The UKFF Retro Gaming Thread

[DavidB6937]

29 minutes ago, Merzbow said:

A very unexpected console release, I don't think this was ever ported back in day. It still looks great today, so colourful and that distinct mid 90's Namco aesthetic.

 

 

Better come with a jetski or else.

Edited August 14, 2025 by DavidB6937

[Jazzy G]

I was amazed when they started doing these. I just hope Sega can get M2 to bring stuff like Sega Rally, Daytona, and Outrun 2 to the Sega Ages range. 

[BigJag]

https://www.arcadearchives.com/en/title/page/2/

There's a huge list of games under the Arcade Archives banner. Aqua Jet and Ridge Racer seem to be the most technically advanced games.

[Jazzy G]

I learned recently that they put out the ACA Neo Geo titles in compilations in Japan. I wish I could get hold of some of them, because what I really need is all SNK's fighting games again. 

[FLips]

Got a cheap copy of Gremlins 2 on the NES as I think my only NES purchase this month. It's a Sunsoft game and they do alright in this era. Top-down platformer/action game similar to Fester's Quest/Zelda/etc. The music is a jam and it controls fine, but a few levels in and it's a bit vanilla. There are weapon upgrades as you go but I feel it's not going to be up to a whole lot.

The rest of my spending this month has been on Gameboy stuff, of which I've started quite a collection. I can only buy original Gameboy or transitional black/yellow cartridge Gameboy Colour games (not the clear grooved ones) as they're to play on the SNES Super Gameboy.

Wario Blast which is just a re-skinned Bomberman but has a few bells and whistles to seperate it. A gorgeous Super Gameboy exclusive border with loads of little Bombermen and a Wario sat watching in like a crowd. 

#

Single player has 8 worlds and the first 5 give you powerups that let you kick the bombs, jump over blocks and push enemy Bombermen to stun them. Each world has a creative boss, but the level to level gameplay is standard deathmatch rather than blowing up generic enemies. Sort of a nice middle ground between classic Bomberman and more adventure-style titles like Mega Bomberman. SGB lets you do 2 player on one TV too which is lovely.

A couple of Pokemon titles with Pokemon Pinball and Pokemon: The Trading Card Game which are both decent if you're looking for a Pokemon fix but don't want the standard stuff. Trading Card Game is vastly underrated and it's a shame this is the only non-live/non-monetised version they released over here as you're limited to the original 151 and dated graphics. This but with the modern Pokedex on the switch would be fantastic. The soundtrack has some solid stuff in it too.

Pinball is a little basic, with only two tables (Red and Blue) but does keep things interesting with a catching mechanic and a rumble feature if you stick some AAAs in it and play it on the Gameboy. Not had a proper go of this one yet but didn't mind what I played.

I also picked up Dragon Warrior: Monsters which is a Pokemon X Dragon Quest style turn based RPG with monster catching and breeding mechanics. I'd never heard of this one but it's well regarded and so I snapped a copy up and sank a few hours into it today. Stunning SGB borders that change depending where you are in the game which is a lovely touch, and the gameplay is just as addictive as you'd hope for this sort of thing.
Dragon Quest style turn-based RPG battle mechanics but your party is made up of monsters you catch during the random encounters, the dungeons are randomly generated and made for grinding with your currency coming from selling items. There's a nice balance between "do I keep these healing items for battle or do I sell them".
I haven't used the breeding mechanic yet but it looks similar to the daycare stuff on Pokemon Gold/Silver onwards in terms of how it works, but like Jade Cocoon in terms of how the monsters combine. Could be a real time sink.

Not that I expect you to watch a longplay of the thing, but here's a video to see kind of what I mean. Apparently it's a big game in Japan the "monsters" spinoff series got a few modern remakes too. 

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX but I don't really need to go on about that. We all know what it is, and I look forward to playing it again. Last time I played original LA was years ago on a laptop in a hotel in Inveraray with my wife.

I got a copy of Donkey Kong Land which me and my mate one-bombed today. It's rock hard and limited by the hardware. They hadn't quite figured the formula out yet so it's a little clunky and has some awful game design, like if you climb a rope up and jump off the rope, the floor is now a kill plane so it means leaps of faith and exploration almost always mean death. Enemies and hazards fly in with little notice and some of the later stages are rock hard. You can only save by finding the KONG letters too which made the game a lot harder.
That being said, it looks really nice for what it is and hearing 8 bit versions of the DKC music was interesting. There's also some unique levels and music that never made it into the DKC games, like a city area and cloud area. At times it feels like playing a ROM hack but not an awful experience.

Picked up Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 so now I have the full Mario Land Trilogy which is nice. Only had a quick go to make sure it works but you can already tell it's going to be a weird halfway game between Mario Land and the actual Wario Land series. Felt a little clunky but not bad by any means.

Two cheap impulse buys as well to go alongside Tetris with my handheld puzzle games in Dr Mario and Alleyway. Just a couple of quick and easy puzzlers to pick up and play. Nothing special.

