The announcement of World of Warcraft Forever has filled me with mixed feelings. I’m excited to play in the beta and taking off work to wait in que. But I also wonder if they can actually make a decent MMO anymore as modern retail WoW is trash.

The Good: I love to hear that the main focus will be on the world as the main character and we’re just adventurers in the story. I’ve always hated when MMO’s like Guild Wars 2 and retail WoW start calling your character Hero, Champion, Commander and all sorts of accolades. I want to be the lowly adventurer in a big world aka the small fish in a big pond. I don’t want my journey to end so I want the world to continue to expand as I play, not my titles. Also having them say from the stage that they are putting the War back in Warcraft means they heard players disgust for their previous statements saying otherwise. No war, no conflict means no reason to play. Without there being battles to fight and conflicts between groups then all you have is a cozy game that will quickly die. The new zones, dungeons, raids and content is looking pretty good but I won’t know for sure until I get to experience it. The idea that the world expands and not a layered mess of expansions is nice to hear as well.

The Bad: Skybornes - yet another reskinned Blood Elf model. Though I can appreciate adding elves to the game but why not High Elves and give us a taste of the conflict between them and the Alliance? They could have gone with High Elf, Goblins or Ogres! And adding their weird Island in the Sky starting zone hits too close to feeling like modern retail trash. I’m also not a fan of making a grounded Dalaran City (awesome idea) just a dungeon and not a…well city. Dalaran is my favorite city in Wow and it would be cool to revisit it as a hub. And this leads me to my biggest concern for this project and that is…this becomes infected with modern retail WoW taint. Some call it the Disneyfication of Warcraft or the crapification of the classic game we love. The biggest question is “Can they actually make a good Classic +?” After shutting down amazing Classic + servers from TurtleWoW to Ascension can they make something better? I doubt it but we shall see. I’ll at least give them a chance and if they fail the WoW private server scene is still alive and well including the rebirth of TurtleWoW as OctoWoW or Ascension as ArdenWoW.

The Ugly: I’m just using this as a play on words because I did like the fact that they are putting in toggle to change the graphics between SD (the ugly) and HD. And a toggle between seeing transmog and turning that off (important for pvp). Those two things have always been a point of contention in the community so I think that is a great compromise. Sometimes I just want the OG SD graphics to make the game feel familiar and nostalgic. And times I want to see something fresh so it’s nice to have a that choice.

The big question is will this hood Classic players Forever or will this be just another dead server in a long line of failed Blizzard slop? Only play time will tell…

Great video on the subject…

Our local arcade had a pinball tournament this weekend which was very nostalgic. They brought in a remake Monster Bash pinball machine by Chicago Gaming Company of the 1998 version originally made by Williams. It's a very popular machine. I really enjoyed playing it especially when Frankenstein came alive and dropped a bunch of balls into the mix.

The newest pinball machine they had was Transformers which had a lot of 80's cutscenes and sounds effects. This was my favorite machine to play. Lots of cool effects and game mechanics. It made me want to rewatch some old Transformers cartoons.

Other cool machines were Star Wars (original trilogy), James Bond Dr. No, Pokemon, Guardians of the Galaxy, Terminator 2 and more. Gallery below.

Hellforged is what you get if Diablo and Vampire Survivor had a baby then added Extraction Roguelike to it. This game looks amazing and it has a demo out now for folks to try. This could possibly be my new obsession for a while! So Hellforged has a look inspired by Diablo and gameplay inspired by Vampire Survivor. Then the devs added in an Extraction Roguelike element where you push as far as you can and extract your character before you get killed. If you do then you keep the loot you collect…if you don’t then you lose your loot! As you progress you unlock new classes to play, unlock skill trees and gather/refine better gear. This game sounds like crack to me.

I love the Bane Survivor event in Diablo Immortal which is a Diablo/Vampire Survivor mini-game event. I wish Blizzard would leave it in the game. I never really had an interest in the bullet-heaven genre until I got a taste for it there. Now to see a fully fleshed out game with those same elements makes me very happy. 2026 is the year of the indie/AA games and I’m ready for it!

