Category: Arcade and Action Games

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ricardo Puerto & Raul Lopez GAME DEVELOPER:Dinamic Multimedia GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1992, Dinamic Multimedia Risky Woods is a better-than-average side-scrolling platformer that is better known on the Amiga than PC. Your goal: rescue a guardian and kill all the enemies on each level to get…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Accolade GAME PUBLISHER:Accolade Copyright 1995, Accolade Super Bubsy is a little-known platformer gem from Accolade, optimized for Windows 95. As MobyGames describes, the game stars Bubsy the Bobcat, the cartoon hero “….[in] Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind. [You] have to collect the objects…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Digital Dreams Multimedia GAME PUBLISHER:Digital Dreams Multimedia Copyright 1993, Digital Dreams Multimedia Chesshousers is a unique puzzler that unfortunately does not live up to its innovative premise. Although it has a chess theme, the game has little to do with chess: it is, instead,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:OMEGA GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, OMEGA Every Extend is a very polished, highly addictive coffee-break action game from Japanese designer OMEGA. Like all addictive action games, Every Extend is very easy to learn, but hard to leave. Your only goal in this “kamikaze shooter”…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ian Munro GAME DEVELOPER:Bug-Byte Software GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Ian Munro Cavern Fighter is a faithful PC remake of a classic Spectrum ZX game from Bug-Byte, which is one of the best Scramble clones. As Crash magazine elaborates in their review of the Spectrum original, “[Cavern…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Taito GAME PUBLISHER:Interplay Copyright 2000, Interplay Bust-A-Move 4 is the latest and arguably greatest in Taito’s line of arcade puzzlers that are much more popular on console systems than PC. Adrenaline Vault’s comprehensive review says it all: “Anyone who’s tried their hand at any…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Taito GAME PUBLISHER:Interplay Copyright 1997, Interplay Bust-A-Move 3 DX is yet another great entry in Taito’s line of arcade puzzlers, although it is not all that different from the previous game. As GameSpot says in its review of the SEGA Saturn version, “…[the] premise…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Lewey Geselowitz GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Lewey Geselowitz Evil Dice is a decent PC adaptation of Devil Dice, a great puzzle game on Playstation that was never released for PC. Similar to great reflex-based puzzlers, Evil Dice has simple rules: score as many points…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Stuart Collier & Andy Hewitt GAME DEVELOPER:Astral GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Ovine by Design XOR – The Ultimate Maze Challenge is a superb fanmade remake of a classic puzzle game, created by Astral around 1986 and published by Logotron. The game appeared on just about every…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Gray Chang & Lobsang Alvites GAME DEVELOPER:Atari Games GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Lobsang Alvites Dog Daze Revolution is a great fanmade remake of Dog Daze, a rare underdog released for Atari 8-bit computers in 1981. This Windows remake is actually based on Dog Daze Deluxe, the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Circy GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Circy Mr. Stump’s Dentures is a fun, lengthy, but very difficult platformer from Circy, longtime participant of the “Klik” community. The wacky plot goes as follows according to the official blurb: “…Dentures have been swallowed… a plot to awaken…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:KNPMaster & Master Raichu GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2003, KNPMaster & Master Raichu Hurdler is a very neat little action game created by KNPMaster and Master Raichu. Your goal, similar to hurdles in track & field, is to jump over obstacles and reach the yellow…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:X-Tender & Warbeast GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, X-Tender & Warbeast

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:CaptainVeg GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, CaptainVeg Stack Saver is a worthy winner of the first mini game making competition, held right in our very own forum in January 2004 among forum regulars. The official description of this 3D shooter, from README file, is as…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:AReyeP & MCS Amsterdam GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, AReyeP & MCS Amsterdam Spear Resurrection is probably the best “Total Conversion” of id’s Wolfenstein 3D in existence. Sporting 23 very well-designed missions, new graphics, new enemies, new features including destructible environments, the same addictive gameplay,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Neon Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Neon Studios Copyright 1997, Neon Studios Mars Taxi is a fun and faithful clone of the 8-bit classic Space Taxi game. Short description on MobyGames: “As an operator of a taxi on Mars, your job is to carry passengers from one…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Buka Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Bethesda Softworks Copyright 2001, Buka Entertainment Not to be confused with (in my opinion superior) Access Software’s game of the same name, Echelon from Russian developer Buka is an ambitious space combat simulation that is better than average and is