Metallica: The Unforgiven (1991) - #Song #Review

An amazing song!

Yay! I finally get to review my favorite song of all time... Ok, so before I go in to why this song is brilliant, I should probably say this... 

Ok, so this wasn't my first heavy metal song that I had listened to... I enjoyed the music, sure.... But I wasn't really entirely feeling it... And then I was... And then I heard this song one day about 20 years ago... And this song became, (and still is my favorite song of all time!) 

Not only is this song amazing, but the music video is epic!

That song is Metallica's, 'The Unforgiven' from their  1991 self titled album, also known as, 'The Black Album'... By the way, I have to say that this entire album kicks fucking ass! 

Anyway, this song, which was created through Elektra, is a brilliant fucking song that was developed as a method for the band to try something new... And you know what? It fucking rules! 

A lot of what modern metal is, is speeding through the song, or heavy bass/drums, etc... That type of music is truly fun, but this is the type of music that I love, what with heavy, distorted verses, and a softer melodic chorus! In my opinion it gives it that toned yet under current of darker torrential music, that all the metal heads I knew then, and probably now, still love!

James Hetfield just killing it with, 'The Unforgiven' live! 

So if you get a chance to listen to it, check it out! You will be glad you did!

Lyrics from Metallica's, 'The Unforgiven'! 

New blood joins this earth
And quickly he's subdued
Through constant pain disgrace
The young boy learns their rules
With time the child draws in
This whipping boy done wrong
Deprived of all his thoughts
The young man struggles on and on he's known
A vow unto his own
That never from this day
His will they'll take away

What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never be
Never see
Won't see what might have been
What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

They dedicate their lives
To running all of his
He tries to please them all
This bitter man he is
Throughout his life the same
He's battled constantly
This fight he cannot win
A tired man they see no longer cares
The old man then prepares
To die regretfully
That old man here is me

What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never be
Never see
Won't see what might have been
What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never be
Never see
Won't see what might have been
What I've felt
What I've known
Never shined through in what I've shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

You labeled me
I labeled you
So I dub thee unforgiven

Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

You labeled me
I labeled you
So I dub thee unforgiven

Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven

The Terminator Main Theme And It's Variations - #Music #Movie #Blog

A great series with a surprisingly great soundtrack!

So over the years there has been a ton of variety in the main themes for the various Terminator movies, and so I thought that I would give you the listing of them from the beginning!

1. The Terminator (1984):

2. Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991):

3. Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines (2003):

4. Terminator: Salvation (2009):

5. Terminator: Gensys (2015):

Battletoads (1991) - Video Game Review

Official Score = 2 1/2 Devils

In the late 80s through out the early 90s, Hollywood, rather it be in movies, or in TV series were experimenting with different concepts behind a, 'mutant'... Now in some cases, this was the more mundane form... (You know, using Toxic waste to mutate a bad guy, which will ultimately kill him... As was the case in, RoboCop 2,)

But there was another side of it that had it where a group of mutated animals are turned in to a group of crime fighters... As is the case with the, 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'... A show, that would later be turned in to a movie, as well as other forms of media...

Well during this hype, there was another cartoon that became rather famous, that was created as competition for the, 'Ninja Turtles', and that being the hardcore, 'Battletoads'...

Now these Toads may not be as popular as their Turtle counterparts, but one thing they did produce besides a fun cartoon was an equally fun video game in 1991 for the NES!

Maybe dated... But still a good one!

This game told the story of how Professor T. Bird and the three Battletoads, Rash, Zitz, and Pimple, are escorting Princess Angelica to her home planet using their spacecraft, the 'Vulture.' Pimple and Angelica decide to take a leisurely trip on Pimple's flying car. They are ambushed and captured by the Dark Queen's ship, the 'Gargantua.' Pimple sends out a distress signal to the Vulture, alerting Professor T. Bird, Rash, and Zitz that himself and Angelica had been captured. Learning that the Gargantua is hidden beneath the surface of a nearby planet called, 'Ragnarok's World,' Professor T. Bird flies Rash and Zitz there in the Vulture to rescue them.^[1]

In the end, this game was and still is a classic 2D fighting game, on par with games like, 'Street's Of Rage', 'Double Dragon' or even, 'The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles', and even though this game is kind of dated, it is certainly well worth trying at least once!

