Retro Halloween Horror - Part 1

I've neglected slowing this particular blog some love as of late (like most of 2018!) and with Halloween quickly approaching this week I thought it would be fun to make my own "Top Ten" style list of some of my favorite retro horror style video games.

While there are a lot more games I could add to these lists, I've tried to pick out games from my own collection that maybe aren't as widely known about, or at least played, but fit the theme. I've tried my best to stay away from some of the obvious candidates, however there may be a few games that sneaked onto the list that you'll be familiar with.

I've also decided to break up the list into two different posts, starting with games from the 8 and 16-bit generation. Look for another post tomorrow that contains games from the 32-bit era including a few modern games.

Let's get started shall we? Let me preface this with these games aren't ranked in any kind of order as I enjoy all of them too much to assign a ranking too.

 

The tough as nails Ghouls 'n Ghosts is often overlooked on the Sega Master System platform, however that is criminal as this version of the game is very impressive. While it won't surpass it's "big brother" version on the Genesis/Mega Drive, this 8-bit version features some impressive graphics. The soundtrack isn't too shabby either and most importantly the controls are good. It's still a tough game to master and complete, however it's the better of the two games in the franchise when it comes to the 8-bit platform.

 

This great Castlevania inspired game sadly wasn't available for the Master System in the US, however this European version of the game plays just fine on US hardware. I feel there was a time where this game flew under a lot of gamers radar, however now it's existence is more widely known. The game may look and play a lot like Castlevania, but unless you're not a fan of the classic Konami franchise then you'll find this to be a good thing. The gameplay is pretty solid and it's a lot of fun. This was one of the first Master System games I purchased for my collection years ago and it remains one of my favorites to play, not just at Halloween.

 

If you're a fan of video game pinball, then you're probably familiar with Alien Crush and Devil's Crush games that were available for the TurboGrafx-16 and PC Engine systems. However it seems that not as many people knew of the third game in the "crush" family, Jaki's Crush. Made exclusively for the Super Famicom in 1992, this game features more of the same great pinball formula. Scrolling table, eerie atmosphere and addictive gameplay. I purchased a boxed copy of this game years ago when it was dirt cheap, but the price seems to have increased a bit since then...perhaps it's because of it's exposure on popular YouTube shows like GameSack? Either way, if you're a fan of digital pinball games, you need to try this one.

 

Musya, the classic Japanese tale of horror has a great ring to it, doesn't it? While this game may not be high on everyone's list, I thought it was worth including. The Super Famicom exclusive Majyuuou (King of Demons) may be the better of the two horror themed side scrolling action games, but since I don't own Majyuuou I'll stick with Musya. The game was released in 1992 by Seta and while the game has it's share of faults, it's still a fun game to play. The visuals are one of the best parts of the game as the creatures you'll combat are well designed and have a creepy vibe. Controls are a little stiff, making the game tough to play at times. Overall though the dark and creepy atmosphere lend themselves to making an appearance on this list. It may not be the best game in the SNES library, but still worth giving a try if you've never played it before.

 

Undeadline is a port of the 1989 MSX2 game. It was ported exclusively to the Sega Mega Drive in 1991 by Palsoft and was never released outside of Japan. Some may question why I'd include this shmup on the list when there are so many other games that I could have gone with. Well for starters, I love shmups and this is my list! Seriously though, the game fits the Halloween motif pretty well as you fight all sorts of scary monsters. Undeadline offers a unique style of vertically scrolling shooting action and I find it refreshing. The original Japanese Mega Drive version of the game can fetch quite a pretty penny on the secondary market these days so I'm happy to stick with my Genesis reproduction version.

 

How can I make a list like this and not include Castlevania: Bloodlines? While I've never been as good as Bloodlines as I am other games in the series, I've always thought the franchise's one and only outing on the Sega Genesis was fantastic. Perhaps the different characters you can choose from with their own distinct attacks that made this game stand out, or perhaps the beautiful orchestrated musical score? Bloodlines is truly a gem in the Castlevania series and one that I don't mind re-visiting often.

 

Now here is a game that I'm betting may have flown under your radar. Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ has to be one the best video game names out there! I first discovered this game at my local Game Stop and picked it up, 1) for the cover art and 2) it was a $20 budget title. I had no idea how difficult to find it had become until years later. The game is a vertically scrolling shooter where you control Little Red Riding Hood on the lower screen of your Nintendo DS. Using your stylus, you slide her along the bottom of the screen, while holding in one of the face buttons to shoot your enemies. As you can tell from the video, it doesn't take itself too serious, but that's part of the charm. This game is fun to play, but hard to master. I've never been all that great at it myself, but it's one of the few DS games that I return to when I find myself traveling and want to take some games on the go.

