Arcades - The Scene ain't dead

Back in January 2013 a friend and I were discussing what would it take for arcades to be revived in the UK. 

We agreed there would need to be two fundamental differences from the arcades we remember. The first requirement was that the Coin-Op system has to go. I’d love to know how many pound coins I burnt through as a kid, constantly nagging my parents for another go on Time Crisis 2 and never making it past the first stage. The other requirement was the venue having a sense of community, a hangout spot in which patrons feel involved in the venue’s future. 

Little did I know that shortly afterwards The Heart of Gaming would open and surpass those expectations. It’s located in North Acton, half an hour’s tube ride from central London and 10 minutes to walk there. 

All the machines are set to free play: you pay a flat rate on the door and can game to your heart’s content, a different experience from the arcades of yesteryear. This obviously suits hardcore gamers down to the ground; there was a time I couldn’t tell a shoryuken from a shuriken, but now after some day long sessions and meeting people there I’m a pixelated murder machine. That’s one of the amazing things about The Heart of Gaming, there’s plenty of scope for people to chill out and meet other gamers: shared passions are a roundhouse kick to the face of social inhibition. The same is true of any hobby, but it’s pretty damn cool to know there’s a place where who or what I am doesn’t matter, who I am is how much ass I kick at Ikaruga.

Immediately upon entering the venue you’re greeted by the sight of 6 Versus City Arcade Cabs. These are the Japanese style, with the game’s video replicated on two back to back monitors, the players unable to see each other while sitting, which is a pretty rare set up in the UK. 

This is the arcade room, with Sega Naomi cabs lining the walls, House of the Dead, Fighting Mania, the racing game Daytona USA and a couple of custom retro cabs that cycle between the likes of Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, 1942 and Pacman. Time Crisis 2 has made an appearance too, so I can finally avenge my parent’s wallets. Many of these cabs were rescued from London’s dying arcade scene, places like the Trocadero and Casino Arcade after they closed their doors. For shooters, Naomi titles like Border Down and Shikigami no Shiro 2 hold sway. A great thing about this room is there’s usually some obscure game I’ve never heard of before, like Money Puzzle Exchanger or Xexex. Visitors don’t need to worry spending their money on an unfamiliar machine, as they’ve already paid to get in and can try the games for free. In fact I’d recommend trying everything you see.

Moving onward there’s two little rooms, the first of which is dedicated to a dance machine. After that is a lounge area packed with retro consoles: Super Nintendo, Sega Megadrive, N64 and Playstation with games you can get from the front desk. The last area the HoG has to offer is the console room. There’s roughly 20 flat-screens with as many consoles set up here set up here for PS3 and 360 Gamers as well as a Wii U and some couches to make up a chill space in the middle of the room. Little crowds of gamers are usually in here huddled around their platform of choice, usually doing rotation for a fighting game. The corner has a couple of desks and monitors ready to provide live streams of any tournaments the HoG is running online at www.twitch.tv/thewonderpark. These are usually a wild assortment of fighters but sometimes it’s a dance game.

Tournaments are a huge part of the HoG, the sense of involvement and reward you get from offline competition, whether friendly or for higher stakes is something that was lost in translation when multiplayer gaming shifted to online play. The venue’s roots are in the fighter scene and it’s through these tournaments that community involvement is fostered. There’s always a big turnout for Street Fighter and Tekken showdowns, but an arcade makes for a much needed break from gamerdom’s obsession with new.

As such, there are older games developing large competitive scenes, like Street Fighter III: 3^rd Strike and Super Smash Bros Melee; games which are over 10 years old. Upwards of 200 people have been known to turn up for Smash tourneys and the whole place is both transformed by that energy, and physically transformed when HoG staff set up loads of CRT displays to accommodate the demand for more smash setups.
A favourite of mine is seeing the Dance games community show up in force. They arrive equipped with towels, bottled water, crates of coke and order pizza in bulk once they’ve worked up an appetite. Those guys ‘n’ gals move their feet faster than I thought humanly possible and get unbelievable scores.

The HoG’s strength lies in its versatility. The front reception now doubles as a trade-in shop, offering fairer prices than you’ll see in high street stores, as well as some pretty rare finds. A Rock Band and projector setup appears in a spare corner from time to time, and there are plans to introduce PC setups and a bar.

