• Tag Archives Sega

  • VideoGames & Computer Entertainment (February 1993)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: VideoGames & Computer Entertainment – February 1993

    VideoGames & Computer Entertainment was my favorite magazine in the years that it was published (late 1980s to early 1990s). It was really sort of the successor to the original Electronic Games magazine, at least until Electronic Games was actually rebooted. The February 1993 issue includes:

    Features

    • A Matter of Chaos: Player’s Guide to Dungeon Master, Part I – VG&CE had some pretty great game guides. However, you had to be disciplined about looking at them because they could ruin the game for you. This one covers the first part of Dungeon Master for the Super NES.
    • Much Ado About 3DO: The Real Story – It’s a shame the 3DO didn’t have more success. This article is a first look at the machine with some technical details and a look at its capabilities.
    • VG&CE’s Best Games of 1992 Awards – Sonic the Hedgehog 2 won VG&CE’s Video Game of the Year award with other awards going to Street Fighter II (SNES), Warsong (Genesis), F22 (Genesis), The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES), Loom (TG16), Dungeons & Dragons: Warriors of the Eternal Sun (Genesis), Mick & Mack as the Global Gladiators (Genesis), Contra III – The Alien Wars (SNES), Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss (computer game of the year), Hardball III, Wolfenstein 3D, Comanche: Maximum Overkill, V for Victory, Star Control II, The Secret of Monkey Island, Wizardry: Crusaders of the Dark Savant, Dune, LINKS 386 Pro, plus numerous honorable mentions and other lists (such as worst games of 1992).

    Previews & Reviews

    • Video-Game Previews – Brief previews of Flashback (Genesis), Bonk 3 (TurboGrafx-16), Street Combat (Super NES), Dungeon Explorer II (TurboGrafx-16), Zen Intergalactic Ninja (NES and Game Boy), Lethal Weapon (NES and Game Boy), Cool World (Super NES and Game Boy), Congo’s Caper (Super NES), Malibu Bikini Volleyball (Atari Lynx), Spot – The Cool Adventure (Game Boy), and Exile 2 (TurboGrafx-16).
    • Video-Game Reviews – Reviews of The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse (Super NES) – Capcom made some great Disney licensed games and this was one of them, Mega Man 5 (NES) – and there would still be one more Mega Man game on the NES, Roger Clemens’ MVP Baseball (Genesis), Cybernator (Super NES), Buster Bros. (TurboGrafx-16 CD), Dragon’s Lair (Super NES) – a platform game not really like the arcade version, PGA Tour Golf II (Genesis), Super Strike Eagle (Super NES), Aerobiz (Super NES), Samurai Ghost (TurboGrafx-16), The Adventures of Willy Beamish (Sega CD), Tiny Toon Adventures Cartoon Workshop (NES), and Universal Soldier (Super NES) – another bad licensed game.
    • Computer-Game Previews – Short previews of Ultima VII Part 2: The Serpent Isle, Caesar – I think I actually have this one somewhere though I’ve never played it, Betrayal at Krondor – my roommate in college spent many hours on this game, and Pirates! Gold.
    • Computer-Game Reviews – Reviews of The Terminator 2029 – only a few years away now, The Incredible Machine, Dune II – the first RTS I ever really saw, The Humans, WaxWorks, Mega lo Mania, Amazon: Guardians of Eden, MicroLeague Action Sports Soccer, Discovery, and Task Force 1942.

    Departments

    • Editor’s Letter – A look at what’s ahead in 1993 including the 3DO, Atari Jaguar, the PlayStation (which at the time was essentially an SNES console with CD-ROM), and more.
    • Reader Mail – Letters from readers about RPGs, Nintendo’s 32-bit CD-ROM system, portable systems, and more.
    • Tip Sheet – Hints and tips for Night Trap (Sega CD), The Guardian Legend (NES), and Cosmic Fantasy 2 (TurboGrafx-CD).
    • News Bits – Radio Shack debuts a new interactive CD player called the Memorex MD-2500 VIS, Nintendo cleared of antitrust charges, classic games re-released for the NES (Zelda, Zelda II, Punch-out, Metroid) for $29.99 each, Sunsoft licenses The Pirates of Dark Water, Atari drops price of Lynx to $79.99, and more.
    • Easter Egg hunt – Secrets revealed for Batman Returns (Atari Lynx), Super Mario Kart (Super NES), Dead Moon (TurboGrafx-16), Faceball 2000 (Game Boy), Cobra Command (Sega CD), Toki (Atari Lynx), Alisia Dragoon (Genesis), Magic Sword (Super NES), Wacky Races (NES), and Crystal Mines II (Atari Lynx).
    • Destination Arcadia – A guide to the secrets of Mortal Kombat.
    • Computer Strategies – A strategy guide for The Ancient Art of War in the Skies.

    …and more!


