I have admit that when I first played a Williams
Funhouse, I was not impressed at all. I even recall rating the game very low on Pinside.com and attacking it for being overly difficult and crowded in the center.....I was quickly reprimanded by members of course.
Are these points about Funhouse valid? Well.......yeah, but I think at the time I was more frustrated with the game because I was new to it and well, dammit, it was difficult. I constantly asked myself, "Why in the hell did people like this machine so much and rate it so high?" Something about this machine had to be redeeming, right?
Continue reading Banana's Pinball Top 10 - #5 Funhouse
I was quite happy to recently pick up FIFA Soccer 2005 for the PS1 for only about $9, which is about a third or so of what the game often goes for on eBay. My primary interest in the game is that was the final game released in North America (and some other parts of the world) for the Sony Playstation. As I am someone who likes focusing on games from both ends of the life of a console, I thought the purchase of this game would be an interesting opportunity to compare a game from a console's introduction - FIFA Soccer '96 [SLUS-00038] - to a game from its end - FIFA Soccer 2005 [SLUS-01585].
FIFA Soccer '96 was not a PS1 launch game, but it definitely falls into the system's "launch window" as it released less than three weeks after the system's North American debut. By contrast, FIFA Soccer 2005 was one of less than a dozen games released in North America in all of 2004, most of which were other perennial sports titles (Madden, MLB, etc.). FIFA 2005's October 2004 release was the last for the system in most of the Western Hemisphere.
Looking at the two games side by side provides an interesting window into how much had changed for Sony, EA, and the games industry in the lifespan of the Playstation 1.
There are a few very apparent differences before you even turn the games on, and they multiply as you get going...
Packaging and Labeling: FIFA Soccer '96 shipped in the clear, hard plastic longbox cases that characterized games for the first year or so on Sony's first gaming machine. FIFA 2005 shipped in the standard clear jewelcase. The front of the box of '96 features the old "K-A" rating system, the 2005 game is ESRB rated "E for Everyone". The difference in the quality of the graphic art production between the two is also quite stark - "By Extended Play Productions" is shooting out of the head of the featured player on the '96 version, the choppy/boxy artwork looks ill-conceived, and the randomly placed FIFA and "Virtual Stadium" labels really looks like someone's first foray into Photoshop. By contrast, FIFA 2005 incorporates labels nicely, blends artistic elements and photos more naturally, and fits in with the standardized EA design that marked their games for a very long time. It is clear that they had learned a lot about attractive design in the period between covers...
1995 release on the left, 2004 release on the right.
The Back of the Box: Perhaps even more interesting than the front of each box is the back, where more important differences exist between what advertised in each game. Most strikingly, the 2005 version places the Spanish description of features above the English description, indicating EA had discovered a large Spanish-speaking audience for the game in the years since the series' PS1 debut. There is no Spanish at all on the back of the FIFA Soccer '96 box. The FIFA Soccer '96 box prominently emphasizes the motion capture technology that went into realizing inclusion of "all the moves of real soccer" as well as the move to "Real 3-D!", "high-res gameplay", "CD quality sound effects encoded by Dolby Surround Sound", "unlimited camera angles", and other aspects that assured potential buyers that they were purchasing a game that took full advantage of new, expensive hardware. By contrast, the only mention of aesthetics on the FIFA 2005 box is a line about "unrivaled player animations". There are also some interesting differences in features: '96 boasts a feature of 3,800 players, 2005 boasts 6,000. FFA '96 mentions capabilities for saving and for one to eight player gameplay without indicating how these features must be utilized. FIFA 2005 explains via a long-ago standardized PS1 feature key that the game supports up to eight players via multi-tap, that the game needed 1-3 blocks of a memory card, and that it offered vibration and analog support (neither of which was an option for a game in 1995).
Pre-Game: Upon booting up, FIFA '96 starts with several long FMV demo videos emphasizing the updated graphics and sound capabilities of a soccer game on the PS1. After several minutes of this FMV, it switches to footage of gameplay between the US and Brazil, and then repeats. To get out of the loop and into the main menus you have to hit Start (though you are never prompted to do so). I can imagine this running in attract mode at an Ames kiosk or some such, which I am sure was the plan. By contrast, FIFA 2005 goes straight to a splash screen prompting you to hit start to begin (while licensed music - also missing from the '96 version - plays in the background). If you hit nothing for about a minute, random demo mode matches begin playing for several minutes at a time. For practicality I prefer the no-nonsense approach of the 2005 game, but there was clearly something special about the over the top intro videos in the early PS1 titles.
The in-game menus from '96 and 2005.