 

One of my absolute favorite games hands down to play anytime of the year, but especially during Halloween is Castlevania: Rondo of Blood. I'm so glad that this game is more readily available now as when I first learned about the game I had to track down a used PC Engine Duo system, not to mention fork out a little over $100 for the original game. While I don't regret my decision, I am looking forward to replaying this game as part of the new Castlevania collection made available on the PS4. What is there not to like about this game...say other than it's difficulty? Rondo of Blood is a return to the classic Castlevania gameplay, featuring great graphics and animated cut scenes, new enemy designs and one of the best video game soundtracks from it's era. Rondo of Blood is one of the crown jewels in the Castlevania family and deserves to be played no matter the time of year.

Come back tomorrow for round 2 of my retro Halloween Horror fun!

CustomGameCases.com - A Review

If you are like me and take pride in how you display your collection, then you may have heard of or used CustomGameCases.com before. A lot of people are fine with just shelving their loose games on a shelf and calling it a day, but my game room is out in the open on the lower level of my home and I want the game shelves to look as nice and clean as possible. Enter custom cases.

I've printed my own DVD covers for Sega CD, Sega Saturn and Sega Dreamcast games in the past and even did several Game Boy Advance covers for old DS cases, but this is my first time branching out and wanting to case my loose NES and SNES game library. I had heard good things of Custom Game Cases before, especially in the forums over at The Cover Project so I decided to place an order earlier this year.

Back in January I placed an order for a 2 NES cases, 2 SNES cases, 1 N64 case and 1 Game Boy Color case. The GBC case was for an import game where they would have to build the cover so I knew it would take additional time, but I had no idea just how long it would take.

Fast forward to May of this year and I still didn't have anything from my order in hand. I sent in a few emails via their website asking for an update and eventually I got half of my order in the mail. While I appreciated the gesture, the lack of communication was frustrating to say the least. I was told that the vertical SNES and N64 artwork I had requested was still being built and was pretty far down in the que. I was also asked if I follow them on Instagram (which at the time I didn't even use Instagram) as they did post an update there that included my custom GBC cover/case. I asked if I could substitute those SNES & N64 cases with NES cases for different games and they did get me two cases out pretty quick...however they didn't ship my GBC case! Several emails went back and forth before they finally shipped my GBC case...which arrived earlier this week.

The case turned out beautifully. I've owned this loose cart of  Ketto Transformers Beast Wars: Beast Senshi Saikyo Ketteisen for several years now, acquired for fairly cheap in a Yahoo! Japan auction. I've never seen a boxed copy so having a case made was the next best thing. 

As you can see, these cases are made by Custom Game Cases themselves and specifically made for Game Boy games. In addition to Game Boy, Atari Lynx carts fit in the case great too. There is a place on the left to securely hold an instruction booklet, but as you can see that is something that my copy of the game is lacking.

Over all I LOVE these cases. At $4.00 each they won't break the bank, however shipping will...more on that later. I don't have enough room on my shelves to case my whole loose Game Boy collection, but these are so nice I may have to case some of my favorite games.

I also decided to try one of their NES cases. I've previously tried a Bit Box that Stone Age Gamer offers, but found them to be too bulky and I worried about how they would hold up in the future. These cases are very sturdy and bout the same size as your typical Sega Genesis case. The quality of the printed insert is good and mimics the original box art perfectly.

I like how the spine is laid out, with the black block at the top w/ the Nintendo Entertainment System logo. I've seen designs that leave this off and stay more true to the box art, but I love how uniform these cases look side by side on my shelf.

Similar to the Game Boy cases, the cart fits snuggly in the case on the right side. The left side has two tabs that will hold the instruction booklet securely in place. When closed, the case snaps together tight and will keep out dust or other contaminants.

The only SNES case that I was able to get with vertical artwork was for my Musya game. I'm not sure why I chose this particular game to get cased first, but it turned out beautifully. I like the vertical artwork over the original horizontal layout, simply for the fact that the spines match the NES cases. 

The interior of the SNES case is nearly identical to the NES case, only with the cartridge area shaped differently. I did find out that the cart only snaps in with the cart's spine label facing to the right as shown.

A few pros and cons regarding the cases and my first ordering experience with Custom Game Cases:

PROS:

• Fantastic quality in both the cases and the prints. At $4 each the cases are affordable.
• To save on money you can also order a blank case and print your own cover.
• Great selection of covers available for selection.

