Category: Arcade and Action Games

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:R/GA Inteactive GAME PUBLISHER:Philips Media Copyright 1996, Philips Media This inventive puzzler sadly disappeared from stores in less than 6 months after its release. The premise is simple: try to get 21 wind-up toys over to your opponent’s side before he can do the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Linel GAME PUBLISHER:Linel Copyright 1992, Linel When I was in high school (not THAT long ago ), the game of life was making a big splash in mathematics and biology… although it seems to us at the time that the best use of the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Sir-Tech GAME PUBLISHER:Sir-Tech Copyright 1992, Sir-Tech In a strange but fortuitous departure from its stable of RPG classics, Sir-Tech released this enjoyable puzzle game that’s best described as Diggers meets Pacman: your job in each level is to clear path to discover keys that…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Cliff Johnson GAME DEVELOPER:Manley Associates GAME PUBLISHER:Miles Computing Copyright 1989, Cliff Johnson Designed by Cliff Johnson, one of the best puzzle designers ever, the concept behind Fool’s Errand is so original that it defies categorization. Suffice to say that it is part devilish puzzle collection, part…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jay Kramer GAME DEVELOPER:Teacy GAME PUBLISHER:Homebrew Software Copyright 1993, Teacy A typical overhead shooter in the spirit of Raiden or 1942, Flying Tigers is quite a terribly piece of a game. With amateur graphics, bad programming technique and aweful level design coupled with amazingly bad controls…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Sunstar GAME PUBLISHER:Sunstar Copyright 1995, Sunstar Fist Fight is a fun side-scrolling arcade game that features some cool martial arts moves despite bland graphics and dumb enemies. One or two players (male and female) can join forces to fight the evil Chinese warlords in…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Silent Software GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1988, Silent Software Fire Power is a fun “capture the flag” variant that requires careful planning as well as high dexterity. Instead of your legs, you control a tank, looking at the action from a top-down perspective. Starting from…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Stephen Lewis & Stephen Hwang GAME DEVELOPER:Micro Forte GAME PUBLISHER:Strategic Studies Group (SSG) Copyright 1990, Strategic Studies Group (SSG) Fire King is a clone of the arcade classic Gauntlet. The game can best be described as an action/rpg hybrid, one of the first arcade games offering…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Chris Gray GAME DEVELOPER:Gray Matter GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1989, Gray Matter A fun collection of circus games by Chris Gray (of Infiltrator fame), Fiendish Freddy includes many subgames, based on familiar circus highlights including high diving, juggling, trapeze, tightrope walking, and human cannonball. Fiendish Freddy in…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:SNK GAME PUBLISHER:Interplay Copyright 1995, SNK There aren’t many good fighting games for PC, in fact, I could count them with my fingers! there are only four of them (no, not Mortal Kombat). SSF2T, OMF, SS2, and finally, Fatal Fury 3. Fatal Fury offers…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alexei Pajitnov GAME DEVELOPER:Spectrum Holobyte GAME PUBLISHER:Spectrum Holobyte Copyright 1993, Spectrum Holobyte Facesis similar to Wordtrisin its assemble-falling-pieces-into-a-recognizable-item concept: your task is to assemble different parts of a face properly (e.g. nose above mouth, etc.) to make it disappear. Assembling a “perfect” face (i.e. all parts…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Denton Designs GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1989, Mindscape Eye of Horus is a neat platform game set in ancient Egypt– you must venture into the depths of the pyramid to find the magical Eye of Horus. The best thing about this game is that as…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Digital Extremes GAME PUBLISHER:Epic Megagames Copyright 1995, Epic Megagames A worthy follow-up to best-selling Epic Pinball, Extreme Pinball is a fantastic pinball simulator for the PC. Featuring excellent gameplay with flawless table physics, includes 4 tables (Rock Fantasy, Medieval Knights, Monkey Mayhem, and Urban…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Bloodlust Software GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1992, Bloodlust Software Bloodlust Software’s first game is a violent side-scrolling fighting game with a twist– you are a bloodthirsty executioner out for –surprise– blood in the villains’ home turf. Punch, smash, and kick your way through level after…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jeff Tunnell GAME DEVELOPER:Jeff Tunnell Productions GAME PUBLISHER:Sierra On-Line Copyright 1991, Sierra On-Line This is best described as an “add-on” pack for The Incredible Machine 1: it contains more levels, more parts, and more flexibility of controls than the original, even though it does not require…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Tengen GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1991, Domark A fun action game with a zany sci-fi plot that recalls 40’s “B” campy sci-fi flicks, this game from Tangen has a huge dose of action interspersed with colorful comic-book style cutscenes and animations. The plot is a…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Beaucomm Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Blue H20 Entertainment Copyright 1996, Beaucomm Interactive One of the rare adventure / puzzle games that