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@DarthAzrael in October 2021

@DarthAzrael

I grabbed The Programme just because it looked interesting. It wasn't a title that I was familiar with which isn't too surprising as it was limited to 12 issues and published in 2007, long after my peak comic buying days. The entire series was written by Peter Milligan with artwork by C.P. Smith and published by WildStorm. The premise of the story is that during the Cold War, Russia and the U.S. created super-powered humans as weapons to be used in case of war. Until that…

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Nintendo Power, Nintendo’s official magazine, was just hitting it’s stride with Super Nintendo coverage in December, 1991. The SNES had just been released and this was its first Christmas. With so few games available and the original Nintendo system still popular, much of the coverage was still for that system and would be for some time to come (and also of course for the Game Boy). Features in this issue include: Batman: Return of the Joker ActRaiser The Addams Family Tiny…

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GamesMaster is a computer and video game magazine that was published in the U.K. from 1993 until 2018. It was originally a spin-off of a TV show by the same name but the show ended years before the magazine. It was also published in Lebanon between 1996 and 1999 and the Philippines between 2003 and 2009. Issue Number 1 from January 1993 includes: Read more: https://hive.blog/hive-140217/@darth-azrael/gamesmaster-january-1993 #retrogaming

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I believe this photo was taken in Arkansas in the late 1980s or early 1990s. The location was identified because some other photos in this set were taken near a Confederate grave and I was able to track down the name. It has a vehicle in it that might be able to narrow down the date a little further. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to help much in this case. The vehicle is a Dodge Caravan (or similar...there were Plymouth and Chrysler models of essentially the same vehicle)…

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There can be do doubt that the late 1990s/early 2000s were the best of times for Apple's Macintosh line. Before that, the company was nearly dead. But Steve Jobs had come back and performed a miracle with a line of very distinctive computers that were in some ways ahead of their time. I admit, I was no fan and they look far better through the eyes of nostalgia. The iBook and iMac line of the time were underpowered and overpriced and while getting rid of floppies and legacy…

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Software Support International was one of the major mail order companies for Commodore 64 software and hardware. They sold stuff for other computers of the time also but I mostly remember their ads from various Commodore 64 related magazines in the late 80s. I believe I bought Pool of Radiance from them when it came out in 1988. This ad is from 1994 and probably came pretty late in the life of Software Support International, or at least the Commodore side of their business.…

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Big K was a short lived gaming magazine published in the U.K. in the 1980s (1984-1985 specifically). It also incorporated some of the contents of TV Gamer which apparently bit the dust just before Big K but that wasn't enough to save it. The decision to cease publication must have been up in the air for a while as there was a new competition introduced and some to be continued articles included in the final issue. On the other hand, an obituary was also included for the…

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Compute! was among the best multi-format computer magazines of the 1980s. Compute!'s Gazette was an equally great magazine dedicated to the Commodore 64. Compute! had a number of other machine specific spin-offs but none of them ever did as well or lasted particularly long though there was nothing really wrong with the quality. Compute!'s Amiga Resource is one of these spin-offs that happens to be dedicated to the Amiga. Features from the Summer 1989 issue include: The…

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The IBM PCjr (code name Peanut) was IBM's first (and rather abysmal) attempt to enter the home computer market. While the IBM PC had come out a few years earlier, it was designed more as a small computer for businesses and was way too expensive to be a true competitor in the home market. The PCjr shared the same processor (4.77 mhz 8088) and BIOS as the original IBM PC so it was mostly compatible. Two models were available, one having 64KB and the other having 128KB which…

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Many Zork games, spin-offs and other games using the same engine were released by Infocom throughout the years before Return to Zork was released after a five year hiatus for the series. While the original Zork games were text based, Return to Zork was a graphic adventure, somewhat similar to Myst which was released slightly later. While there have been a few Zork games released since, Return to Zork was the last to be published under the Infocom label. In addition to being…

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I'm not really sure of the history of this magazine but Winning at Video and Computer Games was another 1980s video gaming magazine published in the U.K. It covered both console and computer games. The name makes it sound like it emphasizes tips or strategy guides but that does not seem to be the case. I've only found a couple of issues online so I don't get the impression it was very popular or around very long. The Summer (May/June) 1984 issue includes:…

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Commodore User was a long running magazine published in the U.K. that covered the VIC-20, Commodore 64 and other Commodore computers. The first issue was published in October 1983 and the final issue was published in February 1990 for a total of 77 issues. The March 1984 issue includes: Read more: https://hive.blog/retrocomputing/@darth-azrael/commodore-user-march-1984 #retrocomputing #Commodore #Commodore64 #C64 #VIC20 #Computers

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The NetLink was essentially just a 28.8kbps modem with a web browser and a little bit of memory. It cost $199 when it was released in 1996 which was about double the price of an equivalent computer modem. You could basically use it for one of two things. 1) You could use it to dial up your internet provider and surf the web, check e-mail or chat or 2) you could use it to dial up a friend directly in order to play a game for games that supported the device. Read more:…

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This includes the contents of FOR188.DOC dated October 23rd, 1985. This appears to be a series of forum messages from the Close Encounters SIG on Delphi (probably a buffer capture of a reading session). It contains messages from late September to early October 1985. There are multiple topics including some discussion about censorship in the music industry. For more info and to read more, see…

