Retro Gaming Recap; Winter 2010/2011

So here's what's been going on with retro gaming recently. We'll delve into it in chronological order, new to old...


Amidst rumors of SNK Playmore no longer publishing games, I have it on good authority that SNK Arcade Classics 0 may finally be on it's way. Word is new footage was taken and sent to the ESRB recently (as posted by developer G1M2 on December 22 on their Facebook Page), and that information should be publicly available soon.

First off, the PS2 release has been altogether scrapped, which isn't the least bit surprising (I wasn't even aware that games were still being manufactured for the old workhorse, although apparently they still are, with at least five games scheduled for NA release in 2011).
The PSP release might still be in the cards, and digital distribution in some form is the new blueprint, which might be the only way us non-handheld home console players will be able to access these classics - which would be unfortunate.

No word yet on why the game was delayed over a year from the PSP release date found in the Japanese comic.

UPDATE;
So there's finally an official announcement on SNK Arcade Classics 0.
It is set for an April 21st 2011 release for the PSP in Japan. No word yet on a Stateside release.
Sources; Andraisang.com, Gamesetwatch.com



Dreamcast Collection Due In Late February (Feb 22nd North America)
Four Dreamcast games are included in this compilation; Sonic Adventure; Crazy Taxi; SEGA Bass Fishing; and Space Channel 5: Part 2.


To call four games a "collection" is a real stretch. Since I already have most of the key Dreamcast games (only game in this collection I don't have is Space Channel 5, and I couldn't care less about it), the Dreamcast Collection will not show up in my collection.
Yes, Dreamcast games take up a larger amount of memory so there's a limit on how many titles they can fit onto one disc, but I was simply expecting more, and it's difficult not to compare it to the all-encompassing Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection which contained a grand total of 48 games (40 Genesis, 7 arcade, and 2 Sega Master System games). Additionally, two of the games in the Dreamcast Collection (Crazy Taxi and Sonic Adventure) are available on Xbox Live Arcade, and the remaining two games are planned for future XBLA release. My condolences to those who have purchased either Crazy Taxi or Sonic Adventures on XBLA for $10 a piece, when you could've just waited for the Dreamcast Collection for $30 and got 4 games for for the price of 3 Dreamcast titles on XBLA.
Putting aside the fact that there were only 4 games included, the game selections in this compilation were just far too predictable. Not to mention the fact that Crazy Taxi isn't really the authentic Dreamcast version, since the in-game advertising was removed and the soundtrack featuring Bad Religion and The Offspring was replaced, and Sega Bass Fishing just isn't the same without the Dreamcast Fishing Rod peripheral.

A few game suggestions;
18 Wheeler: American Pro Trucker (also ported to the PS2)
2K Sports series; NBA 2K2, NFL 2K2, NHL 2K2, Tennis 2K2 (aka Virtua Tennis 2), World Series Baseball 2K2
Alien Front Online
Confidential Mission (On-rail gun game)
Crazy Taxi 2 and Crazy Taxi 3 (which was only released on the Xbox)
Dynamite Cop
Ecco The Dolphin: Defender of the Future
Outtrigger
Phantasy Star Online Episode I&II
Racing games; Daytona USA 2001, F355 Challenge (also ported to the PS2), Sega GT, Sega Rally 2
Seaman and Seaman 2 (which was only released on the PS2 in Japan)
Sega Bass Fishing 2
Shenmue I&II
Skies Of Arcadia (the updated Gamecube port)
Sonic Adventure 2 (the updated Gamecube port)
Virtua Cop 2 (from Sega Smash Pack)
Zombie Revenge

I've heard many echo requests for Jet Set Radio and it's sequel, although I have no vested interest in it.
I'd suggest House Of The Dead II, but the House Of The Dead II&III collection on the Wii pretty much covered that.

Although the following games have no roots in the Dreamcast, I'd also like to see them include Panzer Dragoon Orta (Xbox) and Shinobi and Nightshade (PS2). Then again, they could always save the Shinobi games for an all-encompassing Shinobi Anthology.

I think Sega has been spiraling out of control with no one at the wheel ever since they left the hardware market. And they've been hemorrhaging their back catalog with games like the Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection and the upcoming Dreamcast Collection, not to mention auctioning off their back catalog to craptastic Atgames, most recently with the Sega Genesis Arcade Motion plug-n-play on sale at Walgreens. Which is all pretty good news for consumers, but more indicative of a company that's struggling rather than sitting well.

To Sega's credit, they did publish two well-rated games this past year, Bayonetta and Vanquish. Both demos of which I enjoyed, Vanquish more than Bayonetta (reminded me too much of Devil May Cry). Gamespot even gave Vanquish the dubious honor of 'best game no one played' award for 2010. AVP3 however, was up for the worst game everyone played award.


