Classic Replay

What was once old, appears current again, and although prehistorik by todays standards, the simplicty of early video games still see us wishfully reaching, and scouring our memory banks for those once forgotten classics. I think it's safe to say, that Retro games have found a new home amongst our younger generation of folk, on next generation hardware. But because of our throw-away mentality of yesteryear, the kids today will probably never experience these games, as the gods intended. Shame then, as the Arcades were a giant first step in gaming... it was an era of Space Invaders, Pacman, Defender and hot girls, ahem. These days, the only place you'll likley find an Arcade machine, is in a collectors garage, or warehouse gathering dust. The culture, friendships and atmosphere that sprung up around these places, are almost a thing of the past. Once we've gone, no one will ever remember they happened. Hallelujah then ...

Game: Super Brothers Platform: iPad, iPhone I've played some amazing games on my iPhone since purchase, but this carefully crafted pixel crusade, set in a world of swords and sorcery... Has 'em all beat. The sound and music alone, created by musician Jim Guthrie, is simply mesmerising. Bizarre that I've never heard of this chap before, as the game score is one of the best I think I've ever heard. There's four chapters in total, and you play the role of a warrior, sent on an errand to rid the land of an evil creature. Puzzles are lightly spread throughout the first few chapters, but towards the end you'll be hooked and equally haunted by them. Despite feeling strangely familar, It's a digital fairytale like no other before it, and despite the slow pace, you'll be tapping and tilting your iPhone or iPad until eventual victory. Don't let the pixel graphics put you off. It's without question one of the best games on the iP...

Capcom are one of my all-time favourite publishers. Their games are hardly breathtakingly original, but a large percentage of their efforts appeal to the arcade lover in all of us. Final Fight is no exception, it's a mow-em-down, side scrolling beat-em-up with huge sprites, fast gameplay and simplicity at its finest. It's a particularly good game for those who like a quick gaming fix, and if you've not played Final Fight for some time, it's great to go back in and give it one more go. In fact, as far as beat-em-ups go, Final Fight should probably be considered one of Capcom's perfect moments. Back in the day, beat-em-ups were the done thing, and until Final Fight appeared, Renegade, Double Dragon and Streets of Rage were where I became a proper hard knuckle head.  For me, beat-em-ups are as much a necessity to gaming, as the 'ol shiny silver ball is to pinball. I'm currently lucky enough to own the Mega-CD version (jap), Snes, iPhone and the ...

So what was the definitive home conversion of Yu-Suzuki's Outrun? I've played the arcade original on many an occasion, and like everyone else back in the day, hoped my respective home conversion came out the closest to Sega's arcade original. Sadly, the CPC conversion was the litter of the runt, and looked and performed like a badly curled poo. That didn't deter me from hunting down the ultimate home conversion though... In fact i became obsessed in doing so. Over the years I've played Outrun across a vast range of machines including the C64, Speccy, Amiga, ST and Sega Megadrive to name but a few. Over 26 years on, I'm now convinced I've found the ultimate home conversion. Gor blimey! Can this be true? The almost unbelievable answer is yes. Before we jump straight in, lets quickly take a look into the 8-bit versions. The ZX Spectrum effort actually plays quite well, features some good authentic music, and graphically holds its...