Video Game Memorabilia: Board Games by Tom Zjaba

 

Board games based on video games are among the cheapest video game memorabilia.  You can amass a nearly complete collection of the classic board games for under $100.00, not counting shipping.  Some like Pac-Man and Donkey Kong can easily be found for $5.00 or less.  Only a handful will prove any problem to find now.  But this will change as they were not made in huge quantities.  Unlike traditional board games like Monopoly or Risk, these were made for a year or two and then retired.  They did not stay in circulation, so there is a finite amount made.  And there is even a smaller amount of them that are complete and in good shape.  The board games were made for kids and they tend to lose pieces.  So like new board games that are complete will command a premium down the road as more and more video game collectors branch out and start adding memorabilia to their collections.

 

When buying board games, the first thing to do is research what are all the pieces that came with a particular board game.  Did it have separate instructions or were they printed on the inside lid?  Did it come with dice or a spinner?  How many total pieces are included?  This way you will know what is supposed to be included and will end up buying an incomplete board game.  A little research on ebay or any other auction sites will yield information for you. 

 

As with any collectible, condition is very important.  Make sure the manual is not missing any pages, that there is no writing on the box and there are not creases or cracks in the lid.  The lid is probably the most important part as far as condition is concerned.  Think of it as the cover of a book.  If the front lid is damaged, pass on the game.  Also be on the look-out for boxes that have been repaired with glue, tape or staples.  This will ruin the value of the board game.

 

There are a few board games from the classic era (classic era games are the ones that were made before the NES) that command more money.  Dragon's Lair will go for $20.00 or more if complete and in nice shape.  It is one of the more desirable board games as there are a lot of collectors of Dragon's Lair memorabilia.  Another more expensive board game is Turtles from Entex.  Do not confuse it with the much more common Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles board game as they are two very different things.  Turtles is based on a obscure arcade game that was later ported to the Odyssey 2 game system.  It is one of two Entex board games based on video games (the other being Defender) and rarely shows up in auctions.  It can go for as much as $20.00, but it can be months before one shows up.

 

Two of the rarest of the video game board games are Pooyan and Wizard of Wor.  Both are made by Ideal Games and are without a doubt the hardest to find video game board games.  They show up on ebay a few times a year if that and can go for as little as $10.00 to as much as $50.00 each.  They were both part of a series of games called the Flip Rcade series and as far as anyone can tell, they were the only ones made. 

 

The Nintendo era board games seem to do better as far as prices go.  The Super Mario, Legend of Zelda and even Sonic the Hedgehog board games can bring in $20.00 or more.  They seem to be the only ones that command much money from the newer board games.  Others like Tetris (yes, there is a board game based on Tetris) and Double Dragon are quite affordable. 

 

Here is a list of almost all the video game board games along with the companies that made them and what year they were released.

 

Berzerk Milton Bradley 1983
Blueprint Ideal 1983
Centipede Milton Bradley 1983
Commando Bandai 1983
Defender Entex 1982
Donkey Kong Milton Bradley 1982
Donkey Kong Board Game Takera 1999
Double Dragon Tiger 1989
Dragon's Lair Milton Bradley 1983
Frogger Milton Bradley 1981
Ghosts n Goblins Bandai 1989
Joust Parker Brothers 1983
Jungle Hunt Milton Bradley 1983
Legend of Zelda Milton Bradley 1988
Ms. Pac-Man Milton Bradley 1982
Pac-Man Milton Bradley 1980
Pitfall Milton Bradley 1983
Pole Position Parker Brothers 1983
Pooyan Ideal 1983
Popeye The Arcade Game Parker Brothers 1983
Q*bert Parker Brothers 1983
Street Fighter II Milton Bradley 1994
Super Ghouls n Ghosts Tsukuda Hobby 1991
Super Mario Bros Milton Bradley 1988
Super Mario Bros Waddingtons Games 1992
Super Xevious Namcot 1988
Tetris Milton Bradley 1989
Turbo Milton Bradley 1981
Turtles Entex 1982
Wizard of Wor Ideal 1983
Zaxxon Milton Bradley 1982

 

Tom Zjaba (Who continues to do comic strips based on video game characters at the Arcade After Dark website.  Check them out at http://arcadeafterdark.com)

NES'cade -- Donkey Kong 3 by David Lundin, Jr.

