Remember the retro games you used to love as a kid (maybe)? Not so much the bigger titles like Sonic or Mario, but the lesser known games that just turned up in 'Arcade Classics' type selections but were loved by the few people who'd heard of and played them.
A few that spring to mind for me are the following (for PC):
The Lion King: the original LK platformer, only 10 levels but still kept me occupied for a while, especially as I was competing with a friend to see who could finish it first (I won). Never could quite master the flip move, though- when I pulled it off it was mainly by luck, a little unfortunate as you need it to beat the last level.
Hocus Pocus: Another great old game that my family still enjoys playing, hideously difficult on any level other than easy, but generally fun. Great sound effects and music (in a bad kind of way).
Jazz Jackrabbit: Had the shareware version for years and found it easy, finally picked up the full game last summer only to discover how hard the later levels are. The rubber explosive 'launchers' are great, though
Alley Cat: Only worth a mention for its sheer obscureness- a weird little game where you play as a cat and have to run around avoiding dogs and jumping into windows to play mini-games. Despite being incredibly simple, it's one of the most stressful games ever.
Flight of the Amazon Queen: Quite a fun little puzzle game- I only had the demo version where you had to escape from a hotel, using such items as a pair of fake breasts :?
Fox Ranger: Another title mentioned for obscureness, a space shooter where all the level titles are read out in "Engrish". No idea what the story was about as it was all in Japanese.
Traffic Department 2192: A great game, very simple to play but a fun storyline packed with one liners. The second and third episodes were a bit of a letdown after the excellent first episode, though.
Okay, having bored you all to death I'll just briefly list some of the other games I enjoyed- Duke Nukem 1+2, Commander Keen, Monster Bash (horrible, but somehow compelling), Vinyl Goddess from Mars, Chip's Challenge, Jezzball and probably a bunch of others that I've forgotten.
So, anyway, what lesser-known retro classics do you look back on with fond memories- any from the ones I've listed, or others entirely?
A few that spring to mind for me are the following (for PC):
The Lion King: the original LK platformer, only 10 levels but still kept me occupied for a while, especially as I was competing with a friend to see who could finish it first (I won). Never could quite master the flip move, though- when I pulled it off it was mainly by luck, a little unfortunate as you need it to beat the last level.
Hocus Pocus: Another great old game that my family still enjoys playing, hideously difficult on any level other than easy, but generally fun. Great sound effects and music (in a bad kind of way).
Jazz Jackrabbit: Had the shareware version for years and found it easy, finally picked up the full game last summer only to discover how hard the later levels are. The rubber explosive 'launchers' are great, though
Alley Cat: Only worth a mention for its sheer obscureness- a weird little game where you play as a cat and have to run around avoiding dogs and jumping into windows to play mini-games. Despite being incredibly simple, it's one of the most stressful games ever.
Flight of the Amazon Queen: Quite a fun little puzzle game- I only had the demo version where you had to escape from a hotel, using such items as a pair of fake breasts :?
Fox Ranger: Another title mentioned for obscureness, a space shooter where all the level titles are read out in "Engrish". No idea what the story was about as it was all in Japanese.
Traffic Department 2192: A great game, very simple to play but a fun storyline packed with one liners. The second and third episodes were a bit of a letdown after the excellent first episode, though.
Okay, having bored you all to death I'll just briefly list some of the other games I enjoyed- Duke Nukem 1+2, Commander Keen, Monster Bash (horrible, but somehow compelling), Vinyl Goddess from Mars, Chip's Challenge, Jezzball and probably a bunch of others that I've forgotten.
So, anyway, what lesser-known retro classics do you look back on with fond memories- any from the ones I've listed, or others entirely?