Nirvana: Smells Like Teen Spirit (1991) - Song Review

Official Score = 3 Devils

Nirvana... Man I miss that band! I mean their type of grunge rock influenced a whole generation of fans, not just in a type of music, but in a way of living that back in the early and mid-nineties was pretty much the only way to live!

What I mean by this is that Nirvana was a trend setter, you could trace the popularity of kids and teens drinking coffee from Starbucks, or some other coffee house to these guys, you could also trace directly back to these guys the popular belief that if you played in a coffee house, your band could get discovered and you to could become famous...

The reason why I mention all of this is because there is one song that I recently heard, that I hadn't heard in a few years that was pretty decent... That song being, 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' (1991), from their album, 'Nevermind'!

Nirvana doing, 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' LIVE!

Now if you like this type of music... Well you might find this song to be a fun one, and the truth is, is I like this song a fair amount myself, the only real problem is that this song has been played to death! What I mean by this is that this song has been overly commercialized, and in my opinion has killed some of that, 'underground band' charm that was what made Nirvana so great!

In the end, this song is not bad, and in all fairness, if you have never listened to Nirvana, this song is a worthy one to introduce yourself to them...

Musicians Doing Movies

Elvis Presley... Not exactly some one who did horror, but the King Of Rock did a have a pretty solid movie career!

I don't know about you guys... But for me, the movies that I have seen in which a famous Musician has made the transfer in to doing movies as well are actually pretty good!

Now I can't say that about all of them, because well, I haven't seen all of them, but the ones that I have seen, well I have to say that they pretty well rock! Now I am not necessarily talking about musicals, although those are pretty good as well.

Now why is it that they seem to do pretty good? Well I am going to say that there are a few reasons for this:

1. Obviously at least some of the movies that these musicians have been in tended to involve music in some way...

2. Well besides what was mentioned above, I also think it is because these guys are already in the public spotlight, and so they almost always seem to project a certain kind of veneer when the paparazzi are snapping photos. I think that, that false veneer generally tends to lend itself to helping musicians play believable roles.

Musician/Actor, 'Justin Timberlake' with fellow, 'Social Network' cast mates, Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield!

Ultimately though, I think that the reason this seems to work so well is the fact that it seems like, (well to me anyway,) that at least to some extent that most of the mediums (i,e... Writing, Making Movies, Or Making Music,) generally have a certain element of creating something out of nothing, and well I think that the artist can use this pretty well to help them, no matter if they are writing, or making music, or making movies...

A great example of this from the world of music, is when Alice Cooper played, 'Freddy's Dad' in Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare (1991)... Now this guy does a great job of making some truly scary music, but when he played Freddy's dad... Forget about it! The guy scared me the first time I saw the movie!

Now there are a bunch of Musicians that do have a resume of films under the belt... Not all of them are Horror, or Science Fiction movies, but I thought that you guys would be interested to know that some of the more scary musicians from the world of, 'Hard Rock' and, ' Heavy Metal' have made their way in to scaring the hell out of people on the big screen!

Needful Things (1991) - Stephen King - Book Review

Official Score = 2 1/2 Devils

Alright, so so far I have done a lot of work on reviewing Stephen King's amazing body of horror/science fiction novels that are out there right now... There is one novel that he did that was of particular interest... Now this novel was not the best of the series, but... Well you could say that in a lot of respects that it is a culmination of at least a few of the novels that he did that took place in, 'Castle Rock' in Maine...

That novel of course being: Needful Things (1991)!

Maybe not the best novel, but a must for fans!

You see this novel (which was said to be the last Castle Rock story,) tells the story of how a small store owner makes his way in to town to set up shop... The idea is that this store owner is going to be selling objects that people desire most... And the way that the people of this small town are going to be able to get these interesting objects that they most desire, is to do a few little odd jobs for the owner!

