Obsolete Gamer

Author: J.A. Laraque

Taitos super table flip game
Blog
J.A. Laraque

Feel like throwing a tantrum, there’s a Game for that

This is the game. You have various scenarios like Dad and the Kids, Bride at a Wedding and one of my favorites, Frustrated Office Worker. So you can pound on the table and knock things off the shelves and cause damage which not only sets a very bad precedent but scores you points. As the timer runs down you grab the table and flip it. Well, not really since it’s attached to the machine, but the feeling of tossing over a table is there.

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Super Mario Bros Crossover title screen
Blog
J.A. Laraque

Super Mario Bros Crossover

So the game plays just like the original NES game, but as you can see in the trailer, the characters and levels are different such as being able to play as Ryu and Link and using special abilities from the different characters. The overall goal is the same, you go from left to right making your way through the worlds and defeating the enemies until you get to the fourth level of each world where you face Bowser. Now the levels have been tweaked and changed since different characters have different abilities to add more challenge and re-playability to the game.

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Super Mario Bros Crossover title screen
The Arcade Room
J.A. Laraque

Super Mario Bros Crossover Flash Game

The overall goal is the same, you go from left to right making your way through the worlds and defeating the enemies until you get to the fourth level of each world where you face Bowser. Now the levels have been tweaked and changed since different characters have different abilities to add more challenge and re-playability to the game.

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N64 USB Controller
Blog
J.A. Laraque

Would you buy: N64 USB Controller

Personally, I did not love the N64 controller, I know a bunch of people that did but the original SNES controller felt so perfect to me that the button placement, the size and analog stick just felt, well it felt wrong. Now obviously this was just my personal opinion and later controllers, especially the Xbox control looks like took a page from the N64 and PSOne controller, but in the end, it looks as if this design along with the SNES was like a gold standard for controllers since the original Atari joystick.

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donkeykong
The Arcade Room
J.A. Laraque

Donkey Kong Flash Game

One of the most classic and hardest original arcade games out there. The idea is simple, Donkey Kong has kidnapped Mario’s girlfriend Pauline (Way before Princess Peach) and he must jump over the barrels Donkey Kong tosses as well as fire. Besides his timing and jumping skills Mario can sometimes use a magic hammer that destroys the barrels. If he reaches the top he rescues the girls or maybe Kong climbs higher. Funny enough, most gamers never got past level 3 of the original game.

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SteelSeries H Wireless Headset
Hardware
J.A. Laraque

SteelSeries H Wireless Headset Review

One of the questions about wireless headsets was battery life and interference. As far as battery life, again the H Wireless Headset knows what gamers need. They understand that when your battery goes low you need to pop in another one fast. The good news is the battery life is a little over 20 hours and the transmitter holds a secondary battery that charges while the other is in the headset. It is quick and easy to remove the plastic cover on the headset, remove the battery, pop out the other fully changed one in the transmitter, pop it in, pop the other in the transmitter to begin charging and get back to gaming.

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dave with beard
Pro Gamers
J.A. Laraque

Gamer Profile: Dave Vogt

In the end, not Mega Man, not Mario, not even Castlevania could take that spot. It had to be Zelda. This was the game that changed everything for me. The feeling of awe that overwhelmed me the first time I stepped foot into Hyrule has never quite been duplicated- and the intrigue built from there. That sense of wonder and exploration have not only had a huge part in my getting into game development, but truly cemented my love of video games.

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Notables Gamers
J.A. Laraque

Gamer Profile: Carrie Swidecki

There was something cute about those twin dragons Bub and Bob that hooked me into the game. Plus I loved the simplicity of the graphics and the background music. This was the 1st game that I became obsess with getting both a high score and trying to complete the game. I would blow bubbles against the wall in between moving up levels and killing enemies to get max points. I would restart the game if I missed any bonus food items on a level to max my score. Bubble Bobble is also the 1st game that I stayed up all night long, so I could make it to the 100th level to complete the game. It is the only game that I have fully completed on Nintendo and I was 10 years old!! I like to say it’s the game that made me a hardcore gamer!!

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batman-arkham-origins-joker
Editorials
J.A. Laraque

Warner Bros. Games delivers a slap to the face of gamers

What worries me is there have been companies that have been known for releasing great games and if there needs to be a fix it is addressed quickly. As much as people used to complain about Blizzards long development times, their RTS games were worth the wait, but look what they have become now. They still make good games, but you see the differences between now and before Activision. If we allow these practices to continue then we have to expect other companies to also slack off. If they can save money by releasing a striped down game and selling more DLC’s or rush a game out and patch it later then why shouldn’t they do so if it won’t hurt their bottom line. In the end, only new IP’s and independents will try hard because they have to prove themselves and win us over while fan favorites can do as they please because we will by their game anyway

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The Logitech G19s Gaming Keyboard
Hardware
J.A. Laraque

The Logitech G19s

So let’s get right into it. One thing about any review be it video games or hardware is the question of, how can the reviewer give an honest review if their job is to continue to review products and maintain relationships with companies. I found after a lot of trial and error, that the key is to recognize the different aspects of people’s decisions in purchasing a specific product. For the Logitech G19s, a big issue is price and at $199.99 it is completely understandable. What you have to do is really look at all the features and then your own needs, wants and budgets and ask yourself is it all worth it.

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Notables Gamers
J.A. Laraque

Gamer Profile: Stephen Barton

I loved 3D Monster Maze on the Spectrum ZX, but Doom really reset the bar entirely. The soundtrack was awesome (especially given the resources available), but what really got me hooked was that it was the first game I ever played involving a network. That you could be on one computer and playing someone on an entirely different computer in a different room with just a null modem cable between the two, before we even had an internet connection – that was special.

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Softporn_Adventures
DOS GamesPC
J.A. Laraque

Softporn Adventures

The game’s cover features three nude women and a male waiter in a hot tub. The hot tub is actually that of Sierra’s owners, Ken and Roberta Williams. From left to right, the first woman is Diane Siegel, On-Line’s production manager. The second is Susan Davis, On-Line’s bookkeeper and the wife of Bob Davis, the creator of Ulysses and the Golden Fleece. The waiter was Rick Chipman, an actual waiter from a local restaurant, The Broken Bit. The woman on the far right is Roberta Williams. The ad was considered somewhat scandalous at the time because of the degree of nudity displayed.

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Obsolete Network
J.A. Laraque

The Best of The Obsolete Gamer Show 2013

For the Obsolete Gamer Show team being able to chat with people about video games is just about the most fun we can have. We get to be silly, have fun, laugh, a lot, and talk with people from all over the world. These are not just podcasts, they are fond memories and good times and we were proud to have them all and wanted to bring you some of the best moments from OGS 2013.

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