The Heart of Gaming provides people who missed out on the golden age of arcades to experience a similar atmosphere, or for veterans looking for that nostalgia factor it’s a welcome throwback to the good old days. At the same time offering a base for modern game scenes to have their meets and tournaments is a way to remain in the present too. Places like these are timeless, I love the HoG and with enough support it should be here for a long time. 

HoG manz since day 1
By Ben “Blinge” Cataldo - guest reviewer and blogger for GamesYouLoved.com

Check out the BlinJe channel here too: http://bit.ly/1lAtxc2

Commodore & Amiga - EXCLUSIVE

We caught up with Sam Dyer at the point of printing his new Commodore 64 book at the printing press to see what his views on the Kickstarter success are and to the future with his Amiga book

Q. now you are at the proof stage how real does this all feel to you now? 

Sam:

It still feels massively exciting and I can't wait to hold an actual book. I think it will be surreal to actually hold one as I've dreamt of doing for so long! But I've loved every minute of the campaign. From initial concept,  promotional stuff,  kickstarter and the actual design it has all been a blast! 

Q. seeing the proofs now are there any spreads / games in the books that really stand out for you? 

Sam:

My favourite spread had always been Total Recall. Stephen Ian Thomson's pixel art in that game is stunning. Too see his image of Cohaagans eyes popping out on Mars across a double page spread is a joy to behold! The game maps have also come out really well and the detail picked up by the print is fantastic.

Q. how do you as a designer feel about this being your own hard work that is coming to light - a reality now?

Sam:

It feels very odd to be honest! I've worked on the book every night for the last 6 months in some form or another and it really has been a labour of love! To answer your question,  it's a mixture of excitement (and relief!). But most of all I feel proud of what I have created. 

Q what would you like to say to the community out there who has supported you? 

Sam:

You are ALL amazing. I have been seriously touched by the support I've had from all corners of the retro gaming community. Everyone has been so kind and to be honest, none if it would have been possible without this support. I must also say a huge thank you to a few people that have given up their own time and have been giving me advice along the way. So huge thanks to everyone at GYL, Andy Roberts, Mat Allen,  James Monkman and Steve Jarratt.

Q what is it about the Commodore 64 book that made it your first gaming book to focus on? 

Sam:

It was my first computer as a child and the one I remember with the most fondest memories. Also I felt there was a gap in the market for a visual book on the C64. It hadn't been done before and that appealed to me massively. I also knew that the C64 had a very active scene so drumming up interest would have been easier than picking a niche computer with a limited fan base. And most importantly,  I'm a HUGE fan of pixel art and the C64 has some of the best ever (in my opinion!)

Q. what have you learnt managing the kickstarter - positive and negative - any tips? 

Sam:

Ive learnt LOADS. I made some mistakes but I've learnt from them. Starting a small publishing business and running a Kickstarter was a huge learning curve for me and I must give a huge thanks to Tim Nicholls here. Tim ran the hugely successful Artcade book campaign and he very kindly gave me lots of advice at the start. This advice gave me the confidence to 'go for it'. Cheers Tim!

As far as tips go... I would say: Before launching your Kickstarter, spend a couple of months, drumming up interest,  join relevant forums, gaining a following on social media and produce a promo video. That way, when launched, you will already have done a lot of hard work around promotion and getting the word out there. People will not find you,  you have to find them. Get your numbers right! Do all the maths before you begin and set your total. Take into consideration all outgoings and TAX etc... by getting your numbers right, it means you won't have to stress about this side of things and can concentrate on enjoying the campaign.

Don't rest once funded! The C64 book was funded after only 1 week and it is natural to maybe take your foot off the gas and think 'Ive done it!'. It was at this point I had some fantastic advice from a friend that I should push on and make the campaign even bigger and better. "Don't stop now" he said. "Release some exciting stretch goals, more pledges and keep pushing the campaign 100%". Im so glad I took this advice as it really gave me that final push to make it as successful as it was.

Q give us some juicy gossip about the forthcoming Amiga book you have planned?

Sam:

OK! The Amiga book will be next book in the Commpendium series. It will follow the same style as the C64 book book and will act as a kind of big brother (or sister) to it. As far as gossip goes,  I have been working behind the scenes with Matt Wilsher on ways to make the Amiga campaign even bigger and better then the C64 one. 

