstown]

"... if there is such a thing as an American Mappy fanatic." I feel called out. Corner store in walking distance to my grandmother's house had Mappy for a stint. I pumped an ungodly amount of quarters into that cabinet as a child, and it fed one of three lifelong impulse plays; anytime I see Mappy, Pac-Mania, or the Black Knight pinball table (note, Pac-Mania happened later in life, Mappy and Black Knight came from that same store). Even now as a [redacted] year old man, I can't resist. Especially since every port I've played of the two arcades aren't based on the arcade roms and don't quite have "it", and pinball tables are getting rarer and rarer out in the wild without a preplanned roadtrip.

[@timmckernan8135]

Oh yeah had to slow the video down to see the secret at 0:22 :)

[@Fear2Stop]

Saw that...wtf? 😂

[@frkpro]

Interestingly, the Famicom version of City Connection seems to have been the very first game on the platform to make use of custom memory mapping hardware built into the chip, as it had 16 KB of CHR ROM - twice as much as the usual NROM games. The next release with memory mapping was Jaleco's own Ninja Jajamaru-kun in November 1985, followed by Konami's Twinbee and The Goonies. By April 1986 NROM games for the Famicom were an exception rather than the norm. I've seen some outlets claim that Konami's Hyper Olympic limited Genteiban edition actually preceded City Connection, but the ROM has a build date of December 1986, so it was probably released around the same time as US Track & Field.

[@johnsimon8457]

2:24 “N ROM Games that people bail on after 15 seconds” ... yeah ... everything is a definite step above the SG-1000 and Colecovision but the early Famicom era was such a different time, and people’s expectations for an FC game grew out of the arcade. I spent a lot more time playing this on the Switch virtual arcade than I expected. Looking forward to your SG-1000 coverage!

[@FallicIdol]

I rented City Connection so many times but never owned it. Love the game

[@TreasureHunterLocke]

it's me. I'm the American Mappy fanatic

[@Bubblun1]

Me too. Own a genuine Mappy cocktail cabinet.

[@TreasureHunterLocke]

@@Bubblun1 I like you.

[@Ishmokin]

interesting video on city connection. First time I learned how to play the game lol. I just poked around with it on Switch Online. I find interesting you mentioned Ninja JaJamaru-kun for NES. I recently picked up the Ninja Jajamaru Collection and have found Ninja Jajamaru-kun surprisingly fun despite its choppy animation. You mentioned it was a hit in japan, I find it interesting since I never came across it until the switch release. Also. the new ninja jamaru game the great yokai battle that came with the collection features That City Connection car as playable power up item, hence why I got curios with City Connection and watched this video haha.

[@fayezfawzi3255]

great work :)

[@highscores8593]

I love city connection, my only real gripe is it doesn't show a highscore on the title screen. If you miss your score at game over it's gone forever. The anime chick is interesting but I'm glad they changed ours to the guy. He always gave me a speed racer vibe.

[@JazGalaxy]

Freedom Force really starts to display the NES 8-bit style of coaxing detail out of nothing in its graphics by putting tiling and bezeling on everything.

[@josephlucas502]

I remember being frustrated with City Connection as a kid. I would never choose to play that game again. But I wish I would have been able to play Freedom Force. I didn't have enough zapper games back in the day.

[@velarantube]

@@thirdstar9255 All my Zapper having friends felt the same! :-) Get a face full of Freedom, with extra Force, sackhead!

[@Musicradio77Network]

“Freedom Force” does contains epilepsy warning.

[@thebassbeast]

Another great episode! I think I figured out the weird issue with the attribution graphic that seems comically large. Without any title information, all you have is a small copyright notice at the very bottom of a lot of blank red/orange space. Maybe a thinner banner for when you're just doing a copyright line, or add title information? Just my $0.02, and utterly meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Love this chronological history series, and I've probably re-read the Metroid book 27,000 times.

[@somebaker2613]

Thank you

[@mortenera4423]

Holy shit, I just watched Crunchyroll's video about the history of Lupin. I can't believe you mentioned one of the movies

[@HybridAngelZero]

Freedom Force is something I've never heard of, and likely would never play, but I can certainly appreciate its style, especially that attract screen. Also, its interesting that you mention the Famicom version of Mappy never getting a release outside Japan, because while it certainly didn't on NES, it would appear on Wii Virtual Console decades later, and in modern times shows up on Namco licensed nostalgia collectables produced by companies like MyArcade and the like

[@kevintrjohnson]

One of my favorite arcade games. The nes version isn’t quite as good, but I’ve been playing it on the switch online nes collection (also the arcade archives original)..

[@mattsephton]

I think there's some influence from Sega's arcade game Flicky (1984) in City Connection.

[@CaptainRufus]

City Connection seems to be a mixture of Flicky and Miner 2049er. The question is when Flicky came out. (Flicky isn't very good imo.)

[@JeremyParish]

1984 I believe

[@Supramedical68]

Cops: "There's no f***ing way we can stop that '85 Honda City." Random cat: "Hold my beer."