Krome closes down
"On 18 August 2010, it was reported that Krome had closed down their Adelaide studios and made significant staff cuts to their Melbourne and Brisbane offices - with as many as 100 staff let go. On 18 October 2010, all remaining staff were let go."
On December 22nd, the final game pack (unlucky number 13) was released.

Let's face it, Game Room was destined for failure from the very start. Krome did little to nothing to alter or improve the virtual service since launch, and Microsoft has done little to nothing to promote it since its launch. You can't have both the developer and the publisher not give a product it's full support and expect it to succeed.
Bring in another developer? Perhaps. But I'd prefer if they'd scrap everything but the title and the games already released, and start from scratch.

I doubt we'll ever see even half of the 1000 games initially promised, and why would we want to? As echoed by others, it's most assuredly all shovelware, and Konami should have included all of their bottom-of-the-barrel arcade offerings (along with their hits) on a $20/$30 compilation disc long ago.

I'm sure glad I didn't actually spend money on any of Game Room's offerings, and now that I know it's teetering on the brink of extinction, I surely won't!

Krome's brilliant (sarcasm) solution to the Konami arcade cabinets' missing artwork was to substitute them for the Konami Windy arcade cabinet, which was released in 1996, when all of Konami's Game Room games were released years before. The least Game Room could do is make their application historically accurate, but Krome couldn't even get that right. The Windy cabinets stick out like a sore thumb and are entirely out of place.
Sure sure "if you go to an arcade in Japan they will have ALL the games in these cabinets, including classics from the 80s". Well that's all fine and dandy but THIS ISN'T JAPAN nor is Game Room intended to emulate 1996-present day! Not to mention that Windy cabinets do not have a marquee so it's nearly impossible to even tell what game it is until you enter the game itself.

I logged into Game Room around the time of the Pack 13 release and it was screwy to the tenth degree. Booted me from Live, made me download a small update, booted me from Live again, told me I had to re-download game packs and if I canceled it would erase my Game Room history, it (temporarily) erased my custom arcade, clicked on arcade games to play in the shop and it'd go to a loading screen, and once the loading was done it'd just bring me right back to the shop. What a friggin' disaster! Krome really had no clue how to run this thing from the get-go. What was Microsoft thinking? Stick a fork in it MS, it's done.

Once again, scrap the WHOLE dang thing and try again with another developer - or better yet, DON'T and force Konami to release an all-encompassing arcade compilation at a budget-price ON DISC (which they should've done long ago), and have Atari and Intellivision put all their Game Room shovelware on Atari Anthology Volume 2: FUCT (Failed Under Continuous Testing) and Intellivision Lives! Volume 2: MEGO (My Eyes Glazed Over).

In regards to classic game compilations on disc vs digital distribution;
It's pretty simple really. More games for less money is better than more money for less games. Classic game compilations have been around for quite some time now, and they set the bar in regards to pricing. Then digital distribution came along and felt the added convenience and online options (multiplayer, leaderboards) were worth a 500% to over 1000% markup. They were wrong, and sensible consumers can and will always recognize that fact.
I do not understand some of Game Room's [digital distribution] biggest advocates voicing their support in having classic games in Game Room as opposed to on disc. You're not gaining much if anything at all by having it on Game Room. Owning it on disc, however, guarantees it won't ever disappear. Owning classic games released on disc is a win-win for consumers. Having them released onto digital distribution instead of on-disc and the developer/publisher has you the consumer over the barrel.

And you can blame publishers for having half a bit of marketing sense for that. Release a classic game compilation on disc for a budget price, then releasing the games separately on a digital distribution service for a 500% markup and consumers are less likely to jump if there's a cheaper option available.
Release them on a digital distribution service first, then releasing them on a classic gaming compilation on disc for a budget price after the fact doesn't make much sense from a business standpoint, unless the online game sales have already topped out - at which point releasing a compilation on disc is superfluous.
In example; Would you have paid $60 (4800 points) for 9 Namco Xbla games, or $30 for all those plus the 25 more games included within the Namco Museum Virtual Arcade compilation?
It's just an unfortunate fact that the more money consumers dump into classic games via digital distribution, the more prices rise and the less likely we are to see classic game compilations on disc.

So the big remaining question mark Game Room gamers were clammering about was; Where is Sunset Riders? "It's in the demo reel and also listed in the binary file" gamers wrote. Well it was a no-show, and to be honest, I think Konami would be making a mistake by releasing Sunset Riders in Game Room for a paltry $3 as opposed to XBLA. Sunset Riders deserves larger exposure, and it'd be a nice fan-service if they gave it some sort of enhanced graphics treatment (with an option to play with original graphics of course).

Microsoft claims to be still investing in Game Room, although they have been been silent on their plans for Game Room ever since developer Krome went under.
One sign that it may still have a future is the fact that certain games via the Game Room interface were introduced as playable on Windows Phone 7 at CES 2011 earlier this month. Whether Microsoft brings in another developer to work on the core Xbox 360 application, or simply let it sit unused and full of glitches, is yet to be seen.