All I will say is that we will be resurrecting a famous unreleased game as a physical product. Printed box, instructions and actual floppies. That is all I can say at the moment, all will be revealed soon!

To order the C64 book go here: http://www.bitmapbooks.co.uk/
To follow Sam on twitter to find out more about the C64 book and hear the latest on the Amiga book go here: https://twitter.com/MrSidC64

Play Blackpool 2014, Sponsored by www.funstock.co.uk - Replay Events

Replaying at Replay

This weekend saw two important things happening - Star Wars day (May the fourth be with you!) - and the return of Replay to Blackpool

Turning up at the Norbreck Castle Hotel felt like returning to an old friends house. There was a welcomed sense of familiarity.

Walking through the corridors to get to the main hall, there were a few stalls to whet the appetite - Retro Hardware showing off the incredible BBC restorations they do, and AmigaKit touting their Amiga wares. We finally got to see an AmigaOne X1000,  and wanted one immediately. The bank balance however decided otherwise. We left the bright lights of the corridor to the promising darkness of the gaming hall. It sounded loud - always a good start.

The GYL and Funstock stand welcomed people into the arena where they got to play on the Neo Geo X console – a pacman arcade machine with the chance to play and chat to the people around the stand. The arcade section was huge – masses of cabinets all glimmering with their attract screens all supplied through the guys at Retro Games Party. The layout of the arcade perfect - you could easily move around or stop to admire a players skills without causing a bottleneck.


All the classics were there - Defender,  Robotron,  Battlezone,  Out Run,  Daytona,  After Burner.. the list goes on and on! Kudos to Retro Games Party who supplied the cabinets - over the weekend I only saw 3 machines out of commission. Great job,  guys!, Moving away from the arcade section,  there was table upon table of retro consoles and computers,  all with a small section of games to play on them. It was quite interesting to see the mix of old and young gamers. 

We saw one Dad showing his daughter (she looked maybe 2 or 3) how to play on old Pong game. He was twisting the knob to control the bat,  and the little girl was waving the controller in front of the screen like the Wii. Amazing to see how natural motion controls are to kids these days. its almost expected. Very endearing to see dads playing the old games with their kids though. Console Passion had a large stall next to the indie gaming zone, and there were two Oculus Rift demo stations set up - one with Jeff Minter and Llamasoft, the other with Project Games' Adam Sawkins. As the queues quietened down at the end of Saturday,  Adam was kind enough to let me play with some other demos he had been working on - I was really impressed by the tech and how immersive it is.

The side halls had LAN gaming set up,  and one of the side rooms hosted the card and tabletop gamers., From the main hall you walked through the "Games that Weren't' section, showcasing some games over many systems that never made it to commercial release. 

This corridor took you to the trader zone. It was always very busy, and you could buy almost anything, from cupcakes and radio controller drone-copters, to retro games on every format imaginable and posters, mouse mats and artwork. Some of the stalls you would recognise if you are an ebay addict - Rockrabilia, The Attic Bug etc, and some names that you'll know - Retro GT, RetroLords, ABeadsCStart.

Overall, the event was great - constantly moving, plenty to do and see (and buy!).

Replay Events did a great job of putting this on – we’re all looking forward to the next one!

Jesse McClure - Storage Hunters - BLOG Exclusive

Everything is worth something, but some things are just not worth selling! 

I have a unique job where every day has something new in store, but I always have the same goal regardless: SELL EVERYTHING.  Having grown up in the art of resale since I was 12 years old, I have grown accustomed and built up a sort of immunity to the idea of keeping “stuff.”  The thought of finding something “cool” and potentially keeping it, whether it's from a storage unit, a garage sale, or an auction, no longer peaks my interest anymore. I don't mean to say that as if  I'm one of those mindless people that express zero-emotion in their day-to-day lives. It's more the idea that if I did not approach it this way, my house would probably be featured on an episode of  Hoarders!. You know, one of those reality shows where I am just like the 60-year old lady who has floor-to-ceiling trash filling her entire home and no longer has any room left for herself or her 12 cats to sleep anymore.





There is however, one thing, out of all the antiques, trash, electronics, cars, guns, dirty mattresses, and adult toys I find that I absolutely cannot come to terms with selling. Ladies and Gentlemen, that one thing, is arcades!!!!.

