The third Micro Machines was released in 1997 for the Sony PlayStation. In V3 the environments and vehicles are all 3D-modelled, and the action is displayed at a slightly tilted angle, rather than directly overhead.
The same excellent gameplay mechanics of the previous games have been retained though. Mostly revolving around getting ahead of your opponents in order to push them off-screen.
Developed by Shadow Software and published by Rasputin Software in 1995, Base Jumpers is an interesting platform game where the aim is to climb to the top of a succession of tall buildings in order to launch yourself from the top of them and parachute down to safety.
Worms: The Director’s Cut on the CD32 is a beautifully smooth and playable conversion of the Amiga original, with the same highly compelling and ultra-competitive ‘versus’ gameplay.
Arcade Pool was developed and published for the Amiga and CD32 by Team 17 in 1994.
Gauntlet II is the 1986 sequel to the classic four-player arcade game, Gauntlet. It was made by pretty much the same Atari Games team that made the first game, so retains a lot of its qualities. Which is great, because the first Gauntlet was brilliant and fans wanted more of the same – only with enhancements. Which is exactly what they got.
Battle Cross is a fun isometric racing game for the Super Nintendo, developed by A-Max for Imagineer and released in Japan in 1994.
Taito‘s Bubble Bobble first came out in arcades in 1986. Its colourful, jolly, platform action proved a sensation among gamers, and it has since gone on to earn “legendary” status in the retro gaming community.
Playable as a one or two-player game, Bubble Bobble is a simple but hugely fun jumping game where you shoot bubbles out of your mouth to trap enemies, and then you headbutt them or jump on them to pop the bubble and kill them.
There are also special bubbles that show up, depending on the level. Fire bubbles set platforms ablaze; spark bubbles send bolts shooting left and right; water bubbles send torrents cascading down the screen and take you, and your enemies, with it. There are also bubbles with letters on them, which – when collected – spell the word “EXTEND”. Collect all six and you get an extra life and a ‘bye’ to the next round.
Holes in the top and bottom of the screen allow you to warp between them, if you can reach them. Some areas of the screen require you to jump on bubbles to reach them. That’s when the game really gets interesting. Or frustrating – depending on your point of view.
In total there are 100 screens to play through in Bubble Bobble. I couldn’t figure out how to get past level 37… The game hasn’t beaten me yet, though. I will be back once I’ve slept on it and adjusted my strategy (ie. looked it up on YouTube). 🙂
If you’ve never played Bubble Bobble before: find it and play it. It’s a “rite of passage” for any budding gamer, and is especially fun two-player.
More: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_Bobble
Known as “Be Ball” in its native Japan, Chew Man Fu is an excellent arcade-style puzzle game where the gameplay involves pushing and pulling coloured balls around a maze. The colours are important, because – in the main game, at least – you have to push/pull the balls onto the same-coloured floor switches. And: do all of this while avoiding being killed by bad guys.
The key thing is: you can push/pull the balls around corners, and can move forwards and backwards in a particular way to make your way around the maze. The balls – if gripped – will also block the bad guys from touching you, and you can also kick the balls at them to temporarily take them out of the game.
The early maze configurations are all very simple, but as you progress Chew Man Fu becomes harder and harder. Not only does it get harder to push the balls onto the correct switches, but the enemies get trickier too. Some can even pick up the balls and run away with them.
Chew Man Fu is playable both single-player, and simultaneous two-player. It also has a single-screen football mini game, called ‘Kickball’ as an amusing diversion.
The title is a parody of “Fu Manchu“, a fictional villain from a series of books and films. Chew Man Fu is actually the villiain in this.
Chew Man Fu is a ‘hidden gem’ on the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 that is well worth searching out and playing nowadays. It was developed by Now Production for Hudson Soft and released on the PC Engine in Japan and North America in 1990.
More: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chew_Man_Fu
This brilliant single and multi-player overhead shooter by LucasArts is a parody of every single horror and sci-fi film you’ve ever seen.
Chainsaws, zombies, UFOs, mummies, werewolves, demonic babies, spiders, shopping malls – you name it, the game will throw it at you during at least one of its 48 stages.
Two players can play Zombies Ate My Neighbors cooperatively, which is great fun. The aim being: to run around destroying monsters, and rescuing any human survivors you find along the way. Nice little touches, like the trampolines that bounce you over walls, and the potions that turn you into a monster, add variety to what is a fairly straightforward blaster.
Zombies Ate My Neighbors is a great party game too. A retro-gaming classic from 1993. Also came out on the Megadrive/Genesis, but the SNES version just edges it in terms of colourfulness.
Note: because we often have a set of retards running the world, and have a particularly vicious press when it comes to horror films and video games, the game was released simply as “Zombies” in Europe and Australia. A watered-down bastardisation of a title if ever there was one… The censors are always wrong, but in the case of this game they took a great title and turned it into kitty litter… Still a wonderful game though.
More: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zombies_Ate_My_Neighbors
Bitmasters‘ 1993 title Championship Pool for the SNES is – I think – arguably the best pool game of all time. On any system.
Championship Pool dispenses with flashy visuals and 3D graphics, and gives you a set of limited viewpoints and solid physics, and delivers an almost perfect game. Under any type of rules, including (in the European version) English pub rules.
The feel of the weight of the balls as you hit them is fantastic. You can make subtle shots, and whomping hard-hitters, with aplomb, and Championship Pool allows bold, risky play because the on-screen visual aids make judging shots easier (than playing in real life).
Yes, the graphics are a bit rubbish in places, and – yes – the music can get on your tits after a bit (especially if you don’t like blues, but thankfully it can be switched off), but Championship Pool really delivers where it matters.
I can’t think of a better pool game, and I’ve played most of them. If you know of a better pool game: please let me know. And if you love pool, and haven’t played Championship Pool, then you’d be well advised to check it out.
More: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Championship_Pool
