Ranking & Reviewing Genesis Games Published by Renovation Products

[@Dr_Morgus_Rotten]

Dr. Morgus Rotten says that Sol Deace was better than you gave it credit for. I know it's all subjective, but I always enjoyed this shooter. Wolf Team did a pretty damn good job with it. It only got better with the Sega CD release as well, Sol Feace. You are entitled to your opinion, just throwing out some love for an often overshadowed shooter. I like this video though as I had so many of the Renovation games back in the day on my Genesis. These videos are cool.

[@benjaminjohnson6936]

Gaiares was my jam on the Genesis! I absolutely loved that game. Probably my favorite side-scrolling shooter ever.

[@240Sil]

For sure badass game

[@burr1aj]

It is excellent, but I think the brutal difficulty keeps it from the highest level of greatness.

[@benjaminjohnson6936]

@@burr1aj meh, it's a Genesis game. I expect it to be super difficult. Also, there's cheat codes for it, so...

[@dermothealy772]

Must check it out..... Always loved thunder force 4......especially with the 99 lives cheat.

[@240Sil]

@@dermothealy772 Thunder force has to be the best shoot em up franchise.

[@240Sil]

Elemental Master is in my top 10 favorite Genesis games of all time. When you get in a groove with this game its super fun! Vapor trail is nostalgia overload for me. Played a lot as a kid with pops and older bro!!!! Loved it

[@1chiTheKiller]

I'm really really loving these ranking videos. :) Shows some games to stay away from and perhaps some games to check out. Either way, you're learning a bit more about games you might not have known much, or anything about.

[@martinevans1206]

Here because Evercade just announced a Renovation/Telenet cartridge!

[@jonathanlisowski5618]

As a SNES & TG-16 kid growing up in the beginning of that generation, Renovation games were ones that made me envious of Genesis owners.

[@requiem052710]

for me i give Vapor Trail an S... reminds me of when i was a kid, my dad and i used to play this. miss those days, r.i.p dad

[@djmiggy1778]

Great video! thank you. I remember loving Arrow Flash, Final Zone and Valis III! Some of my favs and I picked them up reasonably back in the day at Electronics Boutique. I miss that place. Gamestop just isn't the same!

[@tylerwerrin41]

played Granada for hours as a kid - the sound track was awesome. Loved getting the secret mega power up in Level 2 on the plane - made it so much easier!

[@thelutherbob]

John, thank you for this sweet video! I hope to see more like this for the Genesis and other systems! It is a great way to feature games that don't usually get talked about. Keep up the awesome work!

[@lawnboyfreak]

I loved playing Whip Rush when I was a kid. I’ve never met anyone else who’s played the game.

[@KISSFan1977]

Ys III was prolly my favorite on the list but I was never able to get the Sega Genesis version, I have it on the TurboDuo and the SNES!

[@CosmicCosmo1]

It plays the best on genesis. I think it sounds amazing as well. Prolly the best overall since you don't have to deal with that 15 fps on the turbo cd version

[@Bojanglez667]

Master of Monsters, it reminds me a lot of the Sega CD game Dark Wizard, which I simply adore with all my heart, and the cheesy anime intros for Dark Wizard is always a good time. Great video John.

[@supersexysega]

I can't believe Dark Wizard never used backgrounds for the fight scenes. Bothers me more then it should probably.

[@Bojanglez667]

@@supersexysega that would be my one absolute gripe lol

[@j.goggels9115]

I am glad you rated Gain Ground so high. It is a System 24 Sega classic. I played it a lot back in the days on Master System.

[@coryrabbit]

Ernest Evans was one of my favorite games, as a kid. I think what happened was that I learned to love it, because I lived in the middle of nowhere, and it was what I had. I wasn't getting anything new until Christmas or my birthday. It's not a good game, but it still has a special place in my heart. 🤣

[@ShinSynZero]

Now this is a very cool vid. The Renovation/Telnet games were on my list back in the day and there are still a few I'd like to still add to my collection. I was hoping you'd give Final Zone a B though, I had a great time with it and still have my original copy. Another vid like this would be very welcomel, keep up the good work 👍🏿

[@thehellezell]

i would love an alternate timeline where Wolfteam just did more… super underrated games IMHO. From this list Elemental Master, el Viento, Granada, Gain Ground, Gaiares, Master of Monsters, Valis 3, Vapor Trail are all games that I love. I always appreciate your vids because it’s clear you’re a player and not just a collector. cheers man

[@blazeredsgamingchannel8781]

Master Of Monsters on the Genesis was one of my favorites when I was a kid, along with Sonic 2, Star Control, Road Rash 2, Toy Story, etc. Great video, John.

