Ted. Man. Glue. What do these words say when you prefix them with the word ‘super’? It means they’re brilliant, of course! Where would we be without Super Ted saving the world with his best mate Spotty? Where would we be without Superman saving the world with his laser eyes, ice breath and spinning the […]
100 games. I’m 56 and have been playing video games since they first appeared as consumer products. My tastes are still very much affected by those early pioneering times; particularly in the arcade but not exclusively so. This is a list of those that left the biggest impression on me curated to a list of […]
Those of us of a certain vintage will remember the “interactive movie” concept in videogames. The most famous titles in that genre were Dragon’s Lair and Space Ace, combining the technology of LaserDisc with cartoon animation and quick time events. Although these had limited success in contemporary home conversions, they gained a second life once […]
It has become something of a running joke in recent years that Doom has been ported to pretty much every piece of technology available, be it a digital camera, a smart watch or a graphics calculator. Back in the day, however, you were much more limited as to what could play Doom, and if you […]
Fatal Fury is often touted as a Street Fighter II clone. It was, however, being developed at the same time. The similarities between the games come from the fact that SNK’s fighting games were created by Takashi Nishiyama and Hiroshi Matsumoto, they had created the first Street Fighter. Its fair to say that Fatal Fury […]
Ah, good old John Rambo! You know the guy. That kid friendly character that spawned an action figure range. The one whose first film was a tense, psychological portrayal of a Vietnam veteran. The one whose second film became more like American wish fulfilment. And the one whose 18-rated third film couldn’t have been more […]
I’m one of those antiquated gamers who remembers the arcades with a form of wide-eyed wonderment. Walking in and inhaling all the cigarette smoke, my eardrums assaulted with a cacophony of music and one liners from the various machines. My eyes treated to flashing lights and incredibly detailed pixel art. The pinnacle of my arcade […]
Rolling Thunder appeared in the arcades in 1986. Until this time, the arcades were filled with PacMan and Galaga titles. Rolling Thunder was a shot in the arm for the industry, it resembled a James Bond game mixed with a Saturday morning cartoon. You take on the role of a secret agent known as Albatross. […]
Censorship is a thorny issue, at least it was in the 90’s. Mortal Kombat smashed into the arcades with the impact of a freight train hitting a defenseless lama. Blood, chunks of body parts, mutilation, impalement and the ripping out of spinal cords send the media into a frenzy. The game hit the Super Nintendo […]
Who doesn’t love a bit of turn based strategy? From the early pencil and paper role playing games, like Dungeons & Dragons and Runequest, to RebelStar Raiders, Chaos and Laser Squad on the ZX Spectrum, to the X-COM games, RoboSport and Vandal Hearts on various other systems. It’s quite exciting when a game in the […]