Sonic? Mario? Who needs them when there is Bonk! We remember all the games with the main mascot of PC Engine.
Who is Bonk?
Bonk is a small, bald, prehistoric guy who loves to eat! Bonk originally appeared as a humorous character in the PC Engine Monthly comics. Bonk did not earn his name right away; in Japan he is still known as PC Genjin. The name PC Genjin was a parody of the PC Engine console. The name itself can be deciphered as “Pithecanthropus Computerurus”. Computerurus is an obviously fake "Latin" word derived from "PC" or "personal computer". Pithecanthropus – a reference to the evolutionary link between apes and humans.
Bonk, in this context, translates as blow (and not what you think). In general, the series became famous due to its constant change of names. The same games had different names depending on the region and even on the game systems.
Initially, Hudson Soft did not plan to make a game starring Bonk. But the readers liked it so much that it became clear that the game should be! At that time, Red Company and Atlus were already developing a platformer in the style of Adventure Island, but by order of Hudson Soft, all the material was redone. Interestingly, the development of the game took only three months.
Bonk, as a mascot, had the difficult task of explaining the difference between 8 and 16-bit consoles. Nintendo Entertainment System (Dandy) was chosen as the main victim. At the same time, Hudson Soft did not want to quarrel with Nintendo and demonstrated all the advantages in its own games.
TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine
It’s impossible to understand Bonk’s role in video game history without the history of the PC Engine. Let me list a small list of console achievements:
In general, the list can be continued for a long time! But let’s figure out who created this wonderful console?
NEC and Hudson Soft
Genji Tsuushin Agedama (NEC)
Unlike Sega and Nintendo, the PC Engine had two parents at once – NEC and Hudson Soft. The main one in this pair was the huge IT corporation NEC. For us, the company is interested in the creation of PC-9800 series computers. The hardware of these computers was not very suitable for games, but over time the PC-9800 managed to gain fame among fans of visual novels. At that time, NEC was not involved in the creation of games in any way, but, seeing the popularity of the console from Nintendo, the company really wanted to try its hand.
The legendary Hudson Soft was a major game manufacturer at that time. The company made most of its profits through the creation of accessories for the NES. In particular, Hudson Soft has put a lot of effort into popularizing gamepads with turbo buttons. A key moment in the history of Hudson Soft was the decision to sell the HuCard design to Nintendo. The fact is that at that time the production of classic cartridges required too much money, and HuCard was much cheaper to produce. Only Nintendo was not interested in HuCard technology, and Hudson Soft went to NEC. In general, the lovers found each other. Hudson Soft was able to find a use for its technology and at the same time create a gamepad design. The division of roles between the two companies was very interesting. NEC allowed Hudson Soft to earn money on HuCard. Even games developed on NEC intellectual property on HuCard were usually published by Hudson Soft.
Soldier Blade (Hudson Soft)
Despite the release of its own console, Hudson Soft tried its best to avoid a console war. The company continued to actively release games for the NES. In many ways, this approach made it possible to advertise 16-bit versions of games. For example, the TurboGrafx-16 and NES versions of Jackie Chan’s Action Kung Fu were very different. The situation with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System was more difficult, but after 1992 Hudson Soft gave in and began actively supporting the Nintendo console.
Hudson Soft’s relationship with Sega turned out to be very strange. So Westone Bit Entertainment, in alliance with Hudson Soft, was able to release one of the most famous Sega games on the Nintendo console… We are talking about Wonder Boy, which was released on the NES under the name Adventure Island. However, this did not lead to a corporate war. Westone Bit continued to develop Wonder Boy games with Sega. At the same time, games were released both on Sega consoles and on the PC Engine (Wonder Boy in Monster World, Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair). Sega itself was most interested in the confrontation with Nintendo, and within five years the company released a whole bunch of games (Golden Ax, OutRun, After Burner II) on the PC Engine.
