Steve Crow‘s superb tribute to Atic Atac, Wizard’s Lair, was released for the MSX by Bubble Bus Software in 1986.
Tag Archives: 2D graphics
Flat, two-dimensional graphics, usually constructed of pixels. Not three-dimensional.
Prince of Persia, Atari 8-bit
After apparently years of toil, and unforseen circumstances, a homebrew conversion of Jordan Mechner‘s classic Prince of Persia finally arrived on Atari 8-bit systems, in 2021. It requires a 128KB XL/XE; it’s free to download and play, and comes it in a variety of different formats (including cartridge). And – I have to say, right out the gate – that it is a brilliant port.
Wings of Fury, Apple II
Designed and programmed by Steve Waldo, and first published by Brøderbund in 1987, Wings of Fury is a pioneering and influential side-scrolling shooter in which you pilot an American F6F Hellcat during World War II.
Dragon’s Lair, Game Boy Color
Believe it or not, but the Game Boy Color has a version of the laserdisc classic, Dragon’s Lair. Yep, that’s right – the one with Dirk the Darking in it. It was developed by Digital Eclipse and published by Capcom USA, in 2001.
Alien 3, Game Boy
Now this is an interesting departure from the majority of Alien 3 games of the time… It’s an overhead scrolling adventure, rather than a side-scrolling shooter.
Developed by British firm B.I.T.S. (aka Bits Studios) and published by LJN in North America and Acclaim in Japan in 1993, Alien 3 on the Game Boy sees you playing Ripley, on Fury 161, and the similarity to the film ends there… LOL.
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.
Super Hero, Amstrad CPC
Codemasters‘ 1988 release for the Amstrad, Super Hero, sounds innocuous, but it marked the return of pixel artist Bernie Drummond, after Head Over Heels and Batman, but before Monster Max. Which was always a cause for celebration, in my humble opinion. RIP Bernie.
Super Hero is similar to Ultimate Play the Game‘s Nightshade, or Gunfright, in that the isometric backgrounds scroll around on occasion. Not all the time. Some rooms are static, Knight Lore-style.
Illusion of Gaia, Super Nintendo
Developed by Quintet and published by Enix in Japan in 1993, and by Nintendo, everywhere else, in 1994 and ’95. The later ‘Westernised‘ version was censored in places, but there are some good fan-patches of the uncut Japanese version available in English.
Arch Rivals, Megadrive/Genesis
Arch Rivals is a conversion of the Midway arcade game of the same name, and it’s a good one too. The Megadrive version was developed by Flying Edge and published by Midway in 1992.
Eight Man, Neo Geo
Eight Man (aka “Eightman” aka “8 Man“) is a one or two-player scrolling beat ’em up based on Kazumasa Hirai‘s manga and anime character of the same name, who is considered one of the earliest Japanese cyborg superhero characters. The game was developed by Pallas and published exclusively for the Neo Geo by SNK in 1991.
The King of Grabs 