Contributions > Descriptions by Olivier Masse (443)

A set of 8 games that are designed to be played on the original IBM PC computer of the time. Everything uses ASCII graphics, so it even works on the MDA adapter. An easy-to-access Boss Key is included, which pops up a histogram with Friendlysoft-related data.

Most games are replicas of other popular games from the early 80s. There are variants of Pac-Man, Breakout, Frogger, Lunar Lander and Berzerk, as well as two different shooters and a PC Derby game.

Note that this is not the more extensive Friendlyware suite from 1987 which is already documented here, although both products are similar.

An online update of Sega GT 2002. Race 165 cars from the 50s to the concepts either in the classic GT 2002 mode or against human players on Xbox Live.

In GT 2002 mode, the player must work their way up the hill by first buying a cheaper car and winning cash or prize cars in order to acquire better vehicles. SEGA GT Online adds new parts and new cars to the shop, and allows the limited slip differential to be modified. Prize money and prices have been modified as well, and new tracks, including a facsimile of Laguna Seca, reverse tracks, and races set in the morning, evening, and night, have been added to the returning races.

The player can jump right in the action by selecting a car, from a Chevelle to a Fiat, then a track location, from an American desert to a European village. In addition to the returning Chronicles mode there is also now a Gathering mode with 30 check point, license test, and racing line challenges. As with Chronicles each completed challenge unlocks a car for purchase in GT 2002 mode.

Online, players could participate in races with other human players, or trade parts with them. As Xbox Live has been shut down this mode is no longer accessible.

Blockout is a Tetris variant with an added twist: it's in 3D. The player can rotate the blocks in 3D in order to fit them into the pit they are being guided into. Advanced users can play this game with odd three-dimensional pieces, or change the size of the pit, for depth of between 6 and 18 piles, and width and length of between 3 and 7.

The "1998" version of the popular Microsoft series. Flight Simulator is aimed at enthusiasts that features 3000 airports and precise recreations of 45 cityscapes. Flight modeling is provided by experts in both military and aerobatic fields. Helicopters and pre-launch planes are among those included.

Many scenarios with full dialogue with the control tower adds a lot of realism to the game. Internet play enhances your flight experience with other human-controlled airplanes. 3D acceleration and MMX technology are supported.

Bubble Ghost needs to blow a bubble out of his creator's castle. Your task is to guide him so as to direct the bubble through the gaps in each room. The bubble's direction is affected by which part of the ghost hits it.

Candles, fans, and other obstacles serve to make little Bubble Ghost's task harder. Bubble Ghost is invincible, but the bubble is prone to bursting if it hits anything at pace. You have five bubbles before the game is over.

Zak McKracken is a tabloid reporter (and not a very good one at that). After having a psychedelic dream one day, Zak realizes that something is wrong -- space aliens are dumbifying the general public through the telephone system. Zak must stop this, but he can't do it alone. After finding a strange crystal, Zak manages to get the help of the anthropologist Annie and her friends, Melissa and Leslie. The four unlikely heroes must now figure out a way to destroy the dumbifying devices and save the Earth.

Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders is a third-person puzzle-solving adventure similar in gameplay to Maniac Mansion. The player chooses verb commands (Open, Pick Up, Give, etc.; there are no Look or Talk commands) to interact with the game world. The game features up to four controllable protagonists; it is possible to switch between them at any time after they have been introduced, and also exchange inventory items if the characters are in the same location. The game can be described as a "globe-trotting" adventure, since the heroes are required to travel to different exotic countries and even leave the Earth for a while in order to complete it. Some of the puzzles are optional or can be solved in different ways.

The FM Towns version has VGA graphics with 256 colors and higher-quality music and sound effects.

GOG release comes with two versions of the game that install simultaneously. One is FM Towns version with updated graphics, while the other is marked as Floppy version which is the old DOS version of a game.

This add-on to Test Drive III lets you drive the Acura NSX and Dodge Stealth RT Turbo, in New England territory including Cape Cod and Niagra Falls.

Drive exotic cars while fleeing police in this sequel of the popular Test Drive series. New features include a true 3D engine (polygonal meshes), a selection of music on the radio, police evasion, instant replay, digitized dashboard/interiors, and larger, more diverse driving environment with multiple routes. Drive Lamborghini Diablo or the Pininfarina Mythos and Chevrolet CERV III prototypes.

Life & Death is a game which casts you as a doctor in a hospital. Your job is to diagnose patients and administer appropriate therapies, or even perform surgery when necessary.

The game was created in conjunction with by Myo Thant, a Hematologist.

To diagnose a patient, you have to press on his or her abdomen, to see which portions of the stomach cause pain. Based on triaging the patient (observation, medication or referring to another specialist), administering a X-Ray or ultrasound scan, you have to make a decision about the care, including surgery or medication.

In some cases, surgery will be necessary. You're the surgeon and you have to perform the operation very carefully, adhering strictly to the procedures, preserving hygiene, and maintaining care when cutting up the patient.

Should you mistakenly administer the wrong therapy, or kill your patient at the operating table, you're kicked into the medical school, where you're given hints as to what you've done wrong.

This mix of racing simulation and arcade game consists of driving a choice of 5 sports cars on a mountain strip at the fastest speed possible without getting caught by the cops. To avoid them, use your radar detector -- or just try to outrun them if they spot you. Manual stickshift only, so make sure you don't redline or you'll blow your engine.