Microsoft showed up to console gaming in 2001 and immediately proved they understood how to compete. The Xbox was aggressively marketed. The online infrastructure was built-in from day one. The third-party support was unprecedented – major studios were developing for Xbox from launch. And most importantly, there was Halo. A game so good that it didn’t just justify the console’s existence – it redefined what console gaming could be. We spent three weeks arguing not…
Right, so picture this – I’m rootling through this grotty charity shop in Ancoats last Tuesday, yeah? Proper old-school place that still smells like your nan’s house, and there’s this cardboard box tucked behind some knackered VHS tapes. Bloke behind the counter goes “fiver for the lot, mate” without even looking up from his Daily Mirror. Five quid! For what turned out to be a treasure trove of Mega Drive carts, including – and I’m…
I came to retro gaming as an adult without childhood nostalgia, which means I approach it practically. Coming from construction, I understand something about building things efficiently and understanding where to spend money and where to save it. Retro gaming doesn’t have to be expensive. The collector market has inflated prices for complete games with original packaging, but playing retro games affordably is absolutely possible if you’re willing to make different choices than collectors. The…
That chunky six-button controller showed up at my friend Mike’s house on a random Saturday in 1993, and I swear it changed everything about how we thought about fighting games. Mike had been bragging about it all week at school – three extra buttons, he kept saying, like that somehow made him gaming royalty. I figured it was typical Mike exaggeration until I actually held the thing. The weight felt different, more serious somehow. Instead…
Back in 1991, I was twelve years old and completely convinced that my Genesis was about to change the world. I’d been defending Sega since getting my Master System three years earlier – you know how it is when you’re the weird kid with the “wrong” console – but Sonic felt different. This wasn’t just another exclusive game to add to my arsenal of playground arguments. This was ammunition. I still remember unwrapping that first…
I’ve been gaming since the early 1980s, which means I’ve personally experienced every console generation’s transition to new video technologies. The question of how to get the best picture from retro consoles on modern TVs is more complex than most people realize because the answer depends on what console you’re using, what TV you have, and what quality you’re actually achieving. RGB cables, HDMI adapters, and modern upscalers all claim to provide “the best” picture.…
You know what’s funny? I’ve been gaming for over forty years now, and I can still remember the exact moment I realized helicopter games were something special. It was 1992, I was fifteen, and my friend Dave had just gotten Desert Strike for his Genesis. We’d spent most of that summer trading games back and forth, but when he popped this cartridge in and handed me the controller, everything changed. Most games back then were…
You know what’s funny about coming to retro gaming late? I missed all the “you had to be there” moments that define most people’s gaming memories. Like, I never experienced the cultural earthquake of certain games hitting at exactly the right time. But sometimes I stumble across something that makes me wish I’d been paying attention back then, and the Beavis and Butt-Head game for Genesis is definitely one of those titles. Found this one…
I’ve spent fifteen years in IT management understanding that sometimes the best systems are the ones that take a completely unique approach. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee is a game that took a completely unique approach when puzzle platformers were becoming increasingly standardized. You’re Abe, a mudokon trying to escape a facility where your species is being hunted for meat. You run, you jump, you talk to other creatures, you possess them, you use their abilities to…
Here’s something I teach in my history classes – innovation requires risk-taking, and risk-taking produces both failures and masterpieces. Chrono Cross is a masterpiece produced through genuine risk-taking. It’s the sequel to Chrono Trigger, one of the most beloved JRPGs ever made. So what does Square do? They make a completely different game that dares to not be Chrono Trigger Part 2. Instead of one protagonist, you have 45 recruitable party members. Instead of saving…