Since I was a small child I've had this fascination with these large machines that too many non-fans may just see as glorified televisions in a wooden painted box dedicated to one lame video game. But whenever I see an arcade, whether it is at a laundry mat (launderettes), a family fun centre, or even a pizza restaurant, I see something different. I see art.

To be quite honest, I'm not really even into playing video games. I get a joy in simply collecting and displaying arcades, as if they were literal pieces of handmade art, like a painting or sculpture. Now that's not to say that many of these machines were probably made on some assembly line in Japan, but I still appreciate them just the same.  

I just don't like the fully restored, pristine condition machines either. In fact, I have more beat-up, graffiti tagged machines then perfect condition ones. And you know what? That's okay with me. These aged machines tell a story.  A story when the arcade was king, when going to these late night amusement centres were a social hangout spot, when people would leave their homes to play video games, as opposed to locking themselves in their rooms to playing Call of Duty all night. (Nothing against any of those people, I love console gaming on occasion too!)  

I just love to see these classic monsters in action. I like to see people, young and old, English, American, whatever, enjoy the experience of playing an arcade. This is why I am so excited for Play Blackpool. I would be lying to you if I didn't tell you the 12-year old inside me is completely ecstatic about being a part of this exciting event. I can't wait to see all these games in action, and all the awesome people that will get to enjoy them. 

This coming May 3^rd and 4^th, me and thousands of others will be at Norbreck Castle in Blackpool having the gaming times of our lives! I hope to see many of you out there, and if you would like to get beaten in any classics, please just ask. I'm open to all challengers!

Thanks to

Jesse McClure - follow at @storagehunters

See at Jesse McClure www.playblackpool.net in May!

Evolution of an Arcade Junkie - Part two of two

By David Campbell

Blackpool was the place most families chose as their holiday destination in the 80s and early 90s. This was fine by me as it had some of the best arcades I’d seen. They were better furnished than our local arcades, possibly due to space, but more likely due to the booming tourist cash that went into them. I know I spent many pounds in there over the years.

Because of this, Blackpool arcades had some huge machines. They had all the standard cabinets and games you’d expect, but I remember experiencing something new whilst on holiday - sit down and hydraulic cabinets. Games such as Out Run, After Burner, Wec Le Mans, Thunder Blade, Space Harrier, and Starblade. 

I distinctly remember sitting in the Out Run cabinet for the first time, and being genuinely amazed that it let you pick the soundtrack for your game. Wec Le Mans was a huge cabinet that rotated when you turned - one of the first times I had felt sick whilst playing a game. 

Games back then had the chance to terrify and excite you all at once. The first time I sat in Thunder Blade, and it asked you to make sure you had literally fastened your seatbelt.. I thought I was going to actually take off! Along side Thunder Blade was Space Harrier. A huge cabinet that lurched around to your command was amazing. It was also expensive. At this time, most standard games were 10p or 20p per play. Space Harrier was 50p. But it was so worth it. 

You could now buy home computer conversions of the popular arcade games, but the arcades still had something that the computers couldn't deliver, no matter how close a conversion.. the huge cabinets and unique controls. You couldn’t by steering wheels, flight yokes and guns for your computer back then (although they would come eventually), so the arcade still held something unique that encouraged you to part with you (or your parents) hard earned cash.  

Unfortunately, all that was about to change..

The 1990s

By the late 90s, arcades were all but dead. There were still some great games released (the Virtua Fighter series, Ferrari Challenge, Virtua Cop series, Sega Rally, Time Crisis etc), but home consoles delivered arcade quality ports. The Sega Saturn, Playstation, PS2 and Dreamcast allowed you to “own” a whole arcade, albeit without the cabinets and controls of their arcade counterparts. Arcades could no longer entice the crowds they previously had.

Home console arcade ports were great for a while, but then nostalgia seemed to kick in. People yearned for the games they had played as kids. Some “retro” compilations were released, and they satisfied some appetites, but it wasn't enough. You could only play the games provided in the compilation. However, a very clever chap named Nicola Salmoria took things into his own hands and created a program for the PC. It was called MAME.

Whilst some people find MAME controversial, it allowed arcade junkies to once again play “real” versions of they games they loved and yearned for. All of a sudden, people could access over 4,000 arcade games right on their home PC. 

