Believe it or not there is now another Retro Computing magazine on the block! It’s called Retro Format and it’s a multi-format magazine that caters for all retro 8/16/32-bit systems. Born from a successful Kickstarter campaign, this magazine is mostly focussed on games, specifically reviewing them, much like you’d imagine an all format ZZap!64 might look.
Retro Format Cover.
Initial impressions are very good indeed. It’s a full-size magazine, 64 pages in length (cover to cover) and all printed in full colour. There are over a dozen full reviews of games for retro systems inside. The games themselves are almost exclusively new ones created recently for retro systems. The two main exceptions to this are John Wick (a new NES styled game for modern PC’s) and Strike Commander – an old DOS game.
Retro Format Contents Page.
The Reviews
I really like the review style. It breaks game scores down by Graphics, Audio, Playability, Lastability and then gives an Overall score. This is how games used to be reviewed back in the day and I welcome seeing this format again.
Retro Format Game Scoring System.
As for the reviews, the bulk of the magazine is split almost 50/50 between Commodore and Spectrum games with the remainder made up of a handful of MSX, CPC and PC titles.
There’s also a future classics section which looks at a couple of modern games for the Vita and Playstation VR systems. I’d say the jury is out on this section though as I’m not sure I felt it was relevant.
Besides the games there was a really interesting 8-page feature on the SEGA Dreamcast system along with some of the best games available for it. I ended my SEGA experience with the Mega Drive but this definitely piqued my interest and made me think about getting one…
More than just games…
A look at the Christopher Reeve Superman Movies.
The magazine is rounded off by a classic Movie and TV section which I enjoyed a lot. It features the Christopher Reeve Superman movies and also delves into some past episodes of The Twilight Zone. As a big Sci-Fi fan I found these articles to be right up my street.
The original Twilight Zone – NOT the recently re-hashed abomination.
Here’s a peek at some of the reviews featured in the magazine.
How to get your own copy…
If you are interested in purchasing your own copy of the magazine then head on over to the Retro Format website.
I think these retro mags are amazing but can never really get into them. Anyone who’s read Byte, Creative Computing or early 80’s gaming mags like EG, CVG and CGW would generally find mags like this lacking in depth. I think they’re great for nostalgia-seekers but tend to lose their luster rather quickly.