VIDEOGAMES FEATURE: FRIDAY FLASHBACK

This fortnight Nick concludes his run of Sci-Fi retrospectives with a look at the challenging but ultimately rewarding SNES platformer, Super Empire Strikes Back.

SUPER EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

Release Year: 1993

Original Console Release: SNES (later re-released on Nintendo Virtual Console)

Developer: Sculptured Software, LucasArts

By Nick Murray, Videogames Contributor.

A long time ago (1993) in a galaxy not so far away, one of the most controller smashingly infuriating games of all time was released. Super Empire Strikes Back on the Super Nintendo was quite frankly the bane of mine, and many others, childhood. You think you know difficult? Think again - this game's Easy setting makes Dark Souls look like Pokemon Snap. And yet, like a battered housewife, after all the abuse and downright nastiness, we returned to the game and let the whole hellish cycle start again. Why? Because at the end of the day, Super Empire Strikes Back is just a big old Jabba sized barrel of fun. 

VIDEOGAMES FEATURE: FRIDAY FLASHBACK

Today begins the start of a new series of Videogame features by avid gamer Nick Murray: Friday Flashbacks - taking a look at the best, worst and unjustly forgotten in the retro gaming back catalogue. For this first instalment, Nick has chosen to take a look back at the aptly titled side-scroller Flashback.

FLASHBACK
(released as Flashback: The Quest for Identity in US)
Release Year: 1992
Original Console Release: Amiga
Ports: MS-DOS, Acorn Archimedes, Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, Super Nintendo, Mega-CD, 3DO, CD-i, MS-DOS, Apple Macintosh, FM Towns, Atari Jaguar

By Nick Murray, Videogames Contributor.

Flashback. What could be a more appropriate game to start with than the one which gave this very feature it's title. It’s one of those games that I loved but until recently hadn't played since I was a kid, so it was interesting to revisit it and see how well it had stood the test of time...

Flashback puts you in the shoes of Conrad B. Hart, an agent of the Galaxia Bureau of Investigation who is suffering from a bad case of amnesia (When aren’t they? - Kyle). As you make your way through the game's dystopian levels, you learn of a dastardly plot involving shape shifting aliens and the end of mankind! It's typical sci-fi fare, but the characters and sense of impending danger really struck a chord with me many years ago, and that tension still rings true today. If you're a fan of Blade Runner and the like, you'll know what to expect but appreciate the run down, polluted world in which you traverse through over the course of the game.   

The game was first released in 1992 for the Amiga, and came from French developers Delphine Software, who have since closed down. It was then ported to other platforms in 1993, including the Super Nintendo and Sega Mega Drive. The differences between the different versions is minimal, although the Mega Drive version has slightly better graphics as was standard in the SNES-Mega Drive/Genesis era. Nothing that changes the core gameplay experience though. At least hopefully not, as it's the SNES version I own.