Retro Games

[Chequers]

When I'm not flinging Kerbals into various depths of space (to varying levels of success), I like to browse a well-known proprietor of video games - particularly of the 'classic' variety - to relive some of my earlier days. It's a nice stroll down nostalgia lane.

Right now, I'm playing through the 1993 classic, X-Wing, again; which is giving me a tremendous amount of joy. I've not played this beauty since I first picked it up in the mid 90s, back when games came in big boxes; with a forests worth of manuals, reference cards, and (in this case) a short novel that ran alongside the game.

Do you enjoy a retro game tipple from time to time? If so, what's your 'go-to' - and do you have any recommendations? 

Edited April 14, 2020 by Chequers

[KSK]

Most of my retro games are sufficiently retro that getting them working on a modern system is a pain. Doable, yes, but a pain.

This is a well timed post though since I just bought Homeworld Remastered and played through the original campaign again for the first time in years (possibly decades.. shh.) I still have the original box complete with reference cards and that totally awesome manual that is one part actual manual and one part historical novella for the game.

If you're looking for recommendations, then I simply can't do better than Tie Fighter, since you're already playing through X-Wing. Not as punishing as X-Wing, a really cool subplot / mission bonus system,  and a surprisingly nuanced storyline considering that you're on the side of the Empire.

[cubinator]

I have a tabletop arcade box at home with all the old arcade games. Xevious, Galaga, Donkey Kong, Mappy, Pac Man...Even though I'm a generation younger than those games, I was lucky enough to be introduced to them. I also play Mario 64 and Sunshine, and Pikmin on occasion (I managed to get these all working in virtual reality for a time, too!)

[benzman]

My all-time favourite game is doom2.  Of course, it will not work on win 10, nor will any of my other old games for that matter. If anyone can tell me exactly how to get it going on win 10 I would be very gratefull.

 

[Bill Phil]

Reactor: Online

Sensors: Online

Weapons: Online

All Systems Nominal

Oh yeah. It's MechWarrior time. Maybe I'll finally beat MechWarrior 3...

1 hour ago, benzman said:

My all-time favourite game is doom2.  Of course, it will not work on win 10, nor will any of my other old games for that matter. If anyone can tell me exactly how to get it going on win 10 I would be very gratefull.

 

Oh, that's easy. Get DOSBox, should be able run the old doom application.

If that doesn't work try out one of the source ports - ZDoom or GZDoom are the most popular I think, but others exist.

[Chequers]

5 hours ago, KSK said:

Most of my retro games are sufficiently retro that getting them working on a modern system is a pain. Doable, yes, but a pain.

This is a well timed post though since I just bought Homeworld Remastered and played through the original campaign again for the first time in years (possibly decades.. shh.) I still have the original box complete with reference cards and that totally awesome manual that is one part actual manual and one part historical novella for the game.

If you're looking for recommendations, then I simply can't do better than Tie Fighter, since you're already playing through X-Wing. Not as punishing as X-Wing, a really cool subplot / mission bonus system,  and a surprisingly nuanced storyline considering that you're on the side of the Empire.

Ahh, Homeworld! Absolutely fantastic game; and it's sequels (Cataclysm and Homeworld2) - would you recommend the remastered version? I did see it a while back, and was sorely tempted. Someone actually lent me the CDs for the series, so I never got to actually own them - nor what sounds like a fantastic manual and novella. I do miss all the additional material you'd get when you bought a game back then.

And yes, both Tie Fighter, and X-Wing vs Tie Fighter were in my collection back in the day. Fantastic series! 

[Superfluous J]

It's been a few years since I even tried but every once in a while I go and find Indenture, the windows port of the old Atari Adventure from the 70s, and play a few rounds of that.

I also, every single day on my phone, play a few rounds of Minesweeper though I've moved on from "classic" to one called Minesweeper Collector.

[benzman]

2 hours ago, Bill Phil said:

R

Oh, that's easy. Get DOSBox, should be able run the old doom application.

If that doesn't work try out one of the source ports - ZDoom or GZDoom are the most popular I think, but others exist.

Thanks.  Will give that a try.

 

[Regor]

This is somewhat new, 1997, but boy did I LOVE Disney’s Hercules Game

[KSK]

12 hours ago, Chequers said:

Ahh, Homeworld! Absolutely fantastic game; and it's sequels (Cataclysm and Homeworld2) - would you recommend the remastered version? I did see it a while back, and was sorely tempted. Someone actually lent me the CDs for the series, so I never got to actually own them - nor what sounds like a fantastic manual and novella. I do miss all the additional material you'd get when you bought a game back then.

And yes, both Tie Fighter, and X-Wing vs Tie Fighter were in my collection back in the day. Fantastic series! 

Perhaps novella is the wrong word since it doesn't really include a story, but it does provide a great deal of background lore to the game and really adds to the experience in my opinion. You can find an online copy here if you're curious!

