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[zombie_gamer87]

Blue Force (1993)

 

[hariseldon]

While I remember - if you're an old-school gamer from the late 80s early 90s 16-bit era this ought to be of interest to you..

http://stformat.com/ - Every single ST Format magazine from back in the day. Definitely relevant to ST owners, probably relevant to Amiga owners too given most games were released on both platforms in broadly similar states until the latter death of the ST and the slightly longer life of the Amiga.

 

[Shotpun]

I was ADDICTED to Speedball 2 on the Amiga back in the day.

"Ice cream!"

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

Excellent thread.

Challenge: I wish someone could help me track down an old, mostly generic game I remember playing in the DOS games that I can't seem to find for the life of me. All I can describe is the following: set in space, on a space station or ship; laser gun, slow, side-scrolling (one screen at a time I think, not sure); usually 2 levels per screen (upper / lower platforms); various doors, etc, simple enemies; colorful graphics; ends with leaving the station on your own ship once you finally make your way back to it.

 

[julio_grr]

Thanks for all the old memories. Of course I spent a shit ton of time playing Doom and Dune 2. Dune 2 was great even if you had to click one unit at a time
Some games nobody mentioned:
Quarantine (1994)

It would probably be forbidden today...

Pinball Fantasies (AMIGA: 1992, DOS: 1994)

I basically could not leave the screen. I bit some nasty high scores too.

EDIT:

Who don't remember Lemmings?

Yeah of course, this one ! Great puzzle game, and the creatures were so cute
I even played the 3D version they released a few years after. Not so good but still enjoyable.

 

[00ich]

Excellent thread.

Challenge: I wish someone could help me track down an old, mostly generic game I remember playing in the DOS games that I can't seem to find for the life of me. All I can describe is the following: set in space, on a space station or ship; laser gun, slow, side-scrolling (one screen at a time I think, not sure); usually 2 levels per screen (upper / lower platforms); various doors, etc, simple enemies; colorful graphics; ends with leaving the station on your own ship once you finally make your way back to it.

Maybe Captain Comic?

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

Maybe Captain Comic?

Not this one, but I'm still grateful to see guesses. This also helps me to be more precise: the graphics were beyond what is shown in that game. Definitely wasn't CGA-era of low colors; I'm thinking colorful EGA, maybe VGA. The main character was a good bit more detailed as well; sprites that looked more like 16-bit consoles, although the game's animation pace was pretty sluggish as I recall, not a quick platformer at all.

 

[00ich]

Not this one, but I'm still grateful to see guesses. This also helps me to be more precise: the graphics were beyond what is shown in that game. Definitely wasn't CGA-era of low colors; I'm thinking colorful EGA, maybe VGA. The main character was a good bit more detailed as well; sprites that looked more like 16-bit consoles, although the game's animation pace was pretty sluggish as I recall, not a quick platformer at all.

You've propably ruled out Duke Nukem?

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

You've propably ruled out Duke Nukem?

Yeah, and Commander Keen as well. It's a little past these in terms of detail... but a fairly small game. I do believe it almost always had two "rows" on screen at once, if that helps. I remember there typically being a lower and upper corridor, and I think screens transitioned as a whole rather than smooth scrolling but my memory there is hazy.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Excellent thread.

Challenge: I wish someone could help me track down an old, mostly generic game I remember playing in the DOS games that I can't seem to find for the life of me. All I can describe is the following: set in space, on a space station or ship; laser gun, slow, side-scrolling (one screen at a time I think, not sure); usually 2 levels per screen (upper / lower platforms); various doors, etc, simple enemies; colorful graphics; ends with leaving the station on your own ship once you finally make your way back to it.

Was it point-and-click/keyboard adventure game or controlled like a platformer? Some aspects sound like Space Quest 1 or 2.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

Was it point-and-click/keyboard adventure game or controlled like a platformer? Some aspects sound like Space Quest 1 or 2.

Action / platformer controls, but pretty slow-moving as I recall. I wish I could come up with a memory of something unique enough to further pinpoint it. I'm thinking it belonged to the vast budget bins of EGA-era games.

