Densha de Go - a niche train driving game that’s more fun that you might think!

Many years ago when I owned a Sony PSP I tracked down on eBay from a seller in Hong Kong a copy of the massively popular (in Japan anyway) train driving game, Densha de Go!, and that was where my love for the game began.  Because the PSP is region free it played perfectly and handily for me English instructions were provided giving details of all the controls too.  The basic objective of the game is to drive a suburban train on various different lines around Tokyo, however you must stick to the advertised speed limits, sound your horn and dim your lights (Japanese politeness) for passing trains, make sure you keep to time and most importantly time your braking on arrival at a station to stop at the correct point, the PSP version looked great and I had an absolute blast playing it. The series was released on many different machines including Nintendo 64, Nintendo DS and WonderSwan to name but a few.

After I sold my PSP and the game I thought my Densha playing days were over, then last year a Switch version was released in Japan which I managed to purchase thanks to Play Asia and I’m very glad I did as it’s every bit as good as the PSP version I enjoyed! You begin the game with just two trains and two lines but more can be unlocked through the Mission mode which carries various objectives which have to be completed, if you achieve a decent enough ranking you unlock more trains and lines to drive on, a freeplay mode is also available where, as with the PSP version you have to stick to the speed limit, sound your horn, dim your lights, keep to time and time your braking perfectly at stations.

The game being in Japanese is not a major issue and it’s pretty self-explanatory although an excellent English translation guide is available at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1up2i8Iyv-_imCq7S_UTIUItQTdcaJhLc3AFpvdv361M/edit

As you can see from the screenshot at the top of this post the game looks great and is a lot more fun and entertaining than you’d think a train driving game would be, it’s a strangely Zen-like and calming experience and one I’m glad I discovered all those years ago!

For added realism a dedicated Switch controller for the game is available in Japan, I hope at some point to get hold of this as it would definitely add to the fun!

Wave Race 64 (N64) Review

Many years ago when I owned an N64 undoubtedly one of my favourite games was Wave Race 64 and thanks to my Powkiddy X18s handheld and the excellent Mupen N64 emulator it still is! Let me just start by saying I absolutely LOVE this game! And over the next couple of paragraphs I shall attempt to explain why…..

Firstly, the graphics - these are fantastic with some really clever effects, from the water which gets increasingly rough and choppy the further you get into the game to the Drake Lake course (my favourite course) which begins shrouded in mist which gradually burns away as your three lap race progresses, it’s just stunning stuff.  The jet-skis look amazing as to the people steering them.

Next audio and controls, the music is just brilliant, fits each course perfectly and is really catchy! Also you’re treated to occasionally verbal notes in the game such as ‘OK’, ‘Everybody’s behind you!’, and should you finish first in a race - ‘BANZAI!’   The controls are perfect too and really easy to master, one button to accelerate, one to brake and the analogue stick to control your jet-ski around the red and yellow buoys all of which have to be passed around to either the left or the right, miss too many and it’s game over!

The normal difficulty level on the game is a very good starting point and is actually quite easy, it’s possible to finish each course in at least 1st or 2nd place thus earning you a place on the podium, the other difficulty levels however present a more considerable challenge so the game eases you in gently!

I cannot recommend this game highly enough, it was brilliant on the N64 then and it’s still brilliant now! It’s totally worth buying a second-hand N64 (or a Powkiddy X18s handheld) just to play this game, it really is that good!

A GameCube Wave Race game was later released, Blue Storm which is reasonably playable on the Dolphin Emulator but early next year I plan on tracking down a second-hand GameCube on eBay with a copy of the game and when I do I shall be reviewing that as well!   For now Wave Race 64 will keep me entertained nicely!  TRJ RATING : 5/5

My highly personal Top 5 Nintendo machines

Since I was a boy I’ve been a loyal Nintendo fan having owned pretty much every machine there is at some point (even a Virtual Boy for a time!) so I thought it’d be rather fun to do a Top 5 of my favourite Nintendo machines of all-time, I must stress this is a Top 5 highly personal to me and you may not agree with my choices and Nintendo have made many superb machines but these are my Top 5 favourites…..

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) - This machine will always hold a special place in my heart as it’s the first Nintendo console I ever owned, in my opinion still one of the best looking and best designed machines they ever made and the controller looks and feels great and is really comfortable to use for long periods.  

Some of the most classic and iconic games ever were released on the SNES such as Super Mario World and Super Metroid.  Also many superb games were released by other software companies such as Rare’s Donkey Kong Country, which amazed many people at the time with it’s graphics and is still highly playable to this day.  Nintendo also devised the SuperFX chip which was embedded in a couple of cartridges and offered improved graphics, this was included in Stunt Race FX (still one of my favourite racers ever) and StarFox.

I don’t own a SNES console any more but I still enjoy the games on my Anbernic RG351M handheld which runs them perfectly.

A truly classic console with an outstanding library of titles.

GameBoy Advance SP - I’ve always loved Nintendo’s handhelds and this is probably my absolute favourite, I just love the compact, pocketable clamshell design, it’s perfect for on-the-go gaming!  I own the red and silver Mario SP and I absolutely love it!  The SP boasted a huge library of great titles (F-Zero, Sonic Advance, Super Mario Advance, Metroid Fusion and Zero Mission to name a few) which I still enjoy today thanks to this wonderful machine!

