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The best-selling game on the Famicom/NES Norman was Super Mario Cart - Norman Caruso, the Gaming Historian, dives into the history and background of this classic game. But first he does a Q&A.  35:02 is where the Super Mario Cart part starts, skip ahead if you don't want to listen to the Q&A.

I just got back from PRGE, which returned since the last event in 2019.  Here is my album with the pictures I took at the event:  PRGE 2022 Album

[Hexen: Beyond Heretic]

Hexen: Beyond Heretic is a fantasy first-person shooter video game developed by Raven Software and published by id Software through GT Interactive on October 30, 1995. It is the sequel to 1994's Heretic, and the second game in Raven Software's "Serpent Riders" trilogy, which culminated with Hexen II. The title comes from the German noun Hexen, which means "witches", and/or the verb hexen, which means "to cast a spell". Game producer John Romero stated that a third, unreleased game in this series was to be called Hecatomb.

Hexen: Beyond Heretic met with highly positive reviews upon release, though the various 1997 console ports were negatively received because of problems with frame rate and controls and the aging of the game itself. Critical plaudits for the game centered on the non-linear level design and the selection of three playable characters, each offering a distinct gameplay experience.

Gameplay
A new series feature introduced in Hexen is the choice of three character classes. Players may choose to play as a fighter (Baratus), a cleric (Parias), or a mage (Daedolon). Each character has unique weapons and physical characteristics, lending an additional degree of variety and replay value to the game. The Fighter relies mainly on close-quarters physical attacks with weapons both mundane and magical in nature, and is tougher and faster than the other characters. The Mage uses an assortment of long-range spells, whose reach is counterbalanced by the fact that he is the most fragile and slowest moving of the classes. The Cleric arms himself with a combination of both melee and ranged capabilities, being a middle ground of sorts between the other two classes. Additionally, certain items, such as the flechette (poison gas bomb), behave differently when collected and used by each of the classes, functioning in a manner better suiting their varying approach to combat.

Hexen introduces "hub" levels to the series, wherein the player can travel back and forth between central hub levels and connected side levels. This is done in order to solve larger-scale puzzles that require a series of items or switches to be used. The player must traverse through a hub in order to advance to the next hub.

The inventory system returns from Heretic with several new items, such as the "Disc of Repulsion", which pushes enemies away from the player, and the "Icon of the Defender", which provides invincibility to each class in a different manner.

Source:  Wikipedia

This year marks the 45th anniversary of the Atari 2600.  This excellent article on PC Magazine does a nice overview of the system's history and even talks about homebrew games for the system.  Worth a read:  The Atari 2600 at 45: The Console That Brought Arcade Games Home

[Prince of Persia]

Prince of Persia is a fantasy cinematic platformer designed and implemented by Jordan Mechner for the Apple II and published by Broderbund in 1989. Taking place in medieval Persia, players control an unnamed protagonist who must venture through a series of dungeons to defeat the evil Grand Vizier Jaffar and save an imprisoned princess.

Much like Karateka, Mechner's first game, Prince of Persia used rotoscoping for its fluid and realistic animation. For this process, Mechner used as reference for the characters' movements videos of his brother doing acrobatic stunts in white clothes, and swashbuckler films such as The Adventures of Robin Hood.

The game was critically acclaimed, but was not an immediate commercial success as it was released at the tail end of the Apple II's relevance. It sold many copies as it was ported to a wide range of platforms. It is believed to have been the first cinematic platformer and inspired many games in this subgenre, such as Another World.[4] Its success launched the Prince of Persia franchise, consisting of two sequels, Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame (1993) and Prince of Persia 3D (1999), and two reboots: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003), which was followed by three sequels of its own, and Prince of Persia (2008).

Source:  Wikipedia

When Nintendo launched the Super Famicom in 1990, they couldn't make enough consoles to meet the demand. But there was another way to get one: The Sharp SF1, a $1,000 TV with a built-in Super Famicom! Learn the history and functionality of this obscure piece of video game hardware.

I'm a contributor to this retro gaming magazine.  I wanted to share for those who may be interested in supporting it...

Kickstarter Campaign

[Whizz]

Whizz is a 1994 isometric platform game released for the Amiga, Amiga CD32, and DOS. In 1996, it was ported to the Super NES and in 1997 to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. A Sega Mega Drive version was planned but never released. Within the game, "Whizz" refers to the player character's magical talents, being short for "wizard". Marketing for the game used it in reference to the slang term for urination, such as in the advertising slogan "Ever feel the need for a Whizz real bad? You will."

Source:  Wikipedia

[Time Scanner]

Time Scanner is a pinball game developed by Sega for Sega System 16 hardware. It was released in 1987, with ports to the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum by Activision showing up in the following years.

