The original XBox doesn’t have quite as many cult classics as the PS2 and Gamecube, but there are still some gems and oddities in the library that collectors do their best to snatch up.  Much like Gamecube games on the Wii, many of the games listed below still benefit greatly from being backwards-compatible on the XBox 360.

In stark contrast to the Cheapest Games series, this Rare & Valuable series by JJ Hendricks and I  will round up the rarest and most valuable games for a given console or handheld so you’ll know what to look for whether you are buying or selling. JJ owns the video game pricing website, VideoGamePriceCharts.com and writes a Video Game Pricing Blog which analyzes video game prices, pricing trends, and charts historic video game prices. He used his pricing statistics to find both the average selling price and the highest selling price for each game over the last three months. Below you will see two prices beside each title. The first is the average daily selling price, which is typically the going rate for the game by itself. The second price is the highest price in the past three months which is usually the price for the new/sealed game. The list is ordered by the balance of the two prices.

Treasured Standard USA Releases

	Marvel vs Capcom 2 – $73 – $155 If you want the biggest mashup of characters in your fighting games, Marvel vs Capcom 2 is the place to be.  It may not be the most balanced game for tournaments, but its one of the hottest mainstream 2D fighters out there.  Most gamers may flock to the PS2 version, but the Xbox  release is just right behind it in terms of value.  You can imagine how many fans would love to see this come to XBLA if they could work out the licensing issues. Check for Marvel vs Capcom 2 on Amazon Check for Marvel vs Capcom 2 on eBay
	Steel Battalion with Controller: $81 – $204 Steel Battaloin (Game Only): $30 – $35 It’s a bit unfair to include Steel Battalion so high on the list as most of the value of the full set is due to the massive controller that remains as a mech fan’s dream come true.  However, even the bare game still holds its own in the top 10, so we can’t complain too much.  If you aren’t familiar with it, Steel Battalion’s controller tries to replicate being inside a Mech and had nearly 40 buttons. Because the controller was so large the game retailed for $200 and only limited quantities were produced. The initial production was close to 2,000 units but the game was re-released, adding a few more copies to the market. Check for Steel Battalion on Amazon Check for Steel Battalion on eBay
	Sonic Mega Collection Plus & Super Monkey Ball Deluxe: $42 – $79 It’s not too often that a greatest hits re-release is more valuable that orignial releases, but in this case, it contains two excellent Sega titles in one.  The game originally sold for $19.99 when released (like all Platinum Hits titles) but now the game sells for nearly $40. The game released in December 2005 and like other late generation titles it wasn’t carried by many retailers. Check for Sonic Mega Collection/Super Monkey Ball Deluxe on Amazon Check for Sonic Mega Collection/Super Monkey Ball Deluxe on eBay
	Halo Triple Pack – $39 – $47 Halo Triple Pack is a bundle that came out rather late in the Xbox’s life resulting in rather small retail support. The Halo bundle includes Halo 1, Halo 2, and the Halo 2 Map expansion. Xbox 360 owners keep the price high because all three discs included in the package are backward compatible. Check for Halo Triple Pack on Amazon Check for Halo Triple Pack on eBay
	Jurassic Park Operation Genesis: $34 – $84 Jurassic Park Operation Genesis is one of the more uncommon original Xbox games. You have to recreate the Jurassic Park theme park by creating dinosaurs, building rides, and attracting guests. Just like the movie, the dinosaurs can attack the guests if you don’t keep them safe. The game received mediocre reviews but it’s rarity makes it expensive. Check for Jurassic Park Operation Genesis on Amazon Check for Jurassic Park Operation Genesis on eBay
	Street Fighter Anniversary Collection: $39 – $53 This is really one of the best fighting compilations out there, as it contains Hyper Street Fighter II and Street Fighter III: Third Strike on one disc. The compilations was already quite popular, but the buzz from Street Fighter IV recently helped increase the price for this game. Check for Street Fighter Anniversary Collection on Amazon Check for Street Fighter Anniversary Collection on eBay
	Sniper Elite : $33 – $45 Sniper Elite was released on the PS2 at the same time and neither version sold very well, but the Xbox version is the rarer of the two. The game is entirely based upon stealth and using long range weapons. The sniping in this gem is more realistic than most FPS games because it takes into account wind, your breathing, and even gravity’s effect on the bullet. Check for Sniper Elite on Amazon Check for Sniper Elite on eBay
	Star Wars Jedi Knight Academy: $25 – $55 Jedi Knight Academy sold quite well and there are quite a few copies available, but the game is very popular with Star Wars fans and received very good review scores. You play as a student at the Jedi Academy and complete missions assigned to you by Luke Skywalker and other Jedi. The game also has a network multi-player mode so you can compete with other Jedi in training. Check for Star Wars Jedi Knight Academy on Amazon Check for Star Wars Jedi Knight Academy on eBay
	Grand Theft Auto Trilogy : $30 – $42 Grand Theft Auto Trilogy includes GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas in one package. The game wasn’t released until November 2005, the same month the Xbox 360 launched. Most retailers quickly dropped support for Xbox titles after the 360 launched so the game was never fully supported. The game is backward compatible with the 360 and even with its high price is a relatively cheap way to play three GTA games. Check for Grand Theft Auto Trilogy on Amazon Check for Grand Theft Auto Trilogy on eBay
	Fatal Frame: $27 – $40 Fatal Frame is a survival horror game where your only weapon is a camera. When you snap pictures of the ghosts you can away their soul and protect yourself. The game was ported to the Xbox from the Playstation 2 but did not sell as well on the Xbox. Check for Fatal Frame on Amazon Check for Fatal Frame on eBay

Additional XBox Games of Value

• The Guy Game: $27 – $39
• Barbie Horse Adventures Wild Horse Rescue – $25 – $31
• Baldur’s Gate Dark Alliance 2: $29 – $33
• Fatal Frame 2: $22 – $39
• Star Wars Knights of Old Republic 2: $19 – $34
• Land of the Dead Road to Fiddler’s Green: $18 – $33
• Steel Battalion: Line of Contact: $19 – $29
• Outrun 2006 Coast 2 Coast: $20 -  $28
• UFC Tapout 2: $17 – $27
• Airforce Delta Storm - $14 – $24
• Star Wars Battlefront 2 – $19 – $33
• Capcom Classics Collection Vol 2: $19 – $23

Rarest Games At Affordable Prices

Each of these games are quite hard to find, but routinely sell for $20 or less. If you are an collector and see a mint copy of any of these on eBay for a low price, you might want to snatch them up — you might not see them often and they could be a higher profile target down the line.

• Outlaw Golf 9 Holes of X-Mas: $4
• Outlaw Volleyball Red Hot: $4
• Outlaw Golf Holiday Golf: $5
• Outlaw Golf 9 More Holes of X-Mas: $4
• Dragons Lair 3D: $9
• Loons Fight For Fame: $6
• Totaled: $8
• Spikeout Battle Street: $13
• Kakuto Chojin: $7

Credits: Xbox Price List provided by VideoGamePriceCharts.com. Used prices are the average sales prices on eBay, Amazon, and Half.com between December 1st, 2008 and February 26th, 2009. New prices are the average sales price for a sealed copy on the same websites during the same time period. The list is ranked by average sales price during the last three months. All the games are not rare (hard to find with small quantities available), but relative to demand all of these are in short supply.

After covering the best 2D games for the PS2 and Gamecube, it is now time to look at the XBox’s Modern 2D library.  Overall, the selection is a more limited than the PS2 and even the Gamecube in terms of variety, but there is a decent selection of fighters and run-and-guns if you are into those.

Because there are a number of excellent 2D games for this system, I’m making a cut-off point of 1998 as the earliest year of original release for a game to included in this list of “modern” 2D games. This allows games like Street Fighter 3 from the Street Fighter Anniversary Collection to be included, while keeping this list from being filled with countless compilations and ports.  Also keep in mind that not all of them use old-school sprites or hand-drawn art. Some of them actually use 3D graphics for all of the visuals, but keep the gameplay in a 2D perspective.

Instead of stressing myself out trying to writeup a summary of each of these games, I’m citing some quotes from my favorite reviews of each of the featured games. I invite you to click on the review link to read the full reviews for the games that grab your attention. Enjoy!

Run N Gun

Metal Slug 3
“Metal Slug 3 is classic 2D side-scrolling gaming at it finest. The missions are relatively short since the goal was to squeeze as many quarters out of gamers in the shortest possible time, but the included gameplay missions makes up for this. SNK handled the Metal Slug 3 arcade port perfect in nearly every way. Impressive to us was the fact that they realized the importance of adding additional features and functionality to the original arcade version. Only hardcore Neo Geo fans would fork over $40 for an original coin-op port that could be beaten in less than an hour. SNK included extra missions that shy away from the normal gameplay, Live functionality, and different difficulty levels which help increase replayability and bang-for-the-buck. Also consider yourself lucky since gamers were shelling out $150 for Metal Slug carts back in the day if they had a Neo Geo, and without any special features.

The gameplay from the arcade mission is marvelous for its genre since it tackles the normal shooter with a hilarious and interesting twist. For instance, the undead make an appearance in the second level and have the ability of infecting the PC’s with their zombie-like state. Player characters turn into zombies, barely able to hold their weapon and only able to jump about an inch off of the ground, for fear that a limb might break off. Gamers can continue as a zombie, impervious to Morden’s infantrymen, or the can seek a vial that will turn them back to human form. Scenarios such as this make for a very interesting game which usually leaves gamers begging for more after zipping through the five short levels. Each mission has huge end-of-level bosses which border on the bizarre- a trademark to the Metal Slug franchise. The controls are perfectly converted to the Xbox; playing with the X-Arcade stick may have you reaching down looking for the coin slot – it’s that good. Fans of any 80’s/90’s style 2D shooter will be overjoyed after playing the best that the older Japanese arcades had to offer.”
TeamXBox’s Review of Metal Slug 3
Find Metal Slug Anthology: (eBay / Amazon)

Alien Hominid (PAL Only)
“Hominid makes a compulsive and charismatic star, the very best quality of sociopathic teenager’s notebook margin-scrawlings brought into technicolour life. He shoots people, and they die in a splendidly bloody fashion. Fire the red laser beams and slice your targets in half, slumping messily to the side like a prime side of beef. A blast of the freeze-ray and reduce those who dare try and prevent you leaving the Earth into statues to shatter. A flamethrower either reduces them to an embarrassed cinder or sets them running about in an understandable panic. Yes, they’re standard weapons you may expect to see in any arcade game. And, yes, the results are almost as unimaginative. However, the execution is cartoon-perfect and ripe with charm.

In addition to these standards, they’ve given the little chap an expanded, demented action set too. Time a jump right and you can grab hold of people’s heads, then either lift them from the floor to lob at the opposition or bite their bonce clear off, to the horror of their nearby friends. Less dramatically, a forward roll allows you to nip beneath an incoming bullet. As a defensive measure, the Hominid can burrow into the ground where he’s invulnerable. His stay is only limited by the amount of time his lungs can hold out, but until then he can grab passers-bys down with him. Oh yes – and if he fires close up, he dispatches foe with a knife-slash rather than a laser. Add an R-type-styled energy-build-up-blast, and you’ve got an amusing arsenal to unleash..”
Eurogamer’s Review of Alien Hominid
Find Alien Hominid: (eBay)

Honorable Mentions:
Metal Slug 4 & 5 (eBay / Amazon)

Shmups

Shikigami No Shiro II / Castle of Shikigami 2
“So what makes Castle Shikigami 2 so good? In most respects, it’s just a run of the mill shooter. But what it does, it does well. Enemies large and small fly on screen and your job is to dodge their bullets and blow them up. There are seven different characters to pick from. Each has a unique standard shot as well as two optional charge shots (you can select one). Tapping the fire button unleashes the standard shot attack, while holding the button activates the charge shot, which the game refers to as a “Shikigami.” Shikigami attacks can often home in on and lock onto enemies, but the downside is that they very often leave you unprotected from excess enemies, as well as the soft bullets that your normal weapon can simply neutralize. Like any good shmup, you can also unleash a “bomb” by pressing the X button.

