Konami‘s 1989 arcade sequel, Gradius III, is beast of a game.
Tag Archives: 1989
Hyper Dyne Side Arms, PC Engine
A very good PC Engine/Turbografx-16 conversion of the 1986 arcade game from Capcom, Hyper Dyne Side Arms is side-scrolling, bullet hell shooter featuring Mecha characters, fighting an invading alien empire. It was first released in 1989 and was published by NEC Avenue in Japan, and Radiance Software in North America.
R-Type II, Arcade
Irem‘s 1989 sequel to their hit shooter, R-Type, is definitely an upgrade to the series, rather than a recycling of parts of the first game (as the other supposed ‘sequels’ turned out to be).
Rick Dangerous, Commodore 64
Rick Dangerous is a well-known platform game that parodies the tomb-raiding adventures of Indiana Jones. It was developed by Core Design and first published by Firebird Software in 1989.
Super Mario Land, Game Boy
Super Mario Land is a flagship platform game on the Nintendo Game Boy. It was released in April 1989, as one of four launch titles for the console. It is the first handheld entry in the Super Mario series, as well as the first main Mario game not designed by series creator Shigeru Miyamoto.
Conqueror, Atari ST
Converted to the Atari ST by the author of the original Archimedes version, Jonathan Griffiths, Conqueror is a 3D tank combat game that uses a similar view to David Braben‘s Zarch. In fact, it uses the same graphics routines as Zarch, because Braben gave them to Griffiths.
Conqueror was published by Superior Software Ltd. (in the UK) and Rainbow Arts Software GmbH (in Europe), in 1989.
Keith Courage in Alpha Zones, PC Engine
Keith Courage in Alpha Zones is a single-player platform game with action elements, developed by Advance Communication Company and published by Hudson Soft in Japan (in 1988) and NEC in North America (in 1989).
When the PC Engine was launched in North America in 1988 – as the TurboGrafx-16 – THIS was the pack-in game that greeted new owners. Not R-Type, not Turrican, not Ghouls ‘N Ghosts – nor any of the other great games on the system – but Keith bloody Courage in bloody Alpha Zones… History has noted that NEC (the manufacturer of the PC Engine) missed a MAJOR trick there, possibly even contributing to the console’s under-performance in sales, and eventual demise.
Montezuma’s Revenge, Sega Master System
Developed by Utopia Software and published for the Sega Master System in 1989, Montezuma’s Revenge is a nice surprise for anyone looking for a decent 8-bit ‘hidden gem’ to play now. It’s a remake of Robert Jaeger‘s classic platform game, but with updated graphics, making them look more realistic than the chunky versions seen in the Atari 8-bit original.
Forgotten Worlds, ZX Spectrum
Created by Arc Developments and published by US Gold in 1989, the ZX Spectrum port of Capcom‘s side-scrolling arcade game is an excellent late-stage shooter that demonstrates the Spectrum punching well above its own weight.
Qix, Commodore 64
The C64 version of Taito‘s classic arcade game, Qix, was developed by Threshold Research and published in 1989 – in North America only – by Taito themselves. Continue reading Qix, Commodore 64
The King of Grabs 