Here we go again, before the days of Resident Evil in 1996 and even 1993's DOOM there was a zombie & creature survival game that had puzzles & key finding and that game was called Realm of Impossibility

Read about it here ---> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realm_of_Impossibility.

This was absolutely fun to to play. See, I was a horror freak at this super young age It is arguably even more obscure than Mail Order Monsters which like that one, I would have loved an update of it later on but EA did nothing about it and since it fell into limbo there was no demand for for this great title cause how can there be when it becomes oblivious to your society

I love the the inside of the case and the hero of the game with the undead trying to get him and all that it represents Now imagine a properly done modern version of this..it would have been unbelievable a



Here is the contents of the Set.



Here's a closeup up of the Floppy Disk and look at that...the Copyright says 1983 - 1984...isn't that incredible



Here is pictures of the Game via it's Back Cover. I love them two levels of the Ethereal Plane & Pits of Gehenna



Here is some info and about EA

Here is the one I played a ton of times which is Archon: The Light and the Dark

Read about here --->https://www.c64-wiki.com/wiki/Archon

I always liked the simple black & white design with the silver trim (I would find out why things like this is colored this way later on). I was never a chess player nor had any interest in it whatsoever but was this is the only game I ever liked about it. Based on the old mythology that Archons ruled the world (Archosaurs (Ruling Lizards/Reptiles) did during :the Mesozoic but seems there is more to that some people say they still do just in a different way today, if you have seen the film They Live and went down Wabbit h0l3s like I did then you know what I'm saying here) which consist of many types of creatures of this supposed fantasy world. The game was co-produced by Free Fall Associates which were founded 1981 by game designers Jon Freeman and his wife game programmer Anne Westfall and game designer Paul Reiche III but unlike the previous two games above Mail Order Monsters & Realm of Impossibility, Archon spawn a sequel and a remake for later computer & video game systems.

Here is the Booklet inside like Mail Order Monsters but look, there's also a Reference Chart too



Here is a look at the Floppy Disk & Inserts.




Again here is the team that made Archon, I find it such amazement in knowing that it wasn't necessary to have a few buildings worth of people to make one game like today...EA does this currently but see what was possible then They even mention the Star Wars Chess Scene here which wait for more till the climax about that



Here is the Character, Strategy Reference Chart, Hints & Tips and More








On the Floppy Disk, the Copyright says 1983



Here is Mail Order Monsters, Realm of impossibility & Archon Back Covers

SPECIAL GALLERY!!

Now here's Mail Order Monsters, Realm of Impossibility & Archon - Front & Back Special which look at all that classic vintage Commodore 64 beauty & goodness



Here is Mail Order Monsters & Ghostbusters which are two of My favorites of ever, of all-time



Here EA's Info, something that really lacks with them and just about any kind of company today



SUPER SPECIAL CONNECTION!!

So when I first played EA's Star Wars Battlefront II back in late 2018 on the launch date and saw the EA Loading Screen for the first time and even to this very moment looks like and is suppose to be the Death Star but I couldn't help but notice it as I thought the Loading Icon LOOKED like their old Logo from the classic Commodore 64 days Look in the UPPER RIGHT CORNER



Here is a closeup of the SWBFII - EA Loading Screen Icon.



Now here is a SWBFII - EA Modern & Vintage Comparison...now tell Me, TELL ME that doesn't look like that



If you look at the old school graphics, designs, logo among other things of EA in these great games that I just presented, IMO it was predestined that they would be the ones to make and basically takeover Star Wars gaming

EA was one of the earliest game companies I knew besides Activision, Accolade & Sega but I did know Nintendo cause I have the cartridge game of Donkey Kong. Even though Acclaim is really My fave of all, i didn't know till the NES days however, EA really stuck around and i played their games like heck