DIGITISER
  • MAIN PAGE
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Game Reviews
  • FAQ

DO YOU REMEMBER THESE: VIDEOTAPE BOARD GAMES?

6/9/2017

19 Comments

 
Picture
Do you know what I miss? Wandering around Blockbuster on a Friday evening, trying to find a film to rent. Thanks to Netflix, we're all drowning in an ocean of content, and yet... somehow I've become more discerning in my movie choices. 

Back in the Blockbuster days I'd rent any old rubbish if it had an alien or a robot on the cover. Now I won't look at anything that has less than 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Sad.

True story: the Blockbuster I used to go to was the one that often featured in the BBC2 sketch show Goodness Gracious Me.

But anyway. The video age brought us other nostalgic treats: Simon Bates telling us about "sexual swear words", terrifying anti-piracy messages, the man who used to drive down our road in his little van filled with pirated video nasties who I once saw delivering bread to a corner shop during the day thus dispelling all of his mystique... and the brief, glorious, reign of the interactive VCR board game.

​Here are ten examples of the latter.
ATMOSFEAR
Picture
Without a doubt the most successful of all the videotape board games, Atmosfear was typical of the genre, playing like a regular board game, but with occasional interruptions by a scary man on television.
Yes: a bit like the news in 2017, but with a ticking clock counting down to disaster.

So... probably a lot like the news in 2017. That's good satire, kids...

What you might not know is that Atmosfear was created in Australia, where it was known as Nightmare (it was retitled in the UK to avoid any copyright infringement with the nerds' favourite TV show,  Knightmare). New versions were still being released as recently as 2006 - albeit on the high-tech DVD format.

The game was such a phenomenon that even a tie-in song and music video were released - a sort of low-budget version of Thriller - and an official spooky "dance party" was held at Australia's Wonderland - hosted by "guest DJ" The Gatekeeper - to celebrate the game's success.

"It was the best party I've ever been to," wept one excited guest.
STAR WARS: THE INTERACTIVE BOARD GAME
Picture
Notable for brand new scenes shot by the original cinematographer of Star Wars, Gilbert "The Silbert" Taylor, Star Wars The Interactive Board Game featured a little-documented in-character appearance from original Darth Vader actors Dave Prowse and James Earl Jones.

Players assumed the role of "Force-sensitive" infiltrators aboard the second Death Star, and would get to hear such classic Vader quotes as:  "Hmm. I feel that there are those among you who have already taken their first step towards the Dark Side of the Force. Yes, it is indicated by the first letter of your first name. Those of you whose first names begin with one of the letters of 'Dark Side', increase your Dark Side power by one."
STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION INTERACTIVE VCR BOARD GAME: A KLINGON CHALLENGE
Picture
With the USS Enterprised docked for repairs, players on Star Trek: The Next Generation Interactive VCR Board Game: A Klingon Challenge assumed the role of a handful of crew members left aboard when a Rogue Klingon named Kavok attempts to take over the ship.

Shot on the set of the slightly boring TV series, the game at least felt authentic, even if Kavok did err on the side of camp. Klingons had bad hair, yeah?
CANDY LAND
Picture
MB Games was early to slither aboard the VCR game bandwagon, turning a number of its existing board games into interactive video versions.

​The tape contained four games, all of which had titles of varying suggestiveness: "Who's Been Eating My House?", "Lord Licorice's Surprise", "Lonely Old King Kandy" and "Don't Say Fluffypuffer"...
CAPTAIN POWER AND THE SOLDIERS OF THE FUTURE
Picture
Theoretically the most ambitious VCR game of the lot, Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future was a series of infra-red guns disguised as spaceships, which came with tapes featuring simple shooting galleries. Nicely, the tapes could "shoot back" at the ships. The toys were spun-off from short-lived Captain Power TV series, which claimed Babylon 5 creator J.Michael Straczynski as the head writer.

Depressingly, the final episode of the series features the heroic sacrifice of one of the lead characters, an event inspired by real-life tragedy.

Said Straczynski at the time: "I've known several people, friends, who've taken their own lives. In one case, I spoke to her just beforehand. Tried, through the phone lines, to reach her one more time, pull her back from the edge. I couldn't. Years pass. Time comes for me to write the last filmed episode of Power."

It remains undocumented whether the special effects in Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future were created on an Amiga, or whether players could turn their weapons on themselves to recreate their favourite character's demise.
VCR 221B BAKER STREET
Picture
Boasting 10 typically obtuse cases for players to solve - including such famous tales as The Jab of Death and The Yellow Malais - VCR 221b Baker Street challenged players to prove themselves the equal of Sherlock Holmes.