And so it goes, for ten levels or until you expend 3 lives and 3 continues. In each level, you’ll fly up the screen dodging bullets and shooting minor enemies until you reach a mid-boss. Then you’ll do it again to reach the level-boss. Bosses tend to have multiple forms and transformations, which is always a bonus. They’re also psychotically well armed. In the vast pantheon of shooters, this one falls into the “bullet hell” category… which means that the screen is constantly packed with bullets and lasers…

The ride is certainly pleasing to the senses. At first glance, Castle Shikigami 2 looks like any other old school vertical scrolling shmup–with ship sprites and bullets overlaid over scrolling backdrops. Look closer though and you’ll see that those cities and forests aren’t hand drawn, but are instead photorealistic concoctions made from polygons and high-resolution image elements. You’ll also notice a free flowing river in one level, and moving car traffic on a freeway in another. Meanwhile, the ship sprites and bullets are made out of 2D and 3D elements, but the kicker there is that they’re also highly animated. Your own character’s arms and legs will kick out and sway as you shoot and fly around, and enemies will twirl around and show off their little flaps and engines as they try and catch up with you. There’s some slow down here and there, but that’s understandable given how many bullets are often on screen. Not bad for a 3D shooter designed for old Naomi/Dreamcast hardware.”
PSXextreme’s Review of Shikigami No Shiro II (PS2)
Find Shikigami No Shiro II: (eBay)
Psyvariar II: The Will to Fabricate (Japan Only)
“The game has a striking resemblance to Ikaruga. The mix of metallic enemies and some soothing backdrops mixes really well. The combinations of stages in space and on earth adds to the mix, from light blue of sky and oceans of the earth to the blackness of space. The color of bullets from enemies and your mech, work well. Blues, Purples, Pinks, and Greens fell the screen and it seems that you know were they are at all times. The Lighting on your ship is draw great, every time you perform a buzz (a 1/4 circle on your d-pad), a pink halo forms around your ship, and when you hit an enemy while in a buzz, you’ll shoot lightning. Even when your not buzzing you have a mellow colored halo around you ship. Awesome, more one that later. The explosions were created very nice, it seems that you can count the flames of each explosion as they fly off. Bombs are very bright and well rendered. The cut-scene for the level 2 boss was just awesome.

Learning Curve is about an 15 min ride. There are 2 selectable characters. The women named Kei ,21, agile and more suited for just shooting. Then we had a man called Yuhei ,21, slow and best for the buzzing ability. At least that’s what the game said, I find it to be the other way around. I had to get used to dodging the bullets by buzzing. Buzzing is a great ability but it can get you killed really quick. Buzzing is an ability to dodge your mech, any direction, and doing so cause you to become some what godlike and allows your mech to spin. Doing so causes you to shoot a curly-looking pink bullet barrage and you will still keep spinning as long as you keep dodging. If you hit an enemy, lightning will shot out and strike some enemies down. The more you hit while buzzing the farther the lightning goes and the points rise and your level gage rises. When this gauge maxes out, you are awarded a brief period of invincibility while you “level up”, which can be used to quickly refill the gauge or to escape from a tight spot. The gauge fills up in two ways: shooting enemies and Buzzing. To do this ability you got to keep making quarter circles (up to left, up to right, down to left, and down to right) and I found that just doing circles can help too. You could also go threw stages by just buzzing your way threw except boss fights, your going to have to shoot ‘em or bomb ‘em. Your best bet would be your Analog stick and not the Joypad, I’ve found it hard to keep doing circles on the D-pad. The buzz ability can be used on the same bullet multiple times, but you got to keep quarter circling. You gain experience and new power as your level increases, and your level of power will retain even if your machine is destroyed. Now that feature is great to complete the game. Very Frustrating at times, seems to be all timing (Ikaruga hint-hint). Also, the Buzz count has a lot to do with the strength of you super attack. The Super attack looks like you mech just used an atomic bomb on its self. Not very good range, effective on bosses though. Just hug and nuke’em. You’ll start each stage with 3 bombs and 3 only, you can’t get more. The game is like Giga-Wing, unlimited continues. The buzz factor “science” was the one thing that takes a while to get used to and master. ”
SHMUPS! Review of Psyvariar II
Find Psyvariar II: (eBay)

Excellent Imports:
Shikigami No Shiro (eBay)

Fighters

Street Fighter Anniversary Collection
“There’s a whole lot to like graphically in the Street Fighter Anniversary Collection on top of the nice anime DVD that has been burned onto the game disc’s surface. Hyper Street Fighter II looks like any other coin-op version of the franchise mainly because it’s comprised of past ROM’s that graced the arcades. The port appears to be perfectly executed and the additional code necessary to make all of these characters work together in matches does not interrupt the visuals in any strange way. Capcom knew their limitations on a project such as this, shunning the idea of backwards compatibility with characters in exchange for a smooth, beautiful looking homage to one of the best fighting game franchises of all time.

Street Fighter III: Third Strike shows how the sprite-based graphics of series two have evolved. The style is a bit more rugged and realistic, possessing a finer resolution which aids in the detailing of the intricate new characters. Animations are more plentiful, helping the new hit detection system to its thing while at the same time helping to convey a much more mature project. Backgrounds are as creative as previous versions of the series but there’s a higher level of detail, that similar to the Marvel Vs. titles.

The Street Fighter series shows off a believable progression, from the original to the Street Fighter II series, and now in Third Strike (there were a few other SF III’s before Third Strike that acted as a foundation for this title). Third Strike is one of the few late, great 2D fighters tied firmly to its arcade roots, and it’s great to have it as a part of this anniversary collection.”
Team XBox’s Review of Street Fighter Anniversary Collection
Find Street Fighter Anniversary Collection: (eBay / Amazon)

Guilty Gear 2X #Reload
“The curse of 2D fighters is that they look pretty simple on the surface. Casual gamers come to a 2D fighter expecting to get away with fireball moves and button mashing. But if you arrive at GGX2 with that same attitude, you’re going to run into trouble. Sure, anyone can pick up Guilty Gear and smash some buttons and probably win a few matches, but those folks will be missing out on the hidden depths of GGX2.

The HUD features four different meters. The biggest and most obvious is your health meter, which operates as you’d expect, depleting with each hit until you bottom out at zero and get KO’d. Next there’s the Burst Gauge. This meter fills as you deal damage or take it throughout a match and actually carries over between rounds. The Burst gauge can be used either as a defensive combo buster that knocks your opponent backwards or as an offensive attack that not only hurts your opponent but instant fills your Tension Gauge.

Speaking of the Tension Gauge, this meter also fills as you take hits, deliver damage, and whenever you move towards your enemy. It’s there to reward aggression. Tension allows for a variety of different moves including the ever-popular and eye-catching Instant Kills, tension attacks, and Roman cancels (a way of canceling any recovery time for a move and allowing for an immediate attack).

The Instant Kills are a source of contention, in a way. For all of the jousting, combos, and blocking, you can always enter Instant Kill mode and try for the one-shot win. Should you miss (and it is easy to miss or be blocked), your tension bar disappears for the rest of the round, which will severely limit your fighting options. It’s a gamble, but if you are about to die, it’s one you might as well take. While the Instant Kills offer up very creative endings that are actually more enjoyable than most of Mortal Kombat’s fatalities, some will find them to be a bit cheap. Fortunately, you can turn to choose these off. I like Instant Kills for the single-player game, but it is a little cheap for multiplayer.

The final meter is the Guard Gauge. This meter is normally half full. As you block, the meter slowly fills and as you get hit, it decreases. The more empty the gauge, the less damage you take. This creates a strange phenomenon where the last hit of a massive combo does less than a sneaky hit you manage to get in on a heavy blocker. This is, again, to force aggressive play by punishing those who block too much..”
IGN’s Review of Guilty Gear 2X #Reload
Find Guilty Gear 2X #Reload: (eBay / Amazon)

Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO
“As the title implies, this game is a perfect blend of Street Fighter and SNK’s various fighting titles. I have to say I never really liked any of SNK’s offerings as they are very fast-paced butting smashing fests, and later 2D Capcom offerings have been the same. The coolness of the online gameplay is what really dragged me in with CVS2:EO. While if you’ve played any other Capcom or SNK fighting game you’ll be right at home here, the addition of what the game calls “groove” fighting styles adds for an interesting twist or two—or six.

Although the description of the six grooves (C, A, P, S, N, and K—cool, huh?) is a bit vague by definition, one can think of them as stances in, say, Soul Calibur. The first three groove styles—C, A. and P– are more Capcom-suited styles that we’ve seen in Street Fighter, while S, N, and K are very reminiscent of SNK fighting games. What this does is allow both games to retain their unique styles while mixing the characters and other elements of each game together. The major style difference, according to the manual (I can’t really feel much of a difference) is the changing of the “super meters”. Capcom styles have Capcom super meters and SNK styles have SNK super meters.

I spent about an hour trying to find out what EO meant in the title. At first I thought it meant “edition online”—online edition reversed (just because those Japanese are so different), but apparently it means Easy Operation mode, which was first introduced with the GameCube version of Capcom vs. SNK 2. This basically allows gamers to pull off long-chain combos and strings of moves with a simple touch of the right analog stick. This makes the game a lot more fun, especially for less…how do you say, “button mashing” people like myself. I could never remember any combos for more than ten seconds, so this is a nice addition for gamers like myself.

2D fighting fans should be jumping for joy here. Capcom has successfully ported one of their flagship fighting series to the Xbox with added online play. I’m preaching to the choir here—the experience is virtually lag-free, the fighting is fast-paced and exciting, and the EO mode allows even novices to have incredibly tense bouts.”
Team XBox’s Review of Capcom vs SNK 2: EO
Find Capcom vs SNK 2 EO: (eBay / Amazon)

Marvel vs. Capcom 2
“If you’ve ever played a 2D Capcom fighter, you know what you’re getting into: A hell of a good time! Being that Capcom recently released Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO with full online play via Live, it was certainly disheartening to find out that Marvel vs. Capcom 2 would not join its counterpart in the online ring, but the fantastic Capcom fighting style remains nonetheless!

MVC2 features all of your favorite characters from the Capcom world, such as Mega Man, Jill Valentine, and of course, Ryu. On the other end of the spectrum Marvel provides us with what we’ve all dreamed of: controlling Spider-man! Aside from the web-slinger himself, gamers are able to chose favorites like Wolverine and Captain America as well. Now get ready for this one, MVC2 features 24 characters to choose from…. And 32 to unlock! Now, don’t get your calculators out, because I have mine out already. That’s a whopping 56 characters to choose from!

Now with character talk aside let’s dive into the actual game play. MVC2 features a great combat system based on the original Street Fighter games of quarter circles, half circles, full circles, two circles… you get my point! Of course, add to that the hard kick and punch, as well as the light variations of the same two. So old-school gamers, like me, will have no problem picking it up and jumping right in. MVC2 allows each player to select three characters, unlike the original, where gamers were only permitted two. This adds a ton of gameplay to the mix. Aside from tagging, gamers are able to call in their partners to unleash an aiding attack which they select when choosing the character, such as Ground, Air, and Projectile to simply name a few. Additionally, gamers are actually able to perform intense Super Combos which call on all three characters to lay waste to unexpecting foes. These Super Combos are built up via a gauge at the bottom of the screen, as a player deals damage, gives damage or even swings into mid-air.

MVC2 features the classic arcade mode, where players will build up points according to how well they perform. Also MVC2 gives you the choices of: VS Mode, Score Attack, Training Mode, Option Mode, Score Ranking, and Secret Factor. Most modes are just as they sound, The Score Attack mode is a quick jump in challenging the top scores you and friends may achieve. The Score Ranking mode allows you to track stats of the character’s you’ve used and the scores you’ve achieved. I enjoy these statistics because it really gives you a feel of what you’ve done.”
Team XBox’s Review of Marvel vs Capcom 2
Find Marvel vs. Capcom 2: (eBay / Amazon)
King of Fighters 2002/2003
“For a long time, it seemed as if the King of Fighters existed to please its fans and no one else. Ever since the series began in 1994, the series has only really evolved by tweaking gameplay mechanics and adding or subtracting characters. SNK, perhaps realizing its fanbase wasn’t enough to keep it alive anymore, finally changed up things with The King of Fighters 2003. SNK has released one of the best one-two punches in recent memory with this package – including both King of Fighters 2002, regarded by fans of the series as being one of the best; and KoF 2003, a faster-paced game eager to change up the formula.
The King of Fighters 2003 gives the game a jolt by allowing on-the-fly character switching, much like the Capcom Versus titles. This tag-team gameplay is much faster and more flexible, but keeps the rock solid foundation of the previous games. As a result, it dodges falling into the hyperactive flashiness of the Marvel games. Additionally, one of your three team members can be designated as the “leader” allowing them an additional set of super moves. An entirely new set of 3D backgrounds have also been created for the home console releases. They’re much better than the standard 2D ones, even though they look extremely pixellated unless you turn on the “Soft Focus” option.

