Author: admin
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Grandmaster Chess
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capstone GAME PUBLISHER:Capstone Copyright 1994, Capstone One of the best games from Capstone (and given their miserable track record, that is saying a lot), Grandmaster Chess is an innovative chess game that sadly received far too little recognition in its time. To compete with…
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Air
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Softstar GAME PUBLISHER:Softstar Copyright 1993, Softstar Air is an excellent side-scroller from premier Taiwan developer Softstar. Despite what the name implies, the game actually takes place underwater most of the time. In contrast to most other shooters that feature futuristic spacecraft and menacing-looking enemies,…
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Eddie Kantar’s Bridge Companion
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Lifestyle Software GAME PUBLISHER:Lifestyle Software Copyright 1994, Lifestyle Software Endorsed by one of the world’s most famous players, Ed Kantar’s Bridge Companion is one of the few bridge games that focus on teaching the basic rules, similar to Maurice Ashley Teaches Chess for chess.…
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DJ Puff’s Volcanic Capers
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Codemasters GAME PUBLISHER:Codemasters Copyright 1992, Codemasters DJ Puff’s Volcanic Capers is an okay cartoony platformer from Codemasters that doesn’t really hold up well against other titles once the initial novelty wears off. The plot: you are a disco-loving dragon called DJ Puff (probably inspired…
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Football Manager 3
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Addictive GAME PUBLISHER:Addictive Copyright 1993, Addictive Final entry in Addictive Games’ highly underrated series of soccer simulation that began in 1983 on the Spectrum computer, Football Manager 3 is a disappointing game compared to Football Manager 2. It is not a bad soccer sim…
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Destruction Carnival
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Charles Tumino GAME DEVELOPER:Virtually Real GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1997, Virtually Real One of the best games ever made with Maxis’ Klik & Play game creation system, Destruction Carnival is an excellent kill-everything-in-sight mayhem that fans of arcade hits Smash TV will be familiar with. You play…
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Dive & Destroy
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Blackeye Software GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Blackeye Software Another excellent freeware action gem from Blackeye Software, Dive & Destroy is underwater shoot-em-up at its best, with plenty of enemy subs and sealife, solid controls, and a variety of weapons to use. You can use…
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Drops of Light
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ky Kimport GAME DEVELOPER:Tursiops Truncatus GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Ky Kimport Drops of Light is an excellent puzzle game that plays like a blend of classic 15-peg puzzle game, some inspirations from Chinese checkers, and a twist of color physics. The goal: rearrange the photons in…
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Discoveries of The Deep
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Leigh Rothschild GAME DEVELOPER:Capstone GAME PUBLISHER:Capstone Copyright 1993, Capstone Discoveries of The Deep is an okay simulation of deep-sea exploration that suffers from the same syndrome as most Capstone games: great concept but poor execution. The concept in this case is novel enough: your goal is…
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International Ninja Rabbits
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Leigh Rothschild GAME DEVELOPER:Firebird GAME PUBLISHER:MicroValue Copyright 1993, Firebird Ninja Rabbits and its sequel International Ninja Rabbits are two “faithful” conversions of a pair of terrible Commodore 64 games of the same names that star you as a rabbit who is tasked with saving a factory…
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Frankenstein
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Merit Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Merit Studios Copyright 1994, Merit Studios Frankenstein is an average cartoon platformer from the UK division of Merit Studios. The game’s obscurity is probably due to the fact that it was released very quietly as a shareware title, and only in…
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Tilt!