[@larrytarnowski3]

Gain Ground was one of my favorite non-roleplaying games. So many hours of fun with my neighbor during the winter months.

[@b.o.353]

Hadn’t even heard of some of these but did have some of them. Great video! Something to track down now after this video. Gaires and Dino Land were uso much fun.

[@PlatformJunkie]

Enjoying your ranking vids because you have all the games from each publisher. I’ve never played any of these and found it to be a damn informative vid. Thanks!

[@EmperorMegas]

I LOVE Renovation Products! They were my favorite publisher of the generation. 'Gaiares' is my favorite Genesis shooter (probably my favorite Genesis game), and 'Final Zone' is an unpopular favorite of mine. I love the music and the weapons/heath system is incredible and should have been used in more games. The 'Valis' series was my whole life back in the day and 'Elemental Master' is pretty much up there with 'Thunderforce III'.

[@HK-pp1sl]

His scoring is very accurate with regards to Game fun and in depth gameplay . I just love how John narrows down the scores. He's a genius when it comes to reviewing Sega game.s Thumbs up ... Hope you score more Sega Genesis games. This ma favourite consoles. 90s kid.

[@NALTOdeluxe]

Anyone here for the Evercade collection? Also well done John. “Tennesis” had me rolling.

[@rayzaramon6598]

This is a very helpful Rankings List. Thnx!

[@Icosiol]

You made me cry. Gaires only gets an "A"? That was my favorite Genesis game of all time. Just bought it again actually. :D

[@mehsteakswurmade]

Great Video John, you're the man!

[@matthewpordes3224]

Accurate rankings. John knows his stuff.

[@paulbrewin1]

You just bought back some serious memories, I’ve been trying to remember the names of Arrow Flash and Final Zone (Axis) for years. I had a Japanese import my Dad bought and these two were my favourites.

[@andreysergeev2154]

Valis was the first game I played on Genesis, and I still hold it dear. I played it this month on the emulator, speeding it up a bit, and loved it.

[@BURRITO44]

Where do you have the time to play all these games ? You amaze me !! Another great ranking video !!

[@ScubaDiverPicker]

My Personal Rankings El Viento “S” Gaiares “S” Elemental Master “A” Vapor Trail “A” Arcus Odyssey “A” Gain Ground “B” Valis lll “B” Valis “B” Traysia “B” Arrow Flash “B” Master of Monsters “B” Granada “C” Final Zone “C” Dino Land “D” Whip Rush “D” Sol Deace “D” Slime World “D” Syd of Valis “F” Beast Wrestler “F”

[@bigjchristo]

Great video Jon thanks for your content. BTW I just got my first sega saturn a couple days ago.

[@elijahvincent985]

I used to have Elemental Master as a kid, but the game cartridge sadly got lost over time due to moving. I still have the case though, and I've since recycled it as a case for the surviving Mortal Kombat game cartridge that had lost its' original case. I've since inverted the sleeve to the blank white side and added the words "Mortal Kombat" to identify it.

[@der_hose8144]

i love your genesis ranking videos😍

[@SquarePegs]

Gain Ground is spectacular - there's a great port of it on the eShop for the Switch, too!

[@NipplesTheEnchilada2323]

Gain Ground on Switch is just the Arcade version being emulated. It is great though, as the original arcade release supports up to 3-players cooperatively.

[@jamesstaggs4160]

Yeah Master of Monsters is such a hidden gem. I rented this back in the day and bought it as soon as I took the rental back.

[@Gunsmoke1084]

Master of Monsters is my #1 favorite Genesis game. It's definitely a hidden gem, not many people have played or heard of it. I spent hours playing with friends and teaching new friends how to play, passing my Nomad around for turns.

[@crash5522]

I had totally fogotten about dinoland, I loved that game. Thanks for reminding me about this one, I just got a genisis a month ago and I have just added this to my wishlist.