The character selection has been paired down a bit from older offerings, removing classic fighters like Andy and Choi. The new characters are freckled-face pretty boy Ash (mostly a Guile ripoff), punk-ish martial artist Shen Woo, and the mysterious Duo Lan, who can disintegrate and materialize at any part of the screen. SNK is also doing a bit more to integrate Mark of the Wolves into the King of Fighters games, as they’ve included badass outlaw Gato and Mexican wrestler Tizoc, as well as outfitting Terry Bogard in his Garou uniform. The game also marks the return of Chizuru (from KoF ‘96) and a classic version of Kyo under the moniker Kusanagi.

Even if you’re not a fan of the changes made to 2003, more conservative aficionados will have their fill of King of Fighters 2002. Being the the second “Dream Match” of the series, KoF 2002 collects characters from both recent and classic titles, regardless of the ongoing storyline. In addition to characters from the NESTS saga (K’, K9999, May Lee, Angel, Whip, and Kula), plenty of old faces like the Shermie, Chris, Vice and Mature — and Rugal once again returns as the final boss. Exclusive to the home release are King, Shingo, and perennial Fatal Fury villain Geese Howard. Unless you really miss the Sports Team from ‘94, this is one of the best rosters in all of the KoF games, and longtime fans will probably not be disappointed.”
Armchair Empire’s Review of King of Fighters 2002/2003
Find King of Fighters 2002/2003: (eBay / Amazon)
Samurai Shodown V
Many gamers may not be familiar with the Samurai Shodown series, as it was the sleeper hit even at its time. This was a 2D fighter which sported an awesome Samurai theme that hooked many gamers worldwide. Samurai Shodown V isn’t widely considered the best of the series (that title often gets put upon Shodown II), as part V added new characters and elements that made the series more wacky, and took some things away from the overall Samurai theme. But the core gameplay is the same, and after many delays, Xboxers new and old can once again experience what the old folks talk about when we think of old-school fighting with Samurai Shodown V…

Allowing players free reign of the gameplay controls is great, which will aid you when it comes to the various combos and gauges that enter play throughout each match. During each fight, players will have varying sets of abilities and attacks at hand to deal out to their foes. Attacks ranging from weak to strong, as well as some kicks and specials are the norm, and are pretty standard issue for each character. There are also weapons thrown into the mix, which, like the characters, range from traditional to just plain wacky. Period Samurai swords are the most effective, but others range clear down to using a dog as an attack.

The aforementioned moves can also be linked into a wide variety of combos, 23 total with 8 being new to this Xbox version, and most can be pulled off with combinations of the D-pad and face buttons. The majority are three to four buttons in length, and are well balanced for experts and new comers alike. After tinkering with various character styles, players are sure to find one that suits their fighting needs, but the learning curve is even throughout most of the fighters. Also during a match, players will need to watch over various gauges, such as the rage gauge, spirit strength, and sword spirit gauge, which will affect the match, such as slowing down time. These effects bring in a new layer to the combat, as well as bringing in some great aesthetic looks to the match.

If I was limited to one word that described Samurai Shodown V, it would have to be unique. From the character designs, to amazingly thematic music, and unique twist on combat, this is a 2D fighting series that may not have gotten the crappy Hollywood movie like some other games in this genre, but it deserved a look then and warrants one now. This is a niche title for a niche audience, but the original arcade experience is available on the Xbox, in addition to some upgrades (some new characters, but most notably Xbox Live support). A package deal with a variety of games from the series would have been a great compilation, but as it stands, fans of this lost era will find their money’s worth in Samurai Shodown V.
Team XBox’s Review of Samurai Shodown V
Find Samurai Shodown V: (eBay / Amazon)

Honorable Mentions:
SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos (eBay / Amazon)
Capcom Fighting Evolution (eBay / Amazon)
King of Fighters: Maximum Impact Maniax (eBay / Amazon)
King of Fighters NeoWave (eBay / Amazon)

Puzzle

Puyo Pop Fever
“If the screenshots look familiar, that’s because Puyo Pop has been around in various incarnations for years and years. The first time I encountered it was actually under the banner of Kirby’s Avalanche on the SNES – basically a re-badged Super Puyo Puyo released with revamped visuals in the USA in order to give it a recognition factor – but you may also have played it on the Neo Geo Pocket Colour, the N-Gage, the Mega-Drive, various Game Boys, the Dreamcast, and plenty more besides.

For better or worse, it’s still largely the same game. For the most part it’s played with two players, at least one human controlled, each trying to form “chains” by rotating and slotting pairs of different coloured blobs into groups of four or more of the same colour as they fall from the top of the screen. Doing so makes said blob groups disappear and dumps “nuisance” blobs on the other player’s screen to upset their efforts. The first person to run out of space loses, either thanks to their opponent’s skill in conjuring chain reactions to fuel larger nuisance dumps, or through their own lack of skill in managing the blobs’ accelerating descent. Chains reactions, by the way, are when one set of blobs disappears allowing those above to join with those below and set off another chain, and mastering chain reactions is absolutely critical to success.

But Puyo Pop Fever obviously has more to it than just vanilla Puyo Pop. For a start there’s the eponymous Fever mode. This basically consists of a sort of power meter that fills up as you build more and more chains – a process accelerated by the use of larger chain reactions – until you’re flipped into a sequence of pre-arranged screens and tasked with slotting the blobs raining down into the optimum position to create as many linked chains as possible. Doing so visits even more misery upon your rattled opponent and, with a bit of quick thinking, can be more than enough to conquer him outright.”
EuroGamer’s Review of Puyo Pop Fever
Find Puyo Pop Fever: (eBay)

Honorable Mentions:
Ultra Bust-A-Move (eBay / Amazon)
Tetris Worlds (eBay / Amazon)

When you add a console to your collection, the first thing you want to do is get a handful of games to keep you busy with your new toy. However, most of us can’t spend afford to spend fat pile of cash for a few games. This budget-friendly list should help you quickly find which games will start you off well without emptying your wallet. (Prices listed are an average eBay price for US games, including shipping.) Also, if you are fortunate enough to have a 360, I have marked the backwards-compatible titles with this icon .

Cheap Classics

Jet Set Radio Future / Sega GT Combo: $4
The original Jet Grind Radio from the Dreamcast is still one of my all-time favorites, and its sequel on the XBox simplifies the gameplay a bit in some areas, bring the story forward a number of years, and puts some XBox polish on the already slick graphical style. JSRF is an incredibly unique and entertaining game that should not be overlooked. What’s better is JSRF was combined with Sega GT for an XBox pack-in disk. You should be able to find the combo disc just about anywhere for next to nothing.
Shop for Jet Set Radio Future / Sega GT Combo on eBay
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Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell , SC: Pandora Tomorrow , SC: Chaos Theory : $5 each
The original Splinter Cell was a groundbreaking game that started a powerful new series for the Tom Clancy team. These first three installments are still very relevant today and is dirt cheap due to the fact that most other gamers have moved on to the endless lineup of newer action titles. It’s also worth mentioning the XBox not only has the highest-quality ports of these games, but they are also the most afforable.
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SSX 3 & SSX Tricky: About $7 Each
The crazy, arcade-like SSX snowboarding franchise has been getting rave review for years and has had numorous installments on most of the latest platforms. SSX 3 and SSX Tricy are currently the sweet spot for the best quality-to-price ratio for the XBox. It may not have some of the bells and whistles of the newer installments, but it will still keep you entertained for a while without draining your wallet.
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Soul Calibur II: $7
Anybody remotely interested in 3D fighters should not overlook the Soul Calibur series. After the rave reviews as a Dreamcast exclusive, the original Soul Calibur was followed up as a multiplatform sequel with a great deal of hype. However, even though Soul Calibur III wasn’t much better, most gamers are selling off their copies and picking up newer installments. Now is your time to take advantage of this bargain.
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Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time: $7
For the longest time, Sands of Time nearly got ignored by most of the gaming community, but eventually enough people read all the positive reviews and gave it a try. Over the last few years, numerous sequels have spawned, giving this classic franchise new life. The Sands of Time may still be a frontrunner for the best in the series, and it is definately the best value.
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Project Gotham Racing 2: $4
The Project Gotham series quickly went from being a follow-up to the popular Dreamcast racer, Metropolis Street Racer, to being one of the premier racing franchises in gaming. If you have an XBox 360 you probably want to save up for PGR3 or 4, but if you are making ends meet with just your original XBox, Project Gotham 2 is still a satisfying racing experience for a price you can’t beat.
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Forza Motorsport: $6
With Sony’s racing simulation dominance with the Gran Turismo series, Microsoft knew they had to step up and create a dominant simulator of their own. Forza did not disappoint racing enthusiasts due to its realism in terms of the racing itself and its ability to realistically model damage to cars, from both a cosmetic and a performance standpoint. Teamed with the PGR series, you have an incredible pair of XBox-exclusive racers for under $10 total.
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Burnout 3: Takedown: $7
I have to admit, I’m personally not much for Forza Motorsport and those more realistic racers. The Burnout series, on the other hand, it a racing series for the rest of us that want more high-speed action and fun gimmicks such as Burnout’s glorification of high-speed crashes. While you can get most of the series installments for about the same price, I think most fans of the series would agree that the third installment was the peak of its excellence.
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Tony Hawk’s Underground: $4
When it seems like a new Tony Hawk game comes out every other month, it is no surprise when older installments are plentiful on eBay for low prices. Tony Hawk Underground was the first major upgrade from the PS1, N64, Dreamcast era so it was noticeably improved in terms of graphical quality and gameplay depth.
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Top Spin / NCAA Football 2005 Combo: $4
I’ve always been pretty partial to Sega’s Virtua Tennis series, but Top Spin actually puts up a good fighter as a compelling Tennis game that seems realistic but balances the easy-to-learn-but-hard-to-master aspect that makes a four-player doubles match a surprisingly good party game. Throw in NCAA Football 2005 on a pack-in combo disc and you have possibly the best sports party value for nearly any console.
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Half-Life 2: $7
As most gamers are already aware, Half-Life 2 is an engaging FPS that made you feel like you were part of the action, not just a spectator. The interactive environment served a purpose rather than just some add-on that didn’t really give anything back. Not only does this shooter combine great storytelling and intense action, but it also pushes the limits of what the original XBox could do.
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The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay: $6
Typically, you’ll want to steer clear of games based on a movie license, Escape from Butcher Bay is commonly regarded as being better than the movies it is associated with. This first person action title borrows from many genres such as role playing, stealth, shooter and adventure, but its strength is its immersive, story-driven environment.
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Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge: $4
If you enjoy flight action games, you couldn’t ask for much more from Crimson Skies. In additional to it’s killer dog-fighting gameplay, it has outstanding graphics, an awesome soundtrack, easy controls, top-notch production values, a fun online mode that has a huge following, and professional voice acting that adds a blend of drama, noir, and comedy.
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TimeSplitters 2: $8
If you want a high-quality FPS that is designed for consoles, you need to pick up TimeSplitters 2. Developed by the same team that worked for Rareware on the N64’s Goldeneye 007, Timesplitters 2 has killer level design, great weapons, and a variety of multiplayer and minigame options. It may not have the realism that some modern gamers crave or a fascinating storyline, but it tops Halo in my book in terms of gameplay and all-out fun.
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Dead or Alive 3: $5
DOA3 was one of the original showpieces for the XBox and is still a fast and fun brawler for those that aren’t looking for a technical tournment fighter. If you want some bouncy eye-candy while you tear into your opponents, Dead or Alive 3 will give you a cheap thrill.
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MechAssault: $5
For mech action on a budget (as opposed to the pricey Steel Battalion), MechAssault will treat you to an excellent combination of great graphics, detailed Mechs and both engaging single player campaigns and great online multiplayer. Every structure throughout the game is fully destructible, so you can a great deal of fun blowing up every structure, bridge, tower, or bus that you need to.
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Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance: $5
While some MGS fans didn’t enjoy Sons of Liberty as much as the original PS1 Metal Gear Solid, part 2 was still a landmark experience, as you could expect from Hideo Kojima. The MGS2 Substance release includes some added modes and options in addition to the games that was a crucial piece of the PS2 library. While Substance on the PS2 goes for over $10, you can get it dirt cheap on the XBox.
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A Few Must-Haves Slightly Over $10