Pre-Game, Part 2 Once you are in the main game menus, the 2005 version of the game shows lots of expected improvement over the '96 entry. The Playstation controller buttons are prominently featured on each screen so you know what to do, the menu options (including team and career management options) are expanded considerably, there are rankings for each team featured on the team selection screen (this was only seen in the post-selection, match loading screens on '96), there are uniform choices that can be made, team info and lineups can be viewed/adjusted and are then automatically previewed before the match, and the "broadcast-like" presentation going into the game is quite remarkable. Other little interesting curiosities include the standard "X to select" in 2005 (it was "O" in '96, which threw me for a loop initially), the close relationship between the in-game menu and out-game menus in the latter version (which separated a lot of functions), and the prominence of "EA Sports" over any/all other logos and brands affiliated with the game (The "Virtual Stadium" was a big highlight of the post-menu intro to the '96 game, for example).
1995 release on the left, 2004 release on the right.
Gameplay: The casual observer would be forgiven for thinking that these two games are running on completely different systems. The player models in the '96 version of the game are about half the size of those found in the 2005 edition, the amount of spoken play-by-play is vastly improved in the 2005 version (as is its level of nuance and diversity), and the general look of the game is just dramatically improved. The latter version features instant replays, lacks some of the cheesy-if-charming goal celebration animations found in the '96 game, and is entirely devoid of any FMV of actual soccer. More importantly, it controls beautifully with the analog controller, has many additional gameplay components that enhance both realism and fun (e.g. smart directional passing), and is just a joy to play even in 2013. That's not to say that the '96 entry is bad - it is in fact very good compared to the myriad 16-bit soccer titles that preceded it and the game does indeed represent some of the significant "leap" that it so prominently advertised on its box. That said, you still can have fun with either today, which more than anything is probably a tribute to the consistent quality of EA Sports' FIFA teams.
1995 release on the left, 2004 release on the right.
None of what I've noted is especially surprising, perhaps. The 2005 version of the game had the benefit of nine years of precedence on the hardware as well as several years of industry innovation into yet another console generation. However, it is interesting to me to see
exactly how far a single company was able to push a console over a very long period of time, how the marketing of the game itself has shifted significantly, and how much fun each game still is on its own merits, despite being so drastically different. Hopefully you found it interesting, too.
As usual on my days off things slow down a bit game-wise. But I did wake up insanely early and found a bit of time to sink into my NES list. First one I beat was a recommendation from Singlebanana. The game was Gun Smoke. Very odd shmup type game. Wild West isn't exactly what I think of when I think shmup, but somehow they make the theme work well. Each level has you shooting bandits as you hunt for a wanted poster which will unveil the level's boss when you get to a certain area. Helpful townsfolk will sell you new guns, ammo, a horse or even the wanted map if you're willing to spend your hard earned cash. Another reason why its a bit off is because of the angle you fire your guns at. You can fire straight by pushing both A and B at the same time, but that's kind of a pain so most of your shooting will be diagonally. Pretty short game and relatively easy as far a shmups go. Definitely fun and worth checking out though. Thanks Banana!
Another thanks is in order to yet another rfgen member for this next one too. Fleach sent me a copy of Kiwi Kraze as part of my secret santa gift this year. Not only did I have fun playing it, but it was the second to last Taito release I needed!! I didn't really know what to expect with this one, but being Taito I figured I'd enjoy it. Its kind of an action platformer, but the further you get the more puzzle heavy it becomes. A lot of the levels become more about figuring out how to navigate a maze or get around certain obstacles and moves away from how it initially starts out. Pretty neat game and very tight controls. Thanks Fleach!!
After playing two solid games I thought I'd chance it with a black box title and give 10 Yard Fight a try. Much of my black box experience has been that I need to find a way to out smart the computer AI and then spam that in order to win. Much to my surprise though the computer was pretty dumb on 10 Yard Fight, even on the hardest (Super Bowl) mode. My team had no problem tackling they guys or intercepting passes and after playing two games (which were literally the first and only time I've played the game) the computer had failed to score a single point against me. If you're looking for an easy victory this is definitely one.
Lastly I went back to the Saturday morning cartoon games and played through Tom & Jerry. It was a pretty frustrating game. The controls are a bit sloppy, and very few of the levels are much fun to play. They really designed them to be a chore instead of enjoyable. I spent about 10 minutes in the middle of the game exploiting the fact that I could gain as many lives as I wanted, even though in the end it turned out I didn't need to max them out like I did. Not one of the best I've played this year, or any other year.
With 4 more games crossed off my list since last update that puts me at 18 games beaten over that last 9 days. So I'm well on my way to meeting my goal if I can keep it up, and I have several "cheap" wins sitting in the wings if I should need them so I'm in pretty good shape so far. I spent more time on Tom & Jerry than I would have liked, but I've also managed to keep plugging away at Wrecking Crew as well. I'm around phase 62 out of 100 on that one now.
