Compilation Archives - Tech-Gaming

Irem Collection Vol. 1 review

Robert Allen — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 02:43:38 +0000

Strictly Limited isn’t just one of the publishers- it also describes the amount of enjoyment found in this rushed compilation. For many, Irem (officially, Kabushikigaisha Airemu Software Engineering) is best known for the R-Type series. Following its 1987 arcade debut, R-Type spawned six sequels and five spin-offs, securing a much-deserved place in the shoot-‘em-up pantheon. ...

The post Irem Collection Vol. 1 review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

VISCO Collection review

Robert Allen — Sun, 29 Oct 2023 20:35:56 +0000

Revisiting the golden era of arcade gaming Across a fifteen-year period between 1986 and 2001, VISCO Corporation created 38 arcade games. What’s remarkable about this span isn’t just how prolific the Kyoto-based developer was. It’s also notable just how comfortable they were with tackling all the dominant genres of the era. From puzzlers, racers, platformers, ...

The post VISCO Collection review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

The Making of Karateka review

Robert Allen — Sun, 24 Sep 2023 00:19:49 +0000

Most of today’s retro compilations offer only brief glimpses into the development process. But The Making of Karateka chronicles the journey with the meticulousness of an academic historian and the flair of a multimedia artist. Advocates for game presentation worry about losing access to yesteryear’s titles. Undoubtedly, that’s a significant concern, given that The ...

The post The Making of Karateka review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster review

Robert Allen — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 17:36:35 +0000

Tragically overlooked in the early 2000s, Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster unites two innovative role-playing adventures into one, remarkable, deck-building bundle. Success is never guaranteed in gaming. Despite earning critical acclaim upon its 2003 release, Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean sold poorly in both Japan and the West. But co-developers ...

The post Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Taito Milestones 2 review

Robert Allen — Thu, 07 Sep 2023 02:45:31 +0000

Despite the lack of historical material and a few obligatory clunkers, Taito Milestones 2’s emulation is top-notch thanks to Hamster’s habitual diligence. As a retro anthology, 2002’s Taito Milestones was a bit lackluster. The collection, which revisited the publisher’s output during the 1980s, had a few gems like Qix, Elevator Action, and The Ninja ...

The post Taito Milestones 2 review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles review

Robert Allen — Sat, 02 Sep 2023 22:55:13 +0000

Take the initiative and enjoy this pair of uplifting RPG-musical classics. In most modern role-playing games, geopolitical tensions and world-ending threats are pervasive. But as the rereleases of 1999’s Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess and 2000’s Rhapsody III: Memories of Marl Kingdom remind us, some turn-of-the-century adventures conveyed carefree whimsy. The release of ...

The post Rhapsody: Marl Kingdom Chronicles review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration review

Robert Allen — Sat, 12 Nov 2022 03:50:21 +0000

A fitting tribute to the company that filled arcades with Pong and homes with consoles, Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration offers a comprehensive history and a decent selection of software. Today, gaming is a 220 billion dollar giant, that’s roughly double the size of the film industry. Of course, the medium wasn’t always so massive. ...

The post Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Turrican Anthology Volume II review

Robert Allen — Fri, 12 Aug 2022 20:18:38 +0000

Turrican’s latest collection offers five different titles. Three of them are a variation on the same game, another is the series’ low-point, and the last inclusion is a single-level‘ score attack’. Instead of facing this travesty head-on, our cybernetic warrior might want to avoid this battle altogether. At the time of Turrican’s release, the Commodore ...

The post Turrican Anthology Volume II review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Turrican Anthology Volume 1 review

Robert Allen — Tue, 09 Aug 2022 15:52:57 +0000

A trio of 16-bit series entries, a director’s cut, and a single-stage score attack await Turrican fans who didn’t already purchase Flashback. Between the duplication of titles across the previous collection, splitting the anthology across two volumes, and an exorbitant price point, justifying a purchase might be far harder than any of Turrican’s boss battles. ...

The post Turrican Anthology Volume 1 review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Wonder Boy Collection review

Robert Allen — Sun, 12 Jun 2022 17:46:30 +0000

Like some other recent compilations, Wonder Boy Collection offers a subset of the franchise’s history. The two arcade and Genesis/Mega Drive titles are adeptly emulated, but the subset of entries and the limited amount of supplementals undermine the effort. Few properties have a history as circuitous as Wonder Boy. The original arcade title was released ...