Game & Watch - The forerunner to the original GameBoy this series of handheld single games are still massively popular with collectors today, to begin with single screen machines were released, then Nintendo developed dual-screen units and that’s when they really took off, some brilliant titles were available including Donkey Kong (the first to feature the now familiar and much used d-pad) and Zelda, other versions were made available including TableTop, Panorama and Crystal Screen.

Within the last two years to mark milestone anniversaries of Mario and Zelda, two new Game & Watches have been released, Super Mario Bros. & The Legend of Zelda (just released this month), a review of both is coming soon so stay tuned!

To prove their popularity with collectors many of the rarer machines in excellent/mint conditions go for quite high prices on eBay.  If you want to know more about this series check out the two Game & Watch books/collector’s guides I reviewed in a previous post.

Nintendo Switch - I made my mind up after about 30 seconds of the promo video that I was going to get this machine and I’ve never regretted it since, this truly was a game-changer by Nintendo - a machine that could be played in a dock through a home TV but could also be taken out and played as a handheld.  The joy-con controllers look and feel great and despite having one of the weakest launch line-ups of titles in gaming history it’s more than made up for it since and now boasts a library of games to rival any console and a flourishing Indie game scene too.

A handheld-only Switch Lite was later released and an improved version with an OLED screen has just been released this month as well.  

An excellent and truly revolutionary machine.

Nintendo 3DS - And finally in this Top 5 countdown is the 3DS, like the Switch this was a game-changer at the time due to it’s ability to play games in 3D without the need for glasses (this could be disabled though a slider on the machine), the original 3DS was released in a variety of striking colours and offered some of the best handheld titles ever seen, many of which are still highly playable today.  It offered some of the best Pokemon titles ever seen (Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire, Sun/Moon, X/Y, Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon) and many other really superb games.

A 3DS XL was later released offering a larger screen.

I own as part of my collection the very distinctive yellow 3DS XL Pikachu edition and it’s still one of my most played handhelds, a great little machine.

So there you go my Top 5 favourite Nintendo machines ever, as I said this is my personal choice and I do have many other Nintendo machines I love (N64, Wii, GameCube, DS) but these are my absolute favourites, what are your favourite Nintendo machines and why? Feel free to let me know in the comments!

Sega fan? Got an iOS or Android device? You’ll love this!

Sega have been responsible for creating some of the best games to ever grace the MegaDrive but what you may not know is that many of them are available as free downloads under the ‘Sega Forever’ banner for iOS and Android devices!  They are ad-supported however these can be removed with an inexpensive and optional in-app purchase, also if you own a mobile controller such as the Backbone One or the Razer Kishi they can be used too.

Many excellent titles are available including Sonic 2, the superb Crazy Taxi, Virtual Tennis Challenge and Dynamite Heady to name but a few, simple search for ‘Sega Classics’ on the AppStore or Google Play Store and enjoy!

Russian Subway Dogs (PS Vita) Review

One of the final games to be released on the PS Vita Store is the wonderfully named Russian Subway Dogs, a game in which you play the part of hungry dogs roaming the Russian subway system scaring the passengers into dropping food as they exit their train which you must then collect.  Sounds easy? Wrong! The game starts slowly but speeds up as more trains arrive and passengers alight, also you have to reach a certain target to proceed to the next level.

Graphically the game looks great and is great fun to play providing a good challenge.  The music is particularly good in a typical Russian style and matches the game perfectly.

A fitting final release for the Vita, excellent value for money and well worth picking up if you own Sony’s handheld.   TRJ RATING : 4.5/5

These SNES books are fantastic!

As a loyal Nintendo fan going right back to the SNES I was very keen and excited to receive these two books containing everything you could ever want to know about the Super Nintendo, and these books are fantastic! Lavishly illustrated, both over 500 pages and of a very high quality they are a must for any Nintendo fan!

Super Nintendo Anthology Gold Edition (Geeks Line)

As well providing a very comprehensive section detailing and reviewing each and every SNES game, this impressive tome also has a number of excellent additional features : Hiroshi Yamauchi : The Man Behind the Machine, accessories, the rivalry with Sega to name but a few.  The section detailing the SNES games is particularly well done, giving a review, star rating and displaying the box art for each game.  A truly fabulous read.

SNES / Famicom : A Visual Compendium (Bitmap Books)

The second SNES book is not quite as comprehensive but still weighs in at over 500 pages presented in a slipcase with a holographic front, this basically details the games aiming to be more of a pictorial companion.  It is still a very worthwhile read, well produced and providing comprehensive information about the SNES games.

I highly recommend both these books for dipping in and out of and as a source of reference, excellent.

Best Android Emulators

Having owned and been enjoying an Android powered retro handheld, the Powkiddy X18s for a couple of weeks now I’m of the opinion that, with it’s superb choice of high quality and great looking and performing emulators Android is the best platform for retrogaming for sure, detailed below are some of the best emulators in my opinion :

Redream (Sega Dreamcast) - A great looking emulator for Dreamcast offering perfect performance with an easy to use and attractive interface automatically downloading the box art too for your selected games.

Drastic (Nintendo DS) - Offers a choice of screen layouts for the Nintendo DS games, you can either display the screens side-by-side, top and bottom or switch between them, again the games run perfectly and is really great to use.

