Writing about classic games, hidden gems and nostalgia – with gameplay clips over on TikTok. No huge video files here, just stories, screenshots and memories.
The Sega Dreamcast was a true pioneer — online play, VMU screens, arcade-perfect Sega titles and some of the most original games ever made.
Even today, the Dreamcast still feels fast, stylish and full of personality. A console that burned bright, but far too briefly.
Few games capture pure joy like Bubble Bobble. Its simple bubble-blowing and platforming hide a brutally clever challenge – especially in the later levels where enemies swarm faster than you can pop bubbles.
Whether you played this with a sibling, a friend, or alone at 3AM, Bubble Bobble never fails to create chaos, laughter, and the famous “just one more level” curse.
Rez isn’t just a rail shooter – it’s a sensory experience. Wireframe visuals, pulsating electronic music and lock-on shots that trigger sounds in time with the beat make every level feel like you’re playing inside a music track.
It’s one of the most unique Dreamcast titles ever created and a cult classic that proved games could be art long before that was a mainstream opinion.
Shenmue was a revolution. Fully voiced NPCs with daily routines, changing weather, day-night cycles, capsule toys, arcades you could actually play – Yokosuka felt like a real place you were visiting, not just a backdrop.
Feeding the kitten, hunting for sailors, or blowing yen at the arcade – Shenmue remains one of the most ambitious and atmospheric games ever made.
Eternal Darkness didn’t just scare you with monsters – it messed with you. The sanity effects would fake deleting your save, turn the volume down by itself, or pretend your TV had changed channel.
In this post I dig into why its Lovecraft-inspired story and fourth-wall tricks still stand out, and why the game deserves more love than it gets.
Delivering newspapers shouldn’t be this intense, but Paperboy turns a normal route into an obstacle course of angry neighbours, out-of-control cars and impossible jumps.
I talk about why missing a single house felt like the end of the world – and how the Mega Drive port stacks up against the arcade original.
Streets of Rage is more than just a side-scrolling brawler – it’s a vibe. Yuzo Koshiro’s soundtrack turned living rooms into neon-soaked city streets, and every punch, throw and pipe swing felt perfectly in sync with the beat.
From co-op chaos to spamming the special attack just to hear the siren, it’s still one of the most iconic beat ’em ups ever made.
Crazy Taxi is one of those games where you can hear it just by looking at a screenshot. The Offspring blasting, the timer screaming at you, and you weaving through traffic to launch a passenger at a pizza place or record store.
It’s still one of the best “five minutes of fun” games ever made – and a perfect showcase of the Dreamcast’s arcade DNA.
Desert Strike looks like a simple shoot ’em up, but underneath the explosions is a surprisingly tactical game. Fuel management, rescuing POWs and prioritising targets all matter way more than just holding the fire button.
It’s the kind of game where you’d fail a mission, stare at the map, and immediately hit “retry” because you knew you could do it just a little bit better next time.
1943 is classic Capcom arcade design: tight controls, simple rules, and that “just one more credit” pull. Taking down massive battleships and weaving through bullet patterns never stops being satisfying.
It’s one of those shooters that still feels fair today – tough, but fair – and perfect for short, intense sessions.
Gauntlet was chaos in a cabinet. Four players, endless enemies, and a health bar that couldn’t be trusted to stay full for more than thirty seconds. It was noisy, greedy and completely addictive.
Whether you mained the Warrior, Valkyrie, Wizard or Elf, everyone remembers stealing the food and hearing those legendary voice lines.
Diddy Kong Racing didn’t just copy Mario Kart – it added an adventure mode, bosses, unlockable characters and multiple vehicle types. Planes, hovercraft and karts all felt different, and the hub world tied it all together.
It’s still one of the most ambitious kart racers ever made, and a cornerstone of N64 nostalgia.
Rainbow Islands took the Bubble Bobble formula and flipped it – literally. Climbing upwards using rainbows as platforms while enemies bounce around gives it a very different feel, but the same irresistible charm.
Underneath the cute presentation, it’s a seriously smart platformer with secrets hidden everywhere for players willing to experiment.
The New Zealand Story looks adorable, but it’s vicious. Tight jumps, tricky enemies and maze-like levels make it one of those platformers that punishes impatience and rewards careful play.
It’s the sort of game you fall in love with and rage at in equal measure – a proper arcade-era test of skill.
R-Type is all about memorisation. The famous Force pod turns every encounter into a little puzzle – where you place it, when you detach it, and how you thread it through tight spaces matters more than pure reflex.
It’s a brutally tough shooter, but one that feels incredible when you finally glide through a level that used to destroy you in seconds.
Ghosts ’n Goblins is legendary for a reason. One hit and Arthur is down to his underwear, two hits and you’re restarting the level. Then you finish the game and it tells you to do it all again, properly this time.
It’s unfair, it’s punishing, and yet somehow it keeps dragging you back for one more run. Retro pain at its finest.