New Adventure Island (Hudson Soft)
The key stage of cooperation was the release of the Pioneer LaserActive console. This monster could play games in the following formats: SMD, Sega CD, HuCard and the entire CD-ROM library! Unfortunately, special Sega PAC and NEC PAC modules were needed to run this wealth. The total cost was more than keeping the consoles separately. Interestingly, thanks to the ability to play the LaserDisc format, Pioneer LaserActive had their own games (Vajra 2, Hyperion, Pyramid Patrol). After the death of LaserActive, Hudson Soft even tried to save the dying Sega CD and ported several of its games (Lords of Thunder, Dungeon Explorer).
Bonk’s Adventure
PC Engine (1989)
Developers: Red Company/Atlus
Political confrontations between the two great houses of dinosaurs in 10,000 BC! King Drul kidnapped the beautiful plesiosaur princess Za and hid her on the moon! Little Bonk needs to get there before the vile Drool has time to consummate the marriage.
“Bonk” was created by Kobuta Aoki and Keisuke Abe from Red Company. The game itself is an incredibly colorful, frantic platformer filled with boss battles and mini-games. The Red Company’s desire to create a platformer that was not like Super Mario Bros and to show the full power of 16-bit consoles became very important. So Bonk has as many as 4 ways to damage the enemy. Bonk can deal damage while jumping – the main thing is to direct the baby’s head into the enemy’s loin. Thanks to this, the gameplay looks very unusual and fresh. Bonk’s signature attack upside down turned out to be very interesting. With it you can jump on enemies, like Uncle Scrooge in DuckTales.
The most important gameplay mechanic was the use of turbo buttons. Using the turbo button, Bonk can literally float and deal damage to weak opponents. At the same time, flying using the turbo button was an important element of the game, without them it is impossible to pick up some bonuses. Bonk has a whole arsenal of moves that make it much easier for him to survive in the prehistoric world: climbing walls, swimming up waterfalls and bouncing off ledges. The system of “evolutions” of the main character turned out to be very unusual. Bonk changes his strength and abilities depending on how full he is.
The developers approached level design with great imagination. So Bonk will have to explore the insides of a dinosaur, jump on the clouds and even end up on the moon! The game has absolutely amazing huge bosses, and each of them has at least two phases. Overall, Bonk’s Adventure was an amazing game, one of the best on PC Engine.
Red Company has become one of the most important studios creating games for the PC Engine. In addition to the Bonk series, the company has released such hits as: Gate of Thunder, Lords of Thunder and many others. Subsequently, Red Company created one of the craziest games for the Sega Saturn called Super Tempo. Red Company still exists – in 2022 the company released Gungrave G.O.R.E.
Atlus needs no introduction – the legendary company that created Shin Megami Tensei. At that time the studio acted as support for Red Company. The company has always made JRPGs, so there’s not much to tell. Among the platformers of that time I can highlight Somer Assault, Wacky Races and Rockin’ Kats.
Bonk’s Revenge
PC Engine (1991)
Developers: Red Company/Atlus
A story of revenge. Drul III – nicknamed the Builder King, went in search of the killer of his grandfather, the savage boy Bonk. In a fit of hatred, Drul III directed the full power of his flying fortress "Monster Kingdom" to destroy the population of the Earth. Bonk’s Revenge is a game full of gray morality and difficult choices.
Large-scale, bright and even funnier sequel. Perhaps it was humor that became the main feature of Bonk’s Revenge. So chikuns (dinosaurs with eggshells on their heads) at the beginning of the game just relax, sleep, fish, catch butterflies and generally live an ordinary peaceful life. The number of types of these cute babies is simply off the charts. Chikuns have become as symbolic of the series as Bonk and King Drul.
The main innovation of Bonk’s Revenge is vertical levels. This makes sense, given that the little savage’s main target is on the moon, and Drool’s love of giant castles. But the levels themselves are not very fun to play because of the length and abrupt transitions. Only the new power-up (flowers) saves – with their help Bonk can fly freely around the level. The desire to do something “not like everyone else” has become the main dogma of Red Company. So in Bonk’s Revenge there are pressure traps – when Bonk gets into them, he turns into… a crab! In crab form, Bonk can fit into small crevices and holes.