2013 NES List
Sesame Street CountdownTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament FightersShooting RangeSpace Shuttle ProjectDouble DareWin, Lose or DrawOthelloWhomp EmDragon Fighter
Bugs Bunny's Crazy CastleFamily FeudTale SpinPlatoonGotcha!Gun SmokeKiwi Kraze10 Yard FightTom & Jerry
Future Plans - Continue working away at Wrecking Crew for sure. Feeling like a puzzle game too so I think I'm going to try my hand at Hatris tomorrow and maybe try and cross off a game I've been meaning to for quite a while now, Time Lord.
I have been actively collection since 1999. I continue to thrift games and buy current gen games. I love thrifting and also buy most any gaming related junk. I also board game and collect those as well. I am lucky to have a large area for my "Room of Doom" as they call them on Digital Press. I continue to fill it, but listing on ebay is a pain so my area is a huge mess.
I generally only pick up games that are higher in rarity assuming that I have most commons. This past Xmas, I gave a Genesis to a coworker so he could give it to his brother for a gift. I told him I'd give him some of my doubles and commons. When I went to find some for him, I found that I didn't have many commons I assumed that I would own (like Earthworm Jim). I decided then that I needed to get my collection inventoried.
This led me to find the RFGen Android App. This is exactly what I have been looking for. My goal now is to get my collection inventoried and organized and to create an up to date trade list and/or sell off my extras.
I am documenting my attempt at this here to keep me motivated and held somewhat accountable.
Here is a view looking into my basement
IMG_20130105_110224 by
kabonk, on Flickr
Board games are shelved at the entrance area:
IMG_20130105_110238 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110251 by
kabonk, on Flickr
The main sitting and playing areas:
This area has my boxes of NES games that I pulled from the storage room to start inventorying
IMG_20130105_110300 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110315 by
kabonk, on Flickr
The back half of the room has video game shelves, 2 pinball machines and an arcade Asteroids deluxe. The piles are extras to be listed on ebay.
IMG_20130105_110332 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110336 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110349 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110400 by
kabonk, on Flickr
Finally at the other end is my storage room:
IMG_20130105_110518 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110526 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110532 by
kabonk, on Flickr
IMG_20130105_110543 by
kabonk, on Flickr
I also have overstock in my garage:
IMG_20130105_110708 by
kabonk, on Flickr
I'm very lucky to have a large space for my collection and a lot of good stuff. Unfortunately my area is not super conducive to showing off, or enjoying my collection.
My goal is to have my collection completely organized by the end of this year and to have my collection inventoried.
As a start; This was my Bedroom area:
I generally bring my new stuff in here first. I picked up a table to keep in here so my wife and I could boardgame and leave it set up without the kids disturbing it. It became a piling zone. I also pick up books at the thrifts and pile them by my bed until I read them and decide whether to keep or re-donate them.
IMG_20130102_084820 by
kabonk, on Flickr
One day of Xmas break, I picked up a cheap table cloth and bookcase. Now my bedroom and staging area is clean.
IMG_20130105_112754 by
kabonk, on Flickr
Here's hoping I can keep this up and get organized in 2013! Wish me luck!
Alright, the cat is out of the bag. I guess the secret is out that everyone's secret match with their Secret Santa is no secret. Several people sent PMs letting me know that they had figured it out and asked if this was done by accident. It was not. Let me explain.
Last year (2011) I was late to sign up for the RFGen Secret Santa and was matched up with one of the only remaining members who didn't have a match, Techie413. I figured it out, as most of you did this year, when I saw a very familiar return address.
Fast forward to the middle of November just this past year (2012) when I asked Shadow if a Secret Santa was going to happen on RFGen this year. He told me that the staff was swamped with other work related to the site and I offered to organize the SS campaign. I made the decision to match members up 1-1 because of the RFGen buddy I gained in Techie by knowing that he was my Secret Santa.
A Secret Santa is a lot of fun, but this site is about collecting. I believe that collecting is as much about the relationships that we make with awesome people as it is about the awesome things that we acquire. I hope that by knowing who you were matched up with, you gained an RFGen buddy like I did a year ago.
There's something about the RPGs of the 7th Generation of home consoles that really does not sit well with me. Considering all three of the major systems I can name the RPGs I've seen as truly breathtaking and majestic recreations of the wonder and amazement I felt as a child on one hand.
One hand.
Now keep in mind that I still have yet to play quite a few of the RPGs released in this generation as it comes to a close. Out of the ones I have played so far only three of them have really stood out above the rest as not only great games, but telling a great story on top of it; Valkyria Chronicles, Xenoblade, and The Last Story. The list gets longer if I'm counting games I played on PC, and I'm not.