fun…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alexander Kochetov GAME DEVELOPER:DOKA GAME PUBLISHER:DOKA Copyright 1994, DOKA ImpArea and Charm Rocks are two interesting action games from DOKA that resemble a combination of board games and whack-a-mole. The objectives of both games are similar: catch as many ‘imps’ as you can. In ImpArea, you…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alexey Silayev GAME DEVELOPER:DOKA GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1992, DOKA ImpArea and Charm Rocks are two interesting action games from DOKA that resemble a combination of board games and whack-a-mole. The objectives of both games are similar: catch as many ‘imps’ as you can. In ImpArea, you…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alexey Silayev GAME DEVELOPER:DOKA GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1992, DOKA The Mystery of the Surface is a decent Dig Dug / Pac-Man clone from Russian developer DOKA. Your goal: get rid of all the dirt on screen by digging through it. While you do this, enemy robots…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Adam Butcher GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Adam Butcher Battle Boys is a fun freeware vertical shooter that sports a novel idea: two players must collaborate in order to survive. Although you can play solo, it is much more fun to play with a friend…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Acclaim Entertainment GAME PUBLISHER:Taito Copyright 1999, Taito Bust-A-Move 2: Arcade Edition is a great sequel to Taito’s classic puzzle game that was extremely popular on the Neo-Geo system and in the arcades. The first official Bust-A-Move game, this excellent PC conversion adds plenty of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Dongleware GAME PUBLISHER:Dongleware Copyright 1994, Dongleware Arya Vaiv is a little-known and only slightly above average 2D vertical shooter from Dongleware. The all-too-familiar goal: shoot everything in sight and avoid enemy fire. Not much more to say than that – if you have played…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Carl Erikson GAME DEVELOPER:Anonymous GAME PUBLISHER:Anonymous Copyright 1992, Carl Erikson A decent and ambitious if uninspired side-scrolling platformer, Elfland is a little-known game published as shareware by the author in 1992. The description and – in my opinion – an overly optimistic review at MobyGames says…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:MIYA GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2002, MIYA Puchiwara No Bouken (“The Adventures of Puchiwara” in English) is a fun action/puzzle hybrid from Japan that features crisp graphics, clever level designs, and the same addictive blend of action and puzzle that makes games like Lode Runner…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Raigan Burns & Mare Sheppard GAME DEVELOPER:MetaNet Software GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Raigan Burns & Mare Sheppard One of the best platformers you’ll ever come across, N is a great freeware game from Metanet that boasts excellent real-world physics – something we don’t normally see in…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ikiki GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Ikiki Teppodon is a fun sequel of sorts to Teppoman and Bimboman, two fun cartoony platformers from the same Japanese author. Created with Klik & Play game creation program, Teppodon offers smooth cartoon animations, excellent level designs, plenty of…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Rebellion GAME PUBLISHER:Fox Interactive Copyright 2000, Rebellion Alien Versus Predator: Gold Edition is a superb re-release of Alien Versus Predator, one of the best and most underrated first-person shooters ever made – not to mention one of the scariest. This version offers over 50…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Makh-Shevet GAME PUBLISHER:Makh-Shevet Copyright 1993, Makh-Shevet Cruel World is a below-average Prince of Persia clone from Makh-Shevet, a little-known Israeli developer who later made Master of Dimensions and Armed and Dangerous adventure games. As a harmless citizen who is one day thrown into the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:John Shramko GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1992, John Shramko Elevator from Hell is a great fanmade PC version of Taito’s underrated coin-op classic Elevator Action. Similar to the arcade version, the game is difficult, frustrating, and addictive. Your goal is to collect all the tokens…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Andy Noble GAME DEVELOPER:Ultimate Play the Game GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1983, Andy Noble Lunar Jetman is a superb Windows conversion of the 1983 Spectrum classic of the same name, released by Ultimate Play the Game as sequel to their earlier hit Jetpac. Freestyle Freeware says it…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:PopCap Games GAME PUBLISHER:PopCap Games Copyright 2004, PopCap Games The most addictive puzzle game I have played since Snood, Zuma Deluxe from PopCap Games is a clever take on the “line three same-colored blocks to make them disappear” genre that started years ago with…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jeff Minter GAME DEVELOPER:Llamasoft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1994, Llamasoft Revenge of the Mutant Camels is a great PC remake of classic Commodore 64/Spectrum game of the same name, released as shareware by the author in 1994 but has since been released into the public domain. Comments…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jeff Minter & John Dow GAME DEVELOPER:Llamasoft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, John Dow Another superb remake by John Dow of a Llamasoft