Halo : $13
While it may be overrated, there is no doubt that Halo is still one of the best console FPSs out there and is the cornerstone of the XBox library. If you are not a die-hard PC gamer with many high-end FPSs under your belt, but are interested in trying the genre out on a console, Halo is your ticket.
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Ninja Gaiden: $11
If you want intense action with a challenge that few games rival, look no further than this modern Ninja Gaiden installment. It will take a lot of work to uncover all of the game’s secrets, not to mention reach its conclusion, but chances are that all you need is to give Ninja Gaiden a look to be extremely impressed by it. Obvious care and detail went into every single aspect of this game and is still one of the brightest jewels of the XBox library.
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Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic: $13
Easily one of the best RPGs on the XBox, KOTOR takes place centuries before the original Star Wars story, KOTOR is a very in-depth game with a great storyline, great graphics and is wrapped in one of the best Star Wars experiences gamers have seen. And with it being the first true RPG in the saga, Knights of the Old Rebublic sets the standards for how these games should be made.
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Panzer Dragoon Orta: $12
Even though your typical XBox owner probably isn’t even familiar with the Panzer Dragoon series, that shouldn’t stop you from spending a little cash on checking this gem out. The Panzer Dragoon series is a collection of cult-classics on the ill-fated Sega Saturn, but the on-rails shooter made a stunning return on the XBox. This under-appreciated title is one of Sega’s last great masterpieces.
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Other Cheap Favorites

Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
Max Payne: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
Jade Empire: $7 – eBay / Amazon.com
Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath: $8 – eBay / Amazon.com
Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee: $6 – eBay / Amazon.com
OutRun 2: $6 - eBay / Amazon.com
Fight Night Round 2: $5 – eBay / Amazon.com
Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30: $6 – eBay / Amazon.com
Rallisport Challenge: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
Rallisport Challenge 2: $7 – eBay / Amazon.com
Midnight Club II: $5 – eBay / Amazon.com
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six 3: $7 – eBay / Amazon.com
Fable: $5 – eBay / Amazon.com
Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict: $5 – eBay / Amazon.com
Far Cry Instincts: $7 – eBay / Amazon.com
Indigo Prophecy: $9 – eBay / Amazon.com
Need for Speed Underground 2: $6 – eBay / Amazon.com
Doom 3: $6 – eBay / Amazon.com
Metal Arms: Glitch in the System: $5 – eBay / Amazon.com
ESPN NFL 2K5: $3 – eBay / Amazon.com
Madden NFL 2005: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
NBA 2K5: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
Major League Baseball 2K5: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
NBA Street Vol. 2: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
NHL 2K5: $4 – eBay / Amazon.com
FIFA Soccer 2005: $6 – eBay / Amazon.com

My Starter Picks For $50 Budget

If I only had $50 to spend on starting out an XBox collection, here would be my top picks:

• Jet Set Radio Future / Sega GT Combo: $4
• Project Gotham Racing 2: $4
• Top Spin / NCAA Footbal: $4
• Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge: $4
• Halo : $13
• Half-Life 2: $7
• Panzer Dragoon Orta: $12
• Total: $48

Keep in mind, these are my personal picks. There are a lot of great, cheap titles on the original XBox, so you could easily substitute some titles on this list to match your personal taste.

Need more XBox games to build your library? Check out The Best Undiscovered XBox Games.
| Cheapest PS2 Games | Cheapest Gamecube Games | Cheapest XBox Games |

You can’t help but admit you like the benefits of newer consoles: wireless controllers, better video connections, faster load times. So is it so wrong to want to be able to play a bunch of old games on your new hardware? Of course not.

With classic game compilations you can easily get a solid collection of retro games without spending a lot of cash. In fact, picking up one of these retail packs will be much more cost effective than picking out just a few Virtual Console games on the Wii. Here is the original XBox’s compilation library.

Sonic Mega Collection Plus

If you are an old-school Sonic fan and want a way to play the collection on newer hardware, the Sonic Mega Collection Plus is the way to go. Unfortunately, this collection only includes the vanilla Genesis games as opposed to its successors on the Sega CD, 32X, and Saturn. However, most of the good stuff was on the Genesis, so there isn’t much to complain about. Sonic Mega Collection is a top-notch Sonic anthology with plenty to keep you busy. The only disappointment is the lackluster interface when compared to Sonic Jam on the Saturn. It does however, have a wealth of extras such as Sonic Comics, Illustrations, & various Video Clips. This “Plus” version includes the mid-game saving feature that was missing in the Gamecube’s original release.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Excellent
If you’ve experienced many of the commercial attempts at emulating Sega Genesis games in the past, you can appreciate some of the high-quality emulation demonstrated in this package, particularly in the sound department.

Price Point: $13

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Capcom Classics Collection

Given my interest in 2D fighting and side-scrolling brawlers, it should come as no suprise that Capcom is one of my favorite arcade publishers. Their strong presence in the 1990s arcade scene brought us a number of solid titles that hold up quite well more than a decade later. Many of Capcom’s best titles have resurfaced in the Capcom Classics Collection. Volume One of the Classics Collection is actually an emulated reproduction of the games from the Capcom Generation series that were released on the Sony Playstation and Sega Saturn plus a few additional titles. As with the Capcom Generations titles, all games contain extra features (but requires unlocking in CCC), which consists of gameplay tips, artwork, listenable music and cast profiles (in Volume 1 only), although the contents are not identical.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Above Average
Other than a few minor flicker issues, the games are pretty much perfect representations of the original arcade versions. For vertically oriented games, you can opt for an alternate display mode that shuffles the score information off to the side, giving you a larger view of the action. And some games have a “sound remix” option, which usually replaces the music with an arranged version of the soundtrack and cleans up the sound effects a bit by bringing them up to a higher, cleaner bit rate.

Overall, the games all control just fine, though some compromises have been made in Forgotten Worlds’ case. The game had a joystick that you could twist in order to rotate your firing direction. Here, the rotation has been replaced by two buttons, one for each direction.

The general consensus is that the ports of Street Fighter II on this compilation are pretty good, but are a few tweaks away from being arcade perfect. Some of the places this version comes up short is the brief load time before and after each fight, incorrect sound effects, speed discrepancies in Hyper Fighting w, and music cutting out as soon as a round ends, rather than continuing on and gradually fading out as your score is tabulated. None of these are deal-breakers, but seem like things that would typically be resolved in a modern compilation like this. I’m guessing this is a limitation due to it’s emulation of the Capcom Generations version.
Price Point: $9

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Capcom Classics Collection 2

Capcom continued on their success by bringing another solid collection of arcade classics. This second installment doesn’t have as many blockbuster titles to boast, but none of them were previously on Capcom Generation releases and will round out a classic gamer’s collection quite well.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Excellent
Since this new installment is made up of fresh ports/emulations, everything runs at near perfection. Volume 2 retains the original look of its titles, down to the last pixel and there isn’t any noticeable slowdown, audio problems, or video hitches to speak of whatsoever. As for as audio goes, every bleep and track has been faithfully retained to add authenticity. Much like the first volume, remixed audio tracks are an optional addition for a modern twist.
Price Point: $18

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Namco Museum

I’ve always had a soft spot for the newer Namco Museum packages as the offer a number of my old favorites put together in a modern interface and usually include some enhanced modes to make it worth buying for fans of the originals. The game selection won’t blow anybody away, but the quality makes up for the lack of quantity.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Excellent
With the simple nature of the original games and Namco’s commitment to quality, you can rest assured that these games will play, look, and sound just like the originals. Nothing to worry about here

Price Point: $7
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Namco Museum 50th Anniversary Arcade Collection

If you already own the original Namco Museum release, you probably won’t find much reason to pick this newer version up. This 50th Anniversary Edition drops the modernized “Arrangement” versions and adds a bunch of not as popular Namco classics in their place. Rolling Thunder is a common favorite, but most of the other may draw a yawn. If you only want the most arcade authentic games on one disc, this is your ticket, but if you like the “Arrangement” remakes, you will want to go with the original release.
Games

Conversion Quality: Excellent
With the simple nature of the original games and Namco’s commitment to quality, you can rest assured that these games will play, look, and sound just like the originals. Nothing to worry about here

Price Point: $13
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Midway Arcade Treasures

Midway Arcade Treasure gives retro fans a heaping spoonful of lots of great arcade classics. Unfortunately as a first effort, Midway didn’t seem to put in as much effort into creating an authentic experience as they could have considering the power of the XBox. If you can find it cheap enough, it isn’t a bad addition to a classic collection. Just be warned of it’s shortcomings (see below).

The Games

Conversion Quality: Below Average
Given that a large portion of the games in Midway Arcade Treasures feature some sort of nonstandard controller, be it a trackball for Marble Madness, a set of handlebars for Paperboy, a 49-position joystick (as opposed to the standard eight) for Sinistar, or the steering yoke for driving games like RoadBlasters or Spy Hunter, the developers had to make a few changes to make the games playable on a standard controller. For the most part, every game is laid out as logically as possible and can simply be picked up and played. However, games that feature analog input feel very loose and are hard to control, especially when compared to the original games. While you can expect that some sacrifices have to be made when adapting an existing game to play on an entirely different set of controls, it feels as if the developers paid very little attention when it came to making sure the games played accurately. In spite of that, almost every game in Midway Arcade Treasures is completely and totally enjoyable once you get a handle on how they play.

Furthermore, many of the games don’t produce the same sounds that they did in the arcade. With the sound, you would have to be very familiar with the original to notice, let alone care, but it is worth mentioning.

Price Point: $7
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Midway Arcade Treasures 2

Arcade Treasures 2 follows up with more of a fighting them in addition to some other arcade favorites. Unfortunately, much like it’s predecessor, Midway Arcade Treasures 2 isn’t perfect. It has its little glitches and problems here and there. However, the bonus material is nice and most of the games are nearly identical to the arcade originals that they’re trying to duplicate.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Below Average
Many of the games in Arcade Treasures 2 are emulated versions of the arcade games and not actually ports. As a result, some of the games (Mortal Kombat II, Mortal Kombat 3, Pit-Fighter and NARC in particular) have some obvious sound and graphical glitches. Every sound effect in that game plays at the wrong times (for example the original shooting sound effect has become the original “enemy defeated” sound effect, and vice versa), and the game has a very inconsistent framerate, slowing down at almost all times. luckily, the control schemes for most of these games are simpler than those found in the original Arcade Treasures, so there are not as significant issues in that area.

Price Point: $7
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Midway Arcade Treasures 3

Midway decided to take a different approach with their third Arcade Treasures installment. This time around that stuck to an actual theme (in this case, racing games) and they brought in some more modern titles to round out the retro-ness. While most of the games in this collection are emulations or recreations of the arcade versions, Hydro Thunder and Rush 2049 are based on the console versions. Both games don’t run quite as well as their Dreamcast counterparts, but having these all on one affordable disc is a nice option.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Below Average
The XBox version of Treasures 3 (along with the PS2 version) suffers from a few minor and major emulation glitches in some of the games. The Gamecube version is the best port of this compilation.

Also, like I mentioned up top, if you want the best experience with Hydro Thunder and SF Rush 2049, you might want to go with the Dreamcast version if you have that console. However, this compilation does a respectible job and having them running off one disc on the XBox (with quicker loads and wireless controllers) is compelling. It’s all up to your priorities.

Price Point: $6
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Atari Anthology

If you want to relive your Atari days , the Atari Anthology may be worth looking into. It reproduces both Atari arcade games and titles for the Atari 2600 games console. With 85 different games on one disc, it is a very good value and serves as an instant collection on one well-produced disc. As well as the games themselves, the collection includes extras such as original arcade artwork and scans of the instruction manuals for the Atari 2600 games, as well as video interviews with Nolan Bushnell, the founder of Atari.

The Games
Atari Anthology features a a ton of great games, so I won’t list them all here. But the complilation does include a number of Atari’s best games such as

Conversion Quality: Average
The 2600 games are emulated pretty well, but the arcade games can be a little spotty. Some of the vector-based arcade titles like Tempest, Battlezone, and Major Havoc have spotty and unfaithful and graphics that are frequently out of proportion. For the most part, the traditional raster-display games, such as Centipede, are reproduced the most accurately, with graphics and sounds that are very close to those of the originals. Since these games originally used special monitors that produced graphics with rays of light rather than pixels, the versions of these games in Atari Anthology are more of a simulation than anything else.