Dotemu released IREM Arcade Hits for the PC, DRM free, download only, in December 2010.
The games included are;

Air Duel [1990]
Battle Chopper [1987]
Blade Master [1991]
Cosmic Cop [1991]
Dragon Breed [1989]
Gunforce [1991]
Gun Force II [1994]
Hammerin' Harry [1990]
Image Fight [1988]
In The Hunt [1993] *Released on PSOne in US
Kung Fu Master [1984] *Ported to NES, arcade-perfect port included in Irem Arcade Classics for both the Sega Saturn and Playstation in Japan.

Legend of Hero Tonma [1989] *Turbografx-16 port available on the Wii Virtual Console
Mystic Riders [1992]
Ninja Spirit [1988] *Turbografx-16 port available on the Wii Virtual Console
Believe it or not, Ninja Spirit for the Turbografx-16 was the first game in history to receive a 10 in Electronic Gaming Monthly.
R-Type Leo [1992]
Released only in arcades, R-Type Leo is the third and final arcade release of this classic series (all subsequent R-Type games were released only on consoles). The R-Type timeline indicates that the events of R-Type Leo occur before those of all the other games in the series.
Superior Soldiers [1993]
Undercover Cops [1992]
Vigilante [1988] *Turbografx-16 port available on the Wii Virtual Console
A spin-off of Kung-Fu Master

I've always wanted Irem to release an arcade classics compilation! And although I wish they could've included more games from their collection (the exclusion of the 1982 golden age classic Moon Patrol is somewhat puzzling, and they really need to release an all encompassing R-Type Anthology including every last console release), my big complaint is though, why not release this on consoles!?! IREM Arcade Hits deserves larger exposure. I think it's a mistake to only release it as download only for the PC. I'd gladly pay a mark-up to play this on the Wii with the classic controller. I'd suggest the 360 but I'm afraid that they'd try to hawk each game separately on XBLA instead.

DotEmu has stated that it [releasing the game on consoles] "is not so straightforward due to various reasons."


I only recently became aware of the Playstation 3's Playstation 3 Classics HD line with the release of The Sly Collection, which was released on December 1, 2010. In a way this was kicked off over a year ago by the God Of War Collection, which was the first release to include remastered versions of Playstation 2 games.
From Wikipedia; "Classics HD is the official name given for these compilations in Europe, no equivalent of such name exists in North America or Japan. However, these titles are easily differentiated in North America as they include the subtitle "Remastered in High Definition" on the cover."
These remasters also sometimes include 3D support.

The Prince Of Persia trilogy, remastered in high definition, was released in North America as download only via The Playstation Store. Why a hard copy option wasn't made available in North America I do not know. Shame on you!
Update: A hard copy was eventually released on April 19, 2011.
Note; If you own the NTSC Xbox version of Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time, you might wanna hold onto it, because the Prince Of Perisa Collection does not include the original Prince of Persia & Prince of Persia 2 as unlockables, as the original Xbox version did (the only version to include Prince Of Persia 2 as an unlockable).

Some news I found exciting is the planned Q2 2011 release of Ico & Shadow Of Colossus. Two titles I own and love and would repurchase to experience them in high-def and 3D.

Update: The Ico and Shadow Of The Colossus Collection has a release date of September 27, 2011.

The planned Tomb Raider Trilogy doesn't quite fit into the formula, since all 3 games have been available in hi-def on this generation of consoles, albeit on the Xbox 360. But since neither Legend nor Anniversary were available on Playstation 3, this gives PS3 owners the chance to experience them all in one pack.
Update: Tomb Raider Collection was released on March 22, 2011.
"The collection includes the PlayStation 2 versions of Legend and Anniversary remastered in high definition plus Underworld, which was previously released on the PS3 in 2008, all on one Blu-ray Disc.
The two downloadable episodes available for the Xbox 360 version of Underworld are not included, and Crystal Dynamics has no current plans to make them available on PS3."

The Tom Clancy Splinter Cell Compilation is planned for release on August 2, 2011, and like the Prince Of Persia Trilogy, was originally listed for North America as download only, but that was revised.

