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Showing posts from October, 2013

Chase HQ 2: Amstrad Plus

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I must have taken my eye off the ball. This video has been sitting on YouTube for some time now, and I didn't even see it. Finally proof that Chase HQ 2 did and does exist. It looks a bit sluggish, but seems to pick up on speed in a similar way to Burning Rubber on the GX4000. Now all we need is a ROM? See video below...

Amstrad CPC - New Brawler

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Proof that you don't need a 16-bit to get big, bright graphics. We all liked Renegade on the Amstrad. Go on, admit it, even those of you that owned a Speccy or C64. You were just a bit miffed that the graphics weren't as good on your respective systems. Amstrad owners take note. There's no waiting to throw the first punch in this new game, currently in development for the CPC. This new fighter looks to feature stunning graphics and great animation. It's unclear when this game will be released, or at what stage coding is at, but one thing is for sure, this project looks to be cooking on gas. Just look at the sheer amount of detail and moves on display, as pictured to the left and below. What started out as a quick question on the CPCWIKI  forum, has now blossomed into what can only be described as a full blown project. The new beat-em-up will include a 2 player mode, up to six characters on screen, all packed neatly into 128K of ram. This looks to be an a

SEGA SATURN - Classic Consoles

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Tell me about the Saturn? It's big, it's powerful, and a good all-rounder. The Sega Saturn might not be the most glamorous in the polygon department, but its ability to churn out games like Sega Rally and Panzer Dragoon caused quite a stir in gaming circles. Originally priced at £399, and released four months early without informing either the developers or retailer. SEGA showed the world and more importantly Sony, how not to release a console. Retailers were outraged as they were already trying to clear down previous stock for all the existing Sega hardware taking up valuable shelf space. The PlayStation ruled, but the Saturn shouldn't have been left so far behind.  Any good? It used two Hitachi SuperH-2 7604 32-bit RISC processors at 28.63 MHz and many other off the shelf parts that made development difficult, but most Japanese  developers swore by it and were able to produce exciting results. The Sega Saturn wasn't the wet salmon everyone believed, unde

AMSTRAD CPC - RUNT OF THE LITTER?

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Technology today is so advanced, there are hardly any bad computers. Back in the day, it was a minefield, picking the 'uncool' computer could easily result in an 'accidental' black eye, whilst walking through the schoolyard. Basically, if you picked the wrong computer, you were fucked! Worse still, you'd be stuck with it for years to come, without any descent software. As a kid, my parents, like Mums and Dads the country over, kept an album of photos of their children. If I were to sort through them now, there are several taken of me when I was a toddler on my bike, and the rest show me sitting glued next to a green screen computer. Often family members have looked through them and said something along the lines of "There, see, he'd got the computer bug in him even then, you can see it can't you?" Well, I don't expect Bill Gates to sign me up anytime soon, but it does add up, as I not only loved messing around with computers but for the

GRAND THEFT RIP-OFF

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Computer games have always been better than movies, not a lot of people knew that until now. In its first weekend, GTA V has made over a billion dollars, with sales showing very little signs of slowing. It's currently the biggest world Rockstar have ever created, some 50  kilometres  in size, and an interaction level the likes we've never seen before, but at what cost? The industry is talking about GTA being the most expensive game ever created, costing over £170 million, with five years development, double the cost of GTA4 . First day sales were estimated to be around £500 million. A milestone for Rockstar games, yes, but what about the loyal fans that helped put them there? I'm all for celebrating advancements in technology and gaming, but I'll personally need to wait until GTA V  shows up in a random bargain bin or local car boot before splashing the cash anytime soon. Not because I'm tight or skint, because I've got a life and more important th

Invasion of the ZOMBIE MONSTERS

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Super smooth sideways scrolling and great graphics are nothing new to the CPC these days. CPC bunnies expect the graphics and scrolling to be good as a matter of course, so a game needs to have a little bit more going on underneath than just flashy graphics. Fortunately, Invasion of the Zombie Monsters does the CPC justice in all areas. It has a great look and feels excellent, with hauntingly tinny music and fantastic presentation. At first glance, it'll remind you of the arcade classic 'Ghouls and Ghosts', but not the dafty version by USGOLD. I'm talking arcade quality. Essentially it's a run and gun shooter. Evil forces have inherited the earth, and our hero, the chosen one 'Ned Friks', is the only guy around to save mankind. You'll need to man up, though, as there are all sorts of undead out to get you. There are classic zombies, zombie werewolves, zombie reptiles, zombie plants, zombie souls and a zombie grave-keeper to keep things real.