But what the town doesn't realize, is that these favors will ultimately turn out to be something worse then any of them could ever expect... And in the end, each one of these townsfolk are going to end up finding out the true price of, 'making a deal with the devil'!

A scene with Max von Sydow and Shane Meier in the movie: Needful Things... This movie is based on the book!

In the end, this story may not have been the best that he wrote (you could say that it is like a Saturday afternoon movie... Not bad, but you can certainly see why it would be a Saturday Afternoon movie!) One of the things though that this book does have going for it is the fact that... Well let's be honest... This novel is certainly going to be one that fans should read to get closure on the town of Castle Rock!

Duke Nukem (1991) - Video Game Review

Official Score = 1 Devil

Duke Nukem... Man that was such an amazing series... Don't get me wrong, it was absolutely one of the most cheesiest games that ever came out, but the truth is, is I think that was one of the appealing facts about this video game!

What I mean by this, is that this Sci-fi action epic took place in a time when movies like, Big Trouble In Little China (1986)... The reason why I mention this is because Kurt Russell's character in this movie, 'Jack Burton' reminds me of, 'Duke Nukem'... A little bit macho, some one who would flex his muscles for the ladies, and expect them to feed him... That type of person...

And well another kind of interesting thing in this series as a little bit of a side note is the fact that this game was one of the earliest video games to depict naked women... (I only mention this because this does give the game I believe a little bit more of an element of realisim...)

Regardless though, this series is a fun one... And where as it does get better, this game does get better in it's succeeding sequels, the first one is an enigma, because it kind of starts off like a little bit of a rough print...

The First Duke Nukem... Need I say more?

What I mean by this is that this video game, which told the story of how Duke Nukem tried to stop, Dr. Proton before he can take over the world... Well to me, even back when I tried it... (which was after I played the sequel,) the graphics were not as good, the music and fx were not as good... Ultimately the game just wasn't as good!

The truth is folks, this game is just not as good as it's successive games... I mean it is like, 'Street Fighter', almost kind of useless because it is not as good as the sequels, but if you are like me and are in to the history of games... Well then you might like this one!

5 Great Sci-fi/Horror Movies That Were Turned In To 5 Video Games InThe 1990s

This Ghostbusters video game is just one example of a movie that was turned in to a great video game!

You know growing up in the 1990s one of things that I got to do is to see the effects of some of the biggest horror and science fiction movies that came out in the 1980s, and how they impacted the 1990s!

What do I mean by this? Well let's take, RoboCop (1987)...

At the time... Well this movie was truly awesome and still is! But it wasn't until the 1990s when the effects of this movie, and the impact that it would have on the industry in the whole would begin to be felt... I mean it really started growing, with the sequels to this movie coming out in the early 90s, and with the cartoon, 'RoboCop: Alpha Commando' coming out in 1999, and eventually more movies, culminating with the recent reboot of the series!

During this time we would see a growing rise in merchandising, and video games, such as: RoboCop Vs. Terminator (1993) and the like!

RoboCop Vs. Terminator, a classic video game that had 2 great movies turned in to a crossover video game!

Well there are other such examples, and I thought that it would be fun to begin to examine some of these games:

So with out further adieu:

At number 5: Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes (1991).

A classic B... Well... B whatever!

Now I will admit that with this one I never saw the movie (A situation that I intend to remedy), but I did see the cartoon that was based on the movie, and it was pretty awesome... Now I have never beaten this game, but I did play it a couple of different times back when it was first released for the Nintendo, and it is a fun one, worth at least trying if you are a fan of classic video games!

At number 4: Bram Stoker's Dracula (1993).

This game, which is based on the classic early 90s movie is considered to be one of the worst games ever made!

You might find it odd that I would add a game that sucked, but the truth is, is where as Bram Stoker's Dracula is is an amazing movie, I thought that I should add this game because... Well lets be honest, when doing a list people generally seem more interested in doing lists that they like... And this game was pretty deplorable... If you find it, do like Van Helsing and burn the wicked game!

