RPGs – Author Carlo Carrasco

What To Watch On YouTube Right Now – Part 151

August 19, 2026August 17, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching.

Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?

I recommend you check out the following videos I found.

#1 Ashleigh Burton reacts to Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb – When it comes to movies about the Cold War and the rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union, Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb stood out with its very unique presentation backed with memorable performances by Peter Sellers and George C. Scott. The film was a satire about the Cold War tensions between America and Russia, and it gave moviegoers a unique look as to what could have happened behind the secured government offices and how each nation communicated with each other over the hotline. Kubrick’s film is so significant, it got featured in many movie reaction videos on YouTube and I had fun watching Ashleigh Burton’s reaction video. Go watch it now!

#2 Behind the Scenes Making of Resident Evil (1996) – It has been over thirty years since Resident Evil was first released and today it has grown into a multimedia entertainment franchise still driven by video game productions. Although many video game publications published a lot of articles about the original game from 1996, none of them captured the behind-the-scenes making at Capcom which the YouTube video below features. Even if you are not a Resident Evil fan, I still encourage you to watch it as you can learn a lot about the process, the hard work done by the Japanese and insight shared by Shinji Mikami.

#3 The Multi-million Dollar Theft With Fake Coupons – Over a decade ago, someone in the state of Arizona started an illegal operation using fake coupons which grew so dramatically, it became a shadow enterprise and two more people got involved. The operation of multiple fake shopping coupons robbed corporations several millions of Dollars and the one who started it got so rich she even bought herself many luxury vehicles. To find out the details about this true crime story, watch the video below and pay close attention.

#4 Austria Fought Back Against Islam – Massive immigration that includes Islamists who are obsessed with conquering new nations is very clearly dangerous and even toxic. With so many illegal aliens/immigrants and Muslims in Europe, it is clear that the future of the Europeans is looking more uncertain as time passes. Among them is Austria which boldly made changes to prioritize its own people and preserve its rich culture by pushing back hard against Islamists. Already there were Islamic scandals that were uncovered there in Austria. Watch and learn from the Fall of Nations video below.

#5 The Fall of BuzzFeed – Remember how popular BuzzFeed was? Even though a lot of people got lured by them, I never trusted BuzzFeed and I was never interested with their videos and other online gimmicks. BuzzFeed was also a very questionable participant in journalism no matter what they did to gain credibility. Fortunately for the world, BuzzFeed collapsed and deservedly so. To find out why, watch MAGAmark’s video below.

#6 Record-breaking Rainfall Hits Chiba Prefecture in Japan – Apart from being vulnerable to earthquakes which is connected with being located within the Pacific Ring of Fire, Japan also has its share of struggles with immense rainfall and flooding. Recently, record-breaking rainfall hit Chiba Prefecture causing a lot of flood and hardship for the Japanese. If you were a constant visitor to Japan, was there ever a time when you got caught in heavy rain and flooding there? Watch and learn from the Nippon TV video below.

#7 Role-playing Games About 1990s Anime – Believe it or not, there are indeed role-playing games (RPGs) based on anime properties that were popular in the 1990s. Of course, a lot of those anime-based RPGs were released only in Japan and some of them became playable with English translations through digital patches, emulation and fan-made translations. If you are into retro gaming, anime, RPGs and the 1990s, watch the Gaming Broductions video below.

#8 Assorted Pacific Rim Reaction Videos – When Pacific Rim was released in cinemas worldwide in 2013, I never bothered to watch it in the local cinema. Here in the Philippines, there was a lot of pre-release buzz that Manila would appear in the movie and so many local film buffs got excited. The movie eventually grossed over $400 million worldwide through theaters and a lot of people enjoyed its high-quality visuals, intense battles and the special attention to detail invested on the size and scale of the locations. The movie has been featured in several reaction videos and posted below are the entertaining ones to watch.

#9 Ranting for Vengeance Slams Video Essay Slop on YouTube – It is not a secret that YouTube is filled not only with artificial intelligence (AI) slop but also video essays made by individuals who arrogantly think of themselves as experts and wise creators. In his recent video, Ranting for Vengeance slammed the video essay slop on YouTube and explained in detail what kind of people created those videos, what their agenda and why people should not allow themselves to be influenced by them. I encourage you to watch the video below now.

#10 Shallow Focus is a Disease in Movies – There is a new trend that has influence the production of movies in Hollywood (AKA Commiewood) for many years now and it has literally become a disease which made the viewing of movies undesirable. The disease is shallow focus which occurs when the area of sharpness in front of a camera lens is very narrow which results in blurry backgrounds. Shallow focus is being abused in modern-day filmmaking and it is only getting worse. That said, I encourage you all to watch Rowan J Coleman’s video below and share it to as many film buffs as possible.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @CarloCarrascoPH as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Retro Gaming Ads Blast – Part 45

August 3, 2026August 1, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back readers, fellow geeks and electronic gaming fans!

In this edition of the Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) series, we will take a look at another batch of retro gaming print ads from the 1980s to the 1990s.

For the newcomers reading this, Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) looks back at the many print ads of games (console, arcade, computer and handheld) that were published in comic books, magazines, flyers, posters and newspapers long before smartphones, social media, the worldwide web and streaming became popular. To put things in perspective, people back in the 1980s to the 1990s were more trusting of print media for information and images about electronic games and related products.

With those details laid down, here is the newest batch of retro gaming print ads for you to see and enjoy…

1. Tron Arcade Flyer

*The rear. The details were clearly written for arcade operators.*

Remember how dazzling the 1982 movie Tron was when you first saw it? That film had groundbreaking computer-generated graphics and the filmmakers worked very hard to tell a story covering both the real and digital worlds. Along the way, the movie had strong video game vibes which resonated with gamers at a time when arcade gaming was wildly popular in America. Believe it or not, an official arcade game of Tron was released the same year as the movie and it was a massive success. The arcade flyer perfectly captured the vibe and look from the movie and the machine itself had a control stick the same with what was shown to viewers. This old flyer is still great to look at.

2. Green Beret Japanese Arcade Flyer

Konami was a highly prolific game publisher in the 1980s and it had lots of games that became huge blockbusters. During the decade, their game developers were strongly influenced by both Hollywood action movies and the Cold War. In 1985, Konami released the militaristic game Green Beret in Japanese arcades and to promote it, they created an arcade flyer featuring a very stylish artwork highlighting military images of soldiers (including a guy smoking) and warfare. This ad still looks great and it was not surprising it helped the game achieve huge commercial success. Green Beret was released in America as Rush’n Attack.

3. Darius Japanese And North American Arcade Flyers

Released in arcades worldwide in 1987, Darius is a 2D side-scrolling shooter game from Taito which had a science fiction concept of the starship Silver Hawk (piloted by players) which sets on a mission to destroy an evil empire before it could destroy the world called Darius. The game was successful, most notably in Japan and it eventually led to sequels being released later. What I find intriguing is how the arcade game was promoted in Japan and in North America. The Japanese arcade flyer had this intriguing artwork that reflected a blend of sci-fi with a touch of horror. The North American flyer had a strong sci-fi touch with a male and female model wearing costumes (that made them look futuristic) standing beside the Darius machine. Which flyer looks more appealing to you?

4. Data East’s Arcade Alley Print Ad

*Fun and excitement emphasized in this print ad.*

There is nothing like porting arcade hits to computer systems for gamers to enjoy. In 1988 there in Europe, U.S. Gold released Data East’s Arcade Alley for computer systems and it included ports of popular Data East games like Kung Fu Master, Express Raider, Breakthru, Tag Team Wrestling, Last Mission and Karate Champ. U.S. Gold’s print ad showed a guy in the middle of a video arcade looking on both sides to pick which game to play which strongly emphasized the essence of the game collection (offered in cassettes and disk). This old ad is still amusing to look at.

