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Many of us here have seen our way through the 8 and 16 bit eras and have a certain affection for the games we used to play in our youth. But is this simply down to nostalgia and those old rose tinted gaming goggles or were games in the 80’s and 90’s really that good?
In some respects I think we’re right to class some games as classics and they even stand the test of time despite age old graphics and lack of modern technology. I’ve decided to check out a selection of games that we considered classics at the time and see if they make the mark in today’s graphics fuelled complicated gaming world.
Elite
One of the first great classics of the gaming world, Elite first appeared on the BBC Model B and later on other 8 bit consoles. Having originally played on this far too much while at secondary school when it first came out (I joined the library as a librarian just for the privileges of using the BBCs at lunchtime!) I used an emulator (BBC-b) to check it out again (the game is now freely available here. ). All the memories came flooding back.
Conclusion:
Once I’d got over the wireframe graphics (it can get quite confusing) I realised just how complicated and involving the game was. It does still stand up to other games in terms of gameplay but the graphics are very basic.
Star Wars
Another favourite of many, Star Wars is based on the Arcade machine. As most of the home computer versions were the same, I’ve chosen to play the actual arcade game using MAME.
Again, the game uses wire frame graphics before bitmaps were used to give items any textures, but somehow it works. Tie Fighters are easily distinguished, as is the large looming Death Star. In fact, it ends up looking pretty much like the scene from the film where they view the stolen plans of the Death Star.
Conclusion
And yet again the game works. Despite the graphics it manages to feel like you’re in an X-wing and all the excitement remains.
Last Ninja 2
C64 fans in particular will remember System3’s Last Ninja series of games. Isometric levels with plenty of puzzles and pixel perfect jumps. The Last Ninja games made their way across several systems including the NES, Spectrum, CPC , Amiga and consoles for various verions.
Your character, Armakuni, feels really hard to control by today’s standards. The movements are one direction at a time, jumps and puzzles require being in exactly the right place and fighting means you need to face the right way and press the fire button at just the right time. Crossing the river by jumping on the boat took me ages!
Conclusion
Despite the annoying controls and the single level at a time style gameplay, Last Ninja 2 is still fun to play but feels slightly masochistic at times! If released today I could see a lot of people complaining about the fiddly pixel placement.
Street Fighter II
This needs no introduction! I chose the SNES version naturally (emulated on Xbox SNES emulator) and wasn’t surprised to find that it looked a bit older than I remember. With the recent HD updates I’ve got used to the idea of a nicer looking Street Fighter II. The main thing was that everything else I remembered was the same, the moves the strategies and the great sound effects.
Conclusion
It’s no wonder the PSN (well, eventually in Europe) and XBL have a version, Street Fighter II and it’s various incarnations are deservedly classics. It plays wonderfully and though the graphics are a bit pixilated, the gameplay shines as it did all those years ago.
Now it’s down to you. Get your old consoles or emulators ready and find some classic games of yesteryear to try out. Let me know what you think and if they still stand up to scrutiny in today’s 360 and PS3 world.
In some respects I think we’re right to class some games as classics and they even stand the test of time despite age old graphics and lack of modern technology. I’ve decided to check out a selection of games that we considered classics at the time and see if they make the mark in today’s graphics fuelled complicated gaming world.
Elite
One of the first great classics of the gaming world, Elite first appeared on the BBC Model B and later on other 8 bit consoles. Having originally played on this far too much while at secondary school when it first came out (I joined the library as a librarian just for the privileges of using the BBCs at lunchtime!) I used an emulator (BBC-b) to check it out again (the game is now freely available here. ). All the memories came flooding back.
Conclusion:
Once I’d got over the wireframe graphics (it can get quite confusing) I realised just how complicated and involving the game was. It does still stand up to other games in terms of gameplay but the graphics are very basic.
