The end

It has now come to the end of my blog. Thank you for reading it and farewell!

Quick Review #3: Retro Arcade Adventure (XBLIG)

Image source: gamergeddon.com

Time for yet another quick game review! This time, I'm reviewing the Xbox Live Indie Games title (yes, another one), Retro Arcade Adventure. It was developed by Siactro and the game is available for 80 Microsoft Points.

This game is reminiscent of those "one against many" games, and is set in a fantasy world. All you have to do is defeat the waves of enemies with your sword in the same kind of way like the original Zelda on the NES.

The coolest bit in the game is where your character turns into a fire-breathing dragon and you get to wipe out lots of the enemies. Be aware that you only get to be a dragon for a limited amount of time, though.

As you can see, the game looks very retro and it is. I think it's great to see there's still fans of retro graphics. That's probably why the developer named the game "Retro Arcade Adventure". The developer has done an amazing job with the sprites, making it very old-school.

Is there anything wrong with this game? Well, not really. I could say that the only problem with Retro Arcade Adventure is that it does get a bit repetitive after a while.

Despite it being a bit repetitive, it's still a great little retro-style game. For that asking price of 80 MSP, it's still worth a download.

Overall rating: 8.5/10 

Quick Review #2: Gentlemen Start Your Engiiines (XBLIG)

Image source: marketplace.xbox.com

Time for another review! This time, I'm going to review another Xbox Live Indie Games title that I've been playing recently. This is Gentlemen Start Your Engiiines (yes, they used the letter 'i' three times!), developed by the one-man French team Maximinus. It is available to download for 240 Microsoft Points.

As you can obviously see, it's a racing game. When I played the game, I thought "Hmm...is it me or does this game look kinda similar to that Sega classic Daytona USA?". I think it is. Not visually, but the controls feel pretty much the same.

All you basically do in this game is you're racing in the kind of way that feels a bit like NASCAR. That isn't really a bad thing.

I would say that the only problem this game has is its price. You might think 240 MSP is alright, but the thing is that there isn't a lot of content and I think 80 MSP would've been a better price. Despite the price, this NASCAR-style arcade racer is still decent to play.

Overall rating: 7/10

Quick Review #1: MiG Madness (XBLIG)

Image source: marketplace.xbox.com

I thought I would now start a new series on my blog with little reviews of games I've been playing recently.

This first game actually caught my eye when I was on my Xbox 360 last night. This is MiG Madness, an Xbox Live Indie Games title from Bionic Shark Studios.

As you can see from the screenshot, it is an arcade-style aerial combat game. If you've played Konami's 1982 arcade classic Time Pilot, then you should know what to expect. In reality, MiG Madness is really just an re-imagining of Time Pilot. The premise of the game is that you have to destroy waves of enemy aircraft.

The controls are simple: use the left stick of your Xbox 360 controller to move your plane around, and use the right trigger to fire your machine guns. Be aware that your plane's machine guns can overheat and you won't be able to use them for a relatively short period of time.

Visually, the game looks fine. I wasn't expecting much in terms with graphics, but the developer still did a great job. The sound in this game is what you would usually expect from the kind of game it is.

There's some flaws in MiG Madness, though. You can't always see the bullets you're firing, but you can't see your enemy's bullets at all. There's isn't a lot to do in the game, it's just going through those waves of enemies and trying to beat your previous high score. It could've been better if the developer tried to be more original and added some more modes.

As it is, it's still a decent little shooting game for just 80 Microsoft Points. For that low price, it's still worthy enough for you to give it a try.

Overall rating: 7.5/10 

Why I love: Samurai Shodown II (Neo Geo)

Image source: techmynd.com

Here's another Neo Geo classic! This is Samurai Shodown II from SNK. It was first released in 1994 and it's the sequel to the original Samurai Shodown that came out the previous year.

Like the original Samurai Shodown and the games that followed this sequel, it is set in feudal-era Japan. As you can obviously see from the screenshot, it is a fighting game. However, you have to fight your opponents with bladed weapons like swords.

The fact that you have have to fight with weapons is the thing that made the Samurai Shodown series really stand out from other fighting games at the time.

You can get the game from the Virtual Console section of the Wii Shop Channel for 900 points. It is also available on Xbox Live Arcade for the slightly cheaper price of 800 points.

