Back in the days, Nintendo made sports games. During the 16-bit days, Ken Griffey Jr was to them what Joe Montana was the Sega, that is an athlete that was perfectly marketable for a video game. Ken Griffey Jr’s Winning Run, named after the final play of Game 5 of the 1995 American League Wild Card playoffs (where Griffey scored from first base to win the game in the 11th inning), is the sequel to 1994’s Kenny Griffey jr presents Major League Baseball. Developed by Rare, it has received a major graphical overhaul. It was one of the first sports games to feature computer rendered graphics, similar to Donkey Kong Country and Killer Instinct. As a result, it was one of the finest looking sports games of its day. The stadiums looked so awesome, and the players were well animated. The game features 28 MLB teams (including the unlockable Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who had just been named around the time of this game’s development), but as there is no player’s association license, the only real player in the game is Ken Griffey, although many of the players have pun names that allude to real-life players, Fire Pro Wrestling style. You can play in exhibition mode, franchise, MLB Challenge Mode, and All Star Mode. It’s probably not likely that this game will be available on virtual console, so your best chance is to seek out the cartridge. If you can find it, definitely get it, as Winning Run is one of the best sports games of the 16-bit era.

Well, once again, today is my birthday. Although I’m the one hitting the big 3 to tha 0, you’re the one getting the present, just like we do every year. So click below, and get a quadruple dose of $20 GOTW/Lost Classics goodness.
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Long before Fable, Peter Molyneux’s Bullfrog Productions produced what was considered one of the first “God” Simulators. And a God simulator it certainly was. You played as a deity out to guide your people towards prosperity….by bringing about the apocalypse and beating the crap out of the other deity. You flattened and raised land so that your worshipers can build houses to produce more worshipers. You also have access to several spells that can unleash disasters upon your opponents, such as earthquakes and floods. While it’s primitive by today’s standards, Populous is still a fun game that contains just enough strategy to keep players reeled in. A Nintendo DS update was released a few years ago by XSeed featuring new gods, new maps, and stylus play. It’s available for cheap, so if you haven’t experienced this classic, then there is no better time to do so.

After Starcraft, Total Annihilation is perhaps one of the greatest old-school RTS games ever. Although there isn’t much of a plot (something about two armies fighting over weather or not to transfer human consciousness to machines), the strategy options that the game gave players were unprecedented compared to other RTS games around that time. The game is considered a spiritual predecessor to Gas Powered Game’s Supreme Commander (lead designer Chris Taylor developed both games). There is no resource gathering, as the two resources you need (metal and energy) stream into your reserves at a fixed rate, and battles can consist of over 1000 units on the field, which was unheard of at it’s time. The game also featured a rudimentary physics system for explosions, projectiles, and wreckage. Various patches and utilities have been constructed by both developer Cavedog and the fan community, adding new units, races, maps, and other features.

If you’re a fan of the genre, you owe it to yourself to check out this lost classic. The game, along with its two expansions Core Contingency and Battle Tactics are both available on GOG.com.

The original Elevator Action was nice, but it got pretty monotonous. Taito decided to create a sequel which has about as much in common with its predecessor as Final Fantasy 7 does with Final Fantasy 6. Eschewing the first game’s light-puzzle gameplay in favor of a action shoot-em-up, EA2 adds a plot and additional characters, things that the first game didn’t have. EA2 has players taking control of one of three secret agents as they battle a terrorist organization. The first level is a remake of the apartment complex in the original game, but afterward you’ll travel across a variety of different levels. The graphics are crisp, the controls are smooth, and most importantly, it has VARIETY, something the original game sorely lacked.

Note: This game is available on PS2 and PC as part of the Taito Legends 2 compilation.

While this week’s Lost Classic may not be as quirky or unique as this week’s $20GOTW (or should that be FGOTW), it’s still worth its place among the shooter genre’s classics, even if there are a couple of huge flaws. Besides, R-Type is part of the holy trinity of horizontal side-scrolling shooters (its other two members include Konami’s Gradius and Taito’s Darius), so this game deserves a mention.
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A week from tonight, Santa makes his rounds to all the little boys and girls of the world. To that end, I got a triple shot of cheap gaming goodness for those of you struggling with last minute shopping ideas, so click ahead for some great stocking stuffers!
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Based on the popular British platformer series of the same name, The Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy is one of those games where it’s difficult to place in one genre. Playing as the title character, a walking, talking egg who is a member of the Yolkfolk, you set out to stop the evil wizard Zaks, who has kidnapped your girlfriend Daisy and cast spells upon your fellow Yolkfolk. At first glance, it appears to be yet another me-too platforming collect-a-thon. However, the game instantly becomes much more, as you seek out items to progress and help the various NPCs., not unlike an adventure game You’ll even come across a few minigames on your quest. There were a few issues with the game, not the least of which is the the lack of a save system (on the NES at least), and game-killing bugs that get players stuck in a place and have to reset the game. Even so, Dizzy was a fun mashup of platforming, puzzle, and adventure gaming. Maybe one day, we can see a current-gen console update. Until then, this cartridge is a rare find,