Video Works by Jeremy Parish

By request of patron David Morton: A look back at Kirby's Dream Course. Yeah, it's way out of sequence, but that's the law that was laid down. A clever if unforgiving combination of Kirby and golf, Dream Course has flown under the Super NES fan radar for decades now. With its fresh re-release on the Super NES Classic Edition, now seems like the time to reevaluate the game… especially since its cruelest elements can be mitigated with liberal use of the Super NES mini's save states.


The Game Boy takes up its mantle as the true successor to the NES (sort of) with the first of several Nintendo R&D1-developed sequels to classic NES games: Balloon Kid, a greatly expanded (and great) reworking of Balloon Fight's "Balloon Trip" mode.

Direct download: Balloon_Kid_retrospective_99_kinder_ballons___Game_Boy_Works_093.mp4
Category:Video Games -- posted at: 8:35am EST

Jaleco's long-running Ninja Jajamaru-kun series finally makes its debut in the U.S., and... it's very unfortunate that it does so in this form. Jajamaru's first portable has some interesting moments, but it's a total mess on the technical side and features some weirdly bizarre and hostile design choices. Oh well.

Please note: This game incorporates a flickering strobe effect that appeared to create a fifth shade of grey on Game Boy. However, in this high-definition/60fps format, it could cause issues for those with sensitivity to flashing, high-contrast color.


SunSoft gives Europe an unremarkable but perfectly decent adaptation of formula one racing… roughly two months before Nintendo releases its own revolutionary take on the sport.


In the second of this three-part look at Super Mario 64 and Nintendo's leap into 3D game design, we explore what Mario's polygonal upgrade took from his sprite-based adventures… and where this pioneering work left room for improvements.


The creme de la creme of the chess world? Well, maybe so far as Super NES chess games go; it's easy to come out on top when you're the only one in the running. But The Chessmaster doesn't leave much of an impression. There are better chess simulations, and more satisfying chapters in this particular series, on other platforms. This is like the board game equivalent of a vintage franchise sports game: It probably sold well to a general audience at the time, but it offers very little return for anyone today to return to it.


It's Space Harrier action in an F-Zero wrapper with this forgotten shoot-em-up by Nintendo mainstays HAL. A slight game, it's nevertheless memorable for its trippy visuals… and notable for its secret true-3D mode.

Unfortunately, the visuals in this game don't really play well with YouTube's compression algorithms… so, my apologies for the rather rough look of this episode.


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