Why I love: Metal Slug (Neo Geo)

Image source: ign.com

When this game was released in 1996, the 16-bit era was ending as we were about to go into the new era of 32-bit gaming. Most developers were starting to get used to the hardware from consoles like the original PlayStation (or PS1 for short) and the Nintendo 64. Some developers though, they decided to continue making 2D games. This is one of those...

Today, I'm going to talk a bit about Metal Slug for the Neo Geo. This run and gun classic was published by SNK and developed by Nazca Corporation.

What you basically do in this game is that you have to continually shoot at a constant stream of enemies in order to get to the end of the level (or mission as they called them). There is six levels in this game which range from forests to military bases. I know that amount of levels isn't a lot, but it's still a blast to play.

You can now play this SNK classic by downloading it from either the PlayStation Store on both PS3 and PSP, and also the Virtual Console service on the Wii.

Why I love: Twisted Metal (PS1)

Image source: en.wikipedia.org

Today, I'm going to talk a little bit about Twisted Metal for the original PlayStation (or PS1 for short). It was published by Sony Computer Entertainment and developed by SingleTrac. The game was originally released on November 5, 1995 in North America, January 1996 in Europe, and November 15, 1996 in Japan.

Twisted Metal is a vehicular combat game where you control one of the twelve unique vehicles, such as an ice cream truck, a monster truck, and even a motorcycle. All of the vehicles have machine guns mounted on them, which is a key part of the game. The guns can overheat, which means you won't be able to use them for a short period of time.

Even though the game might not have aged as well like some other PS1 games, it's still an enjoyable classic. You can try this game by downloading it from the PSone Classics section of the PlayStation Store. 

Why I love: Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega Master System)

Image source: allaboutsymbian.com

I know what you're thinking, "Scott, why are you not talking about the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis one?". Well, everybody knows how great that game was and still is. I decided that I want to talk about its overlooked 8-bit cousin instead. This is Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Master System.

It was released by Sega (obviously) in June 1991, the same month as its 16-bit counterpart. The Master System version was developed by Ancient. It has also been ported to Sega's handheld, the Game Gear, in December of that same year.

The premise of the game is basically the same as its 16-bit cousin, where you get Sonic through the levels (or stages as Sega likes to call them) and collect as many rings as you can.

Even though that might sound similar, the Sega Master System isn't completely the same to the much superior Mega Drive/Genesis classic. Sonic doesn't run as fast like he usually does, but that's not entirely a bad thing. Visually, it doesn't look as great as the 16-bit game, but it does still look lovely.

I think the Sega Master System version is a nice slice of 8-bit goodness, so why not grab the game from the Wii's Virtual Console service today for just 500 points? It may not be as good as the more familar Sega Mega Drive/Genesis version (which is also available to download on the Wii for 800 points), but it's still a nice little game to play.

Why I love: Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Wii)

Image source: nintendoeverything.com

Despite the fact that the Wii is supposed to be aimed at families with its casual titles (which it is), but there's some great games that are aimed to an audience like mine. This is one of these great games.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade is a 2D action role-playing game (or ARPG for short), developed by Vanillaware. It was released in 2009 by Marvelous Entertainment in Japan, Ignition Entertainment in North America, and Rising Star Games in Europe.

You play as one of the two characters, Kisuke and Momohime. You use swords to fight and defeat the enemies. The swords are split into two categories: Blade, and High Blade. Overuse of the swords will eventually break the blades, so you have to swap them from time to time.

What I absolutely love about this game is how gorgeous it looks with its ancient Japanese art style. I also like how intuitive the controls are. You can use the Wii Remote (with Nunchuk), the Classic Controller (which I use to play the game), and also the GameCube controller.

The game should be cheap enough to buy now, so why not try this gem from the Nintendo Wii today?

My E3 2012 preview

Image source: pastemagazine.com

We're only a month or so away from this year's E3 show in Los Angeles, I thought I would put together a little taster of what we could expect.

First, let's have a look at the first-party companies:

Sony:
- God of War: Ascension (PS3) - A prequel to the God of War franchise, with added multiplayer.

