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The Best Video Games On Awful Systems

Posted by Soulskill on from the diamond-in-the-rough dept.

Buffalo55 writes "For the most part, classic games manage to reappear on different systems. Just look at Nintendo. The publisher has done an excellent job bringing NES, SNES, Genesis and even old school Neo Geo titles to the Wii's Virtual Console, while Microsoft's Game Room brings the best of Atari's 2600 into the living room. Of course, not every console was a success. The '90s, in particular, saw quite a few flops from companies like Panasonic, Sega and Atari. Just because a system is a failure, though, doesn't mean all of its games suck. On the contrary, most of these machines have a few gems that fell between the cracks once the console croaked." What overlooked game on a failed platform would you like to see revived?

36 of 272 comments (clear)

  1. Utopia! by aunchaki · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I had an Intellivision as a kid. It was awesome. There was a game for it called Utopia that was the first Civ-style resource management game I ever saw. I played it endlessly.

    1. Re:Utopia! by bbqpope · · Score: 2, Interesting

      and.... B-17 bomber!

    2. Re:Utopia! by Hodr · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Also had an intellivision.

      Best game, by far, Truckin.
      http://www.atariguide.com/41/4132.php

    3. Re:Utopia! by filthpickle · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I loved playing that with the settings where you had unlimited bombs. Even after you ran out of fuel you could keep the plane in the air indefinitely. Myself and a friend bombed every single target in a marathon mission one night.

      I still remember getting my intellivoice in the mail and hearing it say 'beee sevbum teen booooommber' and thinking it was the coolest thing ever.

      bomb squad was fun too. I would intentionally get the code wrong just to hear the guy say 'oh no' before the building blew up.

    4. Re:Utopia! by hairyfeet · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Anybody remember ColecoVision? I was the envy of the neighborhood thanks to my ColecoVision. Zaxxon, DK JR, Time Pilot, man the graphics on it (compared to what was out at the time) rocked!

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    5. Re:Utopia! by acomj · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Utopia was great. I liked that it was 2 player.

      I liked AD&D as well. I played that system with my brothers,
      Games we liked I remember:

      NFL football. - 5 players per side although 2 didn't do anything (you could run through the center and snapper)
      Bump N Jump - 2 player driving smash em up
      Star Strike - kinda like the death star trench scene flying scene
      Astrosmash - shoot falling things.. Simple but fun.
      Dreadnaught factor - battle large "star destroyer" type space ships..

      Those controllers disc would hurt your thumb after a long period of play however.

    6. Re:Utopia! by mattack2 · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Supposedly most of your memories and dreams are in b/w anyway, so what difference does it make? :-P

      The world was black & white too. http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1993/09/19/

  2. Bungie's Marathon on by AHuxley · · Score: 5, Informative

    Apple Macs.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon_(video_game)

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    1. Re:Bungie's Marathon on by BobisOnlyBob · · Score: 2, Insightful

      As far as games go, the Mac was an... unsuitable platform? Extremely limited? Sure, there have been games for macs of all generations, but none truly rose to critical acclaim against their non-Mac peers. It was a niche platform for gaming at best, and Bungie's Marathon is an excellent game that stands out. So, not "the best game on an awful system", but "the best game on a niche system", perhaps.

    2. Re:Bungie's Marathon on by petermgreen · · Score: 3, Informative

      From the article you linked
      "Bungie released the source code of Marathon 2 in 1999 shortly before being acquired by Microsoft, which led to the advent of the Marathon Open Source Project, more commonly known as Aleph One by fans. The project, which is still active as of 2010[update], is committed to adding enhancements to the Marathon 2 engine. In 2002, a project to port Marathon to the Marathon 2 engine, called M1A1, was completed. Several of the game's music tracks have been remixed and enhanced multiple times by different people. In early 2004, Bungie released the entire Marathon Trilogy as freeware, allowing it to be downloaded free of charge. "

      So it seems that one has already been revived :)

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    3. Re:Bungie's Marathon on by mqduck · · Score: 2, Insightful

      As long as we're talking about brilliant Mac-only games, don't forget Escape Velocity. The best part of the game was the addons:

      The entire series features an open-ended plug-in architecture, allowing new scenarios to be written by users. This technology is based on the Macintosh resource fork format, making it possible to develop plug-ins without using any purpose-designed editors (though several editors exist and are popular since they make the task much easier).

      When I was 12 and the game was still new, I went Computer Camp at Standford University (yes, I'm a nerd). Escape Velocity was the thing that made Windows campers jealous of those of us who used Macs.

      --
      Property is theft.
    4. Re:Bungie's Marathon on by polymeris · · Score: 2, Interesting

      If you haven't, try naev. It's one of the more mature EV clones out there.

  3. Scorched Earth - Ported to Android by ticklemeozmo · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Scorched Earth!!! The mother of all games!!! I would pay to have it multiplayer on Android.

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    1. Re:Scorched Earth - Ported to Android by Tukz · · Score: 2, Informative

      There is a gazillion versions of the "Scorched Earth" recipe.
      There have got to be a version of it for Android.

      Though, not sure if anyone made a complete replica of the original Scorched Earth.

      --
      - Don't do what I do, it's probably not healthy nor safe. -
    2. Re:Scorched Earth - Ported to Android by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

      There's always Scorched3D. http://www.scorched3d.co.uk/

    3. Re:Scorched Earth - Ported to Android by __aapspi39 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      hedgewars is worth a look - it's like worms back when it was good - worms 2. http://www.hedgewars.org/

      fwiw ReturnFire, Goldeneye and Burn Cycle are the games that i'd nominate. all incredible games on very lame systems.