At number 2: Darkman: The Video Game (1991).

An interesting one...

Now this one is sort of a mixed bag... The movie was freaking amazing! I only saw part of one of the sequels... And well it was alright... But as far as the video game goes, I only got to play it once, and it was alright... When you were actually playing the game... Well it was pretty fun, but, and I don't know if it was just the copy of the game that I was playing or what ever, but the truth is, is the music and sound fx sucked!

At number 1: Michael Jackson's Moonwalker (1990).

Michael Jackson is the lead character in this classic early 90s Genesis game! 

This one is sort of different... What I mean by this is that this movie may now have been Science Fiction or Horror, but the truth is, is the movie was truly amazing, and the video game , (which does have elements of science fiction in it), is truly awesome, and if you haven't tried it yet... Do so... Both rock!

Five Classic Racing Games From The Past

The 80s saw a major burst in to the mainstream of video games that of racing  games... But it wasn't until the 90s that I would say that these types of video games reached their apex! What I mean by this is that racing games from back in the 80s and 90s were some of the best games to have been released ever.

Don't get me wrong, I imagine there are some good first person racing games that have come out since the new millennium, but the problem is, is that there is just something that is not right about having a first person view of a racing game that you don't control with a steering wheel control, and the truth is is that none of these games from back then really put that type of pretension out there!

So I thought that you guys might enjoy a list of some of the classics that really made racing games great from back then!

At number 5: Excitebike (1985):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="320"] Excitebike is one of those games that helped make racing games popular.[/caption]

 

For more information on this game, please enjoy this scene from the classic Nintendo game: Excitebike (1985):

http://youtu.be/k6UZC7nXRHM

At number 4: F-Zero (1991):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="333"] F-Zero... Can you say awesome?[/caption]

 

For more information on this game, please, (click here:) other wise, please check out this scene from the classic Super Nintendo game: F-Zero (1991):

http://youtu.be/2T5u9nD_I0I

At number 3: Rock N' Roll Racing (1993):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="354"] A classic racing game with a brutal twist![/caption]

 

For more information on this game, please, (click here:) other wise,  please check out this scene from the classic Super Nintendo game: Rock N' Roll Racing (1993):

http://youtu.be/1sPrZW2wXP4

At number 2: Super Mario Kart (1992):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] This game is a true classic that has spawned its own separate legacy and franchise from it's parent game, 'Super Mario Bros.'[/caption]

For more information on this game, please check out this scene from the classic Super Nintendo game: Super Mario Kart (1992):

http://youtu.be/sZkxJhsP384

At number 1: The Need For Speed (1994):

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="320"] This is one of the first games that I thought had a better first person racing style then any of the other games to come out before it.[/caption]

For more information on this game, please check out this scene from the classic Playstation game: The Need For Speed (1994):

http://youtu.be/H3ArDaEEMxk

5 Great Video Game Series That Got Their Starts A Generation Ago

That's right folks, with all of the modern games that are coming out at such a rapid rate, that we some times forget where some of these staple franchises have come from, and so I thought that I would remind some of us out there where these modern games got their start:

At number 5: Castlevania.

For more information on this game please check out these scenes from, 'Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow 2' (2014), and 'Castlevania' (1986):

http://youtu.be/ENSDrPpFp-Y

http://youtu.be/pJk-zhp8aA0

At number 4: Contra.

For more information on this game please check out these scenes from, 'Hard Corps Uprising' (2011), and 'Contra' (1987):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzQKF9LUQ90

http://youtu.be/ZDOrp_TMGfA

At number 3: Mega Man.

For more information on this game please check out these scenes from, 'Mega Man 10' (2010), and 'Mega Man' (1987):

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnGfx0dfi7g&w=420&h=315]

 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaS1c-16frU&w=560&h=315]

At number 2: Sonic The Hedgehog.

For more information on this game please check out these scenes from, 'Sonic Boom' (2014), and 'Sonic The Hedgehog' (1991):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAhNkZWvZJ4

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3ny0Pr09S8&w=420&h=315]

At number 1: Street Fighter.