5. Blasteroids European Print Ad

Blasteroids, the third entry in Atari’s popular Asteroids games series, was released in European arcades by Image Works and eventually landed on computer systems there. For Europe, the ad makers came up with artwork showing a creepy, green space monster surrounded by a few spaceships to emphasize the game’s concept. The said monster eventually appeared on the game covers of the computer ports of Blasteroids later. This ad shows creative adjustments taken to promote games in different parts of the world.

6. Dream Team USA Japanese Print Ad

The legends of the NBA in the Japanese version of EA’s Team USA Basketball. Retitling the game as Dream Team USA made more sense because “Dream Team” was a much more popular reference than “Team USA Basketball”.

Remember how wildly popular the Dream Team (Team USA in Olympic basketball) was in 1992? With NBA legends Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, John Stockton and more representing America in the basketball tournament of the Olympic Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain, the Dream Team (a media-led reference for the team) was easily the main attraction not only for basketball fans worldwide but also those who craved for excitement in international sports events. That said, Electronic Arts secured the license to make an official video game about the Dream Team and actually released the game Team USA Basketball within 1992 for the Sega Genesis. As basketball is popular also in Japan, EA released the game there titled as Dream Team USA and came up with a Japanese print ad to seriously capture gamers’ attention. This ad is still effective in delighting both basketball and video game enthusiasts.

7. Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back And Return Of The Jedi Print Ad

*No screenshots of games used. Just the official images from the posters of the two movies.*

Back in the 1990s, there was a resurgence of the original Star Wars trilogy across different forms of media. Apart from the VHS re-releases of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, there was a slew of video games of Star Wars released during the decade and the fans had new stuff to entertain themselves with. Along the way, the company THQ secured the rights to Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi for re-release to coincide with the 1997 “Special Edition” theatrical releases of their respective movies. THQ’s print ad simply used official images of Return of the Jedi and inserted a tiny bit of The Empire Strikes Back, and they did not show any screenshots that could have been helpful for Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and Game Boy users. Still, it was smart for THQ to print two excerpts of game reviews to sell the games.

8. Super Mario RPG North American Print Ad

*A mesmerizing ad for the acclaimed Super Mario RPG.*

Remember back in the 1990s when Nintendo and role-playing game giant SquareSoft had a very healthy business relationship that proved successful? Before their eventual breakup (related to Square signing with Sony for PlayStation development), the two companies joined forces to make a fully featured role-playing game for the SNES featuring Super Mario and related characters…Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. To promote the game, Nintendo (the publisher) created a mesmerizing 2-page print ad highlighting their characters while emphasizing the role-playing and fantasy aspects of the game. At the time of its release, Super Mario was often identified with platform games and the Super Mario RPG print ad was a serious attempt to lure fans into RPGs which the SNES was already rich with. This ad, which I first saw in gaming magazines in 1996, still looks great.

9. NBA Shootout ’97 Print Ad

*Did you play this on PlayStation in 1997?*

If there is anything I miss about 1990s console gaming, it is the fact that there were a lot of NBA-licensed video games that were offered to players with different tastes in basketball gaming. Sony had its own exclusive NBA games series called NBA Shootout and they were pretty aggressive selling its own basketball games along with the PlayStation going up against the likes of Electronic Arts (NBA Live), Sega and others. This is reflected in this 2-page print ad of NBA Shootout ’97 which was a PlayStation-exclusive release. They featured a photograph of Lakers’ Eddie Jones about to dunk and showed screenshots as well as the descriptive text written with excitement. Since it first started, NBA Shootout was basketball in full 3D polygonal graphics backed with motion-captured moves and dunks that players could enjoy only PlayStation. This ad is a reminder that Sony used to make official NBA games and there is a lack of variety and players’ choice of NBA gaming in today’s world.

10. Legend of Legaia North American Print Ad

*Perhaps someone at Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) thought Legend of Legaia was a horror video game.*

There was a time when Sony produced Japanese RPGs (JRPGs) exclusive for PlayStation consoles. One of them was Legend of Legaia which had a combat system that emphasized martial arts and it had an interesting fantasy concept. For its 1999 North American release, Sony came up with a very bizarre 2-page print ad that had digital artwork with a very strong horror vibe and the visual designs within the three screenshots shown were clearly not related with it. How this ad was made remains unclear. This is easily one of the most misguided gaming ads of the 1990s.

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Xbox Reset Is Very Painful But Absolutely Necessary

July 10, 2026July 9, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back Xbox fans and fellow geeks!

As a long-time Xbox fan and owner of three Xbox game consoles, I can say that this current console generation has been disappointing and the current state of Xbox gaming is a huge letdown.

With the approval of Microsoft’s leadership, Team Xbox acquired a lot of game companies that include the giants Activision-Blizzard-King (ABK) and Bethesda, going right down to the smaller game studios. Those were acquired with the promise of new and exciting games that would make Xbox gaming really great in the form of exclusive games, new content for Game Pass subscribers and more.

Sadly, things turned out really disappointing and now the new Xbox head Asha Sharma has the tremendous challenge of making drastic reforms, downsizing and correcting the cases of mismanagement by the previous leadership. That said, she declared a hard reset of the Xbox business and the changes are being implemented already.

To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the Xbox announcement focused on Asha Sharma’s message to the entire team. Some parts in boldface…

We are beginning the most significant restructure in XBOX history. After careful consideration, I’ve made the difficult decision to reduce our team by approximately 3,200 throughout FY27. This will include approximately 1,600 role eliminations today, and in addition, four studios will leave XBOX to new management. I recognize that a year-long restructuring creates additional challenges. Unfortunately, it is not possible to make all the necessary changes in a single day, and I wanted to be direct about the scale.

I know this is painful. These changes will directly affect people who have poured their creativity into building XBOX. Many joined us through acquisitions, while others were recruited here, or sought us out because they loved this industry and loved XBOX. Today’s decisions do not reflect their talent or dedication.

Our business today is not healthy. We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses. We entered Gen 9 with a smaller install base and a higher cost structure. To grow, we bet on Game Pass, multi-platform, and a broader portfolio of content. While those businesses have created meaningful value, they did not grow at the pace we expected. As that happened, our core business weakened, and we added more teams, more investment, and more time, hoping for a better outcome. And now the industry is facing the most severe hardware crisis in its history. We must reset XBOX.

First, we will reset our content portfolio.

Since 2018, we have aggressively expanded our studio portfolio while the number of games created each month across the industry now outpaces the last ten years combined. We now find ourselves competing not only with the largest publishers, but also with smaller independent studios. It is neither possible nor desirable to own every great independent studio. We have also learned that we are not the best home for every type of studio; in a typical year, we lost 64 cents for every dollar we invested. As we reset XBOX, we will help independent creators succeed by providing open development tools and audiences to realize their vision.

Compulsion Games and Double Fine Productions will return to management and transition to independent studios with their IP, catalog, and runway for their next games. Ninja Theory and Undead Labs have entered terms to join new ownership with funding to complete and grow Senua and State of Decay 3. In France, Arkane’s management is beginning required consultation with its Works Council to review potential strategic options.

We are also making reductions across other units, and in some cases, shifting investment to focus on higher priority projects. These changes vary in size across Activision, Bethesda/ZeniMax, Blizzard, King, Mojang, and XBOX Game Studios. None of our first party publicly announced games or projects are being cancelled as part of these reductions.

In addition, Mojang and King will now report directly to me. These two studios have increasingly become platforms and are our largest by monthly active players. They bring critical geographic, demographic, and differentiation to XBOX.

Second, we will reset our platform.

We know that great technology gets better when it gets simpler, not bigger. Today, in some parts of the company, work passes through as many as 14 layers of management. Our platform teams are 40% larger than they were at the start of this generation, even as our player base and playtime have declined. That complexity has slowed decisions, blurred accountability, and made it harder to deliver for players. As we reset XBOX, we will simplify.

