Gaming gives us that and simulation games apply that to occupation and business simulators to great effect. It’s essential to gameplay and keeping players hooked. But this isn’t about status screen UIs or human improvement, we’re looking at three simulators worth diving into right now.

All games but the second are available on PC and console.

Drug Dealer Simulator (Byterunners)

Currently, this has been my primary jam. It’s also my weekend stream starter before getting into some Cyberpunk 2077 shenanigans. Drug Dealer Simulator puts you in the role of a dealer, smuggler, street pharmacist, trafficker, and businessman all in one.

The player is dropped into a city under heavy lockdown with a hard stance against drugs. Eddie, the player’s mentor and plug trains the young trapper on how to do business, get drugs, launder money, and keeps him abreast of story-advancing developments. The narrator fills the player in on more granular aspects while giving an abrasive and humorous take of the trapper’s rise.

While a major aspect is giving out samples and making enough for sales and to hand off to your dealers, I find that the most enjoyable part is actually growing and cooking. Then again, I love crafting in games.

Byterunners have released Drug Dealer Simulator 2 and it looks great but for those who can’t play the sequel, the OG DDS is still a time-eating blast to dive into.

American Truck Simulator (SCS Software)

Honestly, either American Truck Simulator or European Truck Simulator 2 are a great pick for your simulation game session. It exists in this realm of having time limits on deliveries, fines for traffic infractions, and needing to gas up but also being extremely chill.

The most stressful parts tend to come from falling a bit behind on a delivery. Even worse when is cutting it close, being at the destination but being unable to get the truck and trailer in the loading area exactly.

Beyond that, the player mainly  manages their trucking career, handles their skill points, purchase trucks and upgrades. As the game advances and the player makes more cash from deliveries, they can invest in their own trucking company and hire drivers NPC to do deliveries.

There’s also an online mode where players join other truckers for convoys. It’s not a mode I’ve explored heavily but it was fun doing deliveries through Nevada and hearing my fellow trucker lamenting about traffic up ahead.

Of the games in this list, I’d say American/Euro Truck Simulator has the best music. It uses streaming radio in-game and it works perfectly as traveling music with a lot of variety. This is also the game with the most longevity. The games are all addictive and the player might have fun in restarting or advancing their businesses further but the Truck Simulator titles are different in that it’s as close to a perfect balance of chill and challenge.

That goes a long way for simulation games and replay value.

Gas Station Simulator (DRAGO Entertainment)

Now this is a game that increases the stress of cops chasing the player in DDS while also having a chill approach like the Truck Simulator games. Sure, placing and stocking shelves is easy (as someone who has done it, it depends) but keeping the store clean and seeing that tour bus pull up to the gas station is another story.

Most of the week, it’s basic dead end gas station in the desert business. Yeah, there’s an element of shadiness going on as far as cash flow but business is steady and manageable. However, the weirdest things go down in the gas station once the bus rolls in but the player is going to make a wad or two with the bump in business.

Managing inventory, store cleanliness and tending to the service at the pump are the player’s initial duties but eventually workers can be hired to manage that. There is stronger storyline here than in the other two entries and exploration plays a part in that. There are also a few other activities to get into outside of pure business.

What are some of your favorite simulation games and are there any you’re currently playing? Share in the comments!

Staff Writer; James “Metal” Swift Jr.

Gaming since 1989 and headbanging since 1999, James is a talented writer, podcast host, and lifelong comic book fan who loves all things old-school and retro. His passions include RPGs, wrestling, and classic gaming culture. You can also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Meanwhile, a gamer could feel strongly about a title and want it modernized or to at least get a sequel—yes, decades after the previous release. Obviously, I’m not a game designer or associated with a developer, so you can guess which group I fall in with this list.

We’re going to look at five titles that could do with a comeback season whether it’s a sequel or a reboot.

Sleeping Dogs (2012, United Front/Square Enix)

Sleeping Dogs is considered the spiritual successor to the True Crime series, a PS2 GTA-clone where the police detective element was the focus. The True Crime series was supposed to have a third entry based again in New York—that later became Hong Kong with United Front’s work on the then unnamed title. However, that was axed by Activision. Mind you, the True Crime: New York City did have some big-name TV and film actors doing voice work for a game that…it flopped, folks.

