The MOST Underappreciated Arcade Game IMO! Demon Front

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If you watch my channel whatsoever you will know some things about my retro gaming tastes; I love arcade games and I love arcade run and gun games ala Metal SLug...so put those two things together and...you get Demon Front from IGS on the IGS PGM, an arcade board very similar to the Neo Geo but from IGS...and sadly one that STILL doesn't have a MiSTer FPGA core! It's an obscure arcade game that WAY more people need to play! Total retro game hidden gem status!
Questions? Comments? Just leave them below and I will do my best to answer each and every one of them!
/ videogameesoterica
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VGE

[@coleshores]

Oh man, I LOVE Demon Front! Im glad that youre covering it. I stumbled upon it by accident in my mame library a few years ago. Its one of my favorite games on my cab

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s an absolute classic that I always want more people to play

[@creechrfeechr8094]

People sniff about big ROM collections, but I too discovered this wee gem nestled away in my FBA set a while ago. What a game! A PGS rabbit hole followed!

[@ciaranmccarthy]

Nothing better than a full MAME romset to find some great obscure games. If you use a frontend like ES-DE with videos you can find stuff easily too.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I certainly don’t scoff at it haha

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s always fun just picking something random

[@markkilborn512]

I very often use the randomize feature in EmulationStation DE to pick a random arcade game and just try it. Every once in a while I find something incredible.

[@KL2qYZTJVmZCn]

5:22 Legend of The Hidden Temple reference! Haha. I was born in 1990 so I remember that show when I was very young. One of the first programs to be on after coming home from school if I recall.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha glad someone caught the reference

[@savvassyntzanakis1616]

I agree with you. It's a great arcade game. I stopped playing arcade about 1995 when I finish the university. I still play arcade games with emulators when I want to relax and this game is one of my favorites.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Always gotta keep playing arcade games!

[@moreno909bruno8]

This remember me about the Commando series. Metal Slug fan flash games that I used to play a lot when I was a kid

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haven’t played those. Will have to look it up

[@justathief3409]

Bought an IGS board and 3 games 10+ years ago. Demon Front, DDP 2 Bee Storm, and Knights of Valor. They are wildly fun to play, especially when you are playing with a friend. Can't wait to see this on mister.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Classic three pack right there

[@tebo2286]

I got introduced to this game twice by way of Metal Jesus Rock. The first time I saw it on one of his many and forever changing video intros, I was intrigued immediately. I paused the intro, took a screen shot and looked up the image on the net. The second time was a while back during one of his hidden gem's sessions. To your point VGE, this is arcade's best kept secret game, I wholeheartedly love this game. It's tough as nails but super fun. I play it via software emulation and urges everyone to try it out. There is mad fun to be had with this one

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I’m just shocked so few people know about it. It’s 10/10 good and 9/10 obscure

[@tebo2286]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Absolutely, I hope more folks will try it out now that you have spotlighted it. As always, thank you

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Always happy to do it!

[@tebo2286]

@@VideoGameEsoterica ❤

[@iiiiii3673]

I own 4 PGM systems and have all the best games. This is one of them.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Def top 5 IMO on the system

[@Aeonsparx]

I watched your old video and made the decision to add this to my collection. Just had it for a few months and I've been enjoying the game.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Glad you’ve been enjoying it :)

[@Aeonsparx]

@@VideoGameEsoterica It's a good game indeed. Just a bit pricey but not as hard to own compares to Metal Slug on AES and MVS.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

@Aeonsparx def has gone up in value a lot

[@Aeonsparx]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Sure it does. I got it for about USD 300 in cartridge form.

[@hemento]

Demon Front is such a good game. I really hope that someone brings IGS PGM to MiSTer FPGA.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I’m sure it’ll happen eventually

[@TVPIVVA]

I used to come across cabs of this and loved it and was similar and quite different to metal slug that and the knights of valor titles made me discover and fall in love with the PGM alongside the neogeo!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

PGM has so much to love and so few people realize it

[@Code7Unltd]

Scroling brawlers are the hardest genre to foul up. Sort of explains why the two most common PGM franchises are both beat-'em-ups. Oriental Legend and Knights of Valour both play like one another, it's just one's another retelling of the Journey to the West.

