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 - April 2023

If you saw one film in cinemas this past month, chances are it was Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. I saw it with most of my D&D group and had an awesome time - perhaps the most fun I've had in a theatre post-pandemic. So, I thought I'd dig out some old D&D games of yesterear and give them a whirl. Of the three chosen for this month's monthly five, classic computer RPG Pool of Radiance: Ruins of Myth Drannor (2001 UbiSoft Entertainment) is my fantasy pick of the month, but with its mix of wargame strategy and first-person role-playing, Birthright: The Gorgon's Alliance (1996 Sierra On-Line) is also pretty good. Less so is Iron & Blood: Warriors of Ravenloft (1996-1997 TSR & Acclaim Entertainment). This one-on-one fighter featuring well-known D&D characters, classes and races is pretty pants and I tried both the DOS and PlayStation versions in a vain attempt to find something good. For kusoge gamers only.

Beyond the giant lizards and underground chambers, I've kept the variety up with a much-requested mech action game called G-NOME (1997 7th Level Inc). For adventure-gamers there's the obscure Amiga point-and-clicker called Sixth Sense Investigations (1998 CineTECH); a respectable indie game that's heavily inspired by LucasArts' Day of the Tentacle. It's pretty good too if you can forgive its terrible Leicester-accented voice acting.

For this month's updates, we begin with Obsidian which now takes advantage of its induction to ScummVM's list of supported games. The Amazing Spider-Man Collection has also been updated and tweeked which fixes errors, adds manuals and updates emulators. See the Game Updates section or head on over to their review pages for full update info.

That's it for this month! I'll see you at the end of May for more classic gaming goodness. Until then, head on after the jump to read my thoughts on April's ragtag group of aging code.

MONTHLY 5 - March 2023

Awards season is over (and this is the first time ever where my personal favourite coincided with the Oscars), but movies will always be on my mind. As DreamWorks have been having a bit of a resurgence of late, with both Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and The Bad Guys washing out the stink that was Boss Baby, I thought I'd treat myself to some of their earlier game tie-ins. Pick of the bunch is Gold and Glory: The Road to El Dorado (2000 DreamWorks & Revolution Software), a 3D adventure game by the folks behind Broken Sword. Antz: Panic in the Anthill! (2001 Light and Shadow Production & DreamWorks LLC) takes the movie's characters and places them in a Bomberman clone. Chicken Run (2000 DreamWorks LLC, Aardman Chicken Run Ltd & Pathé Image) is a decent Baby's First Metal Gear Solid while Shrek: Game Land Activity Center (2001 TDK Mediactive, Activision & DreamWorks LLC) mimics Disney's edutainment offerings of the past. Lastly, Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003 Atari Interactive & DreamWorks LLC) is an underrated movie tie-in of an underrated movie.

There are a few updates too. James Cameron's Titanic Explorer removes the need for mounted discs completely removing one of my biggest qualms about it (I should read the readmes more thoroughly). Galapagos: Mendel's Escape has now been updated to official patch 1.2 which gives the option to save anywhere. I've also changed DxWnd to a lesser version which solves the intro video distortion, but considering that was just a company logo it's a minor fix. I had thought I solved some issues in Sanity:Aiken's Artifact by forcing a reduced framerate through dgVoodoo, but it appears not. I'm beginning to think the issue stems from the NoCD patch itself so I'll have to figure out an alternative before I update again.

Until then, check out this month's games after the jump.

MONTHLY 5 - January 2023

It's 2023 and a full month has gone by. Other than collecting my musings of the movies and modern games I've encountered over the last year, it's time to get back to the old stuff. We have five interesting obscurities to kick off the year, starting with the fantasy Tomb Raider clone Asghan: The Dragon Slayer (1998 Silmarils). Next up is a recently translated PlayStation platformer featuring the first creation of Dragon Ball's Akira Toriyama called Dr. Slump (1998 Bandai). Then we have the racing sequel Monster Truck Madness 2 (1998 Microsoft Corporation & Terminal Reality) complete with dozens of fanmade tracks and trucks. Travel the high seas and shoot your way to treasure in Overboard! (1997 Psygnosis) otherwise known as Shipwreckers! in the US. Lastly, guest reviewer Austin takes on a crazy ride with the action-arcade-strategy hybrid that is Space Dude (1996 Evryware).

