Julian "Jaz" Rignall
@jazrignall.bsky.social
Playing video games since 1976.
Writing about them since 1983.
Writing about them since 1983.
Pinned
The Games of a Lifetime
Journey through five decades of retro video game history with Julian ‘Jaz’ Rignall, former CVG & Mean Machines editor, arcade champion, & game culture icon.
www.bitmapbooks.com
A reminder that the second printing of my book is now available at Bitmap Books.
"Highly recommended for the nostalgia trip!" Andrew R
"I really relived my childhood through this one, I love it!" Arjan van der V
"It does not disappoint!" Chris L
www.bitmapbooks.com/collections/...
"Highly recommended for the nostalgia trip!" Andrew R
"I really relived my childhood through this one, I love it!" Arjan van der V
"It does not disappoint!" Chris L
www.bitmapbooks.com/collections/...
35 years ago, Addictive was peddling this football-themed four-game compilation. A really good package for the footie fan, it must be said. Gazza's Super Soccer was a bag o' shite on most platforms, but many, many enjoyable hours of play could be had with the other three titles.
November 26, 2025 at 12:12 PM
35 years ago, Addictive was peddling this football-themed four-game compilation. A really good package for the footie fan, it must be said. Gazza's Super Soccer was a bag o' shite on most platforms, but many, many enjoyable hours of play could be had with the other three titles.
This 35-year-old ad for the classic Kick Off 2 shows the lengths that period marketers felt they needed to go to explain the intricacies of a game. These days you'd just bung a trailer up on YouTube and there'd be no need for massive walls of text like this. 😂
November 26, 2025 at 12:05 PM
This 35-year-old ad for the classic Kick Off 2 shows the lengths that period marketers felt they needed to go to explain the intricacies of a game. These days you'd just bung a trailer up on YouTube and there'd be no need for massive walls of text like this. 😂
35 years ago, Ocean was peddling its ports of NARC with this cool ad. This super-violent shooter used early digitized graphics, but while the original coin-op was very entertaining, it was certainly of its period. Looks pretty fugly these days, but still a good laugh to play.
November 25, 2025 at 11:34 AM
35 years ago, Ocean was peddling its ports of NARC with this cool ad. This super-violent shooter used early digitized graphics, but while the original coin-op was very entertaining, it was certainly of its period. Looks pretty fugly these days, but still a good laugh to play.
40 years ago, I was very much enjoying Jeff Minter's Batalyx, an odd but very fun collection of minigames. We hadn't liked his previous game Mama Lama, which had caused a rift between Jeff and the ZZAP! team, but after this glowing review we were soon back to being chums again.
November 25, 2025 at 11:27 AM
40 years ago, I was very much enjoying Jeff Minter's Batalyx, an odd but very fun collection of minigames. We hadn't liked his previous game Mama Lama, which had caused a rift between Jeff and the ZZAP! team, but after this glowing review we were soon back to being chums again.
35 years ago, I was being thoroughly wowed by Mega Man 2. Capcom's legendary platformer was a top-tier NES classic. I described it as "incredibly tricky," which in today's parlance means "Dark Souls is comparatively a big wet pansy." Back then we gamers were all hard as nails. 😆
November 24, 2025 at 10:09 AM
35 years ago, I was being thoroughly wowed by Mega Man 2. Capcom's legendary platformer was a top-tier NES classic. I described it as "incredibly tricky," which in today's parlance means "Dark Souls is comparatively a big wet pansy." Back then we gamers were all hard as nails. 😆
35 years ago, Image Works was advertising the hugely popular Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles. I love that three and a half decades later, the UK government is still terrified of what these things stand for. Ninjas? Num-chuks? Ninja swords? Oh no! Still can't be having any of that...
November 24, 2025 at 10:02 AM
35 years ago, Image Works was advertising the hugely popular Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles. I love that three and a half decades later, the UK government is still terrified of what these things stand for. Ninjas? Num-chuks? Ninja swords? Oh no! Still can't be having any of that...
Fair warning! Xmas be approaching, which means I'll be going into full-on retro gaming Christmas mode on Dec 1 and posting old ads, articles, covers, and sundry gaming festive content throughout the month. So if you hate Xmas, you probably better mute me 'til the New Year!
🎄
🎄
November 21, 2025 at 10:21 AM
Fair warning! Xmas be approaching, which means I'll be going into full-on retro gaming Christmas mode on Dec 1 and posting old ads, articles, covers, and sundry gaming festive content throughout the month. So if you hate Xmas, you probably better mute me 'til the New Year!
🎄
🎄
40 years ago, the 16-bit BBC C was being touted, but ended up in the "WTF happened to that" section of game biz history. MicroDealer finally paid Soft Aid its cash, and Electric Dreams signed the super-popular Back to the Future, and turned it into a flaming bag o' shite.