We’re talking less than 80,000 units sold in its first two weeks. That lets you know that this wasn’t going to meet the budget put into the game at all.

Then United Front came along with what would become Sleeping Dogs after Activision passed on publishing it. The rest is history: it was received very well and presented enough that a sequel wasn’t out of the question. Performance-wise, it sold enough units to warrant exploring a sequel—yet here we are.

The game was supposed to see a sequel which followed the future cases and adventures of Shen and was to feature a mobile gaming aspect that impacted Sleeping Dogs 2’s gameplay. While there is no sequel on the horizon, the license was picked up and is being turned into a film.

Kengo (2000, Genki/Crave)

Let’s get into even older franchises that have seen no recent developments—such as Bushido Blade. Well, let’s go with the spiritual successor: Kengo. While Bushido Blade added a realistic element to the 3D fighting game genre with wounds and bleed outs resulting in victory or defeat, I enjoyed Kengo’s approach of putting the player in the shoes of a traveling swordsman.

This wasn’t going through different parts of a village and slaughtering the opps and their heavies. No, you went from established dojo to established dojo to practice, learn techniques, and apply those techniques in duels. Then you fought the masters of the dojos and eventually participated in the imperial tournament. Outside of the absence of some slice-of-life stuff, this was basically a swordsman simulator.

Now, the third entry was a bit of a bust because it was a garden variety fighting game with swords and we already had Bushido Blade 2 as well as Soulcalibur and Battle Arena Toshiden by that time.

Rival Schools (1997, Capcom)

On the one hand, it’s like—there are enough fighting games out there, do we really need to bring back one from almost 30 years ago? Especially if nothing new is done, it’s just a return of this game’s roster. Capcom even did something new with Street Fighter 6, so a Rival Schools return would have to be something fresh instead of an expensive investment in nostalgia.

I say add aged Rival Schools characters to the Street Fighter roster because Capcom had some great characters from the R.S and Street Fighter EX titles. Batsu? Skullomania? Yes, add them to the roster.

Inindo: Way of the Ninja (1991, Koei)

I can’t say enough good things about this Super Nintendo title. It was like playing as an officer in Romance of the Three Kingdoms in turn-based JRPG. For a game released in 1991, it had features that would make many RPGs worth playing multiple times. The main feature is the recruiting of allies actively forming a rapport with them.

However, some potential allies or teammates might not agree with your motivations, or they might believe that serving Nobunaga is the ultimate job—when you’re trying to take him out for razing your village.

The other major element is that each month, the landscape/map is updated with the battles that went down. The player can work for a daimyo and by doing mission for them successfully, they can participate in battles. Meaning, they can impact the power dynamic in feudal Japan and probably weaken Nobunaga’s influence.

With the advancements in development and writing over 30-plus years, I’d say Koei could make the ultimate ninja game if they decided to revisit this title.

Alpha Protocol (2010, Obsidian Entertainment/Sega)

Listen, Alpha Protocol wasn’t perfect at all and at times it could drag at points, but the game was one of the best espionage games made. The only franchises or games I would put over it are Metal Gear Solid and Deus Ex (under Square Enix). Having to travel to different locations around the world for missions, decisions that impacted future missions, a decent combat system that could’ve been more polished in a sequel—Alpha Protocol had the makings for a good, regular series for Sega.

It was a spy game that was purely about spycraft. This wasn’t a shooter based around a spy or spy fighting game, no—stealth was necessary here, folks. Negotiation was necessary as well. You could tell that Obsidian Entertainment had plans for the gameplay mechanics in place and that more could’ve been done with those mechanics.

My two gripes with AP are that the game felt a little short for what was going down—it’s the same feeling I had for Deus Ex: Human Revolution—and it ended on a something of a cliffhanger. The combat, camera, and all that didn’t bother me as much as it bothered others, but a cliffhanger will always burn my biscuit.