M64 Plus FZ Pro (Nintendo 64) - My favourite emulator for Nintendo 64, again like Redream it automatically downloads the box art for your games offering a visually attractive interface and perfect performance even on Goldeneye!

John GBAC (GameBoy and GameBoy Color) - There are a couple of reasons why this is my favourite emulator for GameBoy and GameBoy Color, one is that full support for Super GameBoy enhanced titles is built-in, it automatically scans your device for the games saving you the job of doing so, it is also possible in the Settings to choose the correct original green palette for GameBoy titles and to top it all off performance is perfect, there is an advert which appears after exiting each game but an optional in-app purchase is available for £3.99 to remove these.  Also when exiting a game you are automatically given the option to save your progress.  A really excellent emulator

Virtual Virtual Boy (Nintendo Virtual Boy) - I am constantly surprised that with the complex nature of Virtual Boy games that emulation of them is possible at all let alone as perfect as they are on this emulator, they look and play great!

PPSSPP Gold (Sony PlayStation Portable) - An emulator for the PSP offering a wealth of tinkering options in the settings for getting the best out of the games, again a visually attractive emulator thanks to the game icons displayed, and it performs great, even God of War : Chains of Olympus runs pretty much perfectly on my X18s, a title which has always struggled on my Anbernic handhelds, the best choice for PSP.

These are just some of the many great emulators available for Android, there are many more great ones available but these are my personal favourites, happy emulating!

Antstream Arcade

A couple of years ago at a retrogaming show I witnessed a stand demonstrating a service which promised streaming of classic videogames called Antstream, well that service is now a reality.  The service is available on Windows, Mac, Android, Linux, Amazon Fire and Nvidia Shield and having had the Android app installed for about a week now on my Powkiddy X18s Android handheld I’m rather impressed!

The service allows 1,000 free plays before you’re asked to pay £9.99 a month for unlimited access, this is a really generous amount and gives you an excellent chance to try the service out.  There is a great selection of classics to choose from including Pac-Man, Space Invaders and Asteroids to name but a few, there are around 1,000 titles in total to choose from! So far the games I’ve tried out play really well with no stuttering, buffering or lag at all, another useful feature is each time you select a game to play the app tells you how many free plays you have left before you have to pay to continue.

A really highly recommended service and with the 1,000 free plays, no real reason not to try it!

Atari : Game Over Documentary

For many years it had been the stuff of gaming folklore that when the E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial video game was released back in the 80s for the Atari 2600, it was so bad and sold so few copies that the many unsold copies were buried in a landfill in New Mexico, USA.

And so on April 26th 2014 the excavation was begun at the rumoured landfill location in Alamogordo, New Mexico, a total of 30 feet were dug taking approximately three hours and, due to the city authorities only allowing digging for 24 hours, a mere 1,300 of the buried 700,000 games were recovered.  The city’s mayor is now hoping to turn the site into a tourist attraction.

The story is truly fascinating, the whole thing has been made into a brilliant documentary, Atari : Game Over which, at the time of writing is available to enjoy on YouTube (https://youtu.be/O2vWvp8WXQI) and I highly recommend it.

700 games recovered will be sold by the Alamogordo City Commission, a further 100 were given to the film’s development companies and the rest given to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., and local New Mexico museums for display putting to rest once and for all one of gaming’s longest running rumours.

Confirmed : GamesMaster is coming back!

Well it’s been rumoured for some time but it’s official - the iconic gaming show GamesMaster is coming back!    It has just begun filming for initial broadcast on the E4 YouTube channel followed by a run on the E4 TV channel.  

The lead presenter has just been announced as Scottish comedian, writer, filmmaker and poet Robert Florence.  No word as yet regarding who will follow the late Sir Patrick Moore as the GamesMaster themselves……

Personally as huge fan of the original I’m pleased to see a gaming show returning to our screens, however I find it strange that considering the huge popularity of gaming (both retro and modern) in the UK there isn’t a weekly gaming show consisting of news, features, previews and reviews, this would be excellent, how about it TV companies?    Have also always been a little envious of the fact that those lucky Japanese have a weekly (yes weekly!) gaming magazine to enjoy, Famitsu which has become something of a legend in gaming circles, it’s reviews of new games are highly regarded, surprising that given the wealth of gaming information and news available these days online that it’s still going to be honest, would love a similar publication here…….well one can dream……

Powkiddy X18s Review

For what seems like an eternity now we’ve had one retro emulation handheld after another churned out by Anbernic and Powkiddy using the same chipset each time which is fine as (especially with Anbernic) they’re generally excellent machines providing great performance for everything PS1 and below, however they’ve always stuggled with PSP, Dreamcast, Saturn and N64.  That is all about to change as the next generation are upon us with a much more powerful chipset and considerably better performance on these higher end machines.  

Step forward the first of these, the Powkiddy X18s, a clamshell Android 11 powered handheld boasting some serious power.  I took delivery of mine last week and am seriously impressed thus far, however we have to address the elephant in the room, no Google Play Store (although an update is promised) meaning any emulators have to be downloaded and installed using APK files online, this however is quite easy to do and apart from issues with Retroarch and Mame everything else has worked.

