[YouTube] SimCity

https://youtu.be/JbX2OwG9FzQ

Above is a "Let's Play" video for SimCity on the Commodore 64 (C64) that includes an intro with an unboxing. I decided to do a blog post to go with the video since it is a significant game and this way I can also include magazine reviews. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any reviews of the C64 version. While the review from Video Games & Computer Entertainment (VG&CE) doesn't actually state the platform being reviewed, it clearly is not for the C64 version. That review mentions adjusting taxes, building police and fire stations, constructing a sports stadium, starting funds that vary by difficulty level, and multiple windows with graphs onscreen while playing. In the Amiga review from Commodore Magazine, the writer also mentions flooding, air, and nuclear meltdown disasters, multiple game speeds, a traffic helicopter, ships, railways, and how the zones change, such as houses transforming into apartment buildings. None of these things are in the C64 version. It's normal for games available on multiple computers to be of the lowest quality on the C64 but typically that is in regards to graphics. With SimCity there is a lot missing in the C64 release, though it does include a terrain editor which is a separate purchase on other platforms. At least it also retailed for $20 less than the others (the VG&CE review states the Amiga version was $44.95 but the Maxis newsletter I posted earlier has it at $49.95).

              VG & CE - November 1989                 Commodore Magazine - October 1989

The box and its contents are scanned below. I only included a few pages of the 44-page manual.

Taito: The Arcade Leader Brings it Home (Commodore Magazine - May 1989)

This is an article from the May 1989 issue of Commodore Magazine that focuses on Taito's arcade to home game ports. There aren't a lot of images in these scans, unfortunately, but plenty of text, the majority of which is of the writer comparing the arcade games to the Commodore 64 versions. Early in the article it is interesting to hear how Taito held off on Amiga conversions at the same time because the quality would have been high enough to draw business away from the arcade games. While founded in Japan, Taito was actually started by a Ukrainian businessman and you can read a bit more about the company history in the Taito America ads post. 

The Games: Summer Edition

https://youtu.be/nosuYsEQ2nA

As the 2021 (or 2020 as they are still called) Olympics began I posted an article from Commodore Magazine about Epyx and last week I uploaded a video of Summer Games on the blog's YouTube channel. Today, as the Olympics come to a close, I have uploaded a video of The Games: Summer Edition which is the first game from Epyx to feature the official Olympics license. I rarely put "Let's Play" videos on the blog but I need more posts and wanted to add a review from Commodore Magazine. I was hoping to play Summer Games II as well, however, the disks are giving me some issues and I haven't managed to get more than a few events to load. This review is from the April 1989 issue which is a bit late for a game that released in 1988, plus it's quite long for a sports title as the writer covers each event in detail.

Year 5: July Update

Unfortunately, I've not done a toy video since the end of June and I'm not sure when I'll get another done. The new Masters of the Universe cartoon debuted on Netflix a couple days ago so I played the Intellivision game Masters of the Universe: The Power of He-Man for the YouTube channel last weekend. Neflix also recently made an announcement that it is adding mobile games to its movie subscription service at no extra cost. Earlier today I posted an article about Epyx from Commodore Magazine and hope to get videos up of the developer's Summer Games II and The Games: Summer Edition during the Olympics but I might fail.

Playing the Commodore 64 (C64) games depends on a couple things, one is if I get an adapter I ordered months ago or if I take a chance on using Sega controllers without said adapter. I've used Sega controllers on the C64 for thousands of hours without incident but then some comments on YouTube warned me of possible damage so I sought out a solution. I ordered an adapter for Sega controllers from 64HDD.com which is run by a guy in Australia and that's why I haven't received the item yet. The problem is the pandemic which has impacted international shipping quite a bit. Australia Post put shipping of certain types of packages on hold so after a couple months of waiting for it to lift the hold I decided to upgrade the shipping and as of July 22nd it is in the U.S. Tracking stops in Los Angeles though and at this time I don't know where it is.

Nintendo finally announced a new Switch version, however, it's not the upgrade that was rumored. It has a seven-inch OLED screen, enhanced audio when outside of the dock, 64GB of internal memory, and a wired LAN port on the dock. There will be two colors available on October 8th at a price of $349.99: black dock with blue and red Joy-Cons and a new white dock with white Joy-Cons (pictured above). In other game news, GameMill is publishing a "Gold Edition" of G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout for $29.99 at GameStop that contains previously released digital items (soundtrack, art book, character and weapon skins) plus a couple outfits from the Snake Eyes movie that hit theaters last week.

That's all I've got this month, thanks for reading!

-Jonathan

All About Epyx (Commodore Magazine - August 1989)

With the summer Olympics just underway in Japan, I scanned this article about Epyx from the August 1989 issue of Commodore Magazine. In my opinion, Epyx made the best Olympics-themed computer games of the 1980s and possibly of all-time. Its early efforts did not carry the official Olympics license though a couple of its games do. These are all part of the "Games" series that includes Summer Games, Summer Games II, Winter Games, World Games, California Games, The Games: Summer Edition, The Games: Winter Edition, and California Games II. I've played all of those except for the sequel to California Games which was the last of the series to release and did not appear on the Commodore 64.