What are your five games that you’d love to see get a reboot or sequel? Let us know in the comments!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Hyrule Was Pretty Bare

I first played Ocarina of Time in 1998, it was my Christmas game that year. The hype around in GamePro, Game Informer, and Nintendo Power was immense. Most of the gaming magazines at the time were into this game. The commercial for OoT sold me since I was heavily into fantasy stuff like Xena and Hercules at the time.

Now, for the power limitations at the time and this being Nintendo’s first attempt at something more involved—Link had an inventory and an armory all on his person—Hyrule Field was bare. Honestly, it should’ve been very safe to travel Hyrule Field.

Then again, when you see how spaced the major towns are, how they’re all set up on the border of the overworld map, and how dangerous it is just to get to Zora’s Domain, Goron City, and Kakariko Village…

Well, Kakariko Village isn’t a particularly dangerous trek but Goron City is within proximity of Death Mountain. Enough said. Considering that: who would bother leaving their towns? It’s just a trek from anywhere you’re coming from in Hyrule. There should be no issues traveling during the day. Decades later and I’m thinking “It would’ve been nice to have some bandits or orcs during the daytime.”

Link had a sword, Link had a shield: let Link slam! You could definitely slam if you headed into the different area maps en route to another town—day or night. Hyrule’s different chiefs/leaders didn’t have the best security in mind for their domains. I mean, I guess knights patrolled Hyrule Field but you never saw them.

Nintendo Has Done an Amazing Job with Hyrule Now

Nintendo would work on this over the decades to make Hyrule a world worth venturing through. In each Zelda title, you could see there was a goal to make the land of Hyrule more alive. Link should’ve had memorable interactions with the locals given he’s working to save the world.

The first step was in Ocarina of Time just by having a day-night cycle. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, you’d see more game exploring this mechanic. When paired with Zelda or Pokémon, it adds a sense of a passage of time for your adventure. This isn’t the longest day as it was in Pokémon Red or Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

The Wind Waker and The Skyward Sword opened the world up some more, there were more inhabitants of the world. Then we get to the Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom—the closest to the realization of a living Hyrule. I say “closest” because developers can always push an element of gameplay.

Just look at the open world in Fallout 3 compared to Fallout 4 where there are fewer settlements or towns that need a transition screen. There are more places that you merely walk into or open a door. Something as simple as that is big for a complete or perfect open world setting.

While it wasn’t a perfect open world and a lot of things that were promised just didn’t get done, Fable is a game where the open world managed to do some simplistic elements you’d expect. Such as: walking right into someone’s home without a brief loading or transition—a 2004 accomplishment.

On the note of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom: the addition of the player using any weapon they can get and those weapons having durability? Amazing combat mechanic, compliments to the chef.

This Is the Way

It’s not unusual for developers to “Bring the game back to its roots” but I say keep going forward with The Legend of Zelda. Go back to the roots for an action-puzzle project but for these titles with cinematic cutscenes, improved mechanics, dialogue, and lore pushing stories—make the quest an adventure. Keep it open world and let Link and the player to explore the world.

Why not? Link either constantly misses whole swathes of time because they’re in mystical eternal rest or has been reincarnated and lives in the boonies. Let Link experience the world. Don’t just shotgun one of Nintendo and gaming’s greatest heroes through towns they’re never revisiting and puzzle-riddled dungeon after puzzle-riddled dungeon.

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Dino Crisis: Resident Evil with Dinosaurs

Or Onimusha with dinosaurs! The main connection are the dreaded tank controls which I’ve never liked. I often think of the time when RE was released and try to remember if 3D camera scrolling was a thing on PlayStation. You could say the absence of DualShock controller didn’t factor into Capcom’s camera movement decision.

Resident Evil came out a year or so before PlayStation introduced the DualShock controller. However, Capcom continued using tank controls post-1997 in games. It turns out it was a designer choice which is fine. For me, I always felt RE would’ve been more enjoyable in that time with more conventional camera and movement controls.

With that said, I found Dino Crisis to be a blast with the tank controls. I think it was the dinosaur element of the game that allowed me to actually enjoy it. For some reason, RE-style suspense-heavy survival horror with dinos don’t startle me as much as the undead or chemically altered to where I need the controls to control like they’re supposed to.