For more information on this game please check out these scenes from, 'Street Fighter X Tekken' (2012), and 'Street Fighter' (1987):

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_dM7SWLBTQ&w=420&h=315]

http://youtu.be/KLQ1aCOSQos

Sonic: The Hedgehog (1991) - Video Game Review

[caption id="attachment_325" align="alignright" width="263"] Official Score = 3 Devils[/caption]

I have to admit that I was pretty sad to see Sega stop making consoles, I mean for decades their consoles were truly a total blast, and a lot of the video games for those systems were a lot of fun!

The one that I particularly enjoyed was the, 'Sega Masters System'... Or, 'Sega Genesis' in the United States... This may not have been the first of their video game systems that I have ever played, but it is for me, (probably more so then any other video game system out there to date), is one of the most memorable video game systems that I have ever played!

I mean besides the fact that I had a lot of fun playing video games on this system with my friends, I also found that I really enjoyed playing the video games on this system! Rather it be, 'Golden Axe' (1989), 'Space Harrier 2' (1988) or heck even, 'Sonic: The Hedgehog' (1991)!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="706"] Sonic The Hedgehog Versus Doctor Robotnik in, 'Sonic: The Hedgehog' (1991)[/caption]

Developed by the, 'Sonic Team' for the original Sega Genesis, and first released in 1991, this amazing game told the story of how in his attempt to steal 6 chaos emeralds, Dr. Robotnik has imprisoned a lot of the inhabitants of South Island in to various prisons and cybernetic shells, and it will be up to the player (who plays as, 'Sonic') to stop Dr. Robotnik before his devious plan can be put in to motion!

In the end, this game's gameplay is very similar to the original, 'Super Mario Bros.' and thus is really easy to play... And the graphics are great, the music is fun... In my opinion, the true test of a great video game is its capacity for long term play either in a single day or repetitively over several days... And for me, the main problem with this game, is that it doesn't have that.

In the end though, if you haven't tried it yet, then I would recommend doing so, it is worth it!

http://youtu.be/XAhNkZWvZJ4

5 Classic Weird Al Parodies That Rock

I know this blog is is dedicated to, Heavy Metal, Rock 'N Roll and the various sub genres associated with this type of music, but I thought that I would take a change of pace this one time and talk about something a little bit off topic (not entirely... But a little...)

This topic being, '5 Classic Weird Al Parodies That Rock'.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="475"] Weird Al doin a parody of Michael Jackson's, 'Bad'[/caption]

Now I know this is a little bit of a switch from the norm, but with Christmas coming up, I thought that it would be fun to do a list with some great songs that Weird Al has done, that not only rock, but you will laugh your ass off!

At number 5 we have: Ride The Bus (1980), a parody of Queen's 1980 hit song, 'Another One Bites The Dust':

http://youtu.be/NeMrttj8Ucg

http://youtu.be/7Dmd1b-sfUw

At Number 4: Fat (1988), a parody of Michael Jackson's 1987 classic song, 'Bad':

http://youtu.be/dsUXAEzaC3Q

http://youtu.be/t2mU6USTBRE

At Number 3: Smells Like Nirvana (1992), a parody of Nirvana's 1991 hit song, 'Smells Like Teen Spirit':

http://youtu.be/hTWKbfoikeg

http://youtu.be/FklUAoZ6KxY

At Number 2: Gump (1996), a parody of The Presidents Of The United States Of America's 1995 hit song, 'Lump':

http://youtu.be/_sj_U6vObUA

http://youtu.be/hQwWaWFjd0Y

At Number 1: The Saga Begins (1999), a parody of Don McLean's classic 1971 song, 'American Pie':

http://youtu.be/ih7N9_VUU4U

http://youtu.be/hEcjgJSqSRU

In the end, I know this is a little turn in a different direction, but I found that Weird Al is not only absolutely hilarious, but he also rocks in the same time, please enjoy!

