 S… NES adapter. Hello. Thanks for taking the time to watch part 3 of Good Games and Unexpected Places, where I try and seek out decent games, or even just interesting games on obscure or forgotten consoles or computer systems. And a big shoutout to all the commenters out there that continue to point me in the right direction with some of these games. So thank you all for that! But to start this episode, I went with a game that's not only unexpected, it's outright hidden. It's the Game Boy port of Space Invaders, made in 1994. And it's one of the few games out there that actually has built-in enhancements if you play the game via the Super Game Boy on the Super Nintendo. The Super Game Boy unlocks what the game calls an arcade mode, complete with 16-color graphics and even some transparency effects, featuring the Super Nintendo's full-screen resolution as well, instead of one of those borders you usually see with the Super Game Boy. I mean, this is pretty much just a Super Nintendo version of Space Invaders packed onto a Game Boy cartridge. It's a pretty cool novelty. I wish more games took advantage of the Super Game Boy. Sure, a few games here and there had different music or sound effects, but there weren't any other games that pulled off what Space Invaders did. Next, let's go to the Sega Game Gear with Tails Adventure, Tails, of course, being Sonic's sidekick. And yeah, here he is in his own game, and it's surprisingly pretty dang good. Yeah, I know the Game Gear resolution here isn't always gonna be that clear. In my experience, Game Gear visuals have always been a bit of an issue, but Tails Adventure plays fantastic. This isn't just a Sonic game with a different character. The game is structured and paced much differently, featuring a bit more of a non-linear Metroid-style approach, where you find items that allow you to unlock new areas. Tails can't even run, but he can fly, so the structure here works well with his abilities. There's a total of 26 items you can find spread out across 12 huge stages, and this might actually be the best Game Gear exclusive game ever made. I definitely recommend checking this one out. Sticking with the Sonic universe, here's Sonic the Hedgehog for Sega Master System. Now, that console wasn't all that popular in the States, but it was massive in places like South America, so this may be a super obvious game to some of you out there, but for me, the first time I played this a few years ago, I was shocked at how well this game played. Sure, it's scaled back a bit since it's an 8-bit game, but the level variety here is fantastic, and the game embraces its limitations, making this one more of a standard platformer instead of the usual Twitch controls you'd expect from a Genesis Sonic game. So yeah, if you check this one out, don't expect the usual Sonic fare here, but what's here is very well done. I should mention that there is a sequel simply titled Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and that both games were ported to the Sega Game Gear, so if you're into Game Gear stuff, those games are well worth checking out on that platform as well. Speaking of handhelds, I wanted to also very quickly point out a surprisingly good game for the Game Boy Advance. It's a handheld remake of Max Payne. I did a video on this one not too long ago, but I wanted to mention it again because, number one, it fits the very definition of unexpected. I mean, it's a Game Boy Advance title that features bullet time, and number two, it's actually a pretty solid game that uses most of the same locations as the original game. So if you're looking for an interesting title to add to your Game Boy Advance collection, then definitely check this one out. Let's take a minute to talk about a game for the Phillips CD-i. Yeah, that's right. It's the console that had those goofy Mario and Zelda titles like Hotel Mario and Link the Faces of Evil. Here's another goofy one, only this one is, uh, well, it's pretty dang out there. It's called Laser Lords, a point-and-click adventure title that sees you playing as a regular Joe who's been called upon to defeat the evil Sarpadon, and he's trying to obtain some mystical crystal thing that can condense the entire universe inside of it somehow. Anyway, your classic adventure mechanics are all here, visiting planets, talking to people, managing items and all that, but the story is freaking crazy, featuring prostitution, assisted suicide, and drug addiction, complete with a mission that features you scoring drugs for a junkie, among many other things, across seven different planets. And this game wasn't just half-assed or thrown together either, this is a fully-realized universe, complete with goofy-ass voice acting. All mother-sicest is a source she blessed! So yeah, if you're jonesing for a 90s full-motion video adventure game for whatever reason, then try out Laser Lords for the CD-i. Next, let's go way back to the Atari 2600. Hey, this is the console I started out with as a kid. I remember playing games like Adventure, Centipede, The Crappy Pac-Man Port, and Raiders of the Lost Ark, which I never totally figured out how to play until I was like 24 years old. Anyway, I wanted to point out Tunnel Runner for the 2600 because I still can't believe they managed to pull this game off at the time that they did. Yes, that's right, this is a first-person perspective game where you navigate through an endless series of mazes against a time limit while avoiding these ghostly-looking bad guys called Zots. There's two game modes, one