The build quality of the X18s is good, feels great to hold and use and has a nice weight to it, and the performance of N64, Dreamcast, PSP and Saturn really surprised me, it’s pretty much perfect, there are some minor issues but generally all is good.  For the first time I’m able to play one of my all-time favourite games, Nights into Dreams on the Sega Saturn perfectly, also for the Saturn I’ve got Sega Rally and Athlete Kings working for the first time.  I’ve come across no issues on N64, even Goldeneye which traditionally has really struggled on less powerful machines runs perfectly! No issues either on Dreamcast, all runs well and at full speed.   

Also for the first time on these devices it is also possible to play GameCube games which is something I’ve been waiting for for a long time, I was pleasantly surprised, it struggles a little with the demanding F-Zero GX (although it is playable) - everything else I’ve thrown at the Dolphin Emulator so far it’s played with ease.

Being an Android handheld and with currently no Google Play Store it does take a lot more setting up than the Anbernic and Powkiddy devices before it but if you’re willing to put in the time and effort you’ll be handsomely rewarded.  I’m excited to see what Anbernic have planned for later this year with their rumoured RG552, watch this space!

Opinion : Japanese game box art is better than that in the West

Over the last few weeks during my retrogaming sessions I’ve noticed a lot of Japanese game box art, in particular for GameBoy Advance and it strikes me that for some reason box art for Japanese games seems to be more creative and dramatic than those in Europe and North America, I mean take a look at the Japanese box art (above) for Pokemon Sapphire and Fire Red on GameBoy Advance, just beautiful, compare that with the European versions and they just don’t come close.  Could this be simply down to a flair for Japanese creativity or just laziness on the part of Nintendo Europe and Nintendo of America?  Whatever the reason I think the above examples look stunning as do the designs for the rest of the GameBoy Advance Pokemon games - do a search on Google Images and you’ll see what I mean.  There are many more fantastic examples across the different machines, the SNES has some stunning box art as does the PC Engine, it just seems a shame to me that more of an effort hasn’t been made for game releases in Europe and North America.

 

If you’re interested in finding out more Bitmap Books (http://www.bitmapbooks.co.uk) are offering two superb books - Super Famicom : The Box Art Collection and GameBoy : The Box Art Collection, both look like highly interesting reads and I definitely plan on purchasing both books sometime.

Game & Watch Gallery Advance (GBA) Review

As you may have figured out from some of my previous posts I’m a bit of a Game & Watch fan! There were several Game & Watch Gallery games released by Nintendo for the GameBoy, GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance all allowing you to play classic Game & Watch machines faithfully reproduced in both Classic and Modern modes.

By far the best of these was Game & Watch Gallery Advance for the GameBoy Advance, this cartridge offers the best choice and value for money of any of the games, already unlocked with the game are :

- Fire

- Rain Shower

- Donkey Kong Jr.

- Mario’s Cement Factory

- Boxing

- Donkey Kong 3

A further 14 are unlockable through achieving a certain score on the unlocked games and therefore earning stars - the more stars you earn the more games you can unlock, some are then displayed in the main menu, the rest are in the ‘Museum’, most are only playable in Classic mode.  If like me, you’re probably never going to get the required stars to unlock them all, there is another way.  If you own an emulation handheld such as the excellent Anbernic RG351M or the Powkiddy RGB10 Max simply do a Google search for ‘Game & Watch Gallery Advance save files’ and you will find that people have uploaded save files containing all the unlocked games, simply download the file, rename the file extension to .srm and copy it to the same folder as the game making sure the file names match exactly.  You should then be able to enjoy all the unlocked games!  I did this on my handhelds and I can confirm it works a treat!  Save files are also available online to obtain the locked games on Game & Watch Gallery 2 & 3 for GameBoy Color.

For your information the unlocked games on GBA are : Chef, Mario Bros., Donkey Kong, Octopus, Fire Attack, Manhole, Tropical Fish, Mario’s Bombs Away, Parachute, Bombsweeper, Climber, Safebuster, Lifeboat and Zelda.

This gives you a huge choice and is a very affordable way of enjoying these excellent titles, as I previously mentioned the reproduction of them in classic mode is spot on and works perfectly, being old school I always prefer to play them this way but the Modern mode is also available offering updated graphics.

One of my favourite GameBoy Advance games (especially with the unlocked games) this is very highly recommended for fans of the series and is great fun…….TRJ RATING : 5/5

Donkey Kong Hockey Micro Vs. System Review

During 1984, as part of the Game and Watch series Nintendo released three titles under the ‘Micro Vs. System’ banner - Donkey Kong 3, Boxing and Donkey Kong Hockey - I’ve recently been fortunate enough to acquire a mint condition Donkey Kong Hockey so that is what I’m going to review for you.

First a bit about these machines, these were different from the rest of the Game & Watch series in that they had two proper mini controllers attached with a proper D-Pad, when not needed these controllers could be wound in and stored inside the machine, therefore two player gameplay was possible, unlike the standard Game & Watch machines.  Game A is the single player game and Game B is the two player game.  The machines are built to an excellent quality and have a really great look, design and feel to them.

