The Alligator People Platform: Atari 2600 Unreleased Complete (?) Prototype Designed by John Russel Non-Publisher: 20th Century Fox NEVER BEEN RELEASED Planet of the Apes Platform: Atari 2600 Unreleased Nearly Completed Prototype Designed by John Marvin Non-Publisher: 20th Century Fox NEVER BEEN RELEASED This was originally going to be part of Atari 50: The Games They Couldn’t Include – The Definitive Review Part Three, but I have a lot to say about 20th Century Fox’s Atari output. Click to view slideshow. I decided to lump these two games together because they’re spiritually married to each o ..read more

We Katamari: REROLL aka We Love Katamari: REROLL First Released June 2, 2023 We Katamari First Released July 6, 2005 Developed by Namco & Now Production Published by Namco Point of Sale: Nintendo Switch, Xbox, PlayStation, Steam Version Played: Xbox Series X I needed a break from pinball, saw this was on sale, and bought it. I didn’t expect to do this review, but I have a lot to say. I think everyone said “I have to play that!” the first time they saw a picture or a video of Katamari Damacy. It wasn’t even originally going to come out in America. Too weird. Too Japanese. But, it got a ..read more

The Storied Sword AKA Project Sword Platform: Nintendo Entertainment System Developed by Bite the Chili Productions Music by Raftronaut Coming Soon to the NES The Storied Sword at itch.io I’m not the biggest Princess Bride fan. My parents are, so when I saw this screenshot and said “oh cool, a Zorro game” I was disinherited. Seems a little harsh, but I’m not worried. There’s no way they’ll manage to file the proper paperwork before the poison takes effect. Attention Please: I’ve never had to open a review with a disclosure like this before, but here it goes: this game ain’t out yet, and it’s ..read more

Popeye: Ijiwaru Majo Seahag no Maki Platform: Super Famicom Developed by Technos Japan Corp. First Released August 12, 1994 Never Released in the United States NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED Special Note: I played the ROM Translation by KingMike This is one of those “you want it to be so much better than it is” games. Well, actually I suppose that’s true of every bad game, but it really hurts here. I’m currently on an “American media properties with Japanese-exclusive games” kick, having just finished reviewing New Ghostbusters II for the Famicom and Batman for the PC Engine. That’s not the only str ..read more

New Ghostbusters II Platform: NES/Famicom Developed by HAL Laboratory  First Released December 26, 1990 Never Released in the United States NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED Ghostbusters II Platform: Game Boy Developed by HAL Laboratory First Released October 16, 1990 NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED Slimers in this game look like their eyes have been sewn shut. It’s creepy. There are three 8bit versions of Ghostbusters II on Nintendo platforms. The one released by Activision and developed by Dan Kitchen is universally regarded as the inferior game, but because of licensing rights, that’s the one and only N ..read more

DuckTales 2 Platform: Nintendo Entertainment System Developed by Capcom First Released April 23, 1993 Included in Disney Afternoon Collection Rescue Rangers 2 Platform: Nintendo Entertainment System Developed by Capcom First Released December 10, 1993 Included in Disney Afternoon Collection In DuckTales 2, you can upgrade your cane. Remember the episode of House where he gets a cane with flames on it so that it looks like he’s “going fast?” It’s like that, only it actually works. Actually, DuckTales is basically exactly like House, what with all the racial stereotyping and verbal abuse of emp ..read more

Disney’s Aladdin Platform: Sega Genesis Developed by Virgin Published by Sega First Released November 11, 1993 Included in Disney Classic Games Collection SPECIAL NOTE: This review is of the FINAL CUT version. Read the Video Game History Foundation’s article. Click to view slideshow. If I was told I could only make one change to the Sega version of Aladdin, I think I’d have defeated enemies fall off the screen, like they do in the SNES game. Poofing them out of existence hurts the sword-based combat, which is the defining difference between the two 16-bit versions of Aladdin. I’m a big fan of ..read more

Disney’s Aladdin Platform: Super Nintendo Entertainment System Developed by Capcom First Released November 21, 1993 Included in Disney Classic Games Collection In a game loaded with entertaining hop ‘n bop action, there’s something about swinging off a peg and kicking a baddie that is SO satisfying. I put a lot of stock in combat that feels weighty. I’m not a big fan of the Sega Genesis version of Aladdin. It’s not horrid or anything, but it ain’t all that. This is very much a minority opinion. Get this: even Shinji Mikami, certifiable legend of gaming and lead designer of the SNES version o ..read more

Darkwing Duck Platform: TurboGrafx-16 Developed by Radiance Software & Interactive Designs First Released June, 1992 NEVER BEEN RE-RELEASED The only amusement I got from this game was standing still to snap this pic. I don’t hate Darkwing Duck on the TurboGrafx-16 so much that I’m willing to take back everything I said about the NES game. But, I thought about it. This version of Darkwing Duck is notorious for being one of the worst Disney games ever and one of the worst games on the TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine. It’s a well-earned reputation, but I’m guessing most who name it as such haven’t ..read more

Darkwing Duck Platform: Nintendo Entertainment System Developed by Capcom First Released June, 1992 Included in The Disney Afternoon Collection You can hang from certain platforms and use your cape to block certain projectiles. Well, that totally makes up for being a bland Mega Man knock-off with mediocre-at-best level design and forgettable bosses. I suppose I just spoiled my opinion of Darkwing Duck in its entirety in the very first caption. I didn’t grow up with the property, as it was off the air soon after I turned 3 years old. But hell, I didn’t grow up with DuckTales or Rescue Rangers ..read more