B.O.B.

Also known as: Space Funky B.O.B. (Japan)

Developer: Gray Matter

B.O.B. is an odd title for me…I want to like it and score it higher than I did…but it also kinda gets in its own way. The concept and idea of B.O.B. is solid…you control a robot with the ability to collect ammo for various types of weaponry and gadgets, that you can switch between as you feel like it. While collecting that ammo, you're shooting your way through a large assortment of enemies while navigating a maze, with the intent to reach the goal at the end of the level before the time limit expires. The time limit is really what makes this game difficult…battling against most of the enemies and bosses in the game aren't too bad…but dealing with them while also fighting the clock constantly counting down can be a bit frustrating. Especially in some of the later levels where not knowing the correct route to take usually will result in a life lost due to the time limit depleting. In fact, most of my deaths in this game were from the clock reaching zero rather than anything that the enemies on screen did to me. The game also felt a bit long to me…I would have been happy if the game ended after I completed the first planet. Instead, you'd got three different planets to clear. Why didn't someone put a time limit on the developers so they made fewer levels to navigate? By the end of B.O.B., I was just going through the motions so I could get the credits to roll and much of the novelty of the gameplay had worn off for me. But anyway, B.O.B. isn't a bad game by any means, so if its concept sounds interesting, then it may be worth giving it a try.

Review added: 04/20/2025

Barbie Super Model

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Tahoe Software

Yes, a grown adult male played Barbie Super Model just to add it to this website. DO YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT?! That’s what I thought. Just gotta puff your chest out a little and you can be a grown man playing Barbie games all you want. Anyway, this game actually surprised me. I was expecting it to be absolutely awful, but it’s actually a passable game. Granted, this is designed for young children to play, so it’s not a masterpiece, but I definitely believe that if you popped this in for a young’un today, they’d enjoy it just as much as children likely enjoyed it when it was released. The concept here is simple - traverse forward in a level, picking up a shopping bag along the way. That takes you to a mini-game where you see Barbie on the cover of a magazine and your goal is to memorize her look and then duplicate it. Once that’s complete, you continue forward until you hit the end of the level (which is actually the middle) where you practice your moves on the runway. Once you’ve got that memorized, you head backwards in the level, back where you came from, and pick up a camera along the way. That will take you to a make-up mini-game, which is the same as the other mini game except the focus is on her face and hair, not the whole outfit. After that mini-game is complete, you finish making your way to the end of the level where you perform the runway moves that you had practiced at the midway point. I honestly can’t find a lot of flaws here. Yes, it’s easy and repetitive since it was made for kids, but this is also a surprisingly, overall decent game. Adults won’t really find much to enjoy if they play this game, but it’s still a very well-made game for children just old enough to play video games, and possibly even a little older than that. Tahoe Software did a good job here.

Review added: 01/23/2022

Barkley: Shut Up and Jam!

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Accolade

Barkley: Shut Up and Jam! was seemingly Accolade's attempt at competing with NBA Jam...and despite an interesting concept of having various locations that you play in, instead of the standard basketball arenas of NBA Jam, it ultimately lacks the personality to really compete with the more well-known and arguably much more popular NBA Jam. On top of that, the controls are noticeably less tight. And why did Accolade think that a picture of Charles Barkley looking like he’s pushing out a stubborn turd would be a good fit for the game’s cover? Sorry, that has nothing to do with the gameplay, but it’s an observation. That picture would be better suited for the “before” picture in a laxative advertisement. Awful box art aside, Barkley: Shut Up and Jam! is a passable street basketball game, but nowhere near being a suitable substitute for NBA Jam if you’ve got access to that superior arcade-style hoops experience. If given the choice between the two games, I bet folks would be like the effect of Barkley’s laxative ad and “run” towards NBA Jam instead.

Review added: 08/16/2019

Beavis & Butt-head 

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Radical Entertainment

This honestly wasn't as bad as I was expecting it to be. Beavis & Butt-head is a cartoon that first appeared in the 90's, that caused parents to be in an uproar because their children were attempting some of the stuff they saw on the show…because these parents were not doing their parenting job and teaching their children what to do and what not to do. The easy solution is to blame everyone else (like cartoons, music, video games) and not make any attempt to adjust your behavior or accept any responsibility so history can repeat itself. Anyway, with that little rant out of the way, eventually the cartoon made its way to video game form. The Genesis version of the game is essentially a point-and-click adventure game without the pointing and clicking. The story is that the two pals got tickets for a Gwar concert, but the tickets were chewed up in a lawnmower and the pieces were spread all over town. Your goal is to roam around the neighborhood in an attempt to recover your ticket pieces, tape them together, and attend the concert…or if you have extra patience, make it on stage during the concert. The key word is patience - without it, you will not last long in this game. Eliminating enemies takes patience. Figuring out where the ticket pieces are and how to get them takes patience. Reading this review probably also requires patience…and since I don't have much space left, I'll wrap it up. If an action-based point-and-click-style adventure game sounds fun to you, then give Beavis & Butt-head a shot. It's not perfect, but you may find yourself enjoying it like I did.

Review added: 08/03/2024

Bulls versus Blazers and the NBA Playoffs

Also known as: NBA Playoffs: Bulls vs. Blazers (Japan)

Developer: Electronic Arts

Focusing on the 1992 season, this EA-published game of hoops once again allows players to play as the sixteen teams that made it to the NBA playoffs…and once again left out fans of any teams that failed to make the cut. This game didn't feel like a vast improvement on anything from Bulls vs. Lakers…but it does have minor tweaks and adjustments to the gameplay to make things play, feel, and look smoother. They did also include some unique shot animations for certain players, like Michael Jordan, to help make the stars of the league at the time really feel like stars. Fans of basketball history can probably find some enjoyment here, but for everyone else, especially fans who missed out on being able to play as their local team for the previous few EA basketball games, it may be best to skip these games and head right to the NBA Live franchise instead.

Review added: 06/06/2024

Bulls vs. Lakers and the NBA Playoffs

Also known as: NBA Pro Basketball: Bulls vs. Lakers and the NBA Playoffs (Japan)

Developer: Electronic Arts

In a much wiser decision than the previous year, EA decided to name this game after the two teams that actually met in the NBA Finals, rather than two teams that simply had a rivalry. It also helps that this finals was pretty famous for the time - I remember hearing about it when I was a young'un and didn't really know anything about basketball. It basically started a near-decade of dominance for the Chicago Bulls. Anyway, another wise decision by EA is to increase the replay value of the game by increasing the playable teams from the final eight in the previous game to the final sixteen in this game. It's still not as nice as having all twenty-seven teams from the league, especially if your home team didn't make the cut, but it's still progress. The gameplay was tweaked a little bit here too, and the inclusion of an instant replay and a slicker presentation helps things a bit as well. While not as polished as later games in this franchise, which would later become NBA Live, Bulls vs. Lakers can still serve as a nice trip down memory lane for fans of the sport's history.

Review added: 06/06/2024