With two hours of video content, the game represented better value than most of the games on this list, even if - like most of the games on this list - it's unlikely anybody played it more than once.
VCR BASKETBALL 
Picture
A game in which players adopted the role of the coach of an NBA basketball team, VCR Basketball was notable for the fact it came with a miniature hoop and basketball, so that players could attempt their own free throws. Let's face it, most players would've probably just thrown it at each others's face.
VCR HOCKEY NIGHT IN CANADA
Picture
Not an exciting simulation of a hockey night in Canada, VCR Hockey Night in Canada was mostly a trivia game about hockey in Canada, featuring clips of classic Canadian hockey games. It was only ever released in Zimbabwe (Canada).
VCR CHUTES AND LADDERS
Picture
Another attempt by MB Games to update a classic for the VCR generation, it's not really clear why the snakes became chutes. Perhaps chutes were considered more modern than snakes. Or maybe snakes are just too frightening to slide down, if you're a sensitive child.

You know: like the two sensitive types on the box. What do you reckon that pig-boy is doing now? Probably a bank manager.

"You'd like what?! A loan for your chute-manufacturing business?!?"

<FALLS OFF CHAIR, CURLS INTO A BALL IN THE CORNER OF OFFICE, STARTS TREMBLING UNCONTROLLABLY>

"The chutes... the chutes...."
COMMERCIAL CRAZIES
Picture
Though "Positively the wackiest VCR game" is an epithet designed to discourage almost anyone, Commercial Crazies was - despite this - not very wacky. Players were required to watch a series of classic TV advertisements, and then answer questions about said clips.

Well... it doesn't get much more wacky than that!!!!!!!?
Picture
19 Comments
Alexandriaweb link
6/9/2017 08:03:29 am

Literally the only thing I remember about A Klingon Challenge is that Kavok had really nice boots.

Reply
Chris
6/9/2017 09:05:10 am

It's Chutes and Ladders because that's what Snakes and Ladders is in America, apparently. Those weedy Americans can't handle snakes, the wimps. Probably all the cussing was deemed not suitable or something.

I didn't realise there was a video version of 221B. The normal one kept me and my family entertained for a long time. There's a newer game called Watson & Holmes which is clearly based on it but has a more modern ruleset.

Reply
DEAN
6/9/2017 09:31:10 am

Could it be because America has venomous snakes and that they don't want to put an irresponsibly friendly face on something that could kill them? Wait up, how did The Count from Sesame Street get green lit, then?

Recently a thing happened in Australia that's quite similar - an episode of Peppa Pig was banned there for having a friendly spider and the message that spiders can't hurt you.

I saw a big spider last night with a good 4 inch leg span. And it was a house spider and those bastards can bite and it does fucking hurt.
A considerably smaller one bit me several years ago and it felt like being stapled. The bite swelled up and itched like fuck. No spider powers to report, however.

Reply
Biscuits
6/9/2017 10:32:07 am

A few months ago as I was going to bed I got really dizzy and sick, I had to lie down and my thoughts were racing so fast I couldn't pull them together, I was sweating and freezing cold and my heart was going bananas. I thought I was having a panic attack. After about 10 minutes it went away.

The next day I told my housemate about it and he immediately said 'Oh yeah, spider bite, they're bastards man', and lo, upon checking myself as I showered I found 3 sets of 2 fang marks on my knee, like a '6' domino. I had no idea spiders in the UK can be mean. I'll still keep them around as they eat mozzies

Picston Shottle
6/9/2017 03:30:11 pm

I have to work out in Scottsdale, Arizona from time to time and rattlesnakes have been spotted sunning themselves on the car park tarmac (or whatever it is they use that doesn't melt in 120F temperatures) as I walked to the office from the hotel early in the morning. Fucking. Terrifying. They're not very big, but they're snakes. With poison. Bad poison. Poison that maims and kills, and the scaly fuckers are just sat (lay? how does it work when you've got no legs? Do you sit or lay?) there looking evil. Did one time see a squished one in the road. Kinda looked like a burst sausage.

DEAN
6/9/2017 04:33:52 pm

Biscuits - I'm down with that bro; 'squitoes can totally get to fuck.

I don't hate spiders at all providing they remain more or less on their web. I had one that lived in my bedroom for a long time (couple years or so) and became sort of attached to it. I only realised I had 'feelings' for it when I came home and saw that it's web (and presumably it along with it) had been hoovered up.

I'm sure you've heard all the same horror stories as I have about them sipping tears from your eyes whilst you sleep. Maybe they just hate seeing us sad?

Picston - This and your Russian shagger anecdote yesterday, it's great to see you on top form!

Do snakes sit or lay? Lay, I reckon.

Isn't the Fender Electric Guitar Co. Based in Scottsdale?