Now onto Donkey Kong Hockey, the premise behind this game is a simple one, score more goals past Donkey Kong than he does past you!  Not as easy as it sounds however as you need fast reactions to block Kong’s shots at you and return them, also sometimes the referee will be rather naughty and block your shots too, something else to watch for.  The controllers work really well, feel great and are really responsive, the game is really addictive and great fun to play, well worth picking one up if, like I did, you can find one on eBay in mint condition at a decent price.

TRJ RATING : 4.5/5

To make you aware as a postscript, the other two titles in the series, Donkey Kong 3 and Boxing are also playable on the excellent Game and Watch Gallery Advance on the GameBoy Advance, review of this game coming soon, stay tuned!

Console Wars documentary

If, like me, you grew up with SNES and MegaDrive and have Sky TV, this brilliant and fascinating documentary will be of interest to you, called ‘Console Wars’ it focuses on the intense rivalry between Nintendo and Sega around the launch of their respective consoles, it’s still occasionally repeated on Sky Documentaries and is also available to watch on both Sky and NOW on demand, a very highly recommended watch!

Classic TV videogaming commercials - much better than now!

In my opinion tv commercials for videogames and consoles were way better back in the 80s and 90s, a time when companies were inventive and creative in their ads, as opposed to the same old commercials churned out now, so I’ve scoured YouTube for some of the best…..enjoy!

S.A.P.S (Society Against PlayStation) https://youtu.be/HbwvnaNJVZ4

Sony’s highly inventive campaign to promote the launch of their debut console, the PlayStation 1, almost has the opposite aim of what they were hoping to achieve which was to get people to BUY it!

S.A.P.S (Society Against PlayStation) Christmas Ad https://youtu.be/tfrhfpO2WjE

Without any shadow of a doubt my favourite videogames commercial ever! Just brilliant and very funny, the look on the kids’ faces is priceless and it has an annoyingly catchy jingle that’ll get stuck in your head for days!

Genesis Does What Nintendon’t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NECDgA3gu8I

Sega of America’s commercial promoting the launch of Sega Genesis (MegaDrive in the UK), showing the power of the machine and containing a not very subtle dig at Nintendo and it’s upcoming SNES……

Mortal Kombat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8V7TwlYCt0

Promoting the 16-bit launch of Mortal Kombat, one of the most iconic gaming ads ever, featuring hundreds of people excitedly running and screaming ‘Mortal Kombat!!’

GameBoy https://youtu.be/E-ej_8XBwmI

Nintendo of America’s advert promoting the launch of the GameBoy, still one of the most well-known and iconic handhelds of all time, now you’re playing with portable power!

Sega Saturn https://youtu.be/cyv6ZehQyTQ

An epic 8 and a half minute long advert for the launch of the Sega Saturn, a console which really didn’t do well for Sega but it does have one of my all-time favourite games, Nights Into Dreams (review coming in a future post) so it wasn’t all bad!

Sega Genesis 30th Anniversary https://youtu.be/8_-ZICg5elg

A re-creation by Sega of America of their previously mentioned ‘Genesis Does What Nintendon’t’ campaign to mark the 30th anniversary of the release of the Sega Genesis and to promote the release of the Genesis Mini, a shrunk down version of the machine with about 40 or so games built-in and a controller.

SNES https://youtu.be/eSBFw93V3Rg

Nintendo of America’s effort for the launch of the SNES.

SNES (UK advert) https://youtu.be/ynV40PtX6p8

Nintendo UK’s effort for the launch of the SNES.

I hope you enjoy watching these as much as I did and agree with me that videogames commercials were far more entertaining in the 80s and 90s than they are now!

PC Engine - a massively under-rated machine

I own a number of emulation handhelds, devices which run a variety of console and handheld emulators and games (or roms) can be added to an SD card to be played on them.  I’ve recently discovered on them the NEC PC Engine, a console designed to compete with the mighty SNES and MegaDrive but never really caught on in the same way as Nintendo and Sega’s flagship machines did.  This is a shame as over the last few days I’ve discovered some really excellent games for the NEC machine, the majority of them are shoot-em-ups which suits me as I’m a big fan of that type of game, many are available including Darius and Gradius to name but a couple. In my opinion this is a hugely under-rated machine and worth tracking down the roms online and adding them to your device, you won’t be disappointed especially if you’re a shoot-em-up fan!

Pokemon Mini - a forgotten Nintendo handheld

Think you know all Nintendo’s handhelds?  Think again!  Back in 2001 Nintendo released the Pokemon Mini, what has to be the smallest cartridge based handheld ever!  I am lucky enough to own one and I love it!  I bought mine brand new from Amazon back in the day, today though the only way to get one and the games is via eBay.  It’s powered by one AAA battery which lasts for ages.  The machine is available in a variety of colours, as you can see from the photo I have the blue one.

As for the tiny game cartridges which fit in the back of the machine, only five games were ever released in Europe and North America :

- Pokemon Zany Cards, a Solitaire style card game

- Pokemon Puzzle Collection

- Pokemon Tetris

- Pokemon Pinball, my favourite!

- Pokemon Party Mini, a collection of mini-games

A few more were released in Japan only including Pokemon Race Mini - I believe an English translated rom of this is available online.

Sadly the Pokemon Mini never really caught gamer’s imaginations and it disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared.  This is a shame as I love mine, it’s one of my favourite handhelds in my collection, it’s not the most powerful machine ever but the games are huge fun to play especially Pokemon Tetris!  Worth tracking down a unit and a few games on eBay!