boasts production value that rival big-budget games, Entombed is one of the better Myst-clones on the market (and yes, as diehard adventure gamer I refuse…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Loriciel GAME PUBLISHER:Loriciel Copyright 1994, Loriciel Ah, here’s a decent platformer game for PC. Fluid animation, and Whooo… girl in skimpy clothes . There’re few things I really really hated about Entity. First, why is it so hard just to perform vertical shoot? and…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Avery Pack GAME DEVELOPER:Pack Media GAME PUBLISHER:Villa Crespo Copyright 1994, Pack Media Elements is without a doubt one of the best and trickiest puzzle games I’ve played. The game unfortunately didn’t sell well despite rave reviews from every major magazine (CGW’s Johnny Wilson called it a…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Byteshock GAME PUBLISHER:CAPCOM Copyright 1997, Byteshock Electronic Popple is a recent but sadly unknown platform game that puts you in a role of ROM or RAM, two memory chips that must journey through the insides of the computer to vanquish the evil electrical components.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pixel Painters GAME PUBLISHER:Pixel Painters Copyright 1994, Pixel Painters A great Arkanoid clone that, true to its name, not only replicates that arcade/puzzle classic but also takes it to new heights with more blocks, rockets instead of balls, and enemy machines that shoot you…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Mark Crowe & David Selle GAME DEVELOPER:Dynamix GAME PUBLISHER:Sierra On-Line Copyright 1995, Dynamix Earthsiege is one of the best 3D giant-robot games ever released that sadly faded into oblivion beside the better-hyped and (deservedly) higher-rated Mechwarrior 2 from Activision. Still and even though it doesn’t feature…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Simulmondo GAME PUBLISHER:Simulmondo Copyright 1992, Simulmondo Among other, more conventional features, Dylan Dog features the most bizarre gameplay in any game to date. This game is just so weird, whoever thought of it should be commited ASAP to the madhouse. From a gamer’s point…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:David Mullich & R. Scott Morrison GAME DEVELOPER:Disney GAME PUBLISHER:Disney Copyright 1988, Disney Although not commonly regarded as a formidable software developer, Disney nevertheless scores big with this game, an entertaining mixture of platform and arcade, with a bit of strategy thrown in (you can buy/sell…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Incentive GAME PUBLISHER:Epyx Copyright 1990, Incentive After releasing many solid 3D action/adventure games, Incentive broke new ground with this, the first game developed using its revolutionary Freescape? engine that may well be the very first *patented* 3D engine. Now, in addition to the standard…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Brett W. Sperry & Louis Castle GAME DEVELOPER:Westwood Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI) Copyright 1990, Strategic Simulations Inc. (SSI) Another excellent, largely unknown game from Westwood, this unique game is essentially a 3D (yes, 3D) dragon flight simulation: fight through progressively harder missions on dragonback,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Admiral Software GAME PUBLISHER:Admiral Software Copyright 1992, Admiral Software One of a handful of games based on a cult “B” TV-series hit Dr. Who , Dalek Attack is a straightforward platform game that captures much of the show’s idiosyncratic charm. Unfortunately, gameplay is not…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Avalon Hill GAME PUBLISHER:Avalon Hill Copyright 1985, Avalon Hill A trivia game featuring everyone’s favorite sex therapist Dr. Ruth, this is a standard trivia game about you-know-what. Some questions are quite difficult even if you consider yourself an expert in the area . The…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:MicroProse GAME PUBLISHER:MicroProse Copyright 1993, MicroProse Undoubtedly the most obscure MicroProse release ever (with possible exception of Sid Meier’s CPU Bach), this is an uneven collection of games and toys designed for Windows 3.1, starring mad scientist Dr. Floyd. The games rank from the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pixel Painters GAME PUBLISHER:Pixel Painters Copyright 1996, Pixel Painters Pixel Painter’s last game, released on CD-ROM, is an ingenious platform game that sports many creative features that always set Pixel Painters’ games apart from other shareware developers. In this case, the familiar trappings of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Softstar GAME PUBLISHER:Softstar Copyright 1993, Softstar Dif-2 Mirage Thunder is a fun shooter from Taiwanese developer Softstar that will surprise veteran shooter fans with some novel twists to the shoot-everything-that-moves gameplay done to perfection in Silpheed and Raptor. The goal, as with a zillion…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Softstar GAME PUBLISHER:Softstar Copyright 1991, Softstar Dif-1 Laser Tank is a fun tank game that looks and plays like an adaptation of arcade game TARG. The goal is simple: wipe out enemy tanks in each level and try to get the best score. There…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Distinctive Software GAME PUBLISHER:Disney Copyright 1990, Disney A fun action/strategy game based on the campy comic book P.I. who got his 15 minutes of fame on the big screen. The game is decidedly better than the movie: Disney combines furious platform shootout sequences with…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Visceral Productions GAME PUBLISHER:Avalon Hill Copyright 1997, Avalon Hill Excerpt from CD Mag’s review: “When Avalon Hill decided to expand their product line, they created Visceral Productions so as not to scare off… wargamers. Visceral’s first game, Defiance, is a blast-fest [with decent plot].