Released on the Famicom shortly after the system's launch, it was yet another easy to distribute title in the United States during the early days of the NES.  The main reason for this being that absolutely no localization was required or performed.  The ultimate objective of the game is based upon high scores alone, as there is no continuing progression level to level as with the previous entries in the series.  The screens change slightly between stages but the basic objective and set up remain exactly the same, things just get faster with more and varied enemies on the screen.  Each stage begins with Donkey Kong hanging from the rafters and preparing to stir up the hives to send bugs down to capture Stanley's flowers.  Bugs stream from the hives and head downward, attempting to shoot or collide with Stanley on their way to the flowers at the bottom of the screen.  Caterpillars crawl out from the sides of the screen and stop once shot, eventually changing direction.  More than anything they exist to block shots and create dead space on the platforms as touching a caterpillar will result in the loss of a life.  Donkey Kong himself isn't much of a threat with the exception of the few stages where he throws down coconuts.  There are two ways to complete each level:  either by killing all the insects or forcing Donkey Kong to the top of the rafters with shots from the spray gun.  This means Donkey Kong can pretty much be left ignored as he never leaves the rafters or gets down low enough to come into contact with Stanley.  However when an opening is created in the insect cover, quickly driving Donkey Kong to the top of the screen can be used as a fast way to end the stage and pick up a higher time bonus.  Forcing Donkey Kong upward is also the only way to cause a more powerful spray gun to drop down when it is present.  The stronger spray gun can destroy any insect including the caterpillars and will make Donkey Kong climb faster but it only lasts for a limited time.

It's hard to fault the NES port for anything than being a conversion of a unpopular game because in terms of a port it does everything near perfectly.  Control is spot on with the directional pad replacing the joystick.  Both buttons B and A are used to shoot blasts with the bug spray gun.  The visuals appear to be ripped directly from the arcade with only a slight loss in resolution and background detail on the NES.  All characters and items look exactly as they did in the arcade with near perfect duplication of the original sprites.  Even though Donkey Kong 3 in the arcade used a vertical display, the perspective change is perfectly executed, as are the subtle corrections in enemy flight paths and characteristics.  Instead of the screen being stretched out, the trees on the sides of the screen are lengthened, basically letterboxing the vertical display between them.  This allows for a near exact duplication of playfield size.  Audio is almost exact, the audio hardware in the arcade cabinet is probably very similar to the NES sound hardware.  All the sound effects and musical tunes make the jump onto the NES, the cartridge sounds just like the arcade cabinet.

Here we have a rarity, a wonderful recreation of the arcade original but of a game not all that many people enjoy.  If you did happen to enjoy Donkey Kong 3 in the arcade you'll love the NES port as it's as perfect as you could get on the hardware.  As with all the Arcade Classics Series titles the game is extremely polished and a solid entry into the arcade library on the platform.  It's a shame the game itself isn't a better title to begin with but again if it's a game you enjoy then by all means you should own the NES version.  I've always felt Donkey Kong 3 was the weakest of the entries in the Arcade Classics Series but given the other games in the series, that's nothing bad at all.

 Apple II Incider: Text Adventuring


 by Donald Lee

Game Archaeologist by Scott Jacobi

    

Due to the simple "point and shoot" nature of this genre there tends to be fewer gameplay elements than a conventional 8-bit game. Subsequently I'll be reviewing two games this month.

First up - Rambo III

  

Despite the title, this is in fact only the second Rambo game for the SMS. Released in 1988 as an SMS exclusive, it was in fact based on the movie Rambo III and is not really a true sequel to the previous game, "Rambo, First Blood Part II", which was not even a light gun shooter. Interestingly enough there never was a "Rambo, First Blood" released for the SMS.