Best Retrogaming YouTube channels

As if to confirm what a popular hobby retrogaming is there are several channels on YouTube devoted to the subject and below are some of the best…..

Retro Dodo - in my opinion the best retrogaming channel on YouTube. Hosted and run by Brandon it provides varied content including reviews of new retro handhelds, news items, a series entitled ‘What the Fake?’ Featuring imitation consoles, countdowns of the best games for a specific machine and much, much more.  Also if you support the channel on Patreon via the top tier you can get free items, so far I’ve got a free mug and hoodie both branded with the logo (pictured above).  A regularly updated podcast called ‘Retrospect’ is also available via Spotify and podcasting apps.  A truly essential channel for any retrogamer, superb.

Retro Game Corps - Another essential channel to subscribe to, run and hosted by Russ who lives in Hawaii, this channel features reviews of new retro handhelds but useful are the detailed step-by-step guides he provides both on YouTube and on the website (retrogamecorps.com) on everything from adding roms to handhelds, installing custom firmware to optimising the settings to get your games looking their best on your emulation devices.  An excellent channel and website, a must watch especially for newbie retrogamers.

Sonic Love Emulation - A UK channel featuring reviews of new retro handhelds but also longplays of a specific emulator on a machine, performance tests and the occasional countdown too.  Provides good honest reviews presented by someone with a real passion and enthusiasm for their subject.  A great channel.

SWPL Gaming - Run and hosted by Joel this channel again features good, honest reviews of new retro handhelds primarily but also the occasional additional feature too.  Like the previously detailed channel the host displays a real passion and enthusiasm for retrogaming.

Slopes Game Room - This channel is worth subscribing to for the excellent ‘history of’ documentaries featuring the origins and history of classic game series such as Mario and Pac-Man

Also check out : 

Wagners TechTalk

Madlittlepixel 

The Retro Future

Enjoy your retrogaming viewing!

Reflections : Gaming Shops in London in the 80s/90s

In the 80s and early 90s on my regular shopping trips to central London there were always two gaming shops/departments which, for me, were always a must visit, it always felt like an event going to both of them, one sadly is no longer there and the other is still there but not the store is once was in my opinion.

The first was located on the first floor of HMV’s flagship store in Oxford Street, and went under the title of HMV Games, taking up pretty much the entire floor and was at the time the largest videogames department in the UK, it was massive!  Literally everything used to be available - SNES, Megadrive, GameBoy, 3DO, Atari Jaguar, PC to name but a few, I spent many a happy hour in there and in fact purchased my Sega Megadrive from there just after Christmas one year!  Sadly, in the now relocated HMV store in Oxford Street the gaming section is now reduced to a paltry one aisle, a pale shadow of what there once was.

The other must visit shop for me was Computer Exchange in Rathbone Place just off Oxford Street, there are branches of CEX all over the country but for me, this one was special at the time as it was the place to go if you wanted to see and buy the latest consoles first on Japanese import, I seem to recall them getting the Saturn and Dreamcast before their UK release.  Another thing I used to love was the Retro department in the basement where it was possible to buy brand new Game and Watch machines, and many other retro consoles, again I spent many a happy hour down there.  Sadly the Retro department has long since gone and the store now is pretty much like any other CEX branch but I’ll always have the memories of visiting there in the 80s and early 90s.

For me the SNES and Megadrive era was the golden age of gaming, I know that the current PS5 and XBox Series X are much, much more powerful and capable of better graphics but for me, the 16-bit era was a great time to be a gamer and game releases felt like more of an event - remember Sonic2uesday and Mortal Monday?  Also there were a plethora of gaming magazines available (although see my previous two posts on retrogaming magazines for details of some available today) my favourite being the unofficial SNES magazine, Super Play, this always had absolutely stunning Anime-inspired artwork on the cover and was an essential for anyone who, liked me, owned a SNES, I never missed an issue and somewhere I still have them all safely in a binder!  Don’t get me wrong I love my Switch and PS5 and think they are both incredible bits of kit but for me being a 16 bit gamer was a time I shall never forget.

Funkey S Review

One of the best things about having Retrogaming as a hobby is collecting different retro handhelds, to date I have an impressive 19 with I’m sure more to come.  A recent acquisition of mine is what is described as the smallest folding gaming handheld measuring just 4.5cm wide, 4.4cm long and 1.5cm deep, this thing is TINY!  However despite it’s diminutive size there are some good things about this machine and equally some not so good things, so here goes…..

The first obviously is the size of it and the close positioning of the buttons, if you have large hands and fat fingers this is probably not for you as you may struggle when playing, but if, like me, you have small hands and thin fingers you shouldn’t encounter any issues, in fact playing games on it is a lot easier than I expected to be and the games on all emulators run perfectly.

The Funkey S supports an impressive set of machines : GameBoy, GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance, NES, SNES, Game Gear, Master System, Mega Drive, TurboGrafx, Atari Lynx, NeoGeo Pocket, WonderSwan Color and Playstation 1, pretty amazing for a machine so small!

It is also possible to add box art to the games but be aware that the title of the box art image must match the title of the rom exactly to work.