Image source: gameinformer.com
- Sly Cooper: Theives in Time (PS3/Vita) - We haven't a lot from this game, but fans of the original games on the PS2 should still be excited about this one.

Image source: shacknews.com
- PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (PS3) - It's basically Sony's equivalent of Super Smash Bros.

Image source: g4tv.com
- LittleBigPlanet Karting (PS3)

Image source: shacknews.com
- The Last of Us (PS3) - The next game from Naughty Dog, the creators of Uncharted.

Image source: t3.com
- New PlayStation Vita games

Microsoft:
- Halo 4 (360) - There's a lot of anticipation for this one. It's the first one in Xbox's popular shooting series to not be developed by its original creators Bungie. Out in November.

Image source: gamezone.com
- Fable: The Journey - A lot of people criticised this game when it was first revealed at last year's E3, but this could be one of the first proper games for Kinect. It's due to be released in September.

Image source: gamesindustry.biz
- Forza Horizon - This isn't actually a screenshot from the game because there hasn't been any released yet. It's going to be an arcade-style spin-off of Microsoft's racing simulation series.

Image source: gametestlab.com

Nintendo:
- Animal Crossing (3DS)

Image source: 3dsbuzz.com
- Luigi's Mansion 2 (3DS) - The sequel to the GameCube classic.

Image source: gamerant.com
- Paper Mario (3DS)

Image source: destructoid.com
- Pikmin 3 (Wii U)

Image source: wii.ign.com
- New Super Mario Bros. 2 (3DS)

Image source: geeksugar.com
- Wii U

Image source: techrader.com

That was the first-party stuff, but I also want to mention games from third-party companies:

2K:
- BioShock Infinite (PS3/360/PC)
- Borderlands 2 (PS3/360/PC)
- Spec Ops: The Line (PS3/360/PC)
- XCOM (PS3/360/PC)
- XCOM: Enemy Unknown (PS3/360/PC) - A re-imagining of a classic strategy game

Activision:
- 007 Legends (PS3/360)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 (PS3/360/PC)
- Skylanders: Giants (PS3/360/Wii/3DS)
- The Amazing Spider-Man (PS3/360/Wii/3DS/DS/PC)
- Transformers: Fall of Cybertron (PS3/360)

Bethesda Softworks:
- Dishonored (PS3/360/PC)
- Prey 2 (PS3/360/PC)

Capcom:
- DmC: Devil May Cry (PS3/360)
- Lost Planet 3 (PS3/360/PC)
- Resident Evil 6 (PS3/360)

Codemasters:
- F1 2012 (PS3/360/PC)

Disney Interactive Studios:
- Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two (Wii/PS3/360) - The sequel to the 2010 Wii exclusive game.
- Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion (3DS) - Companion game for Epic Mickey 2. It's very reminiscent of the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis classic, Castle of Illusion.

EA:
- Command & Conquer: Generals 2 (PC)
- Crysis 3 (PS3/360/PC)
- FIFA 13 (PS3/360/PC/Mac)
- Madden NFL 13 (PS3/360/PC)
- Medal of Honor: Warfighter (PS3/360/PC)
- NBA Live 13 (PS3/360/PC)
- Overstrike (PS3/360) - The first multi-platform title from Insomniac Games.
- SimCity (PC)
- The next Need for Speed game

Konami:
- Metal Gear Rising: Revengence (PS3/360)
- Pro Evolution Soccer 2013 (PS3/360)

Namco Bandai:
- Ni No Kuni (PS3)
- Star Trek (PS3/360/PC)
- Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (PS3/360)

Sega:
- Aliens: Colonial Marines (PS3/360/Wii U/PC)
- Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed (PS3/360/3DS/Vita/PC)

Square Enix:
- Heroes of Ruin (3DS)
- Hitman Absolution (PS3/360/PC) - The fifth game in IO Interactive's stealth game series.
- Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (3DS)
- Quantum Conundrum (PSN/XBLA/Steam)
- Sleeping Dogs (PS3/360/PC)
- Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (3DS)
- Tomb Raider (PS3/360/PC/Mac) - The reboot of the series with a younger Lara Croft.

