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100 XP Great Games Vol. 2 is a much-needed second installment of excellent Windows XP fun courtesty of the kind-hearted souls at Global Star Software, a division of Jack of All Games (Canada) Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive Software Canada Inc.

Published on The GiganticPingu Chronicle on 9/10/2025

Full disclosure: I have not played 100 XP Great Games Vol. 1 (if such a thing exists) and I'm deeply sorry. I haven't procured a copy of it yet but hope to soon. If I'm missing out on any crucial knowledge from the first volume of these great games that would have better informed my experience with the second volume, please feel free to not let me know.

As with my look at the BEST OF ARCADE FOR WINDOWS 95 sampler CD-ROM, I wanted to chronicle each game demo included in this collection. Starting with the next section, I'll color my own comments in orange. Ideally, I'd love to have a little quip or pithy phrase for each game, but every day I find myself asking "Where has the time gone?" so I doubt that will come to pass. But just know there's always a chance I may update this from time to time with a new image or appraisal. Unlike last time, nearly all of the games on the 2-disc (that's TWO entire discs!) collection were able to run natively on my computer without any fiddling around with virutal machines or compatibility setting or magical hexes and the like. The games are only divided into two categories, one for each disc: "Demo Front Line Games," which appear to be multiplayer-oriented, and then just uncategorized, normal games. A chap named Grey Olltwit appears to have worked on a number of the included games, and for that I do salute him most proudly. Anyways, without further ado, please find below (apologies for email speak) a list of the games and descriptions included within the fully-featured collection that is 100 XP Great Games Vol. 2.

DISC 1: THE GAMES

  • 15 Block Puzzle: Fifteen numbered blocks were randomly placed in a 4x4 grid with one vacant square. The aim is to use the vacant space to slide the blocks into serial order, leaving the space in the bottom right-hand corner of the grid.This game was the greatest puzzle craze of the nineteenth century and occupied most of America and Europe from 1879 to 1881
  • 1945: Fly your fighter jet and take out the invading enemies .
  • 3D Morris: In our exciting new game entitled 3D Morris, we have taken a 3000-year-old board game called Nine Men's Morris, and thrust it into a new dimension by offering an innovative arcade mode. The game features a helpful tutorial in order to help you become accustomed to the game without having to read the manual. 3D Morris offers single and multiplayer options, and 3D Morris includes revolutionary technology that enables you to play online along with friends! Also - when you buy 3D Morris, you will get three dazzling 65,000 color 3D graphic sets, and 16 original soundtracks. And that's not all - 3D Morris includes Lobstersoft's unconditional 30-DAY MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE.

    [I have to say, the rotating soundtrack selection in this revolutionary three-dimensional Morris lives up to the hype from developers Lobstersoft. I will NOT be requesting a cent of my money back.]


  • A.M.I: It's an Alien Monsters Invasion (A.M.I.)!!! 24 species, over 10 000 different monsters, 60 levels of fun and excitement, 4 weapons and one simple mission ..... you know!! Protect the earth!!! Sound simple? Why don't you try and see for yourself?
  • Aargon Deluxe: *THE* Laser, Light, and Color Puzzle Game! You must try to decipher the subtle hints left in the laboratory to solve over 120 stunning Laser Puzzles. Change colors, reflect light, fence in robot mines, and feed slime creatures to find the solution.
  • AllFive 2000: The idea is to throw five dice, keep back promising-looking combinations such as three sixes, and throw the others again, up to a total of three throws. Then the score is placed in one of thirteen boxes, each of which has rules attached to its use. For example, placing a score in the "Full House" box is worth 25 points, but you must have three of one number and two of another. There is quite some skill involved in selecting which dice to keep or rethrow and which score box to use each turn.
  • Approach v1.03: Approach puts you in the seat of a Terminal Radar Approach Controller (TRACON). After just 5 minutes controlling these aircraft, you will be fully immersed! You are responsible for safely guiding and landing all the aircraft that arrive on your radar scope. You command the aircraft to climb, descend, turn, change speeds, and land, and they follow your instructions to the letter. In return, you must keep them safely separated at all times. Approach allows you to customize the settings to the level of difficulty that is most comfortable, however you earn more points for selecting more difficult settings.
  • Arcade Lines: In Arcade Lines you will slide colored pieces on a grid trying to match colors while leaving yourself enough room to maneuver. You'll need to be careful though because every time you don't make a match more pieces are added to the playing field blocking your other moves. Strategy comes into play when you decide where to make your match, how to use wildcards, dynamite and other pieces. Simple to learn, but with enough variety to keep you hooked for many hours to come
  • Atomic Clock 1.0: Synchronize the clocks to twelve in this 3D puzzle. This game has two puzzle variations and load and save capabilities.
  • ATTACK-ATTACK 1.0: Attack-Attack conveys the thrill and danger of piloting through a projectile-saturated battlespace as you attack a tenacious enemy. You will give and receive fire, take cover in an obstacle strewn field, lay mines for the unwary, destroy that enemy ship that is wearing down your teammate's sheilds, pursue the enemy into dead ends, use guided weapons against his freighters, defend your own, and give your all to complete the mission. Using a rich set of options, you will set up the battlescape, outfit ships with a mix of human and AI pilots, and do battle on a series of dynamic battlegrounds. With a variety of missions, an endless combination of parameters, and an inventory of weapons, Attack-Attack will summon forth the glorious warrior within.

    [Basically Asteroids if it were actually just dogfighting and the asteroids posed no real threat. I imagine the full version of the game could be good for a few chuckles and guckles with a friend. I also feel I simply must include this passage from the instruction manual on the nature of war. No need to psychoanalyze the team at Black Pepper Games; they laid their souls bare for us.]



  • Black Dragon: This game is really simple but it can be challenging to the point of addiction. The idea is to get five (5) hands of 21 (Just like in Blackjack) before the timer runs out (the timer counts down from 120 in ½ second intervals - you get one minute and that is it). The higher your total score (the sum of all five hands) the more points you get per timer tick left at the end. You need at least 97 points to score in a round and scoring is shown at the right.

    Blastorama:< In Blastorama, bombs and colored blocks combine to create explosive combinations! Maneuver similar colored blocks into groups, then blast 'em, but don't run out of bombs, or it's game over!

    [IT'S BLASTORAMA! "Inspired by Collapse", this block-matching puzzler demands just enough foresight with each round to make you feel like the Blastoramus Nostradamus. Get ready to BLAST OFF on this wild ride. Beautifully executed (not that I would expect anything less from the savant(s) at Satellite Moon). The background art is rendered in hazy, dreamlike watercolor reminiscent of The Snowman animated television film. If I had my druthers I would be teleported here at 11:30 p.m. each night with a bottle of melatonin gummies at the ready. Genuinely great.]


  • Carnival Jackpot: Breakout your beads and step up to see how lucky you are! Carnival Jackpot brings you the thrill of a casino without having to leave your desk. We've added some unique new tricks and a wild carnival theme to our most popular game for 24 hour, all year long, bell ringing excitement.

    [What are the merits of a game like this over its obvious superior, Bejeweled? Well, it's free. Personally, I also think the casino aesthetic is a little bit fun, 2-second slot machine sound byte included. The sound effects are thrilling as well! And the game pieces themselves are highly responsive! Wowza! Pretty garish otherwise! Also, it's really nothing more than a cheap imitation of Santa Balls 2! (Oops we haven't gotten to that one yet!)]


  • Clock Face: Clock Face is my Clock Patience card game adapted to a program for helping to learn how to tell the time. The idea of using the Clock Patience or Clock Solitaire card game in this way, comes from, and is copyright to a fellow Brit., David Andrews and is used here with permission. Program includes an uninstall facility.

    [I've gotta hand it to this chap, he had something he wanted to create, and he sure as hell did it.]


  • Color Puzzle: ColorPuzzle is an easy and funny puzzle game. Player exchanges tiles to match the color of adjacent tiles. When all tiles match the color with all adjcent tiles, the game is complete.
  • Crazy Golf: A 9 hole crazy golf game for 1 to 4 players. Obstacles include walls, water, windmills, slopes and a duck! Games can be saved. League table of top 100 rounds kept.
  • Cult II: Using negotiation and trade, one must resolve a situation involving barricaded cultists in a villa two kilometers away from town. As you play, you wander around the villa, meeting some of the brainwashed cult members (and some reasonable people). You talk to them, find out what they want, and trade items with them for information. You learn a little about the social structure of the cult and even get to save some lives. Advancing from room to room, you find keys to locked doors and operate switches to remove barriers
  • Cyclop Force: it's a fighting/shooting game with cyclops. it has 11 characters. with unique attacks. it has 9 big full levels to play in special places around the world. like the rain forest in brazil , a catle from england and a space port in space. it has deferent weapons and objects like laser sight uzi bazooka flamer meat and fire gazers. the new version incloods 3 more characters more levels better control and you can download characters from my site.

    [Wowie, I'm convinced!]


