Peripheral Vision: Interact Barracuda
If you've read a portion of my other Peripheral Vision posts you'll know I have quite a few strange video game controllers. One of the strangest among the collection is my Interact Barracuda. Compared to all the other oddities I own this is an absolute unit. I'm a grown man with grown man hands I have to admit, even I find this thing to be a behemoth of a controller.
Apart from its size the Interact Barracuda is, to me, a bit of a mystery, in terms of how it works. You see, ... Read more
Posted 5 months ago
Eternal Eyes
In the age of Pokemon's success everyone was looking for their slice of the pie. While Hudson Soft and Atlas were busy publishing Robopon to try and take down Game Freak's behemoth other companies were trying to catch the trend curve and see where they might fit in. Sun Corporation quietly sat back and when they finally saw their opening they published their attempt to seize the moment with Eternal Eyes.
The game follows the life of Luke, a descendant of the Cucurotheatro who possessed crimson eyes. The Cucurotheatro were known as ... Read more
Posted 5 months ago
Overpriced or Justified: Expensive NES Games
In the 25 years or so I've been collecting video games, rarity and value only started to factor in about ten years ago. I started collecting as a kid, buying or trading for old games from other kids in the neighborhood. I would keep the games I liked and trade away the others to places like FuncoLand. Around 2010 vintage gaming became a more popular hobby, and in some cases a business. At that time it wasn't uncommon to walk into a flea market and see a $30 copy of Gyromite or even 10 Yard Fight locked away behind ... Read more
Posted 6 months ago
Peripheral Vision: Sony’s Dual Analog
Before the success of Sony's DualShock series, there was another controller that looked slightly similar by the name of the Dual Analog. The Dual Analog was released in Japan in 1997, alongside a pair of compatible games, Bushido Blade and Tobal 2. The controller was advertised as giving more precise controls, with a rumble feature for a more realistic experience. When considering its release outside of Japan, Sony decided that the rumble function would be removed from both the European and American versions of the controller.
Hands on with the Dual Analog will ... Read more
Posted 6 months ago
Auto Destruct
As a teenager the Sony Playstation was my favorite console and I simply couldn't get enough of what it had to offer. While perusing a rental store I found a game that caught my eye by the name of Auto Destruct. On the back of the box I read: "Your family was murdered by a nihilistic cult. Driven by revenge, you join a mysterious underground order to even the score. Your mission: fire up your killer ride, load up on devastating weapons and drive the cultists out of town." If ... Read more
Posted 6 months ago
Me and my Game Boy
While being slightly ashamed of this fact I've also tried to make it clear that I didn't start gaming like most everyone else that I know. It wasn't until my parents bought an Atari 2600 in the early to mid-90s, by which time the SNES was already in full control of the market, that video games had any place in my life. Needless to say I've spent the rest of my life playing catch up. There was, however, one console I owned that was still fairly relevant while I owned it, and that was the Nintendo Game Boy.
I don't remember ... Read more
Posted 6 months ago
Peripheral Vision: Nuby NB-700 aka “The Rock”
It seems to me that during the lifetime of the original Playstation many third-party brands were born simply to cash in on the console's success. Companies like Interact, MadCatz and Nuby were all at the forefront pushing out cheaper alternatives to Sony's masterpiece of a controller. Today we'll be taking a look at the Nuby NB-700, aka The Rock, controller to see if it's worth the plastic it's molded in.
Immediately I noticed the controller is thinner than the OEM Sony controller and the edges of the Nuby are far more boxy, although ... Read more
Posted 6 months ago