Programmed and designed by Archer MacLean and published by Virgin Games in 1991, Jimmy White’s Whirlwind Snooker was one of the first ever billiards simulations to use 3D graphics to represent the table, and it worked very well.
Tag Archives: Cult Hit
The Staff of Karnath, Commodore 64
The first game in the Sir Arthur Pendragon series, The Staff of Karnath was released on the Commodore 64 in 1984 to some acclaim. Mostly because it was an Ultimate game, and in the eyes of many people (myself included), Ultimate could do no wrong.
The Last Ninja 3, Commodore 64
The Last Ninja 3 was released by System 3 in 1991 and it follows the same isometric/action template as the previous two games.
Again: there are refinements and differences that make The Last Ninja 3 a worthwhile game in its own right – in particular: the graphics, which are more detailed and colourful than seen previously.
The Last Ninja 2, Commodore 64
The sequel to the classic The Last Ninja was first released by System 3 in 1988 – one year after the original game.
It was designed by the same team as made the first game, except this time they had on board the highly-respected John Twiddy as writer/coder, and Matt Gray doing music.
Graphically, The Last Ninja 2 is arguably better than its predecessor, with more colour and variety in the environments, and some of the gameplay niggles from the first game have thankfully been addressed too. In particular: it is now easier to pick things up!
The Last Ninja, Commodore 64
First released in 1987, The Last Ninja is a classic isometric action adventure game originating on the Commodore 64, and later being converted to other systems.
It has to be said, though: the control system used in this game does leave a lot to be desired when playing it nowadays. Getting your ninja guy to do what you want him to do is tricky – even when you know what you’re doing…
Micro Machines, NES
This 1991 release from Codemasters is the first game in the award-winning Micro Machines video game series and – boy – does it kick-start the series in style!
In fact: it established the staples that make the series so good, like the themed tracks, and the ‘race-to-the-edge-of-the-screen’ style racing.
Contact Sam Cruise, ZX Spectrum
Contact Sam Cruise is a highly-regarded and entertaining action adventure game designed by Dave Reidy, the guy who created the classic Skool Daze. It was published by Microsphere in 1986.
Death Star Interceptor, ZX Spectrum
Looking at Death Star Interceptor now you might be surprised to discover that it was a “number one” game when it first came out in 1985.
And – while it did make it to the top of the games charts back then – the charts were not very reliable, and the game actually wasn’t that good, even though it does officially license use of the Star Wars theme, for a warbly Speccy interpretation of John Williams‘ classic music.
Death Star Interceptor was a case of style over content, and also maybe a touch of Star Wars fever as well. These are thoughts I had about the game when I first played it back in 1985.
Super Monkey Ball Jr., Game Boy Advance
Super Monkey Ball Jr. is a conversion of the classic GameCube game by Sega. It was first released in North America in 2002, and in 2003 in Europe.
From what I can tell, Super Monkey Ball Jr. was never released in Japan… That can’t be right… I thought the Japanese were (rightly) mad for Super Monkey Ball?!
Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, Game Boy Advance
The third and final Castlevania game on the Game Boy Advance, Aria of Sorrow was first published by Konami in 2003.
Development was again led by Producer Koji Igarashi (who had previously worked on Symphony of the Night), and the end result is another brilliant and varied mix of platforming and RPG, with challenging enemies and boss battles.
Continue reading Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, Game Boy Advance
The King of Grabs 