Showing posts with label Genesis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Genesis. Show all posts

Wednesday, 5 August 2020

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The Games that Weren't Article that Wasn't

Now that the former Game That Wasn't, Ultracore (nee Hardcore), has finally been salvaged from pixel scrapyard oblivion, published for the SEGA Mega Drive, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and PS Vita in 2019, people like to ignore the fact that Digital Illusions' run 'n' gun platform shoot 'em up was originally intended for release on the Amiga. Nevermind, I'm just glad it materialised full stop, through whatever means. I'm more disgruntled that its unveiling has made my old 'lost treasure' article redundant. ;)

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Monday, 3 August 2020

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Extremely safe violence

Techno Cop is the kind of law enforcement officer who investigates criminal activity by blasting Death on Arrival gang members to smithereens with his .88 Magnum... and asking questions, never. To stay one step ahead of the delinquent punks he'll need to arrive at the scene of the crime before DoA even know which law they're about to violate. Fortuitous then that our high-tech crime-stopper comes equipped with a hyper-tuned V-Max Ferrari, neatly splicing the game into distinctive against-the-clock driving and scrolling shoot 'em up platformer segments.

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Saturday, 1 August 2020

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Alien ant buys the farm

Gremlin's Sonic-squishing hopeful, Zool, was in the '90s to be converted to run in coin-op arcade cabinets destined for seaside towns around the nation. Despite evidence of a prototype appearing on the Bad Influence TV tech show and in several gaming magazines, the finished product ultimately failed to materialise. I track down some of the key developers commissioned to make it happen and investigate why it didn't.

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Games coder Steve Howard discusses the console platformers, Terminator 2 and No Escape

I have the honour of interviewing programmer Steve Howard regarding two movie license console platformers he contributed to back in the '90s. An unexpected consequence of this nostalgia-nudging was the rare revelation of a collection of Terminator 2 cheats that had lain dormant for nearly three decades!

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Friday, 31 July 2020

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Chaos is more than a theory

And Chaos Engine is more than a shiny, polished Gauntlet clone garnished with a steampunk makeover. The Bitmap Brothers' run-and-gun overhead shooter is as intrinsically entwined with the Amiga's gaming legacy as any other venerated title you care to mention. It demands no further introduction... or review, but here's one of each regardless.

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A snowball's chance in hell

Snow Bros is Toaplan's lesser-known attempt to recreate the addictive two-player magic of Taito's iconic arcade classic, Bubble Bobble. Analogously, it's a single-screen, arcade-platforming coin-guzzler that pits us against the almighty malevolence of the razer-toothed King Scorch who - swept up in his supreme, feral nastiness - has pounced upon the wintery wonderland inhabited by Nick and Tom to kidnap their respective princessy other halves.

Armed with an infinite supply of snowballs, the shell-shocked duo are driven to plough through monster-infested platform levels to reach the orchestrator of their angst in a desperate effort to free his distraught captives. Repeatedly bombarding enemies with chilly, crystalised projectiles results in their frozen envelopment in a giant snowball, which can subsequently be kicked or shoved into other opponents to destroy them. Flung snowballs ricochet off scenery, following the path of least resistance through platform mazes until departing the screen. Once the current configuration is clear of patrolling firebreathing imps and devilishly-horned thugs we're whisked away to the next area to deal with our ongoing deja vu dilemma.

Snow Bros is notorious in Amiga circles for being another Ocean France arcade port that failed to materialise in the nighties in line with its projected release schedule. It eventually emerged finished and highly playable in 2006, albeit sadly lacking the arcade original's two-player co-op mode.

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Thursday, 30 July 2020

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Now if we make a stand, we'll find our promised land

The gnarly Shadow cast by Psygnosis' infamous Beast of Amiga origin spread far and wide to every conceivable system during the zenith of its beastliness. Peer outside your bedroom window on a sunny day and even now you'll see it creeping up the drainpipe to infiltrate your shiny new PlayStation 9, or whatever the current model is. So, that's one way of suggesting Shadow of the Beast has cultivated quite a substantial legacy over the years since its inception. Other alternatives are available I'm sure.

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Wednesday, 29 July 2020

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No teddy bears' picnic

Risky Woods is an insanely intense, dagger-chucking scrolling platformer completely ruined by the necessity to master pixel-perfect jumping whilst deflecting a neverending fusillade of Harryhausen style living skeletons. Check out the longplay to ensure its immaculate presentation doesn't go to waste, camouflaged behind an impenetrable difficulty curve.

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Tuesday, 28 July 2020

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A page right out of history

Junior, Son of Chuck, demonstrates he's a chip off the old block in the sequel to Core Design's prehistoric platformer, Chuck Rock. As before, it's hard to play without imagining being trapped inside a vintage Flintstones cartoon, except now we're in charge of a nappy-clad, further regressed Bamm-Bamm, wielding a club taller than he is on a quest to save his kidnapped dad from the clutches of the stony-hearted Brick Jagger. It's hardly a chore when the audio-visual presentation is so enticing, exquisitely crafted by esteemed professionals who clearly had their hearts invested in this passion project. Much like living in Bedrock, endless comedic touches keep us amused throughout while we bash and crash our way to a poignant family reunion.

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Monday, 27 July 2020

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Let's get physics-al

Alien, teardrop-shaped blob, Puggsy, began life as an unexplained visitor from elsewhereland, the unlikely star of his own rolling Amiga demo, before evolving into a fully playable, platforming protagonist devised by future LEGO gurus, Travellers' Tales. Fundamentally, Puggsy is a reimagining of the puzzle-adventure Dizzy concept, albeit remarkable for its introduction of convincing physics effects. Fantastic graphics and audio, a pre-rendered intro and six humongous bosses complete the spectacle.