Would I recommend the remastered version? For anyone who hasn't played Homeworld (HW) 1 or 2 - definitely. They're both properly old-school, mission-based, story-driven real time strategy games, with spaceships in a fully 3D environment. What's not to like. It helps that the story is really good (that voiceover from Fleet Command at the end of Mission 2... whew) and that the games as a whole are just really well made.

Otherwise, it depends how much you liked the original and how much disposable income you want to spend on nostalgia and convenience. The Remaster pack is currently going for £27.00 on Steam, so it's not super cheap for what's effectively quite an old game. However, for your money, you get both the original and remastered versions of both HW 1 and HW 2, all ready to go on modern systems. Since I never played HW 2 back in the day that made it an easy decision for me but your mileage may vary.

The remastered versions are significantly prettier than the originals which really adds to the ambience, and I definitely got the old HW bug back, playing through HW1 again! (To the extent that I dug out the old manual again and read it through ). I segued straight into HW2 and I'm very much enjoying that as well. 

A quick caveat. When the remastered versions came out there was quite a bit of internet commentary about HW 1  (remastered) playing differently to the original but I gather that was fixed with patches a while back. Either that, or (more likely), I'm not enough of a Homeworld aficionado to be able to tell the difference. May not be an issue for you but hey - full disclosure and all that, if you're a big HW fan.  

 

Edited April 15, 2020 by KSK

[Chequers]

Thanks @KSK - that's really selling it to me. I'll definitely look into it! But now I'm playing through the classic 'X-Wing / Tie-Fighter' games again, I reckon I'll be kept busy for a while! 

Edited April 16, 2020 by Chequers

[Cavscout74]

X-wing was great, I haven't thought about that game in years... er... decades.   I still have a working copy of X-Com (the first one) on an old laptop that still runs - I had forgotten about it till a recent mishap with my gaming laptop, but I played it some while waiting for a replacement.  I may have to try to get it running on my new one. 

I miss the original Wasteland and have thought about buying the version on Steam - the last copy I had was on a 3.5" disk and was tossed ages ago when I no longer had a computer that could use it.  I also saw a "Remastered" version, but I'm not sure I want that - I think I'd rather stick to the pure 1988 graphics & bugs. 

Just yesterday I remembered another one that was pretty fun, although I can't remember actually finishing it - Sentinel Worlds I: Future Magic.  Had both space & ground operations and a pretty decent story from what I remember.  No remakes that I saw on that, but looks to be downloadable from a few places.

[KSK]

On 4/16/2020 at 1:32 AM, Chequers said:

Thanks @KSK - that's really selling it to me. I'll definitely look into it! But now I'm playing through the classic 'X-Wing / Tie-Fighter' games again, I reckon I'll be kept busy for a while! 

You're welcome! But yeah, I'd say those two will keep you busy for a while yet.

 

[LN400]

I haven't played any computer games in a long time now but my all time favourites are Ultima Underworld and Thief 2, alongside the original Monkey Island 1-3. I would also love to return to the world of Text Murphy in Under A Killing Moon and The Pandora Directive (Overseer always crashed on me and I lost faith in it) as well as TIE Fighter.

Edited September 17, 2020 by LN400

[Chequers]

Great choices, @LN400 - those original SCUMM games are some of my fondest game memories - I remember picking up a collection that included Monkey Island, Zak McKracken, and Maniac Mansion on the Amiga 500. I still find myself whistling the campfire tune from Monkey Island 2 from time to time to this day.

I'm playing through the classic Tomb Raider games at the moment... without a guide! *shock horror* The first two were great... the third is a descent into madness. But I'll get there!

[LN400]

18 hours ago, Chequers said:

Great choices, @LN400 - those original SCUMM games are some of my fondest game memories - I remember picking up a collection that included Monkey Island, Zak McKracken, and Maniac Mansion on the Amiga 500. I still find myself whistling the campfire tune from Monkey Island 2 from time to time to this day.

I'm playing through the classic Tomb Raider games at the moment... without a guide! *shock horror* The first two were great... the third is a descent into madness. But I'll get there!

Real life prevents me from really getting back into Ultima 7 but if you want to talk descent into madness, I would "recommend" Ultima 9. Played through it once, regretted it while playing.

[steve_v]

If I limit myself to PC only, and just what occurs to me off the top of my head (i.e. refusing to look at my archive):

Doom & Doom 2 (plus zillions of user WADs)*
Heretic
Hexen
Strife
Quake
Marathon trilogy
Descent 2
Freespace 2
Warcraft 2
Total Annihilation*
Carmageddon*
Baldur's Gate*, IWD etc
NWN & NWN 2
Diablo & Diablo 2
MOO & MOO2
Homeworld & Homeworld 2
...
*Played in the last month.

TBH, next to the gameplay of the classics, I find most modern games and their shiny graphics end up being a bit forgettable.