Rambo III (Sega Master System)

Rambo III was a game released in 1988 based on the Sylvester Stallone film of the same name and it is another one of those games that was available on a variety of systems but depending on the system had different developers and was a significantly different game.

The Sega Master System version (title screen above) was developed by Sega and was very similar to Operation Wolf. It is essentially a rail shooter in which you use the light gun (preferably) to shoot at on screen enemies. The game was also an arcade game (developed by Taito), available for the Sega Genesis (developed by Sega), and available for various computers including the PC (DOS), Commodore 64, Atari ST and Amiga among others (these were developed by Ocean). The Ocean developed games were completely different games than the Sega developed games and even games developed by the same developer for different systems have significant differences.

Spectral Associates: TRS-80 Color Computer (1982)

The Color Computer was a fairly popular and one of the longest supported computers of the 8-bit era. It was not at all related to the standard TRS-80 (Models I-IV) and used the relatively unique 6809 CPU which was pretty advanced for the time and had some 16-bit features. For some reason the Color Computer line never really gained a huge amount of third party software support as compared to others like Atari, Apple and Commodore but it had decent support from Radio Shack for more than a decade (and there was SOME 3rd party support).

The above ad by Spectral Associates, a retailer for Color Computer upgrades, accessories and software, is from 1982. There were three Color Computer models throughout the year but in 1982 when this ad appeared they were still on the original iteration. As you can see from the ad, 1982 was early enough in the life of home computers that software just being written in machine language (as opposed to BASIC) was considered a selling point.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (465-468)

The photos in this set were likely all taken in the 1960s or possibly 1970s in Michigan.

The first photo is labeled 'Jon Grad 64'. I started off asking ChatGPT about the uniform and the conversation eventually led to a probably identity of 'Jon J. Kipke, Central Michigan University, Class of 1964, Army ROTC'. If you are curious, see the ChatGPT conversation here: https://chatgpt.com/s/t_6abfdc42892c8191b3dc4104b5e6f98a Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (465-468)

Maximum PC (April 2006)

Maximum PC was my favorite computer magazine. It was a relative newcomer to the computer magazine world being introduced as 'boot' in 1998 before becoming Maximum PC a year or two later. This was a magazine for PC enthusiasts, those who liked to build their own PCs, PC gaming, etc. It was somewhat similar to another enthusiast magazine for the Macintosh called MacAddict. In fact, both descended from an earlier magazine called CD-ROM Today. The April 2006 issue of Maximum PC includes:

Maximum PC (April 2006)

Pokemon Snap (Nintendo 64)

What happens when you combine Pokemon with a first person shooter? You get Pokemon Snap. Only, in this case your gun is replaced with a camera and you throw apples vs. grenades or other weapons. Pokemon Snap was one of the first console based Pokemon games and a spinoff that is not part of them main series which is more RPG/adventure oriented and was originally based on the Game Boy.

Pokemon Snap had originally been planned for the 64DD Nintendo 64 expansion. This was a rewritable magnetic disk system (kind of like a Zip or Jazz drive) that attached to the bottom of the Nintendo 64 and plugged into the expansion port there. However, the 64DD was a commercial failure in Japan and never released in North America so it was instead released as a regular Nintendo 64 cartridge. Pokemon Snap had a mostly positive reception by fans and critics alike but if you are looking for a more in depth game then this is not the Pokemon game for you. Pokemon Snap was released on the Wii’s Virtual Console in 2007 and on the Wii-U’s Virtual Console in 2016. It’s a decent diversion if you are a Pokemon fan (or possibly even if you aren’t) but it isn’t a terribly long or involved game.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (461-464)

The photos in this set were likely all taken in the 1960s or 1970s in the Lansing, Michigan area.

The first photo is undated but was likely taken in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The sign makes it obvious where this was taken. Tecumseh Park is a park in Lansing, Michigan that provides access to the Tecumseh River.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (461-464)

Digital Archaeology: Floppy Disk #14 – INTRO.DOC

This post includes the contents of INTRO.DOC. This file is dated September 2nd, 1985 and is in a subdirectory called TELEPSYC. I've posted several documents from this subdirectory and I've been assuming that they came from Delphi since so much of the stuff I've posted from this disk (and others) have been from Delphi. However, based on this file, it looks like all of the files in this subdirectory came from a BBS that operated as a telecommunications counseling service. This document is a log of an initial logon and sign-up on this BBS so it has a ton of introductory information on how the service works. Previous documents from this subdirectory are most likely various 'pamphlets' that could be read on the BBS.

Digital Archaeology: Floppy Disk #14 – INTRO.DOC

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (457-460)

The photos in this set were likely all taken in the 1960s or 1970s in the Lansing, Michigan area.