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Genias GAME PUBLISHER:Genias Copyright 1991, Genias Not to be confused with Codemasters’ action-adventure game of the same name, Genias’ Tilt! is a fun puzzler that plays like EA’s classic Marble Madness meets a pinball game. The goal is straightforward: maneuver the ball on each…
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Combat Mission: Beyond Overlord
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Charles Moylan GAME DEVELOPER:Big Time Software GAME PUBLISHER:Battlefront.com Copyright 2000, Big Time Software Combat Mission is arguably the very best squad-level first-person wargame ever made, lack of hype and limited distribution notwithstanding. Ciril Rozic’s excellent review says it all about what makes the game an instant…
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Yucata’
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Tobias Schilgen GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, Tobias Schilgen Yucata’ by independent developer Tobias Schilgen is an excellent Windows version of the German board game of the same name published by Hans im Gluck in Germany, which is in turn based on the ancient Mayan…
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Knightmare
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Friends GAME DEVELOPER:Konami GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1990, Konami No, this is not PC version of a famous Amiga game based on Children’s TV series (that one was never made for PC, by the way). This Knightmare is the recompiled DOS version of the Konami game of…
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Super Ski 3
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Christian Bertrand GAME DEVELOPER:Microids GAME PUBLISHER:Microids Copyright 1992, Microids Last in Microids’ lackluster trilogy of skiing games is Super Ski 3, which boasts significant graphical improvements over the previous two games in the series, but unfortunately not playability. The best feature from Super Ski 2 is…
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Mind Roll
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Thalamus GAME PUBLISHER:Epyx Copyright 1988, Thalamus Mind-Roll by Thalamus (published by Epyx in the US) is a fun Marble Madness-style game with a simple premise: guide the marble through a complex obstacle course to the exit, avoiding obstacles on the way. The game is…
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Critters 2
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Karl-Johan Nilsson GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Karl-Johan Nilsson Critters 2 is an excellent remake of Thalamus’ Creatures 2: Torture Trouble, one of the most underrated games ever made for the Commodore 64. In this Lemmings meets The Humans game, your goal is to free…
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Alex Higgins World Snooker
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:John Line & Chris Hunt GAME DEVELOPER:Lindensoft GAME PUBLISHER:Lindensoft Copyright 1988, Amstrad Alex Higgins’ World Snooker is an excellent PC port of one of the best early snooker games on the Spectrum and Commodore 64 computers. The game was revolutionary for its time– offering mouse support,…
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Backgammon
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:IBM GAME PUBLISHER:IBM Copyright 1984, IBM One of the first backgammon games for the computer, Backgammon from IBM is a solid rendition of the popular board game. Despite its age, Backgammon stands the test of time fairly well, with crisp graphics, decent computer opponent,…
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Corridor 7: Alien Invasion
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Leigh Rothschild GAME DEVELOPER:Capstone GAME PUBLISHER:GameTek Copyright 1995, Capstone Capstone once again rose (sank?) to their notoriety as one of the worst game developers in history with this awful Wolfenstein 3D clone. Even id Software’s celebrated Wolf 3D engine can’t save Corridor 7 from being a…
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Crystal Hammer
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Magic Bytes GAME PUBLISHER:Magic Bytes Copyright 1995, Magic Bytes One of the best Breakout (aka Arkanoid) clones ever made, Crystal Hammer was one of Magic Bytes’ last hits on the Amiga that failed to make an impact in the crowded PC market. Everything you…
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Stranded
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jim Bayers GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, Jim Bayers Stranded is an excellent interactive fiction game that manages to be what many other games, IF or not, fail to be: a fun game that educates as well as entertains. The premise is simple: you are…
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Enigma
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Geckosoft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1996, Geckosoft A great Arkanoid/Breakout clone from Geckosoft with a few nice twists to the familiar bounce-the-ball-to-destroy-the-blocks theme. The highlights of Enigma are the sheer number of levels (over 150) and five interesting “subgames” that have nothing to do with…
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Firehouse Rescue
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GameTek GAME PUBLISHER:GameTek Copyright 1988, GameTek A cute little action game starring little people, Fisher-Price’s popular toys for toddlers. The idea: as a fireman in training, you must rescue little people and their pets from burning houses and trees. There are four levels of…
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La Grande Armee
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Stephen Jones GAME DEVELOPER:SDJ Enterprises GAME PUBLISHER:SDJ Enterprises Copyright 1991, SDJ Enterprises Shareware simulation of Napoleonic era, set during the period of the First Empire. Similar to SDJ’s other wargames, La Grande Armee was designed to be played with friends only– no computer opponent is available.…
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Gold of The Aztecs
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Kinetica GAME PUBLISHER:US Gold Copyright 1989, US Gold Another Atari/Amiga hit that failed to attract PC gamers’ attention. Gold of the Aztecs is a fun action/adventure game set in South America. The mundane plot casts you as another unfortunate pilot-turned-adventurer who crash-landed in the…
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Sharkey’s 3D Pool
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Orlando Pilchard GAME DEVELOPER:Aardvark Software GAME PUBLISHER:MicroPlay Copyright 1990, Orlando Pilchard Sharkey’s 3D Pool is an excellent pool game that introduces 3D perspective long before Celeris’ Virtual Pool. The game is fast, easy to learn, and a lot of fun. You can play against the computers…
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No Future
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Egosoft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1995, Egosoft No Future is a fun, unassuming educational sim about the effects of industrial development on the Earth’s delicate ecology. Developed by Egosoft for the Federal Environmental Agency of Germany, this freeware game has since been translated into English…
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Tactical Manager 2
