The Terminator (1992) - Sci-fi Video Game Review (Mega Drive/Sega Genesis)

The film version of The Terminator came out in 1984, but it was around the early nineties when the sublime Terminator 2: Judgement Day was so successful, that a whole host of video games started to be made, including versions based on the first movie. The Mega Drive/Genesis, Master System, and Game Gear versions were all similar. With only four levels and short levels this is a game that can be finished within fifteen minutes. As fun as this is that very short play time has to be taken into consideration.

In the far future of 2029 the world has almost been destroyed after the machines rose up and attempted to annihilate mankind. The humans fought back under the leadership of John Connor, and they were close to winning the war. In desperation the machines decided to send one of their own back in time. The plan was to kill Sarah Connor - the mother of John, in order that he never be born. To counter this John sends back one of his best soldiers - Kyle Reese in order to stop this relentless killer.

So with just four levels how do you tell the entire plot of the film? I'm not complaining about this, but bizarrely the first level takes place outside of the film. This has you as Kyle Reese (armed only with grenades) assaulting a cyberdyne base in 2029. Having your protagonist equipped with only hand grenades at the very start of a game was a bold move, as was the very first enemy you face in the game being a mini boss. Partway through you get access to a machine gun that leads to a much easier second half of the level.
The second level has you back in the past and is set around and in the nightclub where Reese first meets Sarah. From this level onwards Reese is decked out in a trenchcoat and armed with a shotgun. The main enemy in the game are the Police, and much like the Terminator itself these cannot be killed, only stunned briefly. I think this was due to Germany at the time having strict censorship laws about only being able to kill monsters, aliens and criminals (I may be mistaken, killing innocent cops seems wrong however you spin it). This was my favourite level of the game with some lovely animations when Reese swings off poles and vaults over bins. The Terminator shows up as a boss, but is very easy, knock it over three times and it is stunned allowing you to meet Sarah and end the level.

Alien3 (1992) - Sci-fi Horror Film Review (2003 Assembly Cut)

Alien3 has had a bad rap over the years, and not without good reason. This was a movie that was plagued with no end of problems throughout it's troubled production, from extensive script rewrites, to bickering amongst crew, to going completely over budget, this had it all. Director David Fincher (Se7en, Gone Girl) has never gone back to Alien3 and so there wasn't a definitive director's cut, however 2003 saw the release of the 'Assembly Cut' that based a lot of its changes and reworks on what Fincher's original vision for the movie had been. This cut clocks in at 145 minutes, as opposed to the theatrical run time of 114 minutes.

Following on a few weeks (or possibly even days) after the end of Aliens, the film starts with an escape pod crashing on prison planet Fiorina 161. A xenomorph had managed to get on the ship Ripley (Sigourney Weaver - Alien, Aliens), Hicks, young Newt, and the android Bishop (Lance Henriksen - Aliens, Near Dark) had used to escape the alien infested planet from the last film, and had caused its destruction. Ripley is rescued by the former inmates of the prison, who now live there as a religious commune. She is informed that she was tragically the only one to survive the crash. However a facehugger also survived and has created a new type of xenomorph. Trapped on a weaponless planet Ripley and the inmates must come up with a way to destroy the creature before it kills them all...

I had only seen Alien3 once before and had found it to be very boring. I really wasn't expecting much going back, but honestly, it is not as bad as I remembered. I particularly liked the set design, and while this can be a little slow going at times there is a good sense of atmosphere and bleakness to be found here. That opening of all the survivors of Aliens getting unceremoniously wiped off still leaves a bad taste though. I understand the reasoning but it felt like a snub to the story of the previous film. I have heard it said that one of the reasons Alien3 failed critically was that it ignored the more gung-ho approach of the second film and tried to recreate the slow tension of Alien. Trying to create mystery about a xenomorph that is now a known property was seen as a bad move. However I actually like this aspect of the film. Having Ripley armed with knowledge of how the creatures work, teaming up with a whole band of capable followers led to some exciting scenes. Having to come up with occasionally Scooby-Doo levels of convoluted plans to trap the monstrous killer was pretty fun on occasion.

Army of Darkness (1992) - Horror Film Review

It is damn criminal that I have still not reviewed the Evil Dead trilogy, especially as they are some of my favourite horror films. Army of Darkness is the last film in the trilogy and does expect you to have seen the previous films so there will be some spoilers.