We will reduce management layers to no more than 5, and where possible, 3. We will deliver success through a flatter organization that is built around makers (individual contributors focused on building), player-coaches (leaders who remain deeply involved in the work while developing their teams), and directly responsible individuals (DRIs) who own key decisions and outcomes. And we will streamline how we work across our tools, with a cleaner code base, shared services, and 50% reduced vendor spend.

Third, we are resetting how we operate.

As XBOX grew our headcount, we became more fragmented. Teams, studios, and functions often operate independently, and it became harder to work towards a shared goal, make the right tradeoffs, and get things done.

For the first time, we are establishing a Chief Operating Officer with end-to-end P&L responsibility across content, hardware, platform, and services. Helen Chiang has been promoted to this role and will report directly to me. Over nearly two decades at XBOX, Helen has helped build some of our most important businesses, from XBOX Live to leading Mojang and the Minecraft franchise. She will bring our businesses together under one operating model, making sure we make clear investment decisions, learn from our successes and failures, and hold ourselves accountable for results.

Thank you, Dave McCarthy, who is retiring after 17 years with XBOX. Dave has played a defining role in building the platform that millions of players rely on every day and has been a trusted partner through many of the biggest moments in XBOX’s history. We wish him all the best.

These changes are about a bigger future for XBOX, not a smaller one. The next decade of gaming will be larger, more global, and more creative than anything we’ve seen before. This year, we’ll invest as much in XBOX as we ever have, but we’ll invest with greater focus, greater discipline, and greater clarity, all in service of making XBOX where the world plays and creates.

I want XBOX to be one of the few companies that entertains more than a billion people each day and gives everyone the opportunity to create and connect.

To see the full message, click https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2026/07/06/resetting-xbox/

Indeed, the Xbox business model deteriorated financially and became much harder to manage. The billions of Dollars spent on Xbox gaming over the past several years did not result in the great gaming experiences for fans and gamers, nor did it compel the Xbox game studios to become productive and disciplined.

First-party games of Xbox in the generation of Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S have been lackluster in quality and enjoyment overall. I played Starfield a lot on my Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass and my enjoyment of it has been limited compared with other games of Bethesda. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II was fun at first but it ended up being hollow. As the said Ninja Theory-developed game lacked depth with its gameplay and game design, I never bothered to replay it after finishing it. Obsidian Entertainment, a company that specialized in making role-playing games (RPGs), produced new RPGs under the Xbox umbrella but none of them were great. In fact, Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2 ended up as commercial failures.

Going back to Asha Sharma’s message, I can say that letting go of Compulsion Games and Double Fine Productions was the right move as the huge amount of money Team Xbox spent of them did not result in great games. Compulsion Games’ South of Midnight was a $100,000,000 production that ended up with sales of way below one million copies. More notably, Compulsion Games has a discriminating woke and hateful community manager who goes by the handle @PikaChulita. Look at the captured evidence below.

*The community manager of Compulsion Games openly hates gamers.*

Speaking of wokeness and discrimination, the controversial Matt Hansen has been laid off from Obsidian Entertainment. Hansen was heavily involved in the huge disappointment called Avowed. That being said, Team Xbox should really REMOVE all the untalented woke activists among its many game developers. Those activists – the feminists, the LGBTQ mob, the Islamists, the Black Lives Matter zealots and others – do not care about making great games at all and they have been misusing Microsoft’s money to turn new Xbox games into vehicles of Leftist/woke/socialist propaganda. Xbox should also cut off any ties with the super woke Sweet Baby Inc.

When it comes to the larger entities like Activision, Bethesda/ZeniMax, Blizzard, King and Mojang, the layoffs are painful but it makes sense to shift investment to focus on higher priority projects. Activision should regain focus on ensuring quality and great fun with its continued productions of Call of Duty (COD) games. Bethesda has to deliver new Fallout and The Elder Scrolls games faster and with the highest quality possible.

With the way things are right now, I am not certain if I will pursue the next-generation Xbox console called “Project Helix”. Memory has gotten much more expensive in recent times due to extremely high demand from artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and the memory manufacturers’ deals with AI companies. How much memory could the next-generation Xbox have and could its retail price exceed $1,000 at launch?

Indeed, the future of Xbox gaming is really clouded and I can only hope that the hard reset of the Xbox business under Asha Sharma will create positive changes and results. To say the least, the reforms have started and only time will tell what will happen next.

In ending this blog post, posted below are selected YouTube videos about the state of Xbox for your enlightenment.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @CarloCarrascoPH as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

What To Watch On YouTube Right Now – Part 141

June 10, 2026June 5, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back my readers, YouTube viewers and all others who followed this series of articles focused on YouTube videos worth watching.

Have you been searching for something fun or interesting to watch on YouTube? Do you feel bored right now and you crave for something to see on the world’s most popular online video destination?

I recommend you check out the following videos I found.

#1 Reaction Videos Of Scary Movie 3 – After enjoying the original Scary Movie of 2000, I saw its 2001 sequel and left the cinema disappointed. Two years later, I saw Scary Movie 3 and it was an indeed an improvement over Scary Movie 2. What is very notable about Scary Movie 3 is the fact that the Wayans Brothers were no longer involved and it was directed by David Zucker of ZAZ (Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker). Scary Movie 3 is popular with YouTubers and already there are several reaction videos about it posted online. For your enjoyment, I posted below the reaction videos I found entertaining.

#2 Ranting For Vengeance Debunks Zealots Who Believe Anime Is Leftist – If you were fortunate enough to watch multiple anime productions dating back to the 1960s, you would be aware about the collective mindset of the creators, what the anime trends were and what the messages came with what was shown through the decades. Still, there are some zealots on social media who have this foolish belief that all anime is woke and leftist in nature. That said, Ranting for Vengeance recently posted another video debunking those zealots and his explanations have strong details. Watch his video now.

#3 The Enduring Story Behind Super Mario Bros. 2 – Back in the mid-1980s, Super Mario Bros. became a massive commercial success for Nintendo and it went on to make an impact not only on gamers but also on pop culture. Shigeru Miyamoto and his team worked hard to make Super Mario Bros. 2 which was released on the Family Disk System in Japan. Strangely, the Super Mario Bros. 2 released on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in America was not the same game the Japanese gamers enjoyed. Confused? There is a lot of details in GTV Japan’s video below and they are all worth discovering. Go watch it and pay attention to the details closely.

#4 Wagyu For Breakfast In Japan – When was the last time you had Wagyu for a meal? Was there ever a time you experienced a luxurious breakfast while traveling overseas? Japan is where you can find them and you can discover where exactly they are and what other types of food is offered to customers in the Nippon TV video below. Watch, learn and enjoy!

#5 The Worst NBA Arenas – Considering how many teams there are in the National Basketball Association (NBA) representing different cities, America clearly has a lot of venues where the basketball games can be held at. Some stadiums have modern designs that can accommodate not only lots of people but also the high-spending spectators (those who can afford luxuries) while providing everyone convenience and comfort for game viewing. Meanwhile, there are places that are sub-par or even undesirable for watching basketball games. The video below explores and explains what the worst NBA arenas are.

#6 No Chances For A Remake Of Xenogears? – When it comes to Japanese role-playing games (JRPGs) that were released on the PlayStation console in 1998, the one game I want to play again is Square Enix’s Xenogears. I played it on the PlayStation but I never got to finish it. While Square Enix managed to remaster Chrono Cross and released it on different platforms in recent years, the company has been very quiet about any remake or remastering of Xenogears. Apart from the fact that many of the people who worked on Xenogears under Square’s umbrella have left the company, there are other possible factors as to why remaking Xenogears is complicated in ways that have yet to be revealed to the public. To find out why, watch the in-depth video below.

