Well, after a disastrous morning of my computer pretending to be dead… I finally managed to get an episode of Sunday Driving recorded!
Our Split/Second adventures continue as we progress through the game’s “Season” mode, the challenges growing ever more severe as we reach each new episode.
Hit the jump to see how today’s automotive mayhem went…
Continue reading Sunday Driving: Threshold Break – Split/Second #7
Time after time in gaming, we’ve seen that the simplest concepts can be some of the most effective and addictive.
Atari’s Canyon Bomber, originally released to arcades in 1977, is a prime example of this. You only need one button to play, and that button drops bombs. The concept is so simple anyone — even someone not at all familiar with video games — can understand and enjoy it. Drop bombs, hit things, score points. Whoever scores most points, wins.
And one of the best things about this game when compared to some of its contemporaries is that the simplistic concept means that it was very straightforward to implement a “computer-controlled” opponent to compete against if you didn’t happen to have a friend handy. So even those of us with no friends can still enjoy this game… and end up playing it a lot longer than you might expect!
Find a full archive of all the Atari A to Z videos on the official site.
When returning to a game for a second playthrough, it’s always incredibly satisfying when you manage to complete an objective well ahead of “schedule”.
Despite only certain things carrying over to a New Game Plus run in the various incarnations of Atelier Rorona, you can still bash out a lot of the early game content very easily, leaving you with plenty of time to make money, grind for experience, build up your relationship values and just generally have a good time in this pastel-coloured world.
Hit the jump to see just how quickly I managed to satisfy the second assignment…
Continue reading New Game Plus: Creating Explosives – Atelier Rorona DX #3
If you thought games journalists wringing their hands over “problematic” subject matter in games was a new phenomenon… well, I got news for you, my dear reader.
U.S. Gold’s home computer conversion of Capcom’s arcade title U.N. Squadron (originally known in Japan as Area 88, after the manga it was originally based on) drew criticism from UK computer magazine ST Format in December of 1990 for being “self-righteous”, “crass” and even “propaganda”. Why? Because you shoot enemies in an obviously Middle Eastern-inspired setting — at least in the first level, anyway — and in 1990 the Gulf War had just broken out in full force.
Of course, Area 88 first came out in 1979, but let’s not let facts get in the way of a good bit of outrage, shall we? Sigh. Some things never change. Anyway, this is a reasonably solid shoot ’em up, though unsurprisingly not a patch on the awesome SNES version…
Find a full archive of all the Atari A to Z videos on the official site.
How DOES The Wild Man do it? Find out in today’s thrilling installment of Warriors Wednesday, as the Wu forces attempt to prove themselves to Keiji Maeda.
If you were looking forward to seeing my smiling face again on this video, apologies to disappoint; I recorded this before I got the new gear necessary to display my smiling face on videos. If, on the other hand, you were disgusted and repulsed by my fearful countenance in Sunday’s Split/Second video, consider this momentary relief.
Hit the jump to see how today’s battle went.
Continue reading Warriors Wednesday: How The Wild Man Does It – Warriors Orochi #26
Look at me, I’m on camera!
Yes, after some reluctance and a surprising amount of urging from my wife (who either really wants me to suffer or genuinely thinks this is a good idea) I finally decided to show my Actual Face on one of these videos. I thought Sunday Driving was as good a place as any to experiment a bit with this format.
And yes, I know I cut the top of my head off in my GameFace shot. This is why we do experimental takes like this!
Continue reading Sunday Driving: Midway Pass – Split/Second #6
Our (re)adventures in Atelier Rorona DX continue! Now we’ve finished the first assignment in this New Game Plus run, what’s next?
Well, there are plenty of options. Complete some quests, go out exploring, craft some items, make some materials and turn them into weapons and armour, fill out a bingo card, buy some beehives…
Hit the jump and see what Rorona got up to while waiting for her first deadline to hit.
Continue reading New Game Plus: Furaipan Da Yo – Atelier Rorona DX #2
Side note: since starting Dynasty Warriors 8, in which they pronounce everyone’s names quite differently from earlier Warriors games, I have become aware that I am perhaps pronouncing… well, everyone’s name wrong. Tai-shuh-tsuh, indeed.
Anyway. That, hopefully, will not detract too much from your experiences with the ever-expanding series that is Warriors Wednesday. We’re continuing to make it through the Wu campaign of Warriors Orochi at a pretty decent pace — even if a few things do happen to go a little bit wrong this time around!
Hit the jump to see how things went in the latest mission for our brave heroes and overenthusiastic heroines. Hi-yaaa!
Continue reading Warriors Wednesday: In Case of Emergency, Use Taishi Ci – Warriors Orochi #25
Although the Atari 8-bit range of computers mostly lost what little “mainstream” relevance they had with the onset of the 16-bit era — which, in turn, was killed off by the widespread adoption of standardised MS-DOS and Windows PCs — there are a few dedicated developers out there still plugging away at this old hardware.
The results these modern maestros can get out of ancient computers can be, at times, absolutely astonishing. Some form part of what is known as the “demoscene”, producing audible and graphical showcases that push the hardware to its absolute limits. Others take that extra step and add true interactivity, making actual games with impressive visuals and sounds to show what they’re really capable of.
Yoomp from 2007 is an example of the latter. It makes use of some clever graphical techniques, fully optimised for both PAL and NTSC displays, and some delightfully catchy, toe-tapping music courtesy of the Atari’s trusty POKEY chip. If you’d like to find out more about this game — and download it for free to try for yourself — check out the official website here.
Find a full archive of all the Atari A to Z videos on the official site.
You thought we got off lightly last time around with “just” some races and time trials? This week’s episode more than makes up for that.
That damn helicopter is back, and ready to cause considerable grief. And those trucks are back, too, ready to hurl flaming death out of their rear end, much like my friend James did after he decided to find out what kind of curry a “Naga” was.
Hit the jump to see how things went.
Continue reading Sunday Driving: Hit the Skids – Split/Second #5
