40, 30, 20, 10, 0 of April 2025

The April 1985 issue of TILT begins with an interview of David Crane, one of the first game developers known to the public, who was at Activision at the time. His statements were quite visionary for that era, and they resonate particularly today, proving that the foundations of the video game industry are quite enduring! We’re in 1985, and yet retro gaming already exists! Or almost: the magazine takes a nostalgic look back at the Atari 2600, which was reaching the end of its journey, and even offers a selection of essential games for this console: Pitfall! 2, Decathlon, H.E.R.O., Enduro, River Raid, and Beamrider from Activision, Frogger II, QBert*, Popeye, and Super Cobra from Parker, and finally Pole Position, Crystal Castle, Astérix, and Tennis from Atari. Finally, the magazine’s main feature is devoted to flight simulators (with no less than ten games tested), a genre that has been very popular since the beginnings of computing, though the experience seems quite austere at the time! As an anecdote, let’s note the order form from Guillemot, which went on to become Ubisoft, the subject of my last article!

Joystick’s pure video gaming news is quite sparse, but its geek news is more abundant, beginning with the antitrust proceedings against Microsoft in the mid-90s. Although an agreement had been reached between Bill Gates and the US government, a small local judge, named Judge Sporkin, decided to play the hero and challenge the said agreement, which Joystick explains. Spoiler alert: the agreement would be confirmed on appeal in June of the same year. Joystick dedicates a feature to computer-related professions, at a time when working in the video game sector was more by chance than anything else… Lord Casque Noir also explains what a TV tuner card is, indicating that recording Nagui in 240×320 and 32 colors was the must in 1995; the world was quite sad before the arrival of the Internet. Or maybe not! In terms of general culture, the origins of the computer are explained, tracing back to the Pascaline! On the gaming side, there’s a double-page spread on Infogrames’ arrival on Macintosh, with six games, three of which are Alone in the Dark. Not very exciting. Finally, the cover is dedicated to Daedalus Encounter, a science fiction production using actors for its cinematics, including Tia Carrere, a Hawaiian actress known at the time for her roles in Wayne’s World and True Lies, and a bit more a few years later thanks to her role in Relic Hunter. And the game? As I had no memory of this production, I asked Wikipedia: “The game was not a big hit on Windows but is more known among Macintosh users. Indeed, it was once part of the multimedia pack offered with the purchase of a Macintosh Performa series computer.” That says it all!

The gaming news is more significant on the console side. Consoles+ gets excited with a series of “scoops” about the Ultra 64 (later renamed the Nintendo 64), which everyone eagerly awaited to compete with the then-new PlayStation and Saturn (though it would finally arrive in 1996—1997 for Europe). As is often the case with 90s “scoops,” almost everything was wrong! The Ultra 64 was supposed to support ray tracing (which has only truly existed in the video game world for the last 4-5 years), have an XGA display (1024×768, the best resolution at the time, with most PC monitors not even capable of it—the N64 would actually have a standard SD display at 640×480) and abandon cartridge support for a modern optical medium (MD or FD—a Matsushita-developed equivalent that never came to fruition…). Meanwhile, information on the Tokyo arcade game show (AOU) is more reliable, at a time when the arcade sector was in its golden age. Notable announcements included Virtua Striker and Alpine Racer, well-known to 90s teens who hung out at “Tête dans les Nuages”! Proving that the 16-bit consoles still had life in them, the preview of Chrono Trigger, one of the best JRPGs of all time, was a highlight. The cover was dedicated to Wario’s Woods, tested on SNES. A puzzle game with little historical importance except that the NES version is considered the last game released on the venerable console, launched 12 years earlier. Quite the career! In reviews, note Mortal Kombat II on 32X, Wild Guns, and True Lies (with Tia Carrere, as mentioned above!) on SNES, and the legendary Panzer Dragoon on Saturn!

The year 2005 marked a significant turning point for Star Wars fans, with the release of Revenge of the Sith, detailing the birth of Darth Vader. While the first two episodes of the prequel trilogy had divided opinion, Episode III managed to bring everyone to agreement. Consoles+ dedicated its cover to this film, discussing not only the movie but also its video game adaptation—a rather unremarkable sideline product—and the games adapted from the franchise, which range from masterpieces to bantha fodder! 2005 also saw the portable console wars heating up, and Consoles+ was on top of it with a feature on the Nintendo DS and a PS2/PSP comparison. The PSP, along with the Game Gear to a lesser extent, was the only handheld console to successfully compete with a Nintendo portable. A marvel of design and technology, Sony’s handheld found deserved success and remains a very appealing object today (while the NDS has aged less gracefully). Generously, Consoles+ also mentioned the Gizmondo and the N-Gage, though the tone makes it clear that the journalist did not hold much hope for their success! The reviews echoed this news, featuring Super Mario 64 DS, WarioWare: Touched!, and Project Rub, a notable launch title for the DS. Project Rub, developed by SEGA—a company that a few years prior was a sworn rival unlikely to release games on a Nintendo console—was one of the few launch games to truly understand and exploit the potential of the dual screens, including the touch screen, showcasing the Sonic Team’s talent in service of Nintendo, giving Sony a run for its money! April 2005 also saw the release of Devil May Cry 3 and a new Splinter Cell title, during a time when Ubisoft’s games were still captivating gamers.