[@bahbahblacksheep311]

Love this video. I’ve only got three, Exile, Master of Monsters and Arcus Odyssey. I think I’d like to go for this subset

[@nicoleredheart1872]

Funny how everyone pronounces things differently. I've always pronounced Gaiares as "Guy reez". Love your channel John!

[@dand3937]

was introduced to Arcus Odyssey at a friends house when I was elementary school aged and that was the next game I asked my parents to buy me, one of my favorite hidden gems on the genesis and one of my favorite VG soundtracks of all time, and johns right, no one ever really talks about this game, I always tell people if they like genesis they gotta check this one out

[@Breakbeats92.5]

Your on the cusp of 100k John! Couldn't be happening to a better guy!

[@theMyouknow]

El viento ! its soo good, back in the days you just looked at the front cover and went like meh....but after playing it...wow awesome.

[@99Vood99]

Never heard of this company or any of these games. Thanks for excellent video!

[@candmmi]

Gain Ground is SOOOO awesome. I discovered it on sonic's ultimate genesis collection for the Xbox 360. My son and I have played the hell out of it (too bad I didn’t play it growing up)

[@dartdude2668]

Great video. I was a Nintendo fanboy as a kid. I haven’t heard of a single sega game on this list

[@VideoGameVotary]

Great video. Very informative

[@disastrousemouse]

I sometimes work out to the Gaiares soundtrack. It’s SO good.

[@HybridAngelZero]

Exile and Master of Monsters look right up my alley. Apparently, the later got a remaster on PSone, too.

[@youisiaint]

Exile has some of my favorite music on the Genesis. I remember playing through that game during a blizzard in the 90s. Still have the cartridge along with Traysia

[@CosmicCosmo1]

Did you try Ys3? It's similar to the other RPGs that Rennovation released on the genesis. It has an amazing soundtrack. I think you'll really enjoy it if you don't mind grinding bugs on the 1st dungeon screen for 15 minutes.

[@granzert1711]

Good video. I'd like to see your rankings for David Perry Genesis games (Aladdin, Earthworm Jim, Cool Spot, Global Gladiator etc.).

[@wexenhex]

Renovation was merely a publisher, Arrow Flash is actually a Sega developed title, originally! and Elemental Master was by the same developer of Thunder Force! i also absolutely love Final Zone and didnt have any problem with control after i got used to it.

[@johnhancockretro]

It is easier to classify a game under its publisher for these ranking videos, but yes I knew that.

[@jeff97ish]

Hey John! Hope you and the family are good!

[@TheDalinks]

Y's my favorite, super slow Valis is very nostalgic.

[@villain5873]

I feel the same about gain ground "S"

[@homejonny9326]

Great video, I loved it. But IMHO Sol-Deace deserves a B not a C :)

[@jak_1894]

Hi John I like your Sega videos, I recently got pitfall and am enjoying it at the moment on my Mega Drive👍

[@NerdCrave]

Fun video John! The genesis is so much fun to collect for. I've discovered several games in this video I want to look out for! My wallet hates you!

[@heilong79]

The graphics on Sol-Feace are excellent.

[@kevinstrade2752]

A+ for box art! Renovations box art always caught my eye! But yes thier games were average to above average.

[@predaking2wings]

Arrow flash is better than whip rush that means i got to get arrow flash, because i love whip rush to me that was an A thanks for this renovation collection this is for the hard core gamers!

[@MVLGAMING]

I do have some games from them such as Arrow Flash (I think the UK cover is nicer) but others of those games I don't think came out in the UK, so I've never seen them before! I'll have to check them out! Great list!

[@mr.awesome6682]

Can you do one of these for Working Designs? One for each console if possible but Saturn and Playstation would be awesome.

[@Patmanx1]

people may hate Renovation games like they're LJN games on the nes... but those box arts are amazing.

[@DenisExgardian]

I love the Master of Monsters soundtrack. Very powerful tunes

[@colmafeaster7902]

I think Whip Rush deserves a higher ranking. The graphics/colors are great and I find that the option bopping game mechanic is different and useful in the game.

[@colmafeaster7902]

good video

[@EmperorMegas]

Ha! I LOVE 'Syd of Valis'. My screen name is the final enemy of Syd of Valis/Valis II. 🙆🏽‍♂️ I know it's terribly unpopular, and I understand why people don't enjoy it, but I always loved it.