  • Darts: Good old fashioned fun with my darts game. Play against the computer at three levels, Novice, Semi-Pro or Pro.
  • Demolition Dumpout: A demolition derby type game involving your car against a computer car. The idea is to bump your opponent out of the arena. Great skid and turning movements thanks to the clever guys at www.tigerworks.co.uk. Choice of four cars with the possibility to add more in the future if the game becomes popular. I have run this game on a Pentium I 166Mhz machine but the movement is better with faster processors.
  • Dinosaur Hunt: The game involves searching photographs of locations around the world for dinosaur remains and then correctly identifying your finds. All progress is saved, so you can come back at anytime and your score increases, the better you get. A certificate screen and high score table are included.
  • Doodle Pad: A simple drawing and colouring program which includes stamps (small pre-drawn pictures to colour) of Winnie The Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, Owl, Rabbit, Gopher, Roo and Kanga to add to your pictures. See below for more stamp packs.
  • Earth Defence: Using your Earth Defence Vehicle - EDV - defend the Earth from the attacking space ships. Each level gets progressively harder.
  • Fish: Sometimes called Go Fish this is an easy to play card game against the computer. On screen instructions are provided to take you step by step through the game.
  • Five Plus: The object of the game is scoring points which you get by aligning five or more balls of the same color horizontally, vertically or diagonally. When you make a move without aligning more than four balls into one row, 3 new balls appear. This way the board fills up quickly. Aligning more than five balls gives you even more points, but it is risky, as you might not be able to complete the row if a new ball appears in an unsuitable place. After some time the board is so full that it gets nearly impossible to make any useful moves and the game is over.
  • Frantic Footy: My Five-A-Side football game. You can choose to play in one of three leagues, Amateur, Semi-Pro or Professional. Each one is faster than the last, hence things can get a bit frantic. The game is mouse controlled and you can choose to play in either a white or red strip. An added extra is that if you win a game you get to print out a Winners Cup certificate if you wish, which allows you to add names for your teams and thus brag to your friends!!
  • Fuhark: Futhark, the game of runes, is based on the classic French racing card car game called Mille Bornes. In this unique adaptation, a single player casts various runes of different functions and attempts to attain a changing goal. The game features full colour graphics, music, sounds, two levels of difficulty, a high score option, timed play, and more.
  • GO Karts: Fast reaction times required for this game. Race in Go Karts against the computer car at three levels, Novice, Semi-Pro or Pro. Game shows laps, times, speed and has a fastest lap league table.
  • Goalzone: You have three 60 seconds periods to score as much goal as you can. As the game is progressing, the difficulty level is increasing. Everyone is watching you, hoping you will break a new record and enter in the hall of fame. The goaltender is ready... are you?
  • Grey Olltwit's Bowling Game: Ten Pin bowling game for 1 player against the computer or 2 human players.
  • Gunless: Space arcade with ship upgrading.
  • Hangman: Simple word game where you can choose from the word lists provided or make your own. The idea of the game is to guess the word or phrase picked at random from a list before the hangman scaffold is fully built. Each time you guess a letter, if it appears in a word it will show up in the correct position including if it appears more than once. For every letter you try that is not in the word or phrase, a piece of the hangman scaffold is shown. The different word lists or categories included with the program are World Countries, Capital Cities, Bible Characters, Birds, Animals, Insects, Flowers, Vegetables, Films, Children's Films, Sports and Fruits. Program includes an uninstall facility.
  • Hero 2: Hero is an role playing game for your computer. The first version is a 16 color DOS dungeon adventure that will also work for Windows.
  • HMSNet: Sail the open Sea in this fun game.
  • Hornado: The game has 8 different levels with graphics and sounds that will blow your mind. You can pick a weapon out of a huge arsenal to send every damn enemy to hell.
  • Infernal Contractor II: Take on the role of the Infernal Contractor and raise mayhem in this fast-moving office simulation. This episode sees you racing round the office against the clock in an attempt to prove your fitness to the demanding recruiters. Slippery floors and dodgy ergonomics are all that stand between you and gainful employment. Hear encouraging phone calls from your agent, the harsh judgements of the recruiters, and the final countdown as you race for the finish line in this interactive simulation.
  • Jet Ski: Race your Jet Ski against three other bikes around a course. You choose which Jet Ski bike you want to control. Hit the other bikes too many times and you will attract the sharks. All the bikes laps, lap times, best lap times and speeds are shown and there is a leader board for the best times.
  • Jigsaw Maker: Make your own 15 and 24 piece jigsaws from the 10 pictures provided or from your own on your computer. Once made you can do the jigsaws within the program. An added extra is, if you are very careful with a pair of scissors, you can print out the pieces onto paper to be stuck to card or straight onto thin card if your printer allows.
  • Jonggy: Jonggy, the card game of the ancients, is a unique one-player card game for both the advanced and novice patience (solitaire) card player. The game features full- colour graphics, sounds, music, two levels of difficulty, a high score option, timed play, an explosive 'win' screen, and more.
  • JoQmory: Just as in the popular Memory game, your ability to remember pictures is put to the test in JoQmory. The game board features 36 picture cards. There are two of every card. The cards are mixed facedown. The first player then turns over two cards. If he has a pair, the cards disappear and he can turn over two more cards. If the two cards are different, it is the next player's turn. Whoever finds the most pairs wins the game. You can practice your ability to concentrate by playing against ten different skill levels of your computer opponent, and thereby also train your memory. If you win against the computer, your score is entered in the high score list.
  • Jo Race: Can you plan quickly, and are you good at thinking ahead? Then put your abilities to the test in "JoRace". Build a road network and keep the golden ball in play for as long as possible. But be careful not to get too close to the black hole!
  • JoSyrux 1.4: 16 planets are being attacked by aliens. Try to repel their attack. The only way you can win against them is by figuring out their attack strategy.
    Jump Over It v1.1

    [No description provided by the developers because it's simply not necessary. This is an instant classic. It's cute and made me smile. Get your ball to the endzone before your opponent by leaping over their balls. When you lose the game makes a whimsical "UH OH" sound and when you win it sounds like an ocean wave just flooded your ear canal. If you create a custom match, and bump the board size and balls up to the maximum amounts, the computer opponent will really struggle to calculate its next move. I like the advertisement you get when booting up the game imploring you to tryout "The Matrix Game," which I'm considering downloading right this minute.]


    Keep Your Cool: This game originally started out as a bit of fun but after a flash of inspiration, I'm hoping it will be a useful tool in combating stress at work or school.

    [Keep Your Cool is the original Chicken Run. It's the best version of FLASHBACK. It's made me feel unbelievably stressed out and had a markedly negative effect on my relationships in terms of both work and school. And I certainly hope the proper permissions for The Pink Panther theme song were acquired for this work! Wuh whoa!]


  • Little Fighter II: Fighting game.

    Marble Buster: A breakout type game where coloured marbles descend towards you. Shoot marbles at them to destroy ones of the same colour. Infinite levels with each one harder than the last. High score table on start and the program includes an uninstall facility.

    [Mr. Olltwitt got me with this one. Nice colors on the bubbles, or, shall I say, marbles! When you match multiple marbles of the same color, they pop, and their droppings pile up on the floor. I love watching the shavings accumulate to the point that they become a major hinderance to the gameplay.]


  • Marble Solitaire: A game of hardwood solitaire. A real brain teaser where you have to move strategically to leave only one marble. It is difficult but it can be done.
  • Maze Maker Plus: Create your own maze with this simple program. Print it out or try it within the program. Mazes can be saved to finish or open at another time.
  • Memorize: The game "Memorize" is a great training tool for your eyes memory. Some pairs of the random selected pictures are placed on the squared field. Player can not see them until he clicks on the blocks. Open the pictures in such order and look for the same pictures. Each third click closes two previous pictures. Two identical pictures opened in the same time disappear. The result of game will be evaluated by the used time and total number of clicks.
  • Mini Golf: 9 hole Golf game (mouse operated). This program can also be used as a learning aid, as it helps with estimating angles, distance and basic compass direction.
  • Mini Ice Hockey: 1 or 2 Player Mini Ice Hockey game (keyboard/joystick/pad).
  • Mission 2 Mars: Mission 2 Mars is a space shooter game where you have to fight against some very intelligent and vicious aliens to save your planet Earth. You are the only hope to save the innocent people of Earth. You will get four exclusive weapons from the beginning of the game and you have to use them to save yourself. You will also get three chances to save the Earth.

    Monkey Puzzle: Complete the picture in this jigsaw type game. This latest version is larger and includes the facility to use your own pictures as puzzles plus several pictures are included with the download. Includes Uninstall facility.

    [A major standout in the collection for obvious reasons. I can only assume our dear friend Mr. Olltwit was responsible at least in part for the Fun Factor of this one. The process of working through the slide puzzle is gratifying in and of itself, but the final reward is so sweet it beggars belief. With both Easy and Hard modes, the replayability skyrockets. Please watch my Let's Play of this gem.]


  • Moraff's Maximum Mahjongg Lite: Moraff's Maximum Mahjongg brings unpreccedented detail and striking beauty to an ancient game enjoyed by millions of people around the world. Your screen will capture the imagination with hundreds of unique tilesets over dozens of popular categories, 1,500 gorgeous backgrounds designed by award winning international artists, and over 15 hours of enchanted CD Quality and MIDI melodies. Or, the more discerning Mahjongg player in you can take advantage of easy to use, intuitive customization tools, to give your game a personal touch. Import your favorite photo's or web images, and use them to create new, exciting tilesets. Create stunning tile layouts with virtually limitless combinations to keep your Mahjongg experience fresh every time. You can even import your MP3 and MIDI collection into the in-game jukebox, giving your ears a sensory treat as you play. Moraff's Maximum Mahjongg 3 is the ultimate Mahjongg challenge, truly a tribute to this amazing ancient passtime, and the only collection you will ever need.
  • Muscle Car 3: Muscle Car 3 is the latest and greatest classic American dream car experience for your PC. You are an amateur-racing enthusiast with a mean 4-wheeled monster and a lead foot. Your dream is to one day make it through the rank and file of amateur racing, and become a champion. Take your car to the tracks and see if you have what it takes…
  • Network Draughts Checkers: Classic game where you can play against an opponent over a network or on the same computer. You can even have quite a reasonable game against the computer but please remember that I am not a huge software company so tactically the computer in my game is not brilliant but it's not stupid either, so quite a good game can be had.
  • Nonsense 2000: Mr. Nonsens has to fight through more than 20 levels of fast wacky action! The game is a scrolling action/platform game from the makers of Nonsense Madness. You´ll get the ultimate nonsense experience now with levels located in the "Wacky Woods", "Insane Castle", "Nonsense Land" and three other locations!

    Nonsense Madness: The sequel to Nonsense Trilogy is here at last! We´re proud to bring you Nonsense Madness. The latest contribution to the Nonsense-series. Play 20 strange levels in this new arcade/platform game, which stars the man with the oddly spelled name, Mr Nonsens. The game is devided into 6 different acts. Each act consists of 3-4 levels. Of course this game features some great graphics, and CD-quality sound effects!

  • Nonsense Trilogy: Nonsense Trilogy is based on inspiration from the three earlier Nonsense-games (originally named Nonsens, without "e" in the end). With the platform gameplay featured in "Mr Nonsens Mad-Cap Humour", the fast arcadestyle gameplay of "Nonsens Breakout", and the silly cutscenes from "Nonsens Tennis". With Mr Nonsens (not Mr Nonsense) as the maincharacter, Nonsense Trilogy is without a doubt the silliest game ever! Oh, and wait untill you see the ending sequence...
  • Noughts & Crosses: Addictive simple game of TIC TAC TOE, or Noughts and Crosses.
  • One Arm Bandit: It might seem unusual to have a gambling type game on my website and some may not be too happy but I get a lot of requests for this type of game. I therefore decided to make a simple slot machine game but with a difference. With my game you win points not money and a running total is kept at the bottom of the screen for each player, of all the points you have used since you started playing. Hopefully this should show just why these machines are called One Arm Bandits as unless you are very lucky your total will show just how many points you have lost rather than won. The reality of life is that gambling in all forms is thrust upon all of us every day on the TV, in newspapers etc. At least with my game you won't lose any money and hopefully players will learn the folly of putting your cash into the real thing.

    Pairs

    [Simply put, this is an aural and visual feast, courtesty of none other than Grey Oltwitt. It's a themed memory matching game, featuring all your favorites, such as The Simpsons, The Flintstones, Winnie-the-Pooh, and more! Once you select a theme you're gifted with a searingly loud MIDI rendition of that IP's main theme. Turn the volume up as high as it will go and transcend.]


  • Pick and Match: Simple card matching game, very good for imporving visual recall.
  • Potty Pool: Version of UK Rules 8 ball pool.
  • Robbie To The Rescue: Simple platform game for Christmas featuring Robbie The Reindeer. Evil Blitzen has bought up a job lot of old BBC daleks to help him in his latest money making scheme. One by one he is capturing Santa's Elves, bubble wrapping them in his cloud base workshop and selling them to Supermarkets world-wide. His slogan is "Own a real live Elf" and he believes he will corner the market on realistic action figures this Christmas. Who is going to stop him, Robbie of course. Rudolph's son must find and magically release the elves back to Santa's Grotto.
  • Rock Solid: An original game where you have to avoid several moving rocks and reach your goal in less time possible. You even have the possibility to destroy some rocks! 25 levels available. Are you gonna be able to finish them all? Try it now!

    Santa Balls 2: Santa Balls is an old elf tradition in the North Pole. But like most things, they evolve or get supersized! In SB2, we've taken ball busting action to a whole new level. Bigger game board, bouncier balls and Oliver the Elf is bolder than ever! Download a free copy!

    [This thrilling sequel is bigger, badder, nastier, sexier, and more Jib Jab-ian than you could ever imagine. This old elf tradition takes that classic South Park humor and turns it on its head. Oliver the Elf is certifiably MESSED UP and yeah, this is his game, and he's playing for keeps.]