Picston Shottle
6/9/2017 06:08:40 pm

Yup - they sure are. But they still have a factory in Corona, and were founded in Fullerton - both of which are relatively local to me (the Fender museum in Fullerton is ace). Rickenbacker is based in Santa Ana (I used to work about 2 mins from their factory).

Jol
6/9/2017 09:29:35 am

Fairly sure I've still got Atmosfear stored in a cupboard at my parents' place with one or two of the add-on packs. It really was a lot of fun; the background music playing throughout the entire game and the increasingly agitated (and apparently decomposing) Gatekeeper added a lot of tension to the proceedings.

One of the more memorable moments was when he challenged one of the players to a staring contest. It lasted what felt like ages - in hindsight it was probably as static image being shown on the screen - and the poor player had no chance.

Captain Power sounds like a forgotten animated kids TV show that I never got to see. But no, it's a live action thing with a villain made from either very early CGI or tinfoil wrapped around a knock-off Transformer: http://pics.imcdb.org/13592/untitled.1230.jpg

Doorways To Adventure: "Turn your VCR into over 8 million different adventures". Now that's value!

Reply
Kelvin Green link
6/9/2017 06:53:07 pm

I think every house comes with a copy of Atmosfear, along with a version of Monopoly from 1978 and a copy of Mousetrap with one piece missing.

Reply
Da5e
6/9/2017 09:49:04 am

A cousin of mine once had a proper meltdown because, while playing Atmosfear, someone in the party refused to answer the tape's demands with 'Yes, my Gatekeeper!'

Those were the days. He's dead now, unrelatedly.

Reply
Atty
6/9/2017 12:47:59 pm

I'm not surprised if his cohorts treated the Gatekeeper with such a blatant lack of respect

Reply
RichardM
6/9/2017 10:13:34 am

Are Dark Side points cumulative? I'd like a point for my 'R', 'I', 'A', second 'R' and 'D'. More points than Darth Vader.

Reply
MENTALIST
6/9/2017 01:42:52 pm

Funnily enough, when I was collecting my children from my parents house after work yesterday, I noticed she had a board game out that came with an audio cassette tape of instructions.

https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/28558/go-fetch-it

I was my sister's game, I'm not really one for pretending to be a dog.

It amused me that my mum had taken the time to transfer the tape to CD so the kids could actually play it, albeit by putting the disk in their Blu Ray player.

Reply
Clockwork Fool
6/9/2017 02:00:11 pm

Atmosphere was really pretty clever. The rest don't sound like they hold up so well.

Reply
Toily Toilet
6/9/2017 02:57:05 pm

You missed DragonStrike, proabably the best of all of them

It's the D&D counterpart to Hero Quest and the video is a hilarious and very quotable blend of hammy acting, larpy dialogue and early 90s 16-bit CGI.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/DragonStrike_(board_game)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XTNnYkJwSNU

Reply
Dripping Brain
7/9/2017 10:10:46 am

The video for Dragonstrike was amazing. My favourite thing about it was the guy who played the barbarian, his huge American teeth literally glow in the dark in one scene, plus his real-life actual name was apparently "Kid Fury". I also loved the evil wizard's lines: "Failure is made from Should haves!" Wise words, deep.

Reply
Fee Nar
7/9/2017 11:25:51 am

Would any of you like to see what my snake 'chutes'? Hmm?

Reply
Col. Asdasd
7/9/2017 11:32:29 am

I submit that these are the real video games, and the rest of the industry has been profiting from customer confusion for decades. Someone should file a lawsuit.

Reply
Simon
13/9/2017 12:02:05 pm

Facepalm...Biffo even manages to get politics into a nostagic article about video board games. Considering your articles in Retro Gamer say how games are like meditation - I think you need to play more and please stop forcing politics onto others (although it is your website so you do what you want)

That is the reason why the gaming press is in such a decline - mainstream gaming sites are more about social politics than actual games these days

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    This section will not be visible in live published website. Below are your current settings:


    Current Number Of Columns are = 2

    Expand Posts Area =

    Gap/Space Between Posts = 12px

    Blog Post Style = card

    Use of custom card colors instead of default colors = 1

    Blog Post Card Background Color = current color

    Blog Post Card Shadow Color = current color

    Blog Post Card Border Color = current color

    Publish the website and visit your blog page to see the results

    Picture
    Support Me on Ko-fi
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    RSS Feed Widget
    Picture

    Picture
    Tweets by @mrbiffo
    Picture
    Follow us on The Facebook

    Picture

    Archives

    December 2022
    May 2022
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    November 2020
    September 2020
    July 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014


    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • MAIN PAGE
  • Features
  • Videos
  • Game Reviews
  • FAQ