MONTHLY 5 - June 2025

It's that time again! Time for some new-old games to be rediscovered. Following on from last month is the Amiga exclusive dungeon-crawling sequel Abandoned Places 2 (1993 Francis Staengler & Steve Fabian & ICE Ltd). If you're an action gamer, try out the high-octane chopper sim Extreme Assault (1997 Blue Byte Software) or the interesting arcade shooter Jump Raven (1994 CyberFlix, Inc). For a more thoughtful time, the extremely underrated sci-fi cinematic platformer onEscapee (1997-2004 Invictus Team) is now playable in both Amiga and Windows form while the fantastical first-person adventure Zelenhgorm: Episode 1 - Land of the Blue Moon (2002 Moloto Productions AB) scratches that point-and-click itch with some impressive FMV to boot. It just wins out as my pick of the month, but many of the others come close. What better way to spend your time during a heat wave. Head on over after the jump to check them out for yourself.

Beyond these new additions, I've also updated a bunch of other games. The PlayStation classic Echo Night has been overhauled through an updated emulator with re-mapped modernised controls and the option to play with super cool widescreen and graphical improvement patches. While the old DOS-based Fable remains, the new addition of a native Windows release brings some great improvements, not least the ability to play the US or European version complete with their vastly different endings. Lastly, NET:Zone got hit with a much needed save-game fix. If you already have version 1, read the comments on the game page to save a re-download and fix it yourself.

I'll see you next month for a barrage of new bangers.

MONTHLY 5 - April 2025

April was a busy month. Between the Easter holidays, personal moments and a cornucopia of birthdays, the only real celebration of note the fact that I turned another year older! As did the Collection Chamber itself the month before (it's 10-year anniversary flew by unnoticed in March). So, to mark our aging selves I put my mark on a bunch of aging games from my genre of choice; the point-and-click adventure!

My personal pick of the month is a surreal and thought-provoking dive into the afterlife with Next Life (2007 Future Games) from the Czech team behind The Black Mirror and Alter Ego. With it's ancient Aztec mythology and out-there B-movie plot, The Crystal Skull (1996 SOME Interactive & Maxis, Inc) comes in at a close second.

Free D.C! (1991 Cineplay Interactive) is an early attempt to use claymation in its art style to tell a pulpy tale of a dystopian future where the world has been taken over by robot overlords America's capital has been turned into a human zoo for their amusement. It's from a team of ex-Cinemaware developers (Defenders of the Crown) so expect great graphics for its time. Private Eye: Philip Marlowe (1996 Byron Preiss Multimedia Company, Inc) also has a unique art-style with high-contrast animations to retell the classic Raymond Chandler noir novel The Little Sister as a deceptively complex interactive movie. Lastly, there's an educational adventure for younger players called Rumpelstiltskin's Labyrinth of the Lost (1995 TerraGlyph Interactive, Inc).

Just the one update this month. Disney's Animated Storybook: Hercules has been brushed up with the addition of a scanned PDF manual and a migration from DOSBox to DOSBox-X. See the game page for more info.

And for the rest of this month's adventures, click that little "Read more »" button you can see just below this sentence. Adventure awaits...

CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN - DAY 10

 
There's a cash prize for today's game. One Million Dollars! Or at least there would be had you solved the insanely cryptic riddles of Treasure Quest (1996 Sirius Publishing, Inc) back when it released. Starring Terry Farrell of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine fame, it has quite the fascinating history for a weird multimedia CD-ROM adventure.

Only two days to go, so come Christmas Eve, expect major boobage.

MONTHLY 5 - June 2024

So, the end of June is here, meaning that half of 2024 has passed by! And with that, the Collection Chamber has set free a further five prisoners  filled with fun times.

My pick of the bunch hails from Sweden; The Mystery at Greveholm (1997 Young Genius) a spooky first-person adventure for all ages based on a TV show beloved by all Swedes of a certain age. Beyond this, we have the next entry in Don Bluth's edutainment series with All Dogs Go to Heaven 2: Animated MovieBook (1996 MGM Animation, Inc & Sound Source Interactive). Instead of watching the fourth movie in cinemas, reenact the second in Bad Boys II; Miami Takedown (2004 Blitz Games Ltd, Empire Interactive Europe Ltd & Columbia Pictures). Join the rebel force against a conquering alien race in the FMV-heavy action-packed The Raven Project (1995 Cryo Interactive) before heading back down to earth with the high-speed XCar: Experimental Racing (1997 Bethesda Softworks).

That's all for now! I'll see you next time for some more retro goodness.

CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN - DAY 8

Twitter followers got a sneak peak for today's featured game thanks to a mis-scheduled post, but now that it's Day 8 of the Collection Chamber Christmas Countdown, you can finally play it! The days have crept up quickly, so hide away from the stresses of the season by entering the World Wide Wed... literally. Or, to be more accurate, virtually. Unravel a conspiracy with NET:Zone (1996 Compro Games) an internet savvy FMV adventure. The rabbit hole goes deep with this one!

