• Tag Archives arcade

  • Tips & Tricks (January 1997)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Computer & Video Game Magazines – Tips & Tricks – January 1997

    Though descended from my favorite magazine, VideoGames & Computer Entertainment, Tips & Tricks was never a magazine I paid much attention to. Many loved the hints, strategy guides and cheats it provided but I was always more interested in news, reviews and that sort of thing. Tips & Tricks provides a little of that also but it’s emphasis is, as the name would imply, on tips and tricks. The January 1997 issue includes:

    Departments

    • Power Up! – An introduction to the staff which includes Chris Bieniek, Wataru Maruyama, Ione Flores, Nikos Constant, Bett Hallock, Tyrone Rodriguez and Deborah Lockhart.
    • Readers’ Tips – Readers write in with tips on Daytona USA as well as various questions and comments.
    • T&T Select Games – Overviews and previews of recent and upcoming games including:
      • Jet Moto (PlayStation) – A racing game featuring a vehicle something like a Jet Ski.
      • Crime Wave (Sega Saturn) – A vehicle combat game featuring a top-down point of view.
      • Ten Pin Alley (PlayStation) – A bowling game of course.
      • Suikoden (PlayStation) – An RPG that allows not only individual and group combat but full scale wars.
      • Powerslave – A Doom-like game in which you wield magic as well as weapons.
      • NFL ’97 (Sega Saturn) – A football game featuring licensed teams, stadiums and players.
      • NBA Live ’97 (PlayStation) – Because we need a new basketball game every years…
      • FIFA Soccer ’97 (PlayStation) – …and soccer too of course.
      • FIFA Soccer Gold Edition (Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo) – A soccer game for the 16-bit systems.
      • FIFA Soccer ’97 (Game Boy) – Blurry soccer…
      • Madden ’97 (Game Boy) – Blurry football…
      • Burning Road (PlayStation) – A racing game out of France that is somewhat similar to the likes of Daytona USA and Ridge Racer.
      • Toshinden URA (Sega Saturn) – Another tweek to the Toshinden 3D fighting game franchise.
      • Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 (Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo) – The pinnacle of Mortal Kombat on 16-bit systems.
      • Destruction Derby 2 (PlayStation) – I loved these games and this one was among the first i had for my PlayStation.
      • King’s Field II (PlayStation) – A fairly well regarded 3D RPG.
      • Amok (Sega Saturn) – Frantic 3D action under the ocean.
      • Sonic 3-D Blast (Sega Saturn) – The first Sonic game for the Saturn.
      • TNN Motor Sports Hardcore 4×4 (PlayStation) – An off-road racing game.
      • Contra: Legacy of War – A 3D sequel to Contra. I still prefer the 2D versions.

    • Game Genie/Game Shark Codes – Game Genie codes for the Genesis games Toy Story, Vectorman and Garfield: Caught in the Act; Game Genie codes for the Super NES games Porky Pig’s Haunted Holiday (I swear I’ve never heard of that one); Game Shark codes for the PlayStation games Bubble Bobble, Crash Bandicoot, Olympic Soccer, Project Horned Owl and Robo-Pit; and Game Shark codes for Sega Saturn games Bubble Bobble, Iron Storm and Shining Wisdom.
    • Letter from Betty – Betty has some tips for Mr. Do (Super NES) and Vectorman 2 (Genesis).

    Strategy

    • X-Men vs. Street Fighter – A detailed strategy guide for this arcade game featuring general moves and how to use them as well as details for each character. Also, how to play as a couple of hidden characters.
    • Kizuna Encounter – Another fighting game strategy guide, this one for the Neo Geo.
    • Wave Race 64 – A detailed guide for this Nintendo 64 racing game featuring Jet Skis. It was a pretty outstanding racer for the time.
    • Tomb Raider – A detailed strategy guide for the classic Tomb Raider on both the PlayStation and Sega Saturn.

    The last half of the magazine features tips on dozens if not hundreds of games for the Super NES, Genesis, PlayStation, Saturn, Game Boy, Game Gear, 3DO and arcade. These tips can be anything from passwords to simple strategies to secret button combinations and more. If you are looking for secrets, cheats or strategies to beat a certain game then Tips & Tricks was always a gold mine.


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  • Area 51 (Atari)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    https://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/663029109539078144/i-was-today-years-old-when-i-learned-that-the

    Area 51 is an arcade game that was released by Atari Games in 1995. It is a light gun shooter game in which the player takes the role of a soldier taking part in an operation to prevent aliens from taking over Area 51. You must make your way through various sections of Area 51 including warehouses and tunnels. The ultimate goal is to set activate the nuclear self-destruct mechanism.

    Atari Games was in pretty bad shape at the time and Area 51 really was a last ditch effort to turn their fortunes around. Fortunately for them, it worked. While Area 51 received more or less mediocre reviews from critics, it was loved by players and was among the most successful games of its type. It spawned both a direct sequel (Area 51: Site 4) and sort of a spinoff that was the same type of game using the same hardware but with a different setting (Maximum Force).

    The hardware itself is a bit of an interesting story. Originally, the plan was to stream game data from a CD-ROM. However, due to speed limitations, this would have meant that only a letter-box display was possible. So instead, it was decided to use modified Atari Jaguar hardware and a hard disk drive. Only Area 51 and Maximum Force were released on this hardware however there were a few other games developed but never released.

    Ironically, these games were never ported to the Jaguar despite running on practically the same hardware. Apparently Atari Games decided that the Jaguar was no longer a viable platform at that time, even though this was 1995, the same year the Jaguar CD was released. Seems a shame as it would have been a perfect 1st party exclusive to breathe life in the Jaguar, but then Atari only supported the Jag in a half-assed manner. At any rate, ports were released for Windows, PlayStation and Sega Saturn.

    If you do want to give this one a try, the arcade version is of course the best. But if you want to play on a home console then the PlayStation version beats out the Saturn version. Light gun fans should definitely give this one a try if you have never played it.


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