Category: Arcade and Action Games

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Argonaut Software GAME PUBLISHER:Fox Interactive Copyright 1997, Argonaut Software Croc: Legend of the Gobbos is a fun 3D game that was much more successful on the Playstation and Gameboy Color consoles. You play Croc, a cute Crocodile who’s trying to rescue his even cuter…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Advertainment GAME PUBLISHER:ESD Games Copyright 1997, Advertainment Quiver is a fun shareware FPS that makes up for the lack of multiplayer support with a great sense of humor, some innovative weapons, and huge levels. The plot is nothing you haven’t seen before in DOOM…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Grolier Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Grolier Interactive Copyright 1997, Grolier Interactive Billed as a “flight sim,” Banzai Bug is actually a 3D action game, although the premise is indeed unique: you fly a bug named Banzai on a quest to drive the bug-phobic humans out of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jay Wilson GAME DEVELOPER:Monolith Productions GAME PUBLISHER:GT Interactive Copyright 1998, Monolith Productions Blood 2 is a fun sequel to Blood, a cult classic FPS from Monolith. Instead of the Build engine used in Blood, Blood 2 designers opted this time to use the enhanced version of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Nick Newhard GAME DEVELOPER:Monolith Productions GAME PUBLISHER:GT Interactive Copyright 1997, Monolith Productions Arguably the best game ever made with Ken Silverman’s Build 3D engine (the engine behind Duke Nukem 3D games), Blood is an excellent, atmospheric, and highly replayable first-person shooter that distinguishes itself from other…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Adam Pletcher GAME DEVELOPER:Volition GAME PUBLISHER:Interplay Copyright 1999, Volition Undoubtedly one of the best 3D space combat games ever made, Freespace 2 by Volition is a superb space opera of epic proportions. The strong emphasis on plot development combined with spectacular graphics and story-based missions make…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Oleg Slusar GAME DEVELOPER:Action Forms GAME PUBLISHER:WizardWorks Copyright 2001, Action Forms Carnivores: Ice Age is the final and definitely best in Action Forms’ underrated Carnivores series of first-person shooter games. Bradford Roberts of The Games Domain explains in his very thorough review: “Fans of the previous…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:47-Tek GAME PUBLISHER:47-Tek Copyright 1994, 47-Tek Creep Clash is a thoroughly awful low-budget 3D fighting game from 47-Tek, a small Japan-based developer. Although the genre doesn’t really need one, here’s the hackneyed plot anyway: in the land of Eternal Night, a leadership battle is…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Flair GAME PUBLISHER:MicroValue Copyright 1998, Flair Double Agent is a fun action/adventure/strategy hybrid from Flair Software that plays like a modern remake of classic Spy vs. Spy. Released only in Europe and pulled from the shelves in a matter of months after dismal sales,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Freeform Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1999, Freeform Interactive RoboCrush is an excellent Bust-A-Move-style game from Freeform Interactive, the now-defunct company behind the popular Ingava.com freeware site. You play RoboCrush 5000, a cute anime-style robot whose goals is to vault colorful creatures called “Bleeps” up…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Infogrames GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1989, Mindscape Hostage: Rescue Mission is a fun game from Infogrames, published by Mindscape in the U.S. As commander of an anti-terrorist squad somewhere in Europe, your job is to rescue U.S. Embassy officials who have been taken hostage by…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1995, TDK TDK Pinball Machine is a fun freeware pinball game released to promote TDK’s line of storage media for the PC (floppy disks, hard drives, tape drives, etc.) The game has only one table and few bonuses, but it…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Pierre Schiro & Michael Royer GAME DEVELOPER:Mango Grits GAME PUBLISHER:Activision Copyright 1998, Mango Grits Barrage is an excellent but little-known 3D shooter created by small developer Mango Grits, the same team behind two outstanding “rail shooters/adventure hybrids” Cyberia and Cyberia 2, and published by Activision. While…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Anonymous Pipeful Sunday is a nice freeware Pipe Mania clone. While it doesn’t show off any revolutionary concepts or push the envelope, it is a well-coded, fun, and challenging puzzler. Your goal on each level is to lay different…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Zombie GAME PUBLISHER:GT Interactive Copyright 1997, Zombie ZPC is an original first-person shooter from Zombie that you will most likely either love or hate (I love it, incidentally). If any action game deserves a label “artistic game” (much like The Dark Eye does for…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Manfred Trenz & Pekaro GAME DEVELOPER:Rainbow Arts GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Pekaro T2002 is a superb Windows clone of Factor 5/Rainbow Arts’ classic platformer Turrican, which was unfortunately never released for PC (unlike its sequel Turrican II). The plot – somewhat superfluous for this type of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Anonymous Another fun “cute flying witch” horizontal shooter from Japan, Medicalat features smooth SVGA graphics and addictive gameplay that recalls the best of IREM’s offerings. One of the best features in the