[@HappiestRogue]

I would like to add that IGS Classic Arcade Collection is available on the Nintendo Switch and also includes Knights of Valour which is well worth a look. Has it really been 3 years since you covered Demon Front 😮

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It has. Wild

[@Charlie-Cat.]

Oooh La La. Project Neon for the Neo-Geo. Nice one brother man. 8^)

[@JustinCherriman]

Love this! - Have you heard of Guns of Fury? It's Metal Slug with Metroidvania and Castlevania style gameplay, looks really good!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I haven’t. I’ll give it a google

[@Japheigod]

I love this game still have my artwork for it but sold it on PGM. Need to pick up the Switch version on the IGS collection.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s nice collections are finally happening

[@Japheigod]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Yeah it has some great games on there like Martial Masters and the Gladiator. Martial Masters is one of my favorite under rated fighting games.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

@Japheigod Martial Masters is criminally underrated

[@joeykeilholz925]

I've come to recognize the huge blind spot for arcade games that I have in both hardware and software knowledge compared to the seemingly more accessible home consoles. And we're off to a great start here

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Gotta give in the deep end. So much fun on the arcade side to discover

[@AyeYoYoYooo]

Proof that copycats aren’t always doomed to make inferior copies !

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

exactly. Not every clone is lesser than the sourcr material

[@ciaranmccarthy]

This is a really fun game with beautiful pixel art.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

10/10 pixel art

[@Ragesauce]

Very pretty game

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Some of the best 2D pixel art of its era

[@PopeTheRevXXVIII]

On the surface it's Metal Slug at home In practice beautiful Sprite work and different gameplay

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s as good as Metal Slug even if we all know it’s a clone

[@DrJ3RK8]

Nice! I've been thinking about buying and IGS PGM setup. Now that I have my Taito F3, and MVS setup, it seems to make sense that I should have an IGS! :D I haven't actually played this one despite being aware of the IGS PGM. It looks like a lot of fun, and slightly more interesting than Metal Slug. Thanks for the video!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Def worth picking a PGM up for but remember there’s no multi cart so you gotta get every game as a cart

[@DrJ3RK8]

@@VideoGameEsoterica With the current prices (hopefully they don't change soon) the motherboards are where I could maybe pick up 2-3 of them, and just grab my favorite few games to start. :)

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

@DrJ3RK8 start now. Not getting any cheaper

[@DrJ3RK8]

@@VideoGameEsoterica No arcade boards are getting any cheaper. :D Unfortunately, now that I've collected nearly everything I want, the last couple of remaining items are absolutely ridiculous. Even broken for repair. So.... IGS/PGM might be a nice distraction from those last couple of boards. :D

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha I know the feeling

[@kolors101]

Hope this gets a core on the Mister

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Me too. Would be a great core to have

[@Myako]

I was going to comment on how much this game looks like a reskin of Metal Slug 2. 😳 Leaving that aside, it truly seems like a metric crapton of fun. The PGM really was a hidden gem of a platform. 💓

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Double metric crap ton IMO

[@nicci_dee8292]

Biggest need on Mister FPGA

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s def near the top of my list

[@longann7560]

this game is great indeed ! It would have been nice to have blood in the game though

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

True. Something missing compared to Metal Slug

[@JulietStMoon]

You've made me aware of an obscure arcade game like another more popular game, so now I shall return the favor: Check out Slashout. It's a 3D beat-em-up for the Sega Naomi arcade hardware and a sequel/successor to Spikeout by the same developers, who would go on to make Shenmue and the Yakuza series. It's VERY natural in its movement and has no blocking or throws, so it's TOUGH AS HELL, but extremely cool. Never got a home release of any kind, so your only choice to play it nowadays are to either buy a PCB for your own cabinet, or emulate with Flycast. Check it out!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha check my playlists ;)