CONS:

• Shipping. I don't know how they base their shipping, but to ship 6 NES cases to my home is about $18! In my opinion they could use the flat rate shipping products from USPS, or just use normal USPS Priority mail and ship for less. The shipping is one reason I've not placed my second order yet.
• Communication is lacking. They need a better way of communicating with their customers. I understand it takes time to build custom covers, but keep the customer in the loop - don't leave them hanging!
• Not all cover art is readily available. I originally purchased a N64 case for Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth and requested the vertical artwork. I was told much later that the artwork had to be made and my order was like 19th in line...basically it wouldn't be ready anytime soon. I wish they wouldn't give the option between vertical and horizontal if they aren't ready to be printed.

I don't know if this business is the primary business for the owners or if it's more of a side project, but they seem to have a lot of orders coming through at all times that I wonder if more hired help would benefit them. As frustrated as I was that my initial order took 9 months to be completed, I do plan on placing smaller orders to case my loose NES collection. After that I'll move onto SNES and maybe N64. I'm not a fan of the Universal Game Cases so I'd like to get rid of the N64 cases I have...but it'll take a lot of time, money and patience going through these guys. Recommended, but be ready for delays.

Tomy Mini Nintendo Capsules

If you have a dedicated game room, you may be like me where you like to adorn your room or shelves with video game related toys and knick knacks. You've probably seen these red toy capsules at your local Target or other retail store in your area. When I came across a few that were on clearance I finally took the plunge and bought one out of sheer curiosity.

I believe the MSRP on these capsules is $5.99 and for that price I just wasn't willing to give one a try. Clearance price of $2? Sure, why not. After all, I had the chance of landing a cool Famicom controller I could put on my keychain.

At least with this wave, there were 5 different controllers randomly packaged inside the capsule. The classic Famicom, Super Famicom, N64, Wii and Wii w/ Motion Plus controllers. I was really hoping for either the Famicom or Super Famicom myself. Instead, I was lucky enough to pull the...

The Wii controller. At least I got the black controller w/ Motion Plus. Despite it not being the controller I was hoping for, it's actually not that bad. The level of detail put into it is quite well. The clear translucent A button can actually be depressed. The is a hole in the top of the controller and I initially thought that maybe there was an LED bulb inside...but it's hollow. None the less, it's still a neat little Nintendo branded item to place on my Nintendo gaming shelf. 

Retro Store Visit: Matt's Game Exchange

I first learned of Matt's Game Exchange when I picked up managing a few locations for my company in Greensboro, NC. I have visited the store a few times and made a few purchases over the last year or so, but I never thought to do one of these retro store visit type posts. I'm not sure when I last visited the store (I'm going to guess sometime in the fall of 2017) so these pictures are probably outdated now, but I've got them sitting on my laptop's hard drive so why not share them?

This particular store is located at 2924 West Gate City Blvd., Suite A in Greensboro, NC. The store isn't that far of I-40 and it's pretty easy to get in and out of. The store is located in a strip mall and is a rather large store. So large in fact that their shelves help create a smaller shopping area, while the rest of the store is used for storage (?). They never seem to have huge inventory of games, but their selection is pretty varied and they seem to have a good flow of trade ins.

Most of the higher end (i.e. expensive) games are kept in the glass cases over near the register, but that doesn't mean there aren't some good games out on the shelves. The first section of games that you can easily browse is their NES section. Here you can see a decent amount of loose NES carts as well as a few boxed games. Looks like I spy a few boxed SNES games too.

I swear everyone's SNES section these days seems to be filled with the same sports and low budget titles. I don't remember anything in this section standing out to me...though I have been know to buying a baseball game if I find one I don't already own.

Below the SNES section was their Genesis selection. A good bit of boxed games, something I'm always glad to see. I'll buy those cheap priced boxed Genesis games sometimes just for the clamshell case. I believe I purchased Double Dragon 3 from this location in one of my previous visits. Plenty of loose carts on the shelves below, but I rarely even look at those.

My guess is now that Hyperkin has released their Retron 77 that old Atari 2600 carts may start moving a little faster. Their selection was small, but they had a few decent games for just a few bucks each. Crystal Castles anyone?

The next section over contained GameCube games. This is one system I'd like to have more games for, but it's getting harder for me to find games that want and aren't priced too high.

Playstation 2 was the next section and I was surprised to see that it barely filled up the 4 foot section it was given. Usually finding PS2 games isn't hard. At least their selection (on this visit) wasn't all sports titles.

If I thought the PS2 selection was sparse, check out how bare the Xbox 360 section was during this visit! Either they have been moving a lot of 360 games or people just weren't trading them in.

The Playstation 3 section however had a few more games to chose from. Nothing that grabbed my attention, but I wasn't a huge fan of the PS3.

