You don’t always gotta be NiGHTS. Sometimes you just need to take a train and relax.

Wrote about the joyous RPG-esque systems of Across the Unknown, the new Star Trek game which I think RPG fans should definitely not sleep on:

Filled with memorable characters, fantastic visual effects, and a challenging quest, Shining in the Darkness was one hell of a debut title. It put Climax on the map and laid the foundation for a series that would run for the next three decades. www.sega-16.com/2026/02/behi...

Old post! If you enjoyed my ranking of all the Shining games then it’s time to take a deep dive into the best game in the series… gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2024/06/23/s...

Every Shining Game, Ranked. (Repost)

Here’s something I recently wrote for Time Extension. I agonised over the order of these, but I think I’ve nailed it. Was really good fun to revisit them all and replay them for a few hours each too.

No new arrivals this week so here’s something beloved from the collection…

Went to my local school to see a pantomime and spotted the latest novel from Doug Naylor in the vending machine of all places. Which feels quite apt from the co-creator of Red Dwarf! I tried to order a copy but it just gave me chicken soup instead.

Never in my life did I think I’d play a tactics RPG that referenced Bruce Campbell! In Demonschool you can rent cult movies on VHS and then the film you choose will be reviewed in the school paper!

I've done it! I've found the best-worst games mag cover of all time

“Is there a technology the left is excited about?”

Easily Solo: A Star Wars Story. So much about it annoyed me but the ending with Darth Maul - who has absolutely nothing to do with Han Solo - made me so angry. What were they thinking?

I love that Sega positioned this as a “Haunted RPG” My write-up on Shining The Holy Ark: gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2022/07/10/s...

There’s a little snippet in here where Eastman suggests the Last Ronin movie might be back on.

Devastated to report I am currently coming last in the voting.

Virtual Boy played by actual girl

One new arrival this week. I got this for the Alien Breed-like Steel Force and was pleasantly surprised to find a bunch of obscure European arcade games on the cart. This kind of treasure trove of obscurities is exactly what makes Evercade so much fun to explore.

If this were true, no young people in the west would buy GTA6

#CRTWR: It's time for a show! Hit us up with your Three-Word Reviews of the much discussed and unforgettable Square Enix/Yuji Naka collaboration Balan Wonderworld by 3PM GMT for potential use in the recording!

what nintendo has done to camelot soft over the years, squandering their talents on mario golf games and whatnot, is nothing short of a cultural felony

Happy Valentine’s Day! It is time, once again, to take a look at Chulip, the kissing RPG from the creators of Moon and Stray Children… gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2021/01/03/c...

Finally a use for the beat up old Switch 1 I’ve had in the loft since March. I like the idea of this retired and largely superfluous old console having a new life as a virtual Virtual Boy.

Happy Valentine’s Day! It is time, once again, to take a look at Chulip, the kissing RPG from the creators of Moon and Stray Children… gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2021/01/03/c...

Today I discovered that in the mid to late 90s, there was an officially licensed VCD player / Mega Drive combo in China It has a genuine Megadrive motherboard inside it and megadrive controller ports at the back.

This was so much fun to record, as usual, and might have our best banter yet, if it's not too arrogant to say so. If you like my picks, don't forget to vote in the Back Page discord. If you don't like them, you're dead to me.

This… Let people shit where and when they need to!

"Unbelievable that this little piece of junk could be such a big problem. No wonder this circuit failed, it says made in Japan." "What do you mean doc, all the best stuff is made in Japan." "Unbelievable." A graphic adventure based on the first BTTF movie, released for Japanese micros in 1986.

Just discovered this while searching for Alien Breed content. I've never heard of this game but immediately feel a deep desire to play it!

Happy 30th anniversary to Bahamut Lagoon! Here’s my write-up about this gorgeous and innovative Super Nintendo tactics game that is long overdue a HD-2D remake and official localisation in my opinion… gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2020/11/07/b...

Old post! How does a technically advanced 3D fighting game translate to an 8-bit, 2D handheld? Pretty well actually! gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2025/03/16/v...

A deadly encounter on the streets of 21st Century Kyoto in the wake of devastation from an earthquake that also unleashed a horde of demons - and magic back into the world. A point-and-click and RPG hybrid that received an English translation in 2019. 📺: Makyouden, Nihon-Create, 1992 (PC-9801)

This week’s new arrivals…

Far too difficult to pick. They’re almost all bangers. Evil Dead 2, Spider-Man 2, The Quick And The Dead, A Simple Plan… But the older I get, the more I think Spider-Man 3 might be a subversive masterpiece.

reminded of how Data East's Dragon Gun has boss backgrounds that are currently unemulated because... it's literal MPEG video being decoded by hardware on-board.

I finally got around to playing the Adventures Of Elliot demo and it is so far up my street, it’s parked in my driveway and knocking on the door. Has the flavour of Zelda, Ys and Mana all wrapped up in lovely HD-2D visuals. Dungeons seem well designed and bosses require plenty of thought. I’m in!

New episode! We're joined by The Guardian's @mackeza.bsky.social to talk about her new book, Super Nintendo, which is out now in the US and February 12th in the UK. Listen wherever you get podcasts: open.spotify.com/episode/5L2z...

Found a games shop in the seaside town I’m visiting. Not much stock but still better than GAME.

:0

Went to a seaside arcade just now and surprised to find that Mr Do is somehow still getting work in 2026!

My hobby is finding the most random & cool-looking untranslated RPGs and going "hell yeah!"

New blog post time! This week's game is Elfmania, an Amiga-exclusive fighting game with impressive visuals and some of the weirdest gameplay ideas I've seen in the genre. Playing solo probably isn't going to end well, but put this in your mystery tournament or something and you're cooking with gas!

I was kind of amazed that the Dragon Quest 1 remake still has you play as a solo hero with no party. However, the new features actually make it work really well…

New blog! The Dragon Quest HD-2D Remake layers on so much polish it's almost indistinguishable from a modern game, except for one very surprising original detail... gamesfromtheblackhole.wordpress.com/2026/02/01/d...

They added Gameshare to Kirby Air Riders! This still feels magical to me. Can play 2-player with my daughter on a screen each with only one cart, and don’t even need another Switch 2. This is the sort of brilliant tech - with a user-friendly purpose - that makes Nintendo so important.

Tomorrow...

Tomorrow...

Can’t believe Marvel made a series with Trevor and Simon

From the exp. archive, one of the very best Nintendo 3DS games, tragically inaccessible now. Attack of the Friday Monsters! (Millennium Kitchen/Aquria, 2013): expzine.com/2014/10/29/a...

This really sucks. For my money she was one of the low key funniest actresses on the planet. Absolutely essential to the Home Alone and Beetlejuice films.

Here is the official fact sheet for the 1996 game that Nintendo is about to release for the first time