While Tempest, Battlezone, and Red Baron resemble what you might see in an arcade, Gravitar produces graphics so small that they are nearly impossible to see, regardless of what viewing mode you select. Across the board, the vector games also have the most inaccurate sound, at times sounding nothing like the real thing. If you grew up playing these games in arcades, you’ll be pretty disappointed by these re-creations.

Many games have features to play each title at varying speeds, time limits or with a shifting colour palette, depending on the game; some of these modes must be unlocked by reaching predetermined goals in other games.

Price Point: $11
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Taito Legends

Taito’s arcade library gives old-school gamers a different type of gameplay experience in comparison to Capcom, Namco, and Midway and the Taito Legends compilation offers both a large selection of games and a variety of genres. Some of my favorites such as Bubble Bobble and Elevator Action headline Legends, but there are many other great games for you to explore.

The Games

Conversion Quality: Above Average
The emulation of these game are top notch and will play just like the originals. The only exception are the light-gun games, Operation Wolf, Operation Thunderbolt, and Space Gun. Instead of being able to shoot with a gun, you have to move a cursor around with your controller. Not nearly as much fun that way. If you can get past this limitation, Everything is top notch.

Price Point: $8
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Taito Legends 2

This Legends follow-up received a US release on the PS2, but for the XBox, it was only a PAL and Japan release. This is a real shame as there are some nice titles in there.

The Games

There are a ton of great games on this compilations with a variety of oldschool genres. Somewhat controversially, 8 of the 43 games were split across the platforms due to porting issues, forcing players to buy more than one version to get every game available. The XBox got Bubble Symphony, Cadash , Pop’n Pop, and RayForce as a console exclusive, but if you want Balloon Bomber, G-Darius, RayStorm, or Syvalion, you’ll have to get the PS2 version.

Conversion Quality: Average
For the most part, the emulation of the games is pretty good, but there are some noted issues with the compilation.

This compilation has no screen options other than resize, so you’ll have to play them with bug black bars on the side or  stretched out.  However, I would assume this is how most people play vertical shmups on a console anyway.

Also, on the screen resize option there is no indication of the texture mapping resolution. You can’t choose what hardware filter to use or disable filtering and the games are forced to run on flicker filter level 5 just like any Xbox game dispite this being old 2D games that benefict from disabled flicker filter.

The sound of the games and menus aren’t normalized, the menu chimes are very lound while the game sound emulation volume is quite low (Darius Gaiden being a perfect example of this)

To make things worse there is a emulation problem on Elevator Action Returns that indicates without doubt this compilation is running possibly unlicensed) MAME code (even the filenames of the ROMs are exactly the same as MAME ROMset).  (Thanks to Timerever for this info)

Price Point: $20
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Tecmo Classic Arcade

Many classic gamers consider Tecmo Bowl to be the best football video game of all time. That sporting classic is the headlining title of this modest compilation. But other favorites such as Rygare and Solomon’s Key are also included.
The Games
There isn’t a huge selection here, but fans of Tecmo’s old games might find it a worthwhile venture.

Conversion Quality: Excellent
Tecmo’s older games aren’t very complex, so everything has translated pretty well.

Price Point: $6
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Intellivision Lives!

The Intellivision is pretty old, even by my standards and many of its games have a hard time holding up to modern standards (even in the “retro” world). However, there are still a few people out there that get a kick out of some of the Intellivision’s better games. Intellivision Lives! offers a wealth of titles that will keep Intellivision enthusiasts busy for a while. Unfortunately, there are no licensed titles or any third party software lurking within the 60 included titles. Advanced Dungeons and Dragons, Burgertime, Microsurgeon, Masters of the Univerese, Zaxxon, Tron are all missing.

The Games
Intellivision Lives! features a rather large number of titles, so I won’t list them all here. But the complilation does include a number of the best Intellivision games such as

Conversion Quality: Excellent
The emulation runs wonderfully on the XBox hardware, offering the same graphics and sound of the more than sixty games from the Intellivision library. Unfortunately, regardless if the gameplay can or cannot hold up to today’s standards, the XBox’s controller absolutely cannot represent the complex Intellivision controller, and many games in this compilation are absolutely unplayable because the shortcuts for keypad presses on the controller are no substitute for the real thing.

Price Point: $6
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Smaller Retro Compilations

• Metal Slug 4 & 5
• The King of Fighters 2002/2003
• Street Fighter Anniversary Collection

Usually, when you get a new-to-you console, you can usually find or remember the major games to check out. But what happens when you need something different to play? This is where the “Hidden Gems” come in.
Read More About My Criteria For Hidden Gems
See All The Hidden Gems Articles

Not only are all these games great additions for an original XBox game library, but many of them are playable on the XBox 360 as well. If you are fortunate enough to have a 360, I have marked the backwards-compatible titles with this icon .

This list will be a bit of a work-in-progress. I may add to these as I go along and find new games.
If you have some recommendations to add, please do so in the comments section below.

Platformer

Obvious Choices:
Sonic the Hedgehog, Spyro, Blinx, Conker: Live & Reloaded
Featured Game: Psychonauts
“Psychonauts is, at its core, a platformer. However, unlike the typical platformers of the current generation, this is a free-roaming adventure that removes almost every restriction. The camp grounds in which Raz can explore are large and there are a number of hard to reach areas which will challenge your platforming acumen. And if you hope to collect everything in Psychonauts, you’ll need to explore every inch of the campgrounds. And there’s a lot to collect…

As much fun as I had with the gameplay, it’s the humor of Psychonauts that really makes it worthwhile. The first half of Psychonauts is unbelievably funny… The only problem with making a funny game is that the minute it stops being funny, it becomes glaringly obvious. The last few hours of Psychonauts, while dotted wth some humorous moments, just isn’t as off-the-wall laugh-so-loud-you-wake-up-your-girlfriend funny as the earlier moments.

Actually, Psychonauts is an attractive game, even if it’s best described as having “a lot of personality.” Though some of the texture work isn’t that hot and Raz isn’t exactly overflowing with sly animations, the environments are vivid and original. Though I miss the boring gray walls of endless buildings and rehashed environments in every first-person shooter, I just love the look of Psychonauts. Each level is so unique that there’s little that could be re-used from one level to the next. There’s absolutely no sense of repetition here and each environment perfectly fits the situation. Art is about more than hi-res textures and specular highlighting — it’s also about design and Psychonauts has design out the wazoo.
IGN’s Review of Psychonauts
Find Psychonauts: eBay / Amazon)
Featured Game: Voodoo Vince
“Voodoo Vince is a fun-loving and solidly built action/platform game in search of a little magic. You guide a cute little voodoo doll who’s on a quest to rescue his creator from an evil magic man and restore order to the secret world of magic in New Orleans. The Big Easy locales help the cartoon visuals score major style points, and they set the stage for some great Dixieland-style jazz licks in the audio score, too.

The game plays like an homage to the platform action made popular by a shipload of titles before it, including Donkey Kong. But so much of it is familiar that it walks a tightrope between being fresh and being too derivative.

Vince, however, features one-of-a-kind combat action in keeping with his voodoo-doll origins. Beat him up in all manner of goofy, insane ways, and you don’t hurt him, but you will damage his enemies. For instance, summoning a magic anvil smashes Vince, but his foes wind up flatter than yesterday’s pancakes! The 30 voodoo attacks are a little masochistic but they’re a ton of fun. The controls do a masterful job of keeping that voodoo you do in order, too. Vehicle races with mini-jets and fanboats, and a nice array of mini-games round out Vince’s challenges.”
GamePro’s Review of Voodoo Vince
Find Voodoo Vince: eBay / Amazon)

More Great Games:
Whiplash (eBay / Amazon)
Vexx (eBay / Amazon)
ToeJam & Earl III: Mission to Earth (eBay / Amazon)
Grabbed by the Ghoulies (eBay / Amazon)

Action

Obvious Choices:
Ninja Gaiden, Spiderman, Star Wars, MechAssault, Advent Rising, More

Featured Game: Jet Set Radio Future
“The gameplay in Jet Set Radio Future, much like the story, mixes old and new elements. While the game’s core gameplay is unchanged–you’ll still get around the streets with magnetically charged skates and collect spray paint cans that you’ll use to spray graffiti on your surroundings–some of the mechanics and control have been tweaked. You’ll find the same basic control layout as in Jet Grind Radio, but with a few more control options. The left analog stick gives you analog control over your skater’s speed. Pressing down on the stick also lets you perform a controlled grind that is useful when tagging….
If you’ve played Jet Grind Radio, you’ll notice several changes to the way the new game handles. Tagging has been simplified to a single press of the R trigger when you’re near tagging icons. Holding down the trigger will automatically tag the larger pieces of graffiti made up of multiple icons. The mechanics for dashing have also changed–the basic dash used in Jet Grind Radio has been replaced by the much more potent “boost dash.” Essentially a turbo boost that uses up 10 cans of paint, boost dashing can be useful in many situations. Aside from the obvious increase in speed, the boost dash will also serve as an offensive attack that’s vital to dealing with Rokkaku forces later in the game.

Jet Set Radio Future also includes a complete trick system that is actually integral to gameplay. Performing tricks will increase your speed when grinding, which is essential for making some of the seemingly impossible jumps you’ll have to make. Trick combos are also vital to your success in other ways, as they will often let you reach new areas… Visually, Jet Set Radio Future stands as one of the Xbox’s best-looking games yet, and that’s saying a lot. The game’s cel-shaded graphics and distinct art style are incredibly beautiful–a definite improvement upon those of the Dreamcast predecessor, which also looked spectacular for its time…. Jet Set Radio Future’s sound is almost as good as its graphics. In keeping with the game’s massive size, Smilebit has assembled a truly eclectic mix of music that mingles tunes by JGR Vets Hideki Naganuma and Richard Jacques with pieces from the Latch Brothers and Cibo Matto. The end result doesn’t provide quite as cohesive an auditory experience as that found in the original Jet Grind Radio, due to some dissonant and sometimes grating tunes that stick out, but the music still suits the action very well overall, and there’s plenty of it.
GameSpot’s Review of Jet Set Radio Future
Find Jet Set Radio Future: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: GunValkyrie
“I have a deep appreciation for GUNVALKYRIE in the same way that a boxer respects an opponent that he just KO’d in the 12th round. It’s about respect. It’s a game that will test your skill as a gamer because it’s so unforgiving and requires you to learn its deep and sophisticated philosophies. If you come into GV thinking you know how to handle it, you’ll spend a lot of time spinning your wheels playing the same levels over and over again. I like how GUNVALKYRIE smacks you down time and time again if you don’t learn the proper techniques that it’s trying to teach you and then perfect them. That’s immersion in a game at its finest….I don’t want to be overly critical of GUNVALKYRIE’s steep learning curve because all of the answers are right there in front of you, somewhere, while you’re playing and it all makes sense once you get the hang of it. But, in fact, that is the game’s one shortcoming: just an overall feeling of making things difficult for you. Even though it’s done on purpose and with good reason, I can easily see how this can turn off many gamers these days. With so many easy choices out there and so many instant gratification games on all systems, gamers have no reason to bang their heads against this Xbox game.”
IGN’s Review of GunValkyrie
Find GunValkyrie: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: Breakdown
“At the heart of Breakdown’s gameplay is the fantastic first-person perspective from which the action and story unfolds. The 3D, first-person view goes much further than a traditional FPS title. Instead of just using a first-person “camera,” Breakdown provides more of realistic viewpoint as seen through the eyes of Derrick himself. Beyond the viewpoint of Derrick, players will also experience various physical effects that he undergoes. When you are attacked, Derrick will lose his balance as he suffers the force of a hit or kick from a deadly T’lan warrior. As Derrick falls to the floor, or is flipped upside down, players will also suffer a distorted and blurred view before they must right themselves and regain their position. This makes for some tricky combat situations because often times an attack could come from behind, so on top of being blindsided on your ass, you will also have to pick Derrick back up as well as turn to face the attacker to prevent a second ass beating.