November 21, 2025 at 10:14 AM
40 years ago, the 16-bit BBC C was being touted, but ended up in the "WTF happened to that" section of game biz history. MicroDealer finally paid Soft Aid its cash, and Electric Dreams signed the super-popular Back to the Future, and turned it into a flaming bag o' shite.
Consoles and games were certainly expensive back in the day, but 35 years ago price points were shifting. Mega Drive was Sega's more expensive high-end system, while the trusty SMS became its value play. Games starting at a tenner apiece was pretty damn decent for cart titles!
November 20, 2025 at 9:58 AM
Consoles and games were certainly expensive back in the day, but 35 years ago price points were shifting. Mega Drive was Sega's more expensive high-end system, while the trusty SMS became its value play. Games starting at a tenner apiece was pretty damn decent for cart titles!
35 years ago, GX4000 had its best month. And TBH, its only month in which a few games were released on it. Switchblade was great fun, but this and a handful of other games were not good enough to save it. Terrible Xmas sales and New Year retail clearouts would seal its fate. 🪦
November 20, 2025 at 9:52 AM
35 years ago, GX4000 had its best month. And TBH, its only month in which a few games were released on it. Switchblade was great fun, but this and a handful of other games were not good enough to save it. Terrible Xmas sales and New Year retail clearouts would seal its fate. 🪦
35 years ago, John Madden was on Mean Machines' cover. It scored 95%. Other top reviews:
NES: Solar Jetman 94%, World Wrestling (85%), Batman 87%
Mega Drive: Super Monaco GP 93%, Hellfire 93%, Arnold Palmer Golf 83%, Ghostbusters 80%
GX4000: Pang 93%
Game Boy: Batman 85%
NES: Solar Jetman 94%, World Wrestling (85%), Batman 87%
Mega Drive: Super Monaco GP 93%, Hellfire 93%, Arnold Palmer Golf 83%, Ghostbusters 80%
GX4000: Pang 93%
Game Boy: Batman 85%
November 19, 2025 at 10:36 AM
35 years ago, John Madden was on Mean Machines' cover. It scored 95%. Other top reviews:
NES: Solar Jetman 94%, World Wrestling (85%), Batman 87%
Mega Drive: Super Monaco GP 93%, Hellfire 93%, Arnold Palmer Golf 83%, Ghostbusters 80%
GX4000: Pang 93%
Game Boy: Batman 85%
NES: Solar Jetman 94%, World Wrestling (85%), Batman 87%
Mega Drive: Super Monaco GP 93%, Hellfire 93%, Arnold Palmer Golf 83%, Ghostbusters 80%
GX4000: Pang 93%
Game Boy: Batman 85%
40 years ago, I reviewed these joysticks. The Joy Card was a new concept in 1985, and while it took a bit of getting used to, I thought it was great. No idea it was the future of controllers, though! Meanwhile, the Quickshots I and II were cheap, creaky, and not very durable. 😂
November 19, 2025 at 10:26 AM
40 years ago, I reviewed these joysticks. The Joy Card was a new concept in 1985, and while it took a bit of getting used to, I thought it was great. No idea it was the future of controllers, though! Meanwhile, the Quickshots I and II were cheap, creaky, and not very durable. 😂
Here's an unusual Rare rarity - their conversion of Williams' classic Pinbot pinball table. I reviewed this 35 years ago, and as a huge fan of the original silverball machine, I loved it. Rare really managed to capture the feel of the real thing. Very cool and often overlooked NES title.
November 18, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Here's an unusual Rare rarity - their conversion of Williams' classic Pinbot pinball table. I reviewed this 35 years ago, and as a huge fan of the original silverball machine, I loved it. Rare really managed to capture the feel of the real thing. Very cool and often overlooked NES title.
35 years ago I was having tons o' fun with SMS Mickey Mouse. Really nice graphics, great tunes, and mega-addictive platforming action made this a Master System must. If you're a fan of Sega's classic 8-bit machine and don't have this excellent title in your collection, get it!
November 18, 2025 at 10:02 AM
35 years ago I was having tons o' fun with SMS Mickey Mouse. Really nice graphics, great tunes, and mega-addictive platforming action made this a Master System must. If you're a fan of Sega's classic 8-bit machine and don't have this excellent title in your collection, get it!
40 years ago, this landmark compilation was released. We'd certainly seen a few good compilations before, but this one featured an excellent collection of solid gold, heavy-hitting titles. Definitely something you'd want Santa to drop down the chimney for Xmas 1985!
November 17, 2025 at 10:58 AM
40 years ago, this landmark compilation was released. We'd certainly seen a few good compilations before, but this one featured an excellent collection of solid gold, heavy-hitting titles. Definitely something you'd want Santa to drop down the chimney for Xmas 1985!
40 years ago, I was playing Scarabaeus on the C64. Although it has obviously aged, this was a really cool 3D arcade adventure with some fun puzzles to solve. Very atmospheric, and it gave me my very first proper video game jump-scare. Very different - and way ahead of its time.
