Tag Archives: digitised speech

Arcade, Namco

Wonder Momo, Arcade

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I first encountered Namco‘s Wonder Momo on the PC Engine, because it had received a fan translation, and I was curious to see what the game was about. I then discovered that it was a conversion of a 1987 arcade game, featuring a young girl called Momo, who can turn into a ‘superhero’ by building up her “Wonder Meter“.

This bizarre arcade game was only ever released in Japan, but has subsequently built up a cult following around the world, and has also inspired manga/anime, and resulted in a sequel that was released in 2014.

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Electronic Arts, Game Boy Advance, JV Games, MGM Interactive

James Bond 007: Nightfire, Game Boy Advance

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James Bond 007: Nightfire on the Game Boy Advance was developed by JV Games and published by Electronic Arts in 2003 (in North America), and 2004 (in Europe). It is a single-player only first-person shooter, in which you play as the fictional British spy, James Bond.

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Amiga, Antstream, Renegade Software, The Bitmap Brothers

Gods, Amiga

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Developed by The Bitmap Brothers and published by Renegade Software for the Amiga in 1991, Gods is a stylised platform game in which you play as Hercules, on a quest to make his way through five large stages, themed with Greek mythological motifs.

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Argonaut Software, Rainbird, Realtime Games Software, ZX Spectrum

Starglider, ZX Spectrum

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The ZX Spectrum version of Argonaut‘s classic Starglider is actually surprisingly good. Or, rather: the 128K version is very good (the 48K version plays well enough, but it lacks the digitised speech and other enhancements, so is a little plain). And the main reason Starglider on the Speccy is respectable, is because it was converted by Realtime Games Software, who were pioneers in the field of Spectrum-based 3D games, having created the legendary Starstrike, Starstrike II and Carrier Command (among others).

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gog.com, PC, Sierra On-line, Steam, Troika Games, Windows

Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura, PC

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Developed by Troika Games and published by Sierra On-Line in 2001, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura is a rich and complex RPG with isometric 2D graphics, set in a fantasy world undergoing an industrial revolution. The game mixes magic and technology in a Victorian-styled “Steampunk” setting; is completely open-ended, and features lots of different races (humans, orcs, gnomes, elves, dwarves), with complicated – even racist – societal themes developing as you discover the world and interact with its many characters.

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Ocean Software, Taito, ZX Spectrum

Chase HQ, ZX Spectrum

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There’s no doubting that Ocean Software‘s 1989 Spectrum conversion of Taito‘s classic Chase HQ is impressive. Programmed by John O’Brien, with graphics by Bill Harbison, and sound by Jonathan Dunn, this 8-bit chase game really pushes the Spectrum to its limits, and puts pretty much every other third-person driving game on the Speccy to shame, with its amazing road movement and exciting gameplay.

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Amiga, Argonaut Software, Rainbird

Starglider, Amiga

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Argonaut Software‘s Starglider, when it first came out, was a flashy release. It came in a big blue box, with a novella, a manual, and a single floppy disk. Magazines were raving about it, and I remember buying it… for the ZX Spectrum. LOL.

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Amiga, Data East, Ocean Software

RoboCop, Amiga

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Ocean Software‘s Amiga port of RoboCop was fairly impressive when it first came out in 1989, but – playing it now – it hasn’t stood the test of time particularly well. It’s a scrolling run-and-gun shooter that is loosely-based on the Data East arcade game of the same name (although the arcade game and the home computer versions were developed in parallel).

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Amiga CD32, Microprose, MPS Labs

Pirates! Gold, Amiga CD32

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The Amiga CD32 version of Pirates! Gold is a remake of the original Pirates! and was published in 1994 by MicroProse. It is considered by some to be the best version of the game available, but I disagree with that.

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Arcade, Namco

Ordyne, Arcade

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Released in Japan only, Ordyne is a cute and colourful (and very Japanese) one or simultaneous two-player ‘bullet hell’ shooter that was developed and distributed by Namco in 1988.

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