This seemed to rekindle the love of arcade games, as people played them on the PC but found they wanted more. Playing the game wasn’t enough; they wanted the proper arcade experience. No one ever sat at an arcade machine and played it with a keyboard. They stood up. They mashed buttons and rattled joysticks. They held onto the cabinet. This was the element that was missing.

People like me that had grown up in the arcades now mostly had jobs, and a little disposable income. With a smattering of DIY handiwork, some MDF and lashings of paint,  you could actually build your own arcade cabinet. 

At first, it was a little complex to use real arcade controls with your PC. It generally involved hacking apart a keyboard and dabbing solder everywhere, but now you can buy an interface the size of a matchbox which allows you to easily screw in connections and add a myriad of controls; joysticks, trackballs, light guns, rotary joysticks, spinners, flight yokes.. they’re all available and (fairly) easy to connect to your computer.

To feed my arcade addiction and my nostalgia, I built myself a MAME cabinet. It took a lot of planning, deciding on controls and so on, but it’s an awesome thing to own, as now I can relive and recapture the giddy excitement I felt as a four year old. Playing MAME in a cabinet is a world apart from playing MAME on anything else (especially when you actually insert a coin to play the game), and it only took me a week to build.

If you love arcade games, I would strongly encourage you think about building (or buying) a MAME cabinet. I promise, you won’t regret it!

A great article by David Campbell as our Guest Blogger -

you can read part one to this here:
http://gamesyouloved.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/evolution-of-arcade-junkie-part-one-of.html

GamesYouLoved on tour - northeastretrogaming.com in Gateshead

At GamesYouLoved we want to get out there in the community to get involved with gamers like us -  talk about the thing we love and play some great games at the same time. A great way to do this is by going to one of the many retrogaming events that are establishing a new wave of arcade, console, pinball, handheld interest - across the UK and Worldwide.

The GamesYouLoved Team headed up to Gateshead, Tyne & Wear to do that very thing on Saturday 30th June. In weeks previously we had been following the journey of the organiser and brains behind this unique retro event Phillip Murphy.  Phillip had taken his passion for retrogaming and put something back into the community. As in the North East  - nothing like this had been seen before.

For the months preceeding GamesYouLoved had felt the excitement around the event and put out facebook posts, tweets and even interviewed Phillip on his quest for gaming goodness.

It was a great event in the making...

So we arrived at 7am from the early drive from 'down south' and Phil was there with the keys to open up Gatehead Stadium and nothing could prepare us for what was to happen.  The doors opened and silence...it was quiet! But we were silenced as there was rows upon rows of arcade machines and pinballs from a time gone by - a golden time of gaming when nothing else mattered except the joy of play.

We had a job to do in setting up our stand. But as the machines started to be turned on from the early arrival of the engineers and amazing people (mentioned below) who's dedication means that gamers today can get into this world. We were back to the 70s and 80s all over again.

Afterburner, Outrun, Space Harrier...and that was just SEGA...Bombjack, Phoenix, Spy Hunter....the Point Blank and OMG they have ATARI STAR WARS.!
..it was 1984 all over again....

...compose...focus...we're GamesYouLoved...come on guys

...we couldn't for a while!!  This was retrogaming at the heart of our passion and we loved what was there and what everyone who was just about to arrive was going to enjoy...this was going to be a great day.

And it truly was!  We set up our stand - fired up the Pac Man arcade machine, turned on the consoles we had brought and set out our display of flyers and lollipops and were ready to go.  Gamers from all parts of the UK came...like the bisto kids who smelled the gravy from afar. The games they had maybe forgotten or still remember but could never play now - were there to see.

The noise!! The awesome sounds of row upon row of machines pumped out..the DJ played retro tune..we played out gaming music from our own system from commodore 64 original tunes, arcade sounds to the new wave of remixed sounds from Audio Sprite

The great thing about the day fo us - was talking to gamers - what they felt about gaming and why they had came to NERG. Every story was different - some guys ran their own YouTube channel and had a massive life dedication to the gaming world.  Others played now and again and were getting into retro more and more. Some were just fairweather gamers curious for the old world of gaming. But what was true having spoken to people - was that events like www.northeastretrogaming.com had brought this passion of retrogaming alive back in them..And now it was never going to leave.