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Tetris started a craze for puzzle games that continues even today. Klax was developed as an arcade game by Atari as a follow-up to Tetris in 1989. It was then ported to a wide variety of home systems starting in 1990 under the Tengen label. This particular ad is for the Sega Genesis version but other versions include NES, TurboGrafx-16, Sega Master System, Atari Lynx, PC/DOS, Commodore 64 and even the Atari 2600 among others and it has been released on various retro…

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Computer and Video Games was published in the U.K. and has the distinction of being the world's longest running video game magazine but alas, even it has ceased publication. It was published between 1981 and 2004 with an associated website operating from 1999 until 2015. Features from the November 1996 issue include: Features Cover Feature: Virtua Fighter 3 - It was in this space only two months back. But now it has arrived and it is the best thing ever seen. Freeplay - A…

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ANALOG Computing was perhaps the best known and one of the longest running magazines for Atari 8-bit Computers. Features from the November 1988 issue includes: Atari Streamers - A quickie machine-language routine that allows you to create vertically scrolling text displays. Slave II: Nimral's Grace - The sequel to last month's Slave Cellars of Golgoloth adventure. Who is trying to kill Shala? Master Memory Map, Part IV - The memory exploration continues. Jon us on a romp…

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GamePro was one of the top multi-format video game magazines throughout much of the 1990s and early 2000s. The June 1997 issue covered The Nintendo 64, Sega Saturn, PlayStation, Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, arcade games and PC games. Features include: Cover Feature: The Fighter’s Edge Fighting Games Roundup Tekken 3 Street Fighter III: New Generation Mace: The Dark Age Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter Vampire Savior (Darkstalkers: Jedah’s Damnation) The King of…

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This post includes the contents of FOR212.DOC dated October 23rd, 1985. This appears to be a series of forum messages from the Close Encounters SIG (probably a buffer capture of a reading session). It contains messages from early October 1985. There are a variety of topics here ranging from fantasies to personal ads to theology and more. Read more: https://hive.blog/retrocomputing/@darth-azrael/digital-archaeology-floppy-disk-10-for212-doc #retrocomputing #Delphi…

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TV Gamer Magazine was published in the U.K. from the Summer of 1983 through March 1985 and covered the various video game consoles of that time. The last two issues were incorporated into Big K before disappearing completely. The March 1984 issue includes: Cover Feature Tanks a lot - Taking time out from outer space, we beam down to earth for tank-based battle games, with a survey of tank games. Read more: https://hive.blog/hive-140217/@darth-azrael/tv-gamer-march-1984…

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Released in 1996, Alien Trilogy was one of a vast ocean of Doom and Quake clones released throughout the mid to late 1990s. Despite being a lesser known title (the game, not the movies which are obviously well known), this one was really of above average quality. It was often praised for its frightening atmosphere, sound and above average graphics. Unlike most FPS type games of the time it was also released first on consoles (the PlayStation and Sega Saturn) before being…

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PC Gamer is a PC gaming magazine published in the U.K. starting in 1993. There is also a U.S. edition that started publication in 1994 and at times there have been editions for other countries as well although they have typically taken content from the U.S. or U.K. editions. The July 1994 issue of the U.K. edition includes: Read more: https://hive.blog/hive-140217/@darth-azrael/pc-gamer-uk-july-1994 #retrogaming #retrocomputing #PC #DOS

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Micro was primarily an early 1980s computer magazine that covered a variety of computer systems including the Commodore 64, Apple II, Atari 8-bit and Radio Shack Color Computer. It was frequently technical in nature covering a number of programming and hardware related topics. The October 1983 issue included: Read more: https://hive.blog/retrocomputing/@darth-azrael/micro-october-1983-02a4be2c40b6c #retrocomputing #Commodore #Commodore64 #Apple #Apple2 #AppleII #Atari #TRS80…

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This post includes the contents of FOR231.DOC dated October 23rd, 1985. This is another set of forum messages from the Close Encounters SIG (probably a buffer capture of a reading session). It contains messages from early October 1985. There are a variety of topics here ranging from censorship to sexual positions (and lots of others). Read more: https://hive.blog/retrocomputing/@darth-azrael/digital-archaeology-floppy-disk-10-for231-doc #retrocomputing #DigitalArchaeology…

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I believe this photo was taken in Mexico. In previous sets from the same event depicted in the this picture there was a Mariachi band playing. This was likely taken in the late 1950s or early 1960s. Normally I post raw scans but this time I posted versions processed by the scanner/software with color correction and Digital ICE because the color was so badly faded. For more info and photos from this set, see…

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Amiga Format is a magazine that was dedicated to Commodore's Amiga computer line. It was published in the U.K. and had a long run lasting from 1989 until 2000. While published in the U.K., I remember frequently seeing in in book stores here in the U.S. as an import and I believe there was even a U.S. edition published for a while. The November 1996 issue (published almost exactly 25 years ago) includes: Cover Feature Achtung! - Much Amiga hardware is now being developed in…

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The Commodore 64C which was introduced in 1987 was primarily a cosmetic upgrade to the Commodore 64 to make it match the style of the newer Commodore 128. Functionally, it was identical to the original Commodore 64 (though you will get some argument from purists about slightly different sounding SID chips). It also had some internal changes to make it cheaper to produce, more efficient and more reliable (reduced chip count, lower voltage, etc.). This model would be produced…