Too often the big names of video games get all the attention. You see plenty of art created honoring Mario, Master Chief, Sonic, etc., but what about the unsung heroes? But some dedicated fans, such as Shuji Suzuki will not let the past fade away. His clay models have been featured as part of the I Am 8-Bit art exhibition, and the above is one of the more colorful ones based on Bubble Bobble. If you’re asking, "What is that?" You’re obviously too young to have played one of the iconic games of the NES generation, which somehow got forgotten.
The 3D Mario titles have not gotten the attention from modders the way the 2D Marios have. That’s likely due to the complexity of making new 3D stages and editing 3D models. So, it’s rather impressive when you see one done as well as Super Mario 64: Classic Edition. Granted, it is flawed. Still, as long as you don’t expect to see something that exactly rivals the original, you will probably happily come away with a grin. Just wait for the Super Mario Galaxy mods. You can download the mod files here.
Okay, so you can’t technically play Guitar Hero on your old Commodore 64. However, you can play Shredz64 on it. What is Shredz64? Well, basically it’s a stripped down version of Guitar Hero for a twenty-five year old computer.
Shredz64 won’t play the digital music tracks you’re used to, but programmer Toni Westbrook has assembled a track list of synthesized tunes for you to rock out to. Best of all, he even created a go-between to connect the Guitar Hero controller to the Commodore 64 system. How does it look and sound? Surprisingly, it looks like great fun and an excellent example of how pure computing power alone isn’t needed to make fun games.
There aren’t many Mario hacks, or video game hacks in general, that deserve a great deal of attention. Few are done with any real forethought or planning. Super Mario Fusion is different. Think of it as Mushroom Kingdom Hearts (an apparent subtitle). The game has Mario running through levels inspired by everything from Halo to Mega Man to Doom to Tetris.
Not only that, but the levels themselves actually look good, and fairly creative. The game is still in beta format, but you can download and play it. One has to wonder if Nintendo is keeping a watchful eye and thinking of their own Mario escapade through their catalog of games.
Why do people enjoy taking modern titles and porting them to old consoles that cannot possibly handle their modern graphics and gameplay? Go figure. Still, it makes for interesting video, such as this one of Tekken 2 running on the original NES. What’s interesting about this title, unlike most such ports, is that it actually look playable, and sort of like a title that might have been released back then. That’s certainly a step up from most such ports.
Since the announcement of Nintendo’s Virtual Console, gamers have been swamped in nostalgia replaying the classic games from their youth. From Castlevania to Operation Wolf we’re reminded of how much fun we used to have when games were much simpler.
While the games so far have only been console titles, it was recently announced that Commodore Gaming would begin releasing its titles onto the Virtual Console to the delight of retro gamers around the world. The premiere titles appearing on the Virtual Console are Uridium, a sci-fi horizontal shooter, and International Karate. This may satisfy fans of the system for the time being, but the true hope is to see titles like M.U.L.E., Little Computer People (which was a precursor for The Sims) and classics like Zork and its sequels.
No other titles have been announced to date but a sigh of relief has been released around the world with the possibility of more great games to come.
Ninjas are cool. They’re even cooler if you’re a self-referential hipster living your better days on the Internet. How things become “trendy” on the Internet is not the focus here, but suffice it to say the Chuck Norris games are likely not far off. Ninjas have been a huge part of the gaming environment for decades and with good reason. They make both great heroes and great villains. They can also be adapted into a variety of gameplay styles. Below is a look at some of the more memorable incarnation of the ninja in video games, with a look toward the future and where gaming ninjas might be headed next.
The Adventurer - Ninja Gaiden (NES)
While not the first incarnation of the ninja in gaming form, Ninja Gaiden for the arcade and NES are two of the most famous. Plus, they encapsulate the same style that previous titles such as The Last Ninja employed. Ninjas began as adventurers. In Ninja Gaiden you must guide Ryu through several stages around the world as he tries to avenge the death of his father. Along the way he meets a variety of characters who try to help him; though in the end most betray him.