[@ZForceFFC]

The funny thing is that Valis 3 came out before Valis 1 on the Genesis, at least in the US.

[@danmakuman]

For me the best games actually developed by Renovation/Telenet/Wolfteam are Granada, Gaiares, Arcus Odyssey and El Viento. Specially Granada, it sure can get hard with the timer specially on hardest settings but that's part of the arcade-ish gameplay and adds to the tension, at least for me. Not the best looking game but it's solid, gameplay is super addictive and the music by Motoi Sakuraba (Arranged by Noriyuki Iwadare for the Genesis) is damn good.

[@tiger8559]

Great, 7 of the last 20 Genesis games I’m trying to acquire just shot up in price.

[@mattclaybaugh8578]

Tennisis lol, love your stuff

[@redstratus97]

Hey John. Did you enjoy the fantasy star series of games? I think it would be cool to see you do a video about those games with your opinions.

[@CosmicCosmo1]

I doubt it. He gave the 3 awesome RPGs in this video a C. Rpgs don't seem to be his thing

[@chriswaters834]

I think you were a little harsh on Y's III! I'd give it a solid B. Better than Monster World III even in my opinion (less repetitive), despite the early required grinding. Great soundtrack too. Had the best version of the Redmont town music of all of the ports.

[@velvetaeon2774]

Hey man, Loved the video! I hope 2020 isn't hitting your family too hard! Any word on the back to school situation here in Washington state?

[@becomeanolive1637]

Gain Ground is on the Sonic's Ultimate Sega Genesis Collection on the Playstion 3.

[@Mr_x_19922]

I love the plain label cart design of the carts. My top 5: 1° Gaiares 2° Valis 3 3° Sol Deace 4° Granada 5° Valis: The fantasm soldier

[@NYKgjl10]

El Viento rocks from beginning to end. OG in the house!!!!

[@SDoGG420]

Gain Ground is my favorite! Glad sega added it on most their compilations, the first time I played it was on that terrible sega they sold at family dollar ten years ago.

[@samhillier9607]

I find Whip Rush to be a better game than you ranked it as. Nothing too special in terms of presentation, but excellent gameplay. There's a decent amount of strategy involved with figuring out the best weapon for each section. You even have to change your speed fairly regularly (unlike many shooters with adjustable ship speed that you're never actuallly required to use). Just provides a touch more depth to the game. Takes quite a bit of practise to get really good at, which is an important aspect of a quality shooter. So, Whip Rush gets a solid B ranking from me. Even though nobody asked for my opinion!

[@slashrose3287]

i agree, soundtrack too is great !

[@broadnerdmike6450]

Of the ones I’ve played I think we’re pretty close. I think you were too kind to Slime World though :) I really like Vapor Trail because the more realistic theme makes it a little easier to pick up and play and be comfortable with the weapons and enemies.

[@breakbeatz309]

If I had to pick my 2 favorite Renovation Genesis games it would also be Elemental Master and Gain Ground. Here is the problem with Traysia. People like to say that Ultima fans will enjoy it because of a few similarities, but why would any Ultima fan play this instead of an Ultima game? No console game was ever able to recreate what an Ultima game was for its time (or Wizardry for that matter). I would rather play through Ultima 6 or 7 for the 100th time than play through Traysia (which I have done once). With that being said, it’s not a bad game, but I think it’s only audience are Ultima fans who don’t know it yet because they have only played Traysia.

[@petebloodyonion5349]

Fun fact: Valis 3 was actually released on Sega Genesis before Valis 1 :)

[@caseyhayes4590]

Gaiares music is top 10 of 16-bit era cart based games.

[@Patmanx1]

I grew up with beast wrestler. I first beat it when I was 11 and I love the box art, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the japanese character art (they even had a manga story to go along with the game lol) and the sprite art is top notch. But, yeah, I think the computer programing was off by a large margin 30yrs ago. It was in the right direction but wrong era. if it was a 32bit era wrestling game that was more fluid like FPW, or a techno or sega arcad, beast wrestler would be immortalized.

[@EatingCtrlV]

This is an extremely cool video topic.

[@80skidjon17]

Gaiares, El Viento & Elemental Master are the 3 Best Renovation games IMO. El Viento may just be the best of all.

[@residentrump3271]

Beast Wrestler wasn't *THAT* bad. A turbo controller really helped....