Occasionally swaying from the Playstation 2 requirement, here are some of my suggestions of games worth compiling and revisiting to game pubishers for the "Classics HD" line of compilations;
ACCLAIM; Turok 1-4
ACTIVISION; Call Of Duty Finest Hour and Big Red One, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1-4/Underground 1-2, X-Men Legends 1-2/Marvel Ultimate Alliance 1-2
CAPCOM; Devil May Cry 1-3, Dino Crisis 1-3, Maximo 1-2, Onimusha 1-3 + Dawn Of Dreams
EIDOS; Legacy Of Kain: Soul Reaver 1-3
ELECTRONIC ARTS; Burnout 1-3 + Revenge and Dominator, James Bond; [Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, Agent Under Fire, Nightfire, From Russia With Love], LOTR: The Two Towers and LOTR: The Return of the King, Medal Of Honor 1-6 [Medal Of Honor/Underground/Frontline (*A remastered version of Frontline was included in the PlayStation 3 version of Medal of Honor)/Rising Sun/European Assault/Vanguard], NBA Street 1-4, Need For Speed 1-2/Hot Pursuit 1-2/Underground 1-2 + High Stakes and Porsche Unleashed, NFL Street 1-3, SSX 1-4, Time Splitters 1-3
INTERPLAY; Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance I&II
KONAMI; Hideo Kojima's Adventure Games (Snatcher and Policenauts, uncensored & localized), Metal Gear Solid 1-3, Suikoden 1-5
LUCASARTS; Star Wars: Battlefront 1-2
NAMCO; Ace Combat 1-5 + The Belkan War, Dead To Rights 1-3, Point Blank 1-3, Tekken 1-5 + Tag Tournament 1, Time Crisis 1-3 + Project Titan and Crisis Zone
ODDWORLD INHABITANTS; Oddworld 1-4
ROCKSTAR GAMES; Grand Theft Auto III/Liberty City Stories/Vice City/Vice City Stories/San Andreas, Max Payne 1-2
SEGA; Shinobi (2002) and Nightshade, Yakuza 1-2
SONY; Ape Escape 1-3, ATV Offroad Fury 1-4, Discworld 1-3 (Psygnosis), Gran Turismo 1-4, Jak & Daxter 1-3, Ratchet & Clank 1-4, Ridge Racer 1-5, Wipeout 1-6 (Psygnosis) [Wipeout, Wipeout XL, Wipeout 3, Wipeout Fusion, Wipeout Pure [PSP], Wipeout Pulse (PS2 port only released in EU)]
SQUARE ENIX; Kingdom Hearts 1 & 2, Secret Of Mana 1-4 [The Secret Of Mana, Seiken Densetsu 3, Legend Of Mana and Dawn Of Mana]
THQ; Red Faction 1-2
UBISOFT; Destruction Derby 1-5, Driver 1-5, Myst 1-6
WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE; Champions Of Norrath I&II (Snowblind Studios)


The new Splatterhouse game was released in North America on November 23, 2010 and along with it came a welcome surprise.
Although the 2010 revival of Splatterhouse wasn't exactly met with critical fanfare, it is worth noting for including the original Splatterhouse trilogy of games as unlockables. And although you can purchase Splatterhouse 2 on the Wii's Virtual Console, and you'd probably be able to track down Splatterhouse 3 second hand off of Amazon or Ebay without breaking the bank, this is the first time the arcade version of the first Splatterhouse, uncensored without the changes you would find in the Turbografx 16 port, has become available to home console owners.
So because of the fact that Splatterhouse 2010 includes all 3 original games, even if Splatterhouse 2010 may not be a terrific game, it'd be worth picking up in the bargain bin someday.


The Medal Of Honor reboot was released on October 10, 2010, and the Playstation 3 version came with an added bonus. A remastered HD port of 2002's Medal Of Honor: Frontline.
It is one of only two WWII games I own (the other being Call Of Duty 2).
And while 2002 may not be considered "retro", MOH Frontline is a terrifc game, starting off with the D-Day Beach at Normandy level ripped right from Saving Private Ryan.



Dragon's Lair Trilogy (Dragon's Lair I & II and Space Ace) was released for the Wii on October 8, 2010 at an MSRP of $29.99. IGN Review
There have been many releases of Dragon's Lair over the years, but this is the first time both Dragon's Lair games and Space Ace have been brought together on one disc.

The Wii release features the same remastered footage from the Blu Ray release, though converted to 480p widescreen. The original games were filmed in 4:3 and the Blu-Ray was matted to 1:78:1 to fit a 16x9 frame.
The only thing missing is the extra behind the scenes footage produced for the DVD/Blu-Ray.

Yes, the separate Blu-Ray releases of Dragon's Lair, Dragon's Lair II and Space Ace displayed in full 1080p resolution are the definitive versions, but they come at a cost. All three titles on Blu-Ray would currently cost you $123.97 off of Amazon.com (or $132.89 at Amazon MSRP), or a full $49.95 a piece off of Digital Leisure's site, for a grand total of $148.50!
Considering that each game "can be beat in 15 minutes flat" as someone states, the current price of $21.98 off of Amazon for Dragon's Lair Trilogy for the Wii, as opposed to $120 or more for the Blu-Rays, and considering that the Wii uses the same remastered footage (albeit displayed at 480p), the Wii version comes out lookin' like a winner.
Much like the Mad Dog McCree Gunslinger Pack however (and Data East Arcade Classics), Dragon's Lair Trilogy might be difficult to spot at your local brick & mortar store, leaving online outlets such as Amazon your only reliable source of purchase.