[@Reaperman4711]

I picked this one up before the price craziness. It was my 'white whale ebay save search' for a good while, but when I finally got it, unfortunately it didn't resonate with me so much. It's beautiful, and there are a ton of branching paths, but it seemed like the bosses were overly tanky (maybe I need easier difficulty) and I didn't like the 'pause the scrolling to deal with a minion horde' bits. I'll have to try it again though, because that animation is even prettier than I remember.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Maybe you just need to give it another shot

[@kyles3335]

Fantastic game! Thanks for these videos

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Happy to make them!

[@FreaKzero]

One of my absolute Favourites ... the IGS PGM hat alot of really good games (DoDonPachi, or Knights of Valour) but that one is the best.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

So many under appreciated classics on PGM. Maybe not the CAVE games as everyone knows them but the rest

[@jerryklein3]

MiSTer when!?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

We can only hope

[@Riz2336]

Of all the arcades I’ve been to I’ve never seen a pgm arcade cabinet game looks cool though

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s def very rare in arcades in the US

[@neosylvain]

Played it, and owned it since last year

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Nice. PGM cart?

[@neosylvain]

@ yes, among the 20ish pcb I have so definitely in my top as well

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Fun game to have in the collection

[@Charlie-Cat.]

Truthfully VGE, the developers were not "weenies". They were real "Hot Dogs" because they were inspired by Metal Slug and the all powerful Neo-Geo. 8^)

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Speaking of Neo Geo I just opened a box with Project Neon in it

[@lesterparedes8358]

What an awesome game! I love Demon Front just as much as Metal Slug! And just like in Metal Slug, I suck at this game, too!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha they aren’t easy games

[@cjd82187]

Love getting these esoteric game recommendations from you :) Is there any talk about a mister core for this? Never heard of it before, looks like I’m gonna have to put this on my recall box to get it on a CRT for now.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Just some murmurs but nothing concrete in the works

[@RetroRockGamer]

I really hope we get IGS PGM on the MiSTer.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I’m sure we will one day

[@PacoVJ]

never seen or heard of this game which i found very surprising since its very much like Metal Slug

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s def not well known and I want more people to play it :)

[@PacoVJ]

@@VideoGameEsoterica im certainly going to give it a go! :)

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Enjoy it!

[@METR0lD]

I love me some Demon Front and PGM! How has nobody worked on a PGM core yet for MiSTer!?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I’m surprised Jotego hasn’t yet

[@METR0lD]

Maybe Wickerwaka? Are there any Irem boards yet that he's still working on?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I think he’s out of Irem

[@brianmcavanaugh]

This got ported on the igs pgm arcade collection. I’m still awaiting my copy through playasia. I heard the emulation on the collection isn’t the best though.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s not awesome emulation. Not a horrible situation but it’s not great

[@winterhell2002]

The game looks awesome.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Plays as good as it looks!

[@djchac5245]

I have the PGM cart, but I've never actually played the game. That said, I'll be first in line for Demon Front: Exa Label when it ships - so much potential to amp the game up.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

lol you’ve never played it?

[@djchac5245]

@@VideoGameEsoterica I'm not proud of it! Just the cost of doing business when you're on an arcade PCB buying spree and find the right game at the right price. But yeah, at this point, I'll inevitably sell the PGM cart and wait it out for the Exa version. Great video as usual, though - got me hyped for FINALLY playing this thing.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha I know the feeling

[@vasileios6301]

Cool Metal Slug clone, nothing wrong about it. Martial Masters is another PGM game that deserves the attention of all fighting game lovers. In general IGS was big in China, when I visited at 2007-2008 all arcades were mainly infested with King of Fighters and Knights of Valor games.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Martial Masters is a ton of fun. I did a vid back in 2023 I think. Or 2022

