Posts Tagged ‘space invaders’
Podcast: Gameboy Top 10
As is per usual for us here at GH101, 40 games enter (20 from each host), and 10 leave. It’s nostalgic, it’s arbitrary, we may annoy due to the lack of Pokemon, but it’s our official Top 10 Gameboy games.
Podcast: Bringin’ It Back – Reboots (Part 1)
As times change so do video games with developers and publishers scrambling to keep up. There are several ways to handle a classic franchise presented to a contemporary audience, which is fully covered in at the beginning of the show. Of the most scrutinized is the reboot. In this episode Jam and Fred debate the definition of a reboot and then get into the many attempts that have been made in the world of gaming to make what is old become new again.
Podcast: What the Shmup
One of the oldest and most popular genres in gaming is the “shoot-em-up” or “shmup” for short. Whether you’re a space ship, a young girl, or even a winged pod the basic goal is to navigate the screen, rack up points, and don’t die. Fred and Jam dive into the origins of the shmup, the sub-genres that exist, and some of their personal favorites.
Swedish Airports Have Arcade Charity Machines
This is a incredibly creative way to raise money for charity that will hopefully catch on in other countries. Working with the Red Cross arcade machines of Space Invaders, Galaga, and Ms. Pac-Man have been installed to accept multiple types of currency with all the proceeds going to charity. So you can enjoy your favourite retro games while you wait for that plane ride knowing it all goes to a good cause. If this catches on maybe well see other games brought back into the fray. If I could choose I would sink plenty of money into a Bubble Bobble or Rainbow Islands cabinet.
How Product Design has Transformed the Amusement Industry
The term “arcade game” these days conjures up images of cutting-edge graphics and sound, combined with innovative and interactive technology that can bring any concept to life. However, good graphics and interactivity have not always been a necessity for a game that is both enjoyable and addictive. I dread to mention the recent phenomenon of the Flappy Bird app but it is an example of an outrageously faulty and basic game becoming extremely popular. This has been seen in the past with games like Space Invaders, Pac Man, Tetris and Asteroids following very basic concepts and graphics, but still being addictive and rewarding when completed.
The Really Early Days
The first arcade games kicked off at amusement parks and are still present at fairs and theme parks, but there’s nothing particularly sophisticated about them. Ring toss, throwing balls at stacked cans, shooting targets, and other simple challenges have been doing the rounds for hundreds of years and can still draw in the punters to this day. Just don’t go expecting an easy win. Perhaps this is what is indicative of a good game – making it appear simple whilst making it actually fiendishly difficult to win. Make it too hard, however ,and you are left with Zelda II.
Podcast: Taito Legends
This week Fred is joined by James (@Jamalais) to discuss the arcade classics released by Taito in the 1980s. They cover the company’s history and many of the staple titles like Space Invaders, Jungle Hunt, Zoo Keeper, Bubble Bobble, Darius, Rainbow Islands, and Rastan. Return to one of the arcade pioneers of gaming’s golden years.
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Please note: In the show Jam refers to a review for Rainbow Islands that was very close to him. That review can be read, unedited, here. (It is in an open document type, so I recommend using Google Docs to view.)
Top 5 Shmups on Portable Consoles
Given the frantic and brief nature of most shmups, the genre is perfect for the portable platform, much like it was perfect for the arcade. For one reason or another, these titles can be rare to find on traditional handhelds and even harder to find actually good ones. On the other hand some of my favorite shmups are exclusive to portables (at least in the United States) so we’ve compiled a list of the portable shmups actually worth playing.
5. Space Invaders Extreme (Nintendo DS)
When Taito decided it would re-invent the Space Invaders formula I was skeptical. We were told in previews that the game would feature an upbeat techno soundtrack, plenty of screen tricks and explosions, dual screen integration on DS, and a hybrid between modern game mechanics and the original title. Just in case that sounds tempting to you, it’s almost verbatim what no gamer wants to hear when a beloved franchise is rebooting. Somehow Taito pulled it off and with no updates save for that fearful list Space Invaders Extreme was an addicting masterpiece. It released in a few forms on a few consoles but bar none the Nintendo DS version is the one to get. With non-linear level progression and utilization of dual screen to make the DS function more like a vertical arcade monitor, it’s like having Space Invaders on speed. Bonus rounds, boss battles, and power-ups were simple tweaks to the original formula that switched up gameplay without being a specific reason to play the game. Needless to say if you haven’t played Space Invaders Extreme, regardless of whether or not you’re a fan of the original, you should give this handheld game that’s easy to learn and brutal to master a try. It will keep you occupied for many a train, plane, or bus ride to come.
Podcast: The Final Countdown, Part 2
We continue our Final Countdown series that swaps the wonderful stories associated with some of the most beloved games of all time. Again, little discussion as to whether or not the ranking is valid and much more on the interesting stories and memories that came from them. This time around Fred from Gaming History 101 is joined by Trees from EZ Mode Unlocked (Colm from the T4 Show couldn’t make it, but was present in spirit) as they tackle even less games than the first show but with equally fun stories.
Space Invaders (Taito)
It is the world’s most popular arcade machine of all time, caused such a craze in Japan that there was a temporary shortage of 100-yen coins (equivalent to a quarter in US arcades) and grossed a whopping $2 billion worldwide in 1982. Not only that it skyrocketed sales of the Atari VCS/2600, its “alien” creatures are now symbols representing video games as a whole and the Guinness Book of World Records labels it the top arcade game ever made. I’m speaking of none other than Space Invaders(Supēsu Inbēdā in Japan), the very first shmup and the arcade game that ushered a new action focus in arcades instead of the previous sports focus. Whether you played it, or a derivative game like Galaga, this game is so well-known that it still spells gold for developers even today. It was probably one of the first games I ever played and anytime I see a cabinet I have to plunk down a quarter for a play. Even Nintendo’s own Shigeru Miyamoto (responsible for Mario, Link and plenty of other Nintendo staple titles) admitted that Space Invaders was the game that got him interested in video games. I know it sounds like I’m singing the praises long after they’re due, but this truly is the ideal example of a game that is both easy to play and addicting as hell. This is a true video game.
Storytelling: How Shigeru Miyamoto Saved NOA
When Nintendo decided to move over to America, it wasn’t to begin the world of the NES but rather to establish a market for arcade games. Nintendo of America (NOA) had struggled ever since it migrated to the United States, complete with difficulty finding a home base in both New York and New Jersey, eventually staying for good in the Seattle area. At the time Nintendo’s owner, a gruff businessman by the name of Hiroshi Yamauchi, had inherited the company and vowed to make it into the powerhouse it eventually became. Yamauchi recently warmed up to his son-in-law, Minoru Arakawa, and decided to make him in charge of Nintendo’s American migration thanks to his free-spirited nature, familiarity with the country and ability to overwork himself. Now Arakawa was attempting to find the big arcade game that would put NOA on the map like Space Invaders had done for Taito. That game was to be a linear space shooter called Radarscope.
Gaming History 101 