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Nintendo/Irem |
October 1985 |
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Sports |
1-2
Players |
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Irem tried to add arcade
elements to this football simulation, but the
unfortunate result is a game that's way too simplistic
for football fans, and way too slow for gamers looking
for intense, quarter-crunching action. You can't
choose your team, you can't select plays... you can't
even stay interested for more than five minutes.
Believe me, far more devoted fans of the sport have
tried. |
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Capcom/Micronics |
November 1986 |
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Shooter |
1-2 Players
(alt) |
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This game was already
mediocre as an arcade release, but on the NES, 1942's
monotonous gameplay and screeching music are that much
worse. This was the first vertically scrolling
shooter that takes place during World War II, and while
the setting is brilliant, the rest of the game is
not. Skip this one and go directly to Capcom's
excellent sequel, 1943. |
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1943: The Battle of Midway
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Capcom |
October 1988 |
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Shooter |
1 Player |
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What a difference a
year makes! 1943 is a massive improvement over the
original game, with smarter enemies, more detailed
graphics, and a huge selection of weapons. You can
even customize your warplane in anticipation for the
boss battles, featuring battleships so heavily armed,
you'll wonder how the Japanese could have possibly lost
the second World War.
FAST
FACT: The 19xx series, which put you on
the side of the Allied forces in World War II, was
actually designed in Japan. Needless to say,
Capcom took a lot of heat for the first game's
setting... but after the release of its fantastic
sequel, 1943, the Japanese grew to love the series
almost as much as everyone else! |
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The 3D Battles of WorldRunner
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Acclaim/Square |
September 1987 |
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Action |
1-2 Players
(alt) |
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Square borrowed
ideas from both Super Mario Bros. and Sega's Space
Harrier to create this fun hybrid, which offers the best
of both games. It's got amazing 3D graphics, along
with a lighthearted atmosphere and plenty of power-ups
to collect. WorldRunner's not perfect, lacking the
depth of Super Mario Bros. and the impact of Space
Harrier, but it's still worth having.
FAST
FACT: Acclaim packed every copy of The
3-D Battles of WorldRunner with a pair of 3D glasses,
made with cardboard frames and tinted cellophane
lenses. You can enhance WorldRunner's illusion of
depth by putting on these glasses and pressing select on
the controller after the game begins. |
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Mindscape |
November 1989 |
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Sports |
1 Player |
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This Atari arcade game and
its unremarkable NES counterpart were released when the
sport of skateboarding first caught on with the public,
but it would be many years and an endorsement from Tony
Hawk before video games about skateboarding would become
popular. Anyway, 720° on the NES plays well
enough, even if the graphics are blah and the sound
doesn't exactly rock. |
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Taxan (Seta) |
January 1990 |
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Action/Adventure |
1-2
Players |
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8 Eyes is a gothic adventure
game, similar to Castlevania but with added features
like a fiercely loyal pet falcon and selectable
stages. You'd think that building on the strong
foundation of a game like Castlevania would be a recipe
for success, but 8 Eyes' half-baked level design keeps
it from being as fun or memorable as the Konami release
that inspired it. |
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