[Merzbow]

I've been playing about with a new Saturn emulator called Ymir recently, my PC has always had issues with some 3D games like Final Fight Revenge but this is much better. It has inbuilt hacks you can turn on to prioritize performance over accuracy but I've not noticed any issues so far, even runs obscure stuff like Baroque which likely hasn't been optimized for emulation so early on.

A stellar RPG, hardest of the hardcore that makes Dark Souls look like childs play but has an aesthetic I haven't seen elsewhere until more recent weirdo first person indie games. Looks much better than the PS2 and Wii remake.

Edited August 17, 2025 by Merzbow

[Onyx2]

Small photo dump: spending a few days in Berlin and couldn't resist the Computerspielemuseum. 

 

 

 

Packed with retro goodies, lots of videos played via a Competition Pro, several demo machines from NES to PlayStation and similar (Streets of Rage 2, Dance Dance Revolution, Zork, Smash Bros, Indy and the Fate of Atlantis, ET, very eclectic), bedrooms decorated era appropriate with a console each, plus mini arcades with a few classics. And this wall of the major consoles / computers. 

Not earth shattering but a fun way to spend two hours if you're near by. 

[RedTwoster]

On 8/16/2025 at 10:06 PM, FLips said:

Wario Blast which is just a re-skinned Bomberman but has a few bells and whistles to seperate it. A gorgeous Super Gameboy exclusive border with loads of little Bombermen and a Wario sat watching in like a crowd. 

I didn’t even know this existed! I thought I was familiar with every Mario/Wario game that was released in the West, but this has me wondering if there are any other titles out there that somehow passed me by.

[theringmaster]

On 8/16/2025 at 10:06 PM, FLips said:

Picked up Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 so now I have the full Mario Land Trilogy which is nice. Only had a quick go to make sure it works but you can already tell it's going to be a weird halfway game between Mario Land and the actual Wario Land series. Felt a little clunky but not bad by any means.

 

It always bugged how Mario land 3 was not a proper Mario game, I was so happy when they released Mario 3D land, that felt like it completed the trilogy properly.

 

Some great games there @FLips, Dragon Warriors Monsters is on the list of games I have always wanted to play, i can remember many gaming mags saying it was actually a better game than Pokemon.

[FLips]

54 minutes ago, theringmaster said:

Some great games there @FLips, Dragon Warriors Monsters is on the list of games I have always wanted to play, i can remember many gaming mags saying it was actually a better game than Pokemon.

I’ve played about 6 or 7 hours of it so far and I can objectively say it’s not. Doesn’t look as nice, it’s incredibly linear, and the story is almost non-existent, the music is forgettable too.

It is however better if you want a grindy “randomised” dungeon crawler with breeding mechanics very similar to Jade Cocoon. It’s not a bad game, it’s actually quite moreish.

[hallicks]

On 8/16/2025 at 10:06 PM, FLips said:

Picked up Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 so now I have the full Mario Land Trilogy which is nice. Only had a quick go to make sure it works but you can already tell it's going to be a weird halfway game between Mario Land and the actual Wario Land series. Felt a little clunky but not bad by any means.

I love this game. It was the first “Mario” title that came out after I got my Gameboy in late ‘93 so I was all over it. Played it to absolute death, it was the first platformer that I owned and my young brain was completely blown away by it, especially the way 

Spoiler

the layout of some of the courses change based on certain events that happen as the game progresses.

(Don’t want to ruin the surprise)! I played through it on an emulator a year or two ago and I couldn’t believe how much the muscle memory for all the shortcuts, maps and secret areas was still there like I’d never stopped playing it. It probably doesn’t quite have the magic of 6GC, but I had this one first so it’s just a bit more dear to me.

In other news:

Started watching this as I was eating my lunch and had to stop because I was laughing so much. 

[Merzbow]

A full remake of Apidya is coming out, with no emulation and no AI upscaling apparently. It looks and sounds nice.

 

Edited August 19, 2025 by Merzbow

[Browser Brady]

Right, got myself one of those retro emulators HDMI stick with loads of Mega Drive , Nes , SNES and Arcade roms.

 

Going to have a lads night soon and am wondering what are the classic multiplayer games that are the most fun.

 

it’ll be the likes of Micro Machines 2, Street Fighter 2, Mario Kart etc….

 

 

Anybody know any good fun Boxing, Tennis or Golf games from the 90’s that are good for multiplayer?

[Merzbow]

37 minutes ago, Browser Brady said:

Anybody know any good fun Boxing, Tennis or Golf games from the 90’s that are good for multiplayer?

From 88 but it's my fave arcade boxing game, Konami nailed the look and sound here and made it real fun to play too.

 

[Browser Brady]

37 minutes ago, Merzbow said:

From 88 but it's my fave arcade boxing game, Konami nailed the look and sound here and made it real fun to play too.

 

Perfect, exactly what i was looking for.