Retro Spectives

Peter Jackson made history with the release of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but as far as he was concerned he was just getting warmed up.  A mere two years later saw him remaking King Kong, with th…

Blade Runner is one of the most exceptional and influential works of science fiction to ever grace the silver screen.  It brought the works of Phillip K Dick to life from its opening shots of geysers…

Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, as the ninth game in the series, did not radically alter the formula that made the series what it is.  Take one pinch of tactics, mix liberally with some RPG mechanics …

Rez, first released in 2001 for the Dreamcast and PS2, is many things.  It's a rail shooter, heralded as one of the greats of a now mostly dead genre.  It's a visual assault on the senses, with its p…

Sly 2: Band Of Thieves released at a special time in 3D platforming history: the GTA era.  In much the same way that Ubisoft would eventually set the (dismal) standard for open worlds, Grand Theft Au…

By 1999, when Gorky 17 released, the genre of tactics games was definitely well trod.  X-COM, Final Fantasy Tactics, Jagged Alliance - these were all heavy hitters, and many consider them to still be…

Tyrian 2000 is, to this day, regarded as one of the greatest shmups ever made.  It boasts a continuous campaign that goes for 5 episodes and 50 levels, a ludicrous array of guns to dock your ship out…

Before we had Resident Evil and Silent Hill, we had Ecstatica.  First released in 1994 for MS DOS, Ecstatica blew critics away at the time of its release with its stunning ellipsoid based character m…

Mario Kart has long been king of the Kart Racer.  Ever since it debuted back in 1992 on the SNES, it seems that every other entry has lived in its long shadow.  But back in 1997 we saw a challenger e…

For all of our complaints, we did enjoy Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory.  While it failed to maximise its different elements into a creative challenge, its core gameplay is just as good as it was in the …

Star Wars: Republic Commando received good press when it first released back in 2005.  Instead of playing as a Jedi, you play as a stormtrooper, albeit a gifted and specially trained one.  You lead m…

Diablo 2 is one of the most influential games ever made.  Evolving on the basic formulae created in Diablo 1, it introduced many concepts that are now considered genre staples: skill trees, socketed …

House of the Dead 2 is one of the most famous, and most successful, arcade cabinet games of all time.  Not only that, it's been credited along with Resident Evil for spearheading the resurgence of zo…

Eternal Darkness is a game that holds a special place in a lot of people’s hearts.  You play as Alexandra Roivos, called to her father’s mansion to confirm his identity after he is found dead and hor…

The release of Goldeneye in 1995 was one of the most successful reboots in cinematic history.  Pierce Brosnan’s take on Bond was suave and sophisticated, with just a touch of melancholy, which was th…

Mushihimesama is one of many arcade titles developed by Cave, who were best known for their danmaku or ‘bullet hell’ style shoot ‘em ups during the late 90’s and 2000’s. 
First released in 2004, Mushi…

Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory comes with a weighty legacy.  Many consider this 2005 game to be the best stealth game of all time, edging out even games like Metal Gear Solid and Thief.  Chaos Theory bu…

Celeste is not your average platformer.  When it was released in 2018, it took the world by storm, delighting casual players and speedrunners alike.  Its levels were divided into screens reminiscent …

It's Mailbag time!  In this episode, Pat and James continue the Christmas tradition of answering listener questions in their third annual Mailbag episode.  

We want to say a special thank you to every…

When Street Fighter 2 first released in arcades in 1991, it single handedly revolutionised the fighting game genre.  It introduced shocking concepts like letting you select more than one character!  …