Sammy/Tecmo

June 1990

Shooter

1-2 Players

When an advanced military computer becomes self-aware (and incredibly evil!), it's up to you to destroy it before it's too late.  Two modes of transportation are available to you in your mission... a swift helicopter, or a jeep with a rotating gun turret.  The two distinct styles of gameplay, along with an unusual power-up system, make this shooter worth trying.

FAST FACT:  Silkworm was more popular in Great Britain than it was in America or Japan, inspiring a sequel for home computers called S.W.I.V. (Silk Worm In Vertical).  Sunsoft, along with S.W.I.V. designers The Sales Curve, eventually released a Super Nintendo version of the game, renaming it Firepower 2000.

Arcadia/Sofware Creations

November 1990

Shooter

1-2 Players (alt)

Silver Surfer is a shooter... an extremely HARD shooter.  It's the kind of merciless shooter that will leave you curled up on the floor, clutching your controller tightly in one hand while wiping away bitter tears with the other.  If this adaptation of the Marvel comic wasn't so abusive, it might actually be fun... it's got decent graphics and an excellent soundtrack.

Acclaim/Imagineering

December 1992

Action

1 Player

How do you take a single joke from an episode of The Simpsons and pad it out into an entire video game?  Somehow, Acclaim has done it.  In Bartman Meets Radioactive Man, a cheaply disguised Bart Simpson travels through such fitting locales as a junkyard, battling screws and old tires.  Judging from this game, Bartman and Radioactive Man are anything but a dynamic duo.

Acclaim/Imagineering

February 1991

Action/Adventure

1 Player

Bart vs. The Space Mutants was the first in a long, long line of video games featuring The Simpsons... and also one of the least impressive.  Designers Imagineering tried to squeeze the humor of the animated series into this side-scrolling platformer, but most of the jokes fall flat.  The gameplay is just as stiff and rigid, with linear levels and awkward play mechanics.

Acclaim/Imagineering

December 1991

December 1991

1 Player

The best of the three Bart Simpson games on the NES, Bart vs. The World takes a quantity over quality approach.  It's not fantastic by any means, but at least there's plenty to do.  You'll skateboard over the Great Wall of China, finish sliding puzzles, and answer Simpsons trivia, making Bart vs. The World a more well-rounded experience than its peers.

Ultra

December 1988

Action/Sports

1-2 Players (alt)

There's plenty of attitude in this port of the hugely popular Electronic Arts computer game, but it's also got something you DON'T want... cumbersome control that takes most of the fun out of the outrageous events.  What's the point of pulling off wild tricks in a halfpipe and jousting with friends in a drained pool when you can't actually enjoy it?

FAST FACT:  The skateboard shop owner in the game is based on the late Rodney Dangerfield, the buggy-eyed comedian who spent most of his time onstage complaining about the sorry state of his life.  How anyone could associate an old-school stand-up comic like Rodney with a thoroughly modern sports trend like skateboarding is anyone's guess...

Electronic Arts

September 1990

Action/Adventure

1 Player

Turning an extreme sports game into an action/adventure game was a daring move by Electronic Arts... but was it a wise one?  That's a hard question to answer... while Skate or Die 2 has a bass-heavy, adrenaline-pumping soundtrack and a wonderfully warped sense of humor, the control is rather clumsy and the backgrounds look as though they were thrown together.

Ultra

February 1991

Action/Sports

1-2 Players

The radical action of Skate or Die hits the ice in this winter-themed sequel.  The graphics that were blocky and forgettable in the original game are vastly improved here, and some of the events, particularly the snowball fight, are loads of fun.  However, other events suffer from the same control issues that kept Skate or Die from reaching its full potential.