One of my favorite wallpapers.
I've been a bit jaded yes, I admit it. Anyway, I've finally decided to sit down and play some of the games that I currently own but have yet to play, and I started with Nier. I feel like I've been missing out by not playing this game sooner.
Call it timing if you will, when I first started playing Nier and I got past the introduction and really started to play the game it just felt like everything I wanted in a modern RPG. The protagonist is not some naive, asexual, teenage, pretty boy swordsman. Nier is a middle aged father taking care of his daughter who has been sticken by a fatal illness with no known cure.
So right from the start Nier has swerved to avoid the overdone and burnt to a crisp coming of age tale, but it does not completely avoid cliches, just downplays them and does not make them the focus of the story, at least at first. The voice acting and direction is highly competent, Jamieson Price providing the English voice of Nier, and Liam O'Brien starring as Grimoire Weiss. The two make for quite a dynamic duo.
Grimoire Weiss unlocks magical abilities, which will be key!
The story is progressed through various events, sometimes you just have to talk to somebody. Each arc of the story is finished up by clearing a dungeon and defeating the boss. Nier really has a lot of gameplay systems, the combat is in real time and huge combos can be made as long as the player avoids taking damage and being knocked down. The companion AI is pretty dumb as well, its executed well in combat, but your allies don't even run as fast as Nier so they're always teleporting next to you and not moving until they teleport again.
Outside of the main story Nier has a lot of extras to dive deeply into, the first one the player is introduced to being the Quests that random villagers will want you to do for them. The quests are not overwhelming like they can be in Xenoblade, and a lot of them involve farming items, fetching, delivering, or finding somebody or something. But there are enough that involve humanity, its nature, and errors that just makes for great entertainment at times, and invokes empathy at others.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaass.
Interlaced with questing is fishing, which can be leveled up through a quest chain through an old man on the pier, and then done purely for profit. Fishing feels a bit awkward at first and took me some getting used to, but it really is simple. You watch your rod, ignore the nibbles, hit it on the big bite, and pull back and from side to side to reel it in. Nier has a terrible cast though, you end up catching huge sharks with the fishing line two feet off the pier.
At home Nier has more than just his little daughter to visit, after a couple early quests you will have a garden to tend to. Seeds are cheap to buy and even early yields can net Nier over 20,000 gold while only spending ~1,000 for seeds. All you have to do is water them at each stage of growth, even the fertilizer the game offers is totally optional.
One other way to spend your money in Nier is to level up your weapons at the little shack in the Junk Heap. You unlock this option after beating the second dungeon, and even get your first upgrade for free! There really aren't many weapons in the game so you will have to upgrade them at some point, and spend time farming the materials for it as well.
You can upgrade your spells and weapons even further with magic words that you find in random boxes you break and from enemies you kill. The effects of these can be combined for a mix and match of effects. But, you can only have two words on any spell or weapon and there are only a few that are really useful in all situations.
Did you forget that Kaine has an ass?
Nier has its technical problems and those keep it just shy out of that Holy Trinity I mentioned at the top. The story is polished and different enough to keep me intrigued through a playthrough. The narrative flows in a competent manner with nice pacing. The voice acting is done by highly trained professionals with a long list of works. All in all, I would say that Square Enix did good publishing this game, if only they had actually marketed it or bribed some reviewers to get the aggregate scores fluffed up it may have sold well enough to localize Nier Replicant.
Let's face it. Gaming is in our (The Members of RFGeneration) blood. There are games we love, and games we hate. Without the hardware though, how could we play all of these games? Today, I'm here to reveal the Consoles that have made they're mark in my life as the best of the best. Here we go!
Number 10
Ah, the Nintendo Gamecube. Popularly known as Nintendo's jump into the Compact Disc market, this console, like most of Nintendo's hardware, carried the title of "Kid's System". Despite this, it features many Triple-A Titles, like Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Mario Sunshine, and Metroid Prime. Even it's lesser known titles are Triple-A, like Virtua Quest, Phantasy Star Online EPs I+II Plus, and Tales of Symphonia. Without a doubt, this console has many fun titles that are sure to keep you busy.
Stand Out Titles:
Virtua Quest
Phantasy Star Online EPs I+II Plus
PC-Genjin Remake (Known as Bonk's Adventure in the US)
Number 9
The Atari 5200 was not nearly as popular as Atari's previous console, the 2600. This, along with other factors, doomed it to failure. Still, it features a strong fanbase who cared enough to produce Homebrew Titles for it. It also had more power than the ColecoVision, but it's controllers left something to be desired. In this day and age though, you can buy rebuilt controllers that are more reliable than stock controllers. This console features an undeniable charm in my eyes, which is why it finds itself at Number 9.