Meanwhile, Joystick devoted its cover to F.E.A.R., an FPS noted at the time for its graphics and atmospheric horror. Personally, I found the pace too slow, which discouraged me from finishing the adventure. In 2005, Ubisoft was experiencing its golden age, proven by the release of Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, a great episode from a series that has since disappeared! Mention is also made of The Sims 2 expansion “University,” a series whose popular success remains undiminished. In contrast, the M6 television channel’s hit series from the early 2000s, Caméra Café, has not maintained the same level of success. For those who need a reminder, the series featured sketches of office employees, all filmed from a fixed camera installed in the coffee machine. It’s a concept that doesn’t easily translate into a video game, and yet it was attempted. According to the journalist who reviewed it back then, it wasn’t very successful! Additionally, this issue of Joystick included a feature on the challenging art of video game localization, a topic still relevant today with the rise of generative AI. Finally, this issue made me realize two things: CCleaner, which I use daily like any sensible PC user, is now twenty years old; the “C” in CCleaner stands for “crap.” As they say, you learn something new every day!

Canard PC questions the future of virtual reality in video games. Ten years later, despite Bob’s ardent wish to see this technology develop, it’s clear the topic remains open. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing: the death of VR has been predicted annually since 2015… I could have talked about the cinema & video game feature gracing the cover, but I prefer to recall the article on toilets in video games—a less conventional topic, yet it highlights how immersion in a pixelated universe is above all about the details! Meanwhile, the spring 2015 release schedule was quite generous: Ori and the Blind Forest, Helldivers (which I completely missed back then, only to later dive into Helldivers II…), Bloodborne, and Axiom Verge…

Jeux Vidéo Magazine dedicates its cover to Battlefield Hardline, an FPS trying to break new ground with its cop drama theme and various game modes. A successful exercise, yet it remains an exception in this military FPS franchise. Naturally, JVM felt compelled to release a small FPS dossier: in the 2010s, this sold as well as Dragon Ball did in the ’90s! More originally, a small obituary section reflects on some memorable heroes of video game history who have faded into oblivion… A grim fate that awaits the Nvidia Shield, which is covered with perhaps a bit too much enthusiasm in this issue. Interestingly, as of writing, the Nvidia Shield is still around—in its eighth iteration—but now seems to be just another Android box, for watching Netflix and YouTube in the living room. Finally, JVM pits Playstation Plus against Xbox Live Gold, titling it “The War of Services”; a war that isn’t over yet but seems to have taken a back seat as the offerings have become more standardized.

Canard PC features Elden Ring Nightreign on its cover, a cooperative soul-like game (read: a group masochistic experience) with an enthusiastic preview. However, it won’t be featuring the old Bob: age is catching up, and so are my reflexes! On the other hand, why not indulge in a bit of Two Point Museum (rated 8/10 by the magazine)? After a hospital and a campus, the series once again proves to be the spiritual successor to the “Theme Something” games, which is fitting given Two Point Studios’ founders, Mark Webley and Gary Carr, are both Bullfrog veterans. In 2015, Canard PC presented us with an article on toilets in video games, and in 2025, it will likely be about the modeling of food. I refuse to see any connection there, even a hidden one. Let’s stay on the weird side with the review of Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. I love the series and Majima, but like with Yakuza: Dead Souls, I think I’ll give it a pass this time! Finally, a small retro feature on EyeToy: Play, whose existence I had completely forgotten. Note for later: this section started in a year ending in 5, and EyeToy: Play came out in 2003, so it won’t appear in Bob’s retro press review until 2033!

JVM boldly features Pokémon on the cover in 2025; why not? The magazine also takes advantage of the reboot of Silent Hill to announce happier days for Konami and its fans. True rebirth or overexploitation of past glories? Time will tell. Old Bob wouldn’t mind seeing an Axelay reboot either! Also mentioned in Canard PC, the game Inzoi is announced as the successor to The Sims series. It’s true that the Maxis series has been at a standstill since 2014, and the company itself drew attention in 2013 with the industrial disaster that was the Sim City reboot, since replaced in players’ hearts and sales figures by Cities: Skylines, much like how the Two Point series replaced the Theme series. Perhaps it’s also time for The Sims to retire… Assassin’s Creed: Shadow, quietly tested after the media frenzy it caused in 2024, turns out to be a good episode. Is it enough to save Ubisoft? Who knows? Finally, note the “point-and-click” feature: does this genre still have a future in 2025? Check back in 2035 to find out!