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More new super Gamebot Lives

We have two new episodes to offer up, episodes 9 and 10! These episodes include all the great trivia and classic banter you have come to expect plus Joe & Mac, 7800 trivia, Lode Runner, the "Impressive Human!" Dig Dug II contest, Donkey Kong, Gobots, Target: Renegade, King of Kong and much more! Download them on the media page.

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, answers to trivia, high scores or anything you wanna say, email us! mail@gamebotonline.com or go voice your opinion in the forum.

Venture

Carolina Games Summit

We had a great time at the Carolina Games Summit! This event was located in Goldsboro, NC and featured game contests, game developer panels, VG music artists and more. Even though the CGS was not a retro or classic themed show, we represented the classic by setting up a classic game room. I met lots of interesting characters (as usual) including a Castlevania expert that said he had played every one in the series (and claimed they were too easy) and a gentleman who actually requested to play the Three Stooges for NES (and did well to boot)! Interesting indeed!


I did my best to represent the most popular games systems in history which includes the excellent late 80s/early 90s, the time of the great 16-bit console wars. It is a rivalry that in many hearts continues to this day, so I had to offer up both options to keep the masses happy.

Naturally I hooked up a Super Nintendo and boy, was it a success!

Strangely, the most popular game of the day was the one I expected to be played the least. It was a game I brought purely to represent the shooter genre... Gradius III and it was played non-stop for the bulk of the show. The second one person stopped, someone else would snap it up in a hurry. Shooters really are more popular than I thought, I even had someone offer to buy the cartridge. But it was my own personal copy so no way!

When there was a free moment I quickly changed to Magic Sword. This is one of my favorites as of late and I was curious to see how others felt. The gamers just kept asking me to put Gradius back in. Ouch!

The third game was Super Punchout. It is one of the best games on the system and I had to show it off. The resident Castlevania expert turned out to be a Punchout expert as well. He cleared the entire game in one sitting without losing a single match. Awesome, I got to see the ending!

As stated earlier, The 16-bit console war was a milestone in video game history and resulted in many great games. The Sega Genesis featured many of these on one cart!


The game is called Genesis 6-pack and it is loaded with the biggest hits of the system including Columns, Streets of Rage, Super Hang-On, Golden Axe, Shinobi II and Sonic the Hedgehog.

The most popular of the bunch was Sonic of course with Golden Axe and Streets of Rage tied for second place. Several players took advantage of the beat 'em ups' co-op play. Both Columns and Shinobi were nearly overlooked and Super Hang-On wasn't touched at all.

Another super beat 'em up that tagged along was Mazin Saga Mutant Fighter.

Mazin has fantastic, sound, music, graphics and gameplay. Typical levels have you punch and kick faceless thugs into oblivion and boss battles are fought (in giant form) towering above the cityscape and play more like a simple one on one fighter. Unfortunately, it's missing a two-player mode, a must-have for this genre.

Going back in time is my specialty. The two big guys of the 80s include the Atari 2600 (out in '77 but blossomed in the early 80s) and the immortal Nintendo Entertainment System.



The sad part here is that NES got 10 times more love than the Atari. A fact that is explained best by counting the number of grey hairs on my head. One day the Atari VCS will be the system that time forgot (your time is coming as well XBOX 360)!

Spider Fighter by Activision was the most played Atari game and Pitfall was the most asked for. This is a good time to remind you that Activision made the Atari the legend it is today. Other gems included Defender, M*A*S*H, Moon Patrol, and E.T. The latter I put out simply because it is a fan favorite (for obvious reasons). Throughout the day, I had to show players how to start the game by pressing the "Reset" button and how to hold the joystick. Meanwhile, I replace the batteries in my hearing aid.

For the NES we played Cobra Triangle. This must-have, along with Battletoads, falls under the category of "RARE properties that should be brought to current-gen systems" (Goldeneye?! ha!).

More NES action ensued with Ninja Gaiden, Ultima Exodus (did I say action?), and Jackal. The most requested game was "Super Mario". One customer asked if he could play Super Mario Bros. 3 while he was waiting for his son to stop playing SNES and continued playing a full 30 minutes after said offspring had left the room.