Set in Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation your goal is to rescue friend and brother-in-arms Colonel Trautman. The game is divided into 7 missions, each representing different Afghani locales. You shoot your way through each level trying to kill as many commies...errr...Russian troops as possible. They don't make it easy; in addition to troops they throw a variety of ordinance your way - mortars, attack choppers, tanks, the works.

It's a basic and fun game. If it moves - blast it - unless it's a civilian. The interface is simple: your score, a life meter, and 3 icons - grenades, health power-ups, and ammunition. You score increases as you shoot enemies. Bonus points are awarded at the end of each mission for the amount of grenades, health power-ups, and ammunition you have remaining. You get a single life but are allowed several chances to 'continue' upon death.

Unlike many games of the genre (Safari Hunt, Marksman shooting, etc...) you aren't faced with a series of static levels with a few moving objects. Each level progresses steadily from left to right adding an element of urgency/suspense to the action. If you like rail shooters you'll enjoy this game.

Next - Rescue Mission

Released in 1987 this Sega exclusive is a bit of a departure from other games in the genre. In Rescue Mission your goal is to defend the evacuation of wounded soldiers (via railroad handcart?!) from incoming enemy troops. As your medic progresses over a series of connected railroad tracks he picks up wounded troops. If he makes it to the first-aid station, you win the round. If not you lose a life (3 in total).

Again, a very simple and straightforward game. Shoot enemy soldiers while being careful not to shoot your own wounded. Points are awarded at the end of the round for enemy soldiers killed and for rescued wounded. There is no damage/life meter, but injury inflicted on the medic is visible. The more injuries he sustains the more wounds appear, very innovative for its day. The only down side to the game is the 'upbeat' music. Sniping enemy soldiers to prevent them from killing your wounded requires something a wee bit more melancholy.

On a somewhat unrelated front Nintendo announced (finally!) a SMS virtual console channel for the Wii. While not a big fan of the virtual console this is great news for classic Sega fans, hopefully providing easy access to some of the Japanese and European games that were never released in North America.

Two plugs for Nintendo in a Sega system review. This has to be a record.

That concludes this month's SMS review. Feel free to send comments/suggestions/requests/reprimands to retro@amalgam.ca

Growing up with Games: The Mid 70s


 
by Brian H. 

One play at a relative’s house and you’re hooked.  After a few rounds himself, Dad gives in and buys the family some good ol’ electronic entertainment.  $80.00 was the price to be paid, but to a six-year old, it was amazing.  Feeling even more competitive?  Flip that switch to Hockey or Squash and let the betting of candy begin!

Head down to the local convenient store or shopping mall and for 25 cents you are transported to the old west as a gunslinger in Boothill, or grab hold of the periscope and instantly you are in charge of sinking enemy ships with your torpedoes.

The graphics were simply by today’s standards, but what a step up they were compared to the motorized and mechanical games that came before them.  Nobody knew how the technology worked, and even what the technology was…..you didn’t care, it was magic!

Then it came, like an unstoppable video monster.  They marched upon our planet seeking destruction upon everyone’s quarter supply…..Space Invaders.

There was no more saving quarters in those little blue books you got from the bank, that all was gone now.  Go through your parents’ change and ask if you can put that shiny sphere into your book for savings, only to replace it with a metal slug from an electrical box, as if to give the book some weight upon an unexpected cleaning of the room!

Christmas 1978 brought with it a disaster of sorts.  Father exceeded our lofty expections of gifts and surprised us with the Atari 2600…well ok, it was the Sears brand that came with Target Fun instead of Combat, but still….come on!  Dad was the hero of the year.  I can still see the price tag on the box..$179.99.  That is a ridiculous amount of money back then don’t ya think?

Classmates from school also received this modern marvel.  Fish tanks went uncleaned, sidewalks always covered with snow, PONG got stuck in the closet never to return, and homework….homework?  What is this mysterious phrase that Mother speaks of?  With this videogame system came a major problem.  Games!  Not as in there weren’t enough to play, but how to pay for them?  At $25 to $30 a game, parents were not rushing out to purchase a new one everytime junior got tired of shooting smiley faces or racing down a stick fence lined street at night.  If I had only saved all those quarters in the little blue books!

Game on, Coffee1970