Rockstar Games:
- Grand Theft Auto V (PS3/360/PC)

Tecmo Koei:
- Dead or Alive 5 (PS3/360)

THQ:
- Darksiders 2 (PS3/360/Wii U)
- Insane (PS3/360/PC)
- Homefront 2 (PS3/360/PC)
- Metro: Last Light (PS3/360/PC)
- South Park: The Stick of Truth (PS3/360/PC)
- WWE '13 (PS3/360)

Ubisoft:
- Assassin's Creed 3 (PS3/360/Wii U/PC)
- Far Cry 3 (PS3/360/PC)
- Killer Freaks from Outer Space (Wii U)
- Rayman Legends (Wii U)
- Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online (Wii U)
- Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Patriots (PS3/360/PC)

Why I love: Jet Set Radio Future (Xbox)

Source: thegamingonline.com

I was having a look at the some of the games in a shop called Cash Converters just recently. When I was looking at some of the games for the original Xbox, I found a copy of a game that I've been wanting to try for a little while. That game is called Jet Set Radio Future.

I've just started playing it, and I already love it. I now realise that this year actually marks the 10th anniversary of the game. So this is why I decided to talk about this cult classic from the original Xbox's back catalogue today.

Jet Set Radio Future was published by Sega and developed by Smilebit. It was first released for the original Xbox in 2002. It is the sequel to the original Dreamcast game that first came out in 2000. Both the sequel and its predecessor were revolutionary for using cel-shaded graphics. Without the Jet Set Radio series, games like Borderlands could've looked different visually.

Here's a little fact for you: the development team behind the Jet Set Radio games later went on to develop the Mario & Sonic games for the Wii. Quite a departure for the team, isn't it? The team is now known as Sega Sports R&D.

The basic premise of Jet Set Radio Future is that you have to rollerskate around a futuristic Tokyo and graffiti certain parts of the city. The controls are really pick up and play, which makes the game really enjoyable to play.

This game is compatible on the Xbox 360. Why not try and find a copy of this amazing Sega classic today?

Some of my favourite PlayStation Minis

I go onto the PlayStation Store every Wednesday (or Tuesdays for those who live in the US) to see what's new. My favourite thing is the PlayStation Minis. Here's three of my favourites:

Pix'n Love Rush
Publisher: Sanuk Games
Developer: BulkyPix


Source: joystiq.com

It's a port of a popular iPhone game where you play as a cat-like character and you have to jump platforms and collect circles with '+' in them. This is more of a love letter to retro gaming with different graphic styles like Game Boy, Virtual Boy, Game and Watch, and others. It's more of a high score game instead of a proper one. It's still worth getting on either iPhone or PlayStation.

Shift Extended
Publisher: Zallag
Developer: Fishing Cactus


Source: gamereactor.eu

A clever puzzler where you have to flip the monochrome environment in order to get to the end of the level.

Pinball Dreams
Publisher: Cowboy Rodeo
Developer: Digital Illusions CE (original), Cowboy Rodeo (port)


Source: pspminis.com

A solid port of a classic pinball game, which was originally released for the Amiga in 1992. This is a game that I just love to play now and again.

That was my little list of my favourite PlayStation Minis. You can play these games on both PS3 and PSP.

A history of British gaming TV shows

Wouldn't you believe it? This year marks the 20th anniversary of the television series GamesMaster. To celebrate, I'll give you a history of the gaming-related TV shows that have aired in the UK from 1992 to the present day.


Source: tv-ark.org.uk

It was 7th January 1992 when GamesMaster made its debut on Channel 4. At the time, the rest of the TV channels didn't have a show like it. A show completely dedicated to gaming. If it wasn't for GamesMaster, we might never had the shows that came after it (and I probably wouldn't have posted this). Not only the show had reviews and previews, but the majority of the series had challenges. This was where celebrities (who were popular at the time) took part in playing various games, either against each other or a member of the public.


Source: techdigest.tv

The show was mainly presented by Dominik Diamond (which isn't his real name), but the face of the show was the GamesMaster, played by Sir Patrick Moore (who you can now see presenting The Sky at Night for the BBC). While Dominik presented the first two series, he was suddenly replaced by Dexter Fletcher for the third series. This was criticised by the viewers, so Dominik came back to present the last four series.

GamesMaster (sadly) came to an end on 3rd February 1998, after seven series. Surprisingly, the digital TV channel Challenge repeated the first series in 2003. However, the repeats didn't last because Challenge stopped airing it in 2004. The channel said it was "too dated".