Ozzy Osbourne: No More Tears (1991) - Song Review

[caption id="attachment_415" align="alignright" width="350"] Official Score = 4 Devils[/caption]

Ozzy Osbourne maybe one of the most prolific rockers the music world has ever seen... I know, I know, if you are reading this, then you probably already know this... This is mostly for those few headbangers out there that haven't as of yet had the chance to get in to his kick ass music...

With that said, Ozzy has been entertaining audiences all over the world for literally decades with a ton of great songs... And in all truth, I generally try to avoid reviewing an item with the highest rating that we here at Hellinspace can give a review... Just because, to say anything is absolutely, 'perfect' is a hard act to follow... But for me, my favorite song of his, and probably in my top 3 favorite songs ever is a song that he did in 1991, 'No More Tears'

[caption id="attachment_2121" align="aligncenter" width="440"] Ozzy doing, 'No More Tears'.[/caption]

I can go over every little detail and say how the singing was great... The truth is, is I haven't heard to many songs that Ozzy has done where the singing was bad... (That is not to say that I haven't heard some songs that wouldn't rate as high as this one...) I could say that the instrumentals on this song weren't just absolutely magnificent...

The truth is, is I found this entire song to be well put together, with every element just hitting it's mark perfectly... I also thought it awesome that this song was played in the background of the scene in, Little Nicky (2000) near the end when Ozzy has his scene in the movie! But you know what? If you don't believe me about the song, then why not check it out for yourself? P.S. I hope you like it as much as I have (This song is what got me in to his music!)

http://youtu.be/TuIJkyfG0Fc

In Remembrance Of Sega's Home Console Systems

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="685"] Sonic The Hedgehog... One of the most popular games that Sega ever released![/caption]

You know, if you have been playing video games for as long as I have, then I am sure that you have played on a fair amount of systems, everything from the old, 'Atari' systems all the way up to such systems as the, 'Nintendo DS', the, 'X-Box 360' and if you are lucky, the, 'X-Box 1.'

Well there is one video game system that when I was a kid that I found to be just a total blast, A video game system that helped me realize that there was more to gamming then just what was on the, 'Nintendo' a system that to this day I still believe is something that has helped to define my gamming interests, and that system is the, 'Sega Gensesis'!

Sadly, Sega would close down it's console development when they stopped making home consoles after the demise of the, 'Dreamcast.'

But before the death of Sega's video game consoles, they came out with a ton of truly amazing systems that played a lot of classic (and in some cases, 'historic') video games, including their flagship game,  'Sonic The Hedgehog' (1991). So I decided to a little memorial for those classic home console systems, that we all remember enjoying when we were kids was in order!

The first one of course being the. SG 1000 cartridge based home console system that Sega released back in 1983...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="600"] An ad for Sega's first home console system the, 'SG-1000' a system that never saw the light of day in the United States.[/caption]

This one I will admit was a bit before my time, but this system, which was released on July 15, 1983, (Released the same day as, Nintendo's, 'Family Computer' (the forerunner of North America's NES).) This system was release to only moderate success, and was never actually launched in North America or in the UK...

In 1984 Sega would release an update to the SG-1000 called the, 'SG-1000 II'.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Sega's, 'SG-1000 II', while functioned essentially the same as the SG-1000 it really only looked newer...[/caption]

With primarily just cosmetic changes, (I,e. The place to plug in the SK-1100 keyboard being moved from the back to the front of the machine, and the shell being changed,) this console basically functioned the same as it's predecessor... The only other difference is that the Japanese version of the SG-1000 II had a game card reader called a, 'Game Catcher' that used Sega Card technology to read these cards (At the time, game cards were only utilized in systems in Japan.)

Sega would also go on to make a computer that was compatible with the SG-1000 video games... But in 1985 Sega would produce it's first system that would truly launch it in to the world of gaming... That system being the Sega Mark III or, 'Sega Master System'.

