Grumpy Old Git Gaming

Bust-A-Move 3DX (also known simply as Bust-A-Move 3) is an action puzzle game developed by Taito and published by Acclaim Entertainment for the Nintendo 64. This is the third game in the series and the sequel to Bust-A-Move 2. It was first released in 1996 for stand-up arcade cabinets before being ported to the N64, Playstation One, Sega Saturn, Game Boy, and Windows PC's. The play is mostly the same as in the previous games, with the player matching three balls repeatedly to complete a series of stages in various modes. In 2023, a modern port was released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Again, and something that I have felt with all of the games in this series that I have played, Bust-A-Move 3DX was a fun and addictive little game. There isn't much that I can say that I haven't already said before. I do recognise that this game is more refined and somewhat more polished than the other games though. The menus are cleaner and require less navigation bef...

Bust-A-Move 2: Arcade Edition is a match-3 tile puzzle game developed by Probe Entertainment and published by Acclaim for the Nintendo 64. The first sequel to the game Puzzle Bobble, this game was also known in North America as Bust-A-Move Again. In 1998, this game was ported onto the Playstation One, Sega Saturn, and Windows versions of home PCs. In 2023, this game was re-released for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Play is mostly unchanged from the other games and allows the player to take control of one of a lineup of characters and complete a series of matching tile puzzles. However, this time around, there are some new features, such as the tournament mode and a competitive multiplayer.   I liked this game and enjoyed playing it for the most part. Spending my hours trying to ace the tournament mode was a lot of fun. I found gameplay to be addictive, engaging, and challenging, but not so much that it spoilt my experiences. The tournament mode was well implemen...

Bust-A-Move '99 is an action-puzzle game developed by Distinctive Developments LTD and published by Acclaim for the Nintendo 64. Several other versions were released for the Sega Saturn, PlayStation One, Game Boy, and Microsoft Windows. Originally an arcade-only game, the popularity of this title in Japan sparked several developers to create a home console version for the worldwide market. Play consists of taking control of a small 'Bubble Dragon' named Bub and completing various levels of puzzles with a focus on the match-3 mechanic. I found this to be a fun little gem of a game and one that I happily spent many hours just messing around with. It excelled at being fun and addictive to the point that I would lose hours and just simply not even realize it. I loved the simple, easy-to-master controls and found the little avatar of Bub to be adorable. His little reactions as I progressed, for better or for worse, really helped tie this game together for me. I liked the endless...

Buck Bumble is an action-adventure game developed for the Nintendo 64 by Argonaut Software and published by Ubisoft. In this game, the player assumes the role of Buck Bumble, a cybernetically enhanced volunteer bumblebee, as he goes up against a group of super mutant insects known as the 'Herd', who are trying to take over the world. This game was originally released with its own special rumble pack in the U.K. that had colours matching those of Buck. There were high hopes for this title, as it was worked on by the same company that worked on the NES Starfox game. Hrmmmmm, I'm not sure about this game, to be honest; it wasn't something that I would have normally played, and I felt that it lacked a strong direction. However, I still did enjoy playing through this one for the most part, and at times I did find myself having much more fun than I would have expected at the start. The plot was pretty good; I will freely admit that, and I liked the simple mission layouts and ...

Bomberman 64: The Second Attack is an action-adventure game and the direct sequel to Bomberman 64. A game that was never released in Europe, the only way to play this game is to download a ROM and play through an emulator. This is due to a combination of factors, such as releasing late in the N64's life cycle, minimal advertising, and medicore reviews. Thus making this game one of the rarest titles ever for the Nintendo 64. The play is much the same as the first game and sees the player once again taking on the role of Bomberman. This time around, though, the story is set after the events of the battles with Altair and Sirius and takes on a much more platformer-like style. I felt that this game fell horribly flat on its face and with a sickening thud. It seemed that there was some sort of identity crisis going on with The Second Attack; it wanted to be so many different things but couldn't seem to do any of them particularly well. There were platformer elements that were more o...

Bomberman Hero is a platformer developed for the N64 by A.I. Co., Ltd. and published by Nintendo. This game has a much heavier focus on the platformer genre and features abilities never before seen in a Bomberman game, such as the ability to jump and a health meter. Set between Bomberman 64 and The Second Attack, this game has a plot that is very reminiscent of Star Wars. Despite being a Bomberman game, Hero takes a step away from the multiplayer component and instead focuses on the single-player element. I wasn't so sure of this game when I was playing it, and I still feel that way now that I have completed it. Something feels off with this game that is hard to explain—a missing feel or vibe, something like that. I suspect that it is because this game completely did away with the standard Hudson Soft formula and went in more of an action-adventure direction. Even the platformer elements feel stripped away and more basic. The limited, linear world and environmental designs also hel...

Bomberman 64 is an action-adventure game for the Nintendo 64, developed by Hudson Soft and published by Nintendo. A game with fully 3D graphics, it was the first game in the Bomberman series to use a 3D rendering engine. The game also received improved AI, updated controls, and a brand new 'Adventure Mode'. While this game never saw a release on the Wii's virtual console service, it was eventually released for the WiiU virtual console in 2017. Play is from the 3rd perspective and puts the player in the role of Bomberman as his planet comes under attack from the evil Altair and his space pirates. The player must then guide Bomberman through a series of worlds to stop his home planet from being turned into a zombie-like wasteland. I enjoyed this game for the most part and would happily wile away lazy afternoons by booting this game up and messing around on one of the various worlds. It was only when I became an adult that I put some serious hours into beating it and I can hon...

Blast Corps is a driving/action game developed by the British company Rare and published by Nintendo exclusively for the N64. In the game, you play as a young recruit for the company Blast Corps and must protect a transport vehicle carrying two defective nuclear missiles. Just one single jolt is enough for these missiles to explode, so the player must destroy everything in their path to save the world from a nuclear fallout. The gameplay is from a 3rd-person perspective and allows you to commandeer a series of different vehicles, from trains and bulldozers all the way up to huge walking battle mechs.    This game was one of the first titles that Rare ever produced for Nintendo, and it saw a relationship begin that would spawn many more games in the years to come. During development, Blast Corps only had a team of seven people working on it and at times would only have four, many of whom were recent university graduates. The overall concept for this game was inspired by ideas f...

Bio F.R.E.A.K.S. is a 3D fighting/beat 'em up game developed by Saffire Corporation and published by Midway Games for the N64 and Playstation One. It was originally planned to be an arcade-only game, but after testing, the prototype was cancelled, and it was ported onto home consoles. Play consists of choosing your Biological Flying Robotic Enhanced Armoured Killing Synthoids (Bio F.R.E.A.K.S.) and battling others in a championship to decide which represented corporation gets control over a post-apocalyptic Neo-Amerika. There is little changed from the standard beat 'em up formula, but the inclusion of weapons and special attacks was something fairly interesting. I haven't really got a lot to say about this game; it was terribly short, even for a fighting game, and had little to no replayability value. Yet I thought that it had its own charm and liked it enough to complete a playthrough. The characters that were on offer all had their own fairly unique attacks and weapons g...