#7 Ashleigh Burton Reacts To What Lies Beneath – In late-2000, I saw What Lies Beneath on a Friday night inside a packed cinema at Festival Mall. The film, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford as a couple, really made moviegoers around me stressed and scared. There were even some bouts of screaming as the movie unleashed its scary moments. Recently, I watched Ashleigh Burton’s reaction video of the movie and it is a must-see!

#8 Rhetorical Thrill Reacts To Dragonslayer – When it was released in the early 1980s, Dragonslayer was one of many fantasy movies that got released. On its own, Dragonslayer was dark, gritty, violent and even gruesome to see. The Walt Disney Company and Paramount Pictures banded together to co-produce the film and eventually it ended up as a commercial failure. Even though it failed, Dragonslayer managed to gain a following and people who want to watch dark and violent fantasy movies are attracted to it. To see how it impacts Rhetorical Thrill, go watch her reaction video below. It’s a must-see.

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Retro Gaming Ads Blast – Part 40 (RPG Special)

March 2, 2026February 25, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back readers, fellow geeks and electronic gaming fans!

In this edition of the Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) series, we will take a look at another batch of retro gaming print ads from the 1980s to the 1990s focused mainly on role-playing games (RPGs) from the East and the West. This is the RPG Special!

With those details laid down, here is the newest batch of retro gaming print ads for you to see and enjoy…

1. Dragon Warrior II Print Ad

*The art style used made this one looked similar with Dungeons & Dragons.*

When Dragon Quest was released in America titled as Dragon Warrior, its sales there came nowhere close to what it sold in Japan. The game, however, sold enough copies to convince Enix to bring the sequel Dragon Warrior II (Japanese title: Dragon Quest II) to the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in America and they came up with an ad that had obvious Western-style artwork to emphasize the fantasy elements. By comparison, the Japanese version of the game used the distinct art of Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z). Back in those days, there was this belief that Toriyama’s art style would not be effective in promoting the game in America.

2. Breath Of Fire Japanese Print Ad

*This is how Breath of Fire looked like in Japanese print media.*

In 1993, Capcom officially broke into the Japanese role-playing game (JRPG) genre with Breath of Fire on the Super Family Computer (Super Famicom). The print ad they came up with for the Japanese market showed several characters – including Ryu and Nina who would later become recurring characters as sequels were released – with designs that had elements of anime and manga styles blended which contrasted the gritty and realistic approach of Western fantasy art. The ad made it clear to readers that new adventures in a fantastic world await them. The game achieved enough commercial success in Japan which convinced Capcom to make a sequel (plus more in the years that followed).

3. Phantasy Star II North American Print Ad

*The 3-page ad showcasing Phantasy Star II and many other games.*

After selling a good amount of copies of the original Phantasy Star worldwide on the Sega Master System, Sega knew they were on to something. They confidently produced the sequel Phantasy Star II for their brand-new Sega Genesis console in 1989 and aggressively promoted it in America with a daring 3-page print ad. If you look closely, majority of two of the pages were used to promote Phantasy Star II with screenshots (including a big one with a TV), the text description and the console. The spaces below allowed Sega to promote their many other games in convenient fashion. The result is huge success for Sega as more than 1.6 million copies of Phantasy Star II were sold worldwide. Sega would go on to make even more Phantasy Star games.

4. Estopolis Denki II Japanese Print Ad

When Estopolis Denki was released on the Super Famicom in Japan, sold enough copies to justify not only bringing the game to Western markets as Lufia & The Fortress of Doom but also the production of a follow-up titled Estopolis Denki II. To promote it, Taito made a Japanese print ad that had a captivating art style (with the characters looking more realistic and a floating land that had a gritty touch), some screenshots and the promise of fantastic adventures. While the game’s title sounded like a sequel, its story was actually set in the past. Estopolis Denki II would be released in the West as Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals.

5. Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals North American Print Ad

*Clearly Natsume did not have any game critics quotes to use to promote Lufia II.*

When the first Lufia RPG was released in America on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), it became a commercial hit finishing as the top SNES game in the February 1994 sales chart. The sequel Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals was published by Natsume in America in 1996 and they daringly called it “The Ultimate Role Playing Game!” in its print ad utilizing the official artwork of a major character, two screenshots and descriptive text giving readers an idea on what to expect. This ad strongly relied on the visual elements while the first game’s American print ad (made by Taito) emphasized the critical acclaim received.

6. Chrono Trigger North American Print Ad

*A lot of Dragon Ball Z fans recognized the art style of Akira Toriyama here.*

Chrono Trigger, the JRPG that had the dream team creators of Hironobu Sakaguchi (Final Fantasy creator), Yuji Horii (Dragon Quest creator) and Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z creator) behind the production, was easily the most ambitious game SquareSoft released in 1995. As part of the marketing strategy for the North American market, Square came up with a 2-page ad that had Toriyama’s art as the dominant image while using the remaining space for screenshots, the description and the SNES box cover placed strategically. Such a creative visual design was eye-catching and even memorable. Chrono Trigger became a huge commercial and critical hit in the West and it has long been regarded as a classic JRPG.

7. Secret of Evermore North American Print Ad

*The creepy red images overshadowed the promotion of Secret of Evermore in America. Some readers might have been scared away by this ad.*

Still in 1995, Square released Secret of Evermore for the SNES. Unlike most of Square’s RPGs, Secret of Evermore was developed by an American team in Washington state which explains why the game has a very distinct tone and strongly Western art style (note: the gameplay was patterned after that of Secret of Mana). To promote the game, Square came up with a very odd-looking 2-page print ad that had two dominating red images – eyes of a man on top and the front of a dog below) that felt like a forced approach to emphasize the game’s concept of the hero (a teenager boy) and his loyal dog (a very capable fighter). They used the remaining space for screenshots (which made gamers believe it was a sequel to Secret of Mana), the game box cover and a not so helpful text description. In my view, this print ad was a marketing misfire and Square could have produced hand-drawn art of the hero and his dog instead of the creepy red pictures.

8. Star Ocean: The Second Story North American Print Ad

The Star Ocean JRPG franchise of Enix had its first game released in Japan only. That first game on Super Famicom sold a lot of copies which led to the production of the sequel Star Ocean: The Second Story. By the late 1990s, Enix itself had a partnership with developer tri-Ace on the Star Ocean games. Somewhere along the way, Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) secured the publishing rights of Star Ocean: The Second Story for not only America but also in other parts of the world. For the American market, Sony came up with a very odd-looking 2-page print ad that had a mail service form on the left. The form emphasized the concept of being away for a long time (reflecting the science fiction and extensive fantasy adventuring of the game itself) which incidentally was the eye-catcher of the ad. The other half of the page showing the game’s title, screenshots and detailed text description got overshadowed. This is another marketing misfire.

9. The Legend of Dragoon North American Print Ad

*The movie poster-inspired print ad is memorable to look at.*

Given how success Sony was with selling PlayStation consoles worldwide and how massively successful the Final Fantasy RPG franchise of SquareSoft was, it was not surprising that they decided to make their very own big-budget and exclusive JRPG with the intention to succeed and possibly establish a franchise. The result was the PlayStation-exclusive game The Legend of Dragoon which was made with a budget of $16 million and lasted three years in development. The game was released in Japan in late-1999 and sold at least 280,000 copies (note: majority of that in its first week of sales). In preparation for the June 2000 launch in America, Sony produced a print ad that had a very strong movie poster vibe showing what looked like painted art of the characters with vivid colors in the background and the title on the lower part. If you look closely, the credits were deliberately stylized over the way movie posters showed credits. While the game was not the massive hit Sony hoped for, it went on to become a million-seller and a great majority of its sales were from America. By today’s standards, the movie poster-like ad used to promote The Legend of Dragoon is memorable and an inspired piece of marketing work.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Retro Gaming Ads Blast – Part 39 (RPG Special)

February 2, 2026January 29, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back readers, fellow geeks and electronic gaming fans!