Another interesting thing is that the events of DC take place in 2009 on a fictional island at a time where if it existed in the same universe as RE or Dead Rising, that would’ve been an unnecessary but welcome scoop of disaster. I mean, those series came out in the 1990s, eventually we would’ve gotten zombie dinosaurs, right?

Resident Evil: The OG

Of Capcom’s old pantheon of the 90s and 00s, Resident Evil proved to be the consistent one. There were Street Fighter spin-offs and offshoots that did well and were remembered fondly like Final Fight, Darkstalkers, and Rival Schools but also offshoots that we kind of remember but tend not to bring up such as Street Fighter EX—not a bad game at all!

Meanwhile, Resident Evil pretty much kept things confined to the main franchise. There were gameplay mechanic changes and spin-offs but it was such that the canon and lore of the series was easy to follow for newcomers. Also, horror sells and will always sell while Street Fighter had this hot period when martial arts was big in pop culture.

RE proved to be a franchise worth investing in for Capcom as it has proven to have strong crossover appeal. The ongoing story of Resident Evil involving an outbreak of zombies-not-zombies is one that could see the series go on for another couple of decades either by stretching the story or eventually rebooting it.

Dead Rising: A Double Dose of Dead

In case killing zombies-not-zombies with interesting movement controls don’t do it for you, you can kill them in a more action game fashion in Dead Rising. I got into DR a bit after the hype behind Dead Rising 2 and found it to be a blast. While Resident Evil focused more on the doom element of horror with one or a few zombies causing concern, in DR it’s like taking the Dynasty Warriors approach, mixing in some of that World Warriors DLC-friendliness with cosmetics, and some fun goals. It’s an action-horror series and it works.

There’s enough danger and excitement for veterans of beat ‘em ups and slash ‘em ups while not being complex to the point of putting new players off entirely. That’s a perfect balance to move copies and warrant sequels.

I found the zombie disaster in Dead Rising more enjoyable than in Resident Evil but the situation itself isn’t necessarily meant to be fun—the gameplay and experiencing the story is. On that note, DR’s story was easy to dive into and it helps that it’s the youngest of the franchises mentioned.

It’s wise that Capcom didn’t make a shared universe with RE, DC, and DR because that would’ve been the hardest multi-front disaster. Most of it is covered up but notice in movies and games, it’s usually the one location before it gets out to the rest of the world.

Zombies of two separate origins and experimental dinosaurs on the loose makes for too many disasters to manage—unless you just drop a bomb on it. That’s another game, though.

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

The Lack of People Made Me Wonder in Super Mario Games

The Mario games had that even on stages that had no actual backgrounds like the haunted houses in Super Mario World or castles and forts in the OG Super Mario Bros. There was something exciting happening on the screen.

Then you get older and a little critical. You’ve been exposed to better worlds, elaborate game design, and story—so much story that one of the most revolutionary features in gaming is the “Skip Scene” button.

So, the worlds of the Mario games seem super odd. Like sure, it’s a world of fantasy but even worlds of fantasy have some order, right? In SMB, I basically used imagination to figure out where all of the people were. I came to the conclusion that each stage in SMB, SMB3, and SMW are basically battlegrounds to face Bowser and his Koopa Troopas.

There’s no way I, as a villain, would kidnap a princess or the magic scepters of a bunch of kings ruling over barren lands. They would basically be bandit chiefs with ties to the Crown. No, these battles took place away from civilization with Mario and Luigi having to win each time.

I mean, it would at least make it seem like the Mushroom Kingdom and the other kingdoms are fighting back, right? There’s no way any of those castles would be standing in Super Mario Bros. 3 if there was no resisting army. Bowser’s Koopalings all had Flying Fortresses. Those things shots normal-sized and large Bullet Bills. They dropped bombs. If there was no military Mario and Luigi would’ve been running through parking lots.

The Mario RPGs Explained Things Much Better

As always, leave it up to RPGs and the social aspect to breathe life into these worlds. Even in Super Mario 64—a massive step into the late 90s and early 2000s for Nintendo—that world was sparse. It was just Mario, Peach, Bowser, and a bunch of enemies. Toad and someone else might have been there but it wasn’t a populated world.

