So I played APB. With the crash of '83, and the rise of Nintendo, less and less kids felt the need to go to their local Arcade. So how do you lure children into dingy, dimly lit buildings? You offer them what a console can't. That's why we're seeing a rise in racing games. This being yet another one, and honestly, not a very good one.
You play as a cop and your goal is to drive bad guys off the road. But if you ram into things without your siren on, you get demerits, get too many demerits and you're fired. The problem I had with this game was there's just WAY too much going on. You have to keep track of your gas, your speed, whether or not you have your siren on, the other cars, you have to keep after them and every little bump in the road will kill you. Not to mention the graphics, while fluid, are about a generation behind. It's just... Not fun. I think it would have benefited greatly by being a more linear game like Spy Hunter. Just really disappointed me.
Next up: Dungeon Master
Saturday, February 11, 2017
#0134 NetHack
Today I played NetHack, an interesting game in that it ran perfectly on my computer without any emulators or anything. Want to know why that is? Because this version was released in on December 7, 2015. That's right. This is completely open source and has been regurlarly updated since 1987, 30 years ago. You can find it here and play right now if you like.
But how's the game itself? It's fine. Remember my Rogue review? Yeah, it's Rogue. It's not a Rogue-Like that seem to be all the rage these days, it's like Rogue2. In that it has the same concept of looking for treasure in a maze that you discover as you play, and every game you play is different, same ASCII layout, the only difference is that they upped the RPG elements and rebalanced the game to be more user friendly. There's not much more choice on who you can be and what you can do. It's a legitimately good game. Just didn't quite grip me as some other games did.
next up: A.P.B.
But how's the game itself? It's fine. Remember my Rogue review? Yeah, it's Rogue. It's not a Rogue-Like that seem to be all the rage these days, it's like Rogue2. In that it has the same concept of looking for treasure in a maze that you discover as you play, and every game you play is different, same ASCII layout, the only difference is that they upped the RPG elements and rebalanced the game to be more user friendly. There's not much more choice on who you can be and what you can do. It's a legitimately good game. Just didn't quite grip me as some other games did.
next up: A.P.B.
Sunday, February 5, 2017
#0133 Blasteroids
It's kinda weird to think that games that came out before I was born were actually remakes of games that came out even earlier. That said, I'm liking these remakes.
It started with Arkanoid, which while TECHNICALLY it wasn't a remake of Breakout, we all totally know it's a remake of breakout. But today we're reviewing Blasteroids. It's pretty dang good.
You might recall from my previous review of Asteroids, that I wasn't really impressed with Asteroids. I didn't find it challenging and compared to what was offered at the time, I just kinda prefered Space Invaders. Which is controvercial I know, but it's safe to say that, I really enjoyed this game. You can always tell how enjoyable a game is by how fast you put your next quarter in. This game sank like six quarters before I was willing to let it go. It gripped me pretty hard. The biggest imporovement over the original is the amount of flexibity you have. You can morph between three different ships which all have their advantages and weaknesses. As well as powerups that allow you to fire mulitple shots and such. The graphics look pretty legit as well. Like, on the higher end of 16 bit. This is what SNES games looked like in 1995.
Overall, the game was fun. It's one of the few remakes in gaming that I honestly believe can actually replace the orignal.
Next up: NetHack
It started with Arkanoid, which while TECHNICALLY it wasn't a remake of Breakout, we all totally know it's a remake of breakout. But today we're reviewing Blasteroids. It's pretty dang good.
You might recall from my previous review of Asteroids, that I wasn't really impressed with Asteroids. I didn't find it challenging and compared to what was offered at the time, I just kinda prefered Space Invaders. Which is controvercial I know, but it's safe to say that, I really enjoyed this game. You can always tell how enjoyable a game is by how fast you put your next quarter in. This game sank like six quarters before I was willing to let it go. It gripped me pretty hard. The biggest imporovement over the original is the amount of flexibity you have. You can morph between three different ships which all have their advantages and weaknesses. As well as powerups that allow you to fire mulitple shots and such. The graphics look pretty legit as well. Like, on the higher end of 16 bit. This is what SNES games looked like in 1995.
