• Tag Archives retrogaming

  • Predator 2 (Amiga)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Predator 2 – by Konami for the Amiga

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/171800671006/techturd-predator-2-by-konami-for-the-amiga

    Predator 2 was released in 1990 and is based on the movie of the same name. You take the role of a Los Angeles police Lieutenant whose unfortunate job it is to stop illegal aliens of a new kind. The game plays very much like Operation Wolf without the light gun. You must put the crosshairs on the target and fire. The Amiga and other 16-bit editions offer the benefit of having mouse control.


    While the graphics are quite good (at least in the Amiga version), the gameplay leaves a little to be desired. I’m not a fan of the shooter on rails genre for the most part anyway and this game does little to advance the genre other than having even more violence than average. In addition to killing aliens, you must also collect ammunition and power-ups and avoid killing civilians.


    In addition to the Amiga, this game was also released for the Commodore 64, DOS, Atari ST and others. Of these version, the Amiga version is the best. If this is your type of game, you’ll have to track down an original copy for the Amiga or use emulation as this game has never been re-released as far as I know. There was also a Sega Genesis version of the game but it was released a couple of years later and is a completely different game played from an isometric point of view.

    Images above are for the Amiga version of the game.





    📂This entry was posted in Amiga Computer Arcana Retro Games 📎and tagged

  • Defender of the Crown (Amiga)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Defender of the Crown was initially released in 1986 for the Amiga and subsequently ported to a number of other systems. It was the first game released by Cinemaware. It is a landmark game and important for the Amiga in particular. Defender of the Crown was the first game that really demonstrated the graphics capabilities of the Amiga and was a huge step forward in terms of graphics standards for computer and video games in general.

    Defender of the Crown is an action strategy game in which you play the role of Saxon Lord trying to fight off the Normans and sometimes Saxon rivals. Interestingly, because Cinemaware was facing financial difficulties, the game was released in an unfinished state, or at least a number of features that were originally intended were incomplete and removed from the initial release. The result was a more simplistic game than was originally intended. However, it was still an excellent game despite this and was released to rave reviews.

    After the initial Amiga release, Defender of the Crown was ported to the Atari ST, DOS, Macintosh, NES, Apple IIgs, Commodore 64 and other platforms. Some ports were better than others. For example, the graphics and sound in the NES and DOS versions suffered quite a bit but the Commodore 64 version ended up being an excellent port despite that systems limitations when compared to the Amiga. On the other hand, some of the previously unfinished more in depth strategic elements were put back in those versions.

    There were a couple of remakes/rereleases in later years, including a new version called Robin Hood: Defender of the Crown that was released in 2003 for the PS2, Xbox and Windows. A digitally remastered version of some Cinemaware games were released including Defender of the Crown. If you are looking to play the original, I recommend the Amiga, Atari ST or Commodore 64 versions.

    The images above are all from the Amiga version.

    —

    Defender of the Crown, Commodore Amiga (1986)

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/171809293641/skylarking-a-go-go-defender-of-the-crown





    📂This entry was posted in Amiga Computer Arcana Retro Games 📎and tagged

  • Ridge Racer (PlayStation)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    next_generation_august_1995_039

    Source: Next Generation – Issue Number 8 – August 1995

    Ridge Racer was the first in a long series of arcade and home console racing games. The original arcade game was released late in 1993 and the PlayStation port followed about a year later and was one of the launch titles for that system in Japan. The North American release came in 1995. Ridge Racer was one of the early titles for the PS1 that helped to make that system the success that it was.

    The game starts by allowing you to choose the car you want and the music you want to listen to. Each car has different characteristics such as differing top speeds, acceleration, turning ability, etc. The original arcade game can only be played 1st person but the PlayStation version also allows the game to be played from a third person point of view from slightly above and behind the car. The goal is ultimately to defeat your opponents but you must pass each checkpoint with time remaining to gain more time and continue. Ridge Racer was one of the most technically impressive racing games created up to that point.Since the original Ridge Racer, a vast number of sequels have been released though the popularity of the series has faded over recent years. There were at least 7 arcade games bearing the Ridge Racer name, at least 12 console games, and at least 10 games on portable systems or mobile phones. A few of these were only available in certain regions. The last console release was Ridge Racer Unbounded for Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 released in 2012. A Ridge Racer game was one of the launch titles for many systems including the original PlayStation (Ridge Racer), the PS2 (Ridge Racer V), the Nintendo DS (Ridge Racer DS), the PlayStation Portable (Ridge Racer), Xbox 360 (Ridge Racer 6), PlayStation 3 (Ridge Racer 7), Nintendo 3DS (Ridge Racer 3D), and PlayStation Vita (Ridge Racer).

    While at least a few of these are better than the original, it’s worthwhile checking out the original to see where it all started and it is still a fun game to play. The easiest way to play the original is to get one of the various PlayStation releases. It was re-released as part of a few different “best of” lines. As far as more recent remakes or re-releases, I’m not aware of any good options. R4: Ridge Racer Type 4 was released in 1999 and it included an updated version of the original. There was also a mobile phone version in 2005.

    The above ad is from the August 1995 issue of Next Generation.





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