Stand Out Titles:
Mario Bros.
Pac-Man
Defender
Number 8
The Neo-Geo CDZ is an upgraded version of the Neo-Geo CD. Featuring faster load times than the original model, it still never caught on, due to a flaw that made it overheat a lot. Still, it's an awesome console, and for good reason: It sports many arcade-perfect ports of some of the most awesome fighting games ever. If not for the overheating problem, it would've found itself higher on this list. Still, you can't go wrong with arcade-perfect ports of the best fighting games ever.
Stand Out Titles:
King of Fighters 97
Fatal Fury 3
Samurai Shodown RPG
Number 7
The Panasonic 3DO...a console that was doomed to fail when it should have succeeded. It's ONLY failing point was it's high price tag of 700 US Dollars. (!!) Still, when it came to FMV (Full Motion Video) Games, there was none other that could stand against it. It was incredibly powerful for it's time, and featured what is quite frankly the best version of Street Fighter II.
Stand Out Titles:
Mad Dog McCree
Wing Commander III
Street Fighter II
Number 6
The TurboGrafx-16/PC-Engine was NEC's stab at the NES. NEC's claim was that it featured bigger and better graphics than the NES. While this was true, it failed to gain the attention of gamers at the time. Still, I like this console a lot. It featured many unique games at the time, including the incredibly fun-to-play Silent Debuggers. A fun fact, it was advertised to be 16-Bits, but it was actually just two 8-Bit Processors.
Stand Out Titles:
Silent Debuggers
Splatterhouse
Street Fighter II (This was an achivement on this console, due to space limitations)
Number 5
"Genesis does what Nintendon't!" That was Sega's answer to Nintendo more than 20 years ago with they're Genesis Console. Despite being slow out of the gate, the switch to a new CEO made this console storm ahead of the NES with an awesome new game, Sonic The Hedgehog. While it is true that the Audio isn't as good as the SNES and that the Add-Ons weren't as popular as Sega had hoped, it still had many great games that were all it's own, one hell of an awesome controller, and let's not forget the Blast Processing.
Stand Out Titles:
Sonic The Hedgehog
Phantasy Star III
Space Harrier II
Number 4
The Atari Jaguar, Atari's last console, was called the first 64-Bit Console by Atari. Atari tried they're best to market it as being the greatest console ever, but ultimately failed. Nonetheless, the console has a strong fanbase to this day, which still produces homebrew titles for it. This console has been one of my favorites for ages now, and I'm still purchasing games for it to this day. Honestly, I can't explain why I love it so much. I just do. It's that simple.
Stand Out Titles:
NBA Jam TE
Ultra Vortek
Cybermorph
Number 3
The Sega Saturn is, without a doubt, a love it or hate it console. I obviously love it, and for good reason. Featuring some of the best 2D Games ever, not to mention some 3D Gems, the Sega Saturn proved to be a diamond in the rough for Sega's most loyal fans. Unfortunately, it proved to be a flop in the eyes of consumers. Still, when it comes to hearts of true gamers, the Saturn stands out as one of the best.
Stand Out Titles:
Panzer Dragoon Saga
Sonic Jam
Magic Knight Rayearth
Number 2
Now we're talking. The Sega Dreamcast is popularly known as the first HD Console. Ahead of it's time, this thing was meant to destroy the PS1 and N64, as well as they're successors. Unfortunately, after the PS2 was released, it basically fell off the face of the earth. Still, the Dreamcast was a great console. It also did Online Play first.
Stand Out Titles:
Sonic Adventure
Shenmue
Evolution
Number 1
The NES is the BEST console ever. When Nintendo came to power in 1985, they released this monster of a console, effectively saving gaming from the endless pits of darkness. The NES is legendary among gamers now, featuring countless Franchise launches, hundreds of thousands of memories, and of course, great games. There is no console in my eyes that can stand against it.
Stand Out Titles:
Super Mario Bros.
Final Fantasy
The Legend of Zelda
Well, that's it. Thanks for reading!
DISCLAIMER: This list is an opinion. User opinions are subject to differences.
Starting on New Years Eve and into the first week of January I found a bunch of stuff... a few good finds, some just bulk for the collection, some just for gits and shiggles. I'll keep this as short as possible, bunch of pictures with titles listed. I'm feeling a bit lazy today and don't feel up to sorting it all by locations found and prices. Anywho, here we go.