Adding the games (roms) to the Funkey S could not be easier, simply connect the machine to a PC/laptop, select ‘Mount USB’ from the options menu on the machine and drag and drop your roms to the relevant folder, once done, select ‘Eject USB’ from the options menu and unplug.

Another handy feature of this machine is if you close the machine when playing a game, the next time you open the machine it will automatically resume the game from the exact point you left it, many larger machines don’t do this!  Multiple save slots are also available via the options button however.

Three colours are currently available for the Funkey S - Retrogaming Grey, Atomic Purple and the colour I chose, Original Purple.  The company behind this machine also deserve credit for providing via their website really outstanding tutorials (https://doc.funkey-project.com/) covering everything from adding roms to connecting to a computer, they really are very comprehensive and highly useful if ever you get stuck with anything.

With regards to battery life I estimate you’d probably get a maximum of 3 hours play time from this machine, it is not designed to be a retro handheld you spend long periods of time playing on, it is more meant to be something you can take out and play for a few minutes, say when you’re in a queue.  Charging the machine is very quick and simply a case of plugging the rather short USB cable supplied into a USB charger and the other end into the side of the machine, an orange light is displayed on the machine while charging which disappears when fully charged.  A  battery status indicator is shown on the screen in the top right corner.

It began life as a Kickstarter campaign which has now ended although the machine can be ordered from https://funkey-project.myshopify.com/products/funkey-s - be aware though that the machine is massively popular so expect to wait a while, orders are currently being taken for the next production batch expected to ship during August.  My original machine got lost in customs but fortunately the company sent a replacement free of charge which arrived safely.

To sum up, this is a unique, and very cute little handheld with excellent build quality which is highly recommended providing you’ve not got fat fingers!  TRJ RATING : 4.5/5

Retrogaming Magazines - an update

Since my previous post about retrogaming magazines I’ve discovered a couple more….

Sega Mania - a brand new magazine dedicated to all things Sega, each issue is themed around one year, the first issue available now at https://www.sega-mania.com/ is 1990, the second issue currently available for pre-order will be 1991 and so on.  I’ve just received my copy of issue 1 and it’s a very nostalgic, excellent, high quality publication, highly recommended for Sega fans!

Mega Visions - back issues available at https://www.megavisions.net/shop/ and subscriptions available through https://www.patreon.com/megavisions .  This American publication has been going for a few issues now and, like Sega Mania is themed around all things Sega.  It is to shortly undergo a re-design and the first new look issue is due to be shipped this month (August).  I’ve just signed up for a subscription so will give my thoughts on it when I receive the new issue.

Game and Watch Books Review

Anyone with any interest in handheld gaming from the 80s will surely remember Nintendo’s Game and Watch series, the forerunner to the GameBoy.  These fun little machines were massively popular and are highly collectible.  I’ve found a couple of excellent books on the Game and Watch series so I’m going to give more detail about them in this post.

The Unofficial Game and Watch Collector’s Guide Available from http://www.gameandwatch.at/en/ .  This book will be of most interest to collectors although it’s still a fascinating read in it’s own right. The guide is split into sections around the various types of Game and Watch that were available - Crystal Screen, Multi Screen, Panorama, etc. - two pages are dedicated to each machine beginning with information about the game and the object of it, screenshots of the game are also featured along with a very useful Rarity Guide showing how rare/common each machine is in varying conditions on auction sites.  Included with the book as a bonus is handy Quick Reference Guide.  A high quality, excellent and really comprehensive guide, highly recommended for anyone looking to get into collecting the machines or just wants to find out more about them.

The History of Nintendo Volume 2 : 1980-1991 Game and Watch When I purchased this book it was available through Amazon however at the time of writing it is unavailable although used copies may be available through Amazon Marketplace, eBay or online bookstores.  Unlike the previous book this is more of a general book about the series beginning with a thorough history of Game and Watch and how they came into existence, the rest of the book, like the previous book is split into sections around the various types of machine, a single page is dedicated to each featuring screenshots, trivia and information about the game.  There is also a rarity rating for each out of 5.  If you can find a copy another very interesting book about Game and Watch.

Nintendo Power

 

Just a short post to say that 156 issues (beginning with Issue 1) of Nintendo of America’s official, long gone magazine, Nintendo Power are available to read online and download from https://archive.org/details/NintendoPower1988-2004 - a very cool slice of gaming magazine nostalgia!

Retrogaming Magazines

If you thought the golden age of gaming magazines was over think again! There are now numerous excellent titles dedicated to various kinds of retrogaming so I thought I’d make you aware of some of the best below :

Retro Gamer - Published monthly and available in most branches of WH Smith this is the best title of the lot in my opinion, a 114 page A4 publication covering all aspects of retrogaming including guides, ‘making of’ features, letters, reviews and much more, it’s a must read for any retrogamer and a magazine I truly look forward to dropping through the letterbox each month as part of my subscription!

Ninty Fresh - From the same publishers as the excellent ‘SwitchPlayer’ this is published four times a year and covers mostly retro Nintendo although there are some modern day Switch reviews included too, there have so far been three issues and each issue has a main theme, the last issue was Pokemon themed and the next issue will have a Zelda theme to it.  Each issue is put up for funding on Kickstarter, the campaign for Issue 4 has now finished but the campaign on Kickstarter for Issue 5 will begin in due course.  Current and back issues are available from https://nintyfresh.net/

Crash - The iconic ZX Spectrum magazine returns as a bi-monthly 60-page publication featuring news, reviews, features, letters and pretty much everything the Spectrum fan could want! 