It would also explain how the warp pipes dropped Mario and Luigi off just where they needed to go. The RPGs games—like the Megaman action RPGs on Game Boy Advance—featured towns and villages with inhabitants, shops, and side quests.

Mario and his party actually seemed like part of the Mushroom Kingdom and not an isekai savior. Because why would you summon a plumber with an unknown background to your world to save you? Mario could’ve had a violent criminal record or been a bloodthirsty maniac. The Mushroom Council or the Stars lucked up and got a kind-hearted, heroic plumber and his brother of questionable courage. Then again, they got a plumber of all people. Two! They got a buy-one-get-one-free on New York plumbers. What rotten RNG.

Of course, there are retellings of how Mario and Luigi were born in that world but even that begs questions. Apparently, there are or were humans wherever they are. What happened to them? All of the kings in SMB3 are human, Peach, Mario, Luigi, Daisy, Wario and so on. What’s up with the humans?

There are plenty of toadstools. We were even introduced to friendly koopas in Paper Mario and peaceful communities of Yoshis in Super Mario World. That question among others I’ve had over the years about one of my favorite franchises calls for an anime and perhaps a manga with continuity.

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

However, there’s something a little different about Ubisoft compared to those two that I really love and make that studio’s games something I’ll just sink time into endlessly. Not only that, I’ll notice several hours have passed and I was busy in the world Ubisoft created for this project.

Ubisoft Brings Near Flawless World Design

Big open worlds to explore has been big in gaming for almost two decades now on console. With each generation, the worlds get bigger and livelier. It went from just having a large map to NPCs having actual schedules throughout an in-game day. Like, there’s even times when NPCs pack it in and go to bed! Who would’ve imagined that while playing Castlevania II in 1987?

It was something I longed for after playing Final Fantasy VII on PSX. Shoutout to advances in hardware and programming for that. However, the world itself in these games allow you to really explore as every developer likes for players to do. I’ve always maintained that true exploration in a game only comes from both an open world and a non-linear experience.

You can’t move a player along for the story while having this world modeled after NYC or LA. You have to let the player do as they do. Give them enough side quests, roaming enemies, activies and mechanics to keep them in the game and keep them playing longer.

It took a while—because of hardware restrictions at different times—but Ubisoft understands this. While the early Assassin’s Creed games were somewhat linear in that they didn’t offer enough to do outside of the main mission and those uninteresting side quests, the exploration was enough to sate me until ACIII came out—and your boy had a blast running around the late 18^th century New England colonies.

Later games would expand upon these and new mechanics would be introduced and used in some form in other titles. That works just fine for me, especially when the mechanics were fun to play with. Sometimes, they’re better than they were in the original game it came from!

Mastery of Mechanics

Bethesda has some mechanics that they’ve mastered and will introduce a new one with each new major entry. Ubisoft does the same but in greater volume—there’s a reason for that and it will be our next one! The developer will introduce something in The Division and you might see it in another Watch Dogs or Ghost Recon game. The prime mechanic has always been crafting which differs from title to title but is always reworked for the follow-up. On occasion, it might be scrapped entirely.

A prime example is crafting in AC Valhalla being the best in the franchise. Crafting between ACIII/Black Flag didn’t experience a massive jump by Origins, Odyssey, and Valhalla but the addition of improved skills and levels to skills saw a significant jump with Orgins and Odyssey.

However, Valhalla really took the cake in the franchise with this skill tree. Its fabulous and reminds me of a more flexible Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. It makes the play think more strategically about crafting because these resources and gold aren’t necessarily flowing into Eivor’s pockets!

I’ll say the same is true about Far Cry 5 and 6, the absence of a skill tree in favor of an armor-linked bonus makes crafting and reconfiguring your weaponry and Amigo more tactical. Really loving my stealth-focused build in FC6 and that’s all thanks to the union between crafting, the armor sets, and  fairly challenging combat AI.