Bunch of Playstation games:
Cool Boarders 2 (GH)
Cool Boarders 3 (GH)
Cool Boarders 4
Tomb Raider Chronicles
The Italian Job
Grand Theft Auto 2
Grand Theft Auto London
Jet Moto 3
NBA Jam Extreme
Game Cube:
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles (already had this, but was missing the manual and original box)
Metroid Prime 2 Echoes
Sega Saturn:
Virtua Racing
NBA Jam TE
Dreamcast:
Vanishing Point
XBox:
Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller
Nintendo DS:
Star Fox Command
NES:
Karnov
Fester's Quest
Donkey Kong Classics
SNES:
Super Return of the Jedi
N64:
Lego Racers
Hexen
South Park
South Park: Chef's Love Shack
Star Wars Shadows of the Empire
Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time (CiB)
32X:
Mortal Kombat II
Playstation:
Chrono Cross (I already had the GH version)
Pile o' PS2 games:
Harvest Moon: Save the Homeland
Full Metal Alchemist and the Broken Angel
Tekken 4
Grand Theft Auto Vice City Stories
Crazy Taxi
Romancing Saga
Dirge of Cerberus
Midnight Club: Dub Edition Remix (GH)
More PS2...
Metal Slug 4/5
Gradius III and IV
Family Guy
R-Type Final
and a couple strategy guides for Crazy Taxi 2 and 3.
With all of these additions to my collection, and finally getting around to adding games from Steam to my collection I finally rolled over 700 entries. So there's a small milestone down already for the year.
On a side note: I'm also looking for a Famicom system to add to my collection to go with all of the Famicom games I picked up from senseiman in October last year. If anyone has any leads on one that is in good working order, with little to no yellowing, I'd be grateful. I'm still a little leery of buying off of Ebay, and would prefer to buy from within our community here, or friends of the community.
I had a pretty slow night yesterday in terms of new completions. I was able to finish of Bugs Bunnys Crazy Castle and get my ass handed to me at both Gun Nac and Family Feud. BB Crazy Castle wasn't too bad though. Other than a handful of frustrating puzzles it was mostly straightforward. It was my first time playing it since I was a child and I was able to beat it with 20 or so extra men, so really not very challenging. I always assumed it was a lot harder for some reason.
After that I was determined to finally finish Family Feud after spending many hours on it over the last few nights. Luckily even though it was a bit challenging to beat, it was a lot of fun. Easily one of my favorite game shows on the system. I ended up being a little cheap, and a little lucky tonight and finished it on my first attempt!! Horaay!
Thought I'd jump into a Capcom game I've been neglecting and game Tale Spin a whirl. This is pretty much the only Capcom/Disney game that I have ZERO connection to. Never watched Tale Spin as a kid, which is probably why I left this one on the shelf for so long. Its pretty annoying at first because you can only have one shot on the screen at a time. Once you earn some cash and boost your rate of fire it gets quite a bit more enjoyable though. Not my favorite Capcom game, but it was a bit better than I expected.
All this happy kiddy-family time was getting to me. I had to darken things up with some Platoon next. This one I tried a bit last year and got frustrated in the second area of the game, the underground maze, and called it quits. This time I was determined to get past it. Turns out the maze wasn't too bad so I don't know what I was having trouble with last time. The 4th part was a bit tricky though and took me quite a few tries to overcome. Luckily its a very short game so when I die on the final area it only takes 10-15 to get back to it. Interesting game, but not great.
This last one is just kind of a freebie, Gotcha! is super easy to "beat". It starts looping after 3 short stages and has a pretty low high score to beat. It does however have a different high score board for each of the 3 difficulties. So my goal was to loop the levels on each of the 3 difficulties as well as beat the default 10,000 point high score (which would be done sometime during the second stage). Easy peasy!
I had a bit of extra time so I tried out Tom & Jerry and Orb-3D. Tom & Jerry is gonna be a game I think I'll need to dedicate a whole session or two towards, and I really didnt understand what to do in Orb-3D. I'm gonna need to read the manual on that one. With a bit of time left, but not enough to sink deep into anything I just slammed through as many phases as I could on Wrecking Crew. Got up to Phase 39 out of 100 for now. I'll keep plugging away on it when I get little bits of time here and there until I've made it through all 100 levels.
2013 NES List
Sesame Street CountdownTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Tournament FightersShooting RangeSpace Shuttle ProjectDouble DareWin, Lose or DrawOthelloWhomp EmDragon Fighter
Bugs Bunny's Crazy CastleFamily Feud
Tale Spin
Platoon
Gotcha!
Future Plans - Figure out Orb-3D and how to golf in a couple different golf games.
Here's an interesting one. After Mike Tyson was defeated by Buster Douglas in 1990 (Possibly 1991, I'm not entirely sure), Sega released this sports title in response to Mike Tyson's Punch Out. A short game, there's not really much depth to it, so this will be a very short review.
