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Filed under: Fun, Games, Internet, Time-Wasters

RetroShoot is colorful, casual space shoot 'em up - Time Waster


It's Friday, and time to take it easy - so how about a Time Waster that only requires you to move your mouse? Hello, RetroShoot!

Just because the controls are dead simple doesn't make the game any less fun. It's a packed with colorful old-school arcade goodness. Manouver your ship with the mouse and let your ship take care of the shooting. Apart from that, the only other controls are space bar to pause/restart and escape to quit.

Collect powerups as you progress to add area effects, improved blasters, and extra lives. Take a hit, and you'll receive a strike. You guessed it: three of those and you're out.

As an added twist, the screen will pivot 90 degrees during some stages. Sure, it's just the same thing sideways, but it makes things a little more interesting than playing up-and-down constantly.

Let the blasting commence!

Filed under: Apple, iPhone, Lists

5 iPhone apps for old school computer geekery

There are all kinds of fancy modern things that you can do with your iPhone, including all the techno-superhero things Jay covered in his post.

What if you like things that are a little bit more nostalgic? Here are five apps packed with old-timey computing goodness!

These are all available through iTunes - no jailbreaking required!

Fortune [iTunes link] - Ever wish you could tap into the wisdom of Fortune's terminal quotes no matter where you are? This app is a faithful port for the iPhone, right down to the monochromatic fixed-width font.

Chip-8 Emulator [iTunes link] - It's no surprise that a computer system considered cutting-edge in the 1970s can now be emulated on a handheld device like the iPhone. Geardome's app allows you to play all the Chip-8's vintage public domain games in their full-on low-fi glory.

Sid Player / Sid Player Lite [iTunes Link] - The iPod started out as audio-only, so this one's sort of doubly-old school because it plays Commodore 64 SID files. The full version ($2.99) provides access to more than 35,000 songs from the High Voltage Sid Collection and includes soundtracks from classic games and musicians. The free Lite version provides more limited access.

HAL 9000 [iTunes link] - What are you doing, Dave? Why, he's installing HAL-9000 on his iPhone, of course! Take history's best-loved demented computer with you everywhere. Launch it and cackle any time you want to reassure people that you're not all there yourself.

iMud [iTunes link]- Apple loves to flaunt all the shiny, new games you can play, but what about classic text-based gaming? iMud (from the developer of Metal Mudder for Mac) is $4.99, but it's a great mobile interface for playing all your favorite classic MUDs like Wheel of Time and Mozart. Don't forget to visit MUD Connector to search for a MUD that's to your liking.

Filed under: Fun, Games, Adobe, iPhone, Mobile

Oregon Trail coming soon to iPhone

One of the things I enjoyed most about the Intro to Computing course I took in eighth grade was a standing rule: finish your work early, and you can play games.

There weren't a lot of choices for our Apple IIs, and only three I cared about: Car Builder, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, and Oregon Trail, my personal favorite.

Good news, retro gaming fans! Gameloft is working on an update for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

As you can see, the visuals have been completely updated, but it's still the same game at its core: help your settlers make it safely from Independence, Missouri to the glosious wide-open spaces of Oregon. Keep your wagon in tip-top shape, and try not to drown any horses or settlers.

And, for god's sake, do what you must to stave off scurvy.

In case you're feeling a bit wistful and wish you could be playing this right now, you can always play the original in your desktop browser over at Virtual Apple.

[ via Pocket Gamer ]

Filed under: Fun, OS Updates, Microsoft, Humor

Old school fun: WindowBlinds skin turns Vista, XP into Windows 3.11


The last two versions of Windows we've seen (Vista and 7) have clearly gotten a little more attention in the aesthetics department. They've certainly come a long way from the blocky grayness that we grew accustomed to up until 2000.

While you'd normally use a program like Stardock's WindowBlinds to improve the overall look of your desktop, there's something oddly attractive about using it to create a Windows 3.11 throwback.

DeviantArt user ^mrrste has done the legwork for you, all you need to do is download the files: the Vista version is here, and XP users will need this one.

You will, of course, need WindowBlinds as well. You can grab the free version or the enhanced trial of it from Stardock.

Now, if only someone would put together Hot Dog Stand for us.

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters

Virus is a frantic, old-school space shooter - Time Waster

If you're a fan of classic shooters like Space Invaders, Centipede, and Galaga, Virus may well keep you from doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

Your ship is armed with a single blaster. As you destroy enemies, you'll pick up the occasional multifunctional bomb that works in one of three ways. Use it to destroy or immobilize enemies, or destroy hexes (like the ones you see in the screenshot) that certain annoying opponents leave behind.

The instructions state that you can "click to fire," but you'll probably find holding the button down and strafing your enemies into space dust much more satisfying, especially during working hours.