[@mattdgroves]

Are those supposed to be blood splatters in Freedom Force? Pretty graphic for this era of NES?

[@ChannelOAD]

When I was a little one I played this a lot and never realized you were supposed to paint the road. I feel super idiot now!! I just played to collect all balloons and teleport to next stage.

[@billkendrick1]

Weird, I saw this in the US* and it was called City Connection, not Cruisin(g?). *at my local Safeway supermarket in northern California (which was the #3 place for me to play arcade games, after my town's one actual arcade and the Chuck E. Cheese's Pizzatime Theater a few towns away)

[@BenCol]

6:13 What? But that’s specifically what Lupin told her _not_ to do at the end of the film!

[@JeremyParish]

When do kids ever listen to their elders tho?

[@BenCol]

@@JeremyParish Considering she was the ruler of Cagliostro (Princess or Grand Duchess depending on the translation), I hope she left the country in capable hands before taking up a life of crime and didn’t just leave Cagliostro in a power vacuum that allowed the Cagliostro clan to regain control, rendering everything Lupin did for naught. Either that or it became a republic, which is probably for the best.

[@thrillhouse_vanhouten]

I'd never heard of City Connection before the NES Library on Switch. It's a fun and charming little game!

[@velarantube]

Yay! Welcome to the club. My roommate also discovered it through the Switch Online NES Games Service.(There's some good stuff on there, including more cool Jaleco games!)

[@erdrickywg2356]

I'm almost positive that the password theme in Freedom Force is later used in Blaster Master as the boss theme.

[@jessragan6714]

Nifty! Rambo is next! I like that game, in spite of its flaws. I like Freedom Force too, but yeah, it deserved to be a little more fleshed out. The power up system, put bluntly, sucks... handy power ups like the grenade launcher remain in the corner for .005 seconds, while the penalty that speeds up gameplay stays on the screen for much longer, ensuring your doom if you shoot it. Still, what other game lets you play Hangman with a gun, while Blaster Master music blares in the background?

[@NumberOneHorseDrowner]

Another bowl of ice cream eaten while watching a Jeremy Parish video.

[@CidAghast]

Huh you know I had always been under the assumption City Connections was an anime licensed game but I guess that was half true

[@Musicradio77Network]

The music for “City Connection” was based on Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto #1” and it was the one that used for Orson Welles’ “War of the Worlds” as heard on the “Mercury Theater of the Air” back on October 30th 1938 where listeners were shocked to hear the broadcast on what the Martians are invading and getting attacked during a news broadcast as it happened.

[@Belgand]

Honda City? Good thing it wasn't a Honda Today or you'd have been under arrest. Motocompo in the back or not. And while this may have been more directly inspired by Castle of Cagliostro, I'd argue that the chase there was almost certainly taking inspiration from the famous Mini Cooper chase scene in The Italian Job. Something that may have been behind the unnamed blonde guy since he bears more than a passing resemblance to Michael Caine in that film. This makes it seem like the reason behind the change was in an attempt make it come off as an unlicensed Italian Job game. I mean, it's a Western film, so they may have thought that would boost sales.

[@fazares]

something interesting to watch eheh...city connection is a nice game

[@NukeOTron]

From that intro screen, you showed off a property that Capcom made games for. Might take a while until you get to that one.

[@Bubblun1]

This one was a fun watch as a longtime fan of City Connection and Cruisin'. I dug up a review I wrote over 20 years ago about it (that somehow is still online): www.tnca.myrmid.com/scene/panesian/1/review.htm My Kei car knowledge was a little off at the time, thinking the Honda City was a Daihatsu. Jaleco had some real flashes of magic along the way and I'm looking forward to your take on Avenging Spirit GB as it's also one of my favorites.

[@JackMenhorn]

some great box art tho

[@allluckyseven]

I, too, love the Muppets.

[@Game-The-System]

I remember freedom Force well. Considering the NES's limited capabilities, the graphics in the intro and the look of the stages was great. However, being able to finish the game in the afternoon sucked and it absolutely felt half-baked.

[@tekkensentai]

Freedom Force and Blaster Master’s music...

[@CalaveraCandy]

7:34 Isn't that the same tune that plays at the beginning of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

[@jamesmoss3424]

I will play city connection. 😀👍🎮

[@jonothanthrace1530]

4:23 I'm extremely amused at this Talking Heads video/car ad.

[@jonothanthrace1530]

My bad, this is actually Madness.

[@BenCol]

@@jonothanthrace1530 Never realised Madness was so popular in Japan. Not that I’m particularly surprised though.

[@MissAshley42]

City Connection is such a chill game. There's pretty much nothing to it. Even messing up your jumps comes with little consequence. Yet, filling in those roads is so satisfying.

[@jamesmoss3424]

I will play freedom force. 😀👍

[@Daryoon]

I was always under the impression City Connection was some kind of board game conversion...and, now I've seen it in action, I have no idea where that idea came from...

[@velarantube]

Wow. Interesting idea. Now I'm wondering what a City connection board game would be like!

[@Ginormousaurus]

Did you get it mixed up with Concentration?

[@tekkensentai]

Your car is leaking paint...