[caption id="attachment_2070" align="aligncenter" width="450"] The Sega Master System... One of the first truly remarkable video game systems that I believe made, 'Sega' a powerful force in the video game world![/caption]

Now this system was truly an amazing system... I mean I only had the opportunity to play a game on this system once some time around the late 80s - early 90s when I happen to be at my cousin's house (who happened to have one,) and I was so hooked that I believe I played it for almost the entire time I was there... needless to say this system was comparable to North America's, 'NES' and although I don't really remember what games were on here, I remember that I had just as much fun playing with that as I later would with my Nintendo!

At this point Sega's video game consoles were starting to get closer and closer to their, 'Sega Gensesis' console, and the next one here is, Sega Master System II.

[caption id="attachment_2072" align="aligncenter" width="450"] At this point in the game, not only had Sega become a direct competitor, but they had begun to out stripe Nintendo, due to the larger availability![/caption]

In the end, this system did so well, that due to it's larger availability, it had begun to out due Nintendo's, 'NES' due to it's wider availability!

Now for the next one on the list (and a personal favorite of mine), The, 'Sega Genesis'!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] The, 'Sega Genesis' probably one of the most memorable video game systems that was released in the 1990s![/caption]

Known as the, 'Sega Mega Drive' outside of the U.S., this video game system, which would be released in 1988 and later around the world, would become the most successful video game system that Sega ever produced. This video game system,  which released the world wide phenomena, 'Sonic The Hedgehog', would be released 2 years before Nintendo's, 'Super Nintendo', and was so popular that between the 2 systems, there would launch the first real fierce competition war between the 2 systems and companies that would really last through out the 16 bit era of video gamming!

In 1991 in Japan, Sega would go on to release the first real CD based console gaming system called the, 'Sega Mega Drive CD' and then later in 1992 would release it for North American distribution under the label: 'Sega CD'

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] This add on to the Sega Genesis would bring video gamming to an even higher level![/caption]

Personally I played this add on at a friends house in the mid 90s, and where as it did have it's usefulness, it was not one of those systems that had games that particularly jumped out at you... I personally fell like the best thing about this system is what the system brought to the history of, 'home console systems'.

The next one, and I will be honest with you guys, was another system I have only played a handful of times... Fun but not great... That was the, 'Sega 32X'.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="432"] The Sega 32X.[/caption]

I will be honest and say that this add on to the Sega Genesis was for me not particularly thrilling... I would say that probably the best thing about this system is that it brought the graphics level up to 32bit... But to me, the games weren't particularly memorable...

Sega Neptune... I will be honest with you guys and say that I personally never played it... (Hell I never heard of it till now...) And apparently not a lot of people would have heard about it... You see, this system was supposed to be the hybrid version of both the, 'Sega Genesis' and the, 'Sega 32X'... But after a delay, and the closing of the Sega 32X line... The Sega Neptune just became one of the systems that never was...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="390"] The Sega Neptune... A console that died before it had the chance to live.[/caption]

The Sega Saturn... Have you ever enjoyed something for so long that you just knew that there was no where left to go after this? Well the truth is, this system was that for me!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="480"] One of the last truly great systems to be released by, 'Sega' before it stopped making consoles...[/caption]

Released in 1995, and going in to direct competition with Nintendo again, and Sony, (who shortly would be releasing the first, 'Playstation',) this system never had the traction to keep up with the competition, and in all truth, like all great things, the dynasty that Sega had setup for itself was beginning to falter... Although I will be honest with you and say that I was a fan...

The next one up is the un-released, 'Sega Pluto'.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Supposedly this was to be the prototype for the new, 'Sega Pluto'.[/caption]

Not much is known about the systems or the games that would have come out... but supposedly this system was supposed to be a direct update to the, 'Sega Saturn' and if released, probably would have been the first system to offer internet access!

Sega Dreamcast... Now this truly was the last home console that Sega has released to date...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="580"] Released as precursor to the coming systems such as, 'Playstation 2' and the like that had taken a technological leap ahead of the rest... Sega's final system had been at first a success... That was until tragedy struck![/caption]

When the Sega Dreamcast had been released, it had started off doing well... But when the new systems such as the, 'Playstation 2', which could support, 'DVD's', Sega ended up realizing that they could no longer keep up and ended up discontinuing their home video game unit...

