Classic Personal Computer (PC) Games

Author: admin

  • Tracker

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Anthony Lambert & Nick Leaton GAME DEVELOPER:Mindware GAME PUBLISHER:Rainbird Copyright 1987, Rainbird A unique action/strategy game that is hard to categorize, Tracker is a fun futuristic gameshow that pits man against machine in a maze-like arenas. You control a fleet of starships that fly through hallways…

  • F-29 Retaliator

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Digital Image Design (DID) GAME PUBLISHER:OCEAN Copyright 1991, Digital Image Design (DID) It seem like only yesterday that DiD gave us EF2000, F-22 ADV and TAW. However, their roots date back to 1991, when DiD released F-29 Retaliator, one of the first attempts to…

  • Heroes of The 357th

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dan Hoecke GAME DEVELOPER:Midnight Software GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1992, Midnight Software Heroes of The 357th casts you as one of the pilots of this famous American Fighter unit in Europe during WWII. Based in England, you fly a variety of mission against occupied Europe. You…

  • Psycho

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Box Office GAME PUBLISHER:Box Office Copyright 1988, Box Office One of the worst adventure games ever made, Psycho is based on the classic horror film by Alfred Hitchcock… and by “based on” I mean that they both have the same title. In CE Forman’s…

  • Rush ‘N Attack

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dave Collier GAME DEVELOPER:Konami GAME PUBLISHER:Konami Copyright 1989, Konami Rush ‘N Attack (known as Green Beret outside the U.S.) is a fun side scrolling platform combat game that sets Konami’s standards for excellent military action titles. While not up to the standards of later games (e.g.…

  • Forgotten Worlds

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capcom GAME PUBLISHER:US Gold Copyright 1991, US Gold Forgotten Worlds, released by Capcom in arcades across the globe in 1988, was the first of SEGA’s reprogrammed versions of Capcom’s late 1980’s coin-op bombshells, around the time when the Genesis first showed up in the…

  • In The 1st Degree

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Brderbund GAME PUBLISHER:Brderbund Copyright 1995, Brderbund An intriguing CD-ROM courtroom adventure, In The 1st Degree casts you in a role of a District Attorney in San Francisco who must build a case against James Tobin, a well-known painter, who stands accused of murdering Zachary…

  • L.A. Law

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Synergistic Software GAME PUBLISHER:Capstone Copyright 1992, Capstone A shallow courtroom game based on blockbuster TV series of the same name, L.A. Law is an ambitious design that is ultimately flawed due to logic inconsistencies and limited interaction. First, some background information for those who…

  • Lords of Doom

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Attic Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Starbyte Copyright 1990, Starbyte A potentially good horror RPG that unfortunately fumbled, Lords of Doom from Attic/StarByte looks, feels, and plays like a second-rate “B” horror movie than Alfred Hitchcock classic. You control a party of four characters– two hapless citizens…

  • Sarge

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capcom GAME PUBLISHER:Capcom Copyright 1989, Capcom A fun top-down tank shooter from the masters of arcade, Capcom’s Sarge is a decent conversion of the Bally arcade game of the same name that was semi-popular in the 1980s. The goal is straightforward: destroy all enemy…

  • Return of The Dinosaur

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Leisuresoft GAME PUBLISHER:Leisuresoft Copyright 1988, Leisuresoft Return of The Dinosaur is a fun board-game style detective game designed to teach kids facts about their most favorite animals of all time. The premise is that your hometown is suddenly overrun by dinosaurs, thanks to professor…

  • PT-109

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Gordon Walton GAME DEVELOPER:Digital Illusions Inc. GAME PUBLISHER:Spectrum Holobyte Copyright 1987, Digital Illusions Inc. PT-109 is a revolutionary naval sim for its time that went by largely unnoticed, although it attracted a minor following on the Macintosh, the game’s original release format. The game lets you…

  • Dreadnoughts

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Peter Turcan GAME DEVELOPER:Datasoft GAME PUBLISHER:Datasoft Copyright 1992, Datasoft A “view-from-the-turret”, Dreadnoughts is an excellent World War I naval simulation that offers an interesting, albeit very slow, portrayal of tactics during the few World War I encounters. The game system was interesting, albeit before its time…