Overall, the game was fun. It's one of the few remakes in gaming that I honestly believe can actually replace the orignal.
Next up: NetHack
#0132 Super Hang-On
Fun fact about me. I'm actually a pretty big fan of racing games. Specifically realistic simulation type games like Gran Turismo. They were one of my first foreys into games not made on Nintendo Systems. But I also like arcade style racing games so today we start off 1987 with one of my favorite racing games yet Super Hang-On.
This is a motorcycle racing game made by Sega. It's fast, the controls are responsive, the handling feels tight, overall, a pretty solid racing game except for one crucial detail. It's hard. Brutally hard really. I'm a seasoned racing gamer, and I had a hard time making it past just the second checkpoint in the first, easiest level. You really gotta lay on that boot button to get anywhere close and if you whipe out, you might as well throw in the towel, you're not going to make it. It could really be more forgiving in that aspect. But for what it was, I had a lot of fun.
Next up: Blasteroids.
This is a motorcycle racing game made by Sega. It's fast, the controls are responsive, the handling feels tight, overall, a pretty solid racing game except for one crucial detail. It's hard. Brutally hard really. I'm a seasoned racing gamer, and I had a hard time making it past just the second checkpoint in the first, easiest level. You really gotta lay on that boot button to get anywhere close and if you whipe out, you might as well throw in the towel, you're not going to make it. It could really be more forgiving in that aspect. But for what it was, I had a lot of fun.
Next up: Blasteroids.
Saturday, February 4, 2017
#0131 World Games
World games is yet another Olympics style sports game. This time with the theme of games from around the world. Each game is unique in that it originated in the country its set in. Very clever idea. But it's still a sports game and still a game I just can't get into. But if it means anything, I enjoyed this better than the last Summer Games. Plus I got to play it on the Amiga, and the Amiga looks gorgeous.
And that finishes up 1986! That means we get to decide Game of the Year 1986 and the winner of this is obviously:
Legend of Zelda.
Was there really any contest? Well, because that game is so obviously first contender for Game of the Year, let's look at other games that came out that year who could be considered Runners up:
Alter Ego: An RPG who's decisions early on shape your character. It's basically like a giant word tree, but it was incredibly fun.
Darius: The Most amazing looking game I've played on this list to date. I haven't been blown away by graphics like this since Galaxian, the first game in RGB color.
Kid Icarus: It's like a more linear Zelda game that really caught me off guard.
Dragon Quest: If it hadn't been for zelda, this game would have won. It may not be as original, but You could argue that it was even MORE influential than even Zelda. Zelda was just more fun to play though.
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels: What can I say? It's more Mario, what more could you want?
Up next: Super Hang On
And that finishes up 1986! That means we get to decide Game of the Year 1986 and the winner of this is obviously:
Legend of Zelda.
Was there really any contest? Well, because that game is so obviously first contender for Game of the Year, let's look at other games that came out that year who could be considered Runners up:
Alter Ego: An RPG who's decisions early on shape your character. It's basically like a giant word tree, but it was incredibly fun.
Darius: The Most amazing looking game I've played on this list to date. I haven't been blown away by graphics like this since Galaxian, the first game in RGB color.
Kid Icarus: It's like a more linear Zelda game that really caught me off guard.
Dragon Quest: If it hadn't been for zelda, this game would have won. It may not be as original, but You could argue that it was even MORE influential than even Zelda. Zelda was just more fun to play though.
Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels: What can I say? It's more Mario, what more could you want?
Up next: Super Hang On
#0130 The Legend of Zelda
Hell, fucking, yeah. This game is the shit. It was named Game Informer's #1 game of all time for a reason, this game kicked some serious ass.