Jean Shepherd - Not On DVD

I'm both surprised and disappointed that the release of Jean Shepherd's A Christmas Story on virtually every format (DVD, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, with the 'Ultimate Collector's Edition' which was released on Blu-Ray Nov. 4th 2008, which features the same 2006 Blu-ray disc but in a metal tin which also includes a strand of Leg Lamp Christmas lights) and it running 24 hours straight on TBS during Christmas time, hasn't spurred the availability of Jean Shepherd's other (made for TV) movies.


Peter Billingsley then and now.
Even the soundtrack from A Christmas Story was released for the first time in late 2009 by Rhino Records.

A Christmas Story was playing when the theater I went to back in those days turned into a twin on November 18, 1983. Chances are I saw it in the theater there as well!



The Christmas Story House in Cleveland, transformed into a near-replica of the movie set, opened to the public on November 25, 2006.



The only other Jean Shepherd film available on DVD is My Summer Story (aka It Runs In The Family) from 1994, starring Kieran Culkin as Ralph, and Charles Grodin and Mary Steenburgen as the parents. This film is intended as a direct sequel to A Christmas Story, even though Kieran Culkin was technically younger (11) than Peter Billingsley in a Christmas Story (12) when My Summer Story was released in theaters. It's far from a classic like A Christmas Story, but worth watching nonetheless.



I'd really like to see Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven Of Bliss (with Jerry O'Connell as Ralphie) from 1988 be released on DVD.
Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven of Bliss originally aired numerous times on the Disney Channel beginning August 6, 1988, shortly thereafter on PBS nationwide, and was released by Walt Disney Home Video on VHS in 1993. As of 2011 it has not been released on DVD.




I'd also like to see Phantom of the Open Hearth circa 1976,

Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters circa 1982 (Matt Dillon as Ralphie),


and The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski circa 1983

all be made commercially available on DVD for the first time in their existence.

Currently one of the only ways you can see them is by purchasing them from Sheptapes.com for $30 from a guy who transfers them onto DVD from old VHS recordings.

These films are also available from other sellers, who also include Ollie Hopnoodle's Haven Of Bliss (out of print but still owned by Disney), although as far as who's selling the best quality transfer I do not know. As far as we know they could all be using the same transfer and throwing in a VHS transfer of Ollie Hopnoodle as added incentive.
Here's the box cover for a four-movie set from onesmedia.com for $25

and a box cover for a four-movie set from ioffer.com for $45


Trivia;
Although the cast of Jean Shepherd's six films changed often, and the main character of Ralph was played by someone different each time around, there were a few actors/actresses who reprised their roles.
Both the actress who played the Mother (Barbara Bolton) and the actor who played Flick (William Lampley) held their roles throughout all three early Jean Shepherd films Phantom of the Open Hearth, The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters and the Star Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski.
The Old Man was played by James Broderick in both Phantom of the Open Hearth and The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters.
The actors who played Randy (Jay Ine) and Schwartz (Jeffrey Yonis) held their roles in both The Great American Fourth of July and Other Disasters and the Star Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski.
The actress who played Miss Shields, Tedde Moore, was the only onscreen character from A Christmas Story who was played by the same actor in the sequel, My Summer Story.

The Director of A Christmas Story, Bob Clark, was known for kick-starting the slasher genre in the 70's, and also directed Porky's (and it's sequel), which is credited as launching the genre of the teen sex comedy.
Tragically, Director Bob Clark and his youngest son were killed on April 4, 2007, in a head-on car crash with a drunk driver.

Scott Schwartz who played Flick in A Christmas Story, and starred in The Toy with Richard Pryor a year prior, decided to stick his tongue on other foreign objects and flirted with the adult film industry for a brief time, appearing in such titles as Scotty's X-Rated Adventure and Dirty Bob's Xcellent Adventures, among others.

The Goonies 25th Anniversary (and more)

The Goonies has been released on Blu-Ray Nov 2, 2010 as the 25th Anniversary Edition!
Blogomatic's Report





Varèse Sarabande finally released the score in it's entireity, only 25 years after the fact, on March 2010 in a limited edition of 5000 copies.

You can download the score from soundtrackzone.blogspot.
Pay no mind to the fact that he has it listed as being from 1995. It is clearly the 34-track 25th anniversary edition.

The Goonies soundtrack was re-released in Japan on July 22, 2009. The soundtrack was digitally remastered and includes 2 additional tracks not found on the original release; the vocal mix of "Eight Arms To Hold You", and the dance remix of "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough".


