Retro Gamer

Retro Gamer is the only magazine in the UK that’s fully dedicated to the halcyon days of classic gaming. If you’ve ever fondly blasted away at the Bydo Empire in R-Type, swung Bowser by the tail in Super Mario 64, or navigated all 20 levels of Matthew Smith’s Manic Miner, then this is the magazine for you. Created by a dedicated team of experts, Retro Gamer’s mission is to deliver constantly engaging and passionately written articles that cover a wide range of subjects. We offer our readership in-depth looks at classic games and franchises, behind-the-scenes glimpses of the software houses from yesteryear, and one-on-one exclusive interviews with industry veterans such as Archer Maclean and Hideo Kojima. Stylish, entertaining and beautifully presented, Retro Gamer is the ultimate guide to videogaming’s rich and diverse history.

THE RETROBATES • WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PLAYSTATION 2 EXCLUSIVE?

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Celebrating NICK THORPE • Saying goodbye to one of Harlow’s finest

Be like Jeff • How CES ’94 gave two kids with a fake company a chance

NEWS WALL • DISPATCHES FROM THE FRONTLINE OF RETRO GAMING

Feeling shifty

When weird was mainstream

Bloggo’s POW! • We speak to Bloggo about his entertaining YouTube channel that focusses on niche retro games

NEWS AUGUST 2009

THE LATEST NEWS FROM AUGUST 2009

THIS MONTH IN…

CHARTS • AUGUST 2009

Alex Kidd In Shinobi World • THE BEST OF TWO WORLDS

The Legacy Of SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS • TWENTY-ONE YEARS AGO, SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS STUNNED PLAYERS WITH ITS BREATHTAKING SENSE OF SCALE. IMMENSE ENEMIES AND WIDE-OPEN LANDSCAPES MADE IT AN UNFORGETTABLE CLASSIC. WITH FUMITO UEDA AND OTHERS CONNECTED TO THE GAME AS OUR GUIDES, WE EXPLORE ITS CREATION AND ENDURING LEGACY

CRAFTING NICO • HOW AN EARLY PROTOTYPE DEMONSTRATED TEAM ICO’S VISION

COLOSSAL COMPOSITIONS • WHY THE EPIC SOUNDTRACK IS SO REVERED

BOSS RUSH • FANTASTIC BEASTS AND HOW TO FELL THEM

REMAKING A CLASSIC • JOE HOUSTON ON THE HIGHLY ACCLAIMED PS4 REMAKE

HOLLYWOOD PAYS TRIBUTE • HOW THE FILM REIGN OVER ME INCORPORATES THE GAME

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MONTY ON THE RUN • BLENDING RAPID ARPEGGIOS, EXPRESSIVE PITCH BENDS AND ROCK-INSPIRED MELODIES, THE MAIN MUSICAL THEME FOR MONTY ON THE RUN TOOK THIS ADDICTIVE PLATFORMER TO ANOTHER LEVEL. ROB HUBBARD DISCUSSES HOW HE PUSHED THE COMMODORE 64’S SID CHIP AND COMPOSED ONE OF THE MACHINE’S DEFINING MASTERPIECES

ANOTHER MUSICAL HIGHLIGHT • It’s not just Rob Hubbard’s opening tune for Monty On The Run that sounds amazing…

THE MAKING OF LAST NINJA 2 BACK WITH A VENGEANCE • PLANNED LONG BEFORE THE RELEASE OF THE ORIGINAL GAME, LAST NINJA 2’S MARTIAL ARTS ADVENTURING BROUGHT SYSTEM 3 WORLDWIDE SUCCESS. STUDIO FOUNDER MARK CALE EXPLAINS HOW THE HUGELY POPULAR C64 SEQUEL CAME TO BE

COOL CHALLENGES • THE EPIC ENCOUNTERS OF THE EIGHTIES CLASSIC

CONVERSION CAPERS • MEMORABLE ADAPTATIONS THE C64 ORIGINAL

CRASH #89 • THE SPECTRUM HAD BUILT UP A MASSIVE LIBRARY OF SOFTWARE BY 1991 AND THERE WAS PLENTY OF CHOICE FOR MAGAZINE EDITORS LOOKING TO FILL THEIR COVERTAPES. FOR LUCKY CRASH READERS, THIS MEANT TWO PACKED OFFERINGS, WITH EIGHT WHOLE GAMES TO CHOOSE FROM, IN THIS MONTH’S COVERMOUNT CORNER

Covermount HIGHLIGHTS • THE BEST OF THE REST

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG SEGA ULTIMATE GUIDE • SONIC THE HEDGEHOG SPIN-DASHED HIS WAY INTO OUR HEARTS MORE THAN THREE DECADES AGO. IN TRIBUTE TO NICK THORPE, RETRO GAMER MAGAZINE’S BIGGEST FAN OF THE BLUE BLUR, WE TAKE A LOOK AT THE GAME THAT FIRST INTRODUCED SEGA’S MOST ICONIC CREATION TO THE WORLD

SONIC’S GREATEST MOMENTS • THE MOST MEMORABLE PARTS OF THE ORIGINAL GAME

BOSS RUSH •...