There are four boards in Time Scanner representing different time zones. Each board is split into two sections. The arcade game is controlled using a tiltable panel with two flipper buttons on either side, designed to more closely approximate a real pinball machine.

Source:  Sega Retro

[Alone in the Dark]

Alone in the Dark is a survival horror video game designed by Frédérick Raynal and developed and published by Infogrames for the PC. Alone in the Dark was released for MS-DOS in 1992, ported for the 3DO by Krisalis in 1994, and ported for iOS by Atari, Inc. in 2014. Set in 1920s Louisiana, the game challenges the player to guide the player character out of a haunted mansion, advancing by solving puzzles while either banishing, slaying, or eluding various ghosts and monsters. The player can collect and use weapons, manage a weight-based inventory system, and explore a partially nonlinear map.

Alone in the Dark received critical acclaim upon its release, and is considered a breakthrough and influential title, as it was the first 3D survival horror game. In the years since its release, many commentators have dropped the 3D qualifier and asserted that Alone in the Dark was the first survival horror game regardless of graphical perspective. Among the accolades that followed its release, Alone in the Dark received the European Computer Trade Show awards for Best Graphics and Most Original Game in 1993. In 2009, Empire included Alone in the Dark on their list of 100 greatest video games of all time.

Alone in the Dark is considered a forefather, and often the originator, of the survival horror genre and it strongly influenced Shinji Mikami's direction of the original Resident Evil game, as well as the franchise as a whole. Alone in the Dark has also spawned four follow-up games as part of the series, as well as two films loosely based on them.

Source:  Wikipedia

LEGO is releasing an official set to build the Atari 2600.  Orders start on August 1st.  It looks very nice but it is definitely a pricey item.  Not surprising as most LEGO kits that are licensed are quite expensive.  You can learn more here:  LEGO Atari® 2600

[Tiger-Heli]

Tiger-Heli is a vertically scrolling shooter game developed by Toaplan and released for arcades in 1985. It was published in Japan by Taito and in North America by Romstar. Controlling the titular attack helicopter, the player must fight endless waves of military vehicles while avoiding collision with their projectiles and other obstacles. The Tiger-Heli has a powerful bomb at its disposal that can clear the screen of enemies when fired. It was the first shoot 'em up game from Toaplan, and their third video game overall.

Tiger-Heli was the creation of video game composers Masahiro Yuge and Tatsuya Uemura, who had previously worked on several titles for Japanese companies Orca and Crux before both of them declared bankruptcy. The development team drew inspiration from the arcade game Gyrodine. The team wanted to create a scrolling shooter that balanced between being entertaining and fun, and to have players keep wanting to play it after dying. The staff chose a helicopter as the player's craft as they felt it would work for a game that had the screen continuously scrolling. The soundtrack, composed by Uemura, was made to convey a sense of bravery, which was hampered by technical limitations.

Tiger-Heli was well received by critics for its gameplay, graphics and weapons, and helped establish Toaplan as a leading producer of shooting games throughout the 1980s and 1990s. It was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System by Micronics, a conversion that was commended for its accurate portrayal of the arcade original. The NES version sold over one million copies. A PlayStation version was released in 1996 by Banpresto as part of the compilation Toaplan Shooting Battle 1. It was followed by two sequels: Twin Cobra (1987), and Twin Cobra II (1995). The rights to Tiger-Heli are owned by Tatsujin, a Japanese developer formed by Yuge.

Gameplay

Tiger-Heli is a military-themed vertically scrolling shoot 'em up game, in which players take control of the titular attack helicopter through four increasingly difficult levels in order to defeat an assortment of military enemy forces like tanks, battleships, and artillery as the main objective. Besides some airplanes taking off, there are no flying enemies in the entire game. As far as vertical scrolling shooters go, the title initially appears to be very standard, as players control their craft over a constantly scrolling background and the scenery never stops moving until a helipad is reached. Players have only two weapons at their disposal: the standard shot that travels a max distance of half the screen's height and two bombs.

A unique gameplay feature is the bomb mechanic; unlike other games in the genre released at the time, the bombs are powerful weapons capable of obliterating any enemy caught within its blast radius. The bombs also act as a shield against incoming enemy fire, however, as they can be triggered after taking enemy hits as well. There are also three types of items scattered through every stage in total that appear as destructible flashing crosses: extra bomb stocks and two variations of helicopter "options" that attack at the player's will against incoming enemies, while is also possible to mix and match the two helicopter option types, totaling no more than two.[5][6] These items can be picked up by shooting their respective cross color but grabbing any item when not necessary yields bonus points.