That's not all. A minor improvement to the site sees the list of all of the Labels in full view at the very bottom. It was something I didn't even think about until a random comment popped up, so hopefully it'll prove useful when browsing the hundreds of game reviews (we're edging towards 600!).

Talking about the games, we have a few updates. Shannara now uses DOSBox-X (but may have an issue so the last version remains - expect the fantasy adventure to appear here again next month), Nocturne now has some tweaks for better compatibility while also adding an editor and soundtrack too! Lastly, MetalTech EarthSiege fixes the crash at the end of Campaign 4, Mission 8 while also getting upgraded to DOSBox Daum as its emulator of choice. You can see their full details of their game pages or on the Game Updates page found to your right.

For the others, go check them out by clicking after the jump...

THE CHRISTMAS CATCHUP - THE FESTIVE FINALE

In the sage words of a singing Wizzard; IT'S CHRISTMAAAS!!! And with that comes the last entry of my Christmas Catch-up; Lemmings - or a compilation of the original Lemmings Trilogy (1991-2000 Psygnosis). Included in the massive bumper package along with the first game is Oh No! More Lemmings, Lemmings 2: The Tribes and The All New World of Lemmings (aka Lemmings Chronicles). Not to mention the oh-so-festive themed demos the future-GTA-developers put out back in the day. With all the console, handheld and computer ports in tow, that's 32 games in total! Whew!

Now to find time to (not) make a video about it all...

Merry Christmas!

MONTHLY 5 - AUGUST 2021

It's the August Bank Holiday Weekend and that means music! Whether you're slumming it at Reading Festival or tripping around one of the many smaller events, the sounds of Summer is here. So, I've dedicated this month's quintet of quality games to top tunes. Accompany MTV's resident music video commentators on their trip to university in Beavis & Butt-Head Do U (1998 MTV Networks & GT Interactive), their second point-and-click adventure. Defy the devil with a magic guitar in the tough as leather 2D platformer Johnny Bazookatone (1995 Arc Developments & U.S. Gold). Destroy the overlords with a little help from Aerosmith in Revolution X (1994-1996 Midway), their classic light-gun shooter and some no-so-classic ports. Play as the frontman  of a metal band as he plays another game within a game in the third-person-shooter Virtuoso (1994 Motivetime Ltd). Finally, rock out with the Rolling Stones in their Voodoo Lounge CD-ROM (1995 Virgin Benelux) dedicated to the late Charlie Watts. Enjoy!

I also want to plug an app a good friend of mind is developing for players of Dungeons & Dragons. The Goblin's Notebook is a single-pane view of your tabletop RPG campaign notes for pre-session planning, in-session note taking and post-session recapping, all direct from a web browser! I've been using it as a DM in my recent campaign and it's become an incredibly invaluable tool. Check out The Goblin's Notebook for free by visiting this link now!

Before I forget, there are a few updates too! Last month, I forgot to tell you all that Bermuda Syndrome got a new version that works natively on Windows. It looks better too! Also, the underrated futuristic racer, Scorcher, got an update. Head on over to their game pages to find out more.

WATCH THE VIDEO

ANIMANIACS COLLECTION

 

One of the few good things about this past year is that Animaniacs got a reboot. And because this past year was 2020 us Brits didn't get it. Nevertheless I got my totally insaney fix by revisiting the surprising decent collection of console games based on the original 90s show.

SCOOBY-DOO COLLECTION

Not too long ago, the Scooby Gang turned 50 years old and it's still as much a part of the pop culture as ever. To kick off this October, let's take a look at the majority of their video game adaptations. Spread over 11 systems, there are 19 games to get through in this Scooby-Doo collection so let's get started!

5 GAMES FOR MARCH 2019

In the latest quintet of monthly mini-reviews, a slew of hidden gems have made their way out of the Chamber. As a propeller-wearing slob of a man, platform your way across the US in Arcade America. Survive the wastelands of a post-apocalyptic future in Bad Blood, an action RPG from the folks behind Ultima. Grab your hoverboard and save the world from invading teddybears in the platformer Cyril Cyberpunk. Race across a multitude of nations in Network Q RAC Rally. Finally, prove your wrestling worth in WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game for a multitude of systems.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN COLLECTION

It's been quite an eventful year for everyone's friendly neighbourhood arachnid. First was a tearful (temporary) farewell to Tom Holland's Peter Parker in the excellent Avenger's: Infinity War. Then came the highly addictive Spider-Man game on the PlayStation 4 - one of the best games of the year. But before the biggest cinematic surprise of Spidey's cinematic outing (Into the Spider-verse) the world grieved at the deaths of his co-creators - the ever-personable Stan Lee and Steve Ditko earlier in the year. In honour of all that has come to pass, let's have an almost complete look at Spider-Man's amazing gaming past.