November 17, 2025 at 10:46 AM
40 years ago, I was playing Scarabaeus on the C64. Although it has obviously aged, this was a really cool 3D arcade adventure with some fun puzzles to solve. Very atmospheric, and it gave me my very first proper video game jump-scare. Very different - and way ahead of its time.
40 years ago, ZZAP! had this fabulous ZOIDS cover. Top reviews: Scarabaeus 96%, Batalyx 94%, Who Dares Wins 90%, ACE 90%, Z 88%, Crazy Comets 84%, and the synth program Electrosound 97%. Excellent month for games - Xmas 1985 was an incredible time for software development.
November 14, 2025 at 11:06 AM
40 years ago, ZZAP! had this fabulous ZOIDS cover. Top reviews: Scarabaeus 96%, Batalyx 94%, Who Dares Wins 90%, ACE 90%, Z 88%, Crazy Comets 84%, and the synth program Electrosound 97%. Excellent month for games - Xmas 1985 was an incredible time for software development.
40 years ago, Elite was advertising its upcoming ports of Capcom's epic Commando coin-op. Of course, being Elite they used a faux screenshot to big it up. However, despite this marketing trick, these conversions were fine. Not brilliant, but good enough to keep players happy.
November 14, 2025 at 10:59 AM
40 years ago, Elite was advertising its upcoming ports of Capcom's epic Commando coin-op. Of course, being Elite they used a faux screenshot to big it up. However, despite this marketing trick, these conversions were fine. Not brilliant, but good enough to keep players happy.
40 years ago, MicroDealer was slow paying the Band Aid Trust cash from Soft Aid - prolly so they could earn a bit of extra interest. Commodore positioned the C128 as a biz machine. Lol. And BT launched Rainbird "to attack the US," which it failed to do. Did fine in Europe, tho'.
November 14, 2025 at 10:45 AM
40 years ago, MicroDealer was slow paying the Band Aid Trust cash from Soft Aid - prolly so they could earn a bit of extra interest. Commodore positioned the C128 as a biz machine. Lol. And BT launched Rainbird "to attack the US," which it failed to do. Did fine in Europe, tho'.
35 years ago, I wrote this article about the Super Famicom AKA SNES. It had everything I could dig up about Nintendo's new 16-bit console and man, my excitement levels were off the charts. It just sounded incredible! And indeed was. I even mention its possible CD-ROM upgrade! 🤯
November 12, 2025 at 10:33 AM
35 years ago, I wrote this article about the Super Famicom AKA SNES. It had everything I could dig up about Nintendo's new 16-bit console and man, my excitement levels were off the charts. It just sounded incredible! And indeed was. I even mention its possible CD-ROM upgrade! 🤯
35 years ago, I was going ape over this top-class NES game. Being a Rare release, it had their trademark forced perspective 3D action, was super-original, had fantastic gameplay, and - you just knew this was coming - it was ROCK FREAKIN' HARD. But it was nevertheless epic fun.
November 11, 2025 at 11:01 AM
35 years ago, I was going ape over this top-class NES game. Being a Rare release, it had their trademark forced perspective 3D action, was super-original, had fantastic gameplay, and - you just knew this was coming - it was ROCK FREAKIN' HARD. But it was nevertheless epic fun.
Very cool Sabre Wulf map. Draw by Oli Frey and originally published in CRASH, but then republished in ZZAP! 40 years ago this month to coincide with the game's release on C64. Just a great piece of art, plus a an easy way to fill a couple of pages in our tips section.
November 11, 2025 at 10:56 AM
Very cool Sabre Wulf map. Draw by Oli Frey and originally published in CRASH, but then republished in ZZAP! 40 years ago this month to coincide with the game's release on C64. Just a great piece of art, plus a an easy way to fill a couple of pages in our tips section.
Original arcade flyer. As you can see, this machine was quite the beast, but seriously cool stuff, especially with the head-to-head option enabled.
November 10, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Original arcade flyer. As you can see, this machine was quite the beast, but seriously cool stuff, especially with the head-to-head option enabled.
Original arcade flyer. I really like this. Just a really cool piece of art.
November 10, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Original arcade flyer. I really like this. Just a really cool piece of art.
Another coin-op I was enjoying 35 years ago was GP Rider, a Sega/Yu Suzuki special - and pretty much the ultimate form of the Hang-On series. Twin tilt-to-steer bikes, double screens, excellent gameplay, and top-tier audiovisuals made this a marquee coin-op in any major arcade.
November 10, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Another coin-op I was enjoying 35 years ago was GP Rider, a Sega/Yu Suzuki special - and pretty much the ultimate form of the Hang-On series. Twin tilt-to-steer bikes, double screens, excellent gameplay, and top-tier audiovisuals made this a marquee coin-op in any major arcade.