• Tag Archives CD-i

  • Electronic Gaming Monthly (January 1995)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: Electronic Gaming Monthly – January 1995

    This was one of the best and biggest selling gaming magazines in the U.S. for a long time. I was never a subscriber but I bought issues when I could between probably 1989 and 2002 give or take. The January 1995 issue includes:

    Features

    • Shoshinkai Show Unveils New Products! – The big news was the unveiling of the Virtual Boy and what a flop that was. Some of the first games were Mario Bros. VB, Pinball VB, and Teleroboxer.
    • Getting “Tricky” With The King of the Super NES Jungle! – Tips and tricks for the latest and greatest 2D platform game on the Super NES, Donkey Kong Country.
    • Earthworm Jim Strategy Guide – A level by level guide to this humorous platform game from Shiny Entertainment.
    • Killer Instinct Jumps Onto The Fighting Scene! – A first look at Killer Instinct along with an incomplete moves list.

    Departments

    • Insert Coin – A commentary on the Virtual Boy’s introduction and how Nintendo was already stumbling out of the gate with its release.
    • Interface: Letters to the Editor – Letters from readers about the 32X, bug spray and CDs, Sega CD fighting games, developing games for the Turbo Duo, NAM-1975, full motion video on the SNES, Bloodstorm, and more.
    • Review Crew – Reviews of Samurai Showdown II (Neo Geo, game of the month), X-Men (Super NES), Indiana Jones (Super NES), Jurassic Park 2 (Super NES), Wolverine (Genesis), Aero The Acro Bat 2 (Genesis), Star Wars Arcade (32X), Heart of the Alien (Sega CD), Street Fighter II Turbo (3DO), Doom (Jaguar), Space Invaders (Game Boy), The Marvin Missions (Game Boy), and Ecco 2: The Tides of Time (Game Gear).
    • EGM’s Hot Top Tens – Several top tens lists including Top Ten video Babes (Mai Shiranui from The King of Fighters ’94 gets the top spot), Editor’s Top Ten (Samurai Showdown II for the Neo Geo is at the top), and Readers’ Top Ten (the arcade version of Mortal Kombat II tops the list). There are also top 10 games lists for several systems. Number one games include FIFA International Soccer (3DO), Donkey Kong Country (Super NES), Madden ’95 (Genesis), ESPN National Hockey Night (Sega CD), and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (Game Gear).
    • Gaming Gossip – The latest news and rumors about Mortal Kombat III, NBA Jam Tournament Slam, Diddy Kong, Virtual Boy, Saturn and the 32X, Sonic on the 32X, the Sega Neptune, and more.
    • Press Start – Nintendo teams up with Paradigm to create a flight sim for the Ultra 64 (Nintendo 64); Earthworm Jim commercial featuring worm eating; Flightstick Pro from CH Products for the 3DO; a Super Game Boy to Game Genie adapter; Donkey Kong Country launched worldwide; Xband Catapult Modem for the Genesis; and more news and new products.
    • Arcade Action – A look at some of the latest arcade games including Tattoo Assassins (Data East), Ace Driver (Namco), Locked ‘N’ Loaded (Data East), and Point Blank (Namco).
    • International Outlook – Previews of new and upcoming games released overseas including Fighting Polygon (Super Famicom), Chrono Trigger (Super Famicom), Front Mission (Super Famicom), Kirby 2 (Game Boy), Super Bomberman 3 (Super Famicom), Super Bomberman Panic Bomber W (Super Famicom), Sim City 2000 (Super Famicom), Burning Heroes (Super Famicom), Pacific Theater of Operations 2 (Super Famicom), Romance of the Three Kingdoms IV (Super Famicom), Winning Post 2 (Super Famicom), Super Panchiko War (Super Famicom), Super Family Stadium 4 (Super Famicom), Go For It Tonosama (Super Famicom), Super Chinese Fighter (Super Famicom), Drift Highway Battle 2 (Super Famicom), Super Bombliss (Super Famicom), Tale Fantasia (Super Famicom), Battle Crushers (Game Boy), Super Chinese Land 3 (Game Boy), Pokonyan (Super Famicom), Art of Fighting 2 (Super Famicom), Live World Soccer Perfect Eleven (Super Famicom), and Fatal Fury Special (PC Engine Super CD-ROM).
    • Tricks of the Trade – Tricks tips and codes for VR Stalker (3DO), Shock Wave (3DO), Contra Hard Corps (Genesis), Brutal (Sega CD), Super Street Fighter II Turbo (3DO), The Lion King (Super NES), Doom (32X), Samurai Showdown (Game Boy), The King of Fighter ’94 (Game Boy), Super Return of the Jedi (Super NES), King of the Monsters 2 (Super NES), FIFA International Soccer (3DO), Out of This World (3DO), Earthworm Jim (Super NES), Beavis & Butt-head (Genesis), Shining Force II (Genesis), Sonic & Knuckles (Genesis), Ren & Stimpy: Time Warp (Super NES), Crazy Chase (Super NES), and Sonic Blastman 2 (Super NES).
    • Next Wave – Previews of upcoming games including Blue Lighting (Jaguar), Incoming (Saturn & PlayStation), TimeCop (Super NES), Clue (Sega CD), Trivial Pursuit (Sega CD), Family Feud (3DO), Cadillacs & Dinosaurs (Sega CD), Rise of the Robots (Game Gear), Air Cavalry (Super NES), Troy Aikman Football (Jaguar), Hover Strike (Jaguar), Val D’isere Skiing and Snowboarding (Jaguar), Flashback (Jaguar), Dragon’s Lair (Jaguar), and Ultra Vortex (Jaguar).
    • Special Feature – Namco discusses the making of Ridge Racer for the PlayStation with an interview of Shigeru Yokoyama, Kouichiro Shigeno, and Tsuyumi Toyoda; NEC launches FC-FX game system; a continuing look at Snatcher for the Sega CD; and more.
    • Team EGM – A look at the latest in sports games including Tecmo Super Bowl ’95, Sega Sports NHL All-Star Hockey, Road Rash III, NBA Jam Tournament Edition, Madden ’95, WCW Superbrawl, and more.