Source: badinfluence.co.uk
A good several months after GamesMaster made its debut, ITV had a gaming show for children. It was called Bad Influence. It ran for four series from 1992 to 1996. Violet Berlin was one of the hosts, who later went on to do a different kids show called The Big Bang.


Source: whizzbang.tv

Violet later became the host of Game Pad, which aired on Bravo from 2001 to 2004. When Game Pad was finished, Dominik Diamond returned to our screens with a new series. This was called When Games Attack. It didn't follow a similar format like its predecessors. However, an element of GamesMaster was (sort of) brought over, where they had football players taking in a tournament of Pro Evolution Soccer. Caroline Flack (who later went to present the Saturday morning kids show TMI) had a brief segment, where she traveled to Japan. Sadly, the show only lasted one series.

Bravo then had a more traditional gaming show called Gamer TV. It had reviews, previews, news and features. Gamer TV spawned two spin-off series: "Gamer's Guide to..." and Gamer TV Extra. Gamer TV Extra featured more about the games they were shown in the main programme. After 283 episodes, Gamer TV ended on April 26th 2008. It was only a week later, on May 3rd, that it got replaced by its successor, Playr. Playr's format was done the same way as its predecessor.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Playr also had two similar sister shows: Playr 2 and Playr Guide. On April 25th 2009, it ceased airing on Bravo. Thankfully, it made its return to our screens on Film24 on September 5th. Only one of its spin-offs was brought over, and that was Playr Guide. After the 22nd May 2010 episode aired, the show was forced off the air due to Film24 going into liquidation.

On June 5th 2011, Playr found its new home on obscure channel Showcase TV. I call Showcase TV obscure because hardly anyone watches it. Playr Guide was also brought over to the channel. I'm actually surprised that the show is still running today.



Source: kotaku.com

Over on Playr's original home, Bravo, two of Ginx TV's gaming shows were launched in 2009. Those were called GameFace, and Ginx Files. It was the first time in a few years where we got to see the presenter on-screen. The presenter of GameFace was Julia Hardy, who was previously presenting on a short-lived music channel called Rockworld TV. When the channel Bravo got the axe on New Year's Day 2011, GameFace and Ginx Files had no home on TV. Not long after Bravo was gone, both of Ginx TV's shows found a new home on Challenge.


Source: ggsgamer.com

A good few months after GameFace and Ginx Files settled in on Challenge, they were replaced by a new 1 hour-long show called The Blurb. Julia Hardy reprised her role as the host. The Blurb was (more or less) the same as its predecessors, but it had a plain white studio. When Julia presented the predecessor GameFace, she was just in front of a green screen. Obviously, the viewers at home saw some graphics running in the background instead of the green screen.

Just as The Blurb was getting really good, Ginx TV's deal with Challenge sadly ended on 27th August when one last episode of The Blurb aired. After the show's run on television ended, Ginx TV kept making episodes and putting them out on YouTube. I think the big problem for both The Blurb and its predecessors was the fact that it aired on Challenge in pretty bad slots. It originally aired at 11pm on Saturday nights, but later it was moved to a midnight slot. That's probably why The Blurb didn't have much of a success on Challenge. It's really a shame because it deserved a much better slot.

There you have it folks, that was the history of British gaming shows on television.

Since The Blurb disappeared from Challenge, there hasn't been another gaming show to take its place on the channel. I think it would be great if Challenge could start its own gaming show. It would fit perfectly with the viewing demographic who watch shows like TNA Wrestling (that includes me!). Challenge did say they were going to "research into it more". I've got my fingers crossed that we do get to see a new gaming show on Challenge pretty soon.

Why I love: Metroid (NES)

Source: inintendo.net

Ah Metroid, probably one of Nintendo's best game franchises besides Mario and Zelda. I was going to talk about the history of the Metroid series for this blog post, but there's plenty of those retrospectives on the internet anyway. Instead, I'm going to talk about the very first game in the series and why I love it.

Metroid was released for the NES (Famicom as it was known as in Japan) on August 6, 1986 in Japan, a year later in North America, and finally on January 15, 1988 in Europe. The game was later remade for the Game Boy Advance, under the title Zero Mission, in 2004. The original game was also ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2004/5.