  • Sheep Shooter: Sheep Shooter is a fast paced arcade game that revolves around blasting sheep out of the sky. The poor, defenseless animals are hurtling towards you and your gun - shoot them down before they hit you! There's also an added twist - once you shoot the sheep, get out of the way!

    [Ends with a beautiful rendition of The Rolling Stones' (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction.]


  • Sherman: Sherman is an addictive multiplayer game for up to four players. Drive around a maze-like level picking up flags and shooting your opponents. You can only hold three flags at a time before you have to drop them at base, but beware - other players can steal them from your base! Great fun if you can all fit around the keyboard!
  • Sherman 2: Sherman 2 is Cross-Bones' largest project yet. Four players battle it out in a variety of breathtaking 3D environments ranging from ancient temples to floating space platforms. With four different tanks and six gametypes to play, there are plenty of features to keep you occupied, other than just the huge explosions and fast-paced, frantic gameplay.
  • Ski Run: Ski down a slalom type course against the clock. Be careful of the trees and use your skill to ski through the gates. An action replay facility is included for your best times and a league table of fastest times is kept.
  • Skullbyte Match: Skullbyte Match is a compilation of several two-player-games for a quick duel in between.

    Slime Ball: Fun and addictive game

    [The game window is about the same size as a postage stamp, which makes playing dificult for low-vision neanderthals such as myself.]


  • Snake Scramble 1.0: The goal of this game is to reassemble snakes on a four-sided column. This features 15 tiles that are moved by sliding individual tiles up or down and rotating the ends of the column.
  • Snap: Simple 1 Player card game (mouse operated).
  • Space King: SPACE KING is a futuristic stock market simulation. Make lots of money by trading within a unique solar system in this Economic Strategy game set in outer space. This cool intergalactic trading game is complete with music, sounds, animation, and full colour art/graphics. You will travel from planet to planet buying and selling stocks, bonds, and commodities; upgrading your ship; and more while encountering spectacular events and treacherous hazards as you try to become... SPACE KING!
  • Space Maze 2: SpaceMaze2 is amazing new game just for You. It is Isometric Arcade. 99 different levels to solve! That will require Your Full Attention, Memory Skills, Fast Fingerwork and Flashing Mind! Free version will give You a chance to play 11 first levels. Game is really the best for all. This is first truly Windows Game that doesn't require from You anything but Windows.
  • Space Wars: Fight evil space ships in this exciting free game
  • Speed Demons Racer: 2D race game.
  • Speed Racer: Take on up to two other players in fourteen tracks based everywhere from deserts to forests, from the boiler room to a lake full of flamingos! Tracks range from speedways to mazes, from the surreal to the serene
  • Squares: Classic simple game where you join the dots to make more squares or boxes than your opponent. 1 player against the computer or 2 player mode. Program includes an uninstall facility.
  • Steeplechase: This is a horse race game between 6 horses over 9 fences. You can choose to be either the jockey or just watch the race having chosen a horse.
  • Street Chase: Up to three players battle it out on 14 themed circuits from deserts to forests, real to surreal. Beat the record lap times to earn Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards, and a bonus track...
  • Super Carrot: You are a carrot and you must move around the maze trying to stay away from the mean tomatoes.

    [Super Carrot sucks so much man I hate Super Carrot.]


  • Tank: Over 60 levels of fun. Play alone, Blue vs Red or in the team mode. Choose your own music, elaborate your strategy and select your type of game: the flag, mine-field, strategy, arena or fortress.
  • Tex Tank: Texx Tank is a remake of the classic RoboTron. You must battle hordes of incoming enemies, each larger and more dangerous than the last, in your powerful, green tank. To succeed you must master the 'Turret Lock' feature that allows you to travel in one direction while shooting in the other. Very hard!
  • The Lost Point: Do you want a game starring a stupid duck? Do you want to see how the "The Lost World" game should be done? This might just be a game for you! To run The Lost Point you need to have a Pentium with 16 MB RAM and Windows 95 - or BETTER (that shouldn´t be too difficult).
  • The Tower of Hanoi: The Tower of Hanoi is a good game to train your ability to concentrate. The Tower of Hanoi puzzle was invented by the French mathematician Edouard Lucas in 1883. There are three poles one of which contains threaded disks sorted from the biggest one at the bottom to the smallest on at the top. You can take disks from one pole and put them on another one, but you can lift only one disk at a time, and only smaller disk on the top of the bigger. So, the goal of the Tower of Hanoi game is to remove disks from the central pole and collect them at another empty poles.
  • Tiger 144: A simple, easy to play Tank shoot-em-up. The game has three levels and limited sound.
  • Tincan Sam: Nice arcade game.
  • Topsy Turvy: A game of quick thinking where players must clear the game board full of colorful game pieces before time runs out. This game has a real twist. The game board rotates, causing the game pieces to tumble around, creating an entirely new game environment every time!
  • Train Dispatcher 2: Train Dispatchers are the air traffic controllers of the railroads. They control the movement of trains over large track territories. This game simulates the gargantuan routing tasks a real-life dispatcher faces daily. The problem is that trains must share a limited number of tracks. It some cases a single track must be shared by trains going in opposite directions. It is the job of the dispatcher to control the movement of trains over this limited resource, which can create one bottleneck after another.
  • Trash Killer 2: Gameplay and rules are the same: you control a space garbageship patrolling the Galaxy. Your aim is to shoot all the asteroids located in your sector. When you shoot bigger asteroids, they break down into smaller parts, which are then broken into most tiny ones. After all the asteroids in the given sector are shot down, your garbageship warps to the next sector.
  • Tzintar: This game also known as Nine men's morris / Morpion / Moara is an old game played since ancient times all over the world.
  • Wordsearch Maker: Create your own word searches with this simple program. Print it out or try it within the program. Word searches can be saved to finish or open at another time. Includes an uninstall facility.
  • Wurzgez: Wurzgez is a simple yet challenging word guessing game. The game is appropriate for anyone, of any age, who is an advanced word player. Wurzgez--a fun hybrid of Wheel of Fortune and classic hangman with power words and phrases in English, Italian, and French, and Shakespearean--features full colour graphics, music, sounds, special effects, multi levels, multi players, a high score option, and an option to add more words and phrases.
  • DISC 2: DEMO FRONT LINE GAMES

  • Conflict Desert Storm: You're the best trained, best equipped Special Forces squad in the world. You have been deployed deep behind enemy lines where the terrain and conditions are barbaric. You will seek, locate, and destroy the enemy while creating havoc and confusion against insane odds.
  • Firefly Studios Stronghold [Multiplayer]: Journey to distant lands renowned for brave warriors and fearsome weaponry in FireFly Studios' STRONGHOLD CRUSADER™. This highly anticipated successor to the best-selling Stronghold combines the finest aspects from a City Builder and a Real-Time Strategy game. Lead a determined group of crusaders, forged by centuries of barbaric conflicts, or wage war against a powerful foreign invader amidst the haze of the desert heat.
  • Stronghold: Crusader

    [The same description as above.]


  • Tropico 2: Pirate Cove: "The winds of change have gropped Tropico as you have risen to power with the backing of you rbeloved troops, Presidente. The winds seem to be carrying the scent of gunpowder from the jungles as well, Presidente. Though many are happy to see a strong leader such as yourself holding the reins of power, it seems that many have also taken to the jungles to fight your rule."
  • Ultimate Demolition Derby: Climb into any of over a dozen classic Ultimate Demolition Derby Cars, such as the less than loced [sic] Hertz, or a used and abused Mini, and rip your ride apart at the expense of your opponents. High speeds, devastating collisions, and full-contact arena matches are just the beginning! In this demo, use one of eight cars in a no holds barred arena deathmatch, or a stunt filled 10 lap race.
  • Vietcong [Multiplayer]: You forge ahead through the thick, oppressive heat. Your erratic heartbeat and amplified breaths are all that escape the hostile stillness. Sweat beads down your face as an all too familiar vibration breaks your concentration. You turn to face the threat while the rookie lays down a wild burst of gunfire into the trees up ahead. The jungle explodes into a fiery deathtrap with roars from automatic weapons interrupting the incoherent shouts from your men. Spin, aim, shoot, duck, dodge, fire. Your actions form a dance as rapid explosions create a giant fireball of destruction. And then, as quickly as the chaos sprang to life, it departs, slipping away into the darkness. A downpour ensues, quelling the raging jungle, setting things right once again. But there's no time to rest. This is a war, and you've got a job to do.


  • Pikmin 2 makes me giddy with each controller input

    Published on itch.io on 10/20/2024 as part of the Revival Jam 2024

    Imagine, if you will, a small gentleman: You've just envisioned a Who from Horton Hears a Who. Next, give that man a floral antenna, and color him a marvelous shade of crimson, cerulean, or chartreuse: Now you have a Pikmin!

    My introduction to the Pikmin series began with a trip to the local "Family Video" accompanied by a friend to rent a game for our imminent weekend sleepover. At this point around 2005 or so, the Family Video I frequented had filled their entire back room -- which appeared to have at one point been reserved for sinful porno -- with a large number of videogames available for rent. As my friend and I toddled into that back area, we had no idea what we were going to choose, but after browsing for a smidge happened by chance to slide a curious game off the shelf. "Look at that giant lobster freak!" is what I'd probably say today if I saw the North American boxart of Pikmin 2 for the first time. Back then, though, my chum and I had never played the first "Peekmin" and in fact had never even heard of the series, but for some reason we chose that game to rent for the night. How serendipitous!

    This Family Video, by the way, seemed to be perpetually advertising The 40-Year-Old Virgin following its release as well as Mr. & Mrs. Smith, which for years I confused as some sort of remake of the 1939 film Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. These strange advertising campaigns may be partly why Family Video, once an unshakeable pillar of Midwestern communities, fell to ruin. I think their decision to rent out VHS tapes in the children's section FOR FREE was extremely foolish, because I'm sure my mother would've been willing to pay any price to satiate my need for the Alvin and the Chipmunks cartoon program, or Ducktales, or whatever. They probably made all that money back from us via the gumball machine anyway, which featured special mystery gumballs which bestowed upon you additional free rentals if not just outright free video tapes for keeps. But I digress.

    Now, the origins of the Pikmin characters themselves are pretty fascinating. The most obvious throughline can be found in the curious Mario 128 demo shown off at the Nintendo Space World trade show in the year 2000. If you've never seen the footage, I highly recommend watching, because it's equivalent to what it feels like is going on in my head sometimes. Just a bunch of small little men bumbling around bumping into each other and letting out beautiful yelps. Could there have been a more perfect and wondrous way to christen the new millennium?

    The demonstration of Mario 128 begins with an overhead view of a truly off-model 2D sprite of Mario, before zooming in and revealing it to be made up of 128 boxes, each one containing a small little plumber hiding inside à la Solid Snake. They deform, they fall off into a void, they change the terrain into a pizza. Supposedly, the platform could also transform into a sphere that the impish Marios could run around, but no footage of that is publicly available that I could find. That same idea of spherical terrain-focused gameplay was of course implemented in indie darling Super Mario Galaxy a few years later.

    Here's the most complete video of the presentation:

    It's clear how Mario 128 acted as a proof-of-concept for games with "rapid generation" and a large number of interactive characters. I'd still love to see it in its original form though. Every night I psychically transmit to Miyamoto-san my desire to see this demo just simply dumped on the eShop raw for all to enjoy.