And at GamesYouLoved that was all we could ask for!



You can see our mini Tour of the show and just a few of the Gamers we spoke to
via our YouTube Channel. Click the link:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf0JRd1BkAI


We would like to thank and recognise the following people
for their massive contribution to NERG.

The event wouldn't have been same without them:

Retro Games Party - www.retrogamesparty.co.uk
Northern Lights Pinball Show - www.ukpinball.com
Arcade Dreams - www.facebook.com/pages/Arcadedreams
UKVAC - http://www.ukvac.com/forum

GamesYouLoved - Interview with Stu Rankin, 'Pro-Harrier'

Space Harrier is up in the upper echelons of arcade gaming history.

Eye-bleedingly colourful, insanely fast Space Harrier takes you into a striking surreal dimension where you run at break neck speed, defy gravity at will, and blast at dragons, mechs and one-eyed woolly mammoths. Unlike the standard side or vertical scrollers of the time, Space Harrier's one of the first ‘into the screen’ games alongside the likes of Hang-On, OutRun and Afterburner.

It’s widely regarded as a technical milestone for gaming, using Sega’s legendary ‘System 16’ Arcade board and ‘Super-Scaler’ technology, handling more sprites and colours than anything else in the arcade at the time and its game dynamics have paved the way for countless other 3-D style and 3rd person shooters. Space Harrier is a classic.

It’s no wonder then that Space Harrier has such a large fanatical following with many keen to collect its various incarnations from arcade cabs through to modern releases for current consoles. There are a few though who should be regarded as super-fans.

These are the warriors of gaming that will not rest until they’ve mastered the game in all its forms. Dedicated to stepping into the ‘Fantasy Zone’ to thwart the armies of the demon Absymbel, ‘good and proper’, they are the battlers, the high scorers, the ‘pro-harriers’. Following a superb article submission GamesYouLoved were lucky enough to speak to one such ‘Pro-Harrier’, Stu Rankin, who holds the score record for Space Harrier on not just one, but 4  platforms and has a dedicated Space Harrier cab. GamesYouLoved collar Stu at a Retro Games Party event in April and we’ve just watched him nail a mini sit-down cab of Space Harrier twice in a row, making it look like a stroll in the park.

Space Harrier certainly isn’t that though. It takes the sort of skill and knowledge of the game’s dynamics that requires practice and is typical of old arcade games. We grab a beer and take the opportunity to ask him about his thoughts on what makes Space Harrier his favourite game, how he got so good, as well as gauging his thoughts about gaming in general:

GamesYouLoved
Space Harrier’s certainly considered a classic. What do you think sets it apart from other similar games?

Stu
The speed. It kind of gives you an adrenaline buzz, especially when things pick up in the later levels. When you've mastered it there's a feeling of accomplishment because it takes some skill. It’s not a case of just blasting wildly, you need to learn it and use the right tactics in order to get through.

GamesYouLoved

Would you say there is a certain pace or rhythm to it?

Stu
There are certain patterns, certainly- like learning the enemy movements and where certain enemies come up. From level 7 onwards the pace really picks up

GamesYouLoved
And there's 18 Levels so that's before halfway?

Stu
Yeah, it soon gets frantic. I have good days and bad days though. Depending on whether I can get into that groove or not- some days I might not even get past level 4! Even though Ive held 4 titles on Twin Galaxies, some days I can still really suck.

It IS a difficult game. GamesYouLoved I guess that's what makes those titles quite an accolade in gaming terms. There are other similar games such as After Burner.

GamesYouLoved
How different is Space Harrier to other games?

Stu
I’ve never been great at the System 16 racing games like Outrun or Hang On. I enjoy After Burner and I guess it is similar, but even though it’s a technically more complex game with weapon 'lock-ons', I think that can be a bit of a distraction and can actually do a lot of the work for you. With Space Harrier, you’ve got to point and shoot, although there is actually a slight lock-on in Space Harrier which people may not be aware of. As you aim for enemies you get a brief opportunity to lock-on. A lock-on is indicated with a chime or 'chip' sound, which you need to listen out for. This allows you to fire and keep moving and if you get it right, your shot will get enemies you've locked on to. With the right timing you can take down multiple enemies with one shot each. You can hear it *does the sound* 'chip-chip-chip'. Understanding this is quite important especially in the later levels.