After accidentally being sucked through a magical portal at the end of Evil Dead II Ash (Bruce Campbell) finds himself transported to the 13th Century. At first captured, he proves his worth by defeating a Deadite (with the use of his iconic chainsaw hand and boomstick) and is proclaimed to be the hero foretold in legends who would appear to defeat the evil plaguing the land. Ash reluctantly accepts his quest to banish the evil not to save the people, but he is told the Necronomicon (book of the dead) is the only object able to get him back home to the 21st Century.

Bruce Campbell always played Ash as an anti hero; a coward forced into a hero's role, but in this film he also becomes supremely arrogant, thinking himself vastly superior to the 13th Century people he refers to as 'primates'. His arrogance is his downfall many times throughout the film and leads to many comic moments. The Evil Dead was a horror with comedy elements, Evil Dead II went far more comedic but once again was still horror. The same can't be said of Army of Darkness, it has turned into an adventure film, dropping an age rating as well to be a 15. Ash is full of classic one liners (the origin of the classic line 'Hail to the King baby!') and also full of slapstick comedy.

Army of Darkness looks like it has a very small budget, the 13th Century represented by deserts and woodlands while the main location of the castle is very rough looking. Blood is in far less abundance and looks somehow even more fake than the corn syrup of the previous Evil Dead films. Being a 15 there is far less violence, gun shots do no physical damage, most the enemies being fought consist of skeletons done in a stop motion Jason and the Argonauts fashion.

It has to be said, which I am sure any Evil Dead fan knows is that there are two endings. The original ending was deemed too depressing for the American audience and so a happy ending was also made. Both are so different from each other that they are both worth watching. I have always watched both endings when ever I watch this film

As the end of a trilogy it is a fantastic change of pace, as a stand alone film it is not that great though, it has gone just a little (ok, a lot) too comedic, Ash in this incarnation being almost a parody of himself. Still Bruce Campbell is fantastic as both Ash and Evil Ash (the films main villain), Sam Raimi's direction is superb once more. Army of Darkness is a fun, dumb film and it knows it.

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Update 01/01/2021: While I have seen this plenty of times before this time it really clicked for me. It may have lost all the horror and the over the top violence of the previous entries but it really was quite funny. 

Alone in the Dark (1992) - Horror Videogame Review (PC)

Alone in the Dark, first of the 3D survival horrors was released in the midish 90's. You play as either Edward Carnby or some woman. Whichever character you choose to play as has gone to a creepy mansion to retrieve an antique from the attic there (the owner of the mansion having recently died in mysterious circumstances). The tension is built up right away. You watch your character go deeper and deeper into the house, if only it was so easy to get out.

The game starts with your character at the top of the mansion, right away you are under attack from creatures of darkness (though you can actually block both attic windows to prevent the demons getting to you). The game is classic old school survival horror, and pretty much invented the genre. You explore the mansion solving puzzles and collecting items. The newer Alone in the Dark games are complete shadows of this one. This has far more supernatural overtones to it. There are many undefeatable ghosts and poltergeists in the game. There aren't many enemies you can actually fight at all (a few zombies to begin with). I played this on PC using keyboard, so combat was terrible anyway. The game is very unforgiving. I remember in particular the front door. It was unlocked but if you opened it a portal to Hell sucked you in and was instant game over.

The location is confined to the house, though later on you do get to a network of deadly caves under the house. I never escaped the place, I am still there now. I played it before the Internet really existed in any popular form, so I got completely stuck and eventually gave up after weeks of stumbling round not knowing what I was supposed to do, I have an inkling that I did something that meant it was impossible to carry on

An update: 17/02/2020

I have recently gone back to this game and using a guide have completed it. I don't feel bad using a guide as I certainly put in the leg work as a teen into this, and as I stated in my original review I had in fact put myself in an impossible situation. While using a keyboard is a bit clunky I did enjoy my time with this, though it obviously shows its age a lot. This is split into two sections, the first part in the mansion was the more atmospheric, and felt more typical survival horror. The second part taking place in the caves under the house is a lot more action focussed, with platforming required. Due to how old this feels now it is hard to recommend to any but the biggest survival horror fan. While this wasn't the first survival horror game it is still one that Resident Evil has to have taken inspiration from, from the monsters you face, to the environmental puzzles this all echoes moments that future series did.

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