    Interesting bit of trivia: Mario 128 was later referenced in Super Smash Bros. Melee through an event match in which you had to fight 128 little mini Marios (not to be confused with Mini Marios from Mario vs. Donkey Kong or Mario's miniature form "Mini Mario").

    The true genesis of Pikmin, however, reaches even further back. In a recent interview with series developers, it was revealed that the desire to "display a large number of characters on screen" has existed since the mid-90s during the waning days of the Super NES. As ideas progressed to the Nintendo 64, many of the characters were represented using flat "billboard" sprites (check out this video by Kirby and Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai if you want to learn more about the effect). Concept art of Pikmin from around this time shows a rounder, stumpier appearance, with differences between males and females, as well as colorful antennae. Check them out below:

    These early designs curiously resemble the Pikmin-like "Puni" species from Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

    A distinguishing element on the Pikmin's head signifying its activity status appears to be common to most concept art. It also seems that the Pikmin were initially meant to be controlled by swapping out "AI chips" in their heads. And, originally, the team envisioned a darker, eerier tone for the first Pikmin game, taking inspiration from Fantastic Planet, Tim Burton, and experimental European indie films. The designs were later made cuter to appeal to "girls around the age of high school," but series developer Shigefumi Hino explicitly notes an intention to "convey a touch of somberness," and Miyamoto makes clear that he wanted the series to retain the element of nature's cruelty:
    "Even when a creature gets eaten by an enemy, there were also ideas like not letting it get swallowed whole, but instead having the enemy drag it into its mouth to munch on it. (Laughs) And so we eventually added screaming sounds and ghost effects to depict its dying moments to the bitter end."

    Wow, Miaymoto-san, that's pretty twisted! Even so, the violent delights of the series are masterfully juxtaposed against the cute, charmy veneer of the title characters. It's nature! And you're a part of it!

    In their research, the development team apparently also read The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins, which explains the heavy criticisms of creationism and intelligent design present throughout the series... Just kidding! It mostly informed "the weird ecology of living things."

    The goal of Pikmin 2 can be explained thusly: collect treasures scattered on a seemingly abandoned earthlike planet to pay off your company's debt using the combined efforts of about one billion little .75inch tall plant/animal hybrids. This follows on the heels of the first game, which saw our hero Captain Olimar stranded on that same earthlike planet, with only a mere 30 days to recover the same number of missing ship parts and escape the hostile new world. To immediately be sent back to plunder it for riches as soon as its existence is made known is quite, well, believable.

    These treasures provide some of the greatest surprises in the game and are among the best uses of product placement in any videogame. Let's not forget their sacrifice, as every instance of non-Nintendo real world brands was removed in the Switch version of Pikmin 2. Here are some of my favorites:

  • Gherkin Gate, a Vlasic pickle jar lid
  • Container of Sea Bounty, a tin of Hawesta brand herring (a European exclusive treasure. Lucky them!!)
  • Universally Best Art, a Kyoshin brand milk cover (a Japanese exclusive treasure. . . Jealous!!)
  • Courage Reactor, a Duracell D battery (and first treasure you find. . . Lucky us!!)
  • Drone Supplies, a can of Underwood brand deviled ham spread (Yum!) (In the European version, this treasure is actually a packet of Haribo sweets... Yum!!)

  • If I may, I'd also like to discuss the writing in the game. I've come to view the script of Pikmin 2 as incredibly witty. The only real dialogue you get throughout the main game comes from your company ship's AI, who, in addition to doling out tutorialization, is a surprisingly well-defined character devoted to God, Guns, and Gold. This is abundantly clear with lines like this:
    "Good morning, workers! Ready for another day of toiling for the profit of your company?"
    "Interesting! Deeper sections of this hole seem to be submerged in liquid... Sadly, I am a delicate piece of machinery that is sensitive to water. You two must go alone. ...Why do you look at me with such scornful expressions? ...I am an expensive machine! ...Fine. I'll go. But this wantonly reckless treatment of company property will be reported!"

    Each day ends with a report of your gains and losses, followed by an email message from a number of possible sources, including the company President, Olimar's family, or Louie's grandma. You might also receive SPAM MESSAGES, which, in the original GameCube version, gave us this gem:
    "I am so lonely... I want a friend that'll listen to my troubles. I want to meet someone like you. Contact me at http://www.pikmin.com"

    The Switch version COWARDLY changed it to this:
    "Don't we all want friends who will smile when we need a little sunshine in our day? Sure! If you see friends who need a smile, give 'em your best one!"

    ...What the deuce? What kind of nonsense is this?

    The "Piklopedia" is a tour-de-force of clever characterization and is quite impressive from a copywriting standpoint. The database functions as an encyclopedia of the game's flora/fauna complete with scientific names, species classification, and descriptions from both Olimar on their biology, and from Louie on their culinary qualities.

    The Treasure Hoard takes a similar approach with notes from Olimar theorizing what purpose these alien relics could have, along with a sales pitch from the ship.

    I love these two diversions because they are rich with succinct, intelligent writing and also function as a pseudo model viewer, a feature I adore in any game.

    Overall, there is a surprising amount of text in the game, and much of it may go overlooked. What's more is that the only times you hear from Olimar and Louie are in their writings. Thus, there's a lot of character stuffed into their notes and logs that, although you don't need to engage with them at all, to me feel like a crucial part of the Pikmin 2 experience.

    Here's another thing to look at: the promotional art for the first two Pikmin games featured a lot of incredible clay models in real world environments. There's one particular standout featuring a cat peering over the edge of a table.

    I have an intense fondness for even the most frustrating parts of Pikmin 2. There are moments, most often in caves, which could be characterized as unfair and unpredictable. You will be assailed by forces borne not out of logic or reason but the pure mischievousness of a devilish trickster. Sometimes it borders on what feels like outright malice. Most of these dungeon-like caves modularly randomize the elements of their floors upon each visit; meaning, two different visits to a dungeon floor will contain all the same elements, but scattered differently throughout varying floorplans. Some decry the dungeons as a low point of the game -- despite the large percentage of the experience they occupy -- because you can find yourself in nightmare scenario layouts. I find this tension to greatly enhance the replayability of the game and to be quite thrilling.
    "They whirl asunder and dismember me."

    The understated MIDI soundtrack implements the same modular randomization when in caves, and is also dynamically altered underground and on the surface depending on in-game events. Music in most caves utilizes segments from a "complete" song. These segments are shuffled as you go about your business in the cave. So segment 2 could be followed by segment 7, which could be followed by segment 3, and so on. You'll always hear parts of the same designated song, but never in the same order. There are also rules for when silence can play and where. This is an incredible display of creative musical composition as each segment of a song must sound like a natural fit next to any other. This is an ingenious element of the game and is, lamentably, easy to overlook.

    Layers of the song are swapped and added based on events like:

  • Time of day; the music switches to a music box rendition when sunset is approaching
  • Being near berries; strings are added in to the mix
  • Being near enemies
  • Being in active combat
  • Having Pikmin in the field carrying treasures
  • Being near working Pikmin (i.e. those building a bridge)
  • There are thus a staggering number of variations one "base song" may take. Note that those first two elements in the list can only occur aboveground, but all tracks underground actually have their own versions with these layers as well; they're simply muted in the final game.

    Other elements of the music may be altered:

  • Depending on which character you're playing as; notes may also be played straight (Olimar) or swung (Louie/President)
  • Your lead character's remaining health; music will be played at half speed while in control of them when health is below 50%
  • And most obscurely, entering a cave with more than 10 Pikmin and then losing enough to bring that number below 10 Pikmin; certain notes in the melody will be removed
  • When you're in the midst of a boss battle, the following rules apply:

  • When you encounter a boss; whatever music (or oftentimes lack thereof, as most final floors cut out the music entirely until encountering the boss) is playing will be overridden by the boss battle music
  • When the boss actively attacks; another layer of intense music plays until the conclusion of the attack phase
  • If there are multiple "boss-class" enemies on the sublevel; the boss theme will not conclude once initiated until all are defeated

  • Being on a sublevel designed for rest and replenishment of your Pikmin population results in the following:

  • Calming synth instruments play, and no layers are added when fighting enemies
  • The only alteration to the music comes when Pikmin are carrying treasure; a warbly instrument plays
  • And finally, the Submerged Castle, the bane of many playthroughs, takes away the musical randomization and only has two factors to consider:

  • Each sublevel leading up to the final sublevel plays an unchanging choral melody of unnerving moans
  • If you spend more than five minutes on these sublevels, the unstoppable Waterwraith drops from the ceiling and pursues you, and alarming chase music plays, which is also not randomized
  • I highlight this as extensively as I do because I find it to be a thoughtful, medium-specific form of musical composition that you could only experience through playing a videogame. All this beautiful sense of creation for an aspect of the game that I never truly noticed, and certainly was not able to comprehend, when I was younger. A great video by YouTuber "Scruffy" provided much of this information in detail and describes the in-depth processes of these musical twists if you're interested in learning more. The compositional choreography on display here is nothing short of exceptional, and functions like an incredible machine. The game musically reacts to so many actions you take that it can at times feel like a beautiful game of call-and-response. If you're not aware of it, however, it may go completely unnoticed and simply blend into the overall palette of the game. And that's beautiful too.

    When I first played the game as a younger lad, I dreaded the combat elements of the game, mourning each Pikmin I lost. I opted instead to defeat what enemies I could with the captains' punches alone, and worked to increase my Pikmin population to what was probably near one thousand units each for the red, yellow, and blue colors. Now when I play I head straight into the combat against most enemies with little hesitation, but still feel terrible when I lose even a single one of my plucky squad. This type of game is, I think, a test of your disposition. You could give a slobbering child a virtual pet Tamagotchi or even plop them in front of something like Vivarium's Seaman and see how attentive they are to it, but the Pikmin games give the player such direct control over the fate of living creatures that pose all sorts of moral dilemmas about sacrifices and wellbeing. Seeing how someone takes charge of their wards could provide valuable insight into how they would handle an extremely microwave-able and real hamster. The series has vastly improved the intelligence and pathing of the Pikmin themselves since the first two entries, but the struggle of Pikmin 2 feels visceral, like you are actually wrangling little creatures who trip and dawdle, smile and laugh, live and love. You can choose to treat them as expendable, or view each one as having a soul and conscience.

    Anyways, when I engage with Pikmin 2 today I am naturally brought back to those first moments I played it alongside my friend, discovering the world, series, and inventive gameplay. My opinion on the game is inextricably steeped in nostalgia and I simply cannot unlink it from that perspective. But then again, no review is objective (and this is barely a "review," moreso musings). I have few negative thoughts about the game even though I know it can be unwieldly and, despite lacking an ultimate time limit, lay some incredibly concentrated, unforgiving moments of difficulty on the player. It was this danger and risk that immediately hooked me and my friend on the premise of the game in the first place. I am endlessly fascinated by Pikmin 2, but am not an expert. Just an enthusiast more than anything. I have made playing through the game a bit of an annual tradition in recent years, and am currently playing through a mod of the game called Pikmin 2 Regrown, which I hope to provide thoughts on in the future. It's one of those games where I simply enjoy existing in the world, among the strange vegetation and bizarre beasts, dividing and conquering with my team, and gathering unimaginable treasures. Please forgive my indulgence here as I basically just heaped uncritical praise on this game. It is not a game for everyone, but for me the experience is as irresistible as it is treacherous, made so through the glorious pillaging and plundering, pitting the forces of Mother Nature against one another in a bewitching battle for dominance. I hope the next game adds blood.