MONTHLY 5 - NOVEMBER 2023

December is nearly upon us, but before we commence our countdown to the festive season, let's gander at an eclectic quintet of PC gaming perfection* from the past.

First up for November is Beyond Time (1997 DreamCatcher Interactive, Inc), a time-travelling ancient Egypt-set first-person adventure that dabbles in everyone's favourite* presentation style; FMV. For more trips throughout history, why not try Excalibur 2555 A.D. (1997 Telstar Electronic Studios), that sees Merlin's granddaughter travel to the future to do some exciting* actioning along with that adventuring. If you want some full-on guns-blasting action, take a look at Machine Hunter (1997 Eurocom Developments), a fantastically* frenetic top-down shooter that rises up to become my pick of the month. If all the bloodshed is not to your liking, try the ever-tranquil* SimSafari: Step into the African Savannah! (1996 Maxis, Inc), that takes the tried and true SimNoun template into a safari park. Lastly, navigate a cute little tank across vast landscapes in Wild Metal Country (1999 DMA Design / Rockstar Games), an overlooked gem* from the folks behind Grand Theft Auto. Despite my tongue-in-cheek asterisks, all of them are worth a try so check out my reviews to find out more.

Sadly, no updates I'm afraid, but I did catch up on some of the missing written reviews from the last couple of months. Check out my thoughts on Weird and SimIsle and let me know yours in the comments. I'm currently neck deep in preparing for the annual Christmas Countdown that will commence 14th December - that's 12 days straight of gaming goodness just for you lovely folk! On that note, I must crack on with it. Until then, head on after the jump and enjoy!

* Your definition of what's considered this may vary drastically...

MONTHLY 5 - SEPTEMBER 2023

So, it appears my Facebook (Meta?) has been hacked so if you are used to visiting my humble corner of the internet from there, that's why I haven't posted an update. So far, it looks like they've changed nothing beyond my admin status, username and password but it's probably wise not to trust links from there for a while until I claw back control from some arsehole in Dehli, India. I should probably take this as a sign to keep on top of my other social media accounts like Twitter (X?) and Instagram (Instagram?) which I've very much neglected over the years.

By technical troubles coming from Dehli, India haven't stopped me from putting forth five newly added games to the chamber (although, as is unfortunately becomming the norm, some of the reviews aren't up yet). Pick of the month is the sequel to Magic & Mayhem called The Art of Magic (2001 Virgin Interactive Entertainment). It continues the same strategy/RPG gameplay as the first but instead of the charming claymation graphics were introduced to some new-fangled 3D polygons. Dark Angael (1997 Vicarious Visions) is a cool Metroidvania-style platformer which has the same under-used mouse and keyboard controls as Abuse. L'Affaire Morlov (1995-1996 CPIO Multimedia & Titus) is a French-produced, English-language FMV detective adventure. SimIsle: Missions in the Rainforest (1996 Maxis Inc) is yet another SimNoun title, this time asking you to balance commerse and conservation on a series of island rainforests. Lastly, guest reviewer Austin tackles a surprisingly emotional freeware adventure called Mourir en Mer (2002 Digital Mind Studios).

As for updates, the big one is that of a compilation featuring Sierra's Hi-Res Adventures. ScummVM has been updated so it would accept a larger variety of Apple II disk images allowing all 7 games in the series to run via that program. Cranston Manor is now playable this way instead of using the more cumbersome AppleWin emulator. I've also tweaked the DxWnd configuration in Space Hulk 2: Vengeance of the Blood Angels which would hopefully help with random crashes.

That's it!

MONTHLY 5 - June 2023

Summer is here, and after a scorching hot June, it's time get out of the sun, stay indoors and play some ancient PC Games! Pick of the month is Synnergist (1996 Vicarious Visions), an adventure game with a history as fascinating as its neo-noir plotline. If you haven't had enough of last month's Bug!, how about it's sequel Bug Too! (1996-1997 SEGA). Both now also include the Saturn originals ready to play for you SEGA-loving entomologists out there. Next up, play the classic board game with some nifty graphics and computer-animated FMV sequences in Clue: Murder at Boddy Mansion (1998 Hasbro Interactive) or Cluedo: Murder at Blackwell Grange as its known for us Brits. For something a little more high octane, play Hi-Octane (1995 Bullfrog Productions), a futuristic racing game for PC-DOS, PlayStation and Saturn. Is it a WipEout beater? Lastly, The Reap (1997 Housemarque Games) is a great-looking early shoot-em-up from the folks who gave us Super Stardust and Returnal.

There's also a few updates to talk about. Ripley's Believe it Not: The Riddle of Master Lu has not only had its DOSBox updated and tweaked to fix a bug, but now also includes a manual and mini player's guide. Dust: A Tale of the Wired West also adds a maual while utilising the upgraded features of DOSBox-X. Finally, in addition to last month's Bug! for PC, Bug! for Saturn is now available. See their game pages or the Game Updates section for full information.

