Bonk's Adventure (GameCube) Translated Playthrough - NintendoComplete
442A playthrough of Hudson's 2003 platformer for the Nintendo GameCube, Hudson Selection Vol. 3: PC Genjin (ハドソン セレクション Vol.3 PC原人).
This video shows a full playthrough of the normal game mode. I have translated and subtitled all of the in-game text.
PC Genjin, or Bonk's Adventure as it was rebadged when it was first brought to America for the TurboGrafx-16 in 1990, was one of the most important games released for the machine, providing NEC with a mascot that (they hoped) could go head-to-head with Mario. The Japanese name is a word-play: the TurboGrafx was called the PC Engine in Japan, and Genjin means caveman, so stick the two together and voila - instant mascot magic.
It was a good game. It was bright and colorful, and it changed up the Mario formula just enough to feel like something fresh and new. It was always a bit too long and easy, but for the first time out, Red/Hudson nailed it.
And thankfully, the remake does the original justice! It's not often enough that you hear that about a modern remake of a classic game, right? (Keep in mind that "modern" is a relative term here, hehe)
Rather than feeling like a cheap rehash, Bonk's new adventure goes all out to impress. The graphics are awesome - they take the goofy charm of the old Turbo games and mix it with a "textured" sort of aesthetic - everything looks like it's made from some sort of textured material like cloth or cardboard - you know, like Yoshi's Wooly World or Kirby's Epic Yarn? Considering it predates both of those by several years and that it's an SD GameCube game, it looks pretty awesome.
The gameplay is similar to what it has always been, but it has been tweaked for the better. Bonk now moves faster and recovers from his signature head smash more quickly, and the level design has been streamlined. The stages are all similar in look and feel to what you remember, but they're nowhere near as (unnecessarily) long as they were on the Turbo.
I still wonder why, since the NES port was named FC Genjin, this one was not called GC Genjin. Oh well, one of life's many mysteries, I guess.
If you were a fan of the TurboGrafx-16, you'll find a lot to like here. It's too bad that this only ever got a Japanese release, especially as it seems highly unlikely that Konami would ever go about releasing it on modern hardware. If you can track down a copy, I totally recommend giving it a try.
_
No cheats were used during the recording of this video.
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