Bonk’s Revenge became the highest rated game in the series according to the press. I liked this game more than the first part, although problems (like the use of old material and strange upgrades) were already hanging over the series. Red Company did not develop subsequent parts of the series. Gray clouds gathered over Bonk.
Air Zonk
PC Engine (1992)
Developers — Naxat Soft/Red Company
Gloomy dystopia. The vile Count Sandrovich decided to destroy Mother Earth. Only a gang of cyborg punks led by Zonk, a descendant of the legendary Bonk, can resist him!
New mascot in an old series! Full-scale answer to Sonic. The time of cute and ironic characters has come to an end, the public needed a dangerous, cool video hero. An important reason was the desire to release the game in the genre most suitable for the console – shmup. Zonk had the difficult task of promoting the new Super CD-ROM game format. However, the first game in the series was released on HuCard.
Super CD-ROM was a truly powerful format; in addition to the CD drive, games required special cards (Super System Card), which greatly increased the capabilities of the console. Some of the most beautiful 16-bit games were released in the Super CD-ROM format (Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, Ai Chou Aniki, Super Raiden).
Air Zonk is one of the brightest, craziest, funniest shmups I’ve ever played. The variety of enemies and bosses is simply off the charts. I loved the moment when Zonk found himself in a prehistoric world – a whole bunch of old enemies with updated sprites and remixes of old tracks! But, after a moment, the prehistoric world falls apart – after all, it is just an illusion created by the count. And there are a lot of similar moments in Air Zonk. Air Zonk has masterpiece 16-bit graphics. The backgrounds turned out especially cool. If you, like me, love parallax scrolling, then you will like this game. The only big minus is that the developers still went too far with the effects. Air Zonk is contraindicated for people with epilepsy. It is also worth noting the simply bombastic soundtrack, ideally suited to the crazy style of the game.
In the waltz of enemies, mutations, and general chaos, it can feel like there’s no meaningful gameplay in Air Zonk. But in fact, Air Zonk has very simple and well-thought-out battle mechanics. Press button 1 – Zonk fires his main weapon, and button 2 – charges a bomb. All weapons work according to the same, clear rules. Numerous cyber friends operate independently of weapons. It’s very simple. What was truly ingenious was the decision to use the flames from Zonk’s jet boots as a weapon. Due to the high damage, the player himself begins to try to fly around and close the distance in the battle with a particularly large boss.
Naxat Soft is famous https://citybingo-casino.co.uk/games/ for its demonic pinballs Dragon Fury, Devil’s Crush, Alien Crush. The company released a whole bunch of games for the PC Engine and actively ported other games (1943 Kai, Double Dragon II: The Revenge).
B.C. Kid
Developer — Factor 5
Port of the first part to Amiga family computers. The Factor 5 company decided to use the European name of the series… Otherwise, we have the most boring version in terms of new content. The Factor 5 team did a very good job with the graphics, but I was disappointed with the background work. Music has always been the Amiga’s strong point, and old tracks have been given some nice arrangements. This version can be easily played without the turbo button, but the hitboxes and controls are worse than on PC Engine. This port is best described by the situation with Battletoads on SMD and NES – there are a couple of good points, but the original is much better.
Factor 5 is a famous German studio known for such series as: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, Turrican. The company closed in 2008 after publishing house Brash Entertainment went bankrupt. The company’s latest game is Lair for PlayStation 3. In 2017, Factor 5 tried to revive and even bought the rights to the Turrican series, but soon everything died out and there were no new announcements.
GB Genjin
Game Boy (1992)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
In North America, this game is known as Bonk’s Adventure, but in fact it is a completely independent work. PC Engine had its own portable revision called PC Engine LT. Thanks to HuCard’s miniature size, gamers could easily enjoy big games on a small console. Interestingly, if desired, you could connect all the addons to PC Engine LT and fully enjoy the Arcade CD-ROM format (World Heroes 2, Mad Stalker: Full Metal Force). Sega had something similar with its Sega Nomad.
But it was not possible to create any strong competition for Nintendo. That’s why we have a whole 8-bit trilogy of black and white games about Bonk. All games have been re-released as part of the Genjin Collection with improved Super Game Boy compatibility. I went through them. As you might guess, the name in Japanese also refers to the name of the console..
