Flashback to 1987. The year’s software sales charts are dominated by coin-op conversions – Out Run from US Gold, Combat School from Ocean, Enduro Racer from Activision and Paperboy from Elite, to name just four. The outlook for 1988 looks to be no different, with publishers vying to sign up the hottest coin-ops, attracted by the ready-made audiences that are happy to see the games on their systems in some form or other. Expectations are now simmering for the home versions of Technos’ Double Dragon, one of the highest-grossing coin-ops of 1987. Which publisher will bag the rights? The smart money’s on Ocean, as it has =already scored a hit with its conversion of Renegade, the arcade forerunner to Double Dragon. But maybe US Gold or Firebird will muscle in?
The eventual winner turned out to be… Mastertronic. That’s right – the budget kings bamboozled the competition by doing a deal directly with Technos, leveraging its existing relationship with Tradewest, one of Technos’ distributors. Mastertronic announced plans to publish the game as a full-price title on its recently acquired Melbourne House label. As you might imagine, Ocean was disappointed. In fact, according to former Ocean artist Mark R Jones, as memorably related in RG 213, Ocean was “pissed”. There was a silver lining however. When licensing Renegade, Ocean had the foresight to have it written into the contract that it could produce its own sequels for the home market. And so with Double Dragon missed but not out of mind, the firm began planning Renegade II for release on Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64.
Esta historia es de la edición Issue 263 de Retro Gamer.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición Issue 263 de Retro Gamer.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Cabela's Dangerous Hunts 2009
Initially debuting on the PC in 1998,games began appearing on consoles from 2001 with the release of Cabela's Big Game Hunter: Ultimate Challenge for Sony's PlayStation.
ModRetro Chromatic
Meet the new handheld aiming to provide the ultimate Game Boy experience
ULTIMATE GUIDE Project Rub
OF ALL THE GAMES THAT LAUNCHED WITH THE NINTENDO DS, NONE WERE AS INVENTIVE, CHARMING, OR OVERLOOKED AS PROJECT RUB. TWENTY YEARS LATER, SONIC TEAM'S DS DEBUT REMAINS ONE OF THE SYSTEM'S MOST ENJOYABLE AND ENDEARING GAMES
Wii Balance Board
During the era of the DS and Wii, Nintendo didn't just want to sell games consoles - it wanted to sell the dream that self-improvement could be fun, whether you were exercising your mind in Dr Kawashima's Brain Training or your body with Wii Sports.
THE MAKING OF JACKIE CHAN STUNTMASTER
MOST GAMES WITH A REAL PERSON'S NAME IN THE TITLE HAVE ACTUALLY VERY LITTLE TO DO WITH THEM. BUT THERE ARE SOME STARS WHOSE INFLUENCE ON A GAME GOES FAR BEYOND THEIR FACE AND VOICE. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THESE IS THE GREAT ACTION GOD HIMSELF: JACKIE CHAN
Future Classic
Modern games you'll still be playing in years to come
SUPER VEHICLE-001 METAL SLUG TACTICS
SNK'S METAL SLUG SERIES IS ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC RUN-AND-GUNS AROUND WITH A LEGACY AS RICH AS ITS METICULOUS 2D ART. SO WHAT CONVINCED SNK TO GREENLIGHT AN ISOMETRIC TACTICAL RPG? WE SPEAK TO LEIKIR STUDIO'S CREATIVE DIRECTOR AURÉLIEN LOOS TO FIND OUT MORE
MAGAZINE CRAFT PAUL DAVIES
In the first of a brand-new series, we interview the game journalists behind the most iconic gaming magazines of the past. We kick off by speaking to Paul Davies about his time as editor of CVG. We discuss the videogames that hooked him growing up, his time in the industry, and how he became an unlikely hero in revamping the iconic multiformat mag
THE MAKING OF Wizardry PROVING GROUNDS OF THE MAD OVERLORD
THE CREATORS OF THE INFLUENTIAL 1981 RPG WHICH WENT ON TO INSPIRE COUNTLESS TITLES, FROM DRAGON QUEST TO FINAL FANTASY EXPLAIN HOW IT HAD ITS ORIGIN IN SOME OF THE EARLIEST ONLINE EXPERIENCES, AND WAS ONE OF THE FIRST COMPUTER GAMES TO COME IN A BOX
20 Years of The NINTENDODS
NINTENDO'S QUIRKY HARDWARE DESIGN MAY HAVE RAISED A FEW EYEBROWS TWO DECADES AGO, BUT THE BRILLIANT GAMES IT ENABLED DREW IN PLAYERS REGARDLESS OF AGE OR GENDER. RETRO GAMER SPEAKS TO THE PEOPLE WHO MADE, SOLD AND DEVELOPED GAMES FOR THE DS AS WE CELEBRATE THE BEST-SELLING HANDHELD EVER
