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Review – Streets of Rage
My household as a child was ruled by the Super Nintendo. That is to say, my childhood console was an SNES. But I had a cousin who lived nearby with a Sega Genesis. He didn’t have many games, but we rented a lot when we spent time together. However, he also had the Sega 6-Pak. It had games like Sonic…
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Review – ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron
I have to stop taking the phrase “not as good as the first one” as meaning “not worth playing.” I have had Toejam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron for about as long as I’ve owned my Genesis, but I don’t think I ever completed a single level. I just wasn’t sure it was worth it, especially when just playing…
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Review – Sparkster (Genesis)
Rocket Knight Adventures has long stood as my favourite game on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive. The sequels... exist. They're... fine. The Genesis and Super Nintendo versions are completely distinct from each other, but neither of them really capture the magic of the original. Within is the reasons why.
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Review – Clay Fighter
The impact that Street Fighter II had on the industry can’t be understated. It jump started a genre, and soon, the pretenders started crowding in. The market was swamped with 1v1 fighting games, and it became difficult to stand apart from the rest. Some used licensed characters, others went the more violent route, and then there was Clay Fighter To…
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Review – Sonic the Hedgehog
My relationship with Sonic the Hedgehog is… complicated. I was an SNES child, so my mentor growing up was Mario, but my cousin had a Genesis, and I spent many mornings over there diving into his games. It was the 90’s, and we were told that Sonic was cool, so I was, of course, obediently enamoured. I don’t recall when…
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Review – Shadow Blasters
I don’t remember who recommended Shadow Blasters to me, but when you’ve got someone’s enthusiasm in your ear, it’s hard to pass up a cheap Genesis game. With horrible cover art that looks like a group of people doing exercises on a beach, it at least came with the promise of being tacky as hell. So, I gathered my husband,…
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Review – Earthworm Jim 2
Yeah, just try and convince me that Earthworm Jim 2 isn’t a work of art. How else do you describe a game that abruptly casts you as a blind salamander clutching a plasma gun and drops you in a giant maze of intestines filled with pinball bumpers while playing Moonlight Sonata in the background? Earthworm Jim 2 is an inexplicable game.…
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Review – McDonald’s Treasure Land Adventure
McDonald’s, being the ubiquitous fast food chain in the United States, is quite the low hanging fruit. It is most associated with perpetuating obesity by dealing in food that is almost entirely fat and salt with no nutrition in between. I mean, they’re a corporation, which means, by law, their first priority is pleasing their shareholders, and they legally can’t…
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Review – Castlevania: Bloodlines
Don’t get me started on Castlevania. The original title stands as one of my favourite NES titles, perhaps even topping the list if I was forced to decide, and I don’t make that statement lightly or without due consideration. A few years ago, I did a deep dive into the more Metroid inspired titles — a corner of the series…
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Review – Outrun 2019
It’s the unimaginably distant future. The year: 2019. The streets have been overrun by insufferable people who adhere to the speed limit. The death of recreational driving has pushed the Ferrari to the brink of extinction. It’s up to you to bring speed back to the people and remind them of the joy that reckless driving can bring. It’s up…