In this edition of the Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) series, we will take a look at another batch of retro gaming print ads from the 1980s to the 1990s, particularly on role-playing games (RPGs) from the East and the West. This is the RPG Special!

With those details laid down, here is the newest batch of retro gaming print ads for you to see and enjoy…

1. Phantasie North American and Japanese Print Ads

Released by Strategic Simulations in the mid-1980s, Phantasie was a fantasy role-playing game that became a huge commercial success paving the way for not only ports on other computer systems of the time but also sequels later. The ad they came up with for the North American market had strong fantasy vibes and the screenshots gave readers the impression that it looked playable or user friendly. For the Japanese market, Phantasie was ported to the MSX system and they came up with an ad using radically different art work that had a horror vibe.

2. Phantasy Star Japanese Print Ad

*Phantasy Star in the Japanese print ad sharing the spotlight with After Burner.*

In the 1980s, role-playing games started gaining popularity with Japanese console gamers and there were game developers who were inspired by established RPGs from the West. Enix released two Dragon Quest games and each of them sold a lot of copies on Nintendo’s Family Computer (Famicom). At the time, Sega already had the Master System (called the SG-1000 and its variants with revisions) in the console market and they were way behind Nintendo on hardware sales. Knowing there is a market for console RPGs, Sega went on to make their exclusive RPG Phantasy Star. In 1987, a print ad was released showing Phantasy Star sharing the spotlight with Sega’s blockbuster game After Burner in the background. While the ad felt a bit disorienting to see, the game achieved much-needed success for Sega which in turn brought the game to the Master System in America in 1988. The game sold more and eventually led to sequels in the years that followed.

3. Ultima III Japanese Print Ad

*Remember the old days when anime or comic book-style artwork was used to promote games in the Japanese print media?*

Released in Japan under the title Ultima: Kyoufu no Exodus, Ultima III: Exodus was a breakthrough for the series as the Famicom version marked the first console release for Japanese gamers (note: the game was also offered for MSX and other computer systems in the country). The anime-style artwork used for the print ad is the same virtually the same with the front cover of Famicom version. Very notably, the art on the covers of the PC-88 and PC-98 versions were different.

4. Lunar: The Silver Star Japanese Print Ad

*Game Arts’ Lunar: The Silver Star as advertized in Japanese magazines.*

By the 1990s, console RPGs were very popular as franchises like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy each released sequels that sold a lot of copies. The company Game Arts decided to make a role-playing game which can tell stories better using animation with voiceovers and music while being very playable and enjoyable. They came up with Lunar: The Silver Star and released it on the Mega-CD add-on (connected with the Mega Drive console of Sega) in 1992. As such, it was not surprising to see the print ad having anime-style artwork as the game itself had several minutes of anime cutscenes complete with audio. As most Japanese role-playing games (JRPGs) did not have playable anime cutscenes for storytelling, Lunar: The Silver Star really stood out. Sometime later, the small American company Working Designs would handle the game’s English version and start a healthy business relationship with Game Arts.

5. Dungeons & Dragons: Warriors of the Eternal Sun North American Print Ad

*A print ad that strongly appealed to both Sega Genesis gamers as well as fans of Dungeons & Dragons.*

By the year 1992, the fantasy games franchise Dungeons & Dragons was wildly popular as players around the world kept enjoying the tabletop RPG modules (using dice, pen paper) as well as many computer and video games already available. Sega acquired a D&D license and eventually released Dungeons & Dragons: Warriors of the Eternal Sun exclusively on their Genesis console in 1992. To promote it, Sega produced a 2-page print ad that had one half showing the game’s box placed with jewelry while using the other half to show the screenshots, descriptive text and other details. The way it was presented, the print ad was cleverly structured to attract the attention of Sega Genesis gamers as well as Dungeons & Dragons fans. The game ended up as the first and only official D&D product for the console.

6. Shadow Sorcerer North American Print Ad

*This is one of many Dungeons & Dragons computer games released. The use of painted art for marketing was done many times.*

In the history of the Dungeons & Dragons franchise and electronic gaming, it was on computers where the more ambitious and more intricate licensed games were played by many fans. In 1991, the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D) electronic game Shadow Sorcerer was released on MS-DOS PC, Amiga and the Atari ST. The painted artwork used on the print ad was virtually the same as that on the box covers of the MS-DOS and Amiga versions. I can only guess that the ad markers must have paid a lot of money on the painted art and decided to use it for both marketing and packaging since it looked so detailed.

7. Estopolis Denki Japanese Print Ad

*The 2-page Japanese print ad of Estopolis Denki.*

In 1993, a brand-new Japanese developer called Neverland was established and its first project was the fantasy role-playing game Estopolis Denki for the Super Family Computer (Super Famicom). That same year, publisher Taito released the game and they promoted it with a 2-page print ad that featured a whimsical looking hand-drawn art work on one half and utilized the other half with details, screenshots and part of the art that was used on the game’s Super Famicom box cover. While Japanese game sales are not available, it seems Estopolis Denki sold enough to convince the publisher to release the game in North America as Lufia & The Fortress of Doom.

8. Lufia & The Fortress of Doom North American Print Ad

*If you were able to play Lufia & The Fortress of Doom on the SNES, were you able to see this ad in a comic book or in a magazine?*

Upon release in America in late 1993, Taito scored gold as Lufia & The Fortress of Doom on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES or Super NES) became a critical and commercial success. In fact, it literally gained steam during the early months of availability and ended up as the top-selling SNES game in America for the month of February of 1994. Take note that at this particular point of time, RPGs on game consoles in America were not yet in high demand as gamers’ tastes were different. When it comes to the marketing, Taito came up with a single-page print ad showing fantasy artwork, the game’s box cover and the published quotes from game critics who gave the game positive reviews. This is smart marketing on the part of Taito.

9. Record of Lodoss War Japanese Print Ad

*The Japanese print ad of Record of Lodoss War for Super Famicom.*

Have you ever heard of the Record of Lodoss War fantasy franchise? That one started as a series of fantasy novels by Ryo Mizuno who previously worked on an RPG project. Record of Lodoss War was eventually adapted into comics, anime and video games. One of those games was released on the Super Famicom in December 1995 published by Kadokawa Shoten which in turn made the one-page print ad for the Japanese market. Using established art from the anime OVA (original video animation) series was a strategic move by the publisher as millions of Japanese people viewed it. Unsurprisingly, the art on the ad is almost the same as the one displayed on the game box cover.

10. Fallout North American Print Ad

*A gritty looking print ad of the original Fallout PC game.*

In my gaming life, I played Fallout 3, Fallout 4 and Fallout: New Vegas on Xbox consoles. When the first-ever Fallout game was released in 1997, I did not notice it as I was more into console gaming than PC gaming. The above print ad appeared is several PC gaming magazines and it clearly shows what it offered which gamers eventually ended up enjoying a lot. The mechanical helmet – protection for the user during battles and from radiation in the nuclear wasteland – on the left side of the ad became a key symbol of the Fallout franchise as further games also featured mechanical helmets. Fallout was highly acclaimed for featuring open-ended gameplay and its immersive post-apocalyptic setting. It sold enough copies to convince publisher Interplay to proceed with a sequel and the rest was history.

11. Xenogears Japanese and North American Print Ad

*This North American print ad of Xenogears clearly showed the main character, a robot, the sci-fi setting and the visual style of the game.*

Xenogears was a sci-fi JRPG I played on the PlayStation in 1998 but I was unable to finish it. Before it was released in America, there was speculation that Squaresoft would not be able to produce an English version for international release due to its religious content. The game was highly challenging to translate into English due to religious themes and psychological elements. Regardless, the game achieved successes commercially and critically in both Japan and America. Xenogears has since been considered by many as a classic JRPG and to play it today is pretty challenging as an existing PlayStation One, PlayStation 3 or PlayStation Vita is required as well as the physical PlayStation disc itself (note: digital copy of Xenogears for PS Vita). Square Enix – which previously remastered Chrono Cross and several Final Fantasy games for modern gaming platforms – has yet to remaster Xenogears for those with modern game consoles, mobile devices and the PC.