    Cavern of Dreams is an ethereal, sometimes clunky, loveletter to a bygone era of 3D collectathon gaming.

    Published on The GiganticPingu Chronicle on 10/6/2024

    DISCLAIMER: Please note my playthrough of the game was based on pre-v7.4 version of the game available prior to December 8, 2023, and as such, I am not aware of the "quality of life improvements" made to the game since. Much of this text was written around that time period as well.

    I first played the Steam demo for Cavern of Dreams earier in 2023 as part of what I believe to have been Steam Next Fest. I was immediately charmed by the game's whimsical presentation. The little dragon fellow you play as, Fynn, is nothing but a cutie. The ethereal music adds to the dreamlike quality, as do the environments, which grow increasingly warped and bizarre as the game goes on. The game impressively captures the essence of what made fifth generation videogames so captivating and mysterious. Something about the game's world feels beautifully unknowable. I am in it, I am experiencing it, I do not know how its origins or how

    Looking back now, about 10 months after the close of my initial playthrough with the full game, having completed 100% of the experience and left only with scattered thoughts I typed up after this haze ended, I will say I greatly enjoyed my time with Cavern of Dreams and it certainly helped fill the void left by this modern derth of 3D collectathons The obvious comparison is Banjo-Kazooie, and if you have enjoyed it or its peers, you'll find much to love here as you journey across this otherworldly realm in search of your scattered siblings.

    I have two main gripes with my experience:

    1) Cavern of Dreams attempts to capture the oftentimes obtuse puzzle structures of N64-era collectathons, and requires the use of strange environmental clues to find solutions which sometimes border on inscrutable. I enjoy the spirit of this approach, but several puzzles are so difficult to make sense of that it led to frustration more than any sort of sense of accomplishment. One particular puzzle involving rotating stars in an observatory bedevilled me to no end.

    2) The movement is frequently clunky, jittery, and impeded by the strange geometry in levels which many times does feel suited for platforming. A frozen statue will have slanted and sharp points which you slide off of despite your best efforts. Springy mushrooms may catapault you halfway across the map straight into a wall, with no clear way on how to alter that trajectory. Slopes slow down your character's movement to a glacial crawl.

    Despite my complaints noted above, Cavern of Dreams still calls out to me. Perhaps not since Yakuza 5, or perhaps even LSD: Dream Emulator, has a game so intensely conveyed the idea of the "dream." The scructure of the world's levels makes just enough sense to pass as legitimate. But it all feels tenuous; everything is at the whims of the dream master.

    When I was younger, I tried to forcibly lucid dream, in the sense that I wanted to be able to "control" the flow of my dream, to some extent. It had happened onyl once, accidentally, before I was even aware of the concept; I was in a geometric hellscape, climbing and scrambling, and I became aware of the dream's existence. Once you realize this fact, it is challenging to maintain composure and remain under sleep's influence. I read later that, when nestled in bed, if you lay flat on your back, place both your arms by your side, remain completely still, and empty your mind, you would have a higher chance of bringing about a lucid dream. Nowadays, I just let my dreams happen, and (when I have the energy) note what I remember of them upon waking in a dream journal. I have kept this journal for around 8 years, and I don't always enjoy looking through it.

    What are dreams, and why must we have them? Some are so beautiful they could make me cry. Others are so terrible that, well, they could also make me cry. Dreams are often described as pairing the familiar with the strange, and I have sometimes found myself ridiculously hoping that my own are possibly visions of what could have been, or what may in fact be somewhere else, somewhere unreachable, where events play out and life goes by under a different set of governing rules. I also believe this way of thinking can be dangerous, and could maybe lead to escapism, but choosing to believe that dreams may be real in some sense and exist in parallel to our own lives can provide some sort of comfort all the same. In Cavern of Dreams, you are merely a visitor. Let the experience wash over you while playing it, and continue trying to grasp for that truth just out of reach, forever inscrutable.

    BEST OF ARCADE FOR WINDOWS 95 contains over
    ONE HUNDRED 32-bit shareware games for you and me to play

    Published on The GiganticPingu Chronicle on 2/4/2024

    And I purchased it for nintety-nine U.S. cents plus tax from the AbleLight Thrift Shop, formerly Bethesda Thrift Shop, in northcentral Wisconsin. This was scooped up alongside three "vintage" coffee mugs on which were printed various "Menard's" hardware store logo designs (a fortuitous find!) and a black knit sweater emblazoned with a garish pink/green flower design surrounding a single word: "HYPED." Picture of the haul to be shared in due time.

    I've thought to chronicle the myriad of games included on this shareware superabundance along with my thoughts on some of them, which, starting with the next section, are colored in orange. I will update this as I make fun discoveries and try out more of the games (some aren't exactly compatible with today's hardware). As was common with small, often single-person projects from this time in the shareware space, the handiwork of the author is felt everywhere throughout this collection; little messages and easter eggs are scattered amongst included text files and menus, appearing like beacons in the night, inviting us to grasp hold of the developers' outstretched hands and join them on a highly personal journey. Of the more than 100 games included, five were described by the authors as some variation of "interesting." Other favorite descriptors include: "simple," "fun," and "great." The games are categorized thusly:

    ACTION

  • Blitzer: Save group of scientists from Alien Invasion Force. By Steve Sherman.
  • Bombman!: Remake of Classic Atari Game. By Geron T. Isreal.
  • Botz: Go Bot hunting in the Garden of Zardonia. Complete with Sound and Rendered Graphics. By WinGames, Inc.

    Fractal Fighters: Drive your tank over Fractal Landscape and challenge your foe. By Giovanni Tummarell.

    [Fractal Fighers receives my highest commendations simply for its starting menu. A wealth of gameplay options, statistics, and accompanying media. Check out that snapshot of Mr. Tummarello himself (from his Quickcam nonetheless!) Is the MIDI that plays an original composition? Listen and decide for yourself! Either way, it's an aural delight!]


  • SimFero: Outdraw your opponent...or else. By One on One.
  • Star Killer: Full 32 bit Windows Arcade shooter action game. Raytraced spirtes, 8 digital audio and WinG-powered graphics! Requires High or True Color Video. By W. Mike Hare.
  • World Empire IV: Successor to the Popular Game. By Viable Software Alternatives.

  • ARCADE

    Amazing Maze: A Maze Game for Windows95. By Esa Myllyla.

    [This is basically the beloved character PAC-MAN if he was profoundly evil. This is the result of that beautiful yellow orb being corrupted so utterly that he no longer has any semblance of a conscience or soul, as if he were transmogrified into a small drooling cherry tomato. It's PAC-MAN for ADULTS. The in-game rendition of Bach's Toccata and Fugue is appropriate because Amazing Maze is nothing more than a death march. You only have TEN DAYS to play this shareware before EVIL SALIVA-COVERED PAC-MAN POPS OUT OF YOUR COMPUTER. This game is twisted and sinister and there's no other way to put it.]

    [The whole thing reminds me of a character devised by a childhood friend of mine known as the "Evil Pringles Man." It was the Pringles man on the Pringles tubes but if he had a sinister glint in his eye. This is pretty much what Amazing Maze is. For these reasons I give it a perfect score.]


  • Archery: Simple Game of hitting the Applec core. By Hobbes.
  • ATR: Maneuver your ship to avoid the Roids. By J. Miles.

    [In-game menu says "ATR II"... you really can't trust anyone these days...]


  • Blackboard Ball Jump: Ring the bell!! By BlackBoard Software.
  • Boogaloopers: The Council has selected you as their special agent to clean up the Boogas in the Void. By Stick Man Games, Inc.

    [Perhaps the most well-made game of the lot. But challenging! One part Libble Rabble and one part Pokémon Ranger.]


  • Boom: You control Wizzard to gain more points than your opponent. By Applied Software.
  • Challenge Pool130: Great Game of Nine Ball. By Jiping Pang/Zheng Lee.
  • Dynamite Joe: Escape from jail via tunneling. By QC.
  • FaceOff: Try hitting the Happy Faces! By Robin L. Cheung.
  • Gazillionaire: Become a Gazillionaire in the Galaxy. By LavaMind.
  • Gopher Golf: Miniature game of golf. By B&B Software.
  • Gravballs: Interesting game of placing Ball in Pipeline. By Wayne Phillips.
  • Gravity Well: Interstellar war for Windows. Battle three computerized opponents. Fast paced game. By Software Engineering.
  • Ice Qube Hopper: Your goal is to bounce the hapless penguin Qubey up, down, and around the mazes of Qubes! By Elpin System.
  • Invaders95: Space Invaders for WIN95! By NanZarts.
  • Krypton Egg: The ultimate Break-Out!

    Looney Labryinth: Looney Labyrinth is a pinball game that has SVGA graphics and supports Windows compatible sound cards.

    [I've always been intimidated by pinball tables. Oftentimes the visual design is so dense and complex that it overloads my senses. Not to mention that I've never really felt like I have a great deal of control over where the pinballs go. I would lament my lack of pinball prowess at the local pizza parlor Sam's Pizza over a delicious large pie, cut up into near-bite size squares. I am intimidated even by Looney Labyrinth, which aims to emulate the look and feel of those classic tables we all know so well. During my play session I managed to hit the jackpot and utterly destroy the minotaur. The announcer was shouting at me all the while. Well-made pinball fun!]


  • Lunar Basketball: Play basketball amoung the planets. By P.S. Neeley.
  • Penny's Arcade: Complete Shooting Gallery of Fun. Has Sound and 256 color rendered Graphics. By WinGames, Inc.
  • Peron 1.0: Tricky Game of Stearing Marbles. By Freelance Development.
  • Ping Collection: Four variations on the game of Ping. By Lionel/Y Lamoreaux.
  • Poolster 1.0: Interesting Pool Game, with Three Variations. By JHC SoftWare.
  • Prairie Dog Hunt: Shoot them varmits! By Division Software.
  • Roar: By 5212 Entertainment.
  • Sapiens: Adventure Game that take you back 100,000 years. By Diddler & Oliver Guillion.
  • Snake Byte: Try to eat all the apples and then exit. By Mike Fikes.
  • Snooker: Play two variations of the great game of Snooker. By Sushi Chandra.
  • Space Fighter: Pilot a fighter through space. By TCTesting.
  • Space Invaders96: Shoot the Space Invaders before they get you! By Leprechaun Software.
  • Space Mines: Recover Space Modules from dangerous mine fields. Requires Visual Basic to run. By Aamer and Adil Farooki.
  • Star Merc: Your job is to protect shipping lanes, and outposts throughout your assigned sectors of space. By DIVERSIONS SOFTWARE.
  • TC Virtual World: A 3D shoot-em-up game against tanks, planes and helicopters (Oh my!). By TCTesting.

    Toni Tank Top: Help our Hero escape from the Mad Cows! By Tan Chai.

    [When you close the Toni Tank Top application a delightful goodbye animation pops up along with a song that honestly is a bit of a banger.]


  • Trek War: Pilot the starship! By TCTesting.
  • Wall-Up for WIN: Guaide different colored balls into different colored targets! By Soleau Software.
  • WarpCycle2: Sequel to WarpCycle which was based on the movie Tron. By Bjoem Ischo/Florian Schulte.
  • World Class Decathlon: Become a World Class competitor with this training program. By Magic Games.

  • BLOCKS

  • Gemstorm: The storm has come and with it falling Gems. Your job is to keep the Gems from filling up the land. By Malachite.
  • Laster Blocks: Laser Blocks is a TETRIS like game. By Bela Von Hoffman.