The game itself was good. It has a lot of new graphics and enemies. It feels like A.I Company had a lot of effort and a fresh look at the series. I really liked the shape of the turtle, a sort of crab at maximum speed. But GB Genjin has serious disadvantages – balance and hitboxes. The fight with the prehistoric bird turned out to be crooked and difficult. The game has only a few short, monotonous melodies.
A.I Company Ltd is a very important studio for the series. Despite the fact that every game about Bonk displays the Red Company and Hudson Soft logos, it is A.I Company developed all subsequent games. The company name "AI" comes from the initials of its founders, Hiroyuki Arai and Noriyoshi Innai, who previously worked together at Sanritsu Denki.
Super Air Zonk: Rockabilly-Paradise
PC Engine (1993)
Developer – Dual Corporation
History of the fight against mass development. The vile Count Sandrovich decided to erect a small statue of himself… the size of an entire country. Punk cyborg activists can’t stand this! Zonk urgently flew out on a mission to preserve the historical appearance of the Earth.
Sequel to the best shmup! This time the game uses all the features of Super CD-ROM. We are immediately greeted by a colorful cartoon telling a synopsis of the plot. The game has an amazing color palette. The number of enemies on the screen is off the charts. The number of bosses in Super Air Zonk has reached an obscene number. Contra: Hard Corps from the world of shmups! The size of the leaders also inspires respect. The fight with the giant robot on the third level was too big. It’s hard for me to even count the number of stages.
The combat system has been completely redesigned. The entire military arsenal was thrown into the trash. Interaction with cyborg friends came first. Press button 2 – Zonk unites with the cyborg, and when pressed again, separates. The entire gameplay is based on juggling shapes. This system has its advantages, but it is worse than in the first part.
Super Air Zonk is without a doubt a very good game, but it has many problems that the first part did not have. She lacks speed, and… where did the parallax scrolling go??
Dual Corporation is mainly known as a support studio (Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber). Among the interesting games you can remember Ranma ½: Datō, Ganso Musabetsu Kakutō-Ryū! and Predator for MSX 2.
Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure
PC Engine (1993)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
The evil Tyrannosaurus dragon Drul III has once again captured the moon and chained it to the ocean floor! Brave little Bonk will have to crush the evil tyrant and save the Kingdom of Dinosaurs from the occupation of monsters! War drama in two parts.
A.I Company had finally gained strength and was ready to make a statement. Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure is a truly great, epic game that squeezes all the juice out of HuCard games. The main feature of the game is special candies that allow Bonk to deflate and inflate. Mini-Bonk knew how to crawl through small cracks, which, however, Bonk the Crab was able to do. Giant Bonk’s mutations look incredibly beautiful, a true milestone in 16-bit graphics. There was something similar only in Taz in Escape from Mars. It’s a pity, but they make absolutely no sense, gigantism is more of a hindrance than a help.
Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure is where the series’ stagnation is most felt. Bonk returns to old locations and fights already boring opponents. For the first time in the series, strange and confusing levels appeared. The apogee was the appearance of lighter versions of bosses from previous games.
But all these shortcomings are made up for by co-op and mini-games. Bonk can now be played by two people! And it’s really fun. Troglodyte babies can throw each other and push each other. Competitive mini-games became the pinnacle. I can imagine how cool it was, coming home from school, launching Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure and organizing a PvP tournament. This is the best part of the series, at least for me.
Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure is infamous for its Super CD-ROM release. This was the last release for the TurboGrafx-16 and it’s a real hack. The only advantage of this version was the soundtrack in CD quality, but some of the sounds and music tracks from the game were missing. Even traditional cartoons for such ports are missing. But the worst thing is the disappearance of some animations in the game. The difference is especially noticeable when Bonk eats meat..
FC Genjin
Famicom (1993)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
You should have fought evil, not joined it! Release on the good old Famicom (dandy). Traditionally, FC refers to the name of the console. I can imagine how this affected brand recognition… This is the game I had as a child, and for the sake of it this retrospective was written.