Head on past the jump and click on those links to read my full thoughts and make up your own mind by giving them a play them yourselves.

MONTHLY 5 - November 2022

This year has flown by. You blink, and it's the end of November! I've mostly been engrossed in God of War: Ragnarok since it came out, but the rest of my free time has been dedicated to The Collection Chamber. There are 5 great games featured this month so check out the obscure movie licenced FMV adventure (with too many arcade bits) Eraser Turnabout (1996 Imagination Pilots & Warner Bros.), the many versions of the underrated action platformer Fur Fighters (2000 Bizarre Creations Ltd), the Norse-themed role-playing sequel Heimdall 2: Into the Hall of Worlds (1994 Core Design), a classic point-and-click adventure starring everone's favourite sleuth The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Serrated Scalpel (1992 Mythos Software & Electronic Arts) and Bill Plympton's Take Your Best Shot (1995 7th Level Inc) a desktop toy based on his award-winning 1991 short Push Comes to Shove.

There are a couple of revisions too. Kiss: Psycho Circus - The Nightmare Child now uses a Windows 10 patch instead of dxWnd granting it better compatibility. I've also added a scan of the manual too. The Neverhood has also been revised updating ScummVM and fixing some save-game and screenshot annoyances. If you've not played either before, give them a go. They're pretty good.

To try the others, head on past the jump and dive in.

MONTHLY 5 - June 2022

Looks like I missed a month! Dunno where the time went (I'm blaming a rift in the space-time continuum), but here's some games for June. First up is a very adult FMV murder myster starring some recognisable Hollywood types by the name of Blue Heat: The Cover Girl Murders (1997, Orion Pictures Corporation). For something a little more family friendly there's the fun flipper follow up to that Windows pack-in game Full Tilt! 2 Pinball (1996, Maxis, Inc). Ever wanted to live the life of a lion? Then you're in luck 'cos the next game is an educational simulation simply called Lion (1995, Sanctuary Woods). If you want to race in circles in one of the most realistic car sims of the time, then give NASCAR Racing 2 (1996, Sierra On-Line) a whirl. To top it all off, we have an old remake of an ancient platformer designed to make use of those newfangled windows in Thexder for Windows '95 (1995 Sierra On-Line). Head on over by clicking the links after the jump. Enjoy!

MONTHLY 5 - APRIL 2022

'Tis April, and it's time to go back to a Monthly quintet of oldschool PC gaming. Fancy some action? Check out the futuristic shooter Eliminator (1998, Psygnosis). How about a visit to a spooky old mansion? Try Escape from the Haunted House (1997, New Media Generation).  A puzzle-heavy action RPG? We got you covered with Power Sokoban (1999, Nintendo, Thinking Rabbit). Want a movie instead? Watch the interactive kind that is Quantum Gate II: The Vortex (1994 HyperBole Studios). If none of that tempts you, why not abduct some sheep to build tanks in the strangest of real-time strategies, Tankics (1999, Gremlin Interactive, DMA Design). Read on to find out more!

HIDDEN GEMS - TOP 10 STRANGEST RETRO ADVENTURES

 

Have you ever picked up a random game bought from the local game shop or downloaded from a random abandonware blog and be confronted with some of the craziest shit you've ever seen? I have. More than once. In fact, I actively go seeking for them. Some of the strangest games I've ever played fall into the point-and-click adventure category so for your entertainment I've collated 10 of them and arbitrarily rated them from worst to best.

Out of the 10, there are 4 games newly escaped from the Chamber. Placed somewhere on list is Bad Milk (2000 Dreaming Media), DEVO Presents Adventures of the Smart Patrol (1996 Inscape), Who's Fat Lou? (1996 Mediola SRL), and the English translation of Eastern Mind II: Middle Heaven Chu-Teng (1995 Sony Music Entertainment (Japan), Osamu Sato & OutSide Directors Company) . There's also a fair few updates too so check them out after the jump and stay tuned for the rather lengthy video coming very soon...

WATCH THE VIDEO!

THE CHRISTMAS CATCHUP - DAY 6

I've more frights for you this festive season with Terror T.R.A.X. Track of the Vampire (1995 Ground Zero Productions) a choose-your-own FMV adventure where a couple of paranormal techno-cops investigate some bad guys who like to bite people. And blast electro-beams and rip eyes out from their sockets. I swear, this is the last Horror game to celebrate this yuletide... maybe.

Merry Christmas y'all!

THE CHRISTMAS CATCHUP - DAY 4

Another horrific turn for Christmas, this time with Mary Shelly's most disturbing of creations. Frankenstein: Through the Eyes of the Monster (1995 Amazing Media, Inc) is a pulpy first-person adventure starring Tim Curry as the titular mad scientist - emphasis on mad. Head on past the jump to find out more.