From Wikipedia on Cyndi Lauper's "The Goonies 'R' Good Enough";
Before its inclusion on 'The Essential Cyndi Lauper' in 2003, the song was considered a rarity among fans, having never appeared on any of Lauper's albums or the 1994 compilation 'Twelve Deadly Cyns...and Then Some'. Lauper admitted in an interview that she hated the song, which was why she had chosen not to include it on her first compilation.
The song has been covered by a few artists, such as Bombones, New Found Glory, The Advantage, and Haruko Momoi.
The song was featured in several iterations of Konami's Goonies video games, most notably the popular NES game Goonies II. It was also featured as an instrumental version in Pop'n Music 10 by Tomoyuki Uchida (as "Mr. T").

There were also numerous video games released based on The Goonies.
The Goonies for the NES/Famicom was never released in the USA outside of the arcade in the form of Nintendo's Play-Choice 10 cabinets. The game is similar to The Goonies II, but with a far greater focus on arcade-style action. Watch the speed run.
The Goonies II, a fictitous sequel, was released for the NES in 1987. You played as Mikey, your weapon of choice was a yo-yo, and your main goal was to save a Mermaid. Yeah, I don't get it either. I seem to recall renting this game back in the heydey of the NES and probably didn't get too far, and after watching the walkthrough, I can see why.
I am somewhat surprised that Konami didn't follow suit and release these games on the Nintendo Wii's Virtual Console service for the Goonies 25th Anniversary.

The Making Of A Cult Classic: The Unauthorized Story Of The Goonies


The Goonies Reunion


The Goonies Vacation



Be sure to check out the funny new sitcom "Raising Hope" , featuring Martha Plimpton, who is terrific in it.

As for the possibility of a Goonies 2?
From Wikipedia;
"The possibility of a film sequel has been confirmed and denied many times in recent years by the original cast and crew. Donner said that he had a story he liked and Spielberg behind him, but in 2004 several of the actors from the original revealed that Warner Bros., the film's owner, had shown no interest in a sequel.
Sean Astin told MTV in October 2007 that Goonies 2 is an "absolute certainty.... The writing's on the wall when they're releasing the DVD in such numbers."
Donner has expressed doubt that the sequel will ever happen, as many of the actors had not shown interest in returning for a sequel.
Also in October 2007, Josh Brolin talks "Goonies" Sequel with Marcus Leshock said there was a script and shooting was to begin the following summer.
On October 15, 2008 in Variety, Richard Donner said' "We tried really hard, and Steven (Spielberg) said, 'Let's do it.' We had a lot of young writers submit work, but it just didn't seem to call for it.”
Corey Feldman stated in his November 25, 2008 blog post, "NO! There is no Goonies 2! I'm sorry but it's just not gonna happen.... Course now that I've said that they'll do it."
On the July 2010 release of "The Making of a Cult Classic: The Unauthorized Story of The Goonies" DVD, Richard Donner states a sequel to The Goonies is a "definite thing" and will involve as much of the old cast as possible. "It will happen," says Donner. "We've been trying for a number of years."
So the only thing for sure is that they've thought about it and tried, and they've gone back and forth on whether or not it will happen.


Other old school goodness being released on Blu-Ray;
The Back To The Future Trilogy was released on Blu-Ray Oct 26, 2010 as the 25th Anniversary Trilogy


The 2010 Scream Awards shot-for-shot remake of the original Back To The Future teaser trailer.


Alien Anthology was also released on Blu-Ray Oct 25, 2010




TRON was originally supposed to be released in November 2010, with no firm release date ever given, the month prior to Tron: Legacy being unleashed in theaters. Apparently the remastering process for the hi-def format has been completed, but it seems as if it's now more likely to see the release of the Tron Blu-Ray sometime around the release of Tron: Legacy on Blu Ray - probably around Summer 2011.

Now we just have to get the original Star Wars trilogy, the original Indiana Jones trilogy and TRON released on Blu Ray, and Blu Ray will be in like Flynn.

It was announced back in August 2010 that all six Star Wars movies will be coming to Blu-Ray in a Box Set in Fall 2011. That's great, but I don't want the three prequel movies stinking up my movie collection, and I sure as heck won't accept being forced to pay for them! Hopefully they'll sell them separately at some point.
As for Indiana Jones, there is no release date at this time. At one time it was said that the orignial Indiana Jones trilogy was to be released on Blu by the end of 2009. And as seen here, remasters have been done. So I'm sure it's only a matter of time. Here's to hoping they don't pack The Crystal Skull in, forcing you to purchase it to get the original trilogy.

Sci-Fi/Horror Not On DVD

So I was going to post this before Halloween, but I can't even get leisurely activites done on time.

The good news?
War Of The Worlds 1988-1990
Wiki/Imdb/War Of The Worlds.org
Season one was released on November 1, 2005. The Second and final season was released on October 26, 2010, nearly five years after the release of the first season.



Tales From The Darkside 1984-1988
Wiki/Imdb
CBS Home Entertainment (distributed by Paramount) has released the first three seasons of Tales from the Darkside on DVD in Region 1, the fourth and final season was released on October 19, 2010.