  • Cyrus

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Intelligent Chess Software GAME PUBLISHER:Intelligent Chess Software Copyright 1985, Intelligent Chess Software One of the world’s first chess games designed for experts, Cyrus is also unfortunately one of the least known due to limited distribution. Which is a shame, because the game not only…

  • Joan of Arc: The Siege & The Sword

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Carlo Perconti GAME DEVELOPER:Chip GAME PUBLISHER:Brderbund Copyright 1989, Brderbund A great conversion of underrated Amiga game of the same name, Joan of Arc: The Siege & The Sword is a fun strategy game about one of the most intriguing historical personages who has rarely been depicted…

  • Siege

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Mindcraft GAME PUBLISHER:Mindcraft Copyright 1992, Mindcraft Mindcraft’s first tactical fantasy game Siege and the expansion pack Dogs of War is decent tactical combat game featuring tons of scenarios, units, and even a decent plot. In this cross between SSG’s Warlords and EA’s classic Rampart,…

  • Ambush at Sorinor

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Mindcraft GAME PUBLISHER:Mindcraft Copyright 1993, Mindcraft Ambush at Sorinor is an improved sequel to Siege with a lot of needed improvements such as campaign mode and better unit variety. Athough it’s just a string of all missions played in consecutive order, the campaign mode…

  • Walls of Rome

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ali Atabek GAME DEVELOPER:Mindcraft GAME PUBLISHER:Mindcraft Copyright 1993, Mindcraft Last and arguably best in Mindcraft’s short-lived series of tactical wargames that began with Siege, Wall of Rome is another step up from the much-improved Ambush at Sorinor. This time, fantasy units have been replaced by historical…

  • Back to The Future II

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Image Works GAME PUBLISHER:Mirrorsoft Copyright 1990, Mirrorsoft A fun game based on the hit Michael J. Fox movie of the same name, Back to The Future II closely follows the movie’s plot and is high on the fun factor. The plot picks up where…

  • Hoyle Official Book of Games

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Warren Schwader GAME DEVELOPER:Sierra On-Line GAME PUBLISHER:Sierra On-Line Copyright 1989, Sierra On-Line First and best in Sierra’s underrated series of computerized parlor games based on the most popular anthology book of the same name, Hoyle Official Book of Games features six popular care games: crazy eights,…

  • Hoyle Official Book of Games Volume 2: Solitaire

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Warren Schwader GAME DEVELOPER:Sierra On-Line GAME PUBLISHER:Sierra On-Line Copyright 1990, Sierra On-Line The second volume in Sierra’s Hoyle series based on the authoritative guide to parlor games, Hoyle Volume 2 features 26 solitaire games, all complete with synopsis of rules. The games range from the popular…

  • Hoyle Official Book of Games Volume 3

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Bridget McKenna GAME DEVELOPER:Sierra On-Line GAME PUBLISHER:Sierra On-Line Copyright 1991, Sierra On-Line After the lackluster Hoyle Volume 2, Sierra returns to the formula that made Hoyle Volume 1 a classic in this third entry in the series. Instead of popular card games, Hoyle Volume 3 offers…

  • Clue Master Detective

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Virgin Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1989, Virgin Interactive A decent, but dull, computerized version of a popular Parker Brothers board game of the same name, Clue Master Detective is based on the Master Detective version of Clue that was first released in England.…

  • Centauri Alliance

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Michael Cranford GAME DEVELOPER:Brderbund GAME PUBLISHER:Brderbund Copyright 1987, Brderbund An excellent “hard” sci-fi game from the creator of legendary Bard’s Tale, Centauri Alliance unfortunately remains relatively unknown– in sharp contrast to that classic series. Calling the game “Bard’s Tale in space” is not unaccurate, since Centauri…

  • Back to The Future III

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Probe Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Image Works Copyright 1991, Image Works Back to The Future III is a fun variety action game based on the hit movie of the same name. What makes the game more than just another shoot-em-up is twofold: the way it presents…

