Michael Thomasson

Just for Qix: Space Panic – The Foundation of All Platformers – By Michael Thomasson

by Michael Thomasson | Jul 16, 2019 | 1970s, Arcade, Columns

Universal’s Space Panic, a rather obscure cult-classic released in 1980, revolutionized game design by introducing novel game mechanics that birthed a new genre. Space Panic is often recognized as the first platform game, as it was the premiere title to include...

Just 4 Qix: Warlords – By Michael Thomasson

by Michael Thomasson | May 23, 2019 | 1980s, Arcade, Columns

Atari’s Warlords is considered one of the best competitive video game titles of all time. Warlords is a simple game that took Atari’s early games Quadrapong and Breakout and greatly improved upon them. By taking the multi-player paddle premise and spinning the concept...

Arcade 1Up – By Michael Thomasson

by Michael Thomasson | May 12, 2019 | 2010s, Arcade, Reviews

Coin-op nostalgia was in full swing this past holiday season, and odds are that your heart was elevated when you first gazed upon the 3⁄4 scale arcade cabinets by Arcade 1UP in your local mall. My initial impression was that they were made for small people or...

Just for Qix: Behind Enemy Lines – By Michael Thomasson

by Michael Thomasson | Apr 7, 2019 | 1980s, Arcade, Columns

Near the end of 1980, Atari released the first-person combat simulator Battlezone in arcades. With its twin stick controls, overhead radar, and innovative plastic periscope, it mimicked an early construct of today’s virtual reality set-ups. Since the viewfinder...

Just for Qix: Thunderforce – From the Home to the Arcade – By Michael Thomasson

by Michael Thomasson | Mar 29, 2019 | 1990s, Arcade, Columns, Magazine

It is a rare occurrence when a home console game makes its way to the video arcade, but that is what happened with the horizontal- scrolling shooter Thunder Force. Like a reverse chain of events, in the literary world it would be equivalent to a book being...

Just for Qix: Space Panic – The Foundation of All Platformers – By Michael Thomasson

Just 4 Qix: Warlords – By Michael Thomasson

Arcade 1Up – By Michael Thomasson

Just for Qix: Behind Enemy Lines – By Michael Thomasson

Just for Qix: Thunderforce – From the Home to the Arcade – By Michael Thomasson

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