When Analogue released its modern reimagining of the NES, the Analogue Nt, it was a thing of beauty. The premium $500 price, though, meant it was destined for the serious enthusiast market only. Its follow up, the Analogue Nt Mini, trimmed a couple of features but came in at a far more realistic pricepoint for the average gamer.
Then followed the Analogue Super Nt, doing for the 16-bit SNES what it had done for the console’s predecessor. Every console also came with an extra special gift – an exclusive Director’s Cut of Super Turrican featuring material that had to be cut from the original cartridge due to memory restrictions. With the upcoming Analogue Mega Sg – an equivalent modern interpretation of Sega’s Mega Drive/Genesis – fans were hoping there’d be a similar present awaiting them on the new console.
From the look of that trailer, they’re not going to be disappointed! The company posted the above video showing off Hardcore, a run-and-gun shooter from Digital Illusions (or DICE as they’re better known) that was cancelled in 1994 in a 99% complete state. Apparently the only known source code came from “a single, dead hard drive that was barely recovered”.
Analogue go on to describe the game thusly:
Hardcore is a fast paced, euro-style run’n’gun, space base thriller. We’re dedicated to preserving this piece of video game history and Hardcore is included digitally on each Mega Sg system.
The game will go by the name Ultracore ‘due to licensing reasons’, but whatever it’s called, it looks absolutely terrific. It’ll be a treat to tuck into a game from the era – not a remake, not an homage; a genuine 25-year-old Mega Drive game that had been ‘lost’.
The console is on pre-order for $189.99 from Analogue’s website and is scheduled to ship in April.
As you can probably tell, we’re quite excited – it’d be a massive shame if the game turns out to be rubbish! Does this make the Analogue Mega Sg a more attractive proposition? Share your thoughts below.