Hellforged Demo on Steam

“Hi, my name is Grim and I am a World of Warcraft addict!” I’ve been addicted to WoW since 2004 when the original game came out and have been playing ever since. I never left Blizzard but I feel like Blizzard left me over the years. Modern takes of wishing away the War in Warcraft doesn’t sit well with long time players. And the fumbling of the Classic servers and not maintaining simple things like a permanent TBC and Wrath server makes long time players frustrated at best. I’m not a fan of modern retail and held on until Warlords though I own/played all the expansions albeit briefly. The last time I had a blast in Blizzard’s WoW was during Classic alpha/beta test servers. I was playing with Asmongold and the community of players made it fun again. From kiting a dragon back to wreak havoc on Stormwind (I was one of the hunters involved) to the last day when devs rolled in and summon all sorts of mayhem upon us to celebrate the last hooray! But that was short lived as things died down and as the servers progressed Blizzard began adding in WoW tokens and making changes that killed the fun. SO enter the notorious WoW private servers…

I’ve been playing the private WoW server scene going waaaay back to the humble beginnings and ex-Eastern Bloc Soviet Union servers some of which are still with us today like Warmane. And I don’t feel bad for playing on these servers since I keep a Blizzard WoW subscription to check on things, see new servers and when family decides to hop back on to PVP and play together. What these private servers deliver is experiences that Blizzard just isn’t offering. I question whether they even could. Blizzard keeps trying to shut them down but it’s futile as even more rise up in their place even ones they shuttered. So let’s talk servers!

Blizzard Shutdown Sept 5th Probably the top on my list is Ascension WoW as it offers a bunch of very creative servers. There is a seasonal draft server where your abilities are random and you have to cobble and re-roll abilities to make something usable. They have a “build your own” server where you can use any abilities to create your own hybrid class including new pets to tame from undead to elementals. Ascension has two Classic Plus servers (hence Blizz’s attempts to stop them) one is a true Classic Plus with og classes/new content and the other is the same classic world but with 20+ new classes called Conquest of Azeroth. They have even relaunched a classic plus server Blizzard shutdown called Project Epoch. Ascension is currently enemy #1 and a huge thorn in Blizzard’s side as their offerings are 100x times more creative. Blizzard Shutdown Sept 5th

OctaWoW is one of several TurtleWow classic+ servers that popped backup whenever Blizz shutdown TurtleWoW. It’s called OctaWoW because there are 8 devs each with backups of the server, that do not know who the others, incase Blizzard shuts one down another will immediately go live again.

ChromieCraft is a small community that plays on a Wrath of the Lich King server. The devs are very lowkey yet are behind the Azeroth Core engine that runs many of the private servers. It is a true classic Wrath server which Blizzard refuses to do for some reason.

Whitemane has a Wrath and Cataclysm servers. The Cata server still has the Wrath builds and glyphs before it was fouled up by Panda.

These are just a few of the hundreds of private servers out there but ones that I like. Blizzard created a firestorm with their shutdowns that is only fanning the fan of rebellion. There are even tools to build your own home server populated with bots that you can raid with. The old TurtleWow dev team has turned to making their own MMO to compete with Blizzard and make something they won’t be able to stop. Lots of things happening outside of Blizzard. I just wished they’d stop shutting stuff down and instead put that effort into making something we actually want to play. Keep the WAR in Warcraft!

