Tag Archives: 3DO

Introduction: A Console That Became a Legend The Panasonic 3DO M2 is one of the strangest legends in retro gaming history. Unlike consoles that failed after release, the M2 never even made it to the shelves. It existed in trade shows, development kits, leaked demo discs, and the memories of industry insiders who claimed it could outclass both the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. For many gamers who grew up in the nineties,… Read more

Put a Sega CD disc in the drive and let that boot screen run for a moment. The logo spins, the music starts, and a Genesis that used to swallow cartridges suddenly feels like a different machine. Then the loading begins. The future had arrived, and it occasionally wanted you to sit quietly while it found the next bit of data. That's a more enjoyable way into these machines than another chart… Read more

A green lizard walks into a graveyard and immediately starts reviewing the television. He can climb the walls, hang from the ceiling, and knock a monster sideways with his tail. What he cannot do is keep his mouth shut. Somewhere between the jump button and the next bad joke, Gex makes his pitch: you are going to spend a lot of time with this mascot, so he might as well have something… Read more

You are in first place when the rider to your left swings a chain. You lean away, drift toward the yellow line, and see the sedan coming over the hill a second too late. The bike skids down the road without you. Your racer gets up and runs after it while everyone else disappears into the distance. In Road Rash, losing can be funnier than winning, provided you have the nerve to… Read more

The shop has a Panasonic machine that looks like it belongs beside a serious stereo, not under a child's television. Road Rash has filmed actors and real rock music. The Need for Speed lets you inspect exotic cars before you race them. The screen suggests the next generation has arrived early. Then the clerk tells you the price: a suggested retail price of $699. That number became the 3DO's entire reputation. It… Read more

There are games that stay with us because they were groundbreaking, revolutionary, and unforgettable in the history of the medium. But there are also games that stay with us for a much simpler reason: because of who we played them with. For me, two games stand above all the rest in terms of the bond I shared with my dad. The first was The Legend of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link,… Read more