Gameplay: 6/10
It's a 2D boxing game. You select one of 5 Boxers, including Buster Douglas himself if you want, and fight your way through the 4 other boxers, ultimately aiming to become the World Champion. After you become World Champion, you have to defend your title by fighting the 4 Boxers again, only it's tougher this time, and with the addition of a 5th Boxer, Iron Head, whom I still haven't beaten.
Graphics: 10/10
The graphics are awesome. They look exactly like an Arcade Game from the time period. Of course, this game DID start as an Arcade Game called "Final Blow". Buster Douglas is, in fact, actually just a palette swap. Palette swapping fighters seemed to be popular at the time. (I'm looking at you, Street Fighter 2).
Difficulty: Unbalanced
Okay, sure, the game does start out easy, and is pretty much that way for the entire game, but when you fight the last boss, Iron Head, it gets very hard, to the point where you will be mashing buttons in anger. That's what makes it unbalanced. I personally hate this in games, and I'm sure many others do too.
Sound: ??/10
Unfortunately, I had to keep the volume all the way down at my time of playing this, so I cannot judge the sound at this time. I'll edit this review as soon as I can. Sorry about that.
Overall: 6.5/10
This is a decent game, and there IS fun to be had, but it's incredibly short, and not as colorful as Mike Tyson's Punch Out. In fact, you can win most of the fights simply by mashing buttons, which may take away from the fun for some people. You owe it to yourself to at least try this one.
Thanks for reading!
Hey now!
I've been alluding to a significant retro pick-up for a couple weeks now, and I figured it's time for the big reveal:
A complete boxed Magnavox Odyssey2 system with hardwired controllers, and CIB
Speedway! / Spin-Out! / Crypto Logic! pack-in game, along with:
CIB games:
-
Match-Maker! / Logix! / Buzzword!
- Cosmic Conflict!
- Bowling! / Basketball!
- Pac-Man K.C. Munchkin!
- Computer Golf!
- Football!
- Space Alien Invaders Plus! Loose games:
-
Baseball!
- Blackjack!
- Blockout! / Breakdown!Um... why do all the game titles end with exclamation points? That''s kinda annoying, you know? It's like the ALL CAPS of the pre-internet era or something.
But I digress. Here's the topper:
- An almost-CIB
Quest for the Rings set (one piece is missing). Finally, an O^2 game whose title doesn't end in an exclamation point. That's because it's so cool, it doesn't have to shout about how cool it is. Of all the games I got with the system, this is the one I'm most interested in giving a whirl.
While the entire collection's cosmetic appearance could use a fair deal of cleanup, I figured I got a decent deal paying $80 for the lot.
Where did I find all this, you ask? Well, it originally belonged to my best friend, who kept it locked away in his attic for a couple decades. Weird thing is, I knew he had it ever since I've known him, but never thought to ask him about it, even after seriously getting into vidya collecting. Then, a few weeks before Christmas, he told me he was planning to sell it, and asked if I could offer it for sale to "those guys on that video game site you hang out at" on his behalf. I told him I'd think about it.
Well, I DID think about it-- which quickly turned into me thinking of other O^2 collectors on the site and how they love to gloat about their ownership of such an interesting bit of retro hardware, and lord it over the have-nots at every opportunity (you KNOW who you are). That's when I realized that
I wanted to lord it over the have-nots too, and laugh at them for being the underprivileged little peons that they are. Because I'm nothing if not compassionate.
Anyhoo, I called my bud to let him know my interest, he mathed out a price, I agreed to it, we tested it out to see if it still worked, I threw him the four Andys, he threw me the whole shebang, and now I'm better than all you pathetic non-O^2-owning losers in every single way.
The cold, hard truth hurts, doesn't it?
'Late
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Hey everyone as I promised here is another fantastic adventure in Game Hunting that I said I would post sorry a little delayed but I had a ton to catalog and put away soon to be a ton more come mid-February. So the other day (New Year's Eve) Bill and I decided we needed to hit up a few places. We went a little backwards than we normally do and well it felt odd and the day kind of started off dark and gloomy BUT it did get a ton better. We started off by going to Ben's Gaming Zone to try and sell of some DVDs but that didn't go so well but Bill picked up a few things nice things while we were there. Then we were off to CD Tradepost in La Vista to get rid of some moves and Bill picked up a few things there. Then we went over to Gamers and I picked up a Castlevania on PS2 there and Bill picked up a few games as well. Then we went to CD Tradepost in West Omaha to get rid of some more of my movies I didn't get anything again but Bill did haha. Then we were off to another Gamers on our usual route and I picked up a SNES box for one of my loose SNES systems which our favorite employee found while we were waiting to get checked out! I also picked up a PS1 game and Guide. Bill picked up a ton of stuff at that Gamers. Then we went to Half Price Books and we both picked up a few items there even though most of these places with the exception of Gamers were pretty much picked over. Then we were off to Game Vault for our last stop on a long days journey. I picked up a few CIB N64 games among some other cool stuff while Bill picked me up a CIB Super Mario 64 THANKS AGAIN BILL!!! Enjoy your CIB LOZ Ocarina!! Also to note I picked up a couple CIB Genesis games on Christmas Eve.