    Fact Files

    • Super NES Times – A quick look at Home Improvement (95% complete), Ogre Battle (90% complete), The Ignition Factor (100% complete), Pinball Fantasies (95% complete), and Savage Empire (95% complete).
    • Outpost Sega – Previews of Mega Bomberman (95% complete), The Death and Return of Superman (100% complete), Mighty Max (100% complete), Cosmic Carnage (32X, 100% complete), Samurai Showdown (Sega CD, 50% complete), Fatal Fury Special (Sega CD, 50% complete), Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (Sega CD, 100% complete), Ecco II: The Tides of Time (Sega CD, 100% complete), and Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure (Sega CD, 100% complete).
    • Neo Geo Challenge – Preview of Samurai Showdown II (100% complete).
    • Planet 3DO – Previews of Super Street Fighter II Turbo (100% complete), The Need for Speed (85% complete), Shockwave: Operation Jumpgate (90% complete), Shanghai: Triple Threat (95% complete).
    • Jaguar Domain – Preview of Zool 2 (93% complete – oddly specific).
    • Club Game Boy – Previews of Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf (95% complete), Pinball Fantasies (95% complete), and Bonk’s Revenge (100% complete).
    • Super Gear – Previews of Ristar (90% complete) and Legend of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (80% complete).

    …and more!


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  • EGM2 (December 1994)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source:  EGM2 – Issue Number 6 – December 1994

    I think that December 1994 represents the absolute peak (at least in terms of page counts) of video game magazines. Electronic Gaming Monthly, one of the most popular gaming magazines, actually had two publications each month at the time and in December 1994 and averaged close to 400 pages. the December 1994 issue of EGM2 (or EGM^2 or EGM Squared or whatever you want to call it) weighed in at 356 pages, covered at least the Super Nintendo, Genesis, Sega CD, 3DO, CD-i, Atari Jaguar, PlayStation and arcade games and included:

