Why I Can’t Wait Until Pier Solar HD Comes Out

We’re all excited for some huge, high profile Nintendo games here at the Dojo. After all, with titles like Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire coming out soon, it’s easy to see why we’re all excited! Yet, my most anticipated game this month isn’t even made by Nintendo. I love Super Smash Bros. and Pokémon, but the game that has caught my interest is Watermelon’s Pier Solar HD.

Explaining Pier Solar as a game is a bit complicated. On the base level, Pier Solar is an old-school RPG with turn-based battles and random encounters, but it’s so much more than that. Pier Solar sets out to create an authentic Genesis RPG experience, featuring graphics in all their 16-bit glory and a soundtrack that abides by the restrictions of the system’s original hardware. I know that might not seem like a big deal these days because retro aesthetics have been done to death in games like Shovel Knight, but Pier Solar has something that other retro-inspired games lack: a cartridge that you can actually use on your old system!

How awesome is that? I never thought I’d see the day when a new Sega Genesis game released again, but the team of independent developers at Watermelon proved me wrong when they released Pier Solar in 2010. As expected, these cartridges have become highly collectable items. The original run of the game can cost around $150-$300 and the latest reprint cartridges cost $59, making it a bit of an investment for a gamer like me that operates on a budget. As I continuously debated with myself about buying the game, Watermelon announced in 2012 that it was remaking the game in HD and it was coming to Wii U!

The game looks absolutely beautiful with its updated graphics, but you can also switch to the original Sega Genesis graphics whenever you want! This truly brings the best of both worlds, as I can appreciate the work that Watermelon put into the new visuals and switch back to 16-bit to create the illusion of playing the game on Sega Genesis. I was incredibly excited about Pier Solar HD when the Kickstarter launched two years ago and I even named it as one of my most anticipated indie games last year.

When I wrote that article, I mentioned that the game would release in Q1 2014. But of course, that never happened! Like many of the indie games I wrote about, Pier Solar HD had its release date pushed back multiple times. This is an unfortunate reality that many small game developers have to face when taking on big projects, but I knew that everything Watermelon did was helping the game become better. In fact, the more it delayed Pier Solar HD, the more I wanted to play it!

This week, all of that waiting will finally end. Pier Solar HD is set to release on Wii U on November 6 for $14.99. Considering that the game promises to have over 50 hours of gameplay, including additional content made for the remake, it’s an incredibly reasonable price for me. If you haven’t heard of Pier Solar in the past and have an interest in RPGs, check out the trailer of the game below. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be bouncing off walls with excitement and be persuaded to buy the game this week.

Are you excited for the release of Pier Solar HD? Awesome! Let us know about it in the comments below. Or, if you can relate to my excitement with another upcoming Nintendo game that you’re really interested in, tell us about that instead!