SO the next day I did a little shopping at CD Tradepost while I was just going there for one game the Manager said we have a special this month on Classic Games starting with PS2/Xbox and back....so I was like okay you hooked me so picked up a few games!!! A NOT FOR RESALE Garfield Caught in the Act anyone have any info on this!?!?! Then today I took advantage of the CD Tradepost sales and went to two stores today. SO here is the rundown with pictures.
Christmas Eve - CD Tradepost -
*Radical Rex - Genesis CIB - $6.00
*Streets of Rage Sega Classic - $4.00
Day 1 - Bill & I (December 31, 2012)
Gamers #1 -
*Castlevania - Lament of Darkness - $4.45
Gamers #2 -
*LOZ Link to the Past SNES System Box with Styro and Manual stuff. - $2.00!!!!
*Beyond the Beyond - $13.00
*Playstation Survival Secrets Vol 3 - $0.60
Half Price Books (HPB) -
*Ten Pin Alley PS1 Greatest Hits - $2.00
*Shrek 2 - GameCube Player's Choice - $3.00
*Madden 2003 - GameCube - $2.00
*X-Men Legends - Xbox - $2.00
*NBA Live 2003 - GameCube - $2.00
*Advent Rising - Xbox - $2.00
*Harvey Birdman - PS2 - $2.00
Game Vault -
*Mario's Fun With Numbers SNES Manual - $1.00
*Star Wars Shadows of the Empire N64 Manual - $1.00
*Trick Shot - CIB - Atari 2600 - $2.00
*Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis - $2.50
*Operation Flashpoint: Resistance - $2.50
*Madden 2000 - CIB - N64 - $2.00
*Madden 99 - CB - N64 - $2.00
*NFL Quarterback '98 - $2.00
*WWF War Zone - $5.00
Shopping Day 2 - Myself - January 1st 2013
CD Tradepost -
*Garfield Caught in the Act - Not For Resale - Genesis - $5.00
*Triple Play Gold Edition - CIB - Genesis - $5.00
*Family Feud - CIB - Genesis - $2.00
*Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles - CIB - GameCube - $8.00
*X-Men Legends - PS2 - CIB - FREE
*Sim Theme Park - PS1 - CIB - FREE
*NCAA Final Four 2000 - PS1 - CIB - FREE
*Star Wars Dark Forces - PS1 Black Label - CIB - FREE
*Darkstone - PS1 - CIB - FREE
*Quake 2 - MINTY PS1 - CIB - FREE
Today - January 4th 2013
CD Tradepost #1 -
*Skeleton Warriors PS1 - CIB - $5.00
*Crusaders of Might & Magic - PS1 - CIB - FREE
*Hexen - PS1 - CIB - FREE
*Heart of Darkness - PS1 - CIB (EVEN HAS 3D GLASSES) - $9.00
*Crash Bandicoot Wrath of the Cortex - PS2 - CIB - $6.00
*NeoGeo Battle Colosseum - PS2 - CIB - FREE
*Pac-Man Collection - GBA - CIB - $6.00
*Tiny Toon Adventures Bab's Big Break - GB - FREE
*Tiny Toon Aventures Wacky Sports - GB - FREE
*Little Mermaid - GB - $5.00
CD Tradepost #2 -
*Gunship PS1 - CIB - FREE
*BursTrick Wake Boarding - CIB - $5.00
*GhenWar - Saturn - CIB - $5.00
*Resurrection: Rise 2 - Saturn - CIB - $8.00
*Amok - Saturn - CIB - $9.00
*Adventure (Sears Text Label) - Atari 2600 - FREE
*Othello - Sears - Atari 2600 - FREE
*TaleSpin - Genesis (FINALLY I HAVE IT CIB) - FREE
*Incredible Hulk - Genesis - Cart - FREE
*Garfield - Genesis - Regular Edition - FREE
*Heiankyo Alien - GB - $5.00
*Battletanx - GBC - $5.00
*Flinstones: Burgertime in Bedrock - GBC - FREEEEEEE!!!!!!
*Woody Woodpecker - GBC - FREE
*Casper - GB - $5.00
Bleep Bleep that's all Folks!!! Enjoy the pictures and please comment!!
In 2012, there were 59,374 submissions! Over 27,000 of those were images, over 12,000 new DB entries were added. 