Consistency Between Games

Consistency manifests in different ways. Nintendo has a certain level of quality you can expect. Bethesda tends to stick with themes and world lore perfectly. Ubisoft is the iron horse. The studio has multiple active franchises and manages to drop a new game in that franchise with pretty good regularity.

You’re not going to wait six or ten years between AC games and if there is a lengthy development period, Ubisoft has a few other long-running franchises to dive into if you need to scratch that open-world itch. It’s very rare that you’ll go “Ubisoft doesn’t have anything else to play?” when the catalogs are as deep and plentiful.

Now, some games might come off as dated if you played the recent ones but most hold up on the gameplay and storyline front bar for the story in Ghost Recon. Far Cry has gotten better with story and you can tell Ubisoft really utilizes their cultural team to make sure even the fictional location is authentic its real-world inspiration during a specific period.

It’s just what Ubisoft does. But let us know: do you have a favorite—or more than one—franchise from Ubisoft? What’s your favorite and least favorites in the franchise?

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

While the ending factors into why players were turned off by the game, there were other features and elements that annoyed others and some I actually understand and agree with while others were more nit-picky. We’ll look at three of the standout reasons for the dislike of ACIII.

Linear Open World

I’ve read that some players felt the open world—based in the American Colonies leading into the Revolutionary War—was too linear at times. The high seas action definitely felt somewhat restrictive but I really noticed that running through woods and hunting left something to be desired. This is also the case for AC: Black Flag. In both games, I found the towns and settlements more interesting but some missions definitely restricted your exploration of them.

For me, it was the chase missions—which I hate in any game. They’re just not fun to me at all. There are other side missions in the colonial period that I find enjoyable such as managing the Homestead and the sea trade but again, when you play through the second time—or even after time in the first play-through—you notice that things are a little snug freedom-wise.

The Death of Desmond Miles

Now, I’ve never been a fan of the modern day stuff in Assassin’s Creed. I appreciate it as a means of driving the main storyline but sometimes it could go on and on and the jumps into the past are simply more enjoyable. Hell, I even find the period stories more interesting. It was no different in ACIII. I just wanted to play Connor’s adventures and see his story unfold in the ongoing conflict between the Brotherhood and the Templars.

However, Desmond dying at this point was an exceptionally mid writing decision. I had gotten used to playing Desmond’s story even though I had little interest in the modern day stuff. If the franchise was ending there, fine but there’s several games following ACIII and each one gets better story-wise and mechanically.

It’s to the point that the first two games just feel clunky and stripped down when I go back to play them. The stories themselves still hold up but everything just felt dated gameplay-wise. The original plan was for it to end at ACIII but with future games focusing on Layla Hassan—and Hassan hanging around for several games—I can’t help but think that Desmond didn’t have to go out like at that point.

It would’ve interesting to see how the franchise would’ve panned out with Desmond alive but having played the newer games, Layla is a good protagonist for this stage of the franchise.

Connor Was a Dry Character

This is a view I actually agree with to a degree. Connor had a reason to ally with the Colonists and his story and lineage were interesting but at times it felt like Connor would rather be doing anything else but these missions. Now, I agree with him on some missions like the sneak and follow ones but there could’ve been more enthusiasm or conviction in doing the missions themselves. Hell, even if it was expressed that he was aiding America as a means to an end would’ve helped. Me playing as Connor was similar to me going through Fallout 3 and 4 and not caring about the “finding missing family” storyline. I simply couldn’t be bothered—until the end.

So, he was a pretty wooden character but a good enough character to experience the world through mainly because of his personal story and the twists involved, he simply lacked the appeal of Ezio from ACII and his grandfather Edward Kenway from Black Flag.

What were your gripes towards ACIII, if any? What did you really enjoy in the game? Take a look back and let us know!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

For It’s Time Cruis’n USA and Cruis’n World Were Fresh

There was a time when some racing games were either 2D affairs that played from the rear or shoulder view and didn’t look that impressive. Well, a couple stood out and were impressive racing titles in the 1990s but I’m certain players believed there could be more visually.