EDIT - this is tricky to search, but based on my memory of which machine I used, I am almost certain the game would have supported TGA graphics (Tandy Graphics Adapter), which would help number down the possibilities significantly. TGA permitted 16 colors (so, comparable to EGA) but was not cross-compatible with it, so games had to explicitly list TGA compatibility on the box or I couldn't play them on it. There's a chance I'm thinking of the next machine I had, but I'm pretty sure it was the Tandy.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

Action / platformer controls, but pretty slow-moving as I recall. I wish I could come up with a memory of something unique enough to further pinpoint it. I'm thinking it belonged to the vast budget bins of EGA-era games.

EDIT - this is tricky to search, but based on my memory of which machine I used, I am almost certain the game would have supported TGA graphics (Tandy Graphics Adapter), which would help number down the possibilities significantly. TGA permitted 16 colors (so, comparable to EGA) but was not cross-compatible with it, so games had to explicitly list TGA compatibility on the box or I couldn't play them on it. There's a chance I'm thinking of the next machine I had, but I'm pretty sure it was the Tandy.

Hmm, that's why I initially thought Space Quest, especially since there's the corridor scene that has a top and bottom corridor like you described:

There was a really gaudy-looking platformer called Obliterator that might fit. Never played it myself:

 

[Dr. Claus]

My go-to DOS games were always the Ultima franchise. Absolutely lovely games then and even now (except fuck everything 8 onwards).

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

There was a really gaudy-looking platformer called Obliterator that might fit. Never played it myself:

!!!! That's the one!

I haven't seen that in so long. Wow. I looked up other shots of the game and it's all so familiar.

Especially the death screen:

I couldn't come up with the name of that for the life of me. Thanks.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

!!!! That's the one!

I haven't seen that in so long. Wow. I looked up other shots of the game and it's all so familiar.

Especially the death screen:

I couldn't come up with the name of that for the life of me. Thanks.

No problem. It was a fun challenge trying to track it down. This stuff is becoming more obscure by the day.

 

[Takuan]

Scorched Earth. Good times!

 

[DryvBy]

One kid game that won't pop up on Steam or GOG is Pepper's Adventures in Time.



It caused me to develop an interest in history at an early age. It's just a basic point and click, but really fun for kids.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

No problem. It was a fun challenge trying to track it down. This stuff is becoming more obscure by the day.

And it turns out to be available on archive.org: https://archive.org/details/msdos_Obliterator_1989

...although that site plays it in EGA mode, and TGA looked a little different as far as the colors. One day soon I think I'll set up DOSBox with a TGA emulator (it looks like competent ones exist) and see if I can get the full original experience running.

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

And it turns out to be available on archive.org: https://archive.org/details/msdos_Obliterator_1989

...although that site plays it in EGA mode, and TGA looked a little different as far as the colors. One day soon I think I'll set up DOSBox with a TGA emulator (it looks like competent ones exist) and see if I can get the full original experience running.

That's awesome! I'd also like to set up a dedicated DOSBox PC myself but for the purpose of exploring all the Roland MT-32 compatible games (a device that was far out of my reach when I was growing up).

 

[Scopa]

Thanks for all the old memories. Of course I spent a shit ton of time playing Doom and Dune 2. Dune 2 was great even if you had to click one unit at a time
Some games nobody mentioned:
Quarantine (1994)

It would probably be forbidden today...

FUN FACT: The taxi driver from the FMV sections of Quarantine was in a well known Aussie Rock band in the late 80s/90s and I kinda knew him because he was friends with my sister. I believe he also contributed to Quarantine’s music.

 

[Airola]

I think an interesting complementary thread to this one would be for Windows 3.1 games. That platform usually seems ignored in retro discussions, I guess because the library was't huge.

A couple of Windows 3.1 games that immediately comes to mind are:

Jewel Thief



Get the Girl

 

[MP!]

The seinfeld DOS game?

 

[zombie_gamer87]

Albion (1995)

 

[Shotpun]

That's awesome! I'd also like to set up a dedicated DOSBox PC myself but for the purpose of exploring all the Roland MT-32 compatible games (a device that was far out of my reach when I was growing up).

I didn't figure out how to get MT-32 and Sound Canvas music out from DOSBox and ScummVM until only recently, I had been playing with sound blaster/adlib music for years because that's how I played them back in the day, no way any of us had the money for Roland stuff. Even used the awful MS GS WaveTable Synth for midi for couple games, never realizing just how crappy that was.

After setting up MT-32 emulation and SC (ish) soundfont for midi it became pretty apparent why Roland was so highly regarded and all I have is emulation, not the real stuff. Also as a bonus, One Must Fall 2097 sounds amazing with Gravis Ultrasound.