Before us is a remake of the very first part of Bonk’s Adventure. Most of the content, including huge bosses, runs smoothly on an 8-bit console. It’s a little sad to realize that all the statements about unattainable 16-bit gameplay turned out to be inventions of marketers. The gameplay remains the same, but some enemies from Bonk’s Revenge and Bonk 3: Bonk’s Big Adventure dropped into this version. Some levels have been changed, in general, there is a clear focus on simplifying the gameplay. The graphics, due to the limited colors, turned out to be very psychedelic. Some sprites were unnaturally compressed, but overall it turned out well. The impression is much more spoiled by the brakes that happen when there is too many enemies.
GB Genjin Land: Viva! Chikkun Ōkoku
Game Boy (1994)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
King Drul III decided to retire and go into business. Under his leadership, the majestic Chikkun Kingdom amusement park was created. Only one ancient boy really wants to ride a roller coaster..
There is very little information about this game on the Internet. I couldn’t even find the full longplay on YouTube. This game was released exclusively in Japan. When I launched GB Genjin Land, a scary menu and a whole bunch of Japanese text awaited me… But in reality everything turned out to be simple, and I liked the game.
But let’s take it in order. Before us is the majestic amusement park “Chikkun Kingdom”. To run attractions (mini-games), Bonk needs to earn money. The money will pay even if you fail the mini-game, so it is impossible to completely lose in GB Genjin Land. The main danger on the global map is the crocodile. He can take away your honestly earned currency, but it’s quite easy to escape from him.
The mini-games themselves turned out to be really fun and thoughtful. Seven unique mini-games including arkanoid and whack-a-mole! Haunted Castle resembles a fully-fledged platformer. What’s important is that the art style and gameplay in the castle are unique to the series. It’s a shame the series couldn’t go in that direction. All games are tailored to Bonk’s abilities. GB Genjin Land is a full-fledged part of the series, and not a hack designed to make money. I liked this game more than Adventures in the Magic Kingdom and Tiny Toon Adventures 2: Trouble in Wackyland. Definitely the best 8-bit entry in the series.
Bonk’s Adventure: Arcade Version
Arcade (1994)
Developer – Kaneko Co., Ltd.
Formally, this is again a remake of Bonk’s Adventure, but in reality it is a completely independent game. The community, as a rule, does not treat Arcade Bonk very well, but in fact we have a good reimagining of the classic. Yes, in Bonk’s Adventure: Arcade Version there are no flights using the turbo button, but the game has retained the basic mechanics and style.
Perhaps the biggest changes have occurred in the dynamics of the game. Each enemy now requires multiple hits and will chase the poor troglodyte across the entire map. The enemy can gobble up all the bonuses and power-ups without any remorse, so the game will not allow you to mindlessly run forward. The Flintstones: The Treasure of Sierra Madrock had a similar approach and visual style.
The mechanics of evolutions have been completely redone. Now we have a whole bunch of small upgrades that increase the characteristics of the bald guy. Emojis have undergone even greater reforms. Smiling koloboks were in all the games in the series, and each time the developers found new uses for them. But in Bonk’s Adventure: Arcade Version, emoticons took the main stage. Bonk puts all the emoticons he finds on his head, collecting a mega-hat or kokoshnik… With the help of this strange tower you can very easily scatter enemies, but any missed blow will lead to the fall of the structure. We can say that it turned out to be a very funny and original rethinking of the mechanics of the rings from Sonic. There’s no doubt that Bonk’s Adventure: Arcade Version is worse than the classic trilogy, but Kaneko had a fresh take on the series.
Kaneko has almost always worked under Taito, which is why there are so many similarities between The Flintstones: The Treasure of Sierra Madrock and Bonk’s Adventure: Arcade Version. Kaneko has a few of its own games (Air Buster, Heavy Unit, 1000 Miglia: Great 1000 Miles Rally). Perhaps our most famous was a series of games about Chester the cheetah (Chester Cheetah: Too Cool to Fool, Chester Cheetah: Wild Wild Quest).
