Renewed enthusiasm

Okay. So I know I said I was taking some pressure off myself by cutting the video schedule right back. But I'm sort of getting itchy feet a bit, and I feel like I'm not doing enough to satisfy myself right now. And this has been compounded somewhat by the addition of some new goodies to my collection: specifically, The A500 Mini, which I've previously mentioned, and The C64, which I decided to stop mulling over and grab today.

Fiddling with Amiga games on the A500 Mini makes me want to do a companion series to Atari ST A to Z, because there are some interesting comparisons to be made — and some interesting exclusives to explore, also.

I've actually been pleasantly surprised that in a lot of cases, the Atari ST version wasn't as far "behind" the Amiga as I thought it was; in fact, in some cases, I actually prefer the ST version by quite a margin. HeroQuest is the best example that springs immediately to mind; its atmospheric music works way better through the Atari ST's PSG sound chip than the Amiga's digital sound. But then, of course, you have the stuff that was properly designed for the Amiga, like Shadow of the Beast, and the machine really shines, pushing dedicated console-quality in a lot of instances.

And so I figured, if I'm going to an Amiga parallel series to Atari ST A to Z, why not do a C64 series parallel to Atari A to Z? You know it makes sense. Well, I think it makes sense, anyway, and I'm quite excited about the prospect.

I haven't yet decided on how I might "brand" these two series; going with the "A to Z" moniker would certainly be consistent, but I'm in two minds as to whether I actually want to keep the "alphabetical" gimmick. On the one hand, it's great that it forces me to hunt down and explore games that I might not otherwise have tried rather than simply going for the "obvious" choices; on the other, it can sometimes feel a little restrictive, and occasionally frustrating that it's a long time until I get to, say, Lotus Turbo Challenge 2.

Anyway, I'll have a ponder over the weekend (my C64 should be arriving on Saturday) and I'll see if two vids a week for the Atari A to Z and Atari ST weeks works for me. I suspect it will — in which case you have more to look forward to! Hurrah.

Anyway. Dinner time. Ta-ta!