…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Paul Neurath GAME DEVELOPER:Sir-Tech GAME PUBLISHER:Sir-Tech Copyright 1987, Sir-Tech Deep Space: Operation Copernicus was the first 3D space shooter game I’ve played– it has neither good plot nor long campaign games but it *does* offer many enemy types and diverse mission objective. This was the first…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Erik Hermansen GAME DEVELOPER:Webfoot Technologies GAME PUBLISHER:Webfoot Technologies Copyright 1996, Webfoot Technologies A fantastic but unfortunately very rare shareware puzzler, Deadly Rooms of Death consists of hundreds of rooms of insanely difficult puzzles. The idea is simple: you control a man with a sword that can…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Accolade GAME PUBLISHER:Accolade Copyright 1989, Accolade This fun action game puts you in command of Viper, a futuristic droid sent to capture a space army base back from GAR, a computer sentient gone berzerk (not unlike System Shock‘s Shodan). Your task is to find…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Damon Slye GAME DEVELOPER:Dynamix GAME PUBLISHER:Dynamix Copyright 1990, Dynamix This early Dynamix game is a “cinematic” adventure reminiscent of Cinemaware games of yore, starring you as secret agent David Wolf. Gameplay borrows heavily from classic James Bond movies, but are well implemented thanks to designer Damon…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Incentive GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1991, Incentive After the success with Driller, Incentive continued to improve its 3D Freescape engine with this fun sci-fi action/adventure set on planet Tricuspid. To prevent the destruction of your world Evath, you must cripple a huge laser device by…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Taito GAME PUBLISHER:Taito Copyright 1990, Taito Taito’s Dark Century is a retro perspective on team deathmatch, offering you the chance to pit your team of tanks against another human or an AI opponent. Bots on your team are minutely configurable. Speed, attack patterns, and…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Lane Roathe GAME DEVELOPER:Eldridge Games GAME PUBLISHER:Three-Sixty Pacific Copyright 1987, Eldridge Games MobyGames says it all: “Dark Castle is a platform game that relies more on timing and careful planning than quick reflexes and shooting things. It’s clever–a thinking man’s platformer. One thing that contributes to…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Robert Cook GAME DEVELOPER:Mindscape GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1991, Mindscape D/Generation is a fun puzzle/adventure hybrid that looks similar to Mindscape’s earlier underdog Contraption Zack, although it’s based on a different engine. The puzzle focus of Zack gave way this time to stronger emphasis on plot and…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Tony Thibault GAME DEVELOPER:Goldtree Enterprises GAME PUBLISHER:SoftDisk Publishing Copyright 1996, Goldtree Enterprises Cylindrix is a 3-on-3 combat game with 360 degrees of freedom that is similar to Spectre VR but with a wider variety of ships, as well as the addition of drivers. Attack and be…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Michele Culp & Herb Ledebohm GAME DEVELOPER:Symtus GAME PUBLISHER:Symtus Copyright 1990, Symtus Trixter bashes this marginally underrated game so well at MobyGames that I’d like to quote it verbatim (and yes, I agree with him 100%): “Cybergenic Ranger bears my dubious title of “game that should…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Assembly Line, The GAME PUBLISHER:US Gold Copyright 1992, US Gold Yet another classic Amiga game that failed miserably on the PC, Cybercon III is a fun futuristic shooter that features a vast array of high-tech gadgets despite a hackneyed plot. Your job: shut down…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Software 2000 GAME PUBLISHER:Software 2000 Copyright 1991, Software 2000 A fun variation of popular Rubik’s Cube, Cubulus features attractive graphics and simple yet potentially addictive gameplay. The goal is simple: use the up and down arrow keys next to each row of colored blocks…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Sean Fausett & Nick Westgate GAME DEVELOPER:Digital Jellyfish Design GAME PUBLISHER:Sherston Copyright 1993, Sherston A good multiplayer puzzle contest game based on an underrated British game show in the early ’90s, up to 16 players compete in Crystal Maze to be the first to get out…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Absolute Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Absolute Entertainment Copyright 1989, Absolute Entertainment A fun, mindless shooting game that should be considered a true ancestor of today’s inexplicably famous 3D hunting games, gameplay Crossbow is simple: shoot anything that moves on the screen. You star the legendary archer…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Titus GAME PUBLISHER:Titus Copyright 1991, Titus Crime Does Not Pay is a fun platform game that is best described as a cross between King of Chicago and Disney’s Dick Tracy. Your goal as the mafia, strangely enough, is to get yourself elected as the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Steve Vestergaard & Michael Hiebert GAME DEVELOPER:Destiny Software Productions GAME PUBLISHER:Psygnosis Copyright 1993, Destiny Software Productions At first glance it would be easy to mistake Creepers for a Lemmings clone. Chunky, colourful graphics, toe-tapping music, levels dotted with pistons, flaming torches and obstacles for a six-pixel…