This is the vault for gaming design, titles released in the past that are still relevant today for design or plot choices.
Arcade conversions on Commodore 64, despite often ending up being quite disappointing for most players, were a major source of revenue for many publishers at the time. Naturally, most coin-ops from the mid 80s were way beyond the limited reach of the beloved breadbin’s hardware. Plenty of times, the C64 received subpar or unplayable conversions,…
In the infamous history of the years long battle of Nintendo versus Sega, the usual narrative depicts two Japanese companies pitted against each other. Personally, I also see a little of “Japan vs USA”. Indeed, both companies saw unexpected success in the ol’ United States during the late 80s and 90s, while trying to appeal…
Trapped in a sprawling Egyptian tomb, oxygen constantly running out, stalked by monsters and creepy crawlers after my blood constantly… Wait, is such a game appropriate for a child? Well, it sure was for four-year-old me! I loved that feeling of being endlessly stuck in a dusty suffocating sphinx full of sarcophagi and snakes, desperately…
During the 80s and most of the 90s, console games were designed to appeal to a young audience, while home/personal computer titles were – usually – meant for an older public. Still, as most gamers know, this doesn’t imply in the slightest that console titles were simpler or, god forbid, kid-friendly; Ninja Gaiden or Contra…
Why can’t bicycles work like helicopters? Well, there’s plenty of good reasons, but the question still stands, wouldn’t it be nice to fly around in a comfy helibike controlled by the magical power of our own quadriceps? Also, wouldn’t it be even nicer to fly around in the bikecopter while landing on other bikers’ heads,…
In the second part of my Buck Rogers retrospective, we will take a look at the much less lauded continuation of the first game, Matrix Cubed, and then, finally, I shall explain why I feel both games are still relevant all these years later. Prepare for launch. Matrix Cubed, planned as a direct sequel to…
Everyone happens to get a great idea every once in a while. Those brilliant concepts that almost approach pure genius, at least until they are actually discussed, some time passes and everyone suddenly realizes exactly just how stupid and/or insane the concept actually was and… phew! Aren’t we all glad that no one bothered to…
There is one single burning question which has plagued the industry, ever since the release and subsequent popularity of Doom and Mortal Kombat: are violent videogames to blame for society’s inherent evil? Thinking about it a couple of seconds, the answer should be obvious: society has been evil since the days before Christ. Videogames are,…
What do Zeus and Zombies have in common? Well, beside the letter Z, not very much one would say, but Lucasarts would beg to differ, especially Mike Ebert and Dean Sharpe. The two designers worked on two Lucasarts console releases, Zombies Ate my Neighbors and Herc’s Adventures. The two titles stand apart from the usual…
Created by Stan Sakai as an homage to japanese culture and cinema, Usagi Yojimbo sits among the cult comic books of the 80s. Still being published today, the episodic comics revolve around the adventures of an antromoporphic samurai rabbit, with a mature and serious approach to japanese folk legends and classic Kurosawa movies. Because of…