Magicaldrop

[MagicalDrop]

No, no this is not a vanity thread aimed at self promotion.

 

I've long been a big fan of the MagicalDrop series of games - well specifically II and III, there must be a 1 but I'm not even sure what format that's on. 

 

Thing is I'm not actually that good at it. I play it a lot but rarely get a rank of Amateur in survival mode. But I keep playing because game over always feels like it was my fault and that I will do better next time. 

 

The closest game I can think of to it is Puzzle Bobble, but thats not really got the same relentless push of objects to clear, more about set puzzles. And then there's Money Puzzle Exchanger, which has similar gameplay but for me adds a strangely off putting complexity. 

 

Any other fans out there? Any tips for chaining would be welcome! 

 

 

 

[Vespa Alex]

I've not played them much for about a decade, but my brother and I got totally obsessed with them on MAME, especially on a proper arcade cabinet.
I'll have to fire it up and give it another go.

It seems that the first one was in the arcade as well, but I've never played it, just 2 & 3
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magical_Drop

[gossi the dog]

The first one was released on the PS1. The PAL version of Magical Drop 3 included it as a bonus disk.

[Skull Commander]

Literally just played Magical Drop 2 and 3 for the first time this morning! Was playing two player with my daughter and they were both a hit with her. 

 

I don't have any tips yet as literally had an hour on it, but looking forward to giving them a shot in one player later.

[Gotters]

What about that money puzzle exchanger thing with coins, isnt that similar ?

 

remember playing that on MAME

[MagicalDrop]

8 hours ago, MagicalDrop said:

And then there's Money Puzzle Exchanger, which has similar gameplay but for me adds a strangely off putting complexity. 

 

@GottersSimilar indeed. I don't find it anywhere near as compulsive, possibly in part because of the weird way it calculates a score at the end. Who wants to top a leader board with a score of 30 😂

[phillv85]

I’m fairly sure that Chain Reaction on the Saturn is the first MD game as well.

[MagicalDrop]

Turns out the Chain Reaction arcade ROM is on my RG351V - happy days! 

 

I shall have a dabble later 😊

 

[bradigor]

I love Magical Drop. I want it to get a collection or something. 

 

I found that I could actually get Magical Drop V working on Steam Deck which made me very happy.

[MagicalDrop]

I had no idea there was a 4 let alone a 5 or 6! 

 

@bradigor I just looked V up on Steam and it says it's no longer available on the store. Any idea what's going on there? 

[bradigor]

37 minutes ago, MagicalDrop said:

I had no idea there was a 4 let alone a 5 or 6! 

 

@bradigor I just looked V up on Steam and it says it's no longer available on the store. Any idea what's going on there? 

 

Not a clue I got it years ago and it wouldn't work at all. Randomly tried it on my Deck and it worked. Probably delisted now.

[MagicalDrop]

Well it turns out Chain Reaction is a pretty decent game. There are 2 modes, Vs Computer and Solo. Sadly there doesn't seem to be a leader board for solo and the Vs one has some pretty challenging minimum scores to get in the top 5.

There's a slight variance to gameplay rules for those most familiar with MD2 and MD3, enough to make Chain Reaction worth playing in its own right. 

 

Now, how to play MD 4, 5 or 6....?

[bradigor]

Oh bugger... I don't have the ROM. What is the ROM name you are using?

[MagicalDrop]

2 hours ago, bradigor said:

Oh bugger... I don't have the ROM. What is the ROM name you are using?

 

Sent you a pm. 

[Soulstar]

I don’t think I’ve actually played Magical Drop before but I have always enjoyed the Puzzle Bobbles series in the past. There was a game I came across (Jap) in Bury Arcade Club over a year back which sucked me in and has another similar feel but the balls are stacked from the bottom and fired up on the left using a spring, a bit like a pinball machine. 

[spatular]

^ could have been mushihime tama?

 

i thought i'd played magical drop on ngpc but looking into it i think it was puzzle link i played, so not sure. i like games like this though so will have to give magical drop a go.

[geldra]

5 hours ago, Soulstar said:

I don’t think I’ve actually played Magical Drop before but I have always enjoyed the Puzzle Bobbles series in the past. There was a game I came across (Jap) in Bury Arcade Club over a year back which sucked me in and has another similar feel but the balls are stacked from the bottom and fired up on the left using a spring, a bit like a pinball machine. 

Uo Poko by any chance?

 

 

[MagicalDrop]

I found Puzzle Uo Poko on my RG351V, looking forward to giving that a go. Another hidden gem of a game, thanks @Soulstar and @geldra😊

[Soulstar]

Yeah it was Uo Poko. I spent a while playing it but it would always start from the first level of you failed once. It’s a good game though.