Latest Haul: R.C. Pro-Am, Nightshade, Landstalker
June 24, 2007 by Tim · Leave a Comment
I said it in The Snatcher Mission, and I’ll say it again. Even though I’ve given myself the task of reviewing each and every one of my old games, I’m going to buy more — I can’t help it! Do I have a problem, or do I have a hobby? I think of it as a hobby, since so much of the fun comes from learning about an old game I may have never heard of in its heyday. It’s enjoyable, satisfying, and now that I’m running this site, it’s also somewhat productive!
And so, with three games now covered in The Retro Review Project, I’ve added three more to the queue. (D’oh.) Here’s my latest haul:
- R.C. Pro-Am (NES): Add this to the list of “NES games I should have owned a long time ago.” I played this game with friends a lot and have very fond memories of it. I need to flesh out my NES collection, and this is a step in the right direction. $6.99, cart-only.
- Nightshade (NES): GameSetWatch had an absolutely wonderful write-up of this game yesterday, and after reading through it, I really wanted to try it out. It’s from the same people that made the excellent Shadowrun for the SNES, so it’s part of a good lineage. I decided I didn’t want to mess with the hassle of eBay, though. So imagine my surprise when I saw it today at a brick and mortar! I couldn’t pass it up. $2.99, cart-only.
- Landstalker (Genesis): The thing I love about the game store I shop at is that they have a whole bin of Genesis games at two bucks a pop. It’s mostly a bunch of outdated sports games, but each time I go in, there are one or two gems in the pile. This time, it was Landstalker. I’m a big fan of its spiritual sequel for the Saturn, Dark Savior, so I’ve been meaning to play this one for some time. Now’s my chance! $1.99, cart-only.
The Snatcher Mission
June 21, 2007 by Tim · 4 Comments
While the main purpose of this site is to give me a forum to review the games I’ve already collected and played over the years, I can’t quite stop myself there. I can’t avoid the fact that I’m going to buy more games. That’s just the way it is for me! But sometimes a game deserves a little more attention than “Oh hey, I picked this game up cheap, it’s pretty cool, give it a look.” If that’s the case, then I want to properly document my experience with it. So every once in a while, I will embark on a mission… The first one begins now.
The Snatcher Mission:
I know, virtually for a fact, that I will like Snatcher. First of all, it’s an adventure game. Second of all, it has a gorgeous 2D graphical style. Third of all, it’s not only for a retro system, but a failed retro system. What can I say? I have a serious soft spot for failed retro systems. Oh yeah, and it has cyber-punk themes. And it’s created by Hideo Kojima! (I think I need a longer list…)
So if I know I’d love the game, why haven’t I played it? It’s been a matter of access, really. Sure, I could download the game and play it on an emulator, but that wouldn’t be doing it justice. I want to play the real thing. And therein lies the problem.
You see, back in the 16-bit days, I was an SNES fan. All my friends had the Genesis, but I decided to buck the trend and go the Nintendo route. That means I got to play fantastic games like a plethora of wonderful Mario games (World, Kart, RPG), Chrono Trigger, Zelda, StarFox, Tetris Attack, and plenty more. But it also means I picked up on the Genesis extremely late in the game. So the only Genesis I have is a Genesis 3. Which is incompatible with the Sega CD. And Snatcher is a Sega CD game. And on top of that, it’s best played with the Justifier light gun. Beginning to understand where I’m coming from?
So my mission is clear. I want to play Snatcher, but in order to do so, I must first obtain the necessary setup. These are the objectives:
- Purchase a model 1 or model 2 Sega Genesis
- Purchase a model 1 or model 2 Sega CD
- Purchase a Justifier light gun
- Purchase a copy of Snatcher
- Play and review the above
Objectives #1 and #2 may be combined in the form of a JVC X’Eye or CDX. I’m tempted to go with a Japanese X’Eye (a Wondermega) because it has S-video and stereo output, but then I would have to region mod it. Then again, I could get S-video and stereo mods on a domestic X’Eye and be in similar shape. Obviously, I have some research to do and decisions to make.
Maybe I’m a geek, but I’m already finding the process of researching these parts fun and interesting. Hopefully, by documenting and sharing what I learn, you will, too. Stick around!
New “classic” games for 3DO, C64, Saturn, and more
June 14, 2007 by Tim · Leave a Comment
Nothing warms my heart quite like seeing old game consoles get new releases. There’s just something uplifting about knowing there are other people out there that remember and are recapturing the same good times I had with my old games. Plus, it’s just plain fun to finally see “what almost was” back in the day.
With all that said, I’m happy to say that OlderGames.com has blown away the (admittedly small) 3DO community with the announcement that they’re not releasing just one, but four new games! And not only that, but they’re releasing new Saturn content, a new Commodore 64 game, a new classic PC game, and a DVD of classic game commercials, too! Here’s the list:
3DO: Icebreaker 2, Decathlon, Onside Soccer, Powerslide
Commodore 64: Silo 64
Saturn: Lost & Found 2
PC: Pathquest
DVD: Video Game Archives
They’re now accepting pre-orders and will officially release the games at the Classic Gaming Expo in Las Vegas on July 28-29. Check out their announcement for more details.
It looks like Icebreaker 2 will really be the gem of the bunch. It’s essentially a complete game that has sat, unpublished, for about 13 years! The game’s creator gives a great demonstration of it in the video below:
Update: OlderGames has now posted trailers for Powerslide, Decathlon, and Onside Soccer.
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