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Guppies Are Forever

Underwater Agent is the parody-packing-platformer that first introduced us to the fi5hy James Pond franchise, culminating in a cheese-chasing trip to space. A superspy-themed, 007-mission-based action escapade comprised purely of aquatic episodes that was nevertheless forgiven, evolving into a far more playable, landlocked sequel; RoboCod. Loath or loath oceanic acrobatics, there's no denying the star's lovable charm and rogueish sophistication. He's the guppie with the golden pun. The cod with the extendable bod. The humble starfish who dared to wish.

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Friday, 24 July 2020

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Warning - May contain Timets

Prior to release, NEON Software's Amiga version of Mr Nutz (subtitled Hoppin' Mad) was known as 'Timet: the Flying Squirrel'. How Timet ended up starring an anthropomorphic squirrel taken from a totally different Ocean Software game, Mr Nutz for various consoles, developed by Ocean France, is an intriguing story. I assess both of the immensely fun, lusciously beautiful pixel art platformers, as well as tracing the fascinating history of their origin tails with a bit of help from some of the developers.

This article is also available as a video documentary on my YouTube channel if you'd rather experience it that way. It features some previously unseen, original Timet artwork, which I have artist Antony Christoulakis to thank for.

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Thursday, 23 July 2020

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Hydra and seek

An abundance of glowing praise was heaped upon Gods from day one, though over the years a more dichotomous spread of opinion appears to have emerged, slathering it in Marmitey confusion. Gods no doubt nails the desired emblematic Greek mythological ambience through its masterfully illustrated environments and sprites, and certainly has fans and detractors alike nodding along to its physiologically unforgettable 'Into the Wonderful' intro screen track. That title is a literal statement of fact. Where the delirious dream rips apart at the seams begins with the sluggish, unresponsive controls, plodding pace and insane difficulty curve. If you can manage to tame the lumbering beast despite these incumbrances it's absolutely fantastic... and you're likely a pro-gamer with a gleaming trophy cabinet to prove it.

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Give me Mr Fuji and paper mache

Leander is one of the many convincing retorts to critics who claim the Amiga never hosted a decent platformer. This one is exceptional for its responsive controls, wondrously atmospheric aesthetics and audio, endearing in-game cameos featuring other Psygnosis characters and its accomplished emulation of Japanese console-style fantasy-action games. Being a human knight, Leander's locomotion is accordingly more natural, unhurried and methodical than say, an anthropomorphic hyperactive supergiraffe, making it more akin to something like Gods. Set in ye olde mystical worlde of yesteryear when dragons ruled the skies and magicians were demi-gods, the environments, our attire, weaponry, transport and enemies are appropriately low-tech, which is far from a complaint. That's the theme, and it resonates loud enough to drown out all the feeble efforts that gave the Amiga a bad reputation.

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Not my body, I need that! It's got my arms and legs attached!


With their platform-gaming translation of The Incredible Crash Dummies, Gray Matter taught us the benefits of not being run over by traffic, buckling up when in the car... and how to waddle along on a decapitated torso should we come a cropper and lose both of our legs. All useful life lessons.
Further novelty comes in the form of our dummy's unique health status system. Succumbing to each penalty hit results in the loss of a limb, and once we lose them all, we're a dead dummy. See, quadriplegia is funny after all if it's depicted in a game! Limb loss doesn't have to be catastrophic if we can maintain the existence of at least one, since collecting screwdrivers will regenerate them an appendage at a time.

In a separate article, I cover the curious case of the missing lawn bowling sign with regards to one of The Incredible Crash Dummies game ports.

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Wednesday, 22 July 2020

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Jumpers for goalposts

Reviews of Sensible Soccer's Cannon Fodder have never been so much fun! I analyse the life out of the masterpiece, spinning off into two separate articles. One covering the origins of the 'Boot Hill' graveyard scene, and another that dissects the overinflated controversy concerning a certain red flower used as a charity organisation emblem by the British Legion.

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The sea will grow larger with our fall

For reasons that now escape me, I explain and review the most popular and ubiquitous puzzle game of all time. One that certainly needs no introduction or explanation, Lemmings. Who knows, maybe some aliens who have been living under a distant rock in a galaxy far away will find it interesting.

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Tuesday, 21 July 2020

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I thought by now you'd realize, there ain't no way to hide your lion eyes

I explore accusations that Disney's The Lion King is shameless plagiarism, borrowing far more from The White Lion than fair use allows. Less controversial is Westwood's officially licensed video game inspired by the movie. It's a platformer in which you play as Simba as we chart his development from an inconsequential, plucky young cub to a fearsome lion, embracing his rightful place as king of the jungle. As Simba ages, learning to adapt to his environment, he grows in stature and aptitude, creating a real sense of progression. With Disney supervising, artistry, animation and sound are supremely refined, resulting in a beautifully polished homage worthy of the box office juggernaut that went onto delight theatre audiences as much as cinemagoers.

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Monday, 20 July 2020

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Ground control to Major Pond

James Pond 3, the covert ops sequel to RoboCod you never knew existed, is faster and more technically sophisticated, yet failed to Take the Biscuit (TM, probably). Maybe the 007-cyborg-cop parody's expiry date had passed by 1993. Maybe the design mechanics are overly complicated, sabotaging its pick-up-and-play potential. I ruminate over the possibilities, mesmerised by Operation Starfish's tasty visuals.

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