There were also racing games that played from first-person perspective. These were often in play places or arcades but they would have a lot of success on console. The first group of games kind of crossed over into the first-person view realm via titles like Cruis’n USA and Gran Turismo which improved graphics and made for a more involved experience as far as including modes and the something similar to the accuracy of arcade racing games.

Since we had a Nintendo 64 early on, our first experience with this generation of racing games was via Cruis’n USA. I would later check out Gran Turismo at a friend’s house but I just wasn’t a fan of the first one at the time. I believe it was more that I didn’t care to learn the controls which could tie into my belief that Cruis’n’s controls were simpler.

Simply put, I just enjoyed playing the Cruis’n games for 1994 and 1996. There’s a lot of preference there, I’ll admit. There was something about how colors popped in Nintendo 64 games but looked closer to realistic on PlayStation and I noticed this between Cruis’n World and Gran Turismo. Of course, I always felt Gran Turismo was closer to simulation even in 1997 while Cruis’n World was an arcade port. It was tailor-made for the Nintendo 64 which didn’t feature many simulation games in the West.

However, for that period the game was innovative as far as the flash and accuracy that was expected going forward and how these games should look aesthetically for that period.

Ultimately, It Was Another Racer

The thing about Cruis’n is that in the 90s, you had a couple of fighting games of varying popularity, a glut of action games—expected—and a bunch of racing games. Like sure, Cruis’n USA was innovative for the early 1990s but you also had the NASCAR series which was top notch and Daytona USA which hit the Sega Saturn a year later in 1995 and was in arcades the same year as Cruis’n USA.

This was during the Nintendo-Sega rivalry as well and I’d say Daytona USA was the better example of how arcade racers should’ve delivered going into the 2000s. As a matter of fact, Daytona USA 2001 topped Cruis’n Exotica. Mind you, the Cruis’n franchise was on a severe decline as the games released on Nintendo consoles.

What other titles came out in that time and took the wind out of Cruis’n sails? You had Ridge Racer, Need for Speed, the Rush franchise started around this time, F-Zero, Sega Rally released in 1994 and kicked off a series, Midtown Racing, Mario Kart became popular in the 1990s and 2000s as did Diddy Kong Racing.

Eventually, the Cruis’n franchise just seemed dated and not as fun as the other arcade racers and it wasn’t going to give the kart racers, vehicular combat and racing sims the business. It was just another racer that dropped on Nintendo consoles and it didn’t even serve as a whistle-wetter while waiting for the next Mario Kart.

The thing is if Nintendo had gotten the license from TV Games/Raw Thrills, the game would’ve been a strong franchise post-Cruis’n World. That’s down to the games doing well in the arcades—their natural environment—but not transitioning well to newer consoles. It’s odd because most of the arcade racers had decent or better ports.

With the kind of racers that are normally on Nintendo consoles, Cruis’n is pretty dated and in relation to racing games now, it holds it down enough in arcades or play places but it just didn’t get it done in the last two console ports. It just seems like Nintendo should handle the development for consoles but there’s often a quick turnaround between the arcade release and the console release—and Ninty takes its time with game development.

What do you remember of Cruis’n USA and Cruis’n World? Could you see it being a bigger series in the 2020s? What do you believe would be needed to achieve this? Let us know down below!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

Legend of the River King Made Fishing Games Extremely Fun

Prior to playing this, I’d played a few other fishing games such as Sega Bass Fishing but that was more of an arcade-style game. It wasn’t even a fishing sim—which I would later play and found them enjoyable enough. However, it wasn’t something I was going to finish.

Legend of the River King had the appeal of being a Natsume game off the bat. I was playing Harvest Moon 64, a hard game to find at the time when I saw Legend of the River King GBC being mentioned along with Harvest Moon GB 2. I was planning to play that HM game but LRK was intriguing.

Getting into it, I found that it had a sliver of story—just enough to get you started on your adventure. Honestly, Harvest Moon was similar because after a while, the reason for you being there to take over the farm doesn’t really matter and it’s mentioned every now and then.

It drives you to straighten up the farm but its not an ongoing story for the game. That was the same case in Legend of the River King. You just have to retrieve a legendary fish to prevent natural disasters on this island—if I’m remembering correctly—but it won’t be easy at all.