GamesYouLoved
Space Harrier's been ported to pretty much most home platforms. Which is your favourite?

Stu
Sega Saturn. That was the first version I got where it looked pretty much arcade perfect. Up until then I'd had the Amstrad and Mega Drive versions, and for me the Amstrad version is probably as far removed from the arcade as you can get. I mean- it’s not even got all the enemies in it!

GamesYouLoved 
People cite the Master System as a notable version- from a technical achievement point of view.

Stu
Yeah, definitely I'd agree with that. It’s like a different game though. Some actually prefer the way the sprites are drawn than those in the arcade, but you've obviously got quite bad colour blocking issues. I'm not very good at that version though- so I'm not a fan. That’s cus of the speed- it’s quite difficult because it so slow.

GamesYouLoved 
Do they vary in terms of difficulty?

Stu
They've all got their own quirks and bugs, you have to learn the different mechanics and all that so, yeah they can vary quite a bit, especially in terms of speed. On the Dreamcast I got Shenmue purely so I could play Space Harrier. I'd heard it was available to play in the 'You Arcade' in the game itself. It took me 2 weeks before I figured out how to get to the 'You Arcade'. When I finally found it I spent a load of time just playing there. Anyway, I didn't even realise that with the Shenmue Passport you could go online. So I did. Just to have a look and sure enough- there I was; no.1 in Europe- for Space Harrier- I thought 'wow!'. But that was at the 50Hz setting, so I reset the game to play at 60Hz. The 10Hz made all the difference in speed. It was almost like a different game, and at that time I'd not really played the arcade version much, so I wasn't actually used to it. The difference there was that I was only no.3 worldwide, so had to keep practicing...

GamesYouLoved 
How long on average does it take for you to complete?

Stu
It’s not a huge game, maybe 20 minutes? Well, it depends which version but the Saturn and Arcade versions are roughly the same. It all depends on how you choose to play the game, because some of the bosses will be there until you destroy them, like Squilla or Salpedon (both dragon type bosses). Other enemies like the robots (called 'Dom') there's just a time limit on them, they'll come then go again so you just need to avoid their shots and survive. You could spend half an hour just 'Squilla dancing', as I call it, just dodging rather than straight out attacking- but that's a slow way to rack up points- you'd be there all night- but it is possible.

GamesYouLoved
So there's no record speed time?

Stu
Not that I know of, but that's not the point. It’s about high scoring.

GamesYouLoved
Space Harrier's a hard game. Having mastered it, are there any tips or tricks you could give to a novice like me that would make my pound coin go further? Are there any secrets?

Stu
Memorise the enemy locations, where they appear and what order. Don't stay still. Definitely don't back-track your movement- if you do, nine times out of ten you'll get hit. I’ve not found any real glitches or bugs to exploit. It’s pretty robust, but why cheat? Thing is, I got my Saturn in around '97 and I was playing it a lot. I might just be paranoid here, but and I noticed that if, for example, you play through to level 10 and you then make your first mistake and die, you can guarantee you'll lose another 2 or 3 lives in quick succession after that in the space of like- 5 minutes. Almost as if the game learns your style. I dunno if that's how it was programmed or I'm just being paranoid, it’s almost like if you hit a tree once- it'll definitely happen again straight away. I dunno if that's the programming or it’s just psychological. If you watch the guy 'Jodo' (current arcade world champion), he's got a video on You Tube that he's also submitted to Twin Galaxies and you can notice slight nuances with how he plays. Everyone's got their own quirks in play, but in terms of general advice, think about moving in a three dimensional plane- covering the screen in a sort of corkscrew or spiral motion with the flight stick. But practice obviously. If you really want to get good my advice is get a Saturn or better still; access to the original arcade cab and just keep playing.

GamesYouLoved 
You know the game inside out. What enemies are the hardest to beat?

Stu
Level 2- 'Ida' (the flying heads). The boss Barbarian in the middle surrounded by the Ida flying heads. Simply because they appear to move randomly. Hit one and they'll expand out almost certainly hitting you then they retract. The trick for maximum points is to try and destroy all the Ida heads before you take out Barbarian. The lock-on feature can also work against you here, you will usually find yourself locking onto and firing at the wrong thing. If you destroy Barbarian before taking out the Ida heads, they will increase their spin rate and it gets very tricky to dodge em. This is where a lot of people die. 