It was published by Nintendo (obviously) and co-developed by their R&D1 and Intelligent Systems teams. At the time they were making Metorid, they were also developing another game for the NES/Famicom called Kid Icarus.

Here's an interesting fact. When the game was translated for North American and European audiences, the name of the planet was Zebeth, instead of Zebes. They obviously corrected the error in Metroid games that were released after the original.

You play as Samus Aran. What shocked a lot of players when the game was originally released was the fact that the character you play as turned out to be a woman. So this was the first game to use a female protagonist as the main character. If it wasn't for Samus, then we might never have characters like Lara Croft from the Tomb Raider series.

Metroid was heavily influenced from the Alien film series, particularly the original one from 1979. No wonder why Samus Aran's arch-enemy was named after the director Ridley Scott.

A big part of Metroid is the exploration. This made it the first game where you're able to go back. In games like Super Mario Bros., you couldn't do that. You had to keep going right. I think the exploration element is, without a shadow of a doubt, the main reason why I love the original Metroid.

As with any game, it does have some flaws. One of those flaws are that you can only shoot left, right, and up. Thankfully, this was fixed in the original Metroid's successors.

What I find a bit odd is that the sequel was released for the Game Boy. Home console owners had to wait till 1994 for their next fix of Metroid on the SNES.

You can get the original Metroid game on both the Wii and 3DS's Virtual Console services. It costs 500 points on the Wii, and £4.50/$4.99 on the 3DS. Why not try it? You might be surprised...

Games I'm looking forward to in 2012

In this blog post, I'm going to give you a list of the games I'm really looking forward to playing this year. Don't be surprised because I am going to include some downloadable titles. One more thing, some of the release dates I mention are for the European region. So if you want to know when a certain game comes out in your part of the world, just Google it.

Dirt Showdown
Publisher/Developer: Codemasters
Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, PC
Release: May 25th


Source: codemasters.com

This is the latest game in Codemasters' racing series, but this one is different. Not following the previous game, Dirt 3, this game is actually more of an arcade spin-off where you get to take part in Destruction Derby-style racing. The controls are going to be more intuitive, which some die-hard fans of the series might not want, but I actually don't mind it at all. It could be a heap of fun, bashing into your opponents.

Retro City Rampage
Publisher/Developer: VBlank Entertainment
Platforms: Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, WiiWare, Steam
Release: May


Source: darkstation.com

Imagine Grand Theft Auto, but with NES-style graphics. That's what Retro City Rampage is all about. It has some great parodies of retro games and pop culture.

Hell Yeah! Wrath of the Dead Rabbit
Publisher/Developer: Sega/Arkedo
Platforms: Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, Steam
Release: Summer



This downloadable game from French indie developer Arkedo has really surprised me. It has two gaming elements: Sonic's platforming and Metroid's exploration/shooting. That sounds great to me!

Assassin's Creed 3
Publisher/Developer: Ubisoft
Platforms: Xbox 360, PS3, PC, Wii U
Release: October 31st (360/PS3), TBC (Wii U/PC)


Source: technabob.com

This is the direct sequel to Assassin's Creed 2, which came out back in 2009. This new game in the series has been in development for three years, and uses Ubisoft's new engine, AnvilNext. You play as new character Connor. It is set during the American Revolution. Even though I've only played a bit of Brotherhood, this new installment is already looking great from some of the screenshots I've seen so far. The HUD (or Heads Up Display) has been revamped aswell.

So that's my list, but I might add some more games later on.

Retro Gamer magazine is awesome!

  Source: blog.retrogamer.net

Retro Gamer is quite simply one of the best gaming magazines I've read. For those who don't live in the UK, some of you might not know about it.

The magazine is all about the games from yesteryear. It offers an fantastic insight into some of gaming's greatest franchises, and also looks at the various game consoles that there was back in the 80's and 90's. They also have interviews with some of the legendary game developers, some of whom are still involved in the games industry today.

What I love about Retro Gamer is the amount of detail and information that they have in each issue. I think it's great finding out about gaming-related things that I never knew about.

