As I sit in the Archives bunker of isolation, I watched UberNerds play through of Luigi’s Mansion 3 on Facebook live… and it was good. It took me back to the Gamesters videos (you dudes NEED to bring the Gamesters back!!!!). So good in fact, I got my old gears turning. Maybe I give this play through stuff a go- and put a RayGunn spin on it!
So, in the next few weeks, I will start playing the classic arcade games you remember… or maybe you don’t. I will play the ports too, giving you my spin on these games and the time in my life when they came out!
Now for the surprise- the intro video I’ll use! What do you think? let me know in the comments!
Raygunn here, and do I have a treat for you today! One of the gifts I received form my lovely wife- was the book “Pac- Man Fever”. So, while I’m in self isolation in the Archives Bunker, I thought I would do a Video Review of it!
Raygunn here with a new series I know your gonna get a kick out of- HOMEBREW SPOTLIGHT!
I know what most of you are asking- Raygunn- whats a homebrew? That’s easy to explain. Homebrew is a term frequently applied to video games or other software produced by consumers to target proprietary hardware platforms (usually with hardware restrictions) that are not typically user-programmable or that use proprietary storage methods –Wikipedia. Homebrewing has been popular for almost two decades now due to the resurgence in the classic game consoles of the first through third generations especially.
So, now that we got that out of the way, why don’t we take a look at our first home brew to spotlight- Dragon’s Lair for the TI-99/4A! First- let’s go over the machine specs!
Texas Instruments TI-99/4A
Type
Home computer
Release date
June 1981
Introductory price
US$525 (equivalent to $1,447 in 2018)
Discontinued
March 1984
Media
ROM cartridge
cassette
floppy disk
Operating system
TI BASIC
CPU
TMS9900 @ 3 MHz
Memory
16 KB RAM
256 bytes scratchpad RAM
Graphics
TMS9918A
Predecessor
TI-99/4
-Wikipedia.
Now- to create a home port (that’s the term used to describe a game created for the console during its original life cycle) of Dragon’s Lair back in 1983 would have been impossible. The were no means to create the video files in a way that would have worked without a laserdisc player.
Even the amazing Coleco Adam port had to be altered because of the hardware limitations.
But… Fast forward about 35 YEARS- and behold- this little jem appears on the YouTubes and I have to share- thus the nexus of a new article series!
Now- THIS GAME truly defines a homebrew! An actual, playable version of an arcade classic on a system that it wasn’t truly meant to be played on! But, given the time we live in- with advancements in software and hardware technology, and the talented people who want to bring their favorite (and ours!) childhood arcade games home- or even… IMPROVE THEM! Yes, we will even see that in this series!
So- keep an eye out for more Homebrew Spotlight articles- where I’ll even try these amazing games- and give em’ a review- to see if they are worth a purchase for your classic console!
Hang on- this is going to be a fun ride! And if you know of any homebrew games you would like to review- leave me a comment below!
RayGunn here- and it’s good to be back! Had a few computer issues, so I decided to get a new one!
And in doing a test run, I literally ran into this game!
In my opinion, He Man never had a good video game.
I always felt that the franchise would benefit from a side stroller type game- like the Konami four player games of almost three decades ago.
And, here it is.
Originally started in 2014, This game is THE BOMB.
with character animations that looked like they were ripped right off the animation cels, music and voices from the series, a roster of 10 playable characters, 28 stages, and more secrets than you can shake a power sword at- You NEED to check this game out!
Fans making songs about their favorite games on YouTube is common place now. However, back 30 years ago that was almost unheard of. That is until an album came out called Pac-Man Fever by Buckner and Garcia. These guys created a wonderful soundtrack dedicated to the arcades that were super popular at the time. But not because they wanted a pay check (although I am sure it helped) but because they were fans themselves of the games that they sang about. Even going so far as to fill the lyrics with tips on how to play the game. Just recently Jerry Garcia along with Jace Hall released a new remixed version of their classic song. if you haven’t heard it yet it is awesome and I will put the video at the bottom of the post. If you like it you can even get a free download of the song (click here).
I love YouTube. It’s like a library of the past- and if you put in the right search words, you can find some amazing things! Things like Video Game All Stars!
The showStarcadewas lightning in a bottle! This show is what revitalized the children’s game show in the early 1980’s. What made it popular? VIDEO GAMES! Competing in video game challenges on the show, and winning an actual arcade game was what kids wanted ( and still do ). Other Shows tried to capture that same excitement that Starcadedid. We did a piece on The Video Game Challenge about four years ago. that looked like it was headed for syndication lake Starcade did- but sadly, never made it past the pilot (if it did, please let us know- we would like to put more up her at the Archives!)
Cut to today, and I’m looking for some arcade footage to put up on the site, and this little nugget pops up on the screen. And I’m floored.This description is from the YouTube Chanel-
In 1983 and 1984 I produced and directed a local Colorado Springs TV show called “Video Game All Stars,” which aired on KOAA TV, channels 5 and 30, the NBC affiliate. There were only 3 episodes produced. I consulted with my friend, experienced TV professional Larry Frost before getting started, and then hired Wes Rogers to host the first episode. He interviewed players and did a few stand-ups.
Highlights of this show include the early 1980s coin-op video games, the big Eighties fashions, hairstyles and the players’ funny descriptions of how they beat the games.
What fascinates me most about this, is that its a local show- and it looks it! And I mean that in a good way! From the old videotaped look to it, to the interviewers that you can tell DON’T PLAY GAMES… It screams early 1980s more so than even Starcade does. It’s so…rural. It’s like a group of friends got together and said “Let’s make a TV show about something popular, even though we know nothing about the subject!” Very typical back then- remember: there was no internets to cheat with back then! You learned about the subject as you rolled with the interviews! And the kids! They were so into playing games ant telling you about the experience- because it was so new! Some highlights of the episode include-
What you like most about playing games!
Tips on Tron!
Tips on Frogger!
The future of the arcade (and boy, was this guy wrong!)
New game reviews!
But the best part- is… THE COMMERCIALS!
The local arcade footage is nothing short of awesome!
With names like QuarterFlash, and The 5 Center, I wish I had gone to these arcades!
Let me know what you think- Let me know in the comments section below!
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