    Features

    • Meet the New, Tough Cast of Samurai Showdown 2! – A detailed look at SNK’s new Samurai Showdown 2 including the large number of fighters.
    • The Sony PlayStation is Making Waves in Japan! – A look at the PlayStation, first games available and an interview with Hiroshi Koyomoto fomr the marketing division of Sony of Japan’s Computer Entertainment Division a few days ahead of the official launch in Japan.
    • Hear the Roar of the Jaguar and it’s Games! – The Atari Jaguar was a terrific system for its time and quite powerful. It came out strong but sadly, Atari repeated its mistakes of the past and failed to put sufficient resources into first party game development and third party support. A look at Checkered Flag, Bubsy, Syndicate, Theme Park, and Iron Soldier.
    • Capcom Mania is Striking the Video Game World! – A detailed look at new and upcoming Capcom games including X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse and Mega Man X2 for the Super NES.
    • Earthworm Jim Exposed! – A look at the making of Earthworm Jim 2 as well as some strategies for the original.
    • The Adventures of Batman and Robin – A detailed look this game for the Sega Genesis based on the animated series of the same name.

    Departments

    • Insert Coin – A positive look at the Atari Jaguar and indeed, the first batch of games looks pretty good…at least the ones mentioned here.
    • Interface: Letters to the Editor – Letters about playing Super Famicom games on the Super NES, Quarterback Club vs. NFL ’95, how to get into the game business, Satan’s snubbing from MK II, R-Type 3, and more.
    • Fandom Central – A look by Arnie Katz at the latest in gaming fanzines.
    • Press Start – Nintendo sponsors online conversations about Donkey Kong Country via CompuServe, Capcom announces Mega Man: The Wily Wars exclusively for the Sega Channel, who’s on the Street Fighter 2 soundtrack, EA Sports and Catapult sponsor XBand superbowl of gaming, and more.
    • Gaming Gossip – Sony PlayStation prepares for launch, Namco announces support for PlayStation, Street Fighter III in the works, Mortal Kombat II and NBA Jam Tournament Edition rumored for 3DO, Wayne Gretzky signs deal for hockey game on the Super NES, Genesis and Sega CD, and more.
    • Tricks of the Trade – Tips and tricks for Mickey Mania (Genesis), Belle’s Quest (Genesis), Roar of the Beast (Genesis), Lemmings (Super NES), Death Valley Rally (Super NES), Speedy Gonzalez (Game Boy), EXO Squad (Genesis), Daffy Duck: Marvin Missions (Super NES), Fire Power 2000 (Super NES), Pirates of Dark Water (Genesis), Super Game Boy (Super NES), Aero the AcroBat (Super NES), Ultimate Fighter (Super NES), Batman: Return of the Joker (Genesis), Urban Strike (Genesis), Mickey Mania (Sega CD), Earthworm Jim (Genesis), Final Fantasy III (Super NES), Shaq Fu (Super NES), and much more.
    • Next Wave – Previews of Eternal Champions CD (Sega CD), Mega Bomberman (Genesis), RapJam Volume One (Super NES), Brutal (32X), ATP Tour Championship Tennis (Genesis), Midnight Raiders (Sega CD), Ogre Battle (Super NES), Ecco: The Tides of Time CD (Sega CD), Marko’s Magic Soccer Ball (Game Gear), Power Ranger (Sega CD), NHL All-Star Hockey ’95 (Genesis), Home Improvement (Super NES), Flying Nightmares (Sega CD, 3DO), The Legend of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse (Game Gear), and Ignition Factor (Super NES).
    • International Outlook – A look at new and upcoming releases from Japan including Chrono Trigger (Super Famicom), Front Mission (Super Famicom), King of the Fighters ’94 (arcade), Rockman Mega World (Mega Drive), Wonder Project (Super Famicom), Go! Go! Ackman (Super Famicom), Godzilla (Super Famicom), Battle Racers (Super Famicom), Super Tetris 3 (Super Famicom), Hashire Hebereke (Super Famicom), and World Heroes 2 Jet (Game Boy).
    • Arcade Action – The latest news from the arcade world. This month, updates to Primal Rage, arcade game based on Cops, Midway readies Killer Instinct, and a new Street Fighter style X-Men game is coming. Plus, the top arcade games in Japan and the U.S. Sports Fishing by Sega makes it to number 1 in Japan and in the U.S. it is Revolution X by Midway.
    • Arcade Strategy – Midway sponsors T-Mek tournament, a detailed look at Samurai Showdown 2, Bubble Symphony, Power Spikes II, Raiden DX, and Killer Instinct.

