Getting ahead of things for once and clearing out the queue completely!
We got ourselves a slow month. It must be the heat.
So, with no new releases to shine a spotlight on, now's a good time to shuffle out the last few sets of games from Wildcard streams, plus a randomly uploaded magazine. If you're into the X-Men and don't mind the games being rough, this one will have something for you. If you're into the original ZZT worlds and don't mind games based on them being rough, this one will have something for you. If you're into the WWF and don't mind the games being rough, you're still going to be disappointed.
Some nice title screens though. You'll know em when you see em for sure.
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“WWF In Your House” by Ryan A. Levine
Conquer a single board maze while The Ultimate Warrior yells that he's going to kill you. Don't worry! It's all kayfabe! ...I hope
“Village” by Lindsay McIntyre, Mark McIntyre (1995)
A short "What if me and my friends had houses" game. Kind of like a simpler version of the Jay's Hood series. Nice looking title screen, and starting board with some very unrealistic interiors.
“Town III: The Final Adventure, Almost!!! Episode 2 of 4” by Seth Klonsky (1993)
An excellent name that offers a very minimalist take on Town. It's got the usual places, an armory, a bank, and such, but most rooms are large empty spaces filled with ammo or monsters. Mind the fake wall maze!
“Dok Land” by Ariel Fradin, Steven McCarter (1996)
A very strange game featuring divorce, Ireland, time warps, and more. Combined with some STK and some odd color choices, this one ends up being quite strange no matter how you approach it. Not to mention, it has several corrupt boards, as well as an ending that lets you read a bunch of songs about Barney- sorry Blarney the dinosaur.
Including a very good one about lesbians, if you can believe it.
“Mark Land 2: The Invasion of Dr. Bob” by Mark McIntyre (1994)
After discovering the nefarious plans of Dr. Bob to take over Mark Land, it's up to you to put a stop to his plans. Explore the town and its surroundings in this world inspired by the original ZZT saga. Visit the graveyard, the mall (it's the 90s so they're not the same thing), city hall, and more!
A game that doesn't reach the standard set by its inspiration, but shows promise from a developer still new to this ZZT thing.
“Mark Land 3: Escape from The Dungeons!” by Mark McIntyre (1994)
Well, you stopped Dr. Bob, except now everybody thinks you just killed him in cold blood. Thrown into the dungeons, you must now find a way to escape and clear your name. Again inspired by the original worlds, only this time rather than just re-treading Dungeons, there's an entire second act once you're out in which you have to find a way to get on TV and explain the situation to a town full of fearful citizens.
“Mark Town” by Mark McIntyre (1995)
Okay, this one is very much Town but with a movie theater. Like the Land games, it's mostly recreating iconic boards in a less interesting way, making for an almost bootleg feeling take on the five purple key formula. It's not entirely devoid of original material, and the movie theater tempts players to find a ticket so they can find something fresh. That something is "The Happy Princess Meets Puppy Wuppies". An absolute must see. Two thumbs way way up.
“ZZT Gaming Monthly Issue 2 - April 1996” by Claudio Leite
A surprise upload of a ZZT magazine from early 1996. Includes a preview for Six Silver Gems as well as an ad for the custom font Hyper ZZT, which is meant to be a generic replacement that can be used in many games. Plus reviews of a few ZZT/MZX worlds.
“X-Factor: Part 1” by MDBowers, SMokey666
A recolored-border romp through the danger room starring Havok as he rescues captured X-Men including Polaris and "Strong Guy". Navigate a few boards of simple obstacles including finding the real key, dodging spinning guns, and tunneling through slime. Then, a sudden ending to promote parts two and three.
“After Xavier: The Age of Apocalypse” by Brutalhulk
A BrutalHulk game, whose comic book adaptions we've seen before. This means some nice little stick-figure doodles of various characters, and the ability to pick which mutant you wish to play as. Special "Mutant Power" objects on certain boards allow you to use a unique ability depending on your choice, ranging from clearing the screen of enemies to shooting a missile that will destroy whatever it hits.
Some cutesy ruined-buildings for backgrounds and fun ideas with the unique powers make the game easy to appreciate despite its simplicity. There's a fantastic no-STK depiction of Professor X's school for the gifted in the end sequence as well!
“Ultimit-X (X-Men 4)”
Like the previous game, this one also has the same style of art and ability system, yet with no credited author or reliable timestamp, it's hard to say if this is perhaps an earlier BrutalHulk game or a game inspired by his works.
The format of this one quickly changes, as the city goes away and is replaced with less impressive obstacles: large blocks of lions, a multi-board maze, and that's before things get baffling. Soon players are in a gymnasium playing dodge ball, then executing various characters as punishment for their misdeeds. These crimes range from having a long name, being a bomb that can't blow up, or just having a TV too large to own in this city without a license. Obi Wan also makes an appearance.
“X-Men: The Adventures of Bishop” (1995)
The most impressive of these X-Men games published today. Still little more than basic ZZT action screen challenges, but with a little bit of heart put into them. Reasonable amounts of enemies, rooms that aren't just full-screen rectangles, and a number of boss fights as you deal with Magneto and anti-mutant society members. It has a story!
Most impressive are the number of endings available. Players can choose who to team up with, who to fight, or just doom everyone if they aren't careful.
