Before Halo, Call of Duty, Doom, and even Wolfenstein 3-D, there was Catacomb 3-D, a prototype of the first person shooter. Catacomb 3-D is the third of a series, although it is the first using a 3-D engine. Playing as a nameless wizard, you descend into a catacomb to battle orcs, goblins, and other creatures with a variety of spells that you find throughout each level. The game was later followed up the Catacomb Fantasy Trilogy, which wasn’t developed by ID, although they use a similar engine and gameplay. These three games introduce new levels, and the third part even introduces sci-fi elements. You can get the entire series for only $6 at GOG.com. You’ll want to check it out and witness the birth of one of gaming’s most popular genres.

Created by 3D Realms, Shadow Warrior is another entry from the glory days of the first person shooter. Although it’s caught serious flack for its stereotypical potrayal of Asian culture, it was fun to play and it had some features that were ahead of its time such as secondary fire for the weapons and vehicles players could drive. As ex bodyguard Lo Wang, you are out to assassinate your former boss after he summons demonic creatures in a bid to conquer Japan. Wielding several weapons including a Katana, sticky bombs, a rail gun, and Uzis, you blast your way through his minions in order to stop him. There isn’t much more to it than that, and that’s what made games like SHadow Warrior, Doom, Wolfenstein, and Rise of the Triad fun. The game will be receiving a remake which aims to correct some of the un-pc aspects of the original. Speaking of the original, you can grab it, along with its expansion packs from Steam or Gog.com.

Reloaded, from Gremlin Interactive and Interplay is a sequel to Loaded, a top down shooter for the original Playstation. You (and a friend if playing 2-player mode) choose one of 6 psychotic mercenaries (plus a hidden 7th) as you hunt down Charming Handsome Erudite Bastard, a.k.a C.H.E.B, a madman who framed the mercenaries for various crimes. The characters include The Consumer, a cannibal sexpot, and Sister Magpie, a robot nun. Obviously these characters weren’t very sane to begin with. Your goal is basically to make your way through each mission killing everything in site. This was made before the dual analog stick, but the controls are still responsive. It’s not very cerebral, but it doesn’t try to be. If you want something with a deep storyline and plot, go play some Mass Effect. For classic shooter fans, you can grab this off the Playstation Network for $5.99

Sunset Overdrive, an Xbox One exclusive title developed by Insomniac (Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank), is one of many new gaming franchises set to make its debut next console generation.

Like it or not, this next generation of consoles will soon be upon us. With the Wii U having been out for little over half a year, some will say it’s already here. The Wii U, Xbox One, and Playstation 4 will present players with dozens of sure to be classic titles, including several new franchises. Lets not forget however that there were several classic franchises that came from this generation. So now is a perfect time to take a look at the classic franchises that were spawned this past generation. To qualify, a franchise has to have it’s first title released on the Wii, Xbox 360, or Playstation 3, so you won’t see the Elder Scrolls or Halo in this list. Also, a game has to have more than one title in it’s series, so that’s why you won’t see Mirror’s Edge here.
[Read the rest of this entry…]

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon was the first Castlavania game for the Game Boy Advance. On a personal note, when I got my Game Boy Advance, COTM was the first game I picked up. The game adopts the exploration heavy formula of Castlevania Symphony of the Night. Despite a few nagging problems, and the fact that its storyline is considered non-canon, COTM is a classic entry in the long standing franchise.
[Read the rest of this entry…]

Before being outsourced to other developers and turned into a first person shooter, Metroid was one of Nintendo’s most celebrated franchises of both the 8 and 16-bit era. Come to think about it, it’s still one of Nintendo’s most celebrated franchises even after being outsourced to other developers. Its exploration heavy gameplay has made it a hit among gamers, and its heroine Samus Aran is one of the most recognizable female protagonists in gaming. Super Metroid represented the series at its best.
[Read the rest of this entry…]

The early days of this past console generation saw something that we would rather forget about (but secretly loved): Burger King made it’s debut in video games. Not content with simply having it’s creepy-looking mascot appear as a trainer in Fight Night Round 3, the franchise released a series of games centered around its fast food products. You could pick them up for $3.99 with any value meal. It was admittedly a cool promotion, even if the games were crap. Of course, this isn’t the first time fast food has partnered with video games. The unholy alliance of french fries and digital gaming first manifested itself back in 1988, with the Japan-only Donald Land, a Famicom game in which players controlled McDonald’s mascot Ronald McDonald in a side-scrolling Mario rip-off. 4 years later, Virgin Interactive would release M.C Kids, also based on the fast food franchise. This game was released in North America, and it was actually a pretty decent platformer. You play as one of two kids named Mick and Mack. The Hamburgular has stolen Ronald McDonald’s magic bag, and the kids have to retrieve it. You’ll explore several different worlds, finding hidden secrets, and throwing blocks at enemies to defeat them. Despite the McDonalds license, the game features none of the fast food chain’s products, so unlike the Burger King games, you get the feeling of this being a semi-polished platformer rather than a glorified ad for McDonalds.

Sonic and Knuckles was the last good Sonic game for the Sega Genesis, and it was released at the height of the 16-bit era. It was basically an expansion pack for Sonic 3, although it could be played by itself. Sonic 3 and Sonic and Knuckles were originally intended to be one game (as a matter of fact, if you do the level select code in Sonic 3, you can hear music from the stages in Sonic and Knuckles, and McDonalds featured a promo based on Sonic 3 that mentioned the Flying Battery Zone, a level which wasn’t seen in the game). However, time constrains reared their ugly head, and Sonic 3 was cut down to 6 zones. However, this turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as we got 2 awesome Sonic games in the same year, and S&K utilized a pretty cool feature.
[Read the rest of this entry…]