- SCIENCE FICTION/HORROR NOT ON DVD -
The bad news is the following shows remain lost in time.


While the first season of Amazing Stories (Wiki (1985-1987) 2 seasons, 45 hour-long episodes) was released back in 2006, the second season is still missing in action! But for whatever reason, it is available in region 2 in Germany and Japan.

Darkroom 1981-1982 (16 hour long episodes)
Wiki/Imdb



Freddy's Nightmares 1988-1992 (2 seasons, 44 hour-long episodes)
Wiki/Imdb

Five episodes of the series were released ("No More Mr. Nice Guy", "Lucky Stiff", "It's My Party and You'll Die If I Want You To", "Dreams That Kill" and "Freddy's Tricks and Treats") on VHS through Warner Home Video in the mid-1990s. Those videos are now out of print.
In 1991, Braveworld Ltd. released The Nightmare Begins Again, a direct-to-video movie comprising two episodes edited together. The film was used to launch Braveworld's collection of Freddy's Nightmares episodes, usually consisting of two episodes per tape. The episodes in the feature were "No More Mr. Nice Guy" (directed by horror legend Tobe Hooper) and "Killer Instinct" (directed by Masters of Horror creator Mick Garris).
In 2003, Volume 1 (the first 3 episodes) was released on Region 2 DVD in Ireland and the UK, by Warner Home Video. Volume 2 was also planned for release later that year, however, sales were so poor, that Warner canceled the release of Volume 2.
There are currently no plans to release Freddy's Nightmares on DVD in the United States.


Monsters 1988-1991 (3 seasons, 72 half-hour episodes)
Wiki/Imdb



The New Alfred Hitchcock Presents 1985-1989 (4 seasons, 76 half-hour episodes)
Wiki/Imdb

The new series lasted only one season before NBC cancelled it, but it was then produced for three more years by USA Network.


Otherworld 1985 (1 season, 8 hour-long episodes)
Wiki/Imdb
Cult TV Flashback Blog




Outer Limits 1995-2002 (7 seasons, 154 hour-long episodes)
Wiki/Imdb

On November 1, 2005, MGM Home Entertainment released Season One of the
New Outer Limits on DVD in North America. Due to poor sales, no
further seasons were released.
Several "grab bag" DVD anthologies have been released: Sex & Science Fiction, Aliens Among Us, Death and Beyond, Fantastic Androids and Robots, Mutation and Transformation, Time Travel and Infinity - all but one of which contains an episode from season one, and in the case of the Sex & Science Fiction anthology there are two episodes from season one.
Alliance Home Entertainment has released all seven seasons of The Outer Limits on DVD in Region 1 (Canada only).


Werewolf 1987-1988 (1 season, 28 half-hour episodes)
Wiki/Imdb

Werewolf: The Complete Series was to be released on DVD by Shout! Factory by October 6, 2009, but was later pushed two weeks to October 20, 2009 to include special features. The release was eventually canceled as Shout! was unable to attain the rights to several songs, when agreement could not be reached with the artists.
Reportedly because of only two artists who didn't want to "play ball". Two!
The main song most likely being Mike & The Mechanics "Silent Running".
I am so disgusted with the music industry over this. Furthermore, I just don't understand it. I think that if they signed the rights to have their music in a show when it aired, it should carry over. Rarely if ever is this a problem for movies on DVD.
It just baffles the mind. Music rights standing in the way of DVD releases SHOULD NOT BE AN ISSUE, PERIOD!
F$#@in' greedy ass music companies!

Blue In A Red State

The polls are closed and the tally is in. Wisconsin State Journal/Wikipedia
After taking one step forward (by electing Obama as President) we've now managed to take two steps back.
Halloween came two days late this year, as the most frightening thing happened on Nov 2. I got a dose of the same dreadful feeling I got when watching the Bush Vs. Gore voting results come in.
I am fearful for Wisconsin's future. I am upset and frustrated. I am disappointed in Wisconsin voters. There are times I wish that Madison and Milwaukee could be somehow shielded & protected from the contrast of Republican/conservative votes of greater Wisconsin. Although to be fair, I have the feeling that a larger than usual number of conservative votes came from within the bubble this time around.
I do not like or trust Scott Walker. I'm tempted to egg the Capitol the day he takes office.


I agree with someone from the State Journal who said the close race is indicative of voters who voted Republican not really voting for the candidate, but voting for whom represented the most change, and republicans have piggybacked off of Obama's campaign for change (albeit change from Obama and Democratic rule) across the board during the 2010 midterm elections.

Almost everything I voted for got shot down.
Voting Scott Walker into office is bad for women's rights, stem cell research, state funded health care programs for those who need it, individual freedoms, and the Madison-Milwaukee high-speed rail project.

