Follow me on Twitter @ https://twitter.com/Al82_Retro Get great retro scene news @ https://www.vintageisthenewold.com Support me on Patreon @ https://www.patreon/Al82Retro Developed and published by Sega in 1987 In a time before Sonic the Hedgehog existed, Sega had something of an identity problem. Nintendo, their biggest rival, already had a mascot in the form of Mario, who was a massively bankable character even back then. By comparison, Sega didn't really have any kind of character who was synonymous with the brand, at least not one that had any kind of universal appeal. Technically, Opa-Opa from Fantasy Zone was their mascot at the time, but a spaceship with wings and feet didn't seem like such hot property when faced with the might of the Mario juggernaut! Alex Kidd in Miracle World is the first game that I remember featuring the character, largely because it came bundled with the Master System II console (built into ROM) released in the UK and other parts of the world. The game features a highly convoluted and, frankly, weird plot, especially for a platform game. In essence, Alex Kidd is searching for his long lost brother, now hostage of Janken the Great, tyrant and ruler of the world of Radaxian. Just to make things worse, the normal, peace-loving citizens of Radaxian have all been turned to stone by Janken. It's up to Alex to locate his brother and defeat Janken to free the land from his evil grip. If that wasn't strange enough for you, Alex has dedicated his life to studying the ancient technique of ShellCore, a martial arts skill that enables him to increase the size and power of his fist (sounds a bit like Marvel's Iron Fist to me). The game is a side-scrolling platform game/collect-em-up that looks and feels similar to Nintendo's Super Mario Brothers in a number of ways. Many of the levels feature numerous blocks and boulders that block Alex's path and must be removed to progress. Fortunately, Alex is in possession of both the necessary martial arts skills, as well as a massively over-sized fist, to get the job done. Certain blocks will reveal bags of cash that can be collected (to be spent in one of the game's shops), whilst others might reveal special items, or even enemies. At the start of certain stages, Alex will find a shop where he can exchange his money for extra items and power-ups. Sometimes, these include a mode of transport, such as a car or helicopter that allows him to traverse a level much more quickly than on foot. Levels featuring the vehicles often have obstacles that will cause Alex to forfeit the vehicle when hit, so you should always be careful how fast you try to travel when using one. Later levels in the game, such as the castle, tend to be less linear than earlier stages and feature items that progress th ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yasiyS7dkcU

Developed by John Ferrari and published by Codemasters in 1989 Buy Matt Gray's awesome Reformation C64 remix albums: https://6581records.com/collections/all Follow me on Twitter @ https://twitter.com/Al82_Retro Get Great Retro Scene News @ http://www.vintageisthenewold.com Released under Codemaster's budget range, Motorcross (AKA Moto X Simulator) purports to be a motocross simulator, right on your Commodore 64. In reality, it's much more of an arcade game, involving navigating a series of courses on a motocross dirt bike, attempting to beat a series of courses in as short a time as possible. The sideways-scrolling sections are reminiscent of the Kikstart games, and involve jumping over obstacles whilst staying atop your bike. It's really difficult until you master the art of pulling a wheelie when climbing hills and jumping. The overhead sections are pretty much the same thing, just viewed from a different perspective. These are much harder, however, thanks to some rubbish course design, which requires the gift of second sight. You can't see much of the track ahead, so you'll run into dead ends and crash constantly until you learn the course off by heart. Personally, I think the game would have been a lot more fun if it had focused purely on sideways courses and got rid of the overhead stuff entirely. As it stands, this is an awesome Matt Gray SID track with budget motorcross game attached. The music is absolutely excellent and was a featured remix on Matt's Reformation remix album, released a few years back. If you're a fan of the C64, the albums are definitely worth picking up! Credits Coding: John D. Ferrari Graphics: John D. Ferrari Music: Matt Gray Chapters 00:00 Main menu (music by Matt Gray) 03:27 Gameplay start 08:08 Ending #commodore64 #mattgray #retrogaming ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1A_0NnYLFro