It’s the subtle attention to detail that makes Breakdown such a fresh look at the first-person genre while also adding a more realistic experience than you may expect. For instance, as Derrick moves, he will grow tired, and as he runs he will breathe more heavily. This will make his body move slightly up and down as he breathes, which will be noticed by the first-person view. During the initial training exercises players will notice that even simple moves like climbing a ladder or traversing side to side while dangling from a ledge require a good deal more effort than expected. Most games simply require the player to look up and push forward to move up a ladder, but Breakdown deliberately incorporates the various steps actually taken to do so. Players will have to first reach their hand out with the action button and again hit the action button to grab the first rung of the ladder. Then as Derrick begins making his way up or down the ladder, the viewpoint can be controlled to look to the sides and up and down while moving. Rather than just shimmying up or down, players will watch as Derrick grabs each rung and makes his way along each step of the ladder, no matter how tall or short it may be.”
TeamXBox’s Review of Breakdown
Find Breakdown: eBay / Amazon

More Great Games:
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (eBay / Amazon)
American McGee Presents Scrapland (eBay / Amazon)
Otogi (eBay / Amazon)
Otogi 2 (eBay / Amazon)
Stubbs the Zombie: Rebel Without A Pulse (eBay / Amazon)
Rogue Trooper (eBay / Amazon)
I-Ninja (eBay / Amazon)
The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction (eBay / Amazon)
Armed and Dangerous (eBay / Amazon)
Robotech: Battlecry (eBay / Amazon)
Spartan: Total Warrior (eBay / Amazon)
Red Dead Revolver (eBay / Amazon)
Phantom Crash (eBay / Amazon)
Nightcaster (eBay / Amazon)

On-Rails Shooter

Featured Game: Panzer Dragoon Orta
“A shooter with a solid storyline, stunning graphics, and great sound, Panzer Dragoon Orta looks to carry on the tradition of its predecessors. For many, this will be their first real introduction to the series. But don’t worry, Panzer novices can still enjoy the game and those who played the earlier versions will almost certainly be pleased. Panzer Dragoon Orta is the perfect way to start the new year and is the best rail shooter of all time. Period…
Panzer is heavy on shooting. In fact, you’ll have trouble finding many games where you do as much shooting as you do here. But unlike most shooters, where you must always kill to survive, many of the enemies in Orta don’t have to be shot in order to progress. The point of Panzer isn’t simply to beat a level or beat the game. It’s partly about experiencing the sights of Panzer’s world and partly about replaying levels to attain better rankings. There are plenty of creatures in Orta you won’t have to kill. But if you want a good rating (and you will want one, if this game is going to appeal to you), you’ll need to shoot down as many enemies as possible.

That’s, perhaps, what makes the Panzer formula so addictive. For all of its beauty and dazzle, the gameplay is pretty simple. You destroy and you try to avoid dying. There are no pits to leap over, no puzzles to solve. Your goal is to shoot down as many enemies as possible. Orta is, essentially, a throwback to old school gaming when a game only took a few hours to pass, but the gameplay was so addictive that you played it again and again. Like Frogger, Ms. Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros., Contra, or the original Sonic, Panzer Dragoon Orta has an intangible extra that makes it worth playing again and again.

Old school gamers and fans of that brand of gameplay and feel will probably be able to enjoy Orta a bit more. Anyone who expects to get total control of a dragon, who wants to fly about like they’re playing Crimson Skies may be disappointed at first. This is a shooter on rails, not a dragon flight sim. It’s a fantastic game and as long as you go in knowing that the game is about multiple play-throughs, beating your own rankings, and enjoying a well-crafted world, then you should be able to enjoy and love Panzer Dragoon Orta.”
IGN’s Review of Panzer Dragoon Orta
Find Panzer Dragoon Orta: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: House of the Dead III
“Actual gameplay is very engaging and a whole gaggle of fun. Immediately after entering the house, zombies, bats, and other creatures waste no time lunging at you with their claws. The heads-up-display is overly simplified and gives information like how many bullets you have left in your chamber and your current health. As you blast away at the screen, you need to continually “reload” your chamber by shooting off-screen. If you take a hit, your health meter goes down by one. You have a certain number of lives until you need to use a continue. You’ll have to keep an eye on how many continues are left, as they are limited too. When two players are playing, the game makes up for the easier difficulty by splitting the continues between the two players..

Branching paths depending on your shooting accuracy are more plentiful in HotDIII. The truth is very simply that the game is NOT very different from its predecessors. However, it is important to note some very important changes developer WOW Entertainment has implemented.

All right, I’ll admit it. I spent almost fifty dollars on HotD was in the arcades. The game is just TOO much fun. It really gives the sensation of an adrenaline rush as you play this game. The fast-paced combat and somewhat interesting story manage to keep your attention for the time until this game is over. Overall, an extremely exciting and fun (and sometimes homework push-offing) title from Sega rejuvenates the series with the fresh twists it needed. I recommend this game for any fan of the series or the genre alike—there is just too much nostalgia to pass up.”
TeamXBox’s Review of House of the Dead III
Find House of the Dead III: eBay / Amazon

First-Person & Third Person Shooters

Obvious Choices:
Halo, Half-Life 2, DOOM 3, Far Cry, Timesplitters etc

Featured Game: Metal Arms: Glitch in the System
“Metal Arms has a welcomed style and color to it. There are some genuinely funny lines in the cinematics, some of which are littered with unexpected, bleeped profanity. This character carries over into the play scenarios too. Glitch encounters robots that sell him weapons and gadgets along his quest and they’re always full of comic one-liners. After completing an intermediate level, Glitch seems proud of himself until his commander comments, “Let’s not break out the joy lube just yet.” Meanwhile, when the hero shoots at enemy droids they will run around as if on fire and scream in sheer terror. The delivery is well done. The game has many play elements to it, but the core revolves around fast and furious gunfights. Glitch can carry an impressive arsenal of different weapons from laser fire to automatics, shotguns and rockets, slingshots and grenades, sniper rifles and more, and all of them are entertaining and serve their purpose in battle. (He can also arm either hand with these weapons and use R and L to shoot/throw/sling them simultaneously, which just feels fantastic.) So Glitch explores the large, open 3D environments the game dishes out, enemies run out, and mini-wars ensue. And this is the meat and potatoes of the experience.

It’s solid and refreshingly fun. Each of the game’s 40 areas is presented with different goals and objectives in mind and there are a wide variety of scripted events that bring the sequences together. Glitch is usually accompanied by friendly droids in his infantry, who fight and die — in canned, but nonetheless dazzling routines — all around him. The geography of levels is saturated with realistic physics, semi-dynamic and constantly changing — it crumbles, explodes and can occasionally be blown apart by Glitch’s weapons. The world has a tangible layer of interactivity to it, which is a feat that few competing developers can claim to have also achieved. And because structures fall apart and explode as droids are blasted to bits and bombs erupting, the levels are convincingly intense.”
IGN’s Review of Metal Arms: Glich in the System
Find Metal Arms: eBay / Amazon

More Great Games:
Brute Force (eBay / Amazon)
Psi-Ops (eBay / Amazon)
Destroy All Humans! (eBay / Amazon)
Destroy All Humans! 2 (eBay / Amazon)
The Punisher (eBay / Amazon)
Pariah (eBay / Amazon)

Action Adventure

Obvious Choices:
Prince of Persia, Spinter Cell, Grand Theft Auto, etc
Featured Game: Beyond Good & Evil
” In one sense, it’s easy to describe Beyond Good & Evil, the latest game from Rayman creator Michel Ancel. Its core game play is very similar to recent Zelda titles, especially the generally excellent The Wind Waker, with puzzle-laden “dungeons,” vehicular transport to different parts of the game world, an intuitive combat system, and even heart containers. Add to this plenty of stealth levels, hovercraft racing, classic shooting sequences, and even some platformer-style elements (though somehow without the frustrating jumping). Then wrap it all up with a sophisticated story involving rich characters in a vivid, beautifully realized game world. Quick summary? It’s Zelda for grown-ups, without the annoying fetch-quests….

It’s easy enough to tally up Beyond Good & Evil’s accomplishments in game play, level design, and outright eye candy, and declare it a success. But there’s something more here to which all of these technical and design accomplishments are only a means to and end. You see, BG&E is one of those rare games that shines from all points with an unmistakable quality of intelligence and personality. It’s in the sharp writing and excellent voice acting. It’s in the constantly inventive yet believable world of Hyllis and in the story’s intriguing twists and emotional impact. Or in little details, wonderfully presented: Pey’j and Jade leaping into an embrace after a big fight, or Jade’s face registering pity and horror with the subtlest change of expression. It’s one thing to create a game full of pretty graphics and big action; it’s something else to give us a story worth caring about involving characters we believe in.Ultimately, for all its similarities to Zelda, this is where Beyond Good & Evil finds its own ground. Not only does it avoid many of the frustrations of the games it draws from (and yes, that includes Zelda’s flat story and tedious item-chasing), but it is pierced throughout with humor, intelligence, and humanity. While it’s over a bit before you’d want it to be, Beyond Good & Evil tells its story with amazing pizzazz and polish. Even better, it’s a story well worth telling.”
IGN’s Review of Beyond Good & Evil
Find Beyond Good & Evil: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath
“Oddworld Inhabitants, the creator of the Oddworld universe, has turned out a few fairly different types of games set in the same unique universe… The Oddworld series now sees its most drastic change yet with the release of Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath. The new game’s emphasis on action and its attempt to combine third-person platforming and first-person shooting means that this new Oddworld has little to do with previous games to bear the name, but regardless of its place in the franchise, Stranger’s Wrath is a great game that brings together a few styles of gameplay startlingly well.

Stranger’s Wrath may take place in Oddworld, but it also starts out with an Old West theme. You play as Stranger, a bounty hunter of unknown origins. You seem to be the only one of your kind around, and you’ll spend most of the game taking on outlaws who are terrorizing various towns full of chicken-men. Why? To pay for your operation, of course… The game’s plot, conveyed through the occasional cutscene, is definitely one of its strong points. It starts slow, but the gradual buildup pays off at the end of the game’s roughly 15-hour adventure, which makes up for a lack of extras or alternate modes of play.

Stranger’s Wrath combines a few different methods of control for a nice hybridization of multiple styles. The game’s third-person perspective is where you’ll do most of your jumping and rope climbing. It’s also where you’ll execute your melee attacks. Stranger can ram foes with a head-butt maneuver or knock them around with a Crash Bandicoot-like spin punch. You can also drop into a first-person view by pushing in the right analog stick. While it’s nothing new for third-person games to allow you to get into first-person for a more-controllable view, Stranger’s first-person view essentially turns the game into a full-fledged first-person shooter. You can still double-jump while in this view, but you’ll move a bit slower, too…

There are a lot of great things going on in Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath. The game manages to combine its third-person and first-person viewpoints extremely well, and the little things, like using bugs and rodents for ammo, really give the game a unique flavor. It’s always interesting to see new twists on old action formulas, and it’s even better when the new twists pay off and combine to form something that’s better than the sum of its parts. While the disappointing voice work gets in the way fairly often, it’s still minor in the grand scheme of things. If you’re looking for an exciting action game with a unique sense of style, then Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath is a perfect fit. ”
GameSpot’s Review of Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath
Find Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath: eBay / Amazon

More Great Games:
Freedom Fighters (eBay / Amazon)
Thief: Deadly Shadows (eBay / Amazon)
Galleon (eBay / Amazon)
Second Sight (eBay / Amazon)
Futurama (eBay / Amazon)

Adventure

Obvious Choices:
Pirates!, Myst IV, Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee

Featured Game: Indigo Prophecy
“From the moment you turn the game on, you’ll probably realize that this game more resembles an indie film than your typical game, which is probably why it’s called “interactive cinema”. In fact, the game reminds me more of movies such as Se7en, Memento and certain David Lynch movies, than it does most other games. You’re presented with a narrative from Lucas Kane, the main character of the game and soon you’ll find out why. This game takes a seemingly real-life experience and adds a surreal twist to it. The game begins with Lucas sitting in a bathroom stall in a diner on a chilly January day. Instead of your typical bathroom business, we watch Lucas carving into his wrists while apparently in a trance. Lucas Kane emerges from the stall and walks over to a man washing his hands, surprises him and then stabs him to death. How’s that for an introduction? After killing a total stranger in the restroom for no apparent reason, you awaken from your trance and are now in control of Lucas…

This is an adventure game, but there sure is a hell of a lot of tense moments that rival or surpass many action games, so for those who think adventure = boring, you’re dead wrong. The gameplay has a focus on exploration, investigation, intrigue and most of all, choice. Indigo Prophecy puts you in the shoes of Lucas Kane with a vast immersion factor. You, the gamer, know only what Lucas knows; you just killed a total stranger in cold blood for no reason, only “you” really didn’t do it. There is a huge amount of interaction from the get-go, what do you choose to do now? If you’ve ever read one of those choose your own adventure books, you’ll find Indigo Prophecy to be somewhat similar, as you get to choose your actions. Each choice you make affects the outcome of the game. Interacting in the game couldn’t be easier, because when you can perform an action, an icon pops up indicating the direction of the right thumbstick that you push in order to interact with the object. Some decisions to make include: do you walk Lucas over to the sink to clean yourself up; do you try and hide the body; how about mopping up the blood; and what about the bloody knife you used as a murder weapon?’