    Tiles & Tribulations: Catch falling colored tiles and drop them into bins in a logical manner. By Technological Computer Innovations Corp.

    [The smooth rotation of the falling blocks cements this game in a league of its own.]


  • Tiles32: Windows95 Game that allows you to create your own layout. By Ron Balewski.

  • BOARD

  • 5 or More: Addictive Logic Game. By MidStream, Inc.
  • Arasan 4.0: Chess Playing Game for Windows95. By Jon Dart.
  • Bedtris 2: Intresting variant of Tetris. By One or Two Playing Game with Multiple Difficulties.

    [A variant of Tetris so "intresting" I had to forcibly close it via the task manager.]


  • Board Game for Windows: Board game for the whole family. By Lezlisoft.
  • Checkers without a Name: Checkers via the Internet. By Chuck Mason.
  • Chess: Chess for Windows 95. By Daryl Baker.
  • Chinese Checkers: Simple Game of Chinese Checkers. By Giles Khouzam.
  • Desk Drop: Fast paced game where the object is to match up three similiar tiles. By Soleau Software.
  • Diaggle for Windows: "Tetris" type game but on the diagonal! By Soleau Software.

    [I mean, it's Tetris type game, but on the diagonal. Whoa! Soleau Software keeps splurting out hit after hit. This is one I'd genuinely love to become a world-renowned professional in.]


  • Dots: Draw Lines to Close and Claim Squares. By Paradigms Lost.

    [I could open up my near-death Apple iPhone 7 at this very moment and challenge any number of my contacts to a losing battle of this game's variation via iMessage. Though I much prefer the penguin iceberg game.]


  • Go-Moku 95: Windows95 version of the 5-in-a-row game. By GoodGuys, Inc.
  • In the Pit: Interest Game that is very challenging. By VReal.
  • KopyKat:Interesting little game that taxes your memory. By BlackBoard Software.
  • Magic Squares 3.1: Simple Games of you against the Computer. By Fabrice Claes.
  • Mastore Mind 1.0:Mastore Mind is a complete computer implementation#of the traditional Master. By Norbert Mueller.
  • Omega 1.1: Intriging Numbers Game. By Kazushi Oernold.
  • Red vs. Blue: Strategic Board Game, you against the Computer. Needs 65000 colors. By Guilhem Mouton.
  • Secret Number: Guess the Number generated by the Computer or your Opponent. By Daren Cotter.

    Tic Tac Toe: Old fashioned game for Windows 95. By Matthias Schussler.

    [The classic three-in-a-row game but if it had the aesthetics of Persona 2: Innocent Sin and was developed by one of the little Bavarian boys who so often bedvil me online. Das Spiel ist unestschieden! As if tic-tac-toe ever results in any other outcome.]


  • TurboGo: Windows95 version of the ancient game of GO. By Arnoud van der Loeff.

    WinBrick.96: The aim of this game is to remove all removeable bricks from the desk and to get as many points as possible. By Stefan Kuhne.

    [Honestly a pretty good clone of Breakout. Although with any variation of the classic brickbreaker, the game is naturally at its most fun about 10 seconds in when you both have a lot of bricks and your ball is ricocheting off them in a satisfying manner. There are a surprising amount of power-up items. And better yet, when you lose your ball, there's a chance text will pop up saying "Please god, help this guy!" Neat!]


  • Xeno: Capture all opposing pieces so that your colors are on top. By Spudhead Software.

  • BONUS KIDS FOLDER

    101 Puzzle: Put together a puzzle of 101 Dalmatians. By Disney.

    [This demo version contains around only half of the advertised number of dalmatians. Shameful.]


  • 3d Maze: Generate and Solve Puzzles under Windows 95. By James L. Dean.
  • Annie's Craft: Combine learning with fun in craft projects. By dot.ware.
  • Arcadia: Six games in one. Spelling,Concertration,Memopy and more. By ALS.
  • Board Games for 2: Eight Board Games! Including Chess, Checkers, Fox & Hounds and more! By WinGames, Inc.

    Crayola's Magic Coloring Book: Great Demo of Coloring Book. By IBM.

    [An absolute personal highlight. Everything I want out of a digital coloring book. Wacky sound bytes when selecting each color and utensil. An ocean setting so serene that if I didn't know I lacked fishy gills I would do everything to make a similar aquatic paradise my home. That Kathy Bates movie A Home of Our Own should have been about this dwelling right here. It should have been about the ocean dwellers. Anyways, here's a drawing I helped a certain egghead I'm fond of fill in. Check out the provocative color on that coral!]

    [Also worth mentioning: Moments before writing this, the clock I had hung up on the wall via a thumbtack and corkboard just fell and smashed to the ground in my kitchen. I'll go buy a new one at Target tomorrow.]


  • Dino Spell: Great Spelling Game for 7 to 12 year olds. By Dyno Tech Software.
  • Dyno Cardsv1.1: Card game for 5 to 9 year olds. By Dyno Tech Software.
  • Europe for Windows: Learn about our friends in Western Europe. By Torpedo Software.
  • Hangman: Computerized version of the old game of Hangman. By Jason E. Tenney.
  • Hansel & Gretel: Hanzel and Gretel with coloring program. Great! By Tellitagain.
  • Kids Pow Wow: Personal Communications for the Internet, designed for kids. By Tribal Voice.
  • Know Europe: Learn Capitals and Languages of Europe. By Creative Wonders.
  • Math Bee: Game that helps student learn math. By BMT Micro.

    [Such an earnest creation. It's little more than simple math problems, but with each correct answer you're rewarded with a voice clip telling you "that's right!" or "great job!" Any reference to the titular bee is limited to the starting menu. The game might have been known by "Add Bee" or "Addition Bee" at some point based on file names.


  • Math Mouse: Teaches Addition, Subtraction, Division and Multiplication in different way. By Hufnagel Software.
  • Paddle Battle: Try and Knock the Ball into the Goal. By Lawrence Goetz.
  • Pirate32: Create your own Pirate Ship with different Hull, Sails, Guns etc
  • Santa's Secret Valley: You are to protect Santa's Magic Sack, Magic Boots, and Magic Bell. By Alta Software

    [Wow, this completely stole the show for me. It's a first person point-and-click adventure full of charm, and the demo left me wanting more. Dreamlike in a manner reminiscent of the Rankin/Bass production The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. The art is impressive and sits among the coziest Christmas media. The writing isn't half bad either. You can find the full version of this game online in tons of places, and it seems the full thing is actually pretty fleshed out. The early version I played appears to have many graphical differences compared to later releases.]


  • Symme Toy: Neat program that teaches symmetrical art. By Hufnagel Software.
  • White Raven: Computerized version of the old game of Rook. By Syberdyne Systems.
  • Word Wacko: Word Substitution Program for your favorite stories. By Jim Knopf.
  • Zurks Rain Forest: Explore the mysteries of the Rain Forests. By Soleil Software.

    CARDS

  • Big Two and Friends: Play Popular card game against three computers. By Derel Fung.
  • Canasta 4.1: The Great Old Game of Canasta for Windows95 and NT. By Mark-Jan Harte.
  • Golf Patience: A Card Game for Golfers. By Arthur Crump.
  • Hardwood Solitaire: Beautiful renditionof Three popular Card Game. By Silver Creek Entertainment.
  • SoLaTor Suite 1: Free Games of Solitaire. By Howard Patch.

  • CASINO

  • Ancient Ivory: Ancient dice game with nice graphics. By LatticWork Software Inc.
  • Bonus Wheel Slots: Three slot machines in one. By Ultisoft.


  • Eddies Yahtzee: Roll the Dice in this version of 5 card draw. By Eddie Sullivan.
  • Player's Choice Video Keno 1.5: The Old Game brought up to date for the computer. By Ron Dombroski.
  • Slots of Trivia v1.1: Sports Trivia in the form of a Slots Machine Game. By Ultimate Software.
  • SpyYatzy 1.0: Another version of popular Game. By Stefan Pettersson.
  • Wild Wizzard Slots v1.1: 3 Wheel-5 Payline Slot Game with Largest Slot Symbols ever seen. By Ultisoft.

  • COLORING

  • Coloring Book for Windows: Great Program for Kids. By Russel Holloway.

  • DEMO

  • Enigma Cross for Windows 4.0: Solve and create your own acrostic puzzles. By Crosstown.
  • Race Demo: Demo of Little Racing Game. By SSoft.
  • Rats95: Kill the rats before they overrun the Maze. By Sean O'Conner.

    [The progenitor to Bad Rats?]


  • MEMORY

  • Dyno match v4.0: Memory Game for 5 to 9 year olds. By Dyno Tech Software.
  • States & Capitals: Great Game of learning the various States. By M&M Software.

    [And what a great game of learning the various States it is! If you don't have that episode of The Animaniacs handy, then this is a good option for a 7th grade social studies class too. And you get fun facts like a state's bird and flower. Wow! Try putting together a song about THAT!]


  • PUZZLE

  • 3d Cubes: A 3d variation of 'Tetris'... By Maya.
  • Animal Square: Guess the position of 6 animals to beat the computer. By Dream Factory UK.

    [The ideal visual style. Windows 95 and Y2K aesthetic imitators wish they could capture this sense of whimsy.]


  • Apuzzle: Create your own puzzles from .bmp files. By Atur Jorge Azevedo Caralho.
  • Art Quiz: A Picture Puzzle program for Art Lovers! By Cascoly Software.
  • Bear: Try to put the Bear's Face back together. By Russell Sasanori.
  • BrainBreakers V2: Good puzzle to solve! By Juan Tijullio Tarradas.
  • Crypto 95: Great Cryptogram solver! By John B. Allen.
  • Dot to Dot Puzzles: Fun puzzle games for kids and adults! By Doodlebugs, Inc.
  • Frustration '96: This puzzle is only solved when all sides are blue...! By Bela Von Hoffman.
  • Peg Solitare: Try to remove all but one peg! By TC ConS Software.
  • Pic Tac Toe: Puzzle Game for Windows 95. By AHAI Software, Inc.
  • Puzzle 8: Variation of the old 8 tile puzzle. By PocketSized Software.
  • Virus15: Knuckle Banging Puzzle/Arcade Game where you are the bad guy. By Dyno Tech Software.
  • Wheel of Nuts: Match up the numbers along the sides of the nuts as quickly as possible. By HESHAM MOHRAN.
  • Words v1.1: Spell selected words by maneuvering falling letters. By Dyno Tech Software, Inc.

  • RACING

  • Home Stretch v3.3: Realistic and Fun Simulation and Wagering Horse Race Game. By Ultimate Software.

    [CUTE! Offers slow motion replays for those intense photo finishes. And "Beyond Therapy" is a true equestrian legend.]


  • Mutant Chicken Racing: Mutant chickens racing - it's fun! By TrentSoft.

    [I was able to discover that Mutant Chicken Racing was the much-deserved winner of the 1996 Weird Software Contest. An included text file provides some helpful additional context for the game: "Experience the thrill of owning a Mutant Chicken Ranch! Visit Klingy Fried Chicken, or Honest Abe's Used Chickens! Or just watch the little buggers & race!"]


  • Rally Racing: Fast Action arcade type game for Windows 95. By Stanley D. Chatman.

  • UTILITIES

  • DirectX V3: Drivers required for some games on this CD. When you get to the install screen click on the [Reinstall DirectX] button. By MicroSoft.
  • VBasic: Visual Basic files that are required by some of these programs. If you areprompted to, select [OK] for each file to be copied. By MicroSoft Corporation.
  • Web Trail: Allows parents to track where their children are investigation on the Internet! By ALS.