    Fact Files

    • International Fact Files – See International Outlook above.
    • Super NES Times – A look at new and upcoming Super NES games including Super Punch Out (Nintendo), X-Men: Mutant Apocalypse (Capcom), Mega Man X2 (Capcom), and Rise of the Robots (Acclaim).
    • Outpost Sega – A look at new and upcoming games for Sega systems, including: Ristar (Sega for the Genesis), NFL Quarterback Club (Acclaim for the Genesis), Exo Squad (Playmates for the Genesis), Great Circus Mystery (Capcom for the Genesis), Wolverine: Adamantium Rage (Acclaim for the Genesis), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (Playmates for the Genesis), Star Wars Arcade (Sega for the 32X), Doom (Sega for the 32X), Flashback (Sega for the Sega CD), Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Sony Imagesoft for the Sega CD), Popful Mail (Working Designs for the Sega CD), and Flink (Vic Tokai for the Sega CD)
    • Planet 3DO – A look at new and upcoming games for the 3DO, including: Street Fighter II Turbo (Panasonic).

    …and more!


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  • VideoGames: The Ultimate Gaming Magazine (June 1994)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Source: VideoGames: The Ultimate Gaming Magazine – June 1994

    Video gaming magazine can have a complicated lineage. One of my favorites, VideoGames & Computer Entertainment morphed into VideoGames: The Ultimate Gaming Magazine but many of the editors/writers I liked went on to reboot Electronic Games instead. VideoGames spawned Tips and Tricks which, though they overlapped for a while, essentially replaced it. I followed VG&CE but not so much VideoGames and Tips and Tricks… Anyway, the June 1994 issue of VideoGames includes:

    News

    • Input – A discussion of the then new video games rating system.
    • Press Start – More about the ratings system and the political pressure that led to it; Nintendo announces the Super Game Boy; Revolution-X featuring Aerosmith is released in the arcades; an interview with the makers of Way of the Warrior for the 3DO; NovaLogic works on helicopter sim for the Saturn; Philips announces lower priced ($299) CD-i; and more…

    Previews

    • Demolition Man – An action game for the Sega Genesis based on the movie of the same name featuring Sylvester Stalone, Wesley Snipes and Sandra Bulloch.
    • Tennis All-Stars – A tennis game for the Genesis in the new “J-Cart” format. A J-Cart in addition to containing the game also added two additional controller ports for 4-player action. This tennis game allowed 4 players in a doubles game.
    • Psycho Pinball – Another J-Cart, this one featuring video pinball with six tables.
    • Kasumi Ninja – What would turn out to be a pretty decent fighting game for the Atari Jaguar.
    • Doom – A pretty good translation of Doom for the Atari Jaguar (they seemed to keep porting this game to new systems for years and years) but really, no version beats the original PC version.
    • Club Drive – A great example of one of the many games with a rushed development schedule for the Jaguar and it shows. While game play wasn’t terrible, the graphics and music were, especially for a supposedly “64-bit” system.
    • Lawnmower Man – Another movie based game. This one is for the Sega CD and the game/movie heavily featured virtual reality.
    • Mighty Morphin Power Rangers – Power Rangers was all the craze at the time so of course there would be games. This side-scrolling beat-em-up was released for the Super Nintendo and Game Boy.

    Tips & Tricks

    • Tempest 2000 – Tips to skip levels and to play bonus levels.
    • NBA Jam – Tricks to enable the special guest players from the arcade version, enable power-ups such as speeding up game play, set your player “on fire” for the whole game, and more.
    • Ground Zero Texas – A mini strategy guide to help get you through this FMV game.
    • Robocop Versus The Terminator – A trick to unlock the MA-17 version of this game for the Genesis.
    • MLBPA Baseball – A bunch of passwords to activate power pitching, power hitting, double throwing speed, double running speed, enable higher bouncing balls, play on ice, and more.
    • Chuck Rock II – Tricks to skip levels or even entire zones.
    • …and lots more!