  • Broken Sword: The Shadow of The Templar

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Charles Cecil GAME DEVELOPER:Revolution GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1996, Virgin Interactive One of the most underrated CD-ROM adventures of all time, Broken Sword is a fun cartoon-style graphic adventure game from the people who brought us Lure of the Temptress and Beneath a Steel Sky, and…

  • Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Charles Cecil GAME DEVELOPER:Revolution GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1997, Virgin Interactive The Quandary’s Gordon Aplin returns in his excellent review of IMHO a slightly inferior sequel to the original: “In this sequel to Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars, we catch up with George Stobbart…

  • Swiss Family Robinson

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Tom Snyder Productions GAME PUBLISHER:Windham Classics Copyright 1984, Windham Classics A fun adventure based on a popular children’s tale about a shipwrecked family, Swiss Family Robinson was designed for young adventurers, ages 7 to 12. As such, it is a commendable attempt that is…

  • Stock Market: The Game

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Earl Long GAME DEVELOPER:StarSoft Development GAME PUBLISHER:ComputerEasy Copyright 1990, ComputerEasy Stock Market: The Game is a substantial update of Earl Long’s earlier Black Monday 1987 stock sim published by Keypunch. Although on the surface it looks like nothing more than a cosmetic update, it is actually…

  • Skull & Crossbones

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Tengen GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1991, Domark A dull pirate fencing platform game from Tengen, Skull and Crossbones is much inferior to the swordfighting sequence in Sid Meier’s Pirates!, despite more detailed graphics and Caribbean scenery. Your character, the ship’s captain, is blocky, and animated…

  • Cabal

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capcom GAME PUBLISHER:Capcom Copyright 1987, Capcom Cabal is a fun early commando shooter that doesn’t stand the test of time very well, although it was well ahead of its time in terms of well-animated enemies and the sheer variety of them. The goal is…

  • California Raisins, The

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:StarSoft Development GAME PUBLISHER:Box Office Copyright 1988, Box Office The only PC game based on one of the most popular commercials of all time, The California Raisins is an average, if a bit mindless, platform action game. Before we get to the game, though,…

  • Northern Fleet

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Stephen Newburg GAME DEVELOPER:Simulations Canada GAME PUBLISHER:Simulations Canada Copyright 1989, Simulations Canada Arguably Simulations Canada’s (“SimCan”) best game, Northern Fleet is a detailed naval simulation of US-Soviet fleet confrontations in the “bad old days” of Cold War. Due to the absence of any graphics, the game…

  • Orel Hershiser’s Strike Zone

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Melbourne House GAME PUBLISHER:Melbourne House Copyright 1989, Melbourne House A conversion of the coin-up game of the same name by Leland Corp., Orel Hershiser’s Strike Zone is a great action-oriented baseball game starring baseball’s star of the same name. Nicknamed “The Bulldog” by fans,…

  • Pocket Rockets

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capcom GAME PUBLISHER:Capcom Copyright 1989, Capcom Pocket Rockets is a fun action-style motorcycle racing game that isn’t very well known. Which is unfortunately, since the game is noteworthy for introducing a new kind of race into the genre: drag racing. Either against the clock…

  • Deadly Racer

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Anonymous GAME PUBLISHER:Anonymous Copyright 1994, Anonymous A fun action racing game with excellent digitized graphics of cars and scenery, Deadly Racer makes up for what it lacks in realism and long-term play value with outstanding graphics and sound effects. There are over 10 cars…

  • Little Red Riding Hood

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Catherine Lucas GAME DEVELOPER:Coktel Vision GAME PUBLISHER:Coktel Vision Copyright 1991, Coktel Vision Probably the only game from Coktel Vision that was designed with kids in mind, Little Red Riding Hood is a hodgepodge mix between adventure and action elements that are, more often than not, more…

  • Jurassic Park

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:OCEAN GAME PUBLISHER:OCEAN Copyright 1992, OCEAN A fun overhead action game based on best-selling book and film, OCEAN’s Jurassic Park is based on the hit movie of the same name that, in turn, was adapted from Michael Crichton’s best-selling novel. The game starts off…