[@vasileios6301]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Awesome. Did you check the new Neogeo game, Vengeance Hunters?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Soon :)

[@skraagthedestroyer]

IGS PGM? This game looks awesome!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Yep it’s the PGM

[@skraagthedestroyer]

@VideoGameEsoterica I googled it. The original PGM looks almost identical to the NeoGeo in terms of hardware spec, but the later 2nd and 3rd generations appear to feature more customized hardware. It would be awesome to have these as MiSTer cores in the future!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Yes OG PGM is like an overclocked Neo Geo with some custom IGS chips

[@ravagingwolverine]

@@skraagthedestroyer It's a good bit upgraded over the Neo Geo, which is to be expected as it came later. It's got faster CPUs, upgraded graphics hardware, higher resolution, vastly superior sound hardware(though I don't think it was used in a way that demonstrated that). But they were clearly targeting the Neo Geo when they designed it. It's like a Neo Geo 2 if SNK had designed something in response to either the CPS-2 or CPS-3 instead of holding out and doing only their 3D board.

[@GamerGee]

It’s like metal slug taken away the frame cap so we get 60fps. I wish someone would make metal slug have 60fps

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Yes Slug was always allowed to just slow down

[@ingues]

I first learned about PGM when Jotego put out his survey asking if people would rather have this or CPS3. Funny how that was years ago and today we still don't have either of them 🤣😭 This is why I choose not to donate to patreons until there's something tangible like a private beta.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Maybe 2025 will be the year

[@ravagingwolverine]

I was lucky. When I drifted back to the older games, I learned of the PGM pretty early on because of my fondness for beat-em-up games. Demon Front is an excellent game. Some people judge it negatively because it looks so much like Metal Slug that they think it's just a cheap copy. It should be said that, when it was in development, Metal Slug was considered dead after Slug 3. Slug 4 came out the same year as Demon Front, but it was done by Mega Enterprises, so it was when SNK was in shambles. IGS copied the art style which is actually really impressive considering how detailed it is. Plus, it's higher resolution and animates better. But credit to IGS for shaking up the gameplay. Demon Front is actually a bit slower and less chaotic than Metal Slug. I find Demon Front is a bit more defensive in nature than Metal Slug, so that and its unique gameplay elements give the game its own identity. I really enjoy it. Glad you featured this one again. Much like another great IGS PGM game, The Gladiator, there are some crazy secrets hidden in Demon Front. They're too crazy for me to bother with, but it is cool to see the secrets in videos. I've found some of the secrets in The Gladiator, some of which I needed some guidance to find, but I've also seen some stuff in videos I have no idea how to unlock. IGS really loved cramming their games with hidden paths and rooms.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Yes if you google hidden gem beat em ups PGM will show up a lot

[@ianuzzo]

Yes, Demon Front is awesome!! I bought this game twice for my PGM. First one was starting to have sound issues so immediately bought another one from eBay. Think i paid around € 80,- for it. Glad i did because since then Demon Front has gained some popularity and prices have been going up significantly. I mostly blame KZbinrs such as yourself for the price hike😇 But still, great game and great video covering it. FPGA-core for PGM is at the top of my wishlist. MAME also does a decent job with this game.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha I wish I had zero effect on prices

[@ianuzzo]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Haha,yeah me too 😅

[@nintendokolekcjoner239]

I have this game on Switch. Not perfect version by any means but I glad I got it anyway 😎

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s fun that it made its way to switch

[@ZazzleFraxx]

I have never seen that game. Wow

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Now you’ve gotta play it!

[@ZazzleFraxx]

​@@VideoGameEsoterica yup

[@JoshWise-t9b]

This looks excellent. If one was to emulate this on a Steam Deck, what would be the best way to do that?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Like this : Hidden Gem Arcade Board for Steam Deck! IGS PGM on Steam Deck Emulation Tutorial for Final Burn Neo kzbin.info/www/bejne/iYHUe6upqa6Ygqs

[@JoshWise-t9b]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Good lord, there is nothing this channel won't do! Thanks so much!

