America's most undying game show makes its handheld debut, simplifying the TV show's format and rules for head-to-head portable play. It also simplifies the TV theme to a single audio channel. While barely passable as a work of programming, the fundamental appeal inherent in the show's mix of luck, strategy, and word puzzles allows this to be a mildly diverting little cartridge regardless.

With Super Mario Odyssey just around the corner, now seems a perfect time to look back to Mario's first 3D adventure: Super Mario 64 for Nintendo 64. This, the first part of a multiple-entry retrospective, explores the game's relationship to the platform and the lengths to which it goes to make the intricacies of navigating three-dimensional space intuitive for all players.

Irem's classic shooter series makes its debut on a Nintendo home console at last with a remixed conversion of R-Type II. And it's… OK. Riddled with slowdown and hilariously unfair, Super R-Type really has quite a lot in common with Gradius III. Not a terrible game, but a little bit of a letdown.

The Super NES gets its very first RPG, borrowed from the European PC scene, and it's pretty weird! Intriguingly weird, but weird all the same. For example: it's a 3D RPG that uses a flat scrolling visual effect but doesn't make use of Mode 7. What a strange little adventure.