Tecmo Bowl and its sequel, Tecmo Super Bowl were big hits on the NES but somehow this Game Boy port flew under the radar. When I found this game in with a bunch of used cartridges at a local store, I had no idea that the game had ever been released but I knew that … Read more
Petrolheads like me might be excited upon first learning of this game, thinking that it is somehow tied in to the UK TV Show. This is of course not the case as this game came out long before that show started. Top Gear is easily one of the best racing games on the Super Nintendo. … Read more
“Gateball” is a Japanese sport not unlike croquet. Players use a long mallet to hit balls through three gates in a particular order and then hit a goal post to score and finish their round. It is a team-based sport, with up to 5 players on each squad. One team wins when either every player … Read more
Caesars Palace is a casino/gambling game that features 8 games – scratchers (more on those later), slot machines, video poker, blackjack, roulette, craps, keno, and horse racing. The horse racing game immediately caught my eye because you don’t normally see that in a casino-based video game. You can look at the stats for each horse … Read more
For sports fans, there wasn’t much to choose from on the Turbo. As was the case with most sports, there was only one baseball game on the system – World Class Baseball. The game tries to sell itself as a baseball simulator but is in reality a very arcade-like experience, with pitches that defy the … Read more
Game companies may have decided that Americans were no longer interested in 2D games in the 32 bit era, but in Japan 2D was still alive and well. Elevator Action Returns is an excellent example of the kind of games that we missed out on due to the 3D craze. The game distills the best … Read more
by Anthony Norcia By now, the history of John Madden Football is well known. One can search Google and stumble upon dozens of articles about the genesis of the Madden franchise, but what these articles fail to give you however is a glimpse at how huge the birth of John Madden Football really was for … Read more
by Anthony Norcia Mention of the name “Kid Chameleon” to most classic gamers will typically be met with a shrug of casual indifference. The game has been included on a number of Sega Genesis compilations over the years, so most gamers have been exposed to it at some point but haven’t played it enough to … Read more
Contra is a game that should need no introduction. This classic side-scrolling shooter was in such demand when it was released that stores could scarcely keep it in stock. The game hails from a time when seemingly every pseudo-military themed action game had to feature a main character who was some sort of Rambo variant. … Read more
This classic side-scrolling space shooter was one of the first on the NES and is easily one of the best games on the system. What makes Gradius unique is the custom power-up system that it uses. Rather than just giving you an upgraded weapon or shield, the power-ups that you collect can be used to … Read more
Probably the most famous thing about Lee Trevino’s Fighting Golf is the title. Fighting Golf? Was that meant to trick someone into buying this game thinking that it was the sequel to the Atari 7800 classic Ninja Golf? Now that game was fighting golf. Lee Trevino’s Fighting Golf is definitely one of the better golf … Read more
Galaga is my favorite arcade game of all time, so when I found out that there was a sequel on the Turbo, I had to play it. Galaga ’90 is actually the fourth title in the series, preceded by Galaxian, Galaga, and the lesser-known Gaplus. Galaxian’s game play was similar to Space Invaders, except that … Read more
Ninja Spirit is one part Shinobi and one part shooter, mixing the side-scrolling ninja action of the classic Genesis title with the power up system found in most shooters. The game play is almost mindless – jump around avoiding enemy fire while mashing the attack button, much like most shoot-em-ups. The only real strategy involved … Read more
Keith Courage in Alpha Zones was the original pack-in game for the TurboGrafx-16. It’s an action platform game consisting of 7 themed levels, each with an overworld and underworld stage. In the overworld, you control the human Keith Courage, making your way through a village fighting off small enemies with a dagger and collecting gold … Read more
Splatterhouse has a plot straight out of a cheesy 80’s horror flick. Rick and Jennifer visit a haunted mansion and are attacked by monsters. Rick is killed, but is brought back to life by a mask that gives him super-human powers which he uses to fight through the mansion to rescue his girlfriend, who has … Read more
Atari joysticks are very simple devices, and as such there isn’t much that can go wrong with them. Their Achilles’ Heel however is the metal domes that, when pushed down by the joystick or fire button, complete the circuit to register the input. Over time, these domes wear out and lose their elasticity, drift out … Read more
Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday is a science fiction-themed turn-based role-playing game developed by Strategic Simulations, a company known primarily for it’s “Gold Box” series of computer games based on the world of Dungeons & Dragons. You begin the game by creating a party of 6 characters, choosing their race and class and rolling their … Read more
In a previous article, I outlined the procedure for taking apart your NES console and refurbishing the 72-pin connector. As I had mentioned, the connector is only half of the problem. Over time, the contacts on cartridge games become dirty and oxidized, preventing proper contact with the console. Many games bought on the used market … Read more
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