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha I like to make diverse content

[@alexrichard2447]

I think it's more unknown that underappreciated. In fairness, sometimes I wonder who even knows about the PGM. Like, the FGC knows it to some extent because 1) it's a NeoGeo-like and the FGC loves NeoGeo, 2) it has martial masters, which has some fame to itself, and in some parts of the world because 3) PGM2 has KOF98UM (I'm stretching things here, not gonna lie). In a similar manner, STG fans know the PGM because Cave. But other people? In my experience they just don't know about the system In roughly 25years of knowing about the PGM, I met maximum 10 people who even knew it existed and they were all into fighting games or followers of our lord and saviour Ikeda :P

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s so odd so few people know about PGM. It’s such great hardware with such a good library. You’d think by now people would know it

[@Japheigod]

Demon Front is easily the best Metal Slug Clone. As Panzer Bandit on PS1 is to Guardian Heroes on Saturn.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s so good I think of it as an homage and not a clone

[@Japheigod]

@@VideoGameEsoterica At the time of release I was involved with Metal Slug 4 and 5's distribution. I started carrying IGS stuff as it was pretty cheap at the time. I ended up falling in love with the PGM as it was a easy swap for my Neo Geo and was one of the few PCB's that worked well in my 4 slot cabinet. It took awhile to grow on me but eventually won me over. Demon Front and Dolphin Blue are my favorite Metal Slug homages. What are some of yours?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Dolphin Blue is def on the list for me too

[@mrburns366]

Isn't there a Mister core in the works?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Nothing in the works currently

[@phillai]

Please come out for the MiSTer FPGA!! 🙏

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I bet it will eventually

[@jeremyzeeky3024]

IGS Mister core WHEN lol

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Can’t come soon enough

[@stevensole1909]

There's no blood like in Metal Slug.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Yes it omits the blood

[@stevensole1909]

@@VideoGameEsoterica How? I looked at dip switches found no option for blood.

[@matics28]

@@stevensole1909 That's...literally what he said lol. He said it "omits" the blood, as in the blood is left out/non existent in the game.

[@stevensole1909]

@@matics28 Right I'm shot.

[@duxzu]

I discovered this game thanks to your previous video and got a chance to play it all the way through last year alongside the full Metal Slug series. Might be time to play again 👍

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

It’s always time for a replay!

[@Mr_x_19922]

Extremely obscure Metal Slug clone, is it harder or easier than Metal Slug games?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I’d say a bit harder

[@neorickio]

Do you know if it is available for the Mister? Edit: Oh nvm...just saw the description 😊

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Haha now you know :)

[@tylerd4884]

mame only right? not available for mister yet?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Sadly no MiSTer core yet

[@tylerd4884]

thanks

[@BaddboyJC]

What’s the best emulator to play this on for the steam deck

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

MAME or FB Neo

[@riseandshinejp]

Never heard of this one, a real shame.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Def play it then!

[@c2ironfist]

Demon Front is a great Metal Slug clone but after playing about 9 different Metal Slugs you get a bit tired of that formula That's probably why it has gone unnoticed as people who love Metal Slug are probably thinking why play an inferior clone when they have so many Metal Slugs to choose from That said I'll probably boot up Demon Front this weekend lol

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

You can’t back to back them. Even Metal Slug gets boring if you just chain them together

[@c2ironfist]

@@VideoGameEsoterica Just trying to get through Metal Slug 3 was long enough lol 3 could have been shortened in my opinion The first two slugs were perfect length wise despite 2 having the slowdown issue which I actually liked. Made it easy like a bullet hell haha

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

I love 3 so I’ll take all the run time I can get

[@SolCresta3405]

Can you say Metal Slug?

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Demon Slug haha

[@SolCresta3405]

@ That too.

[@VideoGameEsoterica]

Metal Front 🤣 they all work

[@SolCresta3405]

@ Okay.