game is the rocket that accompanies you,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:OCEAN GAME PUBLISHER:OCEAN Copyright 1997, OCEAN Last Rites is one of the most obscure first-person shooters ever made. But unlike underrated classics such as Wrath of Earth, the game is obscure for a good reason: it is horrible. The Games Domain’s uncompromising review says…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Arch Robison GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, Arch Robison Frequon Invaders is no doubt the most unique Space Invaders clone I have ever seen. The gameplay is hard to describe, so here are the designer’s own words: “…your mission is to destroy each invading Frequons…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Archimedes GAME DEVELOPER:Konami GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Archimedes Dracula’s Shadow is an excellent and very faithful PC remake of Konami’s classic NES game Castlevania 2: Simon’s Quest. For those who have never played the original game: Castlevania 2 begins where the first game left off. You…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Glyn Williams GAME DEVELOPER:Activision GAME PUBLISHER:Activision Copyright 1989, Glyn Williams One of the most underrated Elite-inspired space combat games ever made, Warhead is a cult classic Atari ST game published by Activision in 1989. The plot: Earth is being attacked by Sirius-5, and your job –…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Seed9 Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Seed9 Entertainment Copyright 2001, Seed9 Entertainment Tomak Save the Earth, Again is a fun side-scrolling shooter in the same style as popular Metal Slug series. Developed by Korean company Seed 9 Entertainment, TSTEA was released in limited quantities only in Korea…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:GameTek GAME PUBLISHER:GameTek Copyright 1995, GameTek Hellfire Zone is a lackluster isometric/first-person that looks and plays similar to Electronic Arts’ older Jungle Strike, except not nearly as much fun even though it is much newer. As a pilot of an Apache helicopter, your mission…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pompom Games GAME PUBLISHER:Pompom Games Copyright 2002, Pompom Games I’m not sure where to start when reviewing this game, much as I cannot really think where I would start in a review of say, Space Invaders or Asteroids. Let’s start with those classics, at…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pompom Games GAME PUBLISHER:Pompom Games Copyright 2002, Pompom Games For a start, this is one of the best-looking shareware games I have ever seen, so full credit to the guys at PomPom for raising that often all-too-low bar. Secondly this is one of the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Yves Rizoud GAME DEVELOPER:Irem GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Yves Rizoud Vigilante is a superb remake of IREM’s 1988 arcade game of the same name that does what all remakes should do: enhances the gameplay while maintaining the same ‘feel’ and atmosphere of playing the original. Coded…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Brady Hunt GAME DEVELOPER:Mind Shear GAME PUBLISHER:Softdisk Publishing Copyright 1995, Mind Shear In Pursuit of Greed is a decent first-person shooter (FPS) set in the distant future. Despite pixellated graphics and repetitive first few levels, the game gets considerably better and more interesting in later levels.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dave Dientsbier GAME DEVELOPER:Iguana Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Acclaim Entertainment Copyright 1998, Iguana Entertainment One of the first action games that look better on PC than the console, Turok Dinosaur Hunter is an excellent and innovative first-person shooter that is much more of an action-oriented exploration title than…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Software 2000 GAME PUBLISHER:Software 2000 Copyright 1997, Software 2000 Swing is one of the better Tetris clones released commercially. The falling block routine remains the same, but made much trickier by the addition of weight element. Your goal is to match three or more…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Janne Kivilahti GAME DEVELOPER:Piste Games GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Piste Games Q-Lat 2 is a great arcade game with a unique premise. Borrowing elements from billiards, pinball, and a little Marble Madness, the game’s objective is to make all the balls explode by turning them all…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alex Amsel GAME DEVELOPER:Tuna Technologies GAME PUBLISHER:Xicat Interactive Copyright 1999, Tuna Technologies Cowhunter is a silly shooting gallery game that offers a no-frills shooting action with cows as targets. There are three modes of play, none of which is particularly captivating, but all of which should…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Softstar GAME PUBLISHER:Softstar Copyright 1995, Softstar Kin Yeo Fighting Game is another entry in the long line of solid 2D fighting games from Softstar, Taiwan’s leading game developer. The game features 13 heroes from Chinese mythology and folklore you can choose from, excellent VGA…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Pascal Barret GAME DEVELOPER:Kalisto GAME PUBLISHER:Activision Copyright 1997, Kalisto Nightmare Creatures is a great horror action/adventure game in the same vein as Resident Evil, but with much more emphasis on action than puzzles. Aside from some annoying quirks, such as the lack of proper save game…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Erin Roberts GAME DEVELOPER:Origin Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1996, Origin Systems Privateer 2: The Darkening