Infogrames‘ Alone In The Dark is one of the earliest survival horror games to use 3D graphics (mixed with 2D graphics), and it really broke new ground when it was first released back in 1992.
Tag Archives: 1992
Mr. Gimmick, NES/Famicom
Known as Gimmick! in Japan and Mr. Gimmick everywhere else, this 1992 release was an attempt by Sunsoft to push the graphical powers of the Nintendo Entertainment System further than they’d ever been pushed before (in order to compete with the Super Nintendo, which was relatively new on the market).
In order to do this, Sunsoft used all kinds of clever programming techniques using graphical tilesets and colours, and the end result is very striking. But it wasn’t enough to compete with the newer consoles of the time and Mr. Gimmick sank without a trace, into relative obscurity.
Road Rash II, Megadrive/Genesis
Road Rash II (1992) is an excellent continuation of the Road Rash theme, this time with more variety (you can now kick, as well as punch and use weapons, such as bike chains), and simultaneous two-player, split-screen play.
Mercenary III: The Dion Crisis, Atari ST
Axelay, Super Nintendo
Konami‘s Axelay is considered a cult classic among shoot ’em up fans.
First released on the Super Nintendo in 1992, Axelay cleverly mixes side-scrolling and vertically-scrolling blasting action, and also makes excellent use of the Super Nintendo‘s infamous ‘Mode 7’ scaling technique, to create a weird ‘cylindrical’ rolling effect on some of the levels.
Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting, Super Nintendo
One of the biggest-selling games on the Super Nintendo, Street Fighter II Turbo (to use its informal name), is faster and more varied than its predecessor, and also allows play of any of the four previously ‘locked’ boss characters (Balrog, Vega, Sagat and M. Bison) from the outset.
Continue reading Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting, Super Nintendo
Total Carnage, Arcade
The spiritual successor to Smash TV (in the same way that Smash TV was the spiritual predecessor to Robotron 2084), and a brilliant overhead shooter with 360 degree blasting action.
Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss, PC
The first of two ground-breaking Ultima Underworld games made by Looking Glass Technologies (formerly known as Blue Sky Productions) and Origin Systems.
The Stygian Abyss, first released in 1992, is one of the first Role-Playing Games to feature first-person action in a 3D environment.
Parasol Stars, Amiga
Parasol Stars is a wonderful sequel to Taito‘s classic Rainbow Islands, although it was never released in arcades.
The game was initially developed exclusively for the NEC PC Engine in 1991, and later released on other formats by Ocean Software. The brilliant Amiga version was released in 1992 and remains a firm favourite among Bubble Bobble series fans.
Wizkid, PC
Wizkid is also subtitled “The Story of Wizball II”, which is interesting, although it doesn’t really look or feel like a sequel to Wizball at all to me.