There's also a reviews section featuring some of the current games and ports of older games. One of my favourite things in the magazine has got to be the Homebrew section. I find it quite incredible that there's people who continue to make games for old systems, such as the ZX Spectrum (or Speccy as they like to call it).

The magazine has just past their 100th issue, which is quite an achievement for such a niche magazine. Congrats to the people behind the magazine, they've done a great job on landing that milestone. Long may they continue to show people what gaming used to be like, all those years ago!

Is it really 'GAME' over for gaming retailers?

Source: game.co.uk

As you might have already heard or read, two of my favourite shops, Game and Gamestation, have been in a lot of financial trouble recently. A day before I typed this blog post, the company who runs both shops, The Game Group, have been put into administration.

This is a very sad time for me and all the gamers in the UK, and also the British games industry. I don't think anyone can imagine what it would be like without a specialist shop for games.

Here's a couple of reasons why Game and Gamestation got into the state they are in:

1. They got too big for their own good. They simply had too many stores across the UK.

2. Game (maybe) shouldn't have bought their former competitors, Gamestation, in 2007.

I think there could be another reason. It's the fact that more people are buying games online rather than going to the shops.

If Game and Gamestation both go, it only leaves HMV and the supermarkets. While HMV are focusing slightly less on games, they still have a nice selection on their shelves. On the other hand, the supermarkets don't have a great choice of games either. I don't know whether I could bare that or not.

My thoughts do go out to the employees of both Game and Gamestation, who have just been made redundant. It's a really awful thing to go through. At the time I typed this, 277 stores have been closed down, affecting 2,104 employees.

UPDATE: Since I posted this, I was very glad to hear that OpCapita, the company who bought Comet, saved Game and Gamestation for £1. Yes, I'm not joking. I know £1 might sound a bit rubbish, but at least it saved the two shops from disappearing off our high street. Well, that's one less thing for me and all the gamers in the UK to worry about. Thank goodness for that! Phew!

Why I love: F-Zero (SNES)

Source: obsoletegamer.com

This could be the first of a regular feature on my blog. Today, I'm going to tell you why I love the original F-Zero for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (or SNES for short).

F-Zero was released on November 21, 1990 in Japan, August 23, 1991 in North America, and June 4, 1992 in Europe. It was the game that set a standard by created the sub-genre of futuristic racing. If it wasn't for this game, we might not have Sony's equivalent of F-Zero, the Wipeout series.

This game was also one of the many SNES games that used the Mode 7 graphics, which gave F-Zero a pseudo-3D effect. This was pretty incredible for the SNES. I've no idea what the game would've looked like without Mode 7.

What I really love about F-Zero is how playable the game still is after all these years. I also love the fact that the speed is still amazing today aswell.

You can get the game today, via the Wii's Virtual Console service for 800 points. I downloaded it and never regretted doing so. I'm sure you won't regret it either.

Some of my favourite games on XBLIG

I know there's some awful stuff on the Xbox Live Indie Games (or XBLIG for short) service. Don't worry, there's definitely some great games on the service. Here is three of my favourites:

I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N 1T!!!1 (or I Made a Game with Zombies In It)
Developer: Ska Studios
Cost: 80 points
A simple but very enjoyable top-down arcade shooter with an awesome theme song. Admittedly, I even sing along to it sometimes.

Katana Land
Developer: Kablammo Games
Cost: 80 points
A neat little platformer where you play as a ninja, and you have to sneak on the enemies and take them out. It has nice 2D graphics.

Ocean Drive Challenge
Developer: need1D
Cost: 80 points
An arcade racing game, similar to Sega's Outrun series.

I know there's plenty more great XBLIG titles I could talk about, but that would take me forever. Why not try some of the ones I've mentioned in this blog post? Maybe you could also look and see what other games are available. I'm sure you'll find something to enjoy.

Who saved the games industry in the 80's? The NES did!

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Yes, wouldn't you believe it, it was just that one little white and grey box that saved a whole industry. I seriously can't imagine what gaming would've been like without it. It's all thanks to the great guys at Nintendo.

A lot of gaming's greatest franchises made their debut on the console: Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Mega Man, Final Fantasy, Castlevania, etc.

I don't think a lot of gamers in my generation actually appreciates the NES as much as I do. If it wasn't for the NES, we wouldn't have had consoles like the PlayStation and the Xbox.