For like the two of you who don't know, in Legend of Zelda you play as Link, your goal is to find the 8 Triforce pieces and save the kingdom of Hyrule from the evil Gannon. To do this you must explore the land of Hyrule, searching for dungeons that the pieces of the Triforce are hidden while collecting treasures and weapons to help you along the way.
This game has a sense of exploration like was never seen before in games. There were SO many secrets just waiting for you to find. With a map as big as Hyrule's, you'd think that getting from one place to another would be tedious, but no, getting to and finding the levels is half the fun. Each screen looks completely different from the others and it's one of those rare games where if you play it for long enough you start to feel comfortable, and start to get a sense of direction and feel almost at home in this place.
There's a sense of discovery in this game like nothing that had come before it. You could have just as much fun just being in the land of Hyrule, exploring caves, and burning bushes to find little secrets as you could actually playing the game. It was something so totally unique for its time and I can honestly see why it was regarded so highly.
That's not to say its perfect, it's far from perfect. It's extremely dated to the point where (like the original Metroid, not on this list) the simple inclusion of a map VASTLY improves the game experience. I played it with this map and had one HECK of a time exploring. I was able to obtain several heart containers, a couple different weapons, the Power Ring and the White Sword all before my first dungeon. However, if you DON'T have such a map handy, this game can be incredbily frustrating. It takes you a while to get powerful enough to really move through the land of Hyrule with any degree of confidence and just FINDING the first level can be a real pain in the butt. not to mention the fact that the game is so open, that you can almost do the levels in reverse order. When I played the game when I was a kid I didn't have a map, I just entered any ol' dungeon I could find and would get my butt kicked because it was one of the last levels. I had fun exploring, and any screts I did find on accident, were all the more exciting because I found it on my own.
So yeah, it's not a perfect game. But if you're looking for the Classic Zelda Adventure experience, you'll find it here okay. It's not as good as say A Link to the Past, but it still hold up. I'd just make sure to have a good world map handy. Give it a play, see what you think.
Next up: World Games
For like the two of you who don't know, in Legend of Zelda you play as Link, your goal is to find the 8 Triforce pieces and save the kingdom of Hyrule from the evil Gannon. To do this you must explore the land of Hyrule, searching for dungeons that the pieces of the Triforce are hidden while collecting treasures and weapons to help you along the way.
This game has a sense of exploration like was never seen before in games. There were SO many secrets just waiting for you to find. With a map as big as Hyrule's, you'd think that getting from one place to another would be tedious, but no, getting to and finding the levels is half the fun. Each screen looks completely different from the others and it's one of those rare games where if you play it for long enough you start to feel comfortable, and start to get a sense of direction and feel almost at home in this place.
There's a sense of discovery in this game like nothing that had come before it. You could have just as much fun just being in the land of Hyrule, exploring caves, and burning bushes to find little secrets as you could actually playing the game. It was something so totally unique for its time and I can honestly see why it was regarded so highly.
That's not to say its perfect, it's far from perfect. It's extremely dated to the point where (like the original Metroid, not on this list) the simple inclusion of a map VASTLY improves the game experience. I played it with this map and had one HECK of a time exploring. I was able to obtain several heart containers, a couple different weapons, the Power Ring and the White Sword all before my first dungeon. However, if you DON'T have such a map handy, this game can be incredbily frustrating. It takes you a while to get powerful enough to really move through the land of Hyrule with any degree of confidence and just FINDING the first level can be a real pain in the butt. not to mention the fact that the game is so open, that you can almost do the levels in reverse order. When I played the game when I was a kid I didn't have a map, I just entered any ol' dungeon I could find and would get my butt kicked because it was one of the last levels. I had fun exploring, and any screts I did find on accident, were all the more exciting because I found it on my own.
So yeah, it's not a perfect game. But if you're looking for the Classic Zelda Adventure experience, you'll find it here okay. It's not as good as say A Link to the Past, but it still hold up. I'd just make sure to have a good world map handy. Give it a play, see what you think.
Next up: World Games
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