Subscriptions available at https://www.patreon.com/crashmagazine and current and back issues from https://fusionretrobooks.com/collections/crash-magazine

Zzap 64 - The equally iconic Commodore 64 magazine returns also as a bi-monthly 60-page publication again featuring news, reviews, features and letters and everything for the C64 fan!

Subscriptions available at https://www.patreon.com/zzapmagazine and current & back issues from https://fusionretrobooks.com/collections/zzap-64-magazine  

Another publication is also planned - an Amstrad CPC magazine called AmtixCPC - subscriptions now available from https://www.patreon.com/amtixcpcmagazine

Fusion - A monthly publication covering a mixture of retrogaming, current gen gaming, toys, indie and tabletop - it’s a excellent and varied read each month and one I really look forward to - highly recommended!

Subscriptions available at https://www.patreon.com/fusionmagazine and current and back issues from https://fusionretrobooks.com/collections/fusion-magazine

If you have a subscription to the digital magazine app Readly - digital editions of Fusion, Zzap 64 and Crash have just been added.

Retro Format - And last but not least this is a relatively new publication having had only 2 issues so far although issues 3 and 4 are coming soon, a good quality varied read and again highly recommended.

Subscriptions and current and back issues available from https://www.retro-format.com/retroformat.php

180 (ZX Spectrum) Review

As a teenager I cut my gaming teeth on a ZX Spectrum +2 (the one with the built-in tape deck) and by far the game I played the most was a really fun darts game called 180 so was really pleased to be able to play it again after all these years on my Anbernic retro handhelds (review of the RG351V coming soon) and it’s still as good as it was back then!

As you can see from the screenshots above you start at 501 and are playing against different computer opponents of varying abilities, the graphics for a Spectrum game are excellent and I always used to smile when the dog walks along every so often and cocks it’s leg against the bar! Aiming the dart before throwing (see left picture) takes a bit of practice but soon you’ll find the sweet spot and be hitting treble 20s in no time!  

The music in the game is really catchy too and something you’ll find yourself humming afterwards although sadly I can’t get the audio when playing on my retro handhelds which is a shame.

This is a really great game and still one of the best darts games I’ve played on any machine and one which has truly stood the test of time, time to dig out that old Spectrum and tape deck from the loft!   TRJ Rating : 4.5/5

Playing with Power : The Nintendo Story

Ever since my SNES, the first Nintendo machine I owned I’ve been a loyal and avid Nintendo fan having owned pretty much every machine since then so was excited to discover a new five-part documentary on the complete history of Nintendo from it’s humble beginnings as a playing card manufacturer right up to the present day and the Switch.

The series is called “Playing with Power - The Nintendo Story” and is available on the free streaming site, Crackle at https://www.crackle.com/playing-with-power-the-nintendo-story *

It’s an excellent and fascinating series too covering pretty much every aspect of Nintendo’s existence and is a must watch for any Nintendo fan.  

The descriptions of the five episodes are detailed below :

* = Just to make everyone aware Crackle is a US-only website so to watch this series you will need a decent VPN - the best one I’ve found and is the one I use is ExpressVPN which offers a free 7 day trial before you’re billed.  

Also being a free site Crackle does insert commercials during the episodes which is irritating but should not distract from your enjoyment of this excellent documentary!

TRJ Rating : 5/5

GameGear Micros Review

Anyone who has an interest in handhelds will remember the Sega GameGear, Sega’s attempt to rival the GameBoy which wasn’t the success they were hoping for mainly due to it absolutely eating batteries!

Now, to mark 60 years of Sega they’ve released a set of five GameGear Micros, unfortunately in Japan only, fortunately though I managed to obtain the set of all five and I absolutely love them although they’re not without their issues.  Firstly they are really cute but ridiculously small, so much so that they come supplied with the ‘Sega Big Window’ a screen magnifier which clips over the machine, this does improve things slightly and is kind of essential otherwise it is very difficult to see the screen.  

They come in five colours - black, red, yellow, blue and white, each machine has four games installed, however being a Japan only release not all of these games such as the Shining Force series are accessible to a Western audience unless you can read Japanese, however there are enough games on the different machines that are Western friendly including : Sonic the Hedgehog, Outrun, Puyo Puyo 2, Sonic Chaos, Columns, Baku Baku Animal and Gunstar Heroes.

By far the best of the five machines is the white unit which has four GameGear and Master System Aleste shoot-em-up titles installed : Aleste, Aleste II, the brand new Aleste 3 and PowerStrike II, being shoot-em-ups they are highly enjoyable and playable for a Western market and if you’re going to get any of the GG Micros I’d recommend the white one although it’s worth noting that except for the occasional sale on eBay the white machine is usually bundled as part of the PS4 or Switch Aleste Collection.

To sum up these are a very cool idea despite their issues and highly collectible for retrogaming fans, I’m very glad to have managed to get hold of the full set although would have like to have seen a slightly bigger machine with many more classic Western GameGear titles installed, one day perhaps…….TRJ Rating : 4/5