Although, thankfully, the funds for the Madison-Milwaukee passenger rail seem to have been committed just a few days prior to the election, so Walker's plan to derail the rail may have been made that much more difficult, and will hopefully be out of his destructive hands altogether.
Talk and plans for the Madison-Milwaukee high-speed rail have been ongoing for a good decade or more, and here we finally get the federal funding to make it a reality, and the guy who vows to stop it if he's elected into office is the guy who takes the seat?
I still can't believe Walker still vows to stop the Madison-Milwaukee rail because we'd have to cover what equals 1% of the federal grant money per year to keep the wheels greased. He's concerned about wasteful government spending when he should be concerned about progressing (not just maintaining) the State he's elected governor in. If he rejects the grant money it isn't going to go back to Washington anyhow, it'll just go to another State. The State of New York has already expressed interest in the money if we don't want it. It's every State for themselves! Rejecting the rail would be the most moronic move ever, and doing so may leave our state (and possibly taxpayers) with a tab for the remaining cost.

Now the current governor, Jim Doyle, has temporarily halted the project in anticipation of a new governor with a different set of views taking office, and to study the real life consequences of stopping the project dead in its tracks.


I voted for passenger rail from Sun Prairie to Middleton in exchange for a half cent tax increase. This was on the ballot for 45 suburban and rural communities in Dane County, and almost every last one of them failed.
Voters failed to realize the value in passenger rail and a chance to really connect Dane County in a unique way. Extending the rail out to business heavy Middleton, also home to Madison/Middleton's dubbed "Silicon Prairie", is a no brainer.
I realize that citizens are concerned about anything and everything that would increase their taxes in this post-recession recession, but other forms of connectivity/travel are desperately needed in Dane County. I feel it would be advantageous to plant the seed in varying communities now rather than later, and as we've seen, later means never. Unless you live on the Isthmus itself, Dane County is live & die by car. Madison is very much isolated from it's surrounding communities and vice versa which are generally only connected to the city by one, maybe two stretches of highway.

So suburban families will vote for a tax increase if it's for a new public pool or a new school for their kids etc., but not when it comes to something as important as transportation? It is selfish. It forces everyone to own their own vehicle and pay for upkeep, and not everyone who lives in these communities can afford it and it'd be beneficial to have an alternative.


I voted against the 133 million dollar referendum to pay for upgrades at Madison College, which increases taxes, but somehow that referendum passed.
So Dane County residents will vote against rail which includes a tax increase, but will accept a tax increase on the behalf of the growth of a bloated community college?
Why did I vote against it? Madison College (formerly known as Madison Area Technical College) is already a large enough institution for higher learning. Now that the economy is less than it could be, everyone seems to be flooding in towards Madison College in hopes of landing a job with their new set of knowledge, and pay the institution a good sum of money in return. Higher education is big business.
I feel like Madison is a city which offers too much higher education and too little in the way of job prospects, and having a city full of over-educated advanced-degree holding individuals competing for entry-level/mid-level jobs against those without degrees is dysfunctional to say the least.
As a matter of fact, dare I say that I'd like to see colleges (in the area and across the nation) decrease in size and function, and force the hand of local companies & businesses to provide more (paid) on the job training. And where are they all going to land jobs afterwards? Not all here that's for sure!


I voted to allow medicinal marijuana in the state of Wisconsin, and amazingly, this seems to have passed. Yes, I believe it's entirely possible that it's a guise in taking a step towards the legalization of marijuana altogether as one State Journal writer warns, and I have no problem with that. I may not use marijuana myself, recreationally or for medicinal purposes, but I think that legalization should at least be tried at this point, even if it's with baby steps.
But apparently, even voters in California were too afraid to take that step and failed to set the precedent and have the opportunity to lead the nation by example.
I think it's far time our government graduates it's citizens to adulthood, giving individuals more personal freedoms as opposed to less. It's time the fact that it is no more and no less harmful and addictive as alcohol is widely accepted as fact.


I've never strictly aligned myself along party lines, even though I've voted Democrat since I cast my first ballot as an adult in the Clinton election back in 1993. I've tried to keep an open mind and feel that if I like a particular candidate and their views, I would vote for them regardless of their party. Say perhaps if a likable Republican were socially liberal but fiscally conservative, or a Green party or Independent party candidate who I thought had a shot at winning and not simply taking votes away from the Democratic party candidate (i.e. Ralph Nader costing Gore the vote over Bush in the 2000 election).
But fearful of Republican control, this is the first time I've felt thoroughly secure in my decision to connect that line to Democrat voting Democrat straight down the line, and two months away from 2011 I'm that much farther away from the possibility of even ever considering voting for a Republican. The Republican party has become that much more scary over the two years since Obama has been in office, and the radical & conservative Tea Party certainly hasn't helped my view of the Republican party.

I'm sick & tired of citizens expressing their disappointment over Obama. If anything, Obama's shortcomings proves that you just can't fix 8 years of FUBAR in 2 short years.