Retro Gamer

THE RETROBATES

WHAT GAME WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO PLAY DURING LOCKDOWN?

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DARRAN JONES

No, I’m not going to say Strider, but I will recommend Fire Emblem on the GBA. It’s pricey, but has a great story, deep strategy and won’t hog the family TV.

Expertise:

Juggling a gorgeous wife, two beautiful girls and an award‑winning magazine, all under the same roof!

Currently playing:

Magic: The Gathering Arena

Favourite game of all time:

Strider

ANDY SALTER

Taleworlds released the highly anticipate­d follow‑up to Mount & Blade: Warband a month ago so I thought I’d give it a go. It turns out to be a massive time sink, as I’m now forgetting to eat and sleep as I hunt down bandits. I lasted about a day before adding mods haha!

Expertise:

Modding games, no ‘vanilla’ versions for me, thanks!

Currently playing:

Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord

Favourite game of all time:

Rome: Total War

DAVID CROOKES

Deus Ex, just to see how life could be if it was blighted by economical inequality and a deadly pandemic. Expertise: Amstrad, Lynx, adventures, Dizzy, and Playstatio­n (but is it retro? Debate!) Currently playing: Prince Of Persia: The Sands of Time Favourite game of all time: Broken Sword

DREW SLEEP

By the time you’ve read this, I would’ve re‑subbed to Final Fantasy XIV and you should join me. There’s lots of fun nods to all of the core games, I to XV, and the music is awesome. Moogle server, hop to it!

Expertise:

Hoovering and dusting my home while working… all the time

Currently Playing:

Final Fantasy XIV

Favourite game of all time:

Final Fantasy VIII

IAIN LEE

An ideal lockdown game has to be any Doom game. Mindless blasting has been helping me feel like I have some power during a time when I’m at my most powerless!

Expertise:

Buying overpriced stuff on ebay then never touching it

Currently playing:

Forza Horizon

Favourite game of all time:

Elite (BBC Model B)

RORY MILNE

Donkey Kong Country. It’s a serious challenge and a joyous experience, and its polished gameplay and inventive mechanics work equally well in both solo and co‑op mode. Expertise: The game that I’m writing about at the time of writing Currently playing: Knight Tyme Favourite game of all time: Tempest

NICK THORPE

I usually play Rez in stressful times, as it’s so abstract that it feels like a complete escape from the real world. Early arcade games would probably work, too.

Expertise:

Owning five Master Systems and a Mark III

Currently playing:

Disaster Report 4 Plus: Summer Memories

Favourite game of all time:

Sonic The Hedgehog

PAUL DRURY

If part of coping with lockdown is developing a rich inner world I would suggest playing Scott Adams’ early text adventures, especially The Count and Adventurel­and. Let your imaginatio­n paint the pictures.

Expertise:

Barbie Horse Adventures series

Currently playing:

The Complex

Favourite game of all time:

Sheep In Space

GRAEME MASON

A good lockdown game should be something that immerses you in another world, helping you forget about the current circumstan­ces. So how about Another World?

Expertise:

Adjusting the tape azimuth with a screwdrive­r

Currently playing:

Rebelstar

Favourite game of all time:

Resident Evil 4

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