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Talking Birds GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Talking Birds Tactical Manager 2 is a solid soccer management game that was recently made freeware by its developer. Daniel Henriksen nicely sums up the pros and cons of this underdog in his review: “…Although this game is…
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Supremo 99
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Malcolm Howard GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1999, Malcolm Howard Ostentatiously one the best soccer management simulation for DOS, and a precursor to ambitious Sick As A Parrot (SAAP). Supremo 99 has just about everything a soccer sim fan could hope for: hundreds of teams, statistics…
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Operation Body Count
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Capstone GAME PUBLISHER:Capstone Copyright 1994, Capstone Another extremely bad, extremely cheesy game from Capstone, the “nadir of computer entertainment.” Terrorists have taken control of the UN building in New York, and you are part of the assault team assigned to take it back. Yawn.…
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Return Fire 2
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Silent Software GAME PUBLISHER:Ripcord Games Copyright 1998, Silent Software A great sequel to Return Fire, one of the best capture the flag games ever made. The plot is very simple: you and an enemy are on an island, which is full of military strongholds.…
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Plane Crazy
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Inner Workings GAME PUBLISHER:SegaSoft Copyright 1998, Inner Workings Plane Crazy is based on the very familiar theme of racing along a course, tagging checkpoints to get the extra time, and ultimately, trying to cross the finish line before any of your opponents do. The…
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B-Hunter
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:InterActive Vision GAME PUBLISHER:Midas Interactive Copyright 2000, InterActive Vision One of the most obscure and underrated cyberpunk shooters ever made, B-Hunter is a low-profile release developed by Danish-based Interactive Vision and published by UK-based Midas Interactive Entertainment. Similar to Psygnosis’ much better known G-Police,…
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Color Lines
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:GAMOS Copyright 1993, GAMOS One of the most addictive time wasters Ive ever come across, GAMOS Color Lines is a wonderful puzzle game that, similar to Tetris, is very easy to learn but hard to master. The idea, as described on the…
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Sabor
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:GAMOS Copyright 1999, GAMOS Sabor is an interesting blend of side-scrolling beat-em-up genre and puzzle, based on Russian folkloremore specifically, an ancient martial arts called sabor (which, as far as I know, is similar to Tai Chi in the Orient). The term…
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Ignition
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Unique Development Studios (UDS) GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1997, Unique Development Studios (UDS) One of the best racing games ever made, Ignition is a wonderfully addictive game that strikes a perfect balance between awesome visuals and solid gameplay. The description of the game on…
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Balda
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:GAMOS Copyright 1999, GAMOS Balda is a fun game based on a popular Russian pen-and-paper word game of the same name. The goal is to construct the longest word you can from a given number of alphabets. The longer word you can…
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NetWalk
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:Arsenal Copyright 2000, GAMOS One of the best and most inventive puzzlers I?ve ever played, NetWalk is a great logic game that is now enjoying great popularity on the handheld platform (one of my colleagues in the office would play a quick…
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From Corner to Corner
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:Arsenal Copyright 1998, GAMOS From Corner to Corner is a fun variant of Chinese checkers for one to four players, each of whom can be either a computer or a human. Best described as a 4-way version of Chinese checkers, the object…
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Patience
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GAMOS GAME PUBLISHER:Arsenal Copyright 2001, GAMOS Patience is a great collection of 21 solitaire games that introduces a novel concept: animated cards (called Living Cards in the game). All 52 playing cards is animated similar to chess pieces in Interplays Battle Chess, each with…
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Baseball Mogul
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Clay Dreslough GAME DEVELOPER:Infinite Monkey Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Infinite Monkey Systems Copyright 1997, Infinite Monkey Systems One of the best baseball simulations ever made, bar none. Baseball Mogul lets you assume the role of both General Manager and Manager for a professional baseball team of your choice.…
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Patrician, The
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Bernd Ludewig & Thomas Schl?tel GAME DEVELOPER:Ascaron GAME PUBLISHER:Ascaron Copyright 1993, Ascaron One of the best historical business games ever made, The Patrician enjoyed tremendous success on the Amiga but unfortunately very little attention from PC gamers (the same fate suffered by most other Amiga hits).…
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Network Q Rac Rally
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Andrew Morris & Shaun Southern GAME DEVELOPER:Magnetic Fields GAME PUBLISHER:Europress Copyright 1993, Magnetic Fields Network Q RAC Rally is a classic racing sim based on the rally championship of the same name, held annually in Britain. Despite somewhat pixellated graphics and awful-looking scenery (especially cardboard-cutout “spectators”…
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Dream Warrior
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Keypunch GAME PUBLISHER:Keypunch Copyright 1989, Keypunch One of the worst games from Keypunch (and that’s saying a lot, considering how 99% of their games are horrible), and one of their last (thank goodness). Dream Warrior seems interesting enough if you just read the blurb…
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Samurai Shodown VS. MUGEN
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dragonsoft GAME DEVELOPER:Anonymous GAME PUBLISHER:Anonymous Copyright 2001, Anonymous Samural Shodown VS MUGEN A competent fanmade fighting game based on characters from SNK’s hit Samurai Shodown series (a.k.a. Samurai Spirit in the West), coded using the versatile M.U.G.E.N. fighting games engine. Although the game is very competently…
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Connaone
From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1998, Anonymous Connaone is a fun freeware action game based on Korean cartoon of the same name. You are Connaone, a rowdy, tough youngster who has been jailed for countless misdemeanors and petty theft charges. Your goal, of course, is…