Cover of the June 1990 issue of VideoGames & Computer Entertainment
VideoGames & Computer Entertainment was my favorite video game magazine of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Some of the key people responsible for the original Electronic Games magazine were involved with VG&CE. It eventually evolved into Tips & Tricks which wasn't really my cup of tea. The June 1990 issue of VG&CE includes:
Features
- Total Recall: Acclaim Brings Arnold Schwarzenegger's Film Role to Video-Game Screens - A detailed look at this NES game based on the movie of the same name. Like most licensed games, this one wasn't great though I suppose it was better than some. It definitely has the nostalgia factor going for it.
- Behind the Scenes at the Nintendo World Championships in Dallas - The Nintendo World Championship had to be just about the height of the NES era. It was sort of a case of life imitating art as The Wizard had just been released in theaters the year before.
- Batman Strategy Guide, Part I - The first part of a detailed strategy guide for Batman: The Video Game for the NES. While licensed games are pretty poor the vast majority of the time, this one bucks the trend and was actually a solid game. The game and the movie are probably still my Batman favorites.
- In Search of the Evil Place: A Player's Guide to Faxanadu, Part 2 - The second part of a detailed strategy guide for this classic NES adventure game.
Table of Contents from the June 1990 issue of VideoGames & Computer Entertainment
Reviews
- Video-Game Reviews - Reviews of Heroes of the Lance (NES) - (while I loved the Gold Box series of D&D games, I thought this action oriented game was pretty terrible), Astyanax (NES) - (I actually didn't care for this one much though it got good reviews), Ninja Gaiden II (NES), Starship Hector (NES), Super C (NES), Pat Riley's Slammin' Jammin' Basketball (Sega Genesis), Neutopia (TurboGrafx-16), Slap Shot (Sega Master System), and Ghostbusters (Sega Genesis).
- Computer-Game Reviews - Reviews of Tank (Spectrum Holobyte for the IBM PC), Hoyle's Book of Games (Sierra On-Line for the IBM PC), License to Kill (Domark/Broderbund for the Amiga, Atari ST, IBM PC, and Commodore 64), Sword of the Samurai (Microprose for the IBM PC), The Third Courier (Accolade for the IBM PC), Space Rogue (by Origin for the Apple II, Commodore 64, and IBM PC - I always wanted this one), It Came From the Desert (by Cinemaware for the Amiga, Atari ST, IBM PC), Sands of Fire (by Three-sixty Software for the IBM PC and Macintosh), and Trivial Pursuit (by Parker Brothers for the IBM PC).
Departments
- Editor's Letter - Andy Eddy discusses games based on movies and celebrities in video games.
- Reader Mail - The letters from readers this month are mostly about Nintendo's business practices and then current anti-trust issues.
- Tip Sheet - The inaugural edition of this column includes tips and basic strategies for Kung-Fu Heroes by Culture Brain for the NES.
- News Bits - Joe Montana signs deal with Sega, new add-on for A-10 Tank Killer, Defender of the Crown creator developing Centurion: Defender of Rome, Atari opens up direct phone line for orders of Atari Lynx and Portfolio products, new newsletter for Amiga gamers, Commodore to market games machine based on Amiga 500, and much more.
- Easter Egg Hunt - Hidden features and secrets in Double Dragon II (NES), Golden Axe (Genesis), Revenge of Shinobi (Genesis), and Fighting Street (TurboGrafx-16).
Back cover of the June 1990 issue of VideoGames & Computer Entertainment
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The Altar Path by Joseph Lisiewski.
Red Star Falling by Steve Berry.
A Declaration of the Rights of Magicians by H.G. Parry
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I remember playing Total Recall and how extremely difficult that game was. The NES was the last time I actually really paid a lot of attention to video games. It was a golden time for me.
Games on the NES could be brutally hard. It was a great time for gaming...and sometimes a frustrating one, lol.
I think I mentiond this already, years ago but, Bill Kunkel, one of the main driving creatives behind this publication (and partner in creating the first gaming focused publications in the early 80s) was my inspiration to start a public relations company. He gave me the one piece of advice that changed my life forever way back in 2009. Sadly he passed away many years ago.
Sadly, most of the original EG crew seems to be gone. AFAIK, Arnie Katz is still around but he hasn't been heard from since 2009, at least not that I could find.
It is a shame that so much history has been lost. I remember interviewing Ralph Baer (RIP) known as the father of video games (he created the brown box in the 50s, I believe, it was very much Pong like) as well as working with Nolan Bushnell for some movie some former friends made (I helped them bring in almost 10 personalities for that event).
Sad to think that only Bushnell is alive now out of the ones I worked with.
Just shows life can go so quickly. Enjoy it while we can.
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