The first photo is undated but was likely taken in the late 1960s or early 1970s. It is labeled 'Lansing Shuffleboard Club'.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (457-460)

PC World (June 1983)

PC World was one of the first and longest running magazines dedicated to the PC. It was also one of the best. The June 1983 issue includes:

PC World (June 1983)

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (453-456)

The photos in this set were taken in the late 1960s and early 1970s. A couple were likely taken in the Lansing, Michigan area but a couple appear to have been taken on a vacation which included a trip to the Grand Canyon.

The first photo was processed in June 1971 and is labeled 'Grand Canyon'.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (453-456)

Stargate (Atari 2600)

Stargate was the arcade sequel to Defender and is sometimes known as Defender II. The original arcade game was Stargate but most home ports were retitled Defender II because of copyright concerns. The Atari 2600 version was originally released as Stargate but a later release changed the name to Defender II. Other ports include the Atari 5200, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari 5200, NES, Apple II and DOS. The arcade version was also included in Midway Arcade Origins released in 2012 though it was also titled Defender II and not Stargate.

The game itself is similar to defender but with many more enemies and a stargate that serves different functions depending on the circumstances. For example, it may be used to transport your ship instantly to where a humanoid is in trouble or it may be used to skip levels.

Stargate/Defender II was a very good game though it never really came close to the popularity of Defender. The Atari 2600 port was also very good which was not always the case with arcade translations.

Conker's Bad Fur Day (Nintendo 64)

Most games developed by Rare are very good and Conker's Bad Fur Day is no exception. In many ways, it is very similar to Rare's other platformers for the Nintendo 64 like Donkey Kong 64 and Banjo-Kazooie. However, one key difference is that it is targeted towards a more mature audience. Despite the cartoony appearance, the game is full of not so kid friendly things like profanity, adult humor and over the top violence.

Initially, the game sold below expectations partially because of limited advertising and the fact that the game was released in 2001 which was pretty late in the life of the Nintendo 64. However, the game was a hit among critics and it eventually developed a cult following. Enough so that in 2005 a remake (Conker: Live & Reloaded) was released for the Xbox. The original was also re-released as part of the Rare Replay compilation for the Xbox One in 2015.

Amstrad Computer User (June 1989)

Amstrad Computer User is a magazine published in the U.K. in the 1980s and 1990s that covered the Amstrad CPC line of computers. The June 1989 issue includes:

Amstrad Computer User (June 1989)

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (449-452)

All of the photos in this set were taken on May 16th, 1962 at the civic center in Lansing and are labeled 'Senior Cit State Get Together'. Apparently this was some kind of convention for senior citizens.

The first photo looks like it was taken near the entrance at a check in area.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (449-452)

Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64)

Super Smash Bros. is a must have game for the Nintendo 64 and is essentially a fighting game, Nintendo style. It was released in 1999 and it added quite a bit of variety to your typical fighting game while at the same time simplifying things. Here’s the comparisons that matter:

In your typical modern fighting game you have to learn a bunch of different complex control combinations for each character. In Super Smash Bros., the control scheme is the same for each character.

In your typical modern fighting game your environment is typically limited to a relatively small arena, stage or whatever and movement is limited. In Super Smash Bros., the levels or stages are more like a screen from a Super Mario Bros. or another platformer with tons of stuff to jump on to and special items to grab.

In your typical modern fighting game, you are limited to two players fighting at once. In Super Smash Bros., up to four players can beat each other up.

Finally (though there are probably more), most fighting games have their own set of characters unique to that game. Super Smash Bros. lets you play various Nintendo characters from different games.

Super Smash Bros. has become one of Nintendo’s most popular franchises with a new iteration being released on every new Nintendo console (though there hasn’t been one for the Switch yet). The original Nintendo 64 Smash Bros. was released for the Wii Virtual Console in 2009.

Byte: The Small Systems Journal (June 1979)

Byte was one of the earliest home computer magazines. In at least its early days, it was subtitled The Small Systems Journal. It covered pretty much any computer that might be called a 'small system' or 'home computer' (which was a new term at the time). The June 1979 issue includes:

Byte: The Small Systems Journal (June 1979)

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (445-448)

All of the photos in this set were taken in the late 1960s. They were all likely taken in the Lansing, Michigan area.

The first two photos were processed in November 1968 and are labeled 'Painting 68'.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (445-448)

Amiga Force (June 1993)

Amiga Force is a gaming magazine for the Commodore Amiga that was published in in the U.K. in the 1990s. The June 1993 issue includes:

Amiga Force (June 1993)

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (441-444)

All of the photos in this set were taken in the late 1960s and early 1970s. They were all likely taken in the Lansing, Michigan area.

The first photo was processed in August 1968. It shows some kind of event for kids. Previous sets have included photos from an Olympics style event and some kind of pageant so this is probably one of those.

Vintage Photos - Lot 6 (441-444)

Byte: The Small Systems Journal (August 1979)

Byte is one of the oldest computer magazines. In 1979 it had already been around for several years and the original IBM PC was still a few years away. Yet there were still plenty of 'small systems' to cover. The August 1979 issue includes:

Byte: The Small Systems Journal (August 1979)