12. Final Fantasy Anthology Print Ad

*I remember seeing this 2-page print ad in many gaming magazines I read.*

By the year 1999, Squaresoft established itself as the best role-playing game company as they achieved critical and commercial success with Final Fantasy VII in 1997, Brave Fencer Musashi, Parasite Eve and Xenogears in 1998. For 1999, Squaresoft decided to bring ports Final Fantasy V and Final Fantasy VI – both games were released in cartridge format on Super Famicom/Super NES some years prior – to their fans who owned PlayStation consoles by releasing the collection called Final Fantasy Anthology. For the North American market, Squaresoft aggressively promoted the 2-game collection with the above 2-page print ad on several video game publications. One half featured exquisite artwork by Yoshitaka Amano and the other half showed the screenshots, descriptions and details. Clearly the ad was made with Final Fantasy fans in mind and it was also clever with the use of nostalgia.

13. Final Fantasy VII North American Print Ad

While it did not show any of the characters, this 2-page print ad of Final Fantasy VII appeared in many gaming magazines and ultimately made the public aware of the game which went on to sell millions.

There is no denying that Final Fantasy VII is the most defining Japanese RPG of the 1990s. Given its huge pre-release promotions, the critical acclaim and the tremendous sales achieved in North America and Europe, the game arguably made the JRPG sub-genre more popular among gamers and game publishers while also making the original PlayStation console the must-have machine for video gaming. The above print ad is one of several released through print media and even though it did not show any characters, the image of a futuristic looking city caught the attention of not just gamers but also others who loved entertainment.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Retro Gaming Ads Blast – Part 38

January 2, 2026January 21, 2026carlocarrasco

Welcome back readers, fellow geeks and electronic gaming fans!

In this edition of the Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) series, we will take a look at another batch of retro gaming print ads – including arcade flyers – from the 1980s to the 1990s.

With those details laid down, here is the newest batch of retro gaming print ads for you to see and enjoy…

1. Starflight Sega Genesis Print Ad

*Sometimes the very detailed artwork made gamers imagine Starflight as a sci-fi movie waiting to happen.*

By the time it was released on the Sega Genesis in 1991, Starflight was already popular as it was released on varied computer systems and entertained a lot of gamers several years prior. To promote the Sega Genesis version, a 2-page print ad of Starflight was made with a grand-looking artwork of space, spaceships and planets dominating the space. The ad makers managed to utilize the remaining space below the artwork to show selected images, the descriptive text and the game’s box cover to make it clear to gamers that Starflight on Genesis is real and made to be playable. The artwork itself remains a powerful grabber of attention even to this day.

2. Defender Japanese Arcade Flyer

Defender is one of my favorites among the many games of Midway. In recent times, I’ve been playing the arcade version of Defender on my Xbox Series X using the Midway Arcade Origins digital copy I purchased online. As Defender became a massive hit in America, it was released in Japanese arcades with Taito handling the distribution. The arcade flyer Taito came up with used hand-drawn art for the background on the front along with pictures of the arcade cabinet and the arcade cocktail table versions of the game. While the rear of the flyer looks very simplistic, the front remains attractive to look at.

3. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse Print Ad

*Some people found the artwork looking creepy or even terrifying.*

By the year 1990, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) was present in several millions of households all over America and there were lots of great games available. Among the NES gamers were fans of the Castlevania game series and Konami went on to release Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse in America. As part of the company’s aggressive promotion, a single-page ad featuring a detailed looking artwork of a gamer getting immersed with the game’s fantasy elements (look at the creepy looking characters, monsters and the game’s hero present) was done. While the artwork was a strong attention grabber, what stood out was the sweepstakes form for gamers to cut out, fill it with their information and mail it for the chance to win a trip to the hometown of Dracula. Do you personally know anyone who won in the sweepstakes?

4. Double Dragon Games Print Ad

*Print ad made with Double Dragon fans in mind.*

When it comes to the console and handheld presence of the Double Dragon games franchise, it was on Nintendo hardware – specifically the NES and the Game Boy – where gamers and the fans could find them. Acclaim Entertainment knew how popular Double Dragon games were with Nintendo gamers and they aggressively marketed Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones and Double Dragon II with a single-page print ad that had great looking painted artwork. Very clearly, this early 1990s ad was made to connect strongly with Double Dragon fans and its presentation still looks very solid even with today’s standards.

5. Konami 3-in-1 Game Boy Games Print Ad

*The excitement of sports is clearly shown in this old ad.*

From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s, Konami published a lot of games on Nintendo’s wildly popular platform the NES and among them were classics like Contra, Castlevania and Metal Gear. Konami’s support also made it to Nintendo’s Game Boy handheld device (first released in 1989) which itself sold strongly and became the leading platform for portable gaming. As such, Konami made a 2-page print ad promoting NFL Football, Blades of Steel and Double Dribble: 5 on 5 for Game Boy. Cleverly, the ad makers used fancy artworks on the left (reflecting the different sports) side while using the space on the right side for descriptive text, screenshots and game box covers. This fine looking ad has a strong appeal towards Game Boy users and sports enthusiasts.

6. Tengen 6-in-1 Print Ad

*This old print ad is a delight for those who owned a Sega Genesis.*

Back in the 1980s, Atari formed the company Tengen to not only develop games but also publish game for computers and game consoles. During that decade, Tengen published games on the NES but they had trouble working within the strict licensing terms of Nintendo. The two companies would later get into court battles over a series of events within the gaming business. Eventually, Tengen started doing business with Sega and published games on the Genesis console. As part of their aggressive publishing of games on Sega’s console, Tengen came up with this 2-page print ad promoting six different games emphasizing that the fun arcade experiences are coming to gamers’ homes.

7. Dig Dug Print Ad

*Are you aware of the business relationship and trust between Atari and Namco?*

When Atari opened its branch in Japan – called Atari Japan – in the 1970s, they established a partnership with Namco to distribute arcade games there. As they experienced trouble penetrating the Japanese market, Atari eventually sold Atari Japan to Namco which paved the way for their Japanese partner to get into video games. Just a few years later, Namco developed its own original arcade game Dig Dug which became a massive hit in Japan. As a licensing deal was already in effect, Atari distributed Dig Dug in American arcades which the above magazine print ad clearly shows.

8. Sega Genesis Over SNES Print Ad

*Sega directly attacked Nintendo by emphasizing the larger quantity of games and* *varied game experiences that can only be found on the Genesis back then.*

By the time Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in 1991, the Sega Genesis console has been in the video game market for a few years already. In America, Tom Kalinske led Sega and his approach to marketing and resonating with gamers was essentially aggressive. The aggressive approach includes naming their competition and showing why Sega is superior. Given the lead time they had on the North American market, Sega came up with this print ad showing their Genesis consoles having a lot more games than the SNES. Competitive console gaming was very different back then.

9. Atari Jaguar Print Ad

*Did you spend $159.99 on an Atari Jaguar console back in the 1990s?*

In the 1990s, Atari attempted a comeback in console gaming with the Atari Jaguar console. Early on, their marketing emphasized the so-called 64-bit capabilities of the Jaguar to convince gamers theirs is the most powerful console on the market. Sadly, the console failed to achieve strong sales and a huge price cut was executed. To attract customers, Atari came up with this 2-page print ad to inform them of the cheaper $159.99 price while reminding them of the “most mind-blowing, head-exploding games” they can have with the Jaguar. Obviously this ad campaign failed as the Atari Jaguar never achieved commercial success.