The player are given three lives initially and bonus lives are awarded by reaching certain score thresholds or collecting ten gold diamonds in a row by shooting them. Firing on determined locations is also crucial for reaching high-scores to obtain extra lives, as certain setpieces in some stages hosts a bonus secret within their scenery. There are also hidden bonus secrets to be found as well. The game employs a checkpoint system in which a downed single player will start off at the beginning of the checkpoint they managed to reach before dying.[6] Getting hit by enemy fire will result in losing a live, as well as the helicopter options and once all lives are lost, the game is over unless the player inserts more credits into the arcade machine to continue playing. After completing the last stage, the game begins again with the second loop increasing in difficulty and enemies fire denser bullet patterns.

Source:  Wikipedia

From the creator of the Atari Archive, we now get the Intellivision Archive.  This is episode 1!

 Today's video details the creation of the Mattel Intellivision, the most advanced game console of 1979 and one of the (relatively) big competitors to Atari's VCS console in the early 1980s. We'll also look at the four games that were sold alongside the console at its test launch: Las Vegas Poker and Blackjack, Armor Battle, ABPA Backgammon, and Electric Company Math Fun.

[Rayman 2: The Great Escape]

Rayman 2: The Great Escape is a 1999 platform video game developed by Ubi Pictures and published by Ubi Soft for the Nintendo 64, Microsoft Windows, Sega Dreamcast and Sony PlayStation. An enhanced remake titled Rayman Revolution (Rayman 2: Revolution in North America) was developed by Ubi Soft Annecy for the PlayStation 2. An alternative remake known as Rayman 2 Forever was developed by Ubi Soft Milan for the Game Boy Color.

The game centers on the character Rayman, who is tasked with saving the fantastical land of the Fairy Glade from an army of robotic pirates led by Admiral Razorbeard.

Rayman 2 was critically acclaimed for its gameplay, graphics and accessibility.

Gameplay

The game is played from a third-person perspective and the player has control over the camera, though in some situations this control is limited to only certain angles. At several points in the game the player loses control during cut scenes, which typically show dialogue between characters.

By collecting lums (small bodies, or shards of magical energy), the player unlocks more information about the game world and its back story, which can be read by standing still and pressing a specific button for some time. Some back story is also obtained through (optional) instructions from Murfy, a "flying encyclopaedia" who provides explanations on all kinds of gameplay elements.

In contrast to its predecessor, which was a 2D platformer, Rayman 2 is a 3D platformer. The player navigates through a mostly linear sequence of levels, fighting enemy Robo-Pirates, solving puzzles and collecting lums. Collecting enough lums gains the player access to new parts of the world. Part of the lums are hidden in small cages, in which other freedom fighters or Teensies are imprisoned, and can be obtained by breaking the cages.

Rayman starts the game with minimal abilities, and he can gain more abilities as the game progresses. The main weapon available in the game is Rayman's fist, with which energy orbs can be shot. Eventually, the orbs can be charged before shooting them, making them more powerful. Rayman can also enter a strafing stance which allows him to easily aim orbs whilst avoiding enemy attacks. Rayman later gains the ability to swing over large gaps using Purple Lums. Rayman is also able to use his helicopter hair to slow his descent while jumping, with some segments later in the game allowing him to fly with his hair. There are also various items Rayman can use throughout the game, such as explosive barrels he can throw, giant plums he can ride on to carry him across dangerous surfaces, and rockets he must ride on to access new areas.

In addition to the main, story-based level sequence, there are also several levels in which the player can gain bonuses in a time trial. Additionally, by collecting all lums and breaking all cages in a level, the player unlocks a bonus level in which one of Globox's children races against a robot pirate. When the player controlling the child wins the race, Rayman gains health or a powerup.

Source:  Wikipedia

[Baby T-Rex]

Baby T-Rex is an action platforming video game developed by Beam Software for Game Boy. It was released in 1993 in Europe by Laser Beam Entertainment, Beam's publishing arm. It was also released (with altered graphics and story) as Agro Soar in Australia, as Bamse in Sweden, and as We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story in North America, where it was published by Hi Tech Expressions.

The following year Beam released a remake, Radical Rex, for Super NES, Sega Genesis and Sega CD.

Gameplay
In the original Baby T-Rex version of the game, players control an anthropomorphic skateboarding dinosaur, who must traverse various levels in order to save his girlfriend from the evil wizard Sethron. In the Agro Soar version of the game, players control Agro as he tries to escape a "pre-historic cartoon within his own TV" in which he is trapped by Sethron after he had insulted the wizard while watching the television show Curse of Sethron.

The Bamse version of the game sees Bamse, the world's strongest bear, and his rabbit friend Lille Skutt rescuing the inventor tortoise Skalman from the mischievous wolf Vargen after Skalman transports them to the age of the dinosaurs in a time machine he had built.

The We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story version of the game sees players control Rex, a Tyrannosaurus rex with enhanced intelligence who must rescue his three dinosaur friends Woog, Elsa and Dweeb from the film's villain Professor Screweyes.