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

  • Advanced Computer Entertainment (April 1991)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Advanced Computer Entertainment – Issue number 43 – April 1991

    ACE, short for Advanced Computer Entertainment, is a gaming magazine that was published in the U.K. in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It primarily covered computers but also had some coverage of consoles as well. The April 1991 issue includes:

    Reviews

    • On Computer and Console
      • Chuck Rock – A platform game featuring a cave man for the Amiga and Atari ST.
      • Colditz – A strategic spy game set during World War II for the Amiga, Atari ST, and Commodore 64.
      • Flames of Freedom – Sequel to Midwinter for the Atari ST and Amiga.
      • Gods – An action adventure game set in ancient Greece.
      • Gynoug – A side-scrolling shooter for the Megadrive (Genesis).
      • Lemmings – The classic real-time strategy/puzzle game in which you must save as many lemmings as possible as they mindlessly march to their deaths for the Amiga, Atari ST and DOS.
      • Muds – A fantasy sports sim for the Amiga, Atari ST and DOS.
      • Navy Seals – A game based on the movie of the same name for the Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad, C64, and Spectrum.
      • Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe – A World War II combat flight sim from LucasArts.
      • Super Monaco Grand Prix – Racing sim for the Amiga, Atari ST, DOS, Amstrad, C64, and Spectrum. Looks a bit like Grand Prix Circuit from Accolade.
      • Star Control – The classic sci-fi strategy game. It’s interesting that this game is generally a well regarded classic but it gets a pretty horrible review here.
      • Turrican 2 – The classic side-scrolling shooter for the Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad, C64, and Spectrum.
      • Zany Golf – A fun miniature golf game for the Megadrive (Genesis).
    • On CD
      • Sherlock Holmes – A bit about the making of Sherlock Holmes.

    Features

    • Coin-Op Breakthrough – A look at upcoming arcade technologies including increased memory, digital video, and more. This article talks a bit about the Intel i750 graphics processing unit but this was ultimately a failure in the market.
    • CD Report – A look at early CD systems like the TurboGrafx-CD as well as some of the CD based games expected to be in stores for the holidays.
    • Actual Reality Exclusive – Despite the name, this was a virtual reality system under development at the time.
    • The ABC of CD – A brief look at upcoming CD-ROM hardware for the Amiga, Atari ST, PCs, as well as the FM Towns.

    Regulars

    • ACE Tech News – New ‘camera on a chip’ technology, model rocket sales soar (I used to love building and launching these), Socrates Educational Video System from Vtech, and much more.
    • ACE Games News – Sonic the Hedgehog, Alien Storm arcade game, G-Loc, Lemmings II, and much more.
    • Letters – Letters from readers about after sales service for hardware and software, F-29 Retaliator, multiplayer gaming, and more.
    • Tricks’n’Tactics Returns! – Tips and tricks for Rise of the Dragon, Captive, Night Shift, Supremacy, F-19 Stealth Fighter, Gremlins 2, Kick Off II, and more.
    • Pink Pages – Game charts, high scores, classified ads, and more.

    …and more!


    📂This entry was posted in Amiga Atari ST Commodore 64 Computer Arcana DOS 📎and tagged

  • Tiny Toon Adventures: ACME All-Stars (Sega Genesis)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Tiny Toon Adventures: ACME All-Stars is a multi-sport title released on the Sega Genesis that featured characters from the Tiny Toon Adventures animated series. This game was released by Konami in late 1994. The sports featured include basketball, soccer, bowling, baseball, and an obstacle course race as well as a whack-a-mole style game called “Montana Hitting”. While there was a similar game for the Super NES, it featured a different set of sports.

    As you can probably imagine, these sports were more like mini-games, not full sports simulations. For instance, the basketball game was a two-on-two match-up. Soccer features a five-vs-five match-up. Each sport features both the basic moves you would expect along with special moves. Whichever sports you choose, you get to select the players from a roster of characters from the show including the likes of Buster Bunny, Babs Bunny, Plucky Duck, etc. There were a dozen characters to select from. Each character had different characteristics making them better for some sports than for others.

    As far as difficulty level, it really depends on the sport. Some are pretty simple (like bowling) while others require more precise control to be able to do well (like baseball). Your computer component gives uneven performances, sometimes being too hard and sometimes not hard enough. However, most are fairly fun as long as you aren’t expecting a realistic sports simulation experience. There is also a nice multiplayer feature. Not only can you play against another player but you can also play co-op against the computer. This feature more than anything else gives it some serious replayability.

    ACME All-Stars also makes great use of the 16-bit graphics of the Genesis. It really looks like you are playing the cartoon. There is tons of detail and lots of references and gags that are throwbacks to the show. There is also plenty of humor injected with interactions between the characters. The sound and music, while perhaps doesn’t stand out as much as the graphics, fits right in with the cartoony nature of the game.


    📂This entry was posted in Retro Games Sega Genesis 📎and tagged