So I recently purchased the 8Bitdo Micro controller because I love portable gaming and collecting controllers. I originally wanted to see how well it would work for vertical gaming on my phone and how well it works in general. The Micro does come with a 2 piece mobile clip that can attach to your phone even with your phone case on. When using it for vertical gaming it gets the job done however I think you would be better off with the GameSir Pocket Taco controller which isn’t much more money. The mobile clip is two pieces and doesn’t really hold together well and not as solid as I’d like it to be. I plan on gluing the two pieces together to see if that helps. The Micro controller is bluetooth and works fine though not my favorite small 8Bitdo controller. What this controller does very few can do…it fits in the tiny coin pocket of my pants! The Micro offers me a VERY tiny, portable option when I’m packing light. It’s better than using virtual controls on my phone and nice to have that option on me that I can’t even tell is there.

Now my favorite small portable controller is the 8Bitdo Lite 2. It is large enough to be comfortable in the hands yet small enough for pocket portability. This controller turns my phone into a portable console especially for retro gaming. It makes a great combo with PSP games having the dual analog controllers and d-pad. Also pictured below is the odd 8Bitdo Lite with dual d-pads. It’s nice because having no analog sticks makes it have a much lower profile for your pocket. I like it but rarely use it as I prefer the Lite 2. One cool feature that all of these controllers have is they also work with your Nintendo Switch which is a nice option to have if needed. They also work as wired controllers using a usb-c cable and your phone if the controller is out of juice or bluetooth is acting up.

Tiny controllers can have a huge impact on your portable gaming options by truly making your phone a portable retro console. They are inexpensive and allows you to make use of devices you already own. With Ramageddon upon us your phone, retro emulation and an inexpensive, pocketable controller is an easy way to keep you gaming for a long time to come.

Mazes of Fate is a 1st person, faux 3D dungeon crawler for the Game Boy Advanced. I don't know how I missed this game until recently but I'm happy I found it (Thanks Tech Dweeb). I love this style dungeon crawler like D&D: Eye of the Beholder, Etrian Odyssey series and Wizardary series.

Mazes of Fate doesn't look like a typical GBA game to me as the art style is amazing and the color palette pops. The great dialog and writing make it an enjoyable RPG. It's made me chuckle when I thought I was being slick and the game called me out on my con to double dip the npc.

The 1st person dungeon crawling combat is more than I expected. Most work turn based where you move then monsters move but not Mazes. You can stand still and monsters will move toward you and attack. It's not fast paced but it's not turned based either. Mazes finds a nice happy medium and I find it very enjoyable.

The sound quality and music are the only questionable part but some of that is due to the limitations of the GBA audio. And at times I find the music to be very odd and not quite landing.

The next thing I need to track down is the lite “remastered” version that was released for the DS. It has actual 3D dungeons, fixes some bugs and adds some new dungeons.

This is a game I will be playing for awhile. I can't wait to play this on both the GBA and the DS. Rate 8/10

There are a lot of ways to play Tomb Raider nowadays (even handheld) including the remastered verison on Switch, PC and console. The Evecade way just takes you back to the past. Also the game cases make great display pieces especially for those empty spots on your game or book shelf.

This is the original games not the remasters so you get the old school graphics. The controls are a little jank, just like back in the day but after a few minutes you get back in the groove.

Playing on the Super Pocket handheld is fun and gets the job done. A big part of the experience is the physical aspects of using an og cartridge based system. I'm certainly enjoying my time playing retro and now Raiding Tombs once again.

This weekend I can proudly say I've become a member of the Evercade retro family. My Technos Edition Super Pocket arrived this Saturday morning making me feel like a kid again. For those who don't know, the Evercade compatible systems all take the same physical cartridges for playing retro and indie titles. What's cool is you can go from a handheld to a console using the same carts. It's a great way to get back into physical collecting and retro gaming.

The Super Pocket handhelds come preloaded with games that are based on a specific brand like from Atari, NeoGeo, Rare (Banjo Kazooie) etc. The Technos Edition is mostly brawlers like the Double Dragon series, River City Ransom and Super Dodgeball with some stuff like Block Out and Dr John's Adventure to break things up a bit. This handheld comes with 15 arcade and 8-bit console classics. It has a 2.8in IPS display, usb-c 4+ hour rechargeable battery, headphone jack and is Evercade Cart compatible.

