Developed by Cream (aka “Creative Amusement“) and published exclusively for the Super Nintendo by Nihon Bussan Co., Ltd. (aka “Nichibutsu“) in 1993, Cosmo Police Galivan II: Arrow of Justice is the sequel to the arcade game Cosmo Police Galivan, and it is definitely one of the worst SNES games I’ve ever set my eyes upon.
Continue reading Cosmo Police Galivan II: Arrow of Justice, Super Nintendo
Developed by Hand Made Software and published exclusively for the Atari Lynx by Atari Corporation in 1993, Malibu Bikini Volleyball is exactly what it says it is: a game featuring girls in bikinis playing volleyball on Malibu beach in California…
To be fair, there are men in shorts as well, although some may be disappointed that they’re not wearing Speedos… The opening title graphic (and box art) features model Karen Isely (I’m assuming Ms. Isely is/was a beach volleyball player, but a search turned up no information confirming this).
Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master is the second sequel in the Shinobi series, released by Sega – exclusively for the Megadrive/Genesis – in 1993. Shinobi III sees Sega slightly changing the focus of this famous platform/action game, with less emphasis on difficulty and more on the speed at which you play the game and the timings of your attacks. Which will be welcomed by some players.
Continue reading Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master, Megadrive/Genesis
The Atari Lynx version of Lemmings was developed by DMA Design and published by Psygnosis in 1993, and it is an enjoyable port of this great puzzle/rescue game.
OutRunners is the 1993 sequel to the classic driving game, Out Run. It is specifically designed for two player head-to-head gameplay, which is why the game renders two screens – side by side – by default. For the purposes of this article, though, I’m showing just a single screen, because it looks better.
With enough machines, OutRunners could accommodate up to eight players racing against each other at the same time. An online version of the game was also released, allowing players to race each other over the internet, which was revolutionary for the time.
Gauntlet 4 (aka Gauntlet IV) was developed by M2 and published by Tengen in 1993, exclusively for the Megadrive/Genesis. In some respects the development of this game is just as interesting as the game itself.
Gauntlet 4 began life as a homebrew remake of Gauntlet, among a small group of friends in Japan, for the Sharp X68000 home computer. Atari Games, the developer of the original Gauntlet, eventually caught wind of the project and commissioned the group (now named M2) to produce a sequel instead.
The second Choplifter sequel, Choplifter III, was first released for the Sega Game Gear, in 1993, before coming out on the Super Nintendo, in 1994. The Game Gear version was created by Teeny Weeny Games, for Beam Software, and published by Extreme Entertainment in North America only.
Konami‘s 1993 Game Boy game, Kid Dracula, is a cutesy spin-off from the Castlevania series. It’s actually a remake of the 1990 Famicom game, “Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun“.
Rainbow Islands on the Sega Master System was released in 1993 in Europe, Australia and Brazil, and it is a reasonably good port of the classic Taito arcade game.
The 3DO version of Delphine Software‘s futuristic platform adventure, Flashback, was ported by Tiertex Design Studios and published by US Gold in North America and Europe in 1993. Flashback on the 3DO was also released by Electronic Arts Victor in Japan in 1995.
The King of Grabs 