March 12, 2012, at 09:56 AM
Wonder Boy In Monster Land Sphinx Questions
This isn't really anything new but I did the research all over again so I thought I may as well put it somewhere. There are three English variants of Wonder Boy in Monster Land - a prototype, a Japanese release with English text that would never show, and a final Western release. There are a bunch of differences between them, but the one that entertains me the most is the editing done to the questions the Sphinx asks you, the hints you get and the answers...
Question: what was for dinner yesterday?
Earlier versions: Question: what did I eat yesterday?
- Recently, the sphinx seems to be dieting
- No dinner
No changes.
- Yesterday, one of our chickens disappeared
- Fried chicken
In the prototype it says Chicken and rice. However, while that's a perfectly cromulent thing to have for dinner in the Far East, it's a crazy thing for Westerners who would rather have some KFC or whatever.
Question: what is my hobby?
Or Question: what is my hobby recently? in earlier versions.
- Sphinx has many clubs
- Golf
In the earlier versions, the hint is the more entertaining Recently, the sound of window glass breaking was heard.
- Sphinx makes strange noises when it rains
- Singing
The rain bit always confused me there. In the earlier versions, it's Recently, it's so noisy at night with the solution Karaoke or Karaoke singing. I guess people go to karaoke at night, but they saw fit to erase the Karaoke part because Westerners wouldn't know what it meant? But by 1988, wasn't Karaoke pretty well-known worldwide?
Question: how do I stay in shape?
In earlier versions: Question: what is the method by which I get rid of stress?
- Sphinx has new shoes
- Jogging
Earlier versions have the hint Recently, earthquakes occur in the morning. I guess Sphinx is rather heavy-footed?
- Sphinx likes green diamonds
- Baseball
That means nothing to anyone outside the US, Japan and Korea. They erased Karaoke but added this? Anyway, in earlier versions the focus was not on fitness but relaxing, and how better to do that than by developing cirrhosis of the liver?
- The sphinx often visits our bar
- Drinking
Alcohol (prototype)
Which game have I been playing recently?
Or What is the game that recently I'm most interested in?.
- Sphinx took a ride he'll never forget
- After Burner
Was I hear that the sphinx easily become sick when riding in a vehicle. The Sphinx seems a bit of a wuss. Was he playing the hydraulic arcade cab, or the less awesome home version? Anyway, perhaps Sega felt it was inappropriate to suggest that one of their games would make you nauseous.
- Sphinx has strange glasses
- Missile Defense
Was The sphinx often wears strange glasses.
If you can easily get hold of the Japanese text I'd be interested to translate that too (with any variations) to see what other differences there are...
