7 Bit Arcade

There must be something about the emergence of polygons that have made time move faster, or I’m getting much older and my perspective of time has changed (probable). It seems like yesterday when I was ready to do anything to get my hands on an Atari Jaguar, yes you hear it here. Wow, 64 whole bits! That’s 4 Mega Drives tapped together, seriously! Clearly my younger self had less of a hold on logic and a tighter grip on fantasy. Also, my ability to manipulate my parents was still developing, thus I had to wait months for Christmas and my Birthday (as they were and still are, close together) meaning I was in for the chance of a nice big present. But I had big dreams and they would keep me happy until that day when I could hold my Atari with pride.

This was until it was all ruined! An older boyfriend of a cousin told my parents that the Jaguar was a poor machine and would not be a wise investment. What? The swine! Instead suggesting something called “The Playstation”. I dismissed this stupid machine, its not made by Sega, Nintendo or even Atari, has half the power and sounds like a product from Fisher Price, “The Playstation”. I told my parents that he was an idiot.

Well it turned out I was wrong (a valid reason why you should not listen to children when purchasing expensive electrical equipment), although to my credit the boy friend did turn out to be a massive tool. I’ll chalk this up as a draw. Months and marketing campaigns later it was clear, this “Playstation” was actually gonna be a bit special, so my nagging changed tone if not melody to be about the fabled Playstation and all its glory. Over these months, my manipulation skills (nagging) must have improved as come launch day I had a kick arse Playstation 1… and a demo disc which had a tech demo of a dinosaur on it (but how cool was that dinosaur!). Over several years my games collection grew and grew. So many great games, Air Combat, Tekken, Street Fighter Alpha, Wipeout, Destruction Derby… the list could go on and on. So we thought we would all share our favorite Playstaion games with you (and please share yours with us in the comments section).

Parappa the Rapper (try and say that if you get your r’s and w’s confused i dare you!!) is the quintessential  beat-mania game of our time.

Of course, of course, games such as Dancing Stage took to the floor with the widly elaborate arrows that asked the user to not only to stand on the buttons in time but also to look like a spastic with the arms flailing in the air whilst all around them thought they looked cool. Video Below as evidence. However it was Parappa in my mind, a small dog with a knack for lyricism that really set the world of music games on fire.

What charmed me about Parappa the Rapper was its all round style, it was unashamedly 2d. Whilst the Playstation was bringing in the era of fully fledged 3D worlds (Croc, Spyro the Dragon), Parappa just flipped the bird and shouted aloft ‘you can’t see me side on’. That statement is true, they made sure the style didn’t change at all, so if you looked at Parappa from the side, all you saw was a line.

This is going to have to be rushed now, but this game was exceptional for its time. It’s cult status was amazing with sequels and even its own TV show; Fair enough it was crap, but name any good game cartoon spin offs. Through my childhood, I am now 22, Parappa has stuck with me through the lyrics of the songs. I can still recite various songs word for word from this game and the last time I played it was around 6 years ago.

“Lions and tigers and bears oh my!”

Everyone had that one kids film that they watched over and over and over when they were a tiddler. For me, that film happened to be the Wizard of Oz. So maybe that explains why I go against the general consensus and say my favourite Final Fantasy and favourite PS1 game is Final Fantasy numero 9.

“What about 7?! What are you talking about you silly bitch?!”

Hey, hey calm down there Deborah Meaden let me explain! Firstly, lets clarify this Wizard of Oz connection. Check out this visual representation and I think you’ll see what I mean:

There was something a bit magical about this one, perhaps it was just nostalgia but I loved the characters, the plot, everything.

“But what about the cocking game play Angela, you’re playing a game here not reading a cocking book!”

To hell with the game play! When I think of Final Fantasy I think of kick-ass characters, stunning cut scenes and twisty-turny plots. I liked how excellently evil Kuja was and that ridiculous creature with the massive tongue. I liked collecting frogs and riding on airships. I liked riding my chocobo just to listen to the music. And I like making lists instead of writing proper articles.

KWEEEHHHH!

The first game I purchased was the gorgeous Destruction Derby, the second Tekken. Both of which I enjoyed without a memory card. But after these hits, it was time to invest money so that I could enjoy a deeper game. That game was Xcom. I have no idea how many hours I have sunk into this game.

The gameplay was split between two modes, first was a menu World mode where you would engage on politics, research technologies  and send fighter jets out to intercept UFOs. Playing out a little like Civilization meets SimCity. The second mode was a turn based mission Encounter mode where you would send your squad out to shoot down UFOs or Alien terror attacks. Both pretty deep for there time and still very enjoyable today.

Although designed as a one player experience, my fondest memories are playing as a group with friends with some (@picklepete) sessions lasting all night, which as a 13 year old seemed pretty intense. When you finally did try to sleep, all you could think of was which tech you would research next. Sleep was always out of reach as the red square showing line of sight of an Alien was burned into your eyeballs. It would take hours for that bloody square to fade away.

Watching the intro again on YouTube was fantastic, making me remember crazy stories if tactical brilliance, screw ups and some insane alien behavior. The sequel, Xcom: Terror from the Deep was essentially more of the same and just as fun. I urge any God Sim or Strategy fan to track these down on PC, Amiga or Playstation One. Do it now! Smashing the shit out of people as King in Tekken was good, but its not saving the world from an Alien menace.

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