  4. Tunnels of Doom by sproketboy · · Score: 3, Informative

    On the TI-994a. Excellent game for the time.

    A rebooted version was written a while back which is as good.

    http://www.dreamcodex.com/

    1. Re:Tunnels of Doom by mzs · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Seriously it's time to forgive your parents. As a kid I did all sorts of odd jobs like recycling metals, mowing lawns, and working in scout camps to earn enough for my first box of dev tools. I paid $450 for an education box of Borland's C/C++ compiler, macro assembler assembler, and editor. It took me years to earn that. To put it in perspective I paid $250 a few years later for my first car, also money I had earned myself. As a parent now myself, I really hope you were making a (as it turns-out bad) joke.

  5. Burn : Cycle on CD-i by johnhp · · Score: 2, Interesting

    No game better fits the description of "good game on bad platform" than Burn : Cycle for the CD-i. The atmosphere, soundtrack and "mature" content were amazing.

    1. Re:Burn : Cycle on CD-i by johnhp · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I enjoyed Voyeur too, though I can't remember how much of that was quality and how much was me just hoping for some boobs (of which there are none, but there is some exceptionally lurid dialog).

  6. Little gems: by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Syndicate Wars
    Theme Hospital
    Z - yes that the title

    All little that I loved playing on the Playstation. Although I cant say I'd wanna have a remake of Theme Hospital that one ca stay there.

    1. Re:Little gems: by freedumb2000 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I bought all of those games for the PC. Great times, staying up late at night as a kid, playing in a darkened room all night. Syndicate Wars was great, the successor not so much if i remember. Z finally brought some great jump'n'run from the Amiga the PC. I was always jealous in the regard. Loved the humor in Theme Hospital. There is so much that can go wrong in a neglected hospital.

    2. Re:Little gems: by Buggz · · Score: 2, Informative

      Syndicate Wars is the less well received sequel, the predecessor was simply called Syndicate. Z on the other isn't a jump&run, but a strategy game where two teams of robots battle it out.

      I played the hell out of Theme Hospital and tried my best at Syndicate but often failed miserably, mostly because I was both quite young and didn't understand much english (quite necessary to understand the mission objectives.. ). I remember trying the Z demo, but I recall it being incredibly difficult. I probably didn't understand half of the game concepts. Good times!

  7. Re:Does this blog post warrant publishing? by imsabbel · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Are you blind?

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  8. Sonic CD?! by morari · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Sonic CD is still one of the best games in the franchise. I like Sonic & Knuckles (connected to Sonic 3, of course) a little better overall, but that may just be because of the times.

    --
    "He who can destroy a thing, controls a thing." --Paul Atreides, Dune
    1. Re:Sonic CD?! by TheCycoONE · · Score: 2, Informative

      There was a PC and GameCube port of Sonic CD.

  9. Acorn by dandart · · Score: 2, Informative

    Pushy II on Acorn. :P

  10. The Sega Saturn deserves its own article... by hal2814 · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The Sega Saturn had some of the best games no one will ever, ever play. Off the top of my head, some of the elite games were:

    Radiant Silvergun
    Saturn Bomberman
    Legend of Oasis
    Nights into Dreams
    Panzer Dragoon Saga

  11. Shaq Fu by Nidi62 · · Score: 2, Funny

    need I say more? Best game ever.

    --
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    1. Re:Shaq Fu by ProppaT · · Score: 3, Funny

      You got this backwards. We're looking for good games on bad consoles, not bad games on good consoles.

      --
      Wise men say, "Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza."
  12. You can't mention Sega CD without Snatcher by ProppaT · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This is the game that put Hideo Kojima on the map, and rightfully so. It's all but forgotten now except in classic gaming circles, but that game was groundbreaking and did so many things right. It's a shame that very few people will experience it. It seems like Sega systems are riddled with games that fit into the "shame that very few people will experience it" category. I speak as one of the 25k or so owners of Panzer Dragoon Saga. It's a crime against the gaming community that more people can't experience, what amounts to me, as the most awe inspiring RPG ever created.

    --
    Wise men say, "Forgiveness is divine, but never pay full price for late pizza."
  13. Way of the Warrior by Hodr · · Score: 2, Interesting

    3DO:

    Way of The Warrior

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Way_of_the_Warrior_(video_game)

    Programmed in a garage and apartment, with the programmers and friends as the fighters. Ohh yeah, and White Zombie did the soundtrack.
    "Shaky Jake, WIN!"

  14. Mr. Do on ADAM by WED+Fan · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Loved Mr. Do, but had an ADAM system. Remember those? Good game, rotten system.

    --
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  15. B-17 Bomber by edawstwin · · Score: 2, Interesting

    The best part of that game was the beginning when the name of the game was announced in the worst Southern accent imaginable... B-17 Baaawwwmberrrrr!

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  16. Re:Does this blog post warrant publishing? by Hatta · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Did it provoke an enjoyable discussion? Yes? Then it's more than welcome on /..

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  17. Don't forget DragonForce by KatchooNJ · · Score: 2, Insightful

    DragonForce was the gem of the Saturn system, if you ask me. :-) Fantastic game... and it hasn't been ported to any other system yet! Ugh!

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