I've been reluctant to jump on the Evercade bandwagon as I have a large collection of handhelds from original hardware to emulation handhelds. There aren't many games I can't already play but Evercade offers a new way to play and collect physical media.

My first impression of the Super Pocket? It feels like a well made handheld. It has some weight to it though not heavy. The controls are responsive, the front facing sound is solid and the screen looks good. I was worried that a 2.8” screen would be too small for my old eyes but I didn't even notice it. The games look great. The system gives me that old school, OG Game Boy feeling everytime I pick it up.

Something I've found refreshing is having a limited number of high quality games verses my other handhelds with large libraries. At times I get overwhelmed by having too much to play so having a more focused experience has been very enjoyable. My favorite game on the Technos Super Pocket so far has been River City Ransom. The weapon system is so good and wielding a baseball bat to beat down the baddies just doesn't get old. I also like that you have a button that simulates putting quarters into the arcade cabinet to add credits. Plus having a few modern conveniences like save states is a nice addition. The UI is clean and easy to use. The Super Pocket has a great start up screen that gives me that feeling of starting up a retro console.

Would I reccomend a Super Pocket handheld made by Blaze? YES! Wholeheartedly! For a handheld in the $60ish dollar price range and new game carts for $29, it's a no brainer. I've already ordered a carrying case and the Tomb Raider 1-3 Collection. Everytime I pick up the Super Pocket, I get hit with those nostaglia vibes of days gone by and Saturday’s spent engulfed in gaming. I look forward to introducing my grandson to this new-old way of gaming.

If you decide to take the plunge then let me be the first to say… Welcome to retro gaming! Welcome back to owning and collecting physical games! Welcome to the Evercade family!

Are you itching to play the upcoming Wolverine game? You could be slashing bad guys now while you wait for the release. Rating 8/10 (PSP version)

Mendel Palace was released in 1989 for the NES. It's a action puzzle game created by Game Freaks which inspired them to create the Pokemon series. Mendel Palace is an odd puzzle game where you move around a grid and shove/flip tiles while being chased by bad guys. You can stop the bad guys by shoving tiles and catching them between the tile and the wall. But you need to leave some of them on the board as you flip tiles to uncover stars for points. If you wipe out all the bad guys the level ends and so does your score. It's simple yet very creative and addicting gameplay. Thankfully, Nintendo has released this for the Switch 1 & 2 as apart of their Nintendo Library (subscription required) for ease of access. Rating 9/10

UPDATE: Played the demo and love the game. It’s very, very simple yet addicting. Great, catchy retro chip music, art style and theme. Every dungeon run is different with hidden rooms, lots of interesting potions, monsters and chickens (no clue why). So long as they keep the price on the lower end then I’ll pick it up day one. It’s not for everyone but fans of retro dungeon crawlers will enjoy it. Great game to have on a Steam Deck or pc handheld for a quick game.

Steam description: “Roguecraft is a casual yet challenging turn-based roguelike, crafted for fans of classic dungeon crawlers and inspired by Lovecraftian horror. Explore procedurally generated dungeons with mysterious potions, scary chickens, and secret rooms waiting to be discovered!”

Roguecraft DX Demo on Steam

1. Phone/Tablet - believe it or not your phone/tablet are great gaming devices and not just for mobile games. You can use a bluetooth wireless controller or a wrap around controller to turn it into a full gaming console. I highly recommend GameSir and 8bitDO for quality budget controllers. It is a very powerful emulation device which allows you to play retro consoles like NES, PS1, N64 and more! Just search YouTube for guides by searching for phone emulation. You can also stream games to your phone with services like Amazon Luna and Xbox Game Pass. If you have an Amazon subscription you are already paying for their base service with games like Dispatch, EA FC26, Guardians of the Galaxy, Hogwarts Legacy, Lego, Tomb Raider, Skyrim, Fallout and more! You can also claim free pc games with this as well for your Epic/GoG accounts. There are also some great buy/own games on mobile like Titan Quest, Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance; BattleChasers, Dicey Dungeons and more! We are also just beginning to see the first signs of playing pc games natively on android using Steam so stay tuned!

