The Pop-Culture E-Zine
I was stunned to find that this “How To Pick The Perfect Video Game” flowchart was created by Mike Brunson of online gaming company, Silver Oak Casino.
Mike has plotted a decision tree with modern and retro video games covering most genres. Go through the flow and find out which game you end up on.
Click on the image to see the full flowchart
Are you one to count all the money you spend on your hobby? Are you in it for the enjoyment the hobby provides or the money it may make?
Hardcore collectors seek to procure ‘Complete In Box’ items as a hobby, with a view that the item will appreciate in capital value due to its condition and desirability amongst other collectors or retro gamers. I personally buy gear to play with, not to have it sit in a box and gather dust.
By definition, hobbies don’t need to generate money. For that reason, I never keep track of how much I spend on retro gaming – It would probably freak me out! I also have a very understanding partner and she encourages me to embrace and enjoy my chosen hobby.
With finite disposable income, we have to pick and choose what we can afford and what we will leave for those more affluent. I do get emotional sometimes over certain ‘hard to get’ items and push myself beyond set limits, but luckily this seldom happens.
I judge the worth of the items I buy according to the nostalgia and enjoyment they bring, not by their monetary value. Heck, sometimes it is just the thrill of the chase that brings me joy – even if I leave empty handed. I do not have regrets about any items I have procured over the last 30 years. I just wish I had kept most of the gaming gear I had as a kid, but I’m sure that could be said for most of us, and there is no point crying over spilt milk.
With the intoxicating allure of nostalgia, we embark on replaying games we enjoyed as children. We like to recapture that exhilarating feeling when whacking that chunk of plastic into our favourite console(s). For that reason, the joy of playing old video games will always be priceless to me.
I am often asked to list my favourite games for different systems. Such queries have led to the creation of my “Ten Of The Best Games” series.
The first cab off the rank is NEC’s PC-Engine. I am sure there will be an uproar about certain games being left off the list, but hey, that is the beauty of gaming, we all have our own tastes.
Here are the ten best games to play on the PC-Engine (TurboGrafx-16):
 |
Title: Bomberman’93 AKA: – Genre: Action Rating: 91% |
 |
Title: PC Genjin AKA: PC Kid / Bonk’s Adventure Genre: Platform Rating: 90% |
 |
Title: R-Type AKA: – Genre: Shoot’em up Rating: 93% |
 |
Title: New Adventure Island AKA: Genre: Platform Rating: 93% |
 |
Title: Battle Lode Runner AKA: – Genre: Puzzle Rating: 89% |
 |
Title: Devil Crash AKA: Devil’s Crush Genre: Pinball Rating: 93% |
 |
Title: Galaga ’88 AKA: Galaga ’90 Genre: Shoot’em up Rating: 90% |
 |
Title: Kyukyoku Tiger AKA: Ultimate Tiger/Twin Cobra/Tiger Heli Genre: Shoot’em up Rating: 91% |
 |
Title: Super Star Soldier AKA: – Genre: Shoot’em up Rating: 90% |
 |
Title: Don Doko Don AKA: – Genre: Platform Rating: 90% |
Notable mentions that would make any top PC-Engine games list:
| ° Gomola Speed | ° Street Fighter II: Champion Edition |
| ° Splatterhouse | ° Bloody Wolf |
| ° Dungeon Explorer | ° KLAX |
| ° The Legend of Hero Tonma | ° Legend Of Valkyrie |
| ° Lode Runner | ° Momotaro Katsugeki (aka: Peachboy) |
| ° Out Run | ° Parasol Stars |
| ° Parodius | ° 1943 KAI |
| ° Raiden | ° Shinobi |
| ° Soldier Blade | ° Space Harrier |
| ° Ninja Spirit | ° Ys Book I & II [CD] |
| ° Dracula-X: Rondo Of Blood [CD] | ° Seirei Senshi Sprigan [CD] |
When the temperature soars outside, there is only one thing to do – turn on the air-conditioner and grab a video game that will keep you cool and simulate that summer experience.
Australian Retro Gamer digs deep into the old video games library and pulls out five titles perfect for some summer gaming delight.
