TwinBee will always love you!

With the Nintendo Virtual Console machine starting to take off, one of the greater aspects of the service has been the company's willingness to finally allow Japanese releases into the hands of eternally grateful, disenfranchised gamers across the country who might never have experienced these joys for themselves. It's worth noting just how difficult and nigh-impossible it once was to obtain the best games Japan had to offer, as a pretty severe anti-import policy across the board seldom let some of the wilder, saucy stuff find its way into the hands of passionate gaijin-types.

While this wasn't a strictly Nintendo-policy, let's not forget just how ruthless this company could be in their first heyday, often requiring third-party companies to disembowel the life from certain titles to ensure a family-friendly release outside Japan. Of course even the most staunch policies weren't enough to keep the true believers from doing whatever it took to by-pass the various lock-out technologies, import nirvana was never more than a converter or chisel-job away. The Virtual Console represents the first time a first-party company has been so willing to allow this content to be freely distributed, in all its unedited and non-translated glory, and we figured it was high time to compile a wish-list of unpublished retro gold that could stand a good polish.

But this job was a little too much for your intrepid pseudo-reporter, so I've sought out a little help from our friends over at that outrageously fun blog and import-loving group Gamertell to help fill in the blanks, courtesy of the always lovely Jenni Lada and her mysterious ways. Plus, to show just how non-chauvinistic I really am (despite rumors to the contrary...), Ms. Lada gets first dibs on your eyeballs and import-loving heartstrings for the first five, with yours truly taking up the rear. You'll notice a certain pattern for some classic RPG moments in the former, while action primarily consumes the latter. Now that's equal-opportunity for ya, folks!

To contact Jenni direct, feel free to send some of that new-fangled, digital mail her way by contacting us and we'll make sure she gets it. Now, on with the show!

Top Ten Most Wanted Japanese Virtual Console Titles

FEDA: The Emblem of Justice (Super Famicom)
FEDA: The Emblem of Justice is a strategic RPG which was originally released on the SNES in Japan in 1994. It is a solid game similar to the Shining Force titles. A fan translation is available of the game online, but an official translation would be amazing for fans. The only failing is that the storyline is a bit cliche with two leading soldier characters fighting against a corrupt government. This is redeemed by the fact your characters can choose to be lawful or chaotic, and certain characters will or won't join you based on the choices made.

Terranigma (Super Famicom)
Terranigma is a much beloved action RPG originally released on the SNES in Japan in 1995 and in Australia and Europe in 1996. It is surprising that it never received a North American release, considering it was already completely translated. It featured gorgeous sprites reminiscent of Chono Trigger, a wonderful soundtrack and a fairly interesting storyline of a boy who must save his town, and later the world, after he accidentally brought misfortune to it.

Seiken Densetsu 3 (Super Famicom)
Seiken Densetsu 3 is a Square action RPG, the third in the Mana series, that originally appeared on the SNES in 1995. Despite being a Japan only release, many fans fell in love with it and so an English fan translation was made available online. It similar to Secret of Mana, only with more characters, classes and options to choose from. The variety in terms of characters and classes made for loads of replay value. Square Enix hasn't made many games available on Virtual Console yet, but this should be among them.

Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon: Another Story (Super Famicom)
Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon: Another Story is quite possibly the best video game based on an anime/manga. It is a classic SNES RPG which was originally released in Japan in 1995. It followed the characters from Sailor Moon in an original storyline created exclusively for the game, had different endings and challenging gameplay. With the success of manga and anime recently, it would be a great Virtual Console release.

Mother (Famicom)
Mother may sound unfamiliar to some gamers, but is actually from the same series as Earthbound, which was released in North America. Mother is a classic NES RPG that came out in Japan in 1989. It is affectionately referred to as Earthbound Zero. It had originally received a translation from Nintendo, but was never released in North America. The information from the preliminary carts created were sold on eBay and fans uploaded it to the internet. It is fairly similar to Earthbound, once again starring a young boy with three friends working to save Earth from aliens with psychic powers.

Sonic CD (Sega Mega-CD)
Long before Sega sought to destroy the credibility of their beloved Sonic franchise, many hopes were pinned on his first CD release in being the Sega/Mega-CD savior. As history would have it, not much could've helped that platform in the long-run, but beyond all prejudice Sonic CD was a fantastic game by any note that if for no other reason, features the introduction of cheesy cinematic cut-scenes to the series. Seeing as how the game was in fact released outside of Japan, you might be wondering just why the Blue Bomber is making this list at all? Simple - we'd kill for a complete Sonic CD with its original and glorious Japanese soundtrack, and not the bizarrely butchered US release. Make it right, Sega!

Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (Famicom)
Now here's a game that just about everyone on this planet has seen, touched, and probably at one point loved to death. Of course for them it didn't go by its original Japanese title, but the more world-friendly Super Mario Bros. 2! Perhaps the single-most famous example of the videogame world's process of homogenization, the original Doki Doki Panic featured a cool Arabian Nights motif, as well as the spiritual ancestors for Shy Guy, Bob-Omb and dozens of other surprises. But it wasn't until Doki Doki producer Miyamoto added a certain Italian plumber that the game took on a life of its own and will still get ample playtime for all eternity. Still, it'd be a great education for all Mario fans to see the original in all its non-Mushroom Kingdom influence, warts and all.

TwinBee: Rainbow Bell Adventure (Super Famicon)
Most of the world outside of Japan probably isn't as familiar with the fantastic TwinBee franchise as they ought to be, but chalk that error up to a frigid import market that wasn't famous for its proclivity at taking chances. Although most entries in the TwinBee legacy have been fantastic 2D side-scrolling shooters, TwinBee: Rainbow Bell Adventure for the Super Famicon took the series into the platforming world, with absolutely fantastic results. One of the better-looking examples of sprite-goodness, with so much color the cones in your eyeballs just might explode from visual overload - TwinBee knew how to bring the splendor, and thanks to some seriously Super Mario World-inspired gameplay, the replay value was well worth the investment. Although the game saw a proper European release, why this one never hit US shores is a mystery that can only be solved with a proper Virtual Console release.

Akumajō Dracula X Chi no Rondo (PC-Engine Super CD)
American TurboGraphx-16 fans never had much reason to celebrate their console-of-choice here in the States, and that goes double if they had a working knowledge of the utter gaming nirvana that their lucky Japanese counterparts were gorging themselves on routinely. With Nintendo enjoying a virtual stranglehold over the competition in terms of licensing at the time, seldom were certain franchises allowed to play outside of their 'Seal of Quality' domains. Not so in Japan, and one of the very best examples of such a digital crime is not allowing this Castlevania masterpiece to have been fully enjoyed outside its home country. One of the last traditional members of the franchise and the inspiration to the seminal Symphony of the Night (PlayStation), Akumajō Dracula X Chi no Rondo (Dracula X) introduced the world to Richter Belmont in the 10th official entry in the series. Eventually Konami saw fit to rip the game apart and release broken, inferior versions for competing consoles that never really healed the wounds. A complete 3D-remake last year for the Sony PSP (with the original game as a hidden bonus), but wouldn't it be grand to play this classic on a full-size display the way it was intended? Classic whipping at its best!

Radiant Silvergun (Sega Saturn)
I'm actually cheating with this one, as of this time Nintendo hasn't announced Virtual Console support for the Sega Saturn just yet... but how could I possibly leave off the vertical-scrolling, shooting extravaganza that is Radiant Silvergun? From the masters of intensity itself, the creators of the godly Gunstar Heroes and Dynamite Headdy hit the Saturn hardware with guns blazing, ready to exploit the 2D capabilities of the new technology for all that it was worth after having melted Sega Genesis/Mega Drive consoles the world over. The result is one of the most intense 2D shooters ever created, and also one of the most difficult... so difficult in fact, that it may have been largely the reason why the game never saw release outside of Japan. Its spiritual successor, the similarly-difficult Ikaruga (Dreamcast, GameCube) was met with frothy-fanboy lust upon its proper US release, and I have no doubt in my mind that making this one available to them could only yield similarly positive results. Hey, it worked for Sin and Punishment!

There's really no way to compress the entirely of injustices done to quality import-friendly software over the years into one single list, especially one with just ten spots. But with any luck and hopeful wishing, there won't be a need to look back on what never was again, as the acceptance of foreign content seems to widen more with each passing year. There will always be controversial releases, but I think once the gaming public accepts cross-dressing assassins and yaoi-inspired melodrama, you might as well consider that cultural bubble officially popped.

Again, I'd like to express my deepest thanks to Jenni Lada and the folks over at Gamertell for this magical cross-over spectacle, and considering how much fun we had slopping this thing together, let's do it again! For even more gaming madness, don't even think about passing these guys up. Go ahead and point that mouse-clicking finger over there right now by navigating yourselves over to www.gamertell.com!