    Strategy Guides

    • Daffy Duck: The Marvin Missions – General tips as well as guides to each level of this side-scrolling action game featuring Marvin the Martian and Daffy Duck for the Super Nintendo.
    • Kether – Strategy guide for a weird sort of 3D shooter that nobody had ever heard of for the CD-i.
    • Tempest 2000 – Make it through all 100 levels of this update to the classic arcade game on the Atari Jaguar.

    Reviews

    • Super Street Fighter II Turbo – This review is for the arcade version of the game which had just been released.
    • Spectre – This game for the Super Nintendo is essentially a 3D battle game in which you are placed in a flying craft in an arena and must battle it out with robots. It’s an ok game but without much variety. The PC version was better for the simple reason that you could play over a network with multiple people.
    • Rocko’s Modern Life – This is a platform/puzzle game for the Super Nintendo based on the Nickelodeon cartoon of he same name. It ends up being pretty good for a kids game based on a license.
    • Super Loopz – A puzzle game for the Super Nintendo in which you must construct polygons. There are various modes including two-player cooperative and competitive modes. It is a pretty good game if you are a fan of puzzle games.
    • Flintstones – This game based on the cartoon for the Super Nintendo mixes a variety of genres including racing, platform, and board game. However, it ends up being too short and easy to provide much value.
    • Jetsons – A fairly unique platform game for the Super Nintendo based on the cartoon. It is an excellent game overall but the challenge level makes it better for older players than for younger kids.
    • Asterix – An average (at best) platform game for the Sega Genesis.
    • Mortal Kombat – The Sega CD version of this game offers a few relatively minor upgrades including some FMV, a soundtrack and a few more frames of animation.
    • Third World War – A strategy game for the Sega CD that the reviewer compared to KOEI’s offerings. The graphics aren’t great, the interface is complicated and the voice acting is pretty awful but as a strategy game it’s not bad.
    • Rise of the Dragon – A cyberpunk themed graphic adventure for the Sega CD sounds like a good idea but unfortunately, this particular implementation is average at best. It was also a conversion of a game that had been around on the PC for a few years already.
    • Super Air Zonk – Overall, a great platform game for the Turbo Duo but at the end of the day it’s much to short, especially for a CD based game.
    • Space Ace – A great conversion of this laser disc based arcade classic for the CD-i. I was never really a big fan though.
    • The Incredible Hulk – An excellent comic book themed game for the Game Gear that this reviewer like even better than the Genesis version. The only downside was the relatively poor and monotonous sound.
    • Ninja Gaiden III – This game for the Atari Lynx looks and plays much like the NES version. And that’s a good thing.
    • The Horde – This game for the 3DO tries to combine, not very successfully, strategy/simulation with fantasy based action.
    • Twisted – An interesting and rather unique board game/game show combo for the 3DO.
    • Micro Reviews – Short reviews of several games including Spider-Man and the X-Men (Game Gear), Aladdin (Game Gear), G2 Rider (Game Gear), and more.

    Other Cool Stuff

    • Alien vs. Predator: Stalking the Jaguar, Burning Up the Arcades – Interview with Atari producer James Hampton about Alien vs. Predator for the Atari Jaguar. Also, a look at the arcade version of AvP which is a completely different game (fighting game vs. FPS).
    • SportsWire: Sports game news, reviews, previews and more – Midway releases NBA Jam TE for the arcade; Sterling Sharpe signs with Jaleco for a Super Nintendo football game called Sterling Sharpe: End to End…but I don’t remember this one; previews include World Cup USA ’94 (Super NES), Mario Andretii Racing (Genesis), Champions World Class Soccer (Genesis), and Suzuka 8 Hours II (arcade); a review of Baseball Tonight for the Super Nintendo; a review of Double Dribble: The Playoff Edition for the Genesis; a review of Jammit for the Genesis; and a review for Soccer Shootout for the Super Nintendo.
    • Hardware: Gaming accessories galore – New items include the Super Link multiplayer adapter for the SNES, the Mega Mouse for the Genesis, the Interactor Virtual Reality Vest, and more.
    • Global Gaming – Featuring Sonic Drift for the Game Gear, Dragon Ball Z 2 for the Super Famicom, and Waka Taka Osumo for the Super Famicom.

    …and more!


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