Dungeon crawling was the dominant first-person genre in the 80s, for understandable reasons. It was simple visually, and an easy environment for a designer to control. Random generators in the style of Rogue could create an endless variety of catacombs to explore with little effort. And thematically, it was popular – players could get excited […]
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Archive: 2014
Ultima Underworld

Dungeon crawling was the dominant first-person genre in the 80s, for understandable reasons. It was simple visually, and an easy environment for a designer to control. Random generators in the style of Rogue could create an endless variety of catacombs to explore with little effort. And thematically, it was popular – players could get excited […]
William Shatner’s TekWar

It’s the early 90s, and William Shatner is tired of being forever associated with Captain Kirk. He’s focused now on being something of a Hollywood renaissance man – writer, director, actor, horse trainer, and now, video game producer. A contemporary interview in the game’s official strategy guide revealed Shatner had a lot of grand plans […]
William Shatner’s TekWar

It’s the early 90s, and William Shatner is tired of being forever associated with Captain Kirk. He’s focused now on being something of a Hollywood renaissance man – writer, director, actor, horse trainer, and now, video game producer. A contemporary interview in the game’s official strategy guide revealed Shatner had a lot of grand plans […]
Shane Warne Cricket

Depending on who you ask, the name Shane Warne has very different connotations. To Americans, he’s probably best known as that fat old Australian guy who plays poker and bangs Elizabeth Hurley. To Australians, he’s the bestest bowler of all time in the history of cricket yes the best ever don’t you look over there […]
Shane Warne Cricket

Depending on who you ask, the name Shane Warne has very different connotations. To Americans, he’s probably best known as that fat old Australian guy who plays poker and bangs Elizabeth Hurley. To Australians, he’s the bestest bowler of all time in the history of cricket yes the best ever don’t you look over there […]
Redneck Deer Huntin’

1997 saw the release of Deer Hunter, and prior to this, virtual hunting wasn’t a thing. Deer Hunter itself seems mostly designed as a game to get on the shelves of Wal-Mart. See, in the U.S. in the 90s, Wal-Mart was the largest (still is?) chain department store. They were the ones that could afford […]
Redneck Deer Huntin’

1997 saw the release of Deer Hunter, and prior to this, virtual hunting wasn’t a thing. Deer Hunter itself seems mostly designed as a game to get on the shelves of Wal-Mart. See, in the U.S. in the 90s, Wal-Mart was the largest (still is?) chain department store. They were the ones that could afford […]
Sega Menacer 6-in-1

For my money, the NES Zapper is the pinnacle of light gun design. Light guns were hardly new – even Maganavox’s Odyssey had one – but the Zapper had the right combination of ergonomics and a steady trickle of software to use it on. Its popularity didn’t translate into the 16-bit era though. It felt […]
Sega Menacer 6-in-1

For my money, the NES Zapper is the pinnacle of light gun design. Light guns were hardly new – even Maganavox’s Odyssey had one – but the Zapper had the right combination of ergonomics and a steady trickle of software to use it on. Its popularity didn’t translate into the 16-bit era though. It felt […]