Source:  Wikipedia

[Mega Man X3]

Mega Man X3 is a video game released by Capcom for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The game was originally released in Japan on December 1, 1995, and later in North American and PAL regions in 1996. It is the third game in the Mega Man X series and the last to appear on the SNES. Mega Man X3 takes place in a fictional future in which the world is populated by humans and intelligent robots called "Reploids". Like their human creators, some Reploids involve themselves in destructive crime and are labelled as "Mavericks". After twice defeating the Maverick leader Sigma, the heroes Mega Man X and Zero must battle a Reploid scientist named Dr. Doppler and his utopia of Maverick followers.

Mega Man X3 follows in the tradition of both the original Mega Man series and the Mega Man X series as a standard action-platform game. The player traverses a series of eight stages in any order while gaining various power-ups and taking the special weapon of each stage's end boss. Mega Man X3 is the first game in the series in which Zero is a playable character (albeit in limited form) in addition to X. Like its predecessor, Mega Man X2, X3 features the "Cx4" chip to allow for some limited 3D vector graphics and transparency effects.

A 32-bit version of Mega Man X3 was released on the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Windows in various countries. This version was included on the North American Mega Man X Collection in 2006. A 3DO Interactive Multiplayer version was planned, but was canceled due to the failure of the console.[7] The game was also ported to Japanese mobile phones in 2010. Critical reception for Mega Man X3 has been above average. However, the game, particularly the 32-bit version, has received miscellaneous criticism from reviewers for its lack of improvements to the series.

Capcom announced that the SNES version of Mega Man X3 would be coming to the Wii U Virtual Console in 2014.  It was released in North America on August 28, 2014, Japan on October 8, 2014, and the PAL regions on November 6, 2014.

Recently, the SNES version was released on the PC, as well as the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch as part of Mega Man X Legacy Collection (Rockman X Anniversary Collection in Japan) which released on July 24, 2018, worldwide and July 26, 2018, in Japan.

Source:  Wikipedia

[Solomon's Key]

Solomon's Key is a puzzle game developed by Tecmo in 1986 for an arcade release on custom hardware based on the Z80 chipset. It was ported to multiple systems including the Nintendo Entertainment System and Commodore 64. The PC Engine version was known as Zipang and the Game Boy version as Solomon's Club. A prequel, Solomon's Key 2, was released in 1992 for the NES.

Gameplay

The player, controlling a sorcerer known only as Dana must overcome unlimited enemy spawning, challenging level designs, a countdown timer, instant death from any physical contact with enemies, and limited ways to dispatch enemies.

Dana is sent to retrieve Solomon's Key to restore the world to light from demons that were accidentally released. The object of the game is to advance through the 50 rooms of "Constellation Space" by acquiring a key to the door that leads to the next room before a timer runs out. The game incorporates elements of the platform shooter genre. Dana can run, jump, create or destroy orange blocks adjacent to him as well as create fireballs to destroy demons. The orange blocks can also be destroyed by hitting them with the character's head twice. Along the way Dana can acquire items to upgrade his firepower and extra lives, as well as items that award bonus points and unlock hidden rooms. With certain items, Dana must make, then break blocks (sometimes in a certain manner) to make these appear.

In the NES version, a "GDV" (Game Deviation Value) score also appears at the game over screen. The score uses a weighted composite of several factors (like levels completed, items found, time and points) which gives the player a good idea of how well the last game was played. The higher the GDV, the better the game.

Solomon's Key has many hidden items and secret levels that are hard to find which enhances the reward for playing. The ending slightly changes depending on which secret levels, if any, the player finds and completes.

Source:  Wikipedia

The Gaming Historian brings a documentary on the making of Super Mario World, the launch of the Super Nintendo, and how the game perfected the concepts of the Super Mario series...

A Crush of Lucifer is a new game available for the Vectrex. Comes complete with box, manual, overlay and a limited edition A Cursh of Lucifer Vectrex magnet. This original, previously unknown, GCE-programmed game surfaced in 2020 after being lost for nearly forty years. It is almost certainly the last official GCE title ever made!

You can purchase the game here:  Vectrex A Crush of Lucifer

[MechWarrior]

MechWarrior is the second video game released in the BattleTech game series. MechWarrior was the first video game to offer the player a chance to pilot a BattleMech from the view of a pilot (a MechWarrior). With this game the player has a great deal of freedom when compared to many of the follow-up MechWarrior games, which include choosing missions, buying & selling mechs and parts, hiring lance-mates, and traveling throughout the Inner Sphere. Underneath the major game mechanics, the player had the option of following a role playing style story arc that would unfold over five in-game years.

The game was ported to the Japanese Sharp X68000 and PC-98 home computers in 1992 and 1993 under the name Battletech: Ubawareta Seihai.

Source:  Wikipedia