Rampage!
When I was a kid, my video-game skills (skillz) basically consisted of pressing all the buttons at once and hoping for the best. My technique hasn't improved much since. Fortunately for me, my abilities were perfect for one game: Rampage.
For the unenlightened, GameSpy best explained Rampage while inducting the game into the site's Hall of Fame:
Rampage proudly acknowledges man's need to vent rage through destruction and gives gamers the chance to … well, go on a rampage. It seems that three hapless humans have independently managed to mutate themselves into huge, hulking, multistory monsters. George, a scientist who developed an experimental vitamin pill called the "Mega-Vitamin," turned himself into a giant King-Kongesque gorilla by testing the dietary supplement on himself. Lizzie, a college student, mutated into a giant lizard of Godzilla-like stature after unknowingly taking a swim in a radioactive lake. Frankfurter magnate Ralph put together a secret blend of exotic spices for his hot dogs … and accidentally transformed himself into a gargantuan wolf in the process. Understandably, our monsters are a mite upset about all the mutations, and decide to vent their frustrations by laying waste to cities across the country. Up to three players can simultaneously participate in this impromptu urban renewal.
I first met Rampage in West Virginia, a couple years after the game's 1986 release. The machine sat in the video arcade at the Canaan Valley Resort's main lodge, and there I spent far too many quarters. Or maybe just enough. Despite not having seen the arcade version around for years, I'd still drop any quarter at the sight — and run for the change machine.
It was kind of exciting then last week to run across a working Rampage machine for sale on eBay. Sadly, the price was $650 and driving to Illinois or shipping the machine would have cost another couple hundred. Another machine I found cost about the same (scroll mid-way down).
But my raison d'blogging today was a sweet, sweet form of recently realized … Rampage recourse. After searching fruitlessly for a Flash version, I found Shockwave has produced a free and official adaptation. The game has now made me a very happy mutant who wants to express his joy through smashing.
