Retrogaming

Gerald (Jerry) Lawson interview talking about his early career in the games industry.

Relive your past in all its 8-bit glory ^^.

DovilleRaymond_Week2

A article by Jose Otero  about Game History

Review of the game Spy Hunter on Juggle Chainsaws.

One person's attempt to play the United States NES catalog of games as close to chronological order as the Nintendo of America records will allow him to do so. And also some more general commentary articles on things such as the problems with porting arcade titles and the evolution of cover art.

This month we are going back to the days before Back to the Future for a classic arcade game.  Tempest is one of if not the finest examples of the early arcade.  It is also an oddity in that many view its remakes are better than the original.  We will be covering only official versions of Tempest this month, but we will have a list of clones and influenced bys incase you want a different game.  So get your spinner ready, its Tempest time.

Wonder Boy, Adventure Island, Wonder Boy, Adventure Island.   Whichever one you choose, you are in for a fantastic time.  Two games that are so strikingly similar it is scary.  What is the cause for this duality of gaming?  Why do skateboards come out of eggs?  And where is that guys shirt?  More, and the weather, at 5.

Have you already explored all the big-name games for Sega's 16-bit powerhouse? (if not, check out the best Games That Defined the Sega Genesis and The Best Sega Genesis Games Under $10)  The following mega-list will help you explore some of the under-appreciated gems in the Genesis/Megadrive library.

Survival Horror.  It is a genre of fear, of emotion, and of atmosphere.  Of all video game genres, survival horror is one of the most plot-driven, setting characters in horrific locales with strange and twisted beings.  It is also a genre that pulls heavily from other mediums, as many of the titles on this list can attest.  The titles that follow shouldn't surprise the reader: they are the titles that have formed and defined the genre and should be easily recognizable to fans of the genre.

The Legend of Zelda game series may very well be the single most venerated series in all of gaming. The original NES classic was recently seen in the number one spot of GameInformer Magazine's 200 Greatest Games of All Time. Every time a new entry is announced the gaming community seems to lose it's mind. The games appeal to all gamers of all skill level and all ages. Many say that there never truly been a bad game in the series. And yet not all the impact from these games has been positive. Unfortunately there are a few areas in which The Legend of Zelda pioneered some very regrettable trends that gamers are still forced to deal with.

Beat'em ups, which are also known as Brawlers (and belt scroll games in Japan), generally focus on one player taking on a large number of enemies in some form of melee oriented combat.  The beat'em up genre is also well known for offering co-op gameplay for 2-4 players, which for some people is a big part of the genre's appeal.  The genre should not be confused with one on one fighting games inspired by Street Fighter II, which is a common mistake some gamers make.  Though there is some shared history and crossover between the two genres in terms of characters and certain gameplay elements, they are not the same.

Ed Fries, a former Microsoft gaming vice president, has written and released a version of Halo that runs on the Atari 2600. The game is a free download and works with all your favorite emulators. Its release coincides with the 11th annual Classic Gaming Expo.

Gaming itself lives, learns, breeds, turns ill, and even dies just like a living creature. Whether the economy is good or bad, it often thrives. When the winds of change blow over it, it shifts to remain relevant. When a fixture of gaming's popularity spills over, it breeds new forms of media- music, a movie, toys, so-on. When it stubbornly refuses to innovate, it suffers from low interest and weakened demand. Gaming even collapsed and died at one point- only to be revived later, much akin to the mythical phoenix's life cycle. Most of all though, gaming evolves alongside its surroundings in order to survive.