The final system I will mention is not exactly historically significant, but interesting.


The Odyssey 2 was the only console on display that gave a taste of video games of the late seventies. It was released in 1978, a year after the Atari 2600 but never had the success to produce more impressive games. The games of the Odyssey 2 are limited in colors, detail and sound but a few are still worth playing.

From my limited selection of games I offered two: K.C. Munchkin (a Pac-Man inspired maze game) and Speedway/Spinout/Cryptologic, the cart that came with the system featuring three games.

The poor Odyssey 2 was often scoffed at and barely touched. This is not the case at classic game cons, where the system is adored for its silvery sci-fi look and keyboard interface. It has a hardcore following that swears by games like Killer Bees, Pick Axe Pete and the Voice peripheral that makes this beast talk!

Perhaps another Killer Bees tournament was in order. The Halo 3, DDR and Smash Bros. tournaments at the event would have pailed in comparison!

All in all it was another glorious time for Gamebot. I wanted to thank all the supporters for coming out and playing our games. I hope to see you again next year!

- Blake Leftwich, gamebot

Living the High Life

I just had another great week of gaming with Kris, Kelley, Jordan, Hayley, Evan, Matt and Tillman!

It started with Big Brain Acadamy for Wii wherein my score dropped from a B++ to a C. Just goes to show that you should train your brain every day not once every four months! Kris' score went up to a B++ as she perpetually gets smarter. Kelley got a C, she couldn't handle the Locomotionesque train game.

Then came the weekend and Jordan came back into town for a classic game reunion the likes of which are only seen every few months. New friend Hayley came into the fold as well.

Before the party started, Tillman and I slashed bears with a burly muscleman in Magic Sword! The SNES jewel is a side-scrolling platformer port of a Capcom coin-op. The goal is to reach the top of the dark tower, kill baddies and rescue prisoners who can aid you in your quest. The game is extremely easy, simple and fun with lots of varied enemies, helpers, bosses and words of wisdom like "Do not be beguiled by the Black Orb." I miss the loincloth-clad musclebound Adonis vacant in today's games! They appeared to have died off with the 90s. The game is an excellent fantasy action game, you should get it.

Next we tried the sequel, Knights of the Round. This game played more like a beat 'em up with weapons a'la Golden Axe. But with a block button and fewer attacks. The character's level up with experience points at the end of most stages and actually change in appearance by gaining armor. It wasn't as fun as Magic Sword in my opinion. It was missing too many frames of animation and didn't give the satisfying CHUNCK! of better brawlers.

Now the other friends have arrived and we played Dudes with Attitude for the NES. I have to admit, this game was put in to laugh at. The concept is solid: Collect treasure before your friend and avoid enemies. First you must paint yourself the matching color of the treasure you want to collect by running into a paint bucket. But that is a little too simple for an NES game. Players control smiley faces that bounce from left to right automatically, you can only move them up and down the screen. The game has the biggest "what the hell is happenning" factor of any NES game i've played. It is an unlicensed cart. The good side is that it has a level editor.

I told everyone that the game reminded me of Orb 3D so we tried it. I really got into that game at one time but the crowd was unimpressed and now I have added the 3D glasses that originally came with the game to my want list.
After all of this we challenged the gods themselves to predict our future in Taboo for the NES. I love the presentation and idea behind this game. It simply has you enter a few stats like age and name then allows you to type in a question. What follows is a Tarot style fortune telling with cards and everything. Let me just say this, Hayley's future looks pretty bleak. At the end of the fortune tellin, you enter what state you are from. Unfortunately, NC and VA among other states are not listed as options. As you know Gamebot is based in NC. What gives! The game then gives you lucky numbers to play the lotto (or do whatever your superstitious brain can concoct) with. I really love the idea, its a great addition to any NES collection and is fun to play with friends.

Atari time! Yes, we broke out the 2600 for a goodwill-found good time (by Jordan) with Math Grand Prix. I had never played this game before and I must say, this was the most exciting game of the night.