   Luna / Xbox Game Pass

   You can pick up a cheap tablet to game on if you have an older phone or just want a dedicated device.

   Walmart ONN Tablet Gaming Guide

2. Amazon Fire Stick 4k - with a 4k Fire Stick plus a wireless controller you can now play game streaming services such as Luna and Xbox Game Pass without the need for expensive hardware. You can buy a 4k Fire Stick for $30 (as of this writing) if you already have a wireless controller. Or you can buy a Fire Stick plus Luna Controller bundle for $99. Plus you can play some mobile titles built into the Amazon store as well. Streaming isn’t the most ideal way to play because it does require a monthly subscription and you don’t own any of the games which cycle in/out but it is an inexpensive option.

3. Retro Consoles - are another great option for budget gaming with systems like Xbox 360, PS3/4, Wii and many others and still some cheap games though rarer stuff can get expensive.

4. Retro Handhelds - are a very cheap way to game. I own a lot of them mainly because I like to tinker with them but also to replace my original hardware. For example, I have a Game Boy Advance SP, Nintendo DS and a Sony PSP but they are very old and becoming more fragile. So I’ve found new hardware that allows me to emulation my collection and take that experience back out into the world without risk of damaging my original hardware. Many of the retro handhelds I own are under $100 with most of them under $60. My favorite company is Anbernic and I own at least a half dozen of them. My favorites being RG35XXSP (GBA SP replacement), RG DS (DS replacement) and RG VITA (PSP replacement). You can play them as is right out of the box or load up custom software. If all else fails these will carry me through Ramageddon! And checkout Russ at Retro Game Corps for tons of great videos on retro handhelds from review to guides.

   Anbernic

5. Evercade - has been booming since Sony announced they were ending physical media by 2028. Evercade creates new systems and cartridges with multiples game on them from Atari collections to the new Tomb Raider remasters. You can check them out on Amazon, Funstock or Evercade websites. They make both consoles and handhelds that all use the same cartridges. Another great way to budget game!

6. PC’s - I know it sounds counter intuitive with Ramageddon upon us but there are still some great deals to be had on current stock. You can also go refurbished machines that are older stock but still very capable for gaming. Checkout places like NewEgg and Amazon for deals on a pc. Also take a look at Toasty Bro on Youtube as they have a lot of videos dedicated to budget pc gaming.

7. Analog Gaming - my crew has turned to gaming that doesn’t require any electronics such as Collectable Cards Games CCG (Pokemon, Magic the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh), table top wargaming (Warhammer 40k) and Table Top Roleplaying ttrpg (old school Dungeons & Dragons, Shadowrun, Star Wars). Even though most of these require family and friends there are some solo experiences for dungeon crawling as well such as One Card Dungeon or Tech Dweebs CRYBT (video) / CRYBT print version. For ttrpg’s you can hit up your local bookstore or checkout digital options from DriveThru RPG. Great thing about these hobbies is you can create your own games! Dice are great, cheap and readily available and all you need to make an analog game.

   

If you ever wanted Genshin Impact but without the gacha then this is your game! Count me in!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4570720/DragonSword__Awakening/

I recently played the Duskfade demo and this game is incredible! AAA studios are cooked! This does NOT feel like an Indie game. It hits all the right marks from emotion, design, atmosphere, gameplay and music. Top tier 3D action combat, platformer. This is a must buy for me!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4023080/Duskfade_Demo/

Great looking screen, solid controls, quality build and one of my new favorite handhelds. Hard to beat for just under $100.

Finally my search is over! Love my OG hardware but it's getting finicky. I feel like I have a solid lineup with my Anbernic SP for GBA, Anbernic RG DS for DS and now Anbernic RG Vita for PSP.