[@disastrousemouse]

Gaiares!!! Oh my GOD! That soundtrack! Hard as balls, but I beat it.

[@mikef8846]

I had Valis III and it is a very good game. Excellent music too. I love how when the main character gets fully upgraded, she just looks fat.

[@24magiccarrot]

You need to review every Microprose game on the genesis.

[@theraptorus]

“Elemental Master” was actually a Techno Soft game. Renovation published the game in the US 3 years after its Japanese release.

[@johnhancockretro]

This video was to show all games that Renovation Products published, not developed.

[@schweatty]

If you haven't tried it, play Gain Ground on the PC Engine. In my opinion it's the superior version.

[@chriswheatley3146]

Renovation was one of my favorite publishers for the Genesis. I loved the art style that was used in many of the games. I have at one point either rented or owned almost everything on that list. Gain Ground and Elemental Master definitely deserve the S ranking as they were two of the titles that really got me into the publisher. Gain Ground I still play on occasion. Valis 3 was another title that got me into renovation, and would give it an A; if with it having a couple flaws. The story was great and I loved the anime feel/artwork used. The other Valis games were severely disappointing in comparison. The TG-16/PCE CD destroyed the Genesis by comparison there; except for 3. The TG-16 versions of the rest would have been great games to have ported to the Sega CD; along with 3's cut scenes. Master of Monsters is one of my all time favorite games on the Genesis (along with Warsong in that genre), so obviously it'd get an S from me. It is insanely hard and I believe I've only gotten about as far as you have. I hope someday to be able to beat it... lol Gaiares is definitely a great shooter, but man is it hard. I remember renting it a couple times trying to get better at it since I really did like it, but never purchased it because of the difficulty. I think I might have made it to level 3 a couple times. I did watch a youtube video through the entire game since I probably wouldn't be able to do it myself...lol. The difficulty alone kept it as an A for me as well. Arcus Odyssey I really enjoyed. I loved the into and the style was right up my alley. However, I was able to beat it during a rental so I never purchased it. B is about right for ranking mainly because of it being just too easy. Slime world was very disspointing; especially after hearing how good the game was on the Lynx. I never got to own or play on the Lynx back then, but read it. I'd put that at a D as I found it quite boring, even with 2 players. The Lynx one surprisingly isn't that bad since I've been able to try it since. You are completely right that earnest evans was hyped beyond belief. However, it sucked really bad between the controls, hit detection, damage, etc. I remember rolling for no good reason way too many times into an enemy and have my entire full life bar dissapear. The 'marionette' design they went for was a complete disaster. I'd actually give that an F; even though I had beat it during a rental. El Viento definitely did make up for it though (A). Beast Wrestler I'd give a D; strictly because I did own it and got used to the wonky controls to be playable. It is still terrible and was overall disappointing. I've tried playing it again a few years ago and got completely destroyed right away. The 'engrish' in it is quite bad at times as well. I remember 2 player being better, but not much. With Dinoland, I ended up buying Dragon's Fury instead. A far superior pinball game in comparison. Outside that, I'd rank the other games the same. They really didn't stick out that much imo, even if they were decent. I am glad you defended Traysia as it is fun (definite old school feel); warts and all. 👍

[@davidwatkins6307]

I agree with your ratings I actually own valis 3 and I quite enjoy it and I hate that knock back system like you said

[@ricardomauricioaraya7625]

Guy-R-us.... I remember seeing that add on a comic book as a kid. That was supposed to be the way to pronounce it.

[@RapideWombaticus]

El Viento - why do the bikes look out of place? For a game set in the '20s... other than the '80s bikes it looks really cool

[@kenshirootomo6993]

GAIARES is one of my TOP 10 favorite games on the GENESIS.. (The holy trinity of shmups on the Genesis is Thunder Force III, Thunder Force IV and Gaiares). I have not played some games like Elemental Master, hope I can find a cheap copy of the game some day. Granada is ok, Final Zone is Ok, Whip Rush is above ok, El Viento is hard but is ok+... Valis III is strange for me, can´t understand the game. Sol Deace and Vapor Trail are ok.

[@strydervip]

Ummmm M.u.s.h.a. has to be up there

[@openskiesmedia]

You’re probably right, but I really love Dinoland and Final Zone. They are Bs for me.

[@mrc6032]

The developers name sounds like some company in the home construction industry.