Wave Race 64 [N64]
Grab your jet-ski and hit the waves. This early N64 title has realistic water effects and an array of differing environments and courses that will keep your heart racing. Play on your own or call a friend over, you will have an absolute ball. Bonsai!
California Games [Lynx]
When you think of California, you think of sun, surf and lots of obscure sports, right? California Games on the Atari Lynx brings four events which will have you playing till the batteries run out. Connect the Lynx to a power outlet and have some fun in the sun.
Virtua Tennis [Dreamcast]
With all the Grand Slams being in summer, it is perfectly natural to pull out your Dreamcast and start playing Virtua Tennis – the best tennis video game ever, period! Practice makes perfect, and the mini games are equally entertaining as blasting your opponent on clay, grass or even hard courts.
Summer Games II [C64]
No summer games list can be complete without Epyx’s seminal favourite. From the triple jump to the cycling event, grab seven of your mates, a sturdy joystick and have some fun! Make sure you watch the closing ceremony fireworks – a perfect touch to a perfect game.
Out Run [PC-Engine]
Jump in your red Ferarri, crank up the stereo, swing past your girlfriend’s place and hit the road. Feel the wind in your hair as you race down the highway to make it to the next checkpoint. Make sure you enjoy those cool and refreshing tunes along the way.
Well, there you have it. These are just a few video games to keep you cool this summer. Which video games will you play?
March 1996 saw the release of the brilliant Coen brothers movie, Fargo. In the same month, we were bopping away to Take That’s “How deep is your love” (we did?!) and the Prodigy’s “Firestarter” (that’s more like it!).
The Sega Mega Drive and Saturn were embroiled in their own 16-bit vs 32-bit war, while Nintendo’s SNES was being stretched to it’s maximum capability.
These were the top games that had us glued to our consoles in March 1996:
 |
1) Donkey Kong Country 2 (Nintendo) |
| 2) Yoshi’s Island (Nintendo) | |
| 3) Killer Instinct (Nintendo) | |
| 4) FIFA Soccer ’96 (EA) | |
| 5) Street Racer (Ubisoft) |
 |
1) FIFA Soccer ’96 (EA) |
| 2) Premier Manager (Sega) | |
| 3) Sonic & Knuckles (Sega) | |
| 4) Micro Machines ’96 (Codemasters) | |
| 5) Mickey Mania (Sony) |
 |
1) Virtua Fighter 2 (Sega) |
| 2) FIFA Soccer ’96 | |
| 3) Firestorm: Thunderhawk 2 (Core Design) | |
| 4) Virtua Cop (Sega) | |
| 5) Daytona USA (Sega) |
For my next haircut, I am visiting Ruben and Bobby’s hair salon in Denmark. Not only will I get a stylish haircut, but I can enjoy their shrine to retro gaming and vintage toys! Hit play and let the nostalgia wash over you.
Video Source: Copenhagers
Image Source: Ruben og Bobby
Back in May 1987, Mannequin was released and Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” was rocketing to number one on the music charts. On the video games front, the Spectrum, C64 and Atari XE/XL computers were lavished with quite a few awesome games.
These were the top five games on each platform for the month of May 1987:
 |
1) Park Patrol (Firebird) |
| 2) BMX Simulator (Codemasters) | |
| 3) Gunship (Microprose) | |
| 4) LA SWAT (Mastertronic) | |
| 5) Micro Rhythm (Firebird) |
 |
1) Leaderboard (US Gold) |
| 2) Bomb Jack II (Elite) | |
| 3) Paperboy (Elite) | |
| 4) Olli and Lissa (Firebird) | |
| 5) Gauntlet (US Gold) |
 |
1) BMX Simulator (Codemasters) |
| 2) Colony (Bulldog) | |
| 3) Green Beret (Imagine) | |
| 4) Gun Law (Mastertronic) | |
| 5) Silent Service (Microprose) |
Back in 2012, a musical and cultural festival was held in Manchester – SuperByte 2012. This event had all day micromusic (chiptunes) and retro gaming aplenty. The festival turned out to be the largest of its kind in the UK and attracted visitors from all over Great Britain and mainland Europe.