This game puts a unique twist on the adventure genre, a genre that has needed a breath of fresh air like this one for a long time. Its gameplay is innovative, unique and fun. I do wish that the QTEs happened before-hand, because sometimes youl’l miss out on some great scenes, but that’s really a fairly minor complaint. The graphics are highly detailed and the motion captured animation is superb. I can’t say enough about the impeccable audio and while it doesn’t control perfectly, it has a considerable amount of replay value for a single player adventure game. I really liked how a surreal twist was put on reality, it really added to the intrigue and mystery of an already suspenseful game, which compelled me to play nonstop. The characters are memorable and the storyline is great, even if it gets a bit “out there” towards the end. It’s games like this that deserve to be called art, instead of just “games”.”
TalkXBox’s Review of Indigo Prophecy
Find Indigo Prophecy: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: Syberia II
“Truth be told, the whole game is beautiful. Subzero conditions have never been so gorgeous. Sure, stills make up most of the environments, but who really cares when they look this good? Plus, the developers employed a variety of graphical touches that turn each still into a living postcard. You’ll often see animals scurry about frozen ponds, or watch birds and white owls dart around the screen.

Trees sway in the freezing wind and snow lazily drifts on top of hills and buildings. Character animation looks equally impressive. As Kate Walker makes her way across the landscape, she’ll leave footprints in the snow. Leave her alone for too long, and she’ll shudder and cough. All characters, regardless of importance, appear to have been animated with utmost care. With a story populated with well-written characters, it would have been a damn shame to have them look bland and lifeless.

Through its faults, Syberia II conjures a little bit of that magic common during the golden days of adventure games. It has a great, albeit short, storyline that grips you from the get-go. Plus, the story’s sense of urgency does a nice job balancing the languid pace of its gameplay. It’s a bit too slow-paced for consoles, enough that it may frustrate some gamers. Superb graphics, sound and music push Syberia II above being good, and just short of being great. During an adventure game drought though, Syberia II is a real winner — a refreshing game rich in narrative, gameplay and style.”
IGN’s Review of Syberia II
Find Syberia: eBay / Amazon

More Great Games:
Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon (eBay / Amazon)
Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth (eBay / Amazon)
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (eBay / Amazon)
Still Life (eBay / Amazon)

Survival Horror

Obvious Choices:
Silent Hill, Fatal Frame

Featured Game: Obscure
“Though the idea certainly isn’t new, the heart of Obscure’s innovation is its two-person co-op gameplay. But unlike past titles that have tried to benefit from a leapfrog system when approaching the concept of two-player survival, Obscure goes a more practical route by making everything simultaneous. In this adventure, Character A won’t have to stand on the secret switch while Character B acquires the Sacred Gem of Amara — they’ll have to decide what to do together and just go out and do it. This simultaneous “one-screen system” works a bit like a buddy cop movie: with one protagonist providing backup and another one trying to complete an objective at the same time. The end result is a pretty fluid and fast-paced escapade that can quickly turn into a great two-person party game…

ome additional bits of gameplay have pushed the envelope as well. In a nod to DOOM 3 players that were begging for a feature just like it, for example, users can tape flashlights to their weapons so that they don’t have to switch between illumination and firearm to see what they’re killing before pulling the trigger. The dated and frustrating typewriter save system made popular by the Resident Evil series has been nixed too, in favor of a much handier ’save anywhere’ system that’s only limited to the number of discs that you find to use it. Other little details, like the more realistic recovery items (first aid kids, energy drinks) and an interesting light boost feature (a way to attack a swarming cloud of darkness with your flashlight to keep enemies away), add a distinctive flavor to the game that I haven’t really seen anywhere else. There’s even a handy quick-select menu system that allows players to bring up weapons and items independently on the fly (no need for sloppy menus anymore). When coupled with the cool co-op goodies mentioned above, you could see why Obscure could be a compelling pick-up for horror fans.”
IGN’s Review of Obscure
Find Obscure: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: Cold Fear
For what it is–a glossy update on Resident Evil 4–Cold Fear is remarkably effective. For one, the setting is unique. You begin on a storm-drenched whaling ship that lurches to and fro endlessly. This swaying heightens the tension by limiting your vision (as well as your aiming abilities). Same goes for the curtains of pounding rain; Aside from being a wonderfully atmospheric visual effect, the constant downpour jacks up the suspense by concealing your foes. And what foes they are…Cold Fear’s jaw-dropping visuals steal the show, oozing high-res malevolence at every turn. It’s enough to make you wonder why Sony and Microsoft are so obsessed with hurrying expensive new consoles to market–these amazing graphics will do just fine, thanks. The rusted-out derelict whaling ship boasts so many disturbing details and dark corners that it’s practically a character unto itself.

That said, the Xbox version offers the superior visual experience. Its advanced lighting system casts advanced real-time shadows (much like Doom 3), a high-tech feature the PS2 hardware simply can’t match. Cold Fear also looks great on the PS2, but its comparatively primitive lighting (the flashlight and shadows look far simpler) can’t inspire the same level of primal dread. The freaky sounds help pick up the slack, pumping out dynamic music that reacts to the action.

Cold Fear is an impressive achievement, and the first game to offer a serious alternative to the venerable Resident Evil series. Resident Evil 4’s massive arsenal gives it an edge, but Cold Fear’s maneuverable controls are a huge advantage.
GamePro’s Review of Cold Fear
Find Cold Fear: eBay / Amazon

RPG

Obvious Choices:
Fable, X-Men Legends, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Baldur’s Gate

Featured Game: Phantom Dust
“Phantom Dust was… a unique blend of RPG, action, and collectibility struck a chord with Japanese gamers, and it managed to build up a respectable following overseas… It’s hard to classify Phantom Dust’s gameplay. It’s part role-playing, part third-person shooter, part strategy, and part collectible card game. No matter how you slice it though, it all adds up to a lot of addictive fun. The majority of the game consists of squaring off against a group of enemies within the confines of the rubble of the surface world. Players will enter combat armed only with some quick reflexes and a customized collection of psionic powers.

Powers from a player’s arsenal will appear randomly on the battlefield as a colored orb or energy. Up to four powers can be equipped at one time by running up to an orb and assigning it to any of the four face buttons. This made for even more frantic gameplay, as there were times that I found myself unarmed, outgunned, and across the room from my next available power. Early in the game, I found myself on the receiving end of a beatdown fairly often, due to Phantom Dust’s unusual controls. After some practice, I started to get the hang of things and the controls felt a lot more natural, though I still can’t stand having to click the left thumbstick to jump.

After playing Phantom Dust’s single player mode for a while, I was already sold on the game’s value. However, once I signed on to Xbox Live, I was floored by the number of options available for players. It’s easy to tell that Microsoft had really gone out of its way to create a solid online community for the game. From Phantom Dust’s online lobby, I was able to buy, sell, and trade any number of available powers to tweak out my arsenal. Once I built what I thought was a respectable arsenal I took it for a test run online, where I quickly learned that my arsenal needed more of an overhaul than I thought. Still, I can honestly say I can’t remember a time I’ve had that much fun losing a game. And thanks to Phantom Dust’s downloadable content, the possibilities for expansion are endless.

After my time spent with Phantom Dust, I can safely say it would have been a shame if American gamers never had a chance to experience it. There is so much packed into this game that it’s a steal at twice the price. Phantom Dust is a unique “must-have” title that should be a part of any Xbox owner’s library.”
GameSpy’s Review of Phantom Dust
Find Phantom Dust: eBay / Amazon

Featured Game: Shenmue II
“Shenmue II is not a terribly difficult game, but it requires a certain amount of hours to play through. Some segments later on are nearly 100% cut scene, which cannot be skipped or sped up in any way. When it’s all done, Shenmue II leaves you hanging even more so than part I, and right up until that point, you’ll feel like the game is just finally starting to pick up pace. Overall, the game while much larger than the original, should take just a little bit longer to play through. Assuming of course, the little extras don’t suck up too much free time.

At heart, Shenmue II is really just a jazzed up next-generation, graphical adventure. There is plenty to see and do, and Ryo’s quest is captivating, interesting, and even occasionally educational. While the Xbox version is more polished than the Dreamcast original, as mentioned earlier, I definitely would have preferred to play this game a year ago on inferior hardware if it meant Shenmue III would be released in the more immediate future. Dreamcast gamers who played the Japanese import game still could benefit from the English localization, but may be disappointed to find the game essentially the same. Regardless of whether you experienced the first Shenmue, Xbox owners who are craving a good, epic adventure game should absolutely grab a copy of Shenmue II. It has a few annoying flaws, but overall, it’s my pick as the best Xbox adventure game of the year. ”
Gaming Age’s Review of Shenmue II
Find Shenmue II: eBay / Amazon

More Great Games:
Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes (eBay / Amazon)
The Bard’s Tale (eBay / Amazon)
Sudeki (eBay / Amazon)
Arx Fatalis (eBay / Amazon)

Fighting

Obvious Choices:
Dead or Alive 3, Soul Calibur II, Street Fighter Series, Guilty Gear X

Featured Game: Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus
“Tobias has long wanted to implement his full vision of a fighting game, but never had the console or the backing to do so. With Tao Feng he has both. So what was this vision? A more open fighting game, with large environments, rewards for aggressive play, removal of the traditional “round” system, and a heavy reliance on combos. And, for the most part, Tao Feng is a smashing success.Gamers who choose to pick up Tao Feng and give it a whirl will find a tough fighter (really, about as hard as they come) that does its best to counter many of the cheese moves fighting experts have come to rely on the past decade. While Tao Feng doesn’t necessarily look like the next evolution of fighting games, it’s certainly a good start. Once you get used to leaping off walls when you’re backed into a corner, it’s hard to hop back to another fighting game that leaves you trapped and at the mercy of your buddy’s cheese moves.

Using the environment to swing off poles and beams, utilizing your Chi powers to wreak powerful (and easy to perform) attacks on your enemies, and staying aggressive to wear down your opponent’s defenses and eventually break their limbs creates a unique and new fighting gameplay experience. And so does a lack of timer or official rounds. Tack on the graphical successes and more voice over dialogue than I’ve remember hearing in a fighting game, and you’re on the road to something fresh and exciting. And Tao Feng is certainly that.”
IGN’s Review of Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus
Find Tao Feng: Fist of the Lotus: eBay / Amazon
More Great Games:
Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee (eBay / Amazon)
Barbarian (eBay / Amazon)

Sports

Obvious Choices:
Madden, NBA Live, 2K Sports, etc

Featured Game: Sega Soccer Slam
“Those who were always tempted by sports games, but never had the patience for endless menus and realistic nitpickings, will find Soccer Slam to be an addictive, fast-paced blast. Even punters of the GameCube version will find a host of new options in this Xbox incarnation, most notably extra players and multiplayer games.

A great deal of Slam’s appeal is its simplicity. Playing three-on-three, the controls are easy to learn and include flashy slow-motion power shots, dekes, and passes. You can even hit other players in an endless contest to possess the ball. At times, the game resembles more of a surreal slugfest, where a ball happens to be on the field, than an actual soccer game. Additional multiplayer contests?including a free-for-all brawl and hot potato game?add some diversity, but they become stale after a few plays.

Slam’s graphics shine. The visual highlight is the cartoonish players, which look as if they just clawed their way out of Tex Avery’s reject bin, complete with distinctive theme music and victory chants. Smooth controls keep the gameplay consistently exciting, the sole hitch is a clumsy passing system, the control stick that moves your player also directs your pass.

In Soccer Slam, it’s more gratifying to kick an opponent in the head than the ball into the goal, so if you?re expecting a sim-heavy, FIFA-style approach, look elsewhere. Sports games like this are much more exciting when reality stays out of the way.
GamePro’s Review of Sega Soccer Slam
Find Sega Soccer Slam: eBay / Amazon

I posed the question in this forum thread regarding what gaming machines we have been dreaming about getting, but just seem to be out of our reach. Between my own dream machines and those shared by the users here, I now present to you the machines I thought were most worthy of being labeled a Retro Gaming Dream Machine.

SNK Neo-Geo
While most of us had a Super Nintendo or a Sega Genesis during the early 1990’s, hardcore gamers were drooling over SNK’s mega-console.