The post Wonder Boy Collection review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Taito Milestones review

Robert Allen — Tue, 12 Apr 2022 03:55:04 +0000

If you have the cash, the EGRET II mini offers four times as many Taito memories, with a tighter focus on the seminal ones. But for collectors on a budget, Taito Milestones bundles the company’s 80’s titles. If you haven’t already purchased these through the Arcade Archives series, this compiles ten of them, in a ...

The post Taito Milestones review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 Steam Edition review

Robert Allen — Sat, 09 Oct 2021 01:25:12 +0000

NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 bundles ten of the retro portable’s titles. While the portability of the Switch offered a pleasing recreation of the original experiences, the proliferation of devices like the GPD Win 3 and Steam Deck offers another way to enjoy this pleasing compilation. As the SNK 40th Anniversary Collection demonstrated, the company once ...

The post NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 Steam Edition review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania review

Robert Allen — Mon, 04 Oct 2021 18:03:26 +0000

The latest entry in SEGA’s Super Money Ball franchise celebrates the series twentieth anniversary, offering a greatest hits-style retrospective of rolling action. While the game’s encyclopedic approach is welcome, this party just isn’t quite as festive as it could be. Some of history’s best game ideas can be easily summarized in a single sentence. ‘The ...

The post Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Space Invaders Invincible Collection review

Robert Allen — Wed, 18 Aug 2021 00:16:28 +0000

Space Invaders Invincible Collection mostly lives up to the title, offering ten of the franchise’s most prominent entries, along with some underappreciated Taito gems. 32 years later, it’s all too easy to overlook Tomohiro Nishikado’s contribution to popular culture. But the engineer’s most remarkable creation, Space Invaders, would stimulate the proliferation of arcades, quadruple Star Wars’ box-office grosses, ...

The post Space Invaders Invincible Collection review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 review

Robert Allen — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 18:36:10 +0000

NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 bundles ten of the retro portable’s titles. While six have been available via a piecemeal approach, four others make their debut, creating a bit of a dilemma for those who have been purchasing the ports. As the SNK 40th Anniversary Collection demonstrated, the company once known as Shin Nihon Kikaku Corporation ...

The post NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol.1 review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Hammerwatch: Heroic Bundle review

Robert Allen — Sun, 13 Dec 2020 21:25:08 +0000

Hammerwatch: Heroic Bundle delivers two fiendishly fun twin-stick dungeon crawls for a frugal price. Hammerwatch Cooperative gaming is commonplace, thanks to games like 1985’s Gauntlet. Both the Atari arcade game and many of its home console adaptations functioned as a spirited single-player experience. But when a few friends joined in, the enjoyment grew exponentially. Here, ...

The post Hammerwatch: Heroic Bundle review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Darius Cozmic Collection Console review

Robert Allen — Wed, 24 Jun 2020 03:32:00 +0000

Collectors might call them rarities, less fervent fans might call them filler, but there’s a bit of redundancy and at least one series omission in Taito’s latest compilation. But that shouldn’t stop shooter supporters from this considering this assembly of Darius console ports and originals. There’s a bit of gaming history inside Taito’s Darius ...

The post Darius Cozmic Collection Console review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Namco Museum Archives Vol 1 & 2 review

Robert Allen — Mon, 22 Jun 2020 17:12:17 +0000

Each of the two volumes of Namco Museum Archives offers a mix of arcade, NES-exclusive, and an original eight-bit ‘demake’. Many of the games are still great, but the museum’s interiors are a bit too desolate. Increasingly, it’s becoming easier to enjoy yesteryear’s classics. Releases like Atari Flashback Classics, SNK 40th Anniversary Collection, and two ...

The post Namco Museum Archives Vol 1 & 2 review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

SNK 40th Anniversary Collection (PS4) review

Robert Allen — Mon, 18 Mar 2019 03:49:41 +0000

For many, SNK is probably best known for Neo Geo-based franchises like Metal Slug, Samurai Shodown, The King of Fighters, Art of Fighting, and Fatal Fury. But the company has a rich history that began long before their modular-based hardware was introduced in 1990. From 1979 to the late ‘80s, the Osaka-based firm focused on ...

The post SNK 40th Anniversary Collection (PS4) review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.

Atari Flashback Classics review

Robert Allen — Sat, 22 Dec 2018 21:27:07 +0000

The Birth of a Giant The Atari VCS wasn’t the first cartridge-based console, but it undoubtedly popularized home gaming across the late 1970s and early 1980s. During the system’s miraculous fifteen-year life span, it sold over 30 million units, spurred the creation of third-party publishers like Activision and Imagic, and would even become a part ...

The post Atari Flashback Classics review appeared first on Tech-Gaming.