 

[pimentel1]

...

 

[onlyoneno1]

My favorite DOS game is Dangerous Dave.

 

[INC]

Super cars 2 was literally my childhood

Great top down racer, great art style for driving tests, weapon mods for cars, amazing soundtrack for intro and menus, addictive couch coop game play

 

[hariseldon]

Oh hell yeah, when I got an Amiga from the local 2nd hand shop (after killing my ST soldering in a RAM upgrade) I played the hell out of this - said shop had many very naughty pirated games on what were sold as 2nd-hand floppy disks.. all very shady looking back at it. Supercars 2 was the best top-down racer bar none.

 

[Scopa]

Some of my favourite childhood memories was visiting my older cousin’s house and losing myself in his office on his Amiga 500 whilst the adults talked in the other room. So many great games.

 

[Cobenzl]

No-ones mentioned Sensible Soccer, surely the best football game ever made!

 

[camelCase]

Sun Dog and the frozen legacy... sheds a tear

 

[bhunachicken]

Oh wait. Here's one: Fire Ant, on the Commodore Plus 4. This is the first video game I ever completed (wow, I know I'm really showing my age now!).

Other games on that system included Icicle Works (my poor mother almost went insane listening to that tune all day), Treasure Island, and Saboteur!

 

[Traianvs]

In the early 90s I was a C64 player so, when I was able to play with an amiga500 at a friend's home, I was speechless.

I still remember looking at games like robocop and afterburner (actually, two terrible arcade conversions) and realizing that my poor old C64 had to be replaced...

Just imagine when, a few years later, I bought with my first earnings a 386sx.... There were a couple of games pre-installed (yeah, pirated copies from the store who sold me the pc), Wolfenstein3d, an Andretti racing game I can't remember and Dune2. I was in awe for weeks.

Anyway, if I have to remember the most important games from my childhood, since my first gaming console, I'd say...

Combat on the atari2600
Elite on the C64
Turrican2 on the Amiga
Castle of the Winds on pc

The last one was a beautiful roguelike game on windows 3.11, simple graphics but amazing gameplay

But there was a game, a small unknown game, on the C64 that started my love for gaming, fantasy and rpg...
I guess only fellow italian gaffers could remember it

Avventura1, a bootleg version of another italian game called Conan

It was a simple choose your own adventure game with lite RPG elements. You simply had to roll your pg and go adventuring.

You had to choose from different, procedural adventures and the goal was to max all the stats of your hero to become a god.
Simple but it provided me with countless hours of fun.

 

[Shotpun]

Avventura1, a bootleg version of another italian game called Conan

That reminded me of one of the most awesomenest and bestest C64 game ever, Barbarian!



My brother had a C64 when I was like 5 and we had a blast playing that.

 

[SScorpio]

I didn't figure out how to get MT-32 and Sound Canvas music out from DOSBox and ScummVM until only recently, I had been playing with sound blaster/adlib music for years because that's how I played them back in the day, no way any of us had the money for Roland stuff. Even used the awful MS GS WaveTable Synth for midi for couple games, never realizing just how crappy that was.

After setting up MT-32 emulation and SC (ish) soundfont for midi it became pretty apparent why Roland was so highly regarded and all I have is emulation, not the real stuff. Also as a bonus, One Must Fall 2097 sounds amazing with Gravis Ultrasound.

I also recommend checking out the Yamaha S-YXG50 Portable VSTi
I won't link as it's a bit of a legal grey area. The final commercial version was never released, but a demo was. It was cracked to no longer be time-limited.

It gives some great GM MIDI, and a prefer it to Sound Canvas VA for some games such as Descent.

 

[CrustyBritches]

Remembered a couple more great games:

Jetpack(DOS):

Zany Golf(Amiga, DOS, etc):

 

[zombie_gamer87]

Prince of Persia (1989)

 

[zombie_gamer87]

Starfox (1993)

 

[Scopa]

Remembered a couple more great games:

Jetpack(DOS):

Man, that looks awesome. A bit of a Lode Runner clone. Adding it to the list!

Thanks.

 

[Squirrel Killer]

Now that looks interesting. I’ll add that to my list to look up.

FWIW, that is a Sokoban game, and there are a large number of them out there. My personal favorite is SokoSave for it's clean presentation that lets me focus on the puzzle itself, but it hasn't been updated in... holy shit... 16 years.