In addition to the MVS Arcade system, SNK also offered the AES home system. What made the AES stand high above the SNES and Genesis is that it had identical hardware capabilities as the arcade system. In addition to its tremendous sprite capabilities, standard arcade joystick controller, and mammoth ROM sizes, it also debuted with a price tag of $649.99 (nearly $900 when adjusted for inflation) for the system bundle.

While the Neo-Geo had a handful of unique games such as Metal Slug and Windjammers, its specialty was fighting games. Many of the fighting genre’s hottest franchises such as King of Fighters, Fatal Fury, and Samurai Shodown all originated on the Neo-Geo and, of course have the superior versions of the games.

The Neo-Geo is the longest-running console as SNK produced games well into the 21st century. To this day Neo-Geo consoles and games still commands prices in the hundreds of dollars. Even though the console has been emulated for quite a while and many of the best Neo-Geo games have been ported to the PS2, SNK’s original machine is still the holy grail for hardcore retro gamers wanting solid 2D goodness.

X-Men Arcade 6-Player Dual Screen
Every hardcore gamer would love to have a genuine arcade cabinet for either authentic emulation purposes or for having a shrine to their favorite arcade game of years past.

While most arcade cabinets feature a standard one or two joysticks and a single CRT monitor, their was a version of Konami’s X-Men arcade game that blew all other cabinets away.

The premium version of the X-Men arcade game featured a total of six player joysticks and two CRTs screens side-by-side in order to produce a widescreen effect. Design was very much ahead of its time and still hasn’t been matched to this day (If you know of another 6-player arcade game, let me know)

The game itself it also quite enjoyable. It is one of the best side-scrolling brawlers in the arcades and is quite similar to other Konami licensed beatemups like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Simpsons. The animation and sound effects are top-notch, and of course, the X-Men universe is always interesting.

I have yet to have an arcade experience that matches the six-player co-op adventure on such a large screen. You can read more about my thoughts and expereriences with this cabinet over at RoomPlay.

Ben Heck’s Handhelds
If you haven’t seen Ben Heckendorn’s work before, be prepared to be amazed. Ben is one of the premier console modders in the world (he wrote the book on the subject, after all) and has taken nearly every major console and turned it into a fully portable handheld version.

Ben builds his portable systems by taking old console such as the Atari 2600, or the NES and cutting up the internal PCB until he can fit it in his hand. He then designs a custom case and cuts cases on a CNC machine. His creations have been featured in such publications as Wired, Popular Science, and Maxim, and on TV shows like The Screen Savers and Attack of the Show. He is also credited with creating a portable Playstation before Sony did.

He first creations started with various Atari systems, but he progressed into portable versions of the earlier Nintendo and Sega system until he reached the climax of the likes of the N64, Neo-Geo, and Playstation 2. Each system has a built-in screen, runs off of battery power, and features an impressive artistic style. There is also no emulation involved with any of these portable systems. They all boot games from original cartridges or optical media.

Since he does not mass-produce these projects, when he sells them off, they command quite a bundle of money. If you want a shot at purchasing one of his one-of-a-kind handhelds, you should be prepared to spend a hundreds of dollars.

Last year I had the privilege of chatting with Ben about his projects and what challenges he faced when designing them. He is quite an entertaining guy and his handhelds are truly a work of art.

Modded Sega Saturn
After the stumbles Sega encountered with the Sega CD and 32X add-ons, people were hesitant to buy Sega’s 32-bit console. Nevertheless, the Sega Saturn was a wonderful piece of hardware that was greatly under appreciated and still has a cult following. The console itself is still relevant as emulation of the Saturn is still not ready for prime time.

While the Saturn may not have the 3D capabilities of the Playstation, it did have quite a few exclusive games that still are amazingly fun in addition to possessing an extensive library of 2D fighters and 2D shooters that beat out Sony’s console.

However, because of the Saturn’s commercial obscurity (especially outside of Japan) many of the most enjoyable games for the system are quite hard to find for an affordable price. Some of the really tough finds, like Panzer Dragoon Saga , Radiant Silvergun , and Keio Yugekitai are being sold for over $200 on eBay.. The original games are becoming more of a collectors item as sellers gouge buyers. Because of this, many Saturn owners have turned to downloading games and playing backups.

Most Saturn owners give the Saturn Swap Trick a try, but quickly find it frustrating and/or inconvenient (and possibly damaging). In the long run, having a modded Saturn makes the process much more enjoyable and allows download-happy gamers to try out a variety of 32-bit titles.

Over the last year or so, there has been quite a renewed interest in the console and prices have been steadily rising for Saturn consoles on eBay. However, if given the chance, you can be sure that the Saturn will be sure to please those looking for old-school games and an interesting alternative the the Playstation and/or complement to the Dreamcast.

NEC Turbo Duo
The TurboGrafx 16 (aka PC Engine in Japan) was a bit ahead of its time and its lack of third party publisher support left it to lose the battle against Sega and Nintendo. NEC’s efforts did leave gamers some interesting hardware that was host to a number of great games that are popular among classic gamers — primarily 2D shooter fans and arcade game buffs.

The TurboDuo is essentially a combination of TurboGrafx-16 and TurboGrafx CD hardware, in addition the Super System BIOS + extra 192k RAM built-in to the motherboard. The TurboDuo was capable of playing standard audio CDs, CD+Gs, TurboGrafx TurboChips, Japanese and North American CD-ROM² (TurboGrafx CD) and Super CD-ROM² titles.

The system is also able to play Japanese PC Engine HuCARDs with a third party HuCARD converter or modification. With a HuCARD converter plus a Japanese Arcade Card Duo, the system can also play Japanese Arcade CD-ROM² games. All of these game format possibilities opened doors to a relatively wide selection of games considering the console’s obscurity.

Pioneer LaserActive
Before the XBox line of consoles added media capabilities and the PS2 brought DVD playback to gamers, consumer electronics powerhouse, Pioneer offered a mega-console that aimed to bring a similar convergence to many home entertainment centers.

With the Pioneer LaserActive, users could have a LaserDisc/CD player (precursor to DVDs and BluRay, for you kiddies out there) that had both movie and music playback and interactive entertainment possibilities in addition to featuring interchangable modules for several game systems such as the Sega Genesis/MegaDrive, Sega CD, and NEC’s TurboGrafx 16/PC Engine.

Sega’s PAC-S1 module, released at a price of around $350, allowed users to play Genesis/MegaDrive, Sega CD, and specially created Mega LD games through the player. The Mega LD games were briefly thought to be the next evolution in gaming, mainly because the Laserdisc’s massive storage capacity. The addition of either module also made the unit compatible with either Sega or NEC brand control pads.

This all sounds quite interesting, but unfortunately, the prices for all of this was quite outrageous. (Much more than the Neo-Geo). A LaserActive and its gaming modules totaled up to around $2,000. This gave consumers very little reason to purchase the LaserActive instead of the cheaper devices it was designed to replace.

In the 21st century, the LaserActive remains a rare and highly-collectable piece of gaming hardware that has some unique features and may be quite a conversation piece among classic gaming aficionados.

Modded XBox
The XBox itself isn’t very retro on its own (even though it does boast a number of 2D fighters), but once you modify the console, you will be able to run emulators for nearly every classic gaming system within a user friendly interface.

There are a handful of independent game shops that have been known to sell pre-modded XBoxes (usually with illegal game copies pre-loaded on the hard drives) and they have been known to be quite popular with celebrities because of their simplicity of use and seemingly endless gaming and media possibilities.

While selling these boxes is obviouly more-than-frowned-upon by law enforcement, you can still use a number of methods to modify your own XBox to bring it to retro gaming glory. While initially, there were only hardware modifications involving modchips, there are also software-based mods that will also allow you to reach your goal. (You can read up on our discussion of said mods in the forums).

Once the XBox is modded, you will be able to replace the XBox’s system software, install media players, and utilize a number of full-speed emulators for systems spanning from the NES to the Playstation and virtually everything in between. The XBox is capable of emulating nearly every system that has been accurately emulated on the PC.

In addition to booting emulation DVDs, you can also store your emulators, ROMs, and ISOs on an upgraded hard drive or network storage. Combine this with controllers like the Logitec Wireless controllers and the XBox’s excellent AV connection and you have the ultimate in gaming convenience and quality.

Sega Dreamcast
If you don’t want to deal with system modifications in order to play emulators on a console, you may also want to take a look at the Sega Dreamcast.

While it may not have to power to emulate many of the newer systems as well as the XBox, it does emulate a number of systems quite well. The NES, Sega Master System, Gameboy, and handful of older systems are emulated to near perfection and have very elegant interfaces. Many games on the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo are emulated fairly well, but there is occasional slowdown and/or sound glitches.

The combination of the Dreamcast’s power and the skill of creative programmers is really shown off in projects such as Bleemcast (for Playstation emulation) and Neo4All (which works surprisingly well for Neo-Geo AES/CD emulation). While a large chunk of games for these systems are not playable via emulation, the Dreamcast does much more than people originally thought.

As if the emulation isn’t enough of a reason for retro gamers to track down a cheap Dreamcast, you will also have a very large selection of 2D Fighters and Shooters to choose from. The Dreamcast is possibly one of the best consoles for solid 2D gameplay.

Finally, when you combine the wide gaming possibilities with the handful of Dreamcast hacks availible and native VGA support (for very high image quality), and you have an excellent poor-man’s Modded XBox.

Sega Nomad
After the strong success of the Genesis/Megadrive console, Sega turned its research and development teams loose in hopes of burning Nintendo. The result was a flurry of products that eventually confused consumers. While many gamers may remember the ill-fated Sega CD and 32X add-ons, not everyone may recall the official handheld version of the Genesis known as the Nomad.

Even though Sega had the color-screened Game Gear to battle against the popular Nintendo Gameboy, Sega released the Nomad hoping that people would flock to the device to play their already large collection of Genesis cartridges on the go instead of having to buy special portable games.

The Nomad featured a 3.25 inch, high-resolution, backlit LCD screen and required six AA batteries. It also offered an A/V output jack on the top of the unit, allowing owners to play games on a television screen with a separate A/V cable. One particularly interesting feature was the ability for one player to play using a connected TV while another watched on the Nomad. The directional pad on the unit controlled all one-player games, and a port on the bottom allowed a second controller to be plugged in for two-player games. This meant that the Nomad could be a fully functional home system as well as a completely portable handheld solution with a pre-existing library of games available for it. Unfortunately, Genesis add-ons such as the 32X, Sega CD, and Power Base Converter are not compatible with the Nomad.

While the Nomad was a top-quality product that had a large library of Genesis games at its disposal, it initially had a high price tag of $179 and drained batteries very quickly. The Nomad was eventually re-released at a very affordable price through ToysRUs stores, but it was too little, too late. However, those that still enjoy playing their old Genesis carts, may want to pick up a Nomad for the road.

Sega CDX
At this point you are probably realizing that this list seems a bit biased toward Sega. While that may be true to a certain extent, there is no denying that Sega had some innovative hardware — even if they weren’t commercially successful.

Back in the mid 1990’s it was cool enough to have a portable CD player, so you can imagine how phenomenal it was to have a portable CD player that also played Sega Genesis cartridges and Sega CD discs. (Keep in mind that you can also download, burn, and play Sega CD games with no modifications)

Sega’s CDX was a great engineering feat in its day as it combined a Genesis and Sega CD into a compact and easily portable device. A decade later it is still a highly-collected machine and functions as a novel way to play games from Sega’s best years.

If you have a Genesis and Sega CD (or thinking about picking one up in the future), but would like to do away with the large footprint in your entertainment center and reduce the cable mess and multiple power bricks, the CDX is an ideal solution way to get your Sega 16-bit fix with the least amount of hassle and the ease of portability.

Messiah Generation NEX
This probably the most affordable machine on the list, but its a great device for those wishing to play their original NES/Famicom cartridges on fresh, clean hardware.

This NES clone is the most popular of its kind at the moment, but other closes like the Neo-Fami are also available. While they are not without some slight bugs and compatibility issues, they are a good alternative to fixing your 72-pin connector

If the thought of an NES clone isn’t appealing enough, Messiah also produces some top-notch wireless controllers for the console (which also work with your original NES) that use the same technology as Nintendo’s own Gamecube Wavebird controllers.

Did I miss any?
If you can think of any other Dream Machines, please feel free to let me know in the comments section below or in the original forum thread.