A Bit of KO: Punch-Out!!

So, while talking to my husband about one of my newest forays into athleticism (Boxing), it was mentioned that now that I know how hard it is, I should write up a post about Mike Tyson's Punch-Out. While I don't, by any means, think that this is one of the best games of all time, I do definitely think it deserves more attention than it typically gets when it comes down to traditional NES games.

A Bit of Speed: Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog. I mean, who doesn't or didn't love Sonic the Hedgehog? While I don't think that I was quite old enough to play Sonic when it first first came out, I definitely did when I was a bit older. I remember myself, and two boys who lived near my dad's house each gave each other nicknames corresponding to the different Sonic characters—I was Tails. Either way, Sonic was a game that defined our generation, to my understanding, and I felt that it deserved to be mentioned here.

A Bit of Intelligence: Intelligent Qube/Kurushi

While the gameplay for Intelligent Qube is a basic principle at best, this game for the original Playstation had me obsessed when it was first released in 1997.  This probably is because of the beginning onset of a completionist gamer mentality, but each time the blocks crushed me or I continued to persevere through each of the game's increasingly difficult levels.

A Bit of Amphibians: Battletoads

Battletoads, along with being one of the most popular NES and NES ports of all time, won numerous awards. In fact, it won first place in the categories of: Graphics and Sound (NES), Theme and Fun (NES), Best Play Control (NES) and Best Multi-Player or Simultaneous (NES) and was nominated for 9 awards in total at the 1992 Nintendo Power Awards. Despite this, it is most commonly associated with its difficulty, something that sometimes even the most advanced players were not able to overcome. All that being said, I loved the game and I know that many of the people that have played the various versions of the game or watched the cartoon feel the same way.

A Bit of Brainpower: Dynamite Headdy

Originally released for Sega Genesis and designed by Treasure, Dynamite Headdy is a creative platformer which requires you to use your head. Literally. While there were many platformers around this time, it being the main style of game used in 8- and 16-bit games, this one took the typical tropes and skewed them, making for an incredibly unique experience.

A Bit of Bugs: Worms Armageddon

Despite the fact that the principle and play of this game was pretty basic, it still merits a mention as one of the better "old school" games in the memories of myself and fellow players. You could play it as a single player campaign, single player "deathmatch" mode (which essentially was a challenge against the computer, or as a local or online multiplayer. Because of that I think that this game was (and still is) especially versatile in the grand scheme of gaming.

A Bit of Space: Phantasy Star Online

The Phantasy Star Online series was one of my first introductions to the genre of MMORPG, and it's strange to think that it was released over a decade ago. I remember watching my boyfriend at the time play and being curious about how the whole thing worked, and then once I started playing on my own being so sucked in to the plot, world, and playing online with others that I couldn't stop. PSO was integral to my life as a gamer, and I'm sure many others. After the break you, too, can check out my musings on this awesome series, and partake in the happy remembrance yourself.

A Bit of Marvel: Silver Surfer

Silver Surfer has been claimed, by many, to have been one of the more difficult releases for NES. This is primarily because the main character, Silver Surfer from Marvel Comics, was squishy as all get out and would die after a single hit, no matter what the enemy he was facing. While this may have been frustrating for many players, it was the g-dang NES—I don't really know what you guys were expecting. Also, it is apparently now retailing for close to $125, which obviously speaks to its stellar quality. :]

A Bit of ANNIVERSARY: Doom

For those of you not in the know, recently the 20th anniversary of the release of Doom happened. Doom has a large hand to play in the growth of video game culture: it started as shareware, essentially founded the First Person Shooter genre, and successfully started a multiplayer system. While it has been followed up by two additional games (Doom 2 and 3), Doom was the original and, in my eyes at least, the best. You know what, don't even let my review skew your perception of the game if you haven't played it yet. Go check it out here. For those of you that have played it and want some of that good nostalgia, or for those who prefer to have their games SPOILED check after the break.

A Bit of Psychosis: Loaded

HOW MANY BITS, MERCER? 7/8 BITS.

Loaded, if you had a Playstation and were into bloody, gory, shoot 'em ups without much of an intense plot line, was perfect—and still is perfect, really, for what it is. Re-Loaded, its sequel that was released a year later, was ALSO good—keeping the same gameplay with some new characters to play and updated graphics. Both were designed by MobyGames and are outstanding, though I couldn't find an online venue for those of you not familiar to give it a try. Find a friend with a Playstation, and get on that sweet, sweet Loaded action. Below the jump there is some video of gameplay, if you are left wanting more of a taste, but have no way to get your hands on a dusty old console.

A Bit of Surprise: The Evolution of Frogger

HOW MANY BITS, MERCER? 6/8 BITS

Everyone, at least once in their life has played some form or another of the game Frogger. Whether it was in an arcade, or in your home there has been a version of this game for every single platform, pretty much. In this post, I'll be going through the history of Frogger, and documenting the year by year growth of our unsquished green friend.