90s games Archives - Intensive Gaming Diary

Are You Waiting for GTA VI (or Not) ?

Posted on December 2, 2024 by Viljami

In this blog post we are talking a bit about the upcoming video game from a video game series that might be the biggest name in the game. I am talking about Grand Theft Auto and especially the sixth game in this series.

I still remember clearly how it felt like playing the first Grand Theft Auto. There were possibilities in this games. You could impact and interact with the world that was inside this two dimensional video game. Violence was present and you could just tear everything apart until there was more and tougher forces on the streets to calm you down.

Many times it was not so necessary to commit violence in the game. But also many times you killed, in the video game, someone for example by driving over a person or shooting someone. I remember what my father said when he realized that I had played a game like this. It could have also been one of the first two Fallout games, also, I don’t remember so clearly.

First two GTA games were golden or at least in my memories they are. I still own a copy of both of them for PS1. However, the third GTA was the game that made GTA series a historically very important. GTA III was released for PS2 and PC in 2001. GTA III had bright colors represented in three dimensional environments. It had many relatable characters.

We saw GTA IV in 2008. It was released for PS3, Xbox 360 and Windows. It was finally 2013 when GTA V was released. It made its way to many consoles going past even whole console generations. I mean that GTA V was first released when it was still the dominant era of PS3 and Xbox 360. When time went by we saw releases for PS4 and Xbox One. This game is also available for the latest and current console generation.

To tell you the truth I never was so excited about GTA IV or GTA V. I tried hard to advance in GTA III but after all failed to finish the game. I think GTA III is the most important game in the series. And the first two GTAs are just so much of a memory for me to dwell in as they bring me so much nostalgia that I prefer to play one of them before I would even start getting into a game like GTA V.

As you can probably tell from the attached image I still have a sealed copy of GTA V for PS4 literally in my hands. I think I bought it for 25 euros and this was already some years ago. You could say that this means I don’t have an interest to play the game. You are actually right with this one. I am not saying it is a bad game. I’m just saying that it isn’t interesting for me.

I could go on about GTA IV or GTA V and how especially the fifth game doesn’t interest me. But there is something happening soon that might take my concentration. What’s happening? There is going to be a new GTA game released. The game is the sixth in the series. This might be a hit. This might be a nice game. For all we know there are lots of expectations for this game to be a success. We can take it as a game for us gamers. We can deal it and review it as a piece of digital art and also a piece of gaming.

So, the final question is, are you expecting this new GTA game? Just ponder it a little while. Think about how you feel about this soon to be released video game right now. Is it going to fail and flop? Is it going to make some developer company some profit? Or would it be the case that it just brings something new to gaming? Whatever it will be we are going to see soon…

Gremlins 2 (NES) – Some Notes About Gameplay

Posted on November 17, 2024 by Viljami

Gremlins 2 – The New Batch is a very neat Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES for short, game. In this game you control the main character, Gizmo. I am not going to go over the movies plot or setting. If you haven’t seen Gremlins 1 or 2 yet I think you should really watch them especially if you’re really into 1980s and 1990s entertainment.

As with any NES game the controller is a lot more simpler compared to a modern gaming console. You have directional buttons, select and start button and A button and B button. This is of course very logical and clear to anyone familiar with NES. I am mentioning these because I think that Gremlins 2 makes great use of the controller. The movement of the main character is very fluent in every way. As fluent as in a retro game like this can be.

The movement consists of directions (up, down, left, right), jumping and shooting. When you press the jump button Gizmo is up in the air for a short moment. You have to try to time your movement and jump so that you actually get over a gap in the game. This takes a while to learn but is very essential in the actual gameplay.

There are a total of 5 levels in this game. It can take several hours for the player to finish the game. The amount of continues isn’t limited in any way so you can continue to play as long as you wish. You get a password when you loose your life and you get to this menu where you can choose to continue to play or quit playing. At the end of the level 1-2 you get a better weapon that deals more damage and shoots a bit further. It is difficult to move to any other direction than directly to up or down or left or right but this is also possible in this game.

There are some clever strategies in Gremlins 2 that you can utilize to try to succeed better in playing the game. When you fall off the edge you get a chance to float around with a balloon. This way you can move freely over enemies or gaps until the balloon wears off and you fall to the ground. You have three hearths of health. When you get hit with an enemy you loose a half of a hearth. So, you can get hit six times after you loose your life and have to start from the beginning of the level. After getting hit you are “immortal” for a while and you should take advantage of this to progress more efficiently.

Sometimes enemies move in directions that are random. Try to figure where and how the enemy is moving and then shoot it to destroy it. Collect pearls that you get from defeated enemies. You get to go to a shop at times in the game and you can buy more lives, health or upgrades to weapons. Write down the password each time you die in a level.

Graphics and animation, also in the cut scenes, are very adorable for a game that was released in 1990. I am currently in level 2-2 out of the total 5 levels that the game ultimately has. There are many different enemies in the game that have you to think about different kinds of strategies. This is a very good NES game that I can recommend for every NES fan. I have the actual, real, physical copy of the game that I do play on my Retro Trio console. The game is a bit cheaper when it comes to its price. It can be bought from a game shop (here in Finland) for about 30 euros. You can probably get it cheaper if you buy from some private individual or from flea market of some sort as is usual with older, retro type of, video games like this.

Download Half-Life 2 For Free (Until 18.11.2024)

Posted on November 16, 2024 by Viljami

It is now possible to get to download and play an old FPS game called Half-Life 2. You can get your copy now from Steam. It is available only until 18th of November 2024. It was released earlier today for free. Just search for it in Steam. Type “Half-Life 2” and you should see a link that gives you a permission to download and install the game. The game will stay in your library if you have activated it until 18th of November 2024.

I started to play this game as I decided that since it is now free I should at least give it a try. I have played this game earlier on original Xbox. It is very different to play it with a mouse and a keyboard. Half-Life 2 was released in 16th of November 2004. That means it was released exactly 20 years ago.

It is possible to play Half-Life 2 with a controller. I haven’t tried that yet but I think my Xbox Series S/X controller that I play my PC/Windows games with will function just fine. I had to fiddle a bit with the settings. I adjusted the movement level of the mouse and also checked for some controls. The graphics still look nice. I also had to find a way to take a screenshot from within Steam so that I could share you some more content from the game. You get to play also Episode One and Two with this free release.

My deeply rooted and deep relationship with Half-Life series’s games start right from the first game. I got to play it on a PC while it was also later ported to PS2. The first Half-Life was released in 1998. It had a true competitor that I got also into. The competitor was a game called Unreal. I remember buying a bundle of big box games that included at least the first game in Abe’s Oddysee series and Unreal. I actually right now don’t remember if it had any other games included. The box was partly yellow because it was a re-release, so, the box wouldn’t have been as valuable as the original one if I even had kept it even in a good condition.

A also bought Blue Shift and Gunman Chronicles. I still have the copy of Blue Shift in my gaming shelf. I am very sad to announce that I did sell my Gunman Chronicles big box game with manual included for about four euros a bit over ten years ago. Gunman Chronicles was a mod of the first Half-Life and Blue Shift was a sort of a spin off of Half-Life where you play as a regular security guard of Black Mesa facility. It was very popular to make a mod for Half-Life and there were many good ones available. I have to mention a mod called They Hunger.

I was in a bit of a hurry while writing this because the deal lasts for only about some days maybe two days or so. As you are in a hurry to get this game please don’t hurry while playing it. I think we have a very good game right here that can offer you a lot especially if you are into retro games for PC.