Back again for my regular Sunday roundup of quick-fire reviews and impressions of everything under the spotlight at Retro Arcadia this week, old and new and a bit of both. A lot going on outside of gaming this week too, with our son’s college football (soccer) scholarship transfer over in the US more or less at a conclusion after almost three months of the very definition of stress, but it looks like it’s all turned out very well for him. I just don’t want to jinx it before the final boxes are ticked though, so more on that another time, hopefully including some cool new trips to see him play next season! I know you’re not here for that though, so let’s get into some games instead…

Resident Evil Village was a no-brainer when it came to choosing my Game of the Year back in 2021 (more here), although realising that makes it five years old just now did come as a bit of a shock! New one’s almost upon us though, so despite having been back at least once a year since, it seemed like a good time for another run-through! Two things of note with that too – firstly, as well as still having loads to unlock, I’m also still discovering new stuff every time; secondly, surely it has to go into my big list of favourite games this time around because I just love the thing! The village itself is forever (so far!) absolutely stunning, with outrageous attention to detail everywhere you look, and then there’s the castle, as opulent and decadent a location as has ever been constructed inside a video game, and that’s just the first few hours, which I’d honestly double if I had the chance to change anything about the game! While I don’t think the second half necessarily takes your breath away to the same extent, and likewise the characters that inhabit it, the mix of action, puzzling and methodical exploration continues to have its moments, as the narrative (involving kidnapped super-babies, crazy cults, funky fungi and voluptuous vampires) gets more and more desperate (not to mention bonkers) and the stakes continue to raise towards its blockbuster climax, which also remains so every time, even if the sense anxiety and surprise on the way there quite naturally doesn’t. It’s so well laid out and so filled with supernatural dread and wintry atmosphere regardless though, and the ridiculous and relentless hand-injury porn will never not raise a smile either! Fantastic soundtrack as you’d expect too, likewise the hammy voice-acting, and there’s plenty of fan-service on top. And although it’s never going to reach those heady heights of my top three games ever like Resident Evil 4 does, there’s no doubt to me that it’s the next best thing, but I will love it if the new one proves me wrong on that! 

I’d always assumed that Atari’s off-the-wall 1989 take on Breakout, Off The Wall, would use the 2600’s paddle controllers, so I can’t say I wasn’t a bit disappointed when I picked up the original cartridge this week (complete with box!) and discovered it didn’t, because it’s really crying out for them! One of the last games they ever released on the system though, so maybe they were just moving on like pretty much everyone else had by then… Actually, I owned an Atari ST when this came out! Anyway, it’s a “modernisation” of their original brick-buster, rounding the circle from stuff like Arkanoid with a bunch of power-ups, and applying a kung-fu theme, which I think most people were about done with then too! Despite all of that, good game though, which I why I’ve had it on my eBay wishlist for the past year, first patiently waiting for it to actually appear, then at a decent price. You play a little guy called Kung Fu Lu, who you move across the bottom of the screen, bouncing the mystical ball or whatever to smash a very vibrant brick wall to get at the evil dragon prancing about at the top. Once you clear the wall (and the very caterpillar-like dragon for big bonus points), it’s onto the next level. The power-ups are the usual suspects, with bombs, slowdowns and stuff, but there’s a nice one that allows you to steer the ball, and then there’s also a bird that sometimes gets in the way, and that’s about it apart from three difficulty levels and two player modes, where you weirdly share the same wall but go one after the other. Joystick or not, I reckon it still plays better than Breakout and Super Breakout on the Atari 2600 (and I’m fond of both), with smooth and precise-enough movement that also benefits from being relatively forgiving. It looks and sounds really good too (again, relatively!) – loads of colour, madcap animation and constant little ditties playing.  Maybe not exactly what I wanted, but I’m happy with what I’ve got.

Last week here I was playing Taito’s ancient arcade game, Alpine Ski, which I arrived at through a misidentification of the slightly less ancient Alpine Racer, but said I’d have a go at that as well this week all the same. However, I did also allude to potential difficulties emulating Namco’s arcade spectacular from 1994 on my crappy laptop… Which turned out to be exactly the case! It’s generally fine with PlayStation 2 stuff though, so as an alternative, I did plan to offer you Alpine Racer 3 on there instead, but now I can actually go one better, because I was so taken with it that I bought a physical copy! Either way, this sequel was a 2002 exclusive on there, still developed and published by Namco, and continuing on from the previously arcade-only snowy racing thrills of that first game, then 1996’s Alpine Racer 2 (which had more skiers to choose from), and Alpine Surfer, a snowboarding spin-off from the same year. What it lost in fancy stand-on controllers, it made up for in expanded gameplay, with five modes including a big downhill tournament, slalom, cross racing against three CPU players, time attack and split-screen multiplayer, with loads of courses to open up as you go. And as you can see from the screenshots here alone, it’s no SSX, but once you’ve got a feel for how things control, and the authentic-ish approximation of friction between ski (or board) and snow, it’s a really nice and immediate arcade racer with plenty to keep you busy! Great sense of speed too, and although the visuals are generally no great shakes (and even more so the lightweight sounds and dreadful lounge-synth music), it’s got enough of a sense of scale and being on a mountain, combined with some neat environmental effects and rider personality to create a bit of atmosphere and identity alongside what’s admittedly a very short-term variety of ways to race – no career stuff or particular progression apart from some equipment to unlock, which is a shame when there’s a bunch of characters and disciplines to try and perfect. All the same, as an arcade throwback on a throwback system, there’s something there that’s easy to enjoy and ideal for quick bursts… Which are something I’ll never manage with my beloved SSX 3, so there’s my justification for buying it right there! 

I know I also said last week that I’d try and get into another recent Atari 2600 pickup, Raiders of the Lost Ark, this time out, but the thing is still bewildering to me (in the best possible way, I’m sure!) even though the instruction manual literally spells out everything you need to do! Hopefully next Sunday, but for now, that’s everything I’ve got for you! In case you missed it last Wednesday though, as we’re well into February now, it was about time for my Retro Arcadia Gaming Pickups – Winter 2025/26 Recap, with all the games and related stuff I shouldn’t have been buying over the past three months! I was actually pretty sensible for a change too, but I hope you enjoy reading about it all the same! And I also hope you have a good week ahead, and I will see you next time!

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