It’s important that most will betray Ryu in the end. While Ryu is personally played up as a respectable character, the ninjas generally are not. Oddly, the actually heroic samurai are rarely featured in games (with the Samurai Warriors series being an exception). This idea that the ninja is alone, even among friends, is carried on throughout the history of the gaming ninja. (more…)
Super Mario All-Stars While a good argument can be certainly be made for Super Mario World and Yoshi’s Island (the proper Mario sequels on the system), both of those games were in many ways evolutions of the Super Mario Bros. 3 formula. Super Mario All-Stars on the other hand was a breath of fresh air by reaching back to the past. While console gaming was still young, Super Mario All-Stars marked the first major release in a special genre known to many other mediums. In music one might label it a greatest hits album. In film you would label each game a remake, or perhaps just a restoration. Whatever the case, this compilation would change how gaming looked at its past. Whenever you enjoy a retooled classic for Xbox Live Arcade, remember that it was this game that laid the groundwork. (more…)
In The Great Games column we look back at titles that have defined video games over the years and earned a special place in the history of the medium.
For many young gamers the Final Fantasy series began counting at seven. At times it seems many fans quit counting at six. Final Fantasy VI was originally released in the USA as Final Fantasy III. It was a weird numbering debacle that Square got itself into, but today the countless rereleases of the last SNES Final Fantasy have most fans corrected on their numbering.
Many fans consider every Final Fantasy a classic, so what makes this one stand out? The story begins with you in charge of a small group of soldiers setting out to investigate an unearthed ancient relic pertaining to magic. One of the members of your party is a mysterious girl. Upon arriving to the dig site there is a bit of a catastrophe before things go dim. The game then shifts you into control of a thief named Locke. Now, if you don’t already see the differences between this title and later entries in the series (hint: Locke does not look like a girl), then you haven’t played enough Final Fantasy. The rest of the story will take you across a vast world, to the end of the world (literally), and across another vast ruined world. (more…)
Just in time for your Oscar party, Sony has announced Buzz!: The Hollywood Quiz for the Playstation 2. Following up on the success of it’s successor, The Hollywood quiz looks to help the PS2 cash in on the current trend of casual gaming with over 5,000 questions and three new modes of play it looks like those nifty new controllers will be put to use for quite a while.
There are plenty of nods to Hollywood including characters from Creature of the Black Lagoon, an Arnold/Stallone look alike, a pirate, and even the presentation is reminiscent of the Oscars with a red carpet and a Oscar-esque statue in the shape of the game’s host.
Scheduled for a March 11th release, The Hollywood Quiz doesn’t seem to be straying from the same formula that worked for the other titles in the Buzz! series by keeping the same modes from the other games like Final Countdown and Top rank but they are including three new modes called True or False, Hollywood Stars, and Rollover. (more…)
Since the announcement of Nintendo’s Virtual Console, gamers have been swamped in nostalgia replaying the classic games from their youth. From Castlevania to Operation Wolf we’re reminded of how much fun we used to have when games were much simpler.
While not the first incarnation of the ninja in gaming form, Ninja Gaiden for the arcade and NES are two of the most famous. Plus, they encapsulate the same style that previous titles such as The Last Ninja employed. Ninjas began as adventurers. In Ninja Gaiden you must guide Ryu through several stages around the world as he tries to avenge the death of his father. Along the way he meets a variety of characters who try to help him; though in the end most betray him.
While a good argument can be certainly be made for Super Mario World and Yoshi’s Island (the proper Mario sequels on the system), both of those games were in many ways evolutions of the Super Mario Bros. 3 formula. Super Mario All-Stars on the other hand was a breath of fresh air by reaching back to the past. While console gaming was still young, Super Mario All-Stars marked the first major release in a special genre known to many other mediums. In music one might label it a greatest hits album. In film you would label each game a remake, or perhaps just a restoration. Whatever the case, this compilation would change how gaming looked at its past. Whenever you enjoy a retooled classic for Xbox Live Arcade, remember that it was this game that laid the groundwork. 
In The Great Games column we look back at titles that have defined video games over the years and earned a special place in the history of the medium.
Just in time for your Oscar party, 
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