10. Side Pocket Print Ad

*The Side Pocket print ad with a subtle touch of sexiness.*

After its original release in the arcades in 1986, Side Pocket was ported by Data East to many consoles and handheld devices in the 1990s. When it comes to promoting the Sega Genesis version, Data East came up with this print ad showing a lady in a sexy dress in the background (head hidden) which instantly created a sexy aesthetic. The large text displayed emphasized the game of billiards supported by the screenshots shown. The screenshot at the upper-left corner shows artwork of a pretty lady smiling at the viewer which added to the sexy aesthetic of the ad.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Remember Trump With Xbox and PlayStation?

December 19, 2025December 16, 2025carlocarrasco

Long before the birth of the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement and his incredible 2016 US Presidential Election victory, Donald Trump made his presence felt in video games.

I am talking about Trump’s participation in a short video that was presented during the Xbox conference of the 2004 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The video was a parody of Trump’s popular show The Apprentice in which he appeared in a business meeting with the executives of Team Xbox (the real-life Robbie Bach, J Allard and Peter Moore) and Team PlayStation (with actors playing the PlayStation executives).

Back in 2004, as I was anticipating online media coverage of that year’s E3, I visited one particular Xbox website which streamed the said Trump-Xbox-PlayStation video and even offered a downloadable version for Windows media. I downloaded the video, watched it and was delighted ultimately. For your viewing pleasure, posted is a direct-feed video of from the This Week In Gaming YouTube channel.

Next, I posted below for you all another video that is slightly longer, was recorded off-screen at the Xbox conference, and has the live audience reactions that you should listen to. Watch the video below.

Is the 2004 video (titled “The Novice”) entertaining? For me it still is fun to watch again and it is one of the more memorable moves Xbox executed at the E3 (which today no longer exists). It is intriguing and entertaining to see Trump at the center of the video about the console war between Microsoft and Sony at the time.

As an entertainment piece of history, The Novice video is a reminder about how exciting console gaming was back in 2004 (note: intense competition between console makers was the standard of the time) when compared to what happened in recent times. Xbox gaming this year has been disappointing considering the following developments that happened: 50% price hike on the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription service, Xbox Series consoles price hikes, thousands of game developers laid off, the sudden cancellation of unreleased Xbox games, and Team Xbox directed by Microsoft to go full multiplatform with their own games (examples: Gears of War: Reloaded and Forza Horizon 5 got released on PlayStation 5).

Over at the side of PlayStation, Sony itself was embarrassed with its over-budgeted and poorly made game Concord. Concord is easily one of the most expensive flops in the history of video games.

Indeed, a lot has changed since 2004. Trump is now on his 2^nd term as President of the United States solving the nation’s many problems while tackling several matters happening overseas. Sony and Microsoft are still active in the video games industry in different ways and they are still having their respective consoles manufactured outside of America. Console gaming nowadays is getting too expensive.

Let me end this piece by asking you readers: Do you find Donald Trump’s participation in the 2004 video with Xbox and PlayStation entertaining to watch? Were you a constant viewer of The Apprentice? Do you own a PlayStation 5 or an Xbox Series X or Xbox Series S console?

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

Retro Gaming Ads Blast – Part 37

December 1, 2025December 29, 2025carlocarrasco

Welcome back readers, fellow geeks and electronic gaming fans!

In this edition of the Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) series, we will take a look at another batch of retro gaming print ads – including arcade flyers – from the 1970s to the 1990s.

For the newcomers reading this, Retro Gaming Ads Blast (RGAB) looks back at the many print ads of games (console, arcade, computer and handheld) that were published in comic books, magazines, flyers, posters and newspapers long before smartphones, social media, the worldwide web and streaming became popular. To put things in perspective, people back in the 1970s and 1990s were more trusting of print media for information and images about electronic games and related products.

With those details laid down, here is the newest batch of retro gaming print ads for you to see and enjoy…

1. Cabal Japanese arcade flyer/poster

*Can you feel the action and intensity here?*

When it was first released in video arcades in Japan in late 1988, Cabal was another game inspired by military action movies of Hollywood which explains the art work done for the arcade flyer and poster shown above. The Vietnam War was still fresh in people’s minds and the concept of having one or two players firing their weapons against enemy soldiers resonated with gamers who saw Hollywood’s military action flicks. That said, it is not surprising that Cabal became a huge hit in Japan before getting released in arcades around the world.

2. Willows Japanese arcade flyer

Remember the 1988 high fantasy adventure film Willow? That film was produced by George Lucas and was a bold new production of Lucasfilm shifting away from Star Wars. Believe it or not, an official arcade game adaptation of Willow was made by Capcom and they promoted it by having images of Val Kilmer and Warwick Davis on the front of the arcade flyer (opposite the illustrated versions of their characters). The game, which was a side-scrolling platform game with run-and-gun elements, went on to be an arcade hit in Japan and eventually pleased gamers worldwide.

3. Super Punch-Out!! North American print ad

Historically, Nintendo’s Punch-Out!! series started in the arcade in 1984 and the first game was the result of the company’s effort to make a new game using arcade cabinets with two screens. The 2^nd game – Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! – became a huge critical and commercial hit (over 2 million copies sold in 1988) on console and it made great business sense for Nintendo for release another Punch-Out!! for its console gamers to enjoy in the comfort of home. In 1994, Super Punch-Out!! was released on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in America and to promote it, the company came up with a hilarious 2-page ad that showed fictional high school graduates with boxing-related injuries. The imagery creatively connected with the words “biggest Punch-Out ever” and “Graduating Class of ‘94”.

4. EA Sports 3-in-1 SNES games print ad

In 1994, Electronic Arts (EA) released their sports games NBA Live 95, NHL 95 and Madden NFL 95 for consoles at the time. Even though the Sega Genesis sold better than Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in America at the time, EA went on to aggressively market their 3 sports video games on Nintendo’s console using a 3-in-1 games print ad. In retrospect, the SNES for the most part had better graphics and sounds than the Genesis which is reflected clearly on EA Sports games of the time. This print ad still looks fun and exciting.

5. Atari Jaguar CD print ad

*Were you able to play any game on the Atari Jaguar with the CD add-on included?*

Apart from the obvious advances of technology that impacted video games, the 1990s is also known for the rise of CD-ROM as a medium for gaming. In an effort to boost sales of the Atari Jaguar console (launched in America in 1993 for around $250) and capitalize on the trust of the fans and console owners, Atari launched a CD-ROM add-on device for about $150 in 1995. To promote it, the company went aggressive with the 2-page ad showing the add-on fully connected on top of the main console, showing off some games and posting a text description emphasizing hardware power and the advantages that come with the CD technology. Even in the captured image, the Atari Jaguar CD still resembled a toilet. This is an aggressive ad campaign that failed as less than 20,000 Atari Jaguar CD units were sold by the time it was discontinued in 1996.

6. 3DO print ad

*While it lacks intensity, this 3DO ad emphasized the games.*

Without showing any hardware, the 3DO Company came up with this 2-page print ad that had a slightly adulterated tone (look at the left page) and aggressively marketed the 3DO console games available at the time. Games like Demolition Man, Shock Wave, Road Rash and Super Street Fighter II Turbo were the standout titles which clearly showed the company made the effort to emphasize gaming more than multimedia features. This 1990s ad tackled the generations with a touch of humor.

7. Lethal Enforcers II: Gun Fighters Sega Genesis print ad

When Lethal Enforcers II: Gun Fighters was released in the arcades in 1994, it became a commercial success for Konami which went on to announce it would port the game to consoles of Nintendo and Sega at the time. While the port for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) was never released, Lethal Enforcers II: Gun Fighters made its way to the Sega Genesis and Sega CD. The print ad of the Sega Genesis version (Sega CD mentioned in small text) had an inspired design emphasizing the Old West, shooting and the conflict between cowboys and Indians. The screenshots gave people the clear idea that Old West was the setting (versus modern day in the previous game). This is still fun to look at.