is an excellent sequel to Origin’s classic Wing Commander: Privateer, although Origin made the unfortunate decision to sacrifice gameplay depth in favor of slick full-motion video sequences a la Wing…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Rage Software GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1998, Rage Software Darklight Conflict is an excellent space action game that offers impressive space physics despite the mindless nature of its gameplay. You play the Human, a Navy pilot abducted by the Repton aliens to fight in…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Pixel GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Pixel Ikachan is a charming and interesting platformer from freeware developer Pixel in Japan. As a tiny squid, your goal is to survive in the dangerous oceans and grow up to be a more powerful octopus. In an innovative…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:E. Hashimoto GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, E. Hashimoto “So Icy Tower has got a Japanese cousin”, I first thought. But, after playing some more times, I can say that, while the basic concept is the same, the two games are very different. In Bunguru…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Olaf Lubeck GAME DEVELOPER:Brderbund GAME PUBLISHER:Brderbund Copyright 1982, Brderbund Apple Panic is a very early Lode Runner-style platformer that is not as good as that classic, but merits mention as one of the first platformers made for PC. It is also the first PC game designed…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Parsec Development GAME PUBLISHER:Webfoot Technologies Copyright 1997, Parsec Development One of the less exciting shareware games from Webfoot, Dynamite is a decent, if uninspired, clone of Bomberman. Up to 4 players battle each other to the death by strategically laying and detonating bombs and…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Friendlysoft GAME PUBLISHER:Friendlysoft Copyright 1987, Friendlysoft Definitely one of the best “all-in-one” software collection ever released, Friendlyware is a great collection of 30 excellent BASIC programs, ranging from applications, to different kinds of games. The applications include an eye & hearing test, personal biorhythms,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Daniel Nelson GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Daniel Nelson Crack Attack is a good remake of Nintendo’s popular Tetris Attack game, offering both faithful gameplay to the original and LAN capability. If you have never played Tetris Attack, here is the summary of the rules:…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Zhu Zhi GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Zhu Zhi Fight Man is the ninth entry in Zhu Zhi’s popular Xiao Xiao series of Flash animation featuring kung fu-fighting stickmen that is fast becoming a modern cult classic. Zhu Zhi makes a game starring his characters…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:David Braben GAME DEVELOPER:Frontier Developments GAME PUBLISHER:Grolier Interactive Copyright 1998, Frontier Developments V2000 is a commercially underrated sequel to Virus, David Braben’s innovative 3D action game released in 1988. Developed and released 10 years after Virus, V2000 received favorable reviews in game magazines and was one…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Andrew Braybrook GAME DEVELOPER:Hewson GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, Anonymous SDL Paradroid is an excellent fanmade Windows remake of Paradroid, a classic Commodore 64 game that was released for the Atari ST and Amiga, but never for the PC. The plot of this masterpiece goes as follows:…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Lindsay Whipp GAME DEVELOPER:Animation FX GAME PUBLISHER:Apogee Copyright 1994, Animation FX One of my most favorite Apogee games, Mystic Towers is a charming game that combines action, puzzle, and even a bit of strategy into an engrossing whole. Information from Lon Matero’s excellent fanpage says it…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Lindsay Whipp GAME DEVELOPER:Animation FX GAME PUBLISHER:Manaccom Copyright 1993, Animation FX Baron Baldric: A Grave Overture is a fun – and very rare – shareware platformer ported to the PC from the Amiga in 1992. Although the game is by no means a classic, it is…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Philippe Lesire GAME DEVELOPER:Thalion GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2000, Philippe Lesire Atomic is a faithful remake of Thalion’s classic Atomix. The gameplay and levels are identical – just cosmetically upgraded with SVGA graphics and a Windows interface. If you have never played Atomix before, the idea is…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dan Rock GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1999, Dan Rock War Encounter and Starship Tactical Combat Simulator are two excellent fanmade space combat games set in the Star Trek universe. STCS is more of a tactical simulation while War Encounter an action game similar to the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ben Crossman GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1999, Ben Crossman War Encounter and Starship Tactical Combat Simulator are two excellent fanmade space combat games set in the Star Trek universe. STCS is more of a tactical simulation while War Encounter an action game similar to the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:D. P. Leabo & A. V. Strietzel GAME DEVELOPER:IBM GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1984, IBM Freddy’s Rescue Roundup is a fun Lode Runner-style 2D platformer from IBM, developed in 1984 and released into the public domain in 1985. The game is reminiscent of the Spectrum computer’s classic…