Speedrun Tower

Speedrun Tower is a Sega Genesis demo specifically designed for speedrunning. It's set in a building with pseudorandom floor connections. Your goal is to reach the top floor in the fewest steps possible.

My Loser Phase

Reflections on Video Game Retail from 1992-1997

A look back at the 16 and 32 bit wars from the perspective of a lowly retail clerk. Relive all the highs and lows of the era - from the Sega CD launch to the rise of the Sony PlayStation and everything in-between.

Retail Clerk '89

Retail Clerk '89 started as a personal exercise to learn Sega Genesis programming. It's now a complete, albeit short, game demo.

Reading XM Files in Java

May 11, 2025
This is about reading XM (FastTracker 2) files in Java. I am not writing a writer or player, now or likely ever. This is because the goal is to eventually write an XM converter for Sega Genesis demos.

Sega Saturn 30th Anniversary Tribute

May 11, 2025
The Sega Saturn turns 30 today, in the US region at least. By coincidence I own 30 Sega Saturn games. I can't resist writing a 30th anniversary tribute to the Sega Saturn where I briefly review these 30 arbitrary games.

Fan references in Tokyo Xanadu

May 3, 2025
Tokyo Xanadu is a Falcom fan game, one that happens to be made by Falcom. Here is a likely incomplete list comparing the fan references between the PlayStation 4 and Switch versions.

Midwest Gaming Classic 2025

April 12, 2025
Here's a surprise - I went to the Midwest Gaming Classic again this year. Totally shocking, I know. OK, OK, that was sarcasm to anyone visiting this site for the first time. I've gone to every show since 2004, even the ones in the middle of a blizzard. Here's a recap of what I found interesting this time.

PlayStation Portable 20th Anniversary Tribute

March 23, 2025
Even after 20 years I'm impressed at what the PlayStation Portable is capable of. Here's a look back at my favorite things about the system.

The password for Joe Montana Sports Talk Football '93 is too simple

March 8, 2025
I thought reverse engineering the password for Joe Montana Sports Talk Football '93 would be a fun challenge. Very quickly I figured out it's only a trivial pattern to decipher. Boring.

'does this have sonic and the hedgehog': A brief look at some Sega Genesis clones

January 25, 2025
Inspired by a random listing, I'm firing up some (mostly) cheap Sega Genesis clones to see which games they include and how the emulation quality is.

Sega Genesis Programming Part 25: Onscreen Keyboard

January 18, 2025
With no particular end goal in mind, I decided to try making an onscreen keyboard for the Sega Genesis. It turned out alright. Maybe I'll use it for something else eventually.

2024 Virtual Xmas Card

December 21, 2024
Has it really been another year and other cliché phrases? Here's a little recap of what personal projects I finished this year, which games I played, another festive viewing of ornaments, and some other stuff.

Finding duplicate lines in two files (in Java)

November 23, 2024
This is a coding tutorial, but it's also about the trade-offs in writing code. When should code be generic vs highly focused on a single problem? The generic problem is finding duplicate lines in two files, which sounds super simple until you start asking questions.

Game Boy Advance Compilations

November 16, 2024
The Game Boy Advance helped get me back into gaming after an extended break to finish college. Despite being very nostalgic for the system I haven't written about it much. It's time to change that. This article reviews some, but not quite all, compilations of retro games on the Game Boy Advance.

Dreamcast Survivor's Guide

November 9, 2024
A brief magazine insert to help Dreamcast fans cope with the cancellation of their favorite system.

Halloween Havoc Continuity

October 12, 2024
Have I really never posted a Halloween feature before? It's past time that I did. This is a tribute to the WCW Halloween Havoc series. It traces the rise and fall in match position for every wrestler to appear in one over the years. It ends with some commentary about who a hypothetical Halloween Havoc game needs to include.

Electronics Recycling Gallery

September 7, 2024
This is a gallery of garbage. I'm not going to sugarcoat it, literal garbage. There's a public electronics recycling center in my general area. I drop off junk a couple times a year and am usually amused at what I see piled up there. I figure others may also be amused, although others may find it infuriating, and most won't care at all.