| BASE NECTARIS (USA) presents: Nectaris FAQ (1989 PC Engine) & Military Madness FAQ (TurboGrafx-16) return to: BASE NECTARIS (site map) |
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| Welcome to the most extensive resource dedicated to Nectaris (1989, PC-Engine, Japan), a turn-based war strategy game set on the lunar surface of Earth's moon. In Japan, Nectaris was a popular title for the PC-Engine (with at least 200,000 copies sold) and this commercial success set the foundation for a surprisingly long-lived and dedicated fanbase. In fact, Nectaris became something of cottage industry for Hudson Soft, who, for over 15 years, have continued to recycle and rehash the game (...most recently for the cellular gaming market in Japan and North America). So let us take a step back in time and examine the original PC-Engine game that started it all. In mid-to-late 1989, NEC entered the North American video game market with their TurboGrafx-16 console (the North American version of the very successful Japanese PC-Engine). Nectaris was re-titled to Military Madness when it was released for the TG-16 (it was one of the earlier releases in the TG-16 library, and it was the first and only war strategy game to be released on a HuCard in North America). Although Military Madness garnered some critical acclaim, it could not match the popularity it enjoyed among Japanese gamers. In Japan, the success of Nectaris spawned numerous ports, updates, and sequels -- but in North America, only two Nectaris titles were officially released: the aforementioned Military Madness (1990, TurboGrafx-16) and 1998's PlayStation update of the original (documented at the Nectaris PSX FAQ). In the U.S., Video Games & Computer Entertainment Magazine bestowed Military Madness with the "1990 Best Military Strategy Game Award" while Game Player's Magazine honored it with their "1990 Best War Game Award". Despite this critical acclaim, Nectaris / Military Madness remained relatively unknown in the States (in no small part due to the lack of commercial success for the TurboGrafx-16 console). This website aims to rectify the current state of affairs: ( 1 ) gamers unfamiliar with the Nectaris series will find answers to their basic Nectaris questions here. ( 2 ) how does the original game compare to all of the ports, updates, and sequels it spawned? Go here to find out. ( 3 ) jaded fans who are looking for fresh, exclusive information on 1989's Nectaris / Military madness might be curious about the differences between the Japanese and North American versions of the game, since they: |
| (a) feature a slightly different
storyline, and ... (b) feature different package art, instruction manuals, and even different stage names (resulting in different passwords). |
| I NEED YOUR HELP
: As you can see, this site strives to offer
something for everyone, be they newbies (who simply need introductory
material) or veterans (who seek obscure minutiae and trivia). I have tried to provide content that is
relevant and of interest to a wide audience, but if you can help improve or contribute to this
site in any way, please contact
me. Thanks. |