Generational change – a turning point in the collaboration between NEC and Hudson Soft. NEC had its own vision for the next generation – anime, FMV and dating sims. Hudson Soft was willing to release sequels to Bomberman and Bonk on the PC-FX, but NEC wanted games like Battle Heat!. It’s Battle Heat! has been the face of the console for a long time. Well, the official mascot was Rolfee – the princess of a magical land who is threatened by demons (Tonari no Princess Rolfee). The PC-FX of course had the usual games, like Ruruli Ra Rura, Choujin Heiki Zeroigar and Kishin Douji Zenki FX: Vajura Fight, but most of the library, without knowledge of Japanese, is unplayable. Therefore, Hudson Soft launched the Super Bomberman series for SNES, and the main series continued life on Sega consoles (Mega Bomberman, Saturn Bomberman).
Super Bonk
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (1994)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
Drul III is closer than ever to avenging his murdered grandfather! With the help of cunning, he was able to send Bonk to the future! Only he didn’t take into account that the baby’s skull is so strong that it can even break through the boundaries of time and space. Forward to the past!
The biggest platformer in history! On the new platform A.I Company wanted to take the series to a whole new level. Everything needs to be made bigger – the levels, the madness, the scale… Bonk needs to swell to the size of the universe! Is this really the perfect platformer??
The first thing that catches your eye is the graphics. In Super Bonk, almost all the sprites were redrawn, Bonk finds himself in completely new locations for the series, the number of animations is simply off the charts. Bonk can still deflate and inflate. The question that immediately arises is what happened to the color palette?? Super Bonk is a very gray game, it really lacks colors. And where did the cooperative go??
The mechanics of evolutions have also undergone changes. Having eaten meat in the form of a giant, Bonk turns into a prehistoric bird, and after eating again – into a dinosaur… More – more. In Lilliputian form, Bonk can use his scream to create platforms, but only in strictly defined areas of the levels. To say it’s weird is an understatement.
Throughout the game, the baby is thrown into different time periods, and its size is constantly changing. At one level, Bonk travels through the circulatory system of a dinosaur, and within a moment it surpasses Neptune in size. The whole game is made to scale. Super Bonk has forks and many places to find secrets. But the further it goes, the worse it gets. Levels are becoming less and less logical, and alternative routes are absolutely useless. During a traditional boss rush, there are even invisible walls..
Super Bonk had the potential to breathe new life into the series, but we ended up with the worst Bonk game yet. The release on a new platform could become a springboard for restarting the series, but A.I Company became addicted to gigantomania. Not everything was bad. I liked the new music, big and small Bonk now have different characteristics. Super Bonk has one of the coolest final bosses in video game history. It’s a shame that A.I Company failed to live up to its own ambitions.
GB Genjin 2
Game Boy (1994)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
For greater recognition, this game in America was renamed Bonk’s Revenge, but there is no connection between these games other than the name. The key milestone for the series was the abandonment of the evolution system. Now when Bonk picks up a power-up, we have a split second to choose the right suit. And this is a really good solution that allows you to maintain a balance between madness and gameplay. Each costume has unique properties – for example, Bonk the thief can crack safes, and evil Bonk can devour enemies.
Another important change was the ability to climb ceilings. Spider-Man from the world of "Bonk". GB Genjin 2 is best adapted to the capabilities of the Super Game Boy. Yes, the color palette is still limited to two shades, but each level is hand-painted by the developers. The game has a lot of details, but FPS may drop in the heat of battle. To sum it up – GB Genjin 2 is better than the first part, but it lacks content. The most important thing is that the series has moved forward.
Super Genjin 2
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (1995)
Developer – A.I Company Ltd
Elite special forces Chikunov rebelled against their king! Drul III is arrested and forced to live under prison laws. Will Bonk really have to save the unfortunate dictator?? Final story. Love, Death and Dinosaurs.
The last big project and reboot of the entire series. We have a Japanese exclusive. A.I Company has completely redesigned its visual style. The graphics in Super Genjin 2 are very reminiscent of Sonic with their rich colors, but at the same time the signature crazy style remains in place.
Another new mechanic is running. Bonk began to develop quite a lot of speed and learned to duck. Gameplay changes depending on the food and items found. These changes make Super Genjin 2 even more similar to Super Mario World.
