Latest Game Reviews

Montezuma's Revenge

Author: GN Team - Published: 3 May 2018, 10:30 am

Montezuma's Revenge is a side-scrolling platformer published by Parker Brothers and released for 8-bit platforms in 1984. Versions include Apple II, Atari 5200, Atari 8-bit, Commodore 64, and others.

The game is considered an early example of the "Metroidvania" genre. You are an archeologist (resembling Indiana Jones) exploring a dangerous Aztec pyramid, trying to collect treasures and avoid enemies and traps. Finding keys, weapons, and the proper objects will be required to advance through the nine floors and 99 rooms.

The first version of Montezuma was created for the Atari 800 computer by a 16-year-old programmer, Robert Jaeger. Parker Brothers noticed an early version of the game at the 1983 C.E.S. and convinced Jaeger to publish it internationally. Parker Brother's programmers completed the game and ported it to several platforms. Unfortunately, to release the game on cartridges, they had to cut features to store it on just 16k (instead of the 48k used by the disk version created by Jaeger). For example, the official release doesn't have an intro, bonus life animations, or a hi-score entry screen. It also has fewer rooms and doesn't include the final boss, King Montezuma.

Lotus Turbo Challenge 2

Author: Tasha - Published: 3 May 2018, 10:30 am

Lotus Turbo Challenge 2 is the second game in the Lotus arcade racing trilogy. It was developed by Magnetic Fields and published by Gremlin Graphics in 1991 for the Amiga and Atari ST. It was also ported to Genesis and Acorn 32-Bit, and it was followed by Lotus: The Ultimate Challenge in 1992.

Lotus Turbo Challenge 2 takes up the mantle of the original and keeps with many of the features. The game is a street racing game and has the same third-person perspective used in the first one. It also includes weather hazards, obstacles, and opponents. However, Lotus Turbo Challenge 2 makes many changes, including better graphics, opponents in new colors, racing against traffic flow, and changing from placing races to timed ones. While you do have opponents, your goal is not to finish first, but you need to hit certain checkpoints within a set amount of time to advance. Unfortunately, there are no vehicle choices, and you only race in the Esprit during even number levels and the Elan SE in odd number levels. The tracks come in a range of environments ranging from snowy to city to mountainous. There is no soundtrack; you are treated to the ambient sounds of your vehicle as you race.

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf

Author: GN Team - Published: 3 May 2018, 10:30 am

Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf is an action-shooter helicopter game created by Electronic Arts and released in 1992 for the Mega Drive, Genesis, SNES and ported to Amiga in 1993.

It's the first title in the "Strike" series created by EA, which also includes Jungle Strike and Urban Strike. As you can imagine, Desert Strike is heavily influenced by the 1990 Gulf War. In the game, there is a new war in the Middle East, declared from a mad dictator on the U.S. You have to control an Apache helicopter during four long missions, trying to rescue hostages and destroy enemy bases and weapons.

War in Middle Earth

Author: GN Team - Published: 3 May 2018, 10:30 am

J.R.R. Tolkien's War in Middle Earth (or just War in Middle Earth) is a strategy/wargame created by Synergistic Software. As you can imagine, it's set in the Lord of the Rings universe. It was published by Australian company Melbourne House in 1989 for the Amiga, Atari ST, Apple IIgs, and MS-DOS. Another version, changed and simplified, was released for 8-bit platforms.

The game, designed by Mike Singleton (author of Midwinter and The Lords of Midnight), is a mix of genres and was very innovative. There are three game modes: map, campaign, and ground level (called the "animation view"). In the map view, you can see the entire playfield; units are shown as colored dots, and you can make tactical decisions. The campaign mode instead shows a zoomed version of the territory, with multi-direction scrolling. This is where you can issue orders. Finally, you have the "ground level" view, where the game is more like a graphic adventure. All events happen in real-time, and you can decide to switch views at any time. If you want, battles can be played, or you can choose to skip them and just see the results.

Santa Paravia and Fiumaccio

Author: GN Team - Published: 3 May 2018, 10:29 am

Santa Paravia and Fiumaccio is an early managerial simulation created by George Blank for the TSR-80 in 1978. The game's source code (written in BASIC) was published in SoftSide magazine. One year later, the game was released for the Apple II, Texas Instruments TI-99/4A, and Commodore PET.

You are a prince of an Italian city-state in 1400, and your goal is to become a king (or queen). You need to manage the supplies of grain and decide how much of it will be sold and how much will be given to the serfs. The money will be required to purchase additional lands, armies, and structures like mills, big palaces, and cathedrals. If your colony grows, you will advance in rank (to Count, Marquis, Duke, etc.). Several players can challenge themselves in hot-seat mode.

Over the Net!

Author: Tasha - Published: 3 May 2018, 2:07 am

Over the Net is a beach volleyball game developed by Dardari Bros and published by Genias in 1990 for the Amiga. It was ported for DOS and Commodore 64 in 1991.

The game features several different teams, with pun-tastic names like the Beach Boys, the Power Guns, and the Golden Boys (blondes). Though I gotta say, team “CoCo” is a little on the jacked-up side of punny. Each team features two members with customizable names but not appearances. Before you choose your team, you must select either 1, 3, or 5 sets. Once you have chosen your team and named everyone, it’s time to hit the beach. The first team to 15 points is the winner of each set. Rather than just taking on the computer, you can also play with a friend co-op or go head-to-head.