  • WORD

  • Apple: Spell the words before the apples fall of the tree. By Greg DeBacker.

    [I don't think "Greg DeBacker" is a real name.]


  • Hangman: The Old Game in 13 Languages. By Erwin Ravau.
  • New Bago: Interesting, Challenging, Word Game. By Gerhard Schmeusser.
  • Scramble: Practice Spelling and Vocabulary. By Steve Hornyak.
  • Supermotus: Find word of 5, 6, or 7 letters. By Cecile Copere.
  • Word Find: Fun Word Game with nice Graphics. By ASL.
  • Word Zap: Fun Word Game. By Michael F.C. Crick.

  • Published on Steam December 3, 2022

    Another great little game full of charm. And I'll say this: It really makes you feel like a kiwi!! Can't wait to see what comes next from Siactro!



    Update as of January 26, 2024

    Super Kiwi 64 just received a free major update with voice acting, cutscenes, and a whole new story mode with three experimental levels. The original release of the game was certainly lacking in terms of presentation, and with this update the game feels much more "complete." I can't get enough of Siactro games because they're so clearly labors of love.

    Published on Steam May 15, 2022

    Great game. Sure would love to be able to play it someday.

    Published on Steam on January 30, 2022

    Didn't expect to love this game as much as I did. It can of course be compared to Undertale/Deltarune but it really is its own thing in a very good way. It has some incredible standout moments from both a storytelling and audio/visual standpoint. It's got that irreverent quirkiness you probably expect but is also unique in so many ways. The main "battle" hook is a sort of reverse Guitar Hero setup where you dodge oncoming notes. It's a simple concept and it leads to some intense moments and really stunning, chaotic scenes. This ended up being one of my favorite games of the last year and it wasn't even on my radar until I stumbled upon it. Unforgettable. And the soundtrack is better than you can even anticipate it being.

    Published on Steam on January 25, 2022

    This is a great little game with an interesting history. Many know that it was a browser-based Flash game commissioned by Nintendo during the DS era. It functioned as an advent calendar, and each day you played through a single level before being rewarded with an advertisement for upcoming hot releases on the Nintendo DS. This revival of the game remains true to its original incarnation. The levels are designed with a lot of care and thought for exactly how the physics will work either in your favor or against you (basically permanent slippery ice physics). I felt the difficulty could be a bit much at times, especially with no checkpoints, so keep that in mind, particularly if you go for 100%. But overall this is a delightful game that has a lot of charm packed into it.

    Published on Steam on September 5, 2021

    Every sort of effusive praise has been laid upon this game over the years. Nothing more really needs to be said… BUT Chrono Trigger is indeed a titan in its genre, and for good reason is regularly listed as one of the greatest games of all time. Once you play it you will never forget the experience. It will stick with you forever, and JRPGs have just been chasing the level of quality on display here since its release. It has some of the most, dare I say, scenes of beautiful pixel art, such as the party at the campfire or the floating kingdom of Zeal. Great and unique active time battle system. Rich storytelling, scenarios, and characters. An unmatched soundtrack (if you haven't already, check out the "To Far Away Times" rearrangement album, especially its rendition of Corridors of Time).

    This has become a decent port despite its rough start and it is the easiest way to experience this masterpiece. I recently played through it again on New Game + to get the alternate endings and it was still such a joy to just be in the world. Unequivocal Recommend/10

    Published on Steam on July 8, 2021

    My, Earth really is full of things.

    The original Katamari Damacy is one of my favorite games of all time. The charm, the humor, the music, and the frantic gameplay all come together in such a perfect package. I've played this REROLL remaster on the Switch just recently and I also just played through it on Steam because I'm a sick freak. One of the weird technical problems with this game is the Names listing in the Collection mode being weirdly laggy in both the Steam and Switch versions. However I can say that I believe Katamari Damacy is one of those games that everyone should experience at some point, be it in its original form, or the REROLL version, which is really little more than a rerelease. And that's just fine because the core game is so thoroughly enjoyable.

    I purchased my PS2 and a large bundle of games from a garage sale one warm summer afternoon at the height of puberty for $100 even. I had known a PS2 lot was being sold at this particular garage sale because I had scoured the neighborhood listings in the days prior. So when the seller saw that I was oddly prepared to make this exact transaction, she asked if I had seen one of the postings about the sale. For some reason I said that no, I had just happened upon this sale, suggesting that I often ventured out with only a one hundred dollar bill and an empty backpack on my person. I don't know why I said this. But that was fine, because there were plenty of nuttier people around town for whom biking was their main mode of transport, such as Crazy Bike Guy, who seemed to do nothing but ride around town everyday shirtless no matter the season or weather. One time I saw him in the middle of an intersection picking up and smashing his bike on the ground. But anyways, after I made the purchase I gleefully rode back home, trove stuffed in my bag,

    Among the titles were each incarnation of Grand Theft Auto available for the system, BLACK with its bullet casing-riddled boxart, and a host of indistinguishable Tom Clancy games. Katamari was not among the lot, BUT it didn't take long for me to pick it up from the local used game store, now deceased (rest in peace Jonny Cee's). I will say this was a time in my life when I was very unhappy with myself. It was great and still is great to have a game that really is just pure distilled joy. Today I'm unhappy with myself for many of the same reasons, if not quite as angsty. But I digress.

    Even if things are just things, they still have their purpose. There is a time and place for everything. You wouldn't guess this at first glance playing Katamari Damacy, which relishes in the excess of materialism. On the surface the game world is littered with anachronistic objects, but closer up they all have some sense of order to them. They may be part of some little vignette somewhere within the organized chaos. The cosmos are in chaos too. When you restore the stars to the sky you may wonder if the end result is really better than what it was like before. But that's okay. Things often have an order and purpose to them even if it doesn't seem like it from a distance.

    A dual stick controller is necessary for this game. The controls are unique and may take a while to get used to. This really is the only downside to the game and can be a significant hurdle to overcome, but it's worth it and the controls do make sense. The gameplay is nonstop kinetic action as you roll around your little ball in the shape of those Covid-19 news renderings. The soundtrack is among the best in videogame history. The writing is witty and sharp. There is no greater feeling than when the King praises you for being "so speedy and so smart."

    A MUST-PLAY, and for me a near-perfect game.

    Published on Steam on July 8, 2021

    When Capcom released their "REmake" of the original Resident Evil it was obvious they struck gold with the engine and style. It would have been a waste to use that architecture for only a single game. Resident Evil 0 was born of both that desire and work that had been started on its cancelled N64 counterpart.

    The first environment in the game is a luxury passenger train. Before playing I'd always wondered how the developers adapted puzzles and combat to such a cramped space. They certainly pulled it off. Though there are some more open areas with familiar structure later in the game, I think much of it shares this same claustrophobic feeling, which adds to the tension. It's the same ornate environment design as REmake, and it creates a great atmosphere. You could realistically probably get through this train section in 10 minutes if you know what you're doing, and I wish there was more of it. I'd love to see future RE games return to this sort of unconventional setting as opposed to exclusively sprawling mansions and castles.

    This game has you controlling two characters in the forms of series favorite Rebecca Chambers and newly-introduced escaped convict Billy Coen. Both are pretty likable and I would have liked to see more character vignettes play out between them. RE Revelations was for some reason obsessed with this idea of "pairs" and never really made much clever use of it. It's better implemented here than it is in both Revelations and RE5. Mechanically the partner system is fairly interesting and it works quite well. You'll have to carefully manage two inventories and juggle items, made all the more difficult when Rebecca and Billy are separated. The AI is a bit useless at times but passable. I wish there were more puzzles oriented around Rebecca and Billy's personal items (chemical set/lighter). There are only really 4 or 5 from what I can recall.

    Speaking of inventory management, I find it a bit weird that you're able to just drop items on the ground and leave them anywhere, as opposed to dropping them all into a shared inventory item box you can access elsewhere. You really have to remember where you've put things. At first I thought I kind of liked it, but not having items tied to a universal item box means that you may find several maps between yourself and crucial items you carelessly dropped earlier in the game. I happened to leave the grenade launcher in the lab area without realizing it and really could have used it near the endgame. I wasn't going to make the long trek back for it, though. It can also lead to situations where you've placed things at an awkward angle that just makes it a pain to try and maneuver your character into the correct position to pick it up again. I noticed a lot of items are placed in positions next to examinable features of the environment (ie a painting or statue or whatever). So when you try to pick up the item you end up examining the environment instead. The fixed camera (second-person perspective?) contributes to this confusion, and can definitely act as a hindrance to general movement and battle when the enemy is out of frame. For those accustomed to the freeform camera perspectives offered by the recent third-person 2 & 3 remakes or the first-person RE7, this game may understandably be a bit of a struggle at first.

    For fans of the series, this game still holds up as the first chronological entry in-universe. The love and care put into the game is clear in the lavish environments and item models. The eerie soundtrack is a standout as well (the safe room theme is among the best of its peers). It's also got a fair bit of replayability with some cool bonuses (Wesker mode, Leech Hunter). The puzzles are well thought out, if at times a bit tedious. Overall, I definitely enjoyed it, but I can get if people are turned off by the outdated control scheme and camera. Great/10

    Published on Steam on July 8, 2021

    Undoubtedly one of the all-time greats, of JRPGS, of Persona/SMT games, and of videogames in general. There really isn't even any reason for another review of this to be written. It's an absolute behemoth of a game, but an unequivocal recommendation.

    There are two core sides to modern Persona games: the social sim elements and the dungeon crawling. These dual systems interlock beautifully; as your relationships with friends grow, so too does your ability in battle.

    Your free time is spent hanging out with your friends, increasing your social stats, or partaking in a few other activities. When it comes to social links, it's probably most useful to build up the ones with party members, as specific bonuses in battle are granted, but the individual stories of the other social links are compelling enough that seeing them play out is enough of a reward. The narrative is captivating, and the themes of facing and accepting the darker parts of oneself, while not exactly part of a particularly deep text, still feel poignant.

    The dungeons can at times be a slog, as they're randomly generated and can be a pain to traverse. But battling itself remains interesting all throughout, and exploiting weaknesses and utilizing all-out attacks are always satisfying. Equipment setup is mercifully pretty straightforward, but a stronger weapon never guarantees your success in battle. When playing Persona games, I've always thought it felt like one wrong move may result in complete failure.

    Collecting Personas themselves can almost be considered a third core element of the game. It's funny that this aspect of the series is often compared to Pokémon, despite SMT debuting I believe 4 or 5 years before it. Anyways, fusing Personas you've collected to create new ones offers a lot of depth, and can be a bit overwhelming, but the customization it allows for in team setup is great.

    After playing Persona 4 Golden all the way through, I've felt compelled to reflect a bit on the legacy of the Persona series and how each game slots into its history. From what I've seen, most prefer either Persona 4 or Persona 5 as their favorite of the series. It's well known that P1/P2, due to their wildly different gameplay and systems, have come to be viewed as black sheep, but they're still fantastically unique games in their own right. As is Persona 3, though among the latter three games making up the "trilogy," it regularly seems to be an underdog when it comes to overall preference. Whether it be recency bias or substantial improvement between entries, I think it's clear that P4/P5 both excel in their own ways:

    -Persona 4 has incredibly endearing party members (minus Teddy, to hell with that guy. I greatly prefer Morgana), a great rural small town setting in sleepy Inaba, and a captivating overarching mystery with a stronger motive for the plot itself than in P5.

