Despite the young age of Gaijinworks and the company's short slate of one localized game (), the company's founder and President, Victor Ireland has had a longstanding professional relationship with the company. Additionally, Ireland was at the helm of another well-known US publisher of Japanese games, and promised fans of that company that this partnership would please them, stating in an that "The next press release should definitely make some gamers very, very happy--especially old-school Working Designs fans."
Besides Blaster Master, Sunsoft is well known for creating some of the best comic-book based games of the 8 and 16-bit era, including Batman for the NES and The Death and Return of Superman on the SNES. Hopefully this partnership can work towards getting these titles published. Regardless of that, however, Blaster Master is a fine start. The full press release follows one of the 8-bit era's most iconic images.
Sunsoft being resurrected, releasing Blaster Master on Virtual Console
Blaster Master was a great game, but I still don't get why anyone would risk their life for a pet frog.
Sunsoft, a division of SUNCORPORATION, has today announced their return to active console game publishing for the North American market, aided by startup GAIJINWORKS.
Kiharu Yoshida, CEO of SUNCORPORATION (JASDAQ: 6736) initiated a meeting to discuss the possibility of reinvigorating the Sunsoft console gaming brand in the USA. At that meeting, it was quickly obvious that the relationship was a great fit. GAIJINWORKS President, Victor Ireland states, "My relationship with Sunsoft and Yoshida-san goes back more than 15 years, and when this opportunity presented itself to help Sunsoft return to the US console market, it was a natural fit for both our companies."
This month, the Sunsoft website is being re-launched at , where users will be able to get the latest information about current releases, upcoming games, and special promotions, as well as interact in the forum. Kiharu Yoshida wanted gamers to know that Sunsoft plans to launch a number of special promotions where big prizes can be won, and exclusive, limited edition premiums would be up for grabs as well. Ireland added that some of the swag being made would only be available through these promotions - and is sure to please Sunsoft fans, new and old.
The first title out of the gate for Sunsoft USA will be the Wii Virtual Console release of the Nintendo Entertainment System classic Blaster Master, due in December 2009. Originally titled Meta Fight in Japan, this groundbreaking game was given a story makeover and released in 1988 as Blaster Master(tm) here in the United States. It received strong critical acclaim and fan raves almost from the moment it hit these shores.
Blaster Master(tm) is still often listed on magazine and online charts as one of the top 25 NES games ever created. The sublime blend of side-scrolling shooting/platforming mixed with overhead perspective action/shooting areas is just as addictive now as it was then. It will be available for 500 Wii points.
In the coming weeks, additional titles coming to the US market will be announced, many of which will surprise and delight gaming fans. Ireland added, "This first Wii release is a great start, but there is one upcoming announcement in particular that will demonstrate just how serious Yoshida-san is about rebuilding the Sunsoft console gaming brand here. Game fans are going to be pretty happy when they hear about it - I know I was."