For 2013, SuperByte is back and bigger than ever! From 13 to 14 September 2013, the UK and international chiptune community will descend on Jabez Clegg in Manchester for two days of live music, visual arts, retro gaming and heaps more. SuperByte 2013 is going to be huge!
Get your SuperByte 2013 tickets now.
Event: SuperByte 2013 Festival
When: September 13 – 14 2013
Where: Jabez Clegg, Manchester
While Madonna’s “Into the groove” was rocking the number one spot on the music charts in August 1985, there were some awesomely great games in the charts of that month for the C64, Spectrum and Amstrad. Here is a hit of nostalgia:
 |
1) The Way Of The Exploding Fist (Melbourne House) |
| 2) Elite (Firebird) | |
| 3) Hyper Sports (Imagine) | |
| 4) Frankie Goes To Hollywood (Ocean) | |
| 5) Tour De France (Activision) |
 |
1) Dun Darach (Gargoyle Games) |
| 2) Beach Head (US Gold) | |
| 3) Red Moon (Level 9) | |
| 4) Alien 8 (Ultimate) | |
| 5) Knightlore (Ultimate) |
| |
1) Frank Bruno’s Boxing (Elite) |
| 2) Hyper Sports (Imagine) | |
| 3) Jet Set Willy 2 (Software Projects) | |
| 4) Spy Vs Spy (Beyond) | |
| 5) Glass (Quicksilva) |
Format: Atari Jaguar
Release Date: April 13, 1994
Publisher: Atari
Developer: Llamasoft (Jeff Minter)
It has been a long time coming. Nineteen years to be exact. It took us nineteen years to finally take Jeff Minter’s game for a proper review spin.
Tempest 2000, the beefed-up remake of Dave Theurer’s 1981 arcade classic, was Atari’s killer game that helped it shift lots of Jaguar consoles upon its release in 1994. This game was never going to be a straight ‘pretty up’ by Jeff Minter. The great Yak added his usual quirkiness to this seminal favourite. What he produced was nigh on perfection.
You may ask, what is so damn good about Tempest 2000. Well, if you are patient for one second, we will let you know. Yak (Jeff Minter) took a first generation arcade game and injected crisp 3D polygon graphics, an awesome techno soundtrack and oodles of new enemy types and obstacles.
Don’t think that Tempest 2000 is just an audio visual enhancement to the original – Yak also added 100 varying webs (levels), new opponents, collectable power-ups like the particle-blaster/laser, jumps, and A.I. Droids who destroy anything that gets too close. Thrown in this awesome gaming mix was the new “Melt-O-Vision” transition effect – very psychedelic (very Jeff Minter) indeed. Add the different types of play options – two-player cooperative and competitive play modes, and you got yourself one awesomely gorgeous masterpiece.
No game, no matter how great it looks and sounds, is complete without a complimentary control system. There is only one way to play Tempest 2000, and that is with a rotary controller. You could use the standard Atari pad, but it just doesn’t do the game justice. The rotary control enhances the enjoyment of the game and it definitely helps in achieving those lucrative high scores.
Tempest 2000 is a an incredibly great title which was released on an incredibly obscure system. This game is the jewel in the Jaguar’s crown. If you haven’t played it, you are missing out big time!
| Graphics | Superbly crisp 3D polygons that only the Yak can produce. Yes, the Jaguar can handle it. |
90% |
| Sound | A perfect techno soundtrack. Light-synthesizer tunes throughout with very meaty sound effects. It is an awesome aural pleasure. Make sure you turn up the volume! |
95% |
| Playability | Getting into the game is quiet easy – spin around on the web and blast away the approaching enemies. To truly experience this game you must play it with a rotary controller. |
90% |
| Lastability | Considering there are 100 levels to complete, this game will last forever. |
91% |
| Overall | Jeff Minter can seriously do no wrong. The Yak knows how to produce brilliant games, and this one is no exception. Even Dave Theurer approves of it (Ed: we made that up)! Get it and play hard. |
91% |