DIE HARD TRILOGY

If there's one Die Hard game that everybody remembers, it's Die Hard Trilogy. Released in 1996 by Fox Interactive for the PlayStation (and later Windows and Saturn), it's actually three games in one; an action game, an arcade lightgun game and a racing game. That could be a warning sign as to the game's quality right there, but Die Hard Trilogy is actually regarded as one of the better movie tie-ins out there, and the huge number of sales reflect that.

EGGS OF STEEL: CHARLIE'S EGGCELLENT ADVENTURE

Having now consumed so many Easter eggs this past weekend I'm pretty sure I'm contributing to the world-wide chocolate shortage, I thought I'd take a break from eating them to go play as one. So I popped in Eggs of Steel: Charlie's Eggcellent Adventure, an obscure PlayStation platformer released in 1998 by those folks at Atlus. It may be the chocolate-addled brain talking, but what followed is one trippy nightmare filled with yolk-coloured gore and a threatening industrial landscape that's as foreboding as anything conceived by Fritz Lang.

POLAROID PETE: THE GEKIBO COLLECTION

Gekibo, a portmanteau of Gekisha Boy (translation: Photograph Boy) is at first glance just another of those weird Japanese games that YouTubers love to rag on about. First released on the PC-Engine in 1992, Irem's short-lived series is a satisfying mix of a shooting gallery with a platformer. It's a rather unique concept with only Pokemon Snap coming to mind that bears any kind of similarity to the gameplay on show. So why didn't we see this in the west?

SILVERLOAD

The Wild West was a treacherous time in American history, but imagine if werewolves and vampires were thrown into the mix. Well, imagine no more because the 1995 adventure, Silverload by Millennium Interactive, did just that. And the PlayStation port did it too, only way better.

THE BOOK OF WATERMARKS

The Book of Watermarks is a Japanese adventure game for the PlayStation that's been heavily inspired by the works of William Shakespeare, The Tempest in particular. For a game that never made it out of its native country, it's surprisingly all in English, save for the easily decipherable menus, making it very playable for western audiences.

ALIEN RESURRECTION

The videogame adaptation of Alien Resurrection really missed the boat. The movie came out in 1997 but it wasn't until the new millennium that the tie-in came out on the original PlayStation. Was the additional 3 years in development well worth the wait? Hell yes it was!

TREASURES OF THE DEEP

There's something primal about treasure hunting. It has sparked the imagination of many authors, screenwriters and artists for centuries with videogames being no different. The likes of Tomb Raider and Uncharted may be the popular choices but what about the lesser-known games? Released on the PlayStation in 1997 by the arcade gurus Namco, Treasures of the Deep takes the archaeological action into the depths of the ocean...

ECHO NIGHT 2: THE LORD OF NIGHTMARES

Until recently, console gaming has mainly been the domain of the Japanese. Their machines dominated the market with many trend-setting games being released. What few titles that made it out of Japan are often regarded as classics. The fact that many other great games were never translated is a huge loss to any gaming enthusiast. Thankfully the sequel to one of my favourite hidden gems on the PlayStation got the fan translation treatment by Gemini and Tom at Devil Hackers: Echo Night 2: The Lord of Nightmares...

BATMAN V SUPERMAN Vol. 1

It's been quite an eventful year so far. So much so that juggling work, life and passions have been something of a struggle. Then came Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice to prove that I'm not the only one with a lot on my plate. Imagine being given hundreds of millions of dollars to create a film many comic book geeks like me have been waiting to see for decades and ending up with this confused mess of a movie! Makes finding the time to review classic games seem trivial...

POWERSLAVE (EXHUMED)

Powerslave (or Exhumed as it's know in Europe) looks and plays like a Doom clone with an Egyptian theme. At least it does at first glance. Dig deeper into the 1996 game by Lobotomy Software and you'll find a lot more than you might expect. Even the PlayStation version is not really a port, taking these unique elements and running (and strafing) with them.