It may seem that A.I Company is too busy copying, but it’s not true. Madness, fun and humor remain in place. A.I Company was able to rethink the ideas of competitors and brought the series to a new level. Super Genjin 2 is a very concentrated game, literally overflowing with content. In the Wild West, Bonk rides a piggy blimp and becomes a zombie in a cemetery. Well, how do you like the opportunity to swap heads with Drul?? There was something similar in Rocket Knight Adventures 2, but A.I Company did much better.
Super Genjin 2 is without a doubt a great game. Only, unfortunately, it came out too late and lacks polish. A.I Company found its vector, only the series was in a half-dead state by that time.
Hudson Selection Vol.3: PC Genjin
GameCube/PlayStation 2 (2003)
Developer – Hudson Soft
An attempt to revive "Bonk". The Hudson Selection series was very similar to Sega Ages – remakes of old games at reduced prices. Only Hudson Soft approached the process more creatively and tried to rethink the gameplay and visual style of the classics.
Before us is the same good old first part with… a truly legendary approach to graphics. Real applique! It feels like all the characters are cut out of colorful paper. Thanks to this approach, the game does not look outdated even today.
The game has three difficulty levels. On “normal” PC Genjin is quite easy. Most of the levels have been simplified, Bonk can practically kick the dead forever, scoring points. Collecting fruit became a separate entertainment, thanks to this it made sense to replay levels. Overall, I actually liked most of the changes.
But there is a fly in the ointment in this barrel of honey – these are the bosses. Hudson Soft decided to completely remake the leaders. Because of this decision, the complexity increased significantly. Bosses move very quickly and are difficult to deal damage because they have crooked hitboxes.
Cameo
In the 90s, Hudson Soft held events called Super Caravan. It was a real holiday for every Hudson Soft fan. These “caravans” are notable for the fact that they contained a mountain of unique entertainment content: official romhacks, unique arcade cabinets and computers, demos, prototypes and even full-fledged games. As a rule, all this wealth was sharpened for PvP and competitions. Well, Hi-Ten Chara-Bomb was one of those games. It featured a whole bunch of Hudson characters and, of course, there was Bonk. Hi-Ten Chara-Bomb is considered lost today.
Another series connection occurred in Saturn Bomberman. This game is notable for its special XBAND edition. Using a special modem (XBAND), you could enjoy online gaming directly on the Sega Saturn. Bonk appeared in a set of simple puzzles – Same Game. The interesting thing is that it was a unique cartridge with an additional port – Satellaview. Through it you could download new characters and content.
Canceled games
A large-scale JRPG called Bonk’s Quest (Bonk IV RPG) was supposed to be released about Bonk. There is quite a bit of information about her. Changing genres may seem like a strange decision, but even Mario has done this (Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars).
Ultra Genjin – a full-fledged 3D game about Bonk. Ultra refers to the original name of the Nintendo 64 – Ultra 64. Nevertheless, the game was able to see the light of day, albeit in a greatly modified form (Bomberman Hero).
The big reimagining of the series was supposed to be Bonk: Brink of Extinction for (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo 3DS and Wii). But, after the bankruptcy of Hudson Soft, the new rights owner Konami canceled the release of the game. I couldn’t play this prototype properly. But overall, Bonk: Brink of Extinction is a good project for its time. It had co-op, flirtations with 3D and even a new evolution system. A whole bunch of extremely low quality mobile games have been released about Bonk.
Bonk is a truly great and unique series. The main reason for failure and oblivion is Hudson Soft’s lack of faith in its creation. The company was unable to relaunch the series on a new platform in time. Considering the current state of affairs at Konami, there is no chance of a revival for Bonk. The company completely forgot even the cameo. For example, in Super Bomberman R there were: Goemon, Pyramid Head and even Arbiter from Halo, but there was no place for Bonk in the game. The only thing that can inspire at least a little hope is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection. A similar collection of emulators could encourage Konami to transfer the rights to a third-party studio.
That’s all, guys. I wish everyone who read to the end the same shiny, impenetrable and beautiful bald head as Bonk’s.
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