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• Duckman's Lost Adventure Game

  In case you didn't know, this week marks the release of the first few seasons of Duckman on DVD; and if you wish to plead further ignorance, Duckman was a brilliantly cynical cartoon that had a surprisingly long run (70 episodes) on the USA network in the mid-90s. So what does this have to do with video games? Aside from giving me a chance to promote one of my favorite TV shows, this week's monumental media event is also the perfect time to talk about the series' PC adventure game, Duckman: The Legend of the Fall. Along with Beavis and Butt-Head in Virtual Stupidity, Legend of the Fall was one of the few non-LucasArts adventure games to nearly capture that same LucasArts magic.  Unfortunately, Duckman was not nearly as popular of a franchise; also, Legend of the Fall's 1997 release date missed the genre's height of popularity by nearly 3-4 years, and came at the tail-end of the show's run.  Hence the game's "lost" status; for being as uniquely American in its own "hell in a handbasket" take on the modern world, Duckman: Legend of the Fall was released everywhere but America. Read More... Posted Sep 16 2008, 12:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with no comments Filed under: adventure games, lucasarts, bob mackey, pc games, duckman, beavis and butt-head

• Underpowered Cave Story "Ports"

  I've already done some mouthing off about how much I love Cave Story, the one-man miracle game that looks great, sounds great and plays better. Not surprisingly, Cave Story has a significant fandom. In fact, a member  at the Way of the Pixel forums recently posted a relevant challenge: whip up "screenshots" of what Cave Story might look like if it were ported to less-powerful systems. The results are amusing, especially the Spectrum ZX mock-up. I'd like to see something done in the style of the Apple ][ or better yet, the Commodore 64. Read More... Posted Jul 11 2008, 09:21 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: fan project, nes, commodore 64, adventure games, cave story, master system, fans, mock-up, spectrum zx

• Kojima's In Another World

  Depending on what side of the world you live on, you might even say Metal Gear Solid's daddy is Out Of This World. I already know I'm a hopeless nerd, so I have no problem confessing that I love to find out about what inspires creative types. I get to say "Oh hey! Me too!" and for a precious second, I feel validated. Then the shadows gather again. Kotaku published an article about the five games that matter to Hideo Kojima. Super Mario Bros is a given, but I was happy to see that Eric Chahi's brooding alien adventure Another World was on the list as well. Another World, cleverly renamed Out Of This World in North America, comes from a rare point in history when computer gamers had every right to laugh at console gamers. While young scientist Lester Knight Chaykin picked his way through a grim and hostile alien world with seemingly no hope of getting home, he took hundreds of enthralled Amiga, Apple II and DOS owners along with him. Every move he made counted, because one wrong turn or one bad step was all it took to die a hauntingly animated death. Every victory in Another World was bitterly earned, every discovery mattered. Meanwhile, console gamers said "Ook Ook", threw their NES controllers at the screen and picked each other for lice. Read More... Posted Jul 10 2008, 08:50 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: kotaku, hideo kojima, adventure games, alien, out of this world, another world, buddy, lester knight chaykin, interplay, inspirations, eric chahi

• LucasArts Classics On Nintendo DS?

  As many have remarked, the DS seems perfect for a revival of classic adventures — it's got more than enough processing power to handle early-'90s PC software, and the stylus is a fine match for the traditional point-and-click interface. (Diehards, myself included, who prefer the still-more-traditional parser interface, will have to wait for the inevitable PowerGlove II to simulate an old-fashioned keyboard.) Beloved games like Monkey Island and Sam & Max Hit the Road would be natural archive releases for legendary adventure producers LucasArts. But today... Read More... Posted Jun 02 2008, 03:00 PM by Peter Smith with | with no comments Filed under: nintendo ds, joystiq, quest for glory, adventure games, lucasarts, monkey island, fracture, jeffrey gullett, sam & max hit the road, eurogamer