GamesYouLoved
What's with those one eyed Woolly Mammoths? What are they called?

Stu
(laughs) Erm- just 'Mammoths'. I actually feel a bit sorry for them- I try not to hit them. They're just collateral damage (we both laugh). Migrating Mammoths- wrong place, wrong time... with one eye... Unlucky!

GamesYouLoved
You have been telling us about reminiscing around theme of the old arcades and mention Ikari Warriors, Galaxian and Pac Man. Have you mastered any of these?

Stu
Not really. I love those games but I was 2nd year at high school when I remember going to an arcade on a particular holiday. I was used to playing games like Ikari Warriors on the home computer systems. I remember being with my grandparents and we found this place- I think it was called Brunswick?.. anyway it was like a cafe, and the magic there was that they sold cups of tea and coffee for like 5 pence- so they'd happily sit and have a cuppa while I'd go off looking at the games like. Really in those days - I was looking for the Star Wars cabinet, obviously. That was THE one. Sitting there, chuck a couple of credits in and there's Alec f*ckin Guiness behind you saying 'the force'll be with you'. Goosebumps! So, when walking down the prom in Blackpool- past the central piers and the other arcades- you'd keep hearing these sound effects, 'ahhhh' and 'Get Ready'- and I'd think 'what the hell IS that?' so I'd wander over to investigate. I see the name 'Space Harrier' and I'm into sci-fi, but at first I didn’t actually like it. It seemed almost too random. I'd think 'why's there a little guy running with a big gun, when it says Space Harrier', what's all that about?

GamesYouLoved
Other than the accolades on the Twin Galaxies site, are there any other bits of recognition you’re proud of?

Stu
That's it really. I love retro games. I love Sega. Who knows- it depends. I'm more of a collector now so I'm just happy building my collection. My real goal, like many retro gaming fans, is to get a Star Wars cabinet just for total nostalgia. 

GamesYouLoved
What are your thoughts on the more recent arcade follow-up to Space Harrier, Planet Harriers?

Stu
Looks cheesy as hell, but I’ve never seen it in an arcade so never had the chance to play it. From what I’ve seen online- the gameplay looks slower. It looks like your character's even more rail-roaded. It looks as though it does a lot for you. I could be wrong.

GamesYouLoved
If you could meet Sega’s AM2 team and Yu Suzuki, what would you ask them?

Stu
Could they acquire the rights back to make a new game? Sega owns it. The developers would just hand it all over and it’s a shame.

GamesYouLoved
Do you have any current gen consoles?

Stu
Nope

GamesYouLoved
What do you play now?

Stu
My Saturn. I do have a second hand PS2 which I got for Gradius 5. I like those games- Salamandar, Nemesis- although I'm not great at em. Gradius 2: Vulcan Venture, 'shoot it in the head' little quotes like that come to mind. I like stuff like that. I ended up getting the 3D Ages version of Space Harrier as well. Its ok- but again it’s a different game really. You've got some fancier weapons like lock-on lasers and flash bombs. They're good for a laugh, but as a purist player- I'd rather not use them. They just destroy everything- including land based objects you wouldn't usually be able to destroy. And generally it feels like a slower game. This is the thing with older games. They require perseverance to get the most out of them.

GamesYouLoved
You currently run Squillas Lair- a yahoo group for Space Harrier fans as well as a Squilla Facebook page. How are they doing?

Stu
It’s a bit of a niche thing so I wouldn’t say they’re massively popular but there's people out there who are like me and into it, so it’s good to interact a bit. The current arcade champion Phil Campbell who's also on Twin Galaxies, pops in every now and then even though he's not officially a member. He's obviously keeping an eye on me. I just keep kiddin him on, I keep sayin to him- 'you just keep watching your rear view mirror mate'. One day.

Interview at Retro Games Party - April 2013

GamesYouloved would like to thank, Stu Rankin, World Record Holder for Space Harrier for this EXCLUSIVE interview

Stu runs his own dedicated Space Harrier Page here:

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Squilla/215525788515344?ref=hl

Also - dedicated Space Harrier Group here:

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/squillaslair/