Written by Derek Johnston and published by Gremlin Graphics in 1985, Zone X is a scrolling maze game where you play a radiation suit-wearing scientist collecting plutonium samples and dumping them into containers.
Tag Archives: robots
Vectorman, Megadrive/Genesis
Developed by BlueSky Software of California and published exclusively for the Megadrive/Genesis by Sega in 1995, Vectorman is an extremely well-regarded platform/action game with outstanding presentation and a humorous backstory.
The year is 2049 and the Earth has been overwhelmed with pollution. It’s so bad that humans have left, to live in space, sending automated robots down to Earth to try to reverse the out-of-control climate change. After interfacing with a nuclear warhead one of the robots becomes self-aware and declares itself to be “WarHead – The Destroyer of Humanity“. WarHead reprograms all the other robots and turns them against the humans, taking over Earth. You, as Vectorman, are a weird-looking robot that is returning from a dumping mission to the sun, and has inadvertently stumbled upon this bad situation. Since Vectorman is immune to WarHead‘s mind control, he sets out to save the Earth by destroying him.
Magical Starsign, Nintendo DS
This is the sequel to the excellent Magical Vacation on the GBA. Magical Starsign was developed by Brownie Brown and published by Nintendo, exclusively for the Nintendo DS, in 2006. Unlike its predecessor, Magical Starsign was given an official release in the west, in English.
Phantasy Star Adventure, Game Gear
Released exclusively for the Game Gear – in Japan only – by Sega in 1992, Phantasy Star Adventure is a spin-off from the main Phantasy Star series and is a kind of RPG/adventure controlled with a simple menu system. A fan translation into English makes it playable to non Japanese speakers.
Metal Combat: Falcon’s Revenge, Super Nintendo
This sequel to Battle Clash was released only in Western regions in 1993 (USA) and 1994 (Europe), for the Super Nintendo. It was developed by the same team at Intelligent Systems who made the first game, and it is called: Metal Combat: Falcon’s Revenge. It features lightgun-style shooter gameplay and uses the Nintendo Super Scope.
Continue reading Metal Combat: Falcon’s Revenge, Super Nintendo
Battle Clash, Super Nintendo
A SNES game that uses the Nintendo Super Scope is a rare and welcome thing, so Nintendo‘s 1992 Battle Clash is already onto a winner before the cartridge is even inserted… The weird thing is: this Japanese-made Super Scope game wasn’t even released in Japan (that I can see). Something about the Super Scope not being “as popular” in Japan as it was in the West.
Zoids: The Battle Begins, Amstrad CPC
Zoids was a range of popular children’s toys during the 1980s. They were dinosaur robot-type things that fought each other and looked really cool (if you were six years old). The toys spawned TV shows and computer games, and this one – designed by The Electronic Pencil Company – is notable as one of the best.
Impossible Mission, ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum version of Dennis Caswell‘s classic platform/puzzle game, Impossible Mission, was first published in 1985 by US Gold. It is an okay adaptation. Playable, but nothing special.
Koronis Rift, Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC version of Koronis Rift is very similar to the Atari 8-bit original. The Amstrad‘s multi-colour graphics mode emulates the Atari graphics so well that you’d have to wonder if it’s a clone of Atari‘s graphics mode… It probably is. 🙂
Koronis Rift was ported to the Amstrad by Mr. Micro Ltd. – for Lucasfilm Games – and first published by Activision in 1987.
System Shock: Enhanced Edition, PC
This enhanced edition of the classic sci-fi RPG, System Shock, was developed by Nightdive Studios and first released in 2023. What Nightdive has done is bring the original 1994 classic into the modern age, with high definition graphics and a boatload of quality-of-life features.