classic, GalYakSians combines the quirky humor of Jeff “Yak” Minter with Space Invaders-style gameplay. The basics need no introduction – expect classic blast-all-aliens Space…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jeff Minter & John Dow GAME DEVELOPER:Llamasoft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2001, John Dow Metagalactic Llamas Battle at the Edge of Time is another addictive arcade game from Jeff “Yak” Minter, ported to the PC faithfully by John Dow. The llamas from previous Llamasoft games have evolved,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Keypunch GAME PUBLISHER:Keypunch Copyright 1987, Keypunch Yet another compilation by Keypunch in which the company essentially stole freelance designers’ works (most released as freeware or shareware on various BBS’s), took out all credits, and sold them as the company’s own games. That the company…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:John Romero GAME DEVELOPER:Softdisk Publishing GAME PUBLISHER:Softdisk Publishing Copyright 1989, Softdisk Publishing One of the rarest early games by John Romero of id Software fame, Twilight’s Treasures is a decent little action game included in Softdisk’s Big Blue Disk Sampler disk, made to promote the company’s…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Keypunch GAME PUBLISHER:Keypunch Copyright 1987, Keypunch Yet another compilation by Keypunch in which the company essentially stole freelance designers’ works (most released as freeware or shareware on various BBS’s), took out all credits, and sold them as the company’s own games. That the company…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Scott Miller GAME DEVELOPER:Keypunch GAME PUBLISHER:Keypunch Copyright 1986, Keypunch Maze Adventures is one of Keypunch’s many game packages in which the company essentially stole freelance designers’ works (most released as freeware or shareware on various BBS’s), took out all credits, and sold them as the company’s…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Sirocco GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2003, Sirocco Frenetic Plus is a fun and addictive isometric shooter coded in Allegro. The official plot: “…Called upon to defend her nation in the midst of a civil war, [an android] Mercen 505 finds herself in deep space… alone,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Alexander Safonov GAME DEVELOPER:Omega Integral Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Omega Integral Systems Copyright 1994, Omega Integral Systems Highway Fighter is a very obscure precursor to Highway Hunter, a shareware game from Russia published by Safari and later by Epic MegaGames. Although the game offers the same plot, similar…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pop Software GAME PUBLISHER:Pop Software Copyright 1995, Pop Software Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom and the sequel Return of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom are two rare ‘retro’-style shareware shooters. From description at MobyGames: “[Invasion] consists of 66 stages, arranged…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Pop Software GAME PUBLISHER:Pop Software Copyright 1995, Pop Software Invasion of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom and the sequel Return of the Mutant Space Bats of Doom are two rare ‘retro’-style shareware shooters. From description at MobyGames: “[Invasion] consists of 66 stages, arranged…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:MicroValue GAME PUBLISHER:MicroValue Copyright 1991, MicroValue 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 from…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Nexus Interactive Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Nexus Interactive Studios Copyright 2000, Nexus Interactive Studios AI Wars: The Awakening is an innovative and very underrated FPS that requires a lot of effort to learn. But your patience will be well rewarded with a unique and captivating blend…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Chris Hinsley & R.Granado GAME DEVELOPER:Mikro-Gen GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, R.Granado Pyjamarama is a superb fanmade remake of a classic Spectrum action/adventure game of the same name, released way back in 1984 by Mikro-Gen. The original game is the continuation of Wally’s adventure in the famously…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Vctor Ruiz & Miguel Jimnez GAME DEVELOPER:Dinamic Multimedia GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Miguel Jimnez Abu Simbel Profanation Deluxe is a superb fanmade remake of Dinamic’s classic platformer for the Spectrum computer. You are Johnny Jones, avid adventurer who explores a forbidden Egyptian temple (perhaps inspired by…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Buziol GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Buziol One of the best fanmade Super Mario games, bar none, Mario Forever from Polish freeware group Buziol Games is a highly polished, addictive, and long Super Mario clone, featuring dozens of levels spanning multiple worlds, all the familiar…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Scott King GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2004, Scott King One of the best Lemmings clones I have ever played and certainly the funniest, Shoujo Attack! is a great Lemmings clone that manages to parody Japanese anime/manga culture in the process 🙂 Your job: guide little…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Driven Phantom Soft GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 2003, Driven Phantom Soft Return of Egypt is a very good Castlevania clone from Driven Phantom Soft, sporting fluid 2D sidescrolling action, plenty of well-drawn enemies, and excellent level design. You star Moses as he returns to Egypt…