Retro reflections by Matt S. When I was a real youngster, before I had even really started playing video games (I didn’t yet have my first console – a Game Boy – and though the family had a Commodore 64, I very rarely used it), I discovered a box that…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. Ubisoft is always at its best when it’s experimental. Back when the Nintendo DS was a shiny new console, wowing people with Super Mario 64 in portable form, Ubisoft did something remarkably creative with its then-hot Prince of Persia franchise: it released a tactics strategy…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. My family generally ends up playing a fair few games over Christmas. Not just video games, mind you, but board games too, and as a bonding experience it’s hard to go past either. I have unforgettable memories of intense games of everything from the classic…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. Square Enix owns a lot of different franchises, of course. Of them all, perhaps the one that has been given the least attention, despite being eminently worthy, is the Ogre Battle franchise. Indeed, aside from the Tactics sub-series, you have to go all the way…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. With Final Fantasy XV out finally (and the review is coming, I promise!), it won’t be long before people start to consider what’s next for the series. Based on what Square Enix has shared, it looks like it’ll be two remakes: a complete re-envisioning of…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. In 1998, two years after realising that it was onto something big in Japan with a humble game called Pokemon, Nintendo and Game Freak unleashed their first monster collecting JRPG in the west, with little fanfare, and minimal expectations that it would succeed (over and…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Nick H. We all know that games can change a lot over the years, and many different titles influence future ones. However, having been gaming for as long as I have (35 years and counting), it is always fascinating to me to play and compare games from…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. Usually, when we do these retro reflections articles, we look back at games that we grew up with in a general sense; what we remember loving about them back in the day, how they hold up to this date. If I was to do that…
Read MoreRetro reflections by Matt S. A couple of years ago my brother gave me the ultimate retro Christmas present: a Super Nintendo. To make a long story brief, back in my youth my brothers and I did the crazy thing of trading in our Super Nintendo and a dozen or…
Read MoreRetro Reflections by Nick H. Recently, I was reflecting back on Phantasy Star II, a game that was very memorable to me despite some of its shortcomings. I would go so far as to say that at the time of its release, it was one of the best JRPGs out…
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