Shot97 Retro

Dilbert's Desktop Games DreamWorks Interactive/Cyclops Software 1997 *My video review for Dilbert's Desktop Games *Next article *Previous article *Alphabetical list of writings *Game played on period hardware running Windows 98 When Windows was first gaining prominence it was primarily an application based affair. You went to Windows to be productive, then you dropped down into DOS to have fun. Windows was too much bloat to have many games of substance released for it. Direct-X would eventually solve the problems of running the more complicated games that had always required DOS, but prior to that most of the games that could run in Windows had a very simple nature to them. Aptly given the title of desktop games, for they ran on top of your desktop, there was no shortage of time wasted playing games like Solitaire or Minesweeper. Those classics were built into Windows, but plenty of third party developers threw their hat into the market as well, long after m...

Battletech: The Crescent Hawk's Inception Amiga, 1989 (Original DOS 1988) Infocom/Westwood Associates $49.95 *My video review for Battletech *Friend Gaming Jay's playthrough of sequel *Large world map created by me *Next article *Previous article *Alphabetical list of writings *This game best played in NTSC mode with 4:3 aspect ratio (USA Game) There was something about Battletech that really sucked me in as a kid. It's a licensed game, but I knew nothing of the Battletech universe at the time, nor have I learned much since. My father was a big fantasy and science fiction reader, so perhaps he was already a fan when he got this game. Thinking back on my early impressions from back in the day, I think I just liked the absolute freedom of the whole thing; the non-linear nature. And of course playing in those awesome futuristic 'Mechs.  Battletech is amongst the rare science fiction RPGs. Computer nerds often perceive themselves as havin...