  • Liverpool

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:ARC Software GAME PUBLISHER:Grand Slam Copyright 1992, ARC Software An average soccer game based on England’s most popular soccer team in mid-1980s (before David Beckham and his Manchester United peers became all the rage), Liverpool botches the prestigious club name with bland graphics, blocky…

  • Rollerblade Racer

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Hi-Tech Expressions GAME PUBLISHER:Hi-Tech Expressions Copyright 1990, Hi-Tech Expressions A fun rollerblade game that is highly reminiscent of Atari’s classic 720 Degrees, Rollerblade Racer casts you in the role of either Kirk or Trish, a young rollerblader who wants to compete in the upcoming…

  • CyClones

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Eric Biessman & Michael Raymond-Judy GAME DEVELOPER:Raven Software GAME PUBLISHER:Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI) Copyright 1994, Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI) Raven-Games.com posted such a great review of this underdog, packed with interesting background and insider information, that I’d like to quote in its entirety here: “CyClones was…

  • Tom & Jerry: Yankee Doodle’s CAT-astrophe

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Hi-Tech Expressions GAME PUBLISHER:Hi-Tech Expressions Copyright 1990, Hi-Tech Expressions Yankee Doodle’s CAT-astrophe is the first PC game from Hi-Tech that star Tom and Jerry, a pair of cat and mouse from a well-known TV cartoons. The game is based loosely on “Yankee Doodle Mouse”,…

  • Sentinel Returns

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Geoff Crammond GAME DEVELOPER:Psygnosis GAME PUBLISHER:Psygnosis Copyright 1998, Psygnosis When it was first released in 1987, Geoff Crammond’s genre-busting masterpiece The Sentinel immediately acquired a cult following and achieved considerable commercial success. Definitely one of the most unique games ever made, The Sentinel combines quick action,…

  • Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Hi-Tech)

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Juan Sanchez & Keith Weiner GAME DEVELOPER:Hi-Tech Expressions GAME PUBLISHER:Hi-Tech Expressions Copyright 1991, Hi-Tech Expressions A much worse adaptation of the hit movie license than the platform game of the same name by Elite Systems, Hi-Tech’s Gremlins 2: The New Batch is tedious to the extreme.…

  • Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Elite)

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Topo Soft GAME PUBLISHER:Elite Systems Copyright 1990, Elite Systems Gremlins 2: The New Batch from Elite (not to be confused with another game based on the same license from Hi-Tech Expressions) is a decent platform game based on the hit Warner Brothers movie. It…

  • House of Cards

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Randall Masteller GAME DEVELOPER:Mastertronic GAME PUBLISHER:Mastertronic Copyright 1989, Mastertronic House of Cards is a good collection of 6 of the most popular card parlor games from Mastertronic, and may well have been the last game Mastertronic released before their being taken over by Virgin to form…

  • Caesar’s Palace

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Randall Masteller GAME DEVELOPER:Virgin Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1990, Virgin Interactive A semi-sequel to Mastertronic’s earlier House of Cards and one of the first games Mastertronic released as “Virgin Mastertronic” under the new ownership of Virgin, Caesar’s Palace uses basically the same engine as its…

  • Bo Jackson Baseball

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Data East GAME PUBLISHER:Data East Copyright 1991, Data East One of the best-looking arcade-oriented baseball games for its time, Data East’s Bo Jackson Baseball also offers some managerial options, although not as extensive as “true” baseball sims such as Micro League Baseball. Still, it…

  • Boot Camp

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Banana Development GAME PUBLISHER:Konami Copyright 1989, Banana Development One of the more original sports games I’ve seen, Konami’s Boot Camp is, as the name implies, a game about life in the military camp. The goal in each level is simple: get to the end…

  • Avon

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    From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jonathan Partington & Jon Thackray GAME DEVELOPER:Topologika GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1985, Topologika You are a tourist visiting Stratford-upon-Avon, but all is not as it seems… When you try to buy the cauldron of three old ladies, things start to get weird. When you leave the shop,…