Todd's columns have appeared in many publications such as GamePro, Electronic Gaming Monthly, PC Gamer, and Electronic Games. Todd is a founding member of GiN and speaks from an "old school" gamer's perspective. Embracing the notions of all classic gaming, game soundtracks, and the original "hardcore style," he also shuns the trends he feels are ruining the game industry, such as the embracement of 3D, the over-saturation of MMOs, and misleading game advertising.
A few years ago LucasArts released Shadows of the Empire as one of the flagship Nintendo 64 titles. It was a mixed bag, consisting mostly of mundane corridor shooters. However, there was one stage which stood out among the rest: the snowspeeder battle at Hoth. Critics such as myself wished that Shadows could have been more like the first stage, nothing but exciting ground-level flight sequences. LucasArts took our ideas to heart, and incorporated German based developers Factor 5 (known primarily for the Turrican series on the 16-bit systems) to create Rogue Squadron. Rogue Squadron takes place right after the … Continue reading Rogue Squadron will woo Star Wars fans→
It’s no surprise to anyone who has been reading my articles that I am a big fan of space combat shooters. Look at my past reviews for Wing Commander: Prophecy, Descent: Freespace, Tie Fighter, etc. They are considered by me as the best in their field. However, they are all PC-based. There is another space combat series that I have played before, which is Psygnosis’ Colony Wars for the PlayStation. The original game really impressed me with its gorgeous detail and intense, yet not too difficult gameplay. So when I heard that a sequel would be coming out, I was … Continue reading Colony Wars: Vengeance is beautiful, but too hard to play→
I’ve always liked the suspense of sneaking through an installation, catching terrorist forces off-guard, sniping them without warning, rescuing hostages and disarming explosives. But still, even with all that Metal Gear has done, I’ve always wondered how it would be done in a first person perspective, borrowing elements from Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64, plus adding the ability to plan out my operation among fellow teammates before sending them out in combat. Thanks to Red Storm Entertainment, my thoughts have become reality as their release, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six, takes these elements and executes them in the right way. Rainbow … Continue reading Rainbow Six is red hot sniper action→
Who said that all action games had to involve a lead character running through corridors, shooting everyone in sight? Fortunately, a young man named Hideo Kojima changed this idea back in 1987 when he released a simple game to Konami entitled Metal Gear. The concept was unlike any other, as it required smarts and stealth, rather than brute force to complete your objective. MG was released for both the MSX computer in Japan, and on the Nintendo Entertainment System (under Konami’s Ultra Games label) with high success. Then, in 1990, two versions of Metal Gear 2 were released. The MSX … Continue reading Metal Gear Solid packs awesome punch→
I’ll admit, I’ve always been a big fan of classic arcade shooters. I don’t know why, maybe it was because of the sheer adrenaline rush that was obtained when trying to survive an endless onslaught of aliens. Two classic shooters that come to mind as the most engrossing, the most intense, and the most challenging are Tempest and Gyruss. They both had the same structure: rotating around in a 360 degree plane (well, almost, Tempest had a couple open-ended courses). Updates to these such classics, including Nanotek Warrior and (the only great Jaguar game) Tempest 2000, carried on the tradition … Continue reading N2O: Nitrous Oxide will give gamers a real high!→
I’ve always had a soft spot for Gravis’ controllers. Who knows why it is? Maybe it’s because the first control I bought for my PC was the original Gravis Game Pad. Maybe it was the similarity of their gamepads with the gamepads of video game consoles. Then again, maybe it is because their controllers are of such a high quality that I cannot see going with anyone else. And from that original game pad to their most recent controller, the Xterminator, it is apparent that Gravis cares about their gamers and knows what they want in a controller. Xterminator has … Continue reading Gravis makes awesome controller to support any game!→
This month was the start of the 79th year of the National Football League, and as any other red-blooded sports lover, I am ready for it. But these days, not only do I watch the televised games, but I also simulate them on my PC or my Sony PlayStation. And just in time for the start of the real NFL season, it’s also time for the start of the PlayStation NFL war, with two main competitors going at it. On one side we have the 1999 update of the long-running Madden Series by EA Sports, and on the other end … Continue reading It’s kickoff for this year’s football wars→
As I am writing this review, I am currently watching an ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) pay-per-view, and with watching this, I can see how professional wrestling has become more hardcore, more aggressive, and best of all, more entertaining. Likewise, wrestling video games have been definitely getting better over the course of the last few years. I still remember playing the original Pro Wrestling on my Nintendo Entertainment System, and remembered how enjoyable it was. Unfortunately, with the later pro wrestling releases, they have averaged from pretty good (as in WCW vs. nWo: World Tour) to average (WWF Wrestlemania) to just … Continue reading WWF Warzone is a kick in the pants for other wrestling games→
To anyone who has read my past reviews, it can easily be found that I am a die hard Wing Commander addict. I just feel that no other game series provided me with such excitement (and yes, many wrist injuries from breaking in so many flightsticks), and always gave me that urge to do "just one more mission." And other the other hand, I’ve never truly been a big fan of the Descent series. I don’t know why it is, but just the claustrophobic feeling of flying through those tight corridors just didn’t please me much. And when I heard … Continue reading Freespace: a welcome alternative to cramped tunnel fighting→
I used to always think that racing games were pretty shallow. Sometimes they had too few tracks; sometimes they don’t have enough cars to choose from. Some are too hard, some are just too easy. But still, racing games are very popular in the States and in Japan. You can’t go into an arcade without seeing at least one, or two these days, racing sims in operation. Consoles also have their share of racing sims. There are the shallow arcade style racers such as Ridge Racer, and the realistic sims such as NASCAR Racing. But until now, no racer was … Continue reading Gran Turismo takes the checkered flag for racing games→
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