that's kind of a campaign mode, and another where the mazes are all randomized. This game is still legit fun to play today. It's almost like taking the viewpoint of Pac-Man himself, and the sound effects here are so great. Usually with 2600 games, it's almost impossible not to say something like, Well, you kinda had to be there. But with Tunnel Runner, you didn't. This game still holds up really well. Yeah, it's limited, but it's still a fun playthrough. Moving on from the 2600 platform to Atari 8-bit computers, here's another interesting game called Excalibur. And again, yes, the user interface here is limited to say the least, even for a game made in 1984. You just move this crown up and down to move between screens so you can see all your options. But yeah, this is a resource management strategy game with the goal being to unite all of Britain under King Arthur, and the sheer amount of depth and the amount of stuff you can do to accomplish that is really impressive. You can invade other kingdoms, reward knights who are loyal to gain favor, or banish them if they're a-holes. You can raise taxes, gather news from around the world, and there's also battles you can fight. You can even recruit Merlin to send plagues to screw up other kingdoms. It's great. This game was way, way ahead of its time, and really deserves its due because it's clear a lot of work went into it. Thanks to Robert for pointing this one out. Staying with Atari, Rescue on Fractalis is a title made in 1984 for the 5200 platform, and yeah, kind of like Tunnel Runner. This game is just, I mean, how is this a cartridge game for Atari 5200? It's frickin' crazy. The gameplay is just like Defender, except from a first-person perspective. You're just looking for people stranded on this planet. You land on the surface and let them in, and take off and look for the next person, all while shooting down anti-aircraft guns on the surface, and later on, enemy ships. This is one of the very first games made by the Lucasfilm Games Department, headed by Peter Langston, who of course went on to make tons of popular games, including another rail shooter you might have heard of called X-Wing. But yeah, I just wanted to show off this game because, I mean, just look at this. This is running on an Atari 5200. It's pretty crazy. Sticking with Lucasfilm Games, the next year they came out with two similar games, the Idleon and Coronas Rift, made for both Atari 8-bit computers and for Commodore 64. And these games build upon the fractal technology first introduced in Rescue of Fractalis, and with the Idleon in a rather clever twist, they simply just flipped the mountains upside down and had you exploring underground caves. There's a lot more enemies in this game that pop up right in front of you, and there's more options for weapons as well, making this a bit more of an action game than its predecessor. Coronas Rift, again, sees you traversing mountains, but this time on a surface rover, and there's quite a bit more to the gameplay here. You have to navigate mazes, you're looking for discarded parts that you can use to upgrade your own vehicle, you're blasting enemy saucers. It's surprisingly in-depth, and again, the game looks amazing for its time. If you're into learning about the history of video games and development and all that stuff, don't forget about the early Lucasfilm Games. They were ahead of their time and are still interesting to play through today. You know what? Let's just go back to shooting stuff. Kill everything that moves. I have a real soft spot for 90s first-person shooters on PC, everything from Blake Stone to Rise of the Triad to Hexen. And here's another one made for the Amiga CD32. It's the fourth game in the Alien Breed series made in 1995 titled Alien Breed 3D. And yeah, as you can see, it's not the best-looking game. It's just a wee bit jagged and pixelated here and there. But yeah, there's plenty of blood, gore, and carnage in typical 90s fashion, and the music and sound design here are top-notch. It's not the best FPS of the 90s by any stretch, but I hadn't heard of this one, and I had a good time playing it, so I had to mention it here. Finally, I like ending these videos on weird games. Part 2 ended with Captain Blood, one of the most intensely bizarre games I've ever seen. And here's another ambitious game from 1984 titled Below the Root, and this game is one of, if not THE first game that attempted what is now commonly known as the Metroidvania formula. Okay, so it's not going to win you over in the looks department, but it's a side-scrolling action-platformer with a huge map to explore, and it also works in text-adventure elements as well, with tons of actions and choices available to you. The story is based on a series of books called The Green Sky Trilogy, written by Zilpha Keatley Snyder, and you have five characters and two different races to choose from as your character. You can pick to be a kindar who live on the surface, or an earthling who live underground, and both have completely different value systems and ways of life. I love finding older games like this. In this case, this one was made for a Commodore 64 as well as IBM PCs and the Apple II. And while this game may be rougher on the edges, it's a fascinating experience with an interesting story that blends together all sorts of different gameplay elements. So again, if you're into video game history, I'd recommend giving this one a try. Okay, that's all for now. I want to thank you for watching, and I hope you have a great rest of your day.