In the end folks, Sega's video game systems maybe gone but they are never forgotten!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300"] R.I.P. Sega's Home Video Game Consoles (1983 - 2001).[/caption]

F-Zero (1991) - Video Game Review

[caption id="attachment_557" align="alignright" width="307"] Official Score = 3 1/2 Devils[/caption]

Back in the 90s one of the type of video games that me and my friends used to like to play were, 'racing games'... You might be thinking, really? Well sure why not?

You see the 90s saw a ton of very inventive racing games, from: 'Mario Kart' for the, 'Super Nintend0', to the release of the first, 'Need For Speed' game for the, 'Playstation'... They were a lot of fun and very inventive largely because they weren't just the classic racing games like you had for the arcade, as well as the home consoles... You know, such things as racing around a track as was common in Nintendo games, or racing around a city in the arcade games... No it was so much more!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="628"] Mario Kart for the, 'Super Nintendo' was a landmark game that helped keep racing games going strong in the 90s.[/caption]

What I mean by this is that in a lot of the racing games they started coming out with more advancements then normal that would help you get an advantage over the other players or the computer, but the main thing that I liked about it is that you could shoot things at players to stop or slow them down! (A great example of this that was a lot of fun is that you could pick up turtle shells and shoot them at other people in, 'Mario Kart'...)

And you know  what? This is just part of the reasons why I thought that, 'F-Zero' for the, Super Nintendo was so much fun... All though I hate to say it, but I really don't remember if you are able to shoot anything in this game!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400"] F-Zero is a fun futuristic racing game![/caption]

Released by Nintendo, for the Super Nintendo back in 91, this game told the tale of how in the future a group of lethargic billionaires will end up creating a race that is based on the old world (car races), but sets it up in a more technologically advanced society!

In the end, this game was a lot of fun, it had fun music, great graphics, and the game play was well worth it! If you get a chance, I highly recommend trying it out, it is a fun one, and I think you might find the same thing as well!

http://youtu.be/2T5u9nD_I0I

Street Fighter 2 (1991) - Video Game Review

[caption id="attachment_330" align="alignright" width="220"] Official Score = 2 1/2 Devils[/caption]

Fighting games have been around in various forms since 1976  when Sega released their fighting game, 'Heavyweight Champ'... But the popularity really started to boom in the early 90s with the release of games such as, 'Streetfighter 2' and 'Tekken' etc,,,

And speaking of Street Fighter 2, this game  is something else... You see this game which would be released in 1991 for the arcades and subsequently  would be released on the Super Nintendo and the Sega Genesis is the sequel to the hardly known Arcade classic, 'Street Fighter' (1987)... This particular title would eventually heavily overshadow it's predecessor with several sequels under the, 'Street Fighter 2' banner, as well as movies and other forms of merchandise...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="384"] Ryu doing battle in, 'Street Fighter' (1987)![/caption]

Now this game really was way ahead of it's time, you see, this game was an awesome fun competitive fighting game, which gives you a list of characters in which you could play, including: Ryu, Ken, E. Honda, Chun Li, Guile, Dhalsim & Zangief (The villains you can't play as until the future versions of Street Fighter 2...) Anyway this game has you playing in competitive fighting matches between computer players until you get to the actual bad guys, and then as you fight more and more of these bad guys, you finally make it to M. Bison...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="384"] Ken in battle with Blanka in, 'Street Fighter 2' (1991).[/caption]

As for the good stuff, the game play was an awful lot of fun, the music was awesome, and the special attacks were cool, as well as the characters were a lot of fun... The only problem is that the game was very slow at enough points that it actually ended up cutting across the fun of the game in general... (Fortunately this problem would be handled in subsequent versions of the game!)

In the end though, despite it's only flaw (unfortunately a major one), this game is fun, and well worth it, and if you are looking for it fresh, I know that it is on the Iphone... I have it myself on my phone and it is still a blast!

http://youtu.be/aeqEmBNe8o4