Keep an eye on your life meter: as your attackers increase in number and speed, a few are bound to make it past your barrage. When they do, you'll see the magic number drop. If it hits zero, you're toast.

You can, of course, start over and go Last Starfighter on the bad guys. Too bad there's no vomit-inducing death blossom.

Filed under: Fun, Games, Time-Wasters, Web

Three classic shooters, C64 style - Time Waster


I loved my Commodore 64 - I even talked my parents into letting me get one of the "mod" cases for it so would look like the newer (and more bad-ass) C128. There were three big Time Wasters for me back then: Zaxxon, 1943, and Gyruss.

Zaxxon's crazy pseudo-3d (also referred to as axonometric projection) blew me away. Like Icarus and his wax wings, flying too high or too low caused many untimely ends to my ship.

Gyruss, with its frantic pace and awesome electronic version of Toccata and Fugue in D minor kept me coming back for more. If you don't know the game, it's a tube-style shooter: move your ship in a circular pattern around the bad guys and blast them to space dust. 2 warps to Neptune, baby.

For days when I wasn't feling quite so futuristic, there was 1943. It's addictive, low-fi air-to-air combat at it's best.

Want to rekindle some old memories? Head over to C64s.com, where you can play all three (and tons of others). We've mentioned the site before on DLS, but its vintage goodness is hard to overstate.

Filed under: Fun, Internet, Text, Blogging, Web services

Update Twitter like Doogie Howser, MD!


What child of the early 90's doesn't remember Neil Patrick Harris tapping away at his hideous-yet-cool IBM PS/2 at the end of a long day of practicing TV medicine?

Those were the days...and now you can relive them while updating your Twitter timeline. Head over to Twoogie, and you'll be presented with your very own virtual PS/2 style updater.

In the devloper's words, Twoogie is "an attempt to recreate that magical anachronism, and bring the teenage wit and wisdom of Doctor Doogie to a new breed of ADHD-addled netizens."

It's old school pretty, and either has intentional lag built in or is just not coded that well - it certainly seems to be part of the design. Either way, it reminded me a lot of my old Magnavox 486SX. Ah, the glory of being able to type faster than your computer could process the input!

The screenshot pretty much tells the whole story, and I knew what to expect before heading to the site - but it was still an awesome experience.

Filed under: Fun, Games, Internet, Time-Wasters, Web

Grab your BFG and play Doom in your browser - Time Waster


This one really takes me back. As soon as I saw the opening screen, I could picture a dozen people crammed into my dorm room watching my roommate and I deathmatch over our awesome null modem cable.

Yes, Doom 1 has been recompiled in Flash from the original source. It plays just like I remembered the original, and could definitely become a giant Time Waster for anyone else who was hooked on Doom when it was first released.

Playing through a few levels almost made me forget how terrible the movie was (sorry, Dwayne).

There's no music, but I usually had that shut off and listened to my Discman. All the old cheat codes work as well: in case you've forgotten, IDDQD activates "degreelessness" and IDKFA will enable all weapons, keys, and ammo, and boost your armor to 200%. Not that I'm saying you'll need to cheat, but when you remember something like that after 14 years, you give it a try to see if it still works.

You'll need Flash 10 to play, and a non-PowerPC computer to run it.

By the way: if you also enjoyed Heretic (think Medieval Doom with a crossbow), you can find an updated Shockwave version of it on this site.

Thanks, Blake!

Filed under: Fun, Games, Internet, Time-Wasters

5 Sites For Old-School Gaming in Your Browser -Time Waster

Enough of this practical advice and useful downloads! I know you've been working hard, and you're probably itching for some fun and excitement. If you've read some of my previous Time Wasters, you'll know that I've got a soft spot for old school gaming.

Grab your browser, and get ready for some classic, low-fi action!

Neave Games
specializes in making flash remakes of classic games, and has a few tasty selections for you. Among them are Frogger, Space Invaders, Tetris, and the old Nokia cellphone game Snake (pictured). Rad.

c64s.com
is dedicated to my first computer and gaming system, the Commodore 64. It's been on DS before, but they've added a lot of great new games over the years. Packacuda, Wizard's Lair, Crystal Castles. It's hard to believe how good some of the games were for the trusty old c64.

Read more →

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The World's Hardest Game 2.0 - Time Waster

So, just how good at time waster games are you? Think you've got the stuff? Well, The World's Hardest Game 2.0 doesn't think you do. Yes, amazingly, it's possible to have a sequel to a game called "The World's Hardest Game". It doesn't seem logically possible, since if the first one was actually the world's hardest, how could another one come along and share the moniker? It made me doubt the name in the first place. That is, until I tried the game. The mechanics of the game are very simple. You are a small red square, ...

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