You’ll make a lot of progress in the game with money and you have to catch fish to sell. As the game advances, you run into more methods to make money. The next one is in combat—which is somewhat odd that something that isn’t fishing-related made this one of the most enjoyable fishing games.

Before moving into the next method, the combat in this game is simple and works. Players just have to stop the moving fish on an enemy—usually wildlife—or their weak spot. That’s it! It’s the combat and leveling that move this game into RPG territory.

I mean, otherwise it would’ve been a slog of a fishing game. There’s also diving, a very profitable way to make money and deep-sea fishing. Once you get the hang of the fishing and combat mechanics, this game is pretty self-explanatory.

It’s also a game that came before the lengthy tutorials we find in-game now, so you’re diving right into the mess right after the brief opening. Then again, the mechanics in this game aren’t complex at all. If you’ve visited a store and upgraded your gear in any game, you’ll know to upgrade your stuff here as well.

Worth a Reboot?

The situation with Natsume Inc and Marvelous Inc saw a bit of a licensing situation over the Harvest Moon title resulting in two game franchises. The Legend of the River King series continued into the Nintendo DS era but following Legend of the River King 2, the combat was taken out and it became just a fishing game.

The PlayStation 2 entry was fine but I maintain that LRK2 on the Game Boy Color was the best in the franchise. If anything, I think a reboot going back to the GBC games would be great otherwise let it remain dormant. It’s just not worth it for a light fishing game with no conflict or leveling elements to me. If the combat is gone, perhaps it should be more of a fishing sim.

Have you played any of the Legend of the River King games? If so, did they stand out to you? Is it a game where you could see a reboot happening? Let us know!

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.

By the time Gold/Silver released in 1999, I had played more JRPGs including several such as Breath of Fire II, Robotrek, Legend of River King, and Dragon Quest V which introduced the mechanic in question. While playing BoF2, I first saw a day and night cycle in an RPG. Prior to that, I’d only seen it in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64.

Pokemon Day and Night

When the day and night cycle made itself known in Pokemon Gold, I was blown away. This was on the Gameboy Color, so you saw the few colors the GBC allowed then you saw the Johto region at night! Not only that but certain Pokemon came out at certain times while others might pop up more in the daytime or at night.

It was a big jump for GameFreak and I was impressed at 14. With each game, the studio improve upon different game world elements, combat balancing, introduced new elements and so on. The main story changed to a degree but has always been around a powerful, influential trainer harnessing some next-level power. You always have the reoccurring gang the player spanks as well.

There’s quite a bit that remains the same in Pokemon and the day-night cycle is one of them. Now, it’s just kind of there and it serves its purpose for what GameFreak needs as far the ecosystem. My thing is that each Pokemon game feels like one very eventful summer where your trainer is another supernova.

Think about it, your trainer—probably 10-years-old, definitely no older than 13—heads into a world of dangerous monsters, eccentric adults, a roving gang, and experienced trainers. Only, those experienced trainers are actually no match for you even with their years or experience.

The Long Summer

Picture that: you just got your first Pokemon what has to be a few weeks ago in-game and you’re clapping up trainers who have been at this for years. Some have badges, they’ve just hit a wall or something but they have enough experience to beat someone who just became a trainer and don’t even have a badge.

At least they should.

That’s not reality. You trample these trainers in record time. The solution is simple: have an in-game clock where the days change every hour or whatever but just have real time for promotions and events. I’d just like for these adventures in each Pokemon game to not feel like a brief career between when you get your first monster to when you defeat the Elite Four.

I mean, your opponents could get back in battle form after a couple of real-world hours, they might be more powerful the next day or even later that day. Different city gyms and the region HQ could have in-game events that occur on certain “days”—it’s something that pokeclone Monster Rancher managed to do sans the overworld/open-world travel. I’ll admit, it’s a relatively minor gripe and the franchise has worked and sold for years without changing this aspect much but I believe a lot more could always be done with just the day-night cycle to stretch out the journey.

What do you think? Should the Pokemon games do more with this mechanic? What are some changes you’d like to see made to the franchise?

Staff Writer; M. Swift

This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.