Tag Archives: Retro Gaming History

Pac-Man, Atari 2600

The Atari 2600 version of Namco‘s classic Pac-Man is notorious for being terrible… And it is truly rubbish… The animation of Pac-Man himself is awful, the ghosts flicker horribly*, the transition from a vertical maze to a horizontal one has not been well-handled, and the general all-round authenticity of the game is highly questionable…

*= Which is why I’ve chosen to alter some of these grabs, to give a better representation of the game, as seen on-screen.

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Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Nintendo Wii

The 2007 release of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption was something of a milestone for Nintendo, the game’s publisher, and Retro Studios, the game’s developer. For Nintendo this was a landmark release, showing off the Wii‘s impressive capabilities as a games console, and for Retro Studios it was the end of years of experimentation with the control system. In the end, it turned out to be a masterpiece…

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Castlevania Special

Konami‘s classic Castlevania series is a well-known and much-loved collection of horror-themed games that spans from 1986 to the present day, although some may feel that the series has been neglected in recent times.

Castlevania began its existence in the form of the Famicom Disk System game, Akumajō Dracula, and has undergone many iterations, across almost all video game systems, including in the arcades, on handhelds, and on home computers and consoles.

Here’s a list of all the official Castlevania games ever made. Plus a selection of some of the best fan-made games and hacks.

In celebration of a landmark video game series!

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Akumajō Dracula, MSX

The MSX and Famicom Disk System versions of Konami‘s original Akumajō Dracula (aka “Vampire Killer“), were being worked-on simultaneously by developers inside Konami, in 1985 and ‘86.

The Famicom Disk System version was released one month before the MSX version. Although they are essentially the same game, there are some significant differences between them.

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Doshin the Giant, GameCube

Doshin the Giant is one of those games where you ask yourself: “What am I playing? Am I a God? Or am I a turd? And is there any reason why I can’t be both of those things at the same time?! And is that my belly button or my cock? I hope it’s the former…

It’s also a game where you can lose yourself in the tropical paradise that is the island you live on, because the sound effects, lighting and music are soothing and dreamlike…

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Metroid Prime 2: Echoes (Multiplayer), GameCube

This is a separate set of Metroid Prime 2: Echoes grabs (to the set showing the single-player campaign that I posted earlier); these are of the multiplayer side of the game, which is not shown very often.

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Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, GameCube

Developed by Retro Studios in collaboration with Nintendo, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes is the sequel to the classic Metroid Prime. It was first released in 2004 – to rave reviews – and it remains one of the best games ever made for the Nintendo GameCube.

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Mario Power Tennis, GameCube

Mario Power Tennis is another brilliant cooperative development release from Camelot Software Planning and Nintendo, and it was released exclusively for the GameCube in 2004.

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