It’s the new games mega blast! From arcade classics to 8-bit legends, these are the debut stars of Antstream Arcade this October. Want something super fresh to play, for free, on Antstream Arcade, the easy-access platform for retro gaming? This quick and painless guide is here to help you. Game on!
Spelunker II: 23 Keys – Arcade
Fancy yourself as an underground explorer, bravely daring deadly caverns to rescue a beautiful princess (and grab some treasure along the way)? Welcome to Spelunker II, the arcade sequel that thrusts your pink-loving potholer into the depths. Employ death-defying leaps! Climb and swing on rope ladders! Swim in murky treasure-laden waters! Ride a skateboard over razor-clawed enemies! All this and more awaits you in Spelunker II!
Ant-Fact: Irem published a separate sequel, Spelunker II, for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Rather than the platform action of the arcade game, this NES game deviates more into the Metroidvania genre.
Ant-Tactic: To plant a bomb, press fire and down. Also, watch out when swimming: your energy diminishes even quicker.
Ant-ernative: For more underground escapades, try the excellent Commodore 64 title, Legend Of The Knucker-Hole.
Let’s stay in the arcades for our next new game, Jaleco’s fun urban car journey, City Connection. Also known as Cruisin’, City Connection stars Clarice and her cute Honda City hatchback. Yet despite their innocent and ordinary appearance, these two are on a crimewave, dodging police and hurling oil cans at any that get in their way. The aim is to paint each highway before zooming off to another city and even more vehicular chaos.
Ant-Fact: Latter stages occur in famous locations such as London, Paris and a German Schloss that resembles the third stage of Tekhan’s Bomb Jack.
Ant-Tactic: The flag-waving cats are invulnerable. You must jump over these felines, so don’t bother hurling oil cans or ramming them.
Ant-ernative: For more endearing yet slightly dubious driving, give SNK’s Joyful Road a spin.
Perfect Pair – Nintendo Entertainment System
The latest homebrew NES game to hit Antstream Arcade is a delightfully charming third chapter in Second Dimension’s Holiday series. In Perfect Pair, a young couple needs help from that little love-matcher, Cupid. Guide the cherub across each level, surrounding the hearts with his love and releasing them towards the shy pair. But watch out for the miserable gremlins that haunt each screen!
Ant-Fact: Cupid’s form has changed over the centuries. He began as a slender youth in classical Greek art before morphing into the recognisable chubby fellow of today.
Ant-Tactic: Don’t be fooled by the easy start – some of Perfect Pair’s latter levels are utterly devious. Fortunately, if Cupid encircles a large heart, he becomes temporarily invincible.
Ant-ernative: The first in this winsome series, Blow ‘Em Out, is also available on Antstream Arcade.
It’s a slippery slope once you start playing Amstrad CPC on Antstream Arcade, and this cunning game from EgoTrip is another brilliant adventure in the story of that gem-collecting heroine, Amy. Ice Slider is a puzzle game with a challenging twist: once Amy has begun a move, she cannot stop until she hits a block. With plenty of traps and game-ending infinite loops on each level, you’ll need your wits sharpened to help Amy in Ice Slider.
Ant-Fact: Out of the 34 nominated games, Ice Slider finished seventh in the 2016 CPCRetroDev competition. There must have been some great games that year!
Ant-Tactic: Don’t forget Amy can move off-screen – make sure there’s an adjacent block on the other side to stop her slide!
Ant-ernative: There are more icy antics in the Commodore 64 game Pengon.
It’s food fight time! Charley Chuck loves his ice cream and can’t help himself whenever he sees one of the tasty frozen treats. Alas, the local chefs don’t share his passion for snow cones and pursue him across every level, hurling various ingredients at the young man. Faced with such opposition to his ice cream hunger, Charley has no choice but to pick up those foods and chuck them back! Ready? LET’S FOOD FIGHT!
Ant-Fact: Food Fight originated as an arcade game released by Atari in 1983.
Ant-Tactic: Charley must avoid the holes in the ground in addition to the chefs and their missiles.
Ant-ernative: Check out the original food fight legend, Data East’s brutally-hard BurgerTime.
We were proud to bring another MSX game to the Antstream Arcade catalogue in October, and it’s another classic. Joining the Amiga, Spectrum and Commodore 64 is another iteration of the Bitmap Brothers’ breakthrough hit, Xenon. Featuring all the mayhem and hectic shooting action from the other versions, this is another cracking shoot-‘em-up on Antstream Arcade.
Ant-Fact: Xenon featured heavily in the Saturday morning TV show Get Fresh, which undoubtedly helped its success.
Ant-Tactic: As with many shooters, learning the enemy attack patterns is vital. And don’t stop shooting!
Ant-ernative: Antstream Arcade also plays host to the superb Sega Mega Drive sequel, Xenon 2: Megablast.
Just when you thought it was safe to roam the streets! Paws is an unsubtle nod to the 1975 Steven Spielberg movie Jaws, only instead of the ocean, it’s an urban landscape of hidden danger. As a proud father-of-ten kittens, it’s time to round up the little ones before they get eaten by Bulldog Billy and his gang.
Ant-Fact: When Spectrum mag Sinclair User reviewed Paws, it was known as Cats. Publisher Artic was either attempting to obtain an official licence or decided to change the name before release.
Ant-Tactic: Learning Paws’ map is critical as your daddy cat must return each kitten before collecting another.
Ant-ernative: Flip to the other side with Software Projects’ Star Paws, starring the valiant pooch, Captain Rover Pawstrong.
Our final game of this autumnal new games blast is a Gameboy run ‘n’ gunner, released by Jaleco in 1991. Two mercenaries, each with unique abilities, are taking on the dangerous Fortified Zone of the title. In the spirit of classic arcade shooters such as Commando and Ikari Warriors combined with a Metal Gear-style twist, it’s your mission to help these two infiltrators conquer the eponymous fortress.
Ant-Fact: A song of the same name features on the album Survival Of The Fastest by thrash metal band Gama Bomb. Its war-themed lyrics suggest the band used the Gameboy title for inspiration.
Ant-Tactic: While the male mercenary can use any weapon, the female can jump. Switching between the two is necessary for certain situations.
Ant-ernative: SNK’s Ikari Warriors is another two-person assault on a fortified base.
Also new on Antstream Arcade this month: three more Amstrad CPC games in the form of Super Tank Simulator, Periscope Up and Heartland; Atari 2600 games Crystal Castles and RealSports Volleyball; and finally, another Atari 7800 release, MotoRodeo.
That concludes the Antstream Arcade new game roundup for another month! Look out for another fantastic selection of new games soon.
Want to keep track of new games, challenges and more on Antstream Arcade? Then head over to the Antstream Arcade Discord:.
This blog primarily written by Graeme Mason covers retro gaming and offerings of Antstream - and can be checked out at it's original published location of https://www.antstream.com/retro-gaming-news/
