Dinoforce (partially found build of shoot 'em up game for PC Engine; 1993)

Dinoforce Original title screen.

Status: Partially found

Dinoforce (ダイノフォース) is a shoot 'em up game for the PC Engine developed by Athena and planned for release by Uni Post Of Japan. The game, like its predecessor Circus Lido, was intended for sale in bookstores.
The game was featured in specialized magazines such as PC Engine Fan and Gekkan PC Engine, but was never released. PC Engine Fan carried the title until September 1994.

Prototype ROMs

The existence of the Prototype ROM first became known online in 2012, when a prototype was discovered in Japan, and the ROM's owner gave it to Akiba-Games, an online video game import store with an office in Shinjuku at the time. Akiba-Games then sold the ROM for the sum of 5,000 euros (about 5,270 dollars). PC Engine community sites Necstasy and PC Engine-FX.com banded together to get that ROM and get it surfaced online, and began collecting 5000 euros. The community was able to raise 2,500 euros^[1], but Akiba-Games eventually stopped selling to the public, and the ROM was offered at an auction held by Millon & Associés in Paris on June 13, 2013, resulting in a buyer for 10,000 euros (about 10,540 dollars)^[2].
On December 1, 2017. The Twitter account for the Mycom Basic Magazine talk event tweeted that event moderator Akira Yamashita had discovered a Dinoforce prototype ROM^[3].
The other prototype ROM was owned by Nao Enami^[4], who created the map data for the game^[5]. He displayed the prototype for the public to try out at Game Legend 29, a video game event held on November 4, 2018^[6]. He also displayed the prototype the following year at Game Legend 30, held on May 19, 2019^[7]^[8]^[9].

Release

In 2022, the fourth prototype ROM of the game was in the possession of one of the developers, Tokuhisa Tajima. The ROM was stored on an EPROM on a PWD-730 board distributed by NEC to developers and retailers 30 years ago, and it was acquired by French collector Alex Seimando, who, with the help of Marc Van Woerkom and Chris Covell, the ROM was improved to the point where the game was playable.
To celebrate the 35th anniversary of the PC Engine, PCEWorks released Dinoforce in four separate options, each with a different version of the game^[10]^[11]. The data for the improved ROM was also made available for free download. However, the improved ROM had changes made to the title screen copyrights.

Availability

Four Dinoforce were currently identified, but none in prototype condition have yet surfaced. The first one sold at auction in Paris is believed to still be in the possession of the buyer.