Their Xbox One and PS4 sections were filled in a little more. Decent selection from what I can remember, but I usually look for more retro stuff when I visit these type stores.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to get any pictures of their display cases, but they had some great retro games under the glass. Everything from NES to TurboGrafx. I enjoyed talking to the guys that worked in the store. They were courteous and I could tell that they knew their stuff. It also seemed as if this particular location was smaller than the the store located in Florence, SC. I haven't visited that location, but I'll have to try and swing by there on my next trip down to Myrtle Beach.

Overall the store is pretty cool, but like with many retro stores you may not find necessarily what you're looking for on your first visit. Stores like this you have to visit often and be ready to jump on that "rare" game when you find it as the inventory is constantly changing. Their prices overall are about what you'd expect to find in a brick & mortar retro game store. Not super cheap, but not quite eBay prices either. If you're ever in the Greensboro area or just passing through, you oughta stop in and give them a whirl.

You can find Matt's Game Exchange online or check out their Facebook pages for more information.

PlayStation Days of Play

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Initial Thoughts - Horizon Zero Dawn (Playstation 4)

My two daughters love to read and my family takes frequent trips to the public library for them to restock on books. Not too long ago my wife informed me that the library started to carry video games for modern consoles (Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox One). My first trip to see what they had wasn't all that successful, ended up w/ Street Fighter II for the Switch. However last weekend I was pleased with the larger selection. They had several games for the Switch that interested me (Disgaea 5 on the Switch), one of the Forza racing games for the Xbox One and something else on the PS4 that I can't quite put my finger on at this time. I went home with Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite for the Xbox One and Horizon Zero Dawn for the PS4. I'm not a huge fighting game fan, but the Marvel vs. games usually are good. Horizon Zero Dawn was just one of those games that I've heard a little about, but never looked too much into it. Unfortunately for me it was a full week later before I had time to sit down to play. Good thing I get to keep both games for 2 weeks!

This weekend I finally had a chance to jump into Horizon Zero Dawn. I knew of the game, but really hadn't looked into the game. I watched a Facebook friend livestream some gameplay, but that's about it. When I first started the game, I really didn't know what to expect. I was a little surprised to find out I started playing the game as a young Aloy. I knew the game would be a big budget cinematic story and the story itself had to be set up. However I thought it was a little on the sluggish side starting out. Now that I've played a good 12-15 hours I now see why the beginning was necessary as it helps advance the story that much better. I was expecting combat right out the gate, but instead I was given a lot of story and a little exploration.

I knew that I needed to give this game time and I'm glad that I was patience as I am marveled by everything about the game. Of course the visuals are absolutely stunning and pleasing to the eye, but the musical score also fits the atmosphere as well. The voice acting for the most part is top notch and the story is something I actually like.

I've leveled up my character to level 16 thus far and have enjoyed every hour. I'm still getting used to the combat, but part of that is I'm not as familiar w/ a Playstation controller as I am other controllers. For the most part the controls and combat are very intuitive, however I don't like the jumping/scaling/climbing system. That's a very small complaint as overall the game is magnificent. I kinda hated I didn't pay this game any attention until now it's so good. I will most likely purchase the new version of the game that contains the DLC pack as I hate that I have to return the game to the library next weekend.

I haven't played many AAA PS4 titles, but I can see why this game has sold so well. I look forward to advancing the story and eventually getting to the aforementioned DLC as well. If you are a fan of open world style games with a action RPG element, then this game is for you. Then again, I'm sure most of you reading this have already discovered what I'm just discovering for myself.

Berzerk (Atari 2600)

Berzerk

Stern Electronics

Stern Electronics, 1982

I have a lot of fond memories of the Atari 2600 as it was the first home console my family had. Long before I received my very on NES, all of my gaming occurred on the 2600. Of the many games we owned back then, Berzerk was always one of my favorites.

The premise of the game is very simple. You control a stick looking figure across simple mazes that filled the screen. Robots were littered around the room, trying to prevent your exit. Depending on the level, there may have been one or two exits, represented by an opening in the outer wall. Your objective was to advance level from level. 

Shooting the robots was essentially optional, but necessary most of the time if you wanted to advance. Later levels the robots would return fire. A single shot from them would kill your character. You could also lose a life by touching the walls...which were apparently electrified, or by being touched by a robot. Your character's arch nemesis is Evil Otto, who in the game looks like a large smiley face. Otto is indestructible and pretty much is there to prevent you from lolly gagging on the level. He can advance through walls and be a real pain in the butt.

Two players can play the game, but alternate turns using the same controller. My older brother and I would play this game often, competing for the highest score since the levels weren't really numbered. The game still holds up well in my opinion and I often pop it in my 7800 to play when I'm in the mood. Berzerk began its lift in the arcade, but was then ported to the 2600 and eventually to the 5200 and Vectrex. The 2600 version of the game is the only version I've played and can be had for just a few dollars typically on the secondary market.