The gameplay is very simple: Take turns against an opponent answering math problems. You may select the difficulty of the problem and the higher difficulty allows you to move further on the race track. Th first to cross the finish line wins. Here is the play by play as it happened:

# Jordan answers first and moves ahead, we laugh at how easy the problems are.

# 1/4th in I land on Jordans space, knocking him off the road.

# Frustrated Jordan intentionally screws up, now he's really behind.

# Not taking things seriously I decide to screw up too.

# To my surprise, Jordon zooms past!

# Jordan accidentally selects the wrong number, I take the lead again.

# Now Jordan knocks me off the road, how could this happen!

# Jordan crosses the line and the room erupts in cheers and high fives.

# Later, I hire an arsonist to burn Jordan's dorm to the ground!

# The drama continues...

The last game of the night was Dragster one of my favorite 2600 games of all time! In dragster the goal is to get to the finish line in the least amount of time. The game is set up for two player competitive play but can be played alone as well. The button accelerates and left changes gears. You can also restart your run by pressing right if you have a false start or blow your engine. This game is all about timing and you can get better with practice. It is extremely addictive and races only last about 6 or 7 seconds, it's very fast paced. Check out my best time under "Impressive Human!" in the forums.

The weekend ended with Rock Band on the 360. Highlights included, Epic by Faith No More, Detroit Rock City by Kiss and Last Train to Clarksville by The Monkees. Another golden memory secured in the annals of time. Thanks for the fun guys. It was a blast!

- Blake Leftwich, gamebot

Venture

Gamebot Live number 9 is here! In episode 9 we have a new coin-op puzzler, Joe & Mac for Genesis is reviewed, we discuss the upcoming XBLA Lode Runner and what it is that makes a good classic game remake, Matt and Blake go head to head on NES Dig Dug II and a surprise stranger takes the lead in a past Impressive Human Challenge. Plus Finds in the Wild, music from DJ NES and Alpha Channel, Donkey Kong, LOZ: Windwaker, Pac-man, Bomberman and more! Download it at iTunes or on the media page.

Submit your best top score to mail@gamebotonline.com to be added to the Impressive Human scoreboard! Thanks for listening!

"Happy Holidays!"

Gamebot Live Quickie number 2 is now available for download on the media page. In this long-for-a-quickie we discuss the E-reader, Contra 4 and difficulty in video games: past and present. Also, Evan trumps his own score, Impressive Human! and coin-op trivia!

Carolina Games Summit

We will be at Carolina Games Summit on 01.26.08 in Goldsboro, NC providing a classic game room with playable games and systems like the Atari 2600, Sega Genesis, Nintendo Entertainment System and more! You can also watch classic video game tips and trick videos, movies and commercials while waiting to participate in our Impressive Human! High Score Challenges! Consoles and games will be for sale in very limited quantities, so get there early! Go to Carolina Games Summit for more information.

Think you can beat our high scores? Think you know the answer to our trivia? Prove it! mail@gamebotonline.com.

"Impressive Human!"

The epic battle between Steve and Blake is over. A definitive winner of the Intellivision version of LOCOMOTION has been decided. Download Episode 8 to hear all about it!

But now it's time for an all new Impressive Human Challenge! This time around there's trouble in paradise as Matt challenges Blake. The game of choice? DIG DUG II for the classic NES!

But that's not all! If you think you can do better on this game simply submit your score before our next recording session. If you beat us, you'll be mentioned on the air and possibly win a mysterious but amazing prize?! The e-mail address is mail@gamebotonline.com. Can you defeat the Gamebot? Go, go, go, go, go for it! Maybe you stand a chance?!

Noise Off

Gamebot Live Episode 8

It's time for a classic game-fest with Matt, Blake and Steve. Topics include SNES, Castlevania ports, Generations Lost, outtakes and our opinioins of video game media. We also bring back the Impressive Human! scoreboard. This episode's challenge... Locomotion for the Intellivision. Blake, the underdog, faces off against Steve, the Intellivisionary. Who wins? Tune in to find out!: 40 minutes

Gamebot Live Episode 8 (mp3 39.26 MB)


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You can now win prizes for your trivia answers! Listen and give it a shot! mail@gamebotonline.com Thanks for listening!