Friday Fun Picks! Classics for a lazy Friday

Ever get a case of the Fridays? I'm sure you do. Today I've got a pretty bad case of it. So between writing cutscenes and calculating production estimates I've been preparing a selection of classic games that you can play completely online! I must admit to being a little bit MAME challenged. I just haven't spent the time to try and figure it out. And I am SO lazy toay that I refused to even download anything. So these games are web-based play only. They also happen to be translations of some of my all-time favs. I didn't include any version of one of my favorites that out and out sucked. There were a few of those. Now, converting the classics is an interesting thing. Everyone has their own take on how to go about it. Some go for very strict translations of the originals, while others update the graphics, or put twists on the gameplay. Not enough people give careful thought to the control scheme. Take the below version of River Raid, for example. Tell me WHY I shouldn't be able to control my plane with a mouse? Back and forth to move back and forth, up to speed up a bit, down to slow down a bit, mouse button to shoot. Using the arrow keys works ok, but the control could have been slick instead of ok. I miss my joystick. Here are this week's games: Joust Joust must be one of the all time greatest games ever made. Period. This shockwave version is pretty darn good. It would still be much easier to play with a joystick, but the controls are decent and supposedly you can even play two player which is where the ultimate glory of Joust lies. The appearance, sound and levels are authentic to my atari version. River Raid River Raid was one of those games that was so simple, yet explored seemingly endless variations on a theme which kept it constantly fresh. It was one of those games where I really DID want to get to the next level, to see what was there. The graphics are nice and the gameplay is there, I completely remembered the first few levels. I wish more thought had been given to the controls. They work ok, but could have been made very slick had they been given just a bit more consideration. AI Pengo Yeah, the original game was just Pengo. This version has the horrible little monsters that chase our penguin hero just a bit too smart for their own good. It's hard. But it's also really fun. This is definitly an adaptation rather than a straight translation. The graphics are cute, and the music and sound is really quite great. The controls also work quite well. Incidentally, this was the second web-based version of Pengo I tried. The first one had a really crummy control scheme. Moon Patrol Another of my favs from my Atari 800 youth. This version has decent controls. The response feels just a bit slow, but its the kind of thing you can adjust for and still have a good time. The gameplay is authentic. I miss the really cute blue tank from my Atari and the cute boppy music. This version is just a bit more hard-core in its presentation. Still fun. Retronoid FS Breakout clones are extrememly prolific on the web. And cell phones. Even my iPod has a breakout clone. But it is still one of my favorite games. Arkanoid was a version where you shot little aliens while breaking blocks, and were awarded power-ups that changed the game. This version is a fun and very distracting combination of the two. Less shooting than Arkanoid, but with a plethora of power-ups and neat sound effects to boot. I spent way too much time looking for Lode Runner, Jumpman and (of all things) Galaxian. You'd think I could find a version of Galaxian with decent controls, but it didn't happen. I can find various downloadable versions of these games, but none to just play online. If anyone is looking for an extensive Flash, Director, or Java project, I suggest making fabulous versions of these games. I would be damn impressed if someone managed to pull off an online Jumpman. I would reward you by playing it constantly. Want to see a game on Friday Fun Picks? Email me! jetgirl [at] jetgirl.net