The article is a series of interviews that discusses the employees, company business, and a range of games. Unfortunately, despite the article giving the impression that Epyx is riding high in 1989, it declared bankruptcy later that year. It remained open for a few more years after layoffs and selling the rights to its in-development handheld system that would become the Atari Lynx. Also, some of the scans might look like the paper could be wrinkled but that's actually the design as it is meant to look like sand. 

89's Best Games! (Compute's Gazette for C64/128 Users - December 1989)

This is the first article I've scanned from Compute's Gazette as I don't have too many issues. It is fairly short and the last two pages don't have much color because that's how it was printed in the magazine. I may have stated previously that 1989 is a great year in gaming, certainly one of my favorites as that's when the Sega Genesis released in North America, as did the Game Boy and quite a few great games. Of course, being a Commodore magazine this best of list is all C64 games. From what I've played of Compute's Gazette's choices, my favorites include Kings of the Beach, Omni-Play Basketball, SimCity (FYI: Will Wright is 61 today), and Curse of the Azure Bonds (I played the DOS version rather than C64). At some point I'll definitely do a "Let's Play" video for SimCity as long as the disk still works. Commodore's version is limited compared to the features found on other platforms but I still had a lot of fun with it.

Actually, I've only played one other game here and it's an odd one to include. Sharing the spotlight with Curse of the Azure Bonds is Hillsfar, a game that disappointed me quite a bit when I was younger. It's a companion to the excellent Advanced Dungeons & Dragons "Gold Box" games from SSI of which Curse of the Azure Bonds is a part of. You basically import and export characters from the role-playing titles to gain some extra experience. If I recall correctly, there are four activities: ride a horse (side-scrolling action), rob homes (overhead view), shoot archery targets (move a crosshair), and fight in an arena (stand in place blocking and attacking). 

Year 4: November Update

Unfortunately, this will be the month with the least number of posts since I began the blog. I did do a few "Let's Play" videos on YouTube with the latest being for Create With Garfield!, a lesser known program where users create static images featuring Garfield characters. This video was created and uploaded on Thanksgiving as I attempted to make a holiday scene that you can see to the right. The placement of Nermal is a little messed up as I meant to move the cat a bit to the left but accidentally hit the return key. It might not be too obvious at a glance though Nermal's tail is overlapping Arlene's face a little bit.

Today is possibly the biggest shopping day of the year. If you're buying toys you might like to hear what W.A.T.C.H. believes are the 10 worst toys this year (click on the slideshow at the bottom of the linked page) and what Parents.com says are the 45 best toys of 2020. The worst toys are being rated on safety and promotion of violence while the best toys are favorites among those who tested them. I've been playing the beginning of every physical video game release this year and let me suggest staying away from L.O.L. Surprise! Remix, Speed 3: Grand Prix, and XIII. It's doubtful any kid would ask for Speed 3 or XIII but L.O.L. is probably quite popular. L.O.L. does not have much content and it's very rough; it's primarily a handful of short mini-games with limited gameplay. PAW Patrol is a step up from the previous release with open environments rather than side-scrolling levels but the pups still don't make any sounds. 

L.O.L. Surprise! Remix

PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay!

Slide Stars is another game kids might be interested in since it features a bunch of influencers. That one is playable even if there isn't much to it and as the ESRB rating says, it has mild suggestive themes. I'd put Cobra Kai on the weak side too while Transformers: Battlegrounds isn't bad for a young gamer that likes turn-based battles (the art style is based on modern cartoons, not 1980's Transformers). I've previously discussed the G.I. Joe game and that one is okay for fans but a very average shooter for anyone else due to bland level designs. Keep in mind, as I said, I've only played the beginning of these games which in most cases is around the first hour.

Slide Stars

Transformers: Battlegrounds

Also, I finally got my first smartphone! While I am well behind the times, I actually didn't even want one but my carrier has been informing me this year that the outdated technology in my flip phone might cause the phone to cease working or at the very least there would be a decrease in call quality this January as the major carriers transfer completely to VoLTE. I've only had the phone for about two days and am finding it quite confusing to navigate. The reason I mention this here is that I did create an Instagram account years ago to help promote the blog. However, when I did that I thought I could use a PC to upload images but, of course, Instagram is meant for smartphones only. Once I figure this out I may start posting images there if you wish to follow. https://www.instagram.com/vault1541.

Thanks for stopping by,
Jonathan

Gaming Ads: Game Magazines

This ads post is a bit different than most of the others in that it's not about the games but rather the magazines most of the game ads are from. Magazines were a significant part of gaming in the late '80s and early '90s because without the Internet this was the way to learn about a game outside of a brief television commercial or reading a game box while at the store. Not all of them are only about video games though, as some are computer/tech related too. I've got more than 200 ads of this type and just over half of those are from Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) as I opted to scan the contest pages it ran each month. If you've been reading the blog since it launched then you've probably noticed I read a lot of EGM and Video Games & Computer Entertainment, plus a fair amount of GamePro in the early '90s. I also have a handful of old issues of Game Player's, Game Informer, and Commodore Magazine. In the late '90s I primarily stuck with Next Generation and some magazines dedicated to specific consoles.

Game Magazines albums: Facebook - Google Photos