Last week’s Lost Classic was based on a Disney license, so here is another one. Maui Mallard was one of the last good platformers of the 16-bit era. As it was released during the final days of the era, it was largely ignored on the SNES and Game Boy and the Genesis version only saw a European release.
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Note: This game is also available on Xbox 360 and PS3, but not for $20 or less.

2007’s Portal was a surprise hit. A puzzle/FPS hybrid, Valve’s shooter made players think in ways they haven’t since Tetris all those years ago. Last year, Valve released a surprise sequel to their sleeper hit, and its even more insane than the original. Once again, players take control of Chell, who has just awakened from cryogenic sleep. Although an AI drone tries to help you find your way, before long, you reunite with the evil A.I Glados, who is ready to put you through a series of ‘tests’ once again, and she is just as sarcastic as ever. If you think this is going to be a rehash of the original, think again. Several new dynamics have been added to the puzzles, taxing you to come up with some creative solutions to make your way through the trials. Since a number of years have passed since the original, Aperture Science Labs isn’t in good shape, and you’ll see that reflected in the levels. When you think you know what’s in store, a plot twist takes the game in a whole new direction. If you got a friend, there is a new Co-op mode in which you and a friend play as two robots who have their own storyline. PC players have access to the Steam Workshop, where they can build and download new levels. An unsuspected sequel to an unsuspected hit, Portal 2 is even more fun than its predecessor.

Lets get dangerous!

Before Capcom got its hands on the Marvel license, it made several games based on Disney franchises, particularly based on movies and TV shows. Chip and Dale’s Rescue Rangers, Duck Tales, and Tailspin all received video game adaptations. However, one of the best NES Disney games was undoubtedly Darkwing Duck. You all remember Darkwing Duck. Basically it was a Ducktales spin-off that’s best described as Batman-meets-Spider-man-meets-The Shadow with ducks. It was fun to watch, and the game was just as fun to play. Built off a slightly tweaked version of the Mega Man 5 engine, Darkwing Duck took players through several levels as they attempted to stop a crime wave hitting St. Canard. Armed with your gun (which you can collect adapters to enhance), you take on several enemies from the show on your way to confront the villain Steelbeak. There is probably a very slim chance we’ll see this on Virtual Console, and it’s too bad. Thanks to its quality platforming gameplay, not only did kids enjoy the game, but older players enjoyed it as well. How frequently can you say that about video games based on Disney properties these days?

From the people that bought you Uplink comes Defcon, a simple looking, yet complex PC indie game. DEFCON is reminiscent of the computer screens in movies such as WarGames which depict war and human loss as a series of onscreen icons. Your goal is complete destruction of every region that isn’t yours. You make use of combers, nukes, subs, and other weapons to try to blow up the other players’ cities. There are 5 different levels of DEFCON, allowing you access to certain abilities and weaponry so you can plan your strategy. When you reach DEFCON 1, everyone gains access to nukes, at which point all hell breaks loose. This is designed for multiplayer. Although you can play against AI Bots, there is no storyline to speak of. Like Uplink before it, DEFCON’s simplistic graphics disguise some deep gameplay. It’s available on the cheap on most game distribution services, so pick it up and satisfy your evil overlord fantasies.

Before Tiny Tower (and its rip off Dream Heights), there was SimTower, or The Tower, as it was known in Japan. Although Simtower was a different and more complex game from Tiny Tower, its goal was the same: build a huge skyscraper, and satisfy the needs to the tenants within. Your eventually objective is to make your tower a 5-star building. SimTower wasn’t developed by Maxis, but rather, it was published by a Japanese company called OpenBook (now renamed Vivarium Inc). Ironically, developer Yoot Saito got into game development after playing SimCity, and The Tower was re-branded SimTower when Maxis released it in the US. As you progress in Sim Tower, you’ll be able to build everything from offices and apartments to restaurants, movie theaters, and hotels. From time to time, you’ll encounter various events in the building. For example, terrorists may call to inform you that there is a bomb in the building. The game was criticized for moving slow and not including much promotional materials, but it would be just as well received as many of Maxis’s other games. OpenBook/Vivarium would develop a sequel to SImTower, called Yoot Tower, and would eventually go on to develop the Dreamcast cult classic Seaman along with portable remakes and sequels to The Tower for the Gameboy Advance and Nintendo DS. The original SimTower has been regulated to abandonware status, but hopefully it won’t be long before GOG or someone decided to pick it up for a release. If anything, this game could use a good remake.

Blend one part of Legend of Zelda with two parts Roguelike, mix in a tbsp of biblical allegory, and blend with one cup batshit insane, and you have the Binding of Issac. Created by Edmund McMillen, the demented mind behind Super Meat Boy, The Binding of Issac will attract fans with its addictive roguelike gameplay and disturbing plot and setting.

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Welcome to the Powet Top 5, where we explore the top (and bottom) 5 items we think are relevant to any of a variety of topics that span the imagination. Sit back, read, and respond.

Screenshot from the forthcoming Rise of the Triad remake, rebuilt from the ground up using Unreal Engine 3.

It’s quite easy to remake something, be it a tv show, movie, or video game. Maybe that’s why there are so many of them. At worst, a remake can be nothing more than a simple cash grab aimed at nostalgic fans. At best however, it can bring back what fans loved about the original work while introducing it to a whole new generation of fans. It’s not hard to make a good remake either, especially in gaming. There are 4 simple steps to making one:

1. Preserve (and enhance when and where necessary) what worked the first time around
2. Fix (or get rid of) what didn’t work
3. Add in new features that enhance the original experience without diluting it
4. Give it a graphical makeover. It doesn’t have to use today’s cutting edge graphics (and in some cases, it probably shouldn’t, just so as long as it looks better than it did the first time.

Here are 5 of the best remakes in video games. They’ve gone above and beyond simply reskinning and re-releasing the original game, they’ve added to it, and in some cases changing it completely while preserving what players loved about it so many years ago. Check them out, and sound off below if there is a remake that you enjoyed or that you want to see.
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In the summer of 1994, the big two 16-bit publishers, Nintendo and Sega, released new racing games for their respective systems. Both of them pushed the envelope in graphical capabilities thanks to special chips in their cartridges, and were also fun to play. So which one is better? Well, click below and lets find out.
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