8. Syphon Filter

*Syphon Filter went on to become a surprise hit game in 1999.*

In 1999, Sony’s 989 Studios released Syphon Filter exclusively on the PlayStation console. This single-page print ad showed a few screenshots on the bottom and several action snippets with a night vision touch ultimately emphasizing the stealth aspect within the gameplay. The marketing proved to be effective as the game sold a lot at retail and went on to establish a new game franchise exclusive to PlayStation consoles.

9. Parasite Eve II Japanese print ad

*Were you a big fan of Aya Brea and the Parasite Eve franchise in the late 1990s?*

Following the critical and commercial success of Parasite Eve in 1998, SquareSoft proceeded with Parasite Eve II and the production (note: initially for a spin-off game before becoming a sequel) did not even involve the main creators of the first game. Instead the company had a different team of developers – including those who previously worked on Resident Evil games for Capcom – in Osaka to make the sequel. This explains why Parasite Eve II had stronger survival horror gameplay resembling a Resident Evil game. As major changes were made during the production, it was decided that Aya Brea would become the main protagonist and already the character was already popular with gamers. That being said, the marketing of Parasite Eve II for the Japanese market heavily featured Aya Brea with subtle sexiness, beauty and action in mind. The marketing intensified leading to its eventual December 16, 1999 release in Japan.

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

I Am Replaying The Outer Worlds Again

November 12, 2025November 12, 2025carlocarrasco

Welcome back Xbox fans, geeks, retro gaming fans and other gamers!

As a long-time Xbox fan, I am disappointed with the way this current console generation turned out. Xbox gaming as a whole has changed for the worse this year and millions of Xbox fans got angered over the cancellation of Xbox projects (including Perfect Dark and Contraband), Xbox console price hikes and most recently the declared drastic changes on Xbox Game Pass – including the 50% price hike on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate service (watch Team Xbox’s pathetic and tone deaf announcement by clicking here).

I stopped subscribing to XGP since over a year ago, and I had planned to subscribe again mainly to play The Outer Worlds 2 which I had waited for years to come out because I enjoyed The Outer Worlds and its two DLCs (Peril on Gorgon and Murder on Eridanos).

But the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate price hike of 50% ruined my plan to play The Outer Worlds 2 at launch entirely! I also noticed that none of the Team Xbox executives appeared in the pathetic October 1, 2025, video announcement of the drastic XGP changes.

*Imagine the crashing ship as Team Xbox falling down hard because Microsoft forced them to make decisions and implement changes that made lots of Xbox fans and other gamers frustrated this year.*

By looking at the collective feedback – both critics and gamers – about the newest sci-fi role-playing game from Obsidian, the bugs reported and the current prices, I have decided to pursue The Outer Worlds 2 later. It should be noted that the new game has two upcoming DLC episodes (story expansions) and there is no certainty as to when those will be released. As such, pursuing The Outer Worlds 2 later is the right thing for me to do because rushing for it now does not make sense at all.

What I did recently was I downloaded again my purchased digital copy of The Outer Worlds as well as the two DLC episodes on my Xbox Series X. Previously I played The Outer Worlds and the story expansions on my Xbox One, and replayed them on my Xbox Series X (enjoying the faster load times and improved frame rates) a few years ago.

So this year, I started from scratch again on a new single player campaign. I created a new character – her name is Vanilee – and customized the abilities with intelligence, science, engineering, lockpicking, persuasion, hacking and medicine in mind.

Having played The Outer Worlds a few times already since late 2019, I decided to try other scenarios, find new dialog options (in relation to how I customized my character) and explored the maps in and out again. I had no trouble adjusting myself into the controls and overall feel of the game when it comes to response and precision. Take note that The Outer Worlds was developed by Obsidian at a time when it was not yet acquired by Microsoft/Xbox and Private Division was their publisher.

After going through the quests and side-quests in Edgewater – I diverted power to Edgewater helping Reed Tobson, the locals and convincing the deserters to return home – I entered the Unreliable with Parvati and Vicar Max as my teammates and proceeded to the Groundbreaker in space for further quests, scenarios and more options to build up my team.

*Teammates Parvati and Nyoka in action against a monster in Monarch.*

*Vicar Max attacks an enemy with his shotgun.*

So I kept on replaying the game rediscovering places, interacting with more characters and making decisions. Along the way, I spotted new dialog options emerging in connection with how I customized Vanilee from the start and built up with additional points accumulated for each level achieved. I ultimately reached the maximum of level 36.

Since I first played The Outer Worlds, it was clear to me that Obsidian did not have a massive budget as the creative and technical limitations were visible (examples: some repetitive interior designs, structures that cannot be accessed at all, lack of polish on stealth gameplay, my teammates getting in my line of fire, sluggish reloading, etc.). Instead of massive open-world environments, Obsidian came up with large maps but they ensured that each new location had something new for players to discover. I also admired the effort the developers invested on the art direction as well as making each map look distinct from each other while maintaining an artistic connection with the planet.

*This is from the Murder on Eridanos DLC episode.*

While the gameplay remains good for an RPG and first-person shooter enthusiast like me, what I admired best about The Outer Worlds was how Obsidian came up with connections between scenarios, the characters, the dialog options, and the consequences caused by decisions I made. That being said, I enjoyed watching the visual presentation and narration executed right after concluding the game. The presentation shows the endings of not just the main game but also those of the side quests completed and even the main quests of the two DLC episodes. How my decisions impacted the different factions and scenarios were clearly emphasized. In fact, the endings of the side quests and the two DLC episodes are seamlessly connected with the main game’s conclusion. As such, Obsidian succeeded in making The Outer Worlds worth replaying again.

Having played Starfield already, I realized that replaying The Outer Worlds was somehow a more satisfying experience. In my view, Bethesda tried too hard to make Starfield grand with a more galactic scope only to fail when it comes to exploration and long-term engagement. The Outer Worlds had a much smaller scope but it delivered the depth of fun, exploration, interaction and decision-making that strongly impacted the game’s conclusion.

At the same time, I find my character’s companions in Obsidian’s 2019 RPG more interesting and more engaging than those in Bethesda’s 2023 sci-fi juggernaut because of the following factors – better personalities, more clever writing and better voice acting. I believe it is time for Bethesda to start learning from Obsidian on how to make engaging dialogue and characters.

Right now, I am having a lot satisfaction replaying The Outer Worlds even though it has some flaws as well as creative and technical limitations as Obsidian did not have a very big budget. I wish the game had space battles as well as opportunities for the Unreliable to chase and dock enemy space ships which will allow me and my team to infiltrate. The game lacked mini-games which could have added more variety and fun when exploring the different locations on-foot (examples: the tossball facility in Monarch could have used a sports betting mini-game while the bars could have used card-based mini-games).

On its own, the 2019 game is still a lot of fun to play and the role-playing element remains strong. The Outer World characters are memorable and the developers’ writers added humor to the dialog which prevented the game from becoming too dramatic or depressing. Indeed, The Outer Worlds is worth replaying and those who never played it should go for it!

If you are an Xbox gamer who is interested in The Outer Worlds 2, click https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/the-outer-worlds-2. If you have never played The Outer Worlds for some reason, click https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/store/the-outer-worlds/bvtkn6cq8w5f

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Thank you for reading. If you find this article engaging, please click the like button below, share this article to others and also please consider making a donation to support my publishing. If you are looking for a copywriter to create content for your special project or business, check out my services and my portfolio. Feel free to contact me with a private message. Also please feel free to visit my Facebook page Author Carlo Carrasco and follow me on Twitter at @HavenorFantasy as well as on Tumblr at https://carlocarrasco.tumblr.com/ and on Instagram athttps://www.instagram.com/authorcarlocarrasco

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