Conscript! Wax Heads! Turnip Mountain! The Deadly Path! Pieced Together! Here are some of my favourite games from the WASD show.
Lara is still much loved!
Too clever for its own good.
This 1989 Atari ST shareware game is an obscure but brilliant platformer.
I wrote an awful lot of things about video games in 2023, not least an entire book.
Make Way is Micro Machines where you have to build the track, and it’s an absolute blast with four players.
The latest entry in the SteamWorld series offers a blend of city building and tower defence.
Find out more about Virtuality, the company that pioneered VR in the 1990s.
My first book, Curious Video Game Machines, is now available to buy from all good book shops.
There’s a fantastic-looking book currently on Kickstarter, all about the weird and wonderful world of tabletop electronic games.
I’ll see you in York on Wednesday 6th December. Save the date!
A fascinating dive into Taito’s history that’s marred by a lack of historical context.
A compendium of rare and unusual consoles, computers and coin-ops.
In Smushi Comes Home, it’s all about taking the time to enjoy the journey.
This late-era NES platformer from Sunsoft finally gets a release in the US and Europe, but it’s a tricky customer.
At first, it’s not obvious. A Piranha Bites RPG ditty looks nothing like the brilliantly bleak Blasphemous. But look a bit harder, then go down to the library and borrow any random Tintin, Asterix and Obelix, or Diabolik comic, and you’ll see that it they all have a certain je ne ses quoia that makes them quintessentially European. And I love it.
When I sit down and think about it, my gaming habits have been mostly shaped by option value. So is it time to rethink how I buy videogames?
A couple of weeks ago I travelled 1500 kms to see 1990’s alt-rock legends Smashing Pumpkins, Jane’s Addiction, and Australia’s own pub punks Amyl and the Sniffers, live. And it had me thinking: is there a video games equivalent of live music?
This perfectly pitched one-button game will have you endlessly coming back for more.
The similarities to Shovel Knight are undeniable, but this old-school platformer is enjoyable nonetheless
An obscure but brilliant 1994 game for the Atari ST.
Now on Switch, this puzzler from Frozax Games is an ideal way to unwind.
A few highlights from this year’s WASD, including Viewfinder, Have a Nice Death and A Highland Song.
Seven classic Ninja JaJaMaru games from the 1980s and 1990s have been re-issued, along with a brand new title.
I don’t play online games. There was about a month there in 2010 where Battlefield: Bad Company 2 on the trusty PlayStation 3 was the Sandy to my Danny Zuko. And it’s about to fly away.
Remembering Jeff Minter’s ungulate shooter on the Atari ST.
Think Banjo-Kazooie, but with time travel.
In 1993 the world watched as the apparent dangers of video games on society were laid bare. Some might say that sunshine follows thunder, – and if you look in the right places, video games are indeed a most agreeable pastime.
Memories of a tough but delightful game on the Atari ST.
A love letter to the turn-based battles of yore.
Bertil Hörberg offers a wildly imaginative take on Super Mario Bros. 2.
I reviewed this unexpectedly brilliant Indonesian high-school adventure for The Guardian.
A MOST AGREEABLE PASTIME 