    -Persona 5 has an unmatched sense of style and arguably has superior dungeons, as they're bespoke creations with interesting puzzles and layouts. However, I always thought the dialogue in the original version was incredibly inefficient. It felt like simple things were explained in ten different ways right after one another. I haven't played Royal, however, so this may have changed.

    I don't know if I would be able to choose which OST I prefer between the two. P4 is more rock-oriented while P5 is almost jazz pop. With his Shibuya-Kei influences, Shoji Meguro early on cemented himself among the industry's greatest composers, and some of his best work is on display here. P4G's soundtrack is legendary, with personal highlights being "Alone," "SNOWFLAKES," and "Heaven."

    There are a number of improvements made in Golden to the base game provided by the original Persona 4, such as several new areas to visit, a couple additional arcanas, new (and in my opinion more fitting) voice actors for some characters, an expanded calendar, and added events. But of course the biggest difference is the ever popular Golden-exclusive character of Marie, who brings great extra content to the game.

    Why Atlus didn't realize that perhaps people would like to have convenient ways to play their back catalog is a mystery. You're telling me Persona 4 is popular? The game with a dozen spinoffs and two anime adaptations? What a shock. Hopefully the success of this game on Steam portends Atlus releasing more back catalog games on modern platforms in the future. Cannot recommend this game enough, and am looking forward to the SMT III Nocturne remake as well as SMT V. I just wish Atlus had added in the Yosuke romance route PLEASE ATLUS ADD IN ROMANCEABLE YOSUKE PLEASE

    Published on Steam on June 25, 2020

    Where do I begin? What do I even say? Does it get any better than this? Is ANYTHING better than this?

    As I type this I'm still convulsing -- violently -- shaken to my core over what I've just experienced. I saw the face of God, and God smiled back at me. Garfield cometh for my heart, and I? I let Him in. Willingly. Was this a mistake? In many ways, I'm a pessimist, but not for this. Garfield Kart: Furious Racing is an unequivocal force for good.

    I own one of the world's largest collections of official Garfield brand merchandise. Here is a photo of me with both Garfold and the one and only Mr. J. Davis.

    Thus, my time with this game rendered this day the happiest one of my life.

    Every morning I wake up screaming and every night I go to sleep smiling. A smile so large. I'm trying to emulate the grin of that fat orange cat. Yet I'm unable. Barring extreme reconstructive surgery, I simply cannot match the grin of that furry demon angel.

    At some point we will be forced to question what Garfiefl is. Is He even benevolent? Is He a yōkai of some sort? A djinn? A barong? The mythical Carbuncle? Perhaps on the back of Bahamut, on the back of Kujata, atop the Ruby Mountain at the apex of Creation, supporting the seven heavens and six hells -- and our own realm -- sits Garfielio. Who's to say otherwise?

    I'm always reminded of the lovable meme Grumpy Cat whenever I peruse the funnies for the latest strip featuring the rotund cat. Did Garfield somehow manifest this real-world cat into existence, a twisted mirror image of Himself? Never has Oscar Wilde and his counter to Aristotelian mimesis -- "Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life" -- been more apt, truly.

    Garfield Kart: Furious Racing, which I purchased as part of the oddly affordable "Lasagna Bundle !" after thoroughly enjoying the original Garfield Kart, will be a divine experience for you. Of this I have no doubt. Every mechanic works in tandem to present the greatest digital interactive experience possible in present day. My game often ran at a silky-smooth 12- or 13-frames-per-second whilst playing online. I can ask for nothing more than this, as I know my machine is not powerful enough to display the world of Garfield in all its glory.

    The voice acting is Oscar-worthy. In a word: superb. The moving performances for characters like the amiable yet simple Jon Arbuckle are haunting. His every laugh and yelp make my hair stand on end. Garfuld sounds appropriately smug, as He has every right to be. Nermal insists himself upon the player, his high-pitched, terrible shrieks reminding all of his universal hatred. He is but an imposter in a world he has no place in.

    The graphics? Unparalleled. The character models are gorgeous. The lighting effects mimic the world I see through my own eyes. I wonder if the developers were not given early access to Unreal Engine 5. I can find no other explanation for the level of fidelity on display here.

    And I must say: Liz, our sensual vet character and frequent object of Jon's repressed sexual lust, does look hot as hell. This I cannot deny.

    "What about the music?" you may ask. After the stellar soundtrack present in the original Garfield Kart, I was hoping there would be some returning favorites this time around; I wasn't disappointed. Though, I was surprised to learn the Original Soundtrack was, in fact, NOT composed by Alan Silvestri. Regardless, I can only tell you to buckle up and strap yourself in before letting it grace your ears, lest you give in to the urge to get up and dance in the midst of your competitive race at "Crazy Dunes" or "Catz in the Hood." Stupendous. Otherworldly. An aural treat.

    You will be changed by this "game." I hesitate to call Garfield Kart: Furious Racing only a game. I have experienced a high that has made up for every low I've experienced during my miserable, lonely life. I did not once feel "Furious" experiencing this product. Only a unique sense of calm and comfort. In an age where strife and conflict are the norm, the world of Garfield always presents a respite unlike any other. I too hate Monday. I too love lasagna. Perhaps I, too, am Garfield, as are you. Do not miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity.

    Published on Steam on May 25, 2020

    A fantastically simple (purposefully so) metroidvania that is pure Devolver through and through. Of course from a glance it's undeniably closer to Metroid than Castlevania, emulating much of the aesthetics of the original Metroid and evoking the visuals of Metroid II with its monochrome color pallet -- which is one of the things I love about these visually simpler Devolver games, all the color pallet options. The core gameplay and weapon/armor upgrades mirror much of the Metroid structure as well, though limited in scope. The world map, divided up into sections accessed by elevators, reminded me of Metroid Fusion more than anything else. And of course a certain achievement involving animals references Super Metroid. So this game really just embraces the parody of the genre, and does it well. Interestingly, the parts where you control the cat outside the mech brought to mind Blaster Master. The puzzles involving controlling just the cat proper outside the mech weren't the most enjoyable and could feel a little finicky. I suppose you're supposed to feel vulnerable outside the suit, which is effective, but it's not the most fun. But these sections don't overstay their welcome, and there aren't that many to begin with. The game is quick and snappy and feels good to play. Combat is satisfying and each shot feels good to land. It's not the most precise but the movement does feel good. The frequent save points leave little fear of death, though some bosses could be uncharacteristically challenging compared to the basic exploration sections. The world exploration itself is enjoyable and if you really scour the map you can get a 100% completion rate on your first run. Great game, thoroughly enjoyed it, would recommend.

    Published on Steam on May 24, 2020

    I've heard a lot of complaining over the years about the artstyle of this version of FFV, and everything I saw before I played it really did turn me off, but after spending some time with the game I got used to the artstyle. I don't know if I resigned myself to it or it just grew on me. But regardless, this is a mobile port, and thus it's not of the highest quality in some areas: -The "sprites" may appear blurry in some instances, and the UI and redrawn graphics generally look cheap -If you're using a controller you may find that there is simply no back button configured to the layout. If you have trouble with this, open up the FFV source folder and rename "opengl.dll" to "opengl.dll.bak" or "opengl32.dll" to "opengl32.dll.bak," depending on which you see -The cursor in battle, despite normally resting on the first option "Attack," sometimes randomly shifts to other commands when a character's turn rolls around. I don't know why this happens and haven't looked into it, but it can be really annoying at times when speeding through commands Overall though, the core substance of the game remains largely the same. I don't think this is a by any means a terrible way to experience the game, unless you're a complete purist. It's by far the most accessible Western release if you don't have the GBA or PSP versions at hand. I do also appreciate the use of Amano's artwork for the character portraits. The soundtrack, as is to be expected, is phenomenal and nothing beats Battle on the Big Bridge. The story is pretty lighthearted and rich with high fantasy elements in a throwback to the original, much like FFIX. A lot of character interactions are almost slapstick and the main cast has a good rapport. They're all memorable in their own ways. Several goofball side characters as well, particularly the infamous Gilgamesh. The hallmark of this game is the job system, which still feels ambitious today. The unique sprite designs for every class for each character is particularly impressive, as is the fact that each job class is for the most part viable, and the ability system allows an interesting mix of subclass specialization. There are so many ridiculous strategies that can be done if you really want to tear it apart. Ultimately, the mobile downgrades can't take away from the soul and structure of this game, and despite being viewed as an outlier in the FF series by some, it no doubt remains a classic in its own right.

    Published on Steam on March 7, 2020

    A classic in every way among the pantheon of mainline Final Fantasy entries. This game has probably been ported more than any other FF game, yet no one is sick of it because it's just that good. This 3D remake remains faithful to the original in terms of mechanics and characters, but a few battles -- like Barbariccia -- differ significantly from the SNES version. Updated translation and such compared to the original (though it thankfully keeps Tellah's "You spoony bard!" line). I believe this was the first game to introduce the ATB system which became the basis of battle for several subsequent entries. I was especially impressed with the presentation. While the DS-era graphics largely remain, the added voiceovers to cutscenes in my opinion really add a great deal. Alongside this, the characters and world are realized incredibly well, and I especially enjoy seeing the main characters directly interact with each other rather than only the hero. The ever-changing party is well-rounded, and the rotating members force you to fight differently depending on who is joining you. There's no job system, so each character specializes in one class and they grow along that route. I actually prefer this to the entries which include a dizzying array of classes for characters to take up, which can lead to a feeling that you may be ill-equipped for the next step because you've chosen an ineffective class. It's not an overly punishing game, though of course some parts do require more strategy than others. The only thing to be aware of is the Augment system, which, if managed the wrong way, will result in you missing on some useful abilities. So I'd recommend following a guide about how to distribute them properly, as there's no way you could really know. Overall, this is just a really great game with solid mechanics, story, and presentation; while purists may not prefer this version, you really can't go wrong with it. AND OF COURSE THE MUSIC BAYBEE CAN'T FORGET THE MUSIC. GREAT MUSIC, ABSOLUTELY UNFORGETTABLE TUNES. UEMATSU AT HIS BEST. THEME OF LOVE? INCREDIBLE.

    Published on Steam on February 13, 2020

    Simply put, this Game is like sucking on the teat of God. It is polished to a level not seen in a videogame product since Super Mario Sunshine on the Nintendo Game Gear. Every time I play this game I ♥♥♥♥ myself uncontrollably because I am overcome with emotion. All your favorites are here -- Glarfield, Odie, Jon, and the rest........ The soundtrack is a real earworm as well!! If someone were in a hospital bed dying with 5 minutes to live, I would tell them to play this game. Must play before dying. The narrative is very compelling as well. If you're not careful you'll fall victim on the raceway to Jim Davis and his nefarious traps. Thanks to Garfield and Mr. Davis for the game. L'chaim everyone.

    Published on Steam on February 4, 2018

    Folks the graphics for this game are outta this world. Them cutscenes remind of butter they're so smooth. The gameplay is your typical Chrono Dragon Fantasygears format, with a lot of spamming attack rather than magic because you want to move before the enenmy.. hahea.. My favorite part of this game is the random encounters, something I love in every game. Worst part of this game that could be the best is the MIDI soundtrack. Original PSX version had the superior soundtrack. Squall is no doubt the best FF protagonist because he is moody, edgy, and soulful much like meself. Buy this game if you like torturing yourslef