Star Wars
Another favourite of many, Star Wars is based on the Arcade machine. As most of the home computer versions were the same, I’ve chosen to play the actual arcade game using MAME.
Again, the game uses wire frame graphics before bitmaps were used to give items any textures, but somehow it works. Tie Fighters are easily distinguished, as is the large looming Death Star. In fact, it ends up looking pretty much like the scene from the film where they view the stolen plans of the Death Star.
Conclusion
And yet again the game works. Despite the graphics it manages to feel like you’re in an X-wing and all the excitement remains.
Last Ninja 2
C64 fans in particular will remember System3’s Last Ninja series of games. Isometric levels with plenty of puzzles and pixel perfect jumps. The Last Ninja games made their way across several systems including the NES, Spectrum, CPC , Amiga and consoles for various verions.
Your character, Armakuni, feels really hard to control by today’s standards. The movements are one direction at a time, jumps and puzzles require being in exactly the right place and fighting means you need to face the right way and press the fire button at just the right time. Crossing the river by jumping on the boat took me ages!
Conclusion
Despite the annoying controls and the single level at a time style gameplay, Last Ninja 2 is still fun to play but feels slightly masochistic at times! If released today I could see a lot of people complaining about the fiddly pixel placement.
Street Fighter II
This needs no introduction! I chose the SNES version naturally (emulated on Xbox SNES emulator) and wasn’t surprised to find that it looked a bit older than I remember. With the recent HD updates I’ve got used to the idea of a nicer looking Street Fighter II. The main thing was that everything else I remembered was the same, the moves the strategies and the great sound effects.
Conclusion
It’s no wonder the PSN (well, eventually in Europe) and XBL have a version, Street Fighter II and it’s various incarnations are deservedly classics. It plays wonderfully and though the graphics are a bit pixilated, the gameplay shines as it did all those years ago.
Now it’s down to you. Get your old consoles or emulators ready and find some classic games of yesteryear to try out. Let me know what you think and if they still stand up to scrutiny in today’s 360 and PS3 world.
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Many of us here have seen our way through the 8 and 16 bit eras and have a certain affection for the games we used to play in our youth. But is this simply down to nostalgia and those old rose tinted gaming goggles or were games in the 80’s and 90’s really that good?
In some respects I think we’re right to class some games as classics and they even stand the test of time despite age old graphics and lack of modern technology. I’ve decided to check out a selection of games that we considered classics at the time and see if they make the mark in today’s graphics fuelled complicated gaming world.
Elite
One of the first great classics of the gaming world, Elite first appeared on the BBC Model B and later on other 8 bit consoles. Having originally played on this far too much while at secondary school when it first came out (I joined the library as a librarian just for the privileges of using the BBCs at lunchtime!) I used an emulator (BBC-b) to check it out again (the game is now freely available here. ). All the memories came flooding back.
Conclusion:
Once I’d got over the wireframe graphics (it can get quite confusing) I realised just how complicated and involving the game was. It does still stand up to other games in terms of gameplay but the graphics are very basic.
Star Wars
Another favourite of many, Star Wars is based on the Arcade machine. As most of the home computer versions were the same, I’ve chosen to play the actual arcade game using MAME.
Again, the game uses wire frame graphics before bitmaps were used to give items any textures, but somehow it works. Tie Fighters are easily distinguished, as is the large looming Death Star. In fact, it ends up looking pretty much like the scene from the film where they view the stolen plans of the Death Star.
Conclusion
And yet again the game works. Despite the graphics it manages to feel like you’re in an X-wing and all the excitement remains.
Last Ninja 2
C64 fans in particular will remember System3’s Last Ninja series of games. Isometric levels with plenty of puzzles and pixel perfect jumps. The Last Ninja games made their way across several systems including the NES, Spectrum, CPC , Amiga and consoles for various verions.
Your character, Armakuni, feels really hard to control by today’s standards. The movements are one direction at a time, jumps and puzzles require being in exactly the right place and fighting means you need to face the right way and press the fire button at just the right time. Crossing the river by jumping on the boat took me ages!
Conclusion
Despite the annoying controls and the single level at a time style gameplay, Last Ninja 2 is still fun to play but feels slightly masochistic at times! If released today I could see a lot of people complaining about the fiddly pixel placement.
Street Fighter II
This needs no introduction! I chose the SNES version naturally (emulated on Xbox SNES emulator) and wasn’t surprised to find that it looked a bit older than I remember. With the recent HD updates I’ve got used to the idea of a nicer looking Street Fighter II. The main thing was that everything else I remembered was the same, the moves the strategies and the great sound effects.
Conclusion
It’s no wonder the PSN (well, eventually in Europe) and XBL have a version, Street Fighter II and it’s various incarnations are deservedly classics. It plays wonderfully and though the graphics are a bit pixilated, the gameplay shines as it did all those years ago.
Now it’s down to you. Get your old consoles or emulators ready and find some classic games of yesteryear to try out. Let me know what you think and if they still stand up to scrutiny in today’s 360 and PS3 world.
In some respects I think we’re right to class some games as classics and they even stand the test of time despite age old graphics and lack of modern technology. I’ve decided to check out a selection of games that we considered classics at the time and see if they make the mark in today’s graphics fuelled complicated gaming world.
Elite
One of the first great classics of the gaming world, Elite first appeared on the BBC Model B and later on other 8 bit consoles. Having originally played on this far too much while at secondary school when it first came out (I joined the library as a librarian just for the privileges of using the BBCs at lunchtime!) I used an emulator (BBC-b) to check it out again (the game is now freely available here. ). All the memories came flooding back.
Conclusion:
Once I’d got over the wireframe graphics (it can get quite confusing) I realised just how complicated and involving the game was. It does still stand up to other games in terms of gameplay but the graphics are very basic.
Star Wars
Another favourite of many, Star Wars is based on the Arcade machine. As most of the home computer versions were the same, I’ve chosen to play the actual arcade game using MAME.
Again, the game uses wire frame graphics before bitmaps were used to give items any textures, but somehow it works. Tie Fighters are easily distinguished, as is the large looming Death Star. In fact, it ends up looking pretty much like the scene from the film where they view the stolen plans of the Death Star.
Conclusion
And yet again the game works. Despite the graphics it manages to feel like you’re in an X-wing and all the excitement remains.
Last Ninja 2
C64 fans in particular will remember System3’s Last Ninja series of games. Isometric levels with plenty of puzzles and pixel perfect jumps. The Last Ninja games made their way across several systems including the NES, Spectrum, CPC , Amiga and consoles for various verions.
Your character, Armakuni, feels really hard to control by today’s standards. The movements are one direction at a time, jumps and puzzles require being in exactly the right place and fighting means you need to face the right way and press the fire button at just the right time. Crossing the river by jumping on the boat took me ages!
Conclusion
Despite the annoying controls and the single level at a time style gameplay, Last Ninja 2 is still fun to play but feels slightly masochistic at times! If released today I could see a lot of people complaining about the fiddly pixel placement.
Street Fighter II
This needs no introduction! I chose the SNES version naturally (emulated on Xbox SNES emulator) and wasn’t surprised to find that it looked a bit older than I remember. With the recent HD updates I’ve got used to the idea of a nicer looking Street Fighter II. The main thing was that everything else I remembered was the same, the moves the strategies and the great sound effects.
Conclusion
It’s no wonder the PSN (well, eventually in Europe) and XBL have a version, Street Fighter II and it’s various incarnations are deservedly classics. It plays wonderfully and though the graphics are a bit pixilated, the gameplay shines as it did all those years ago.
Now it’s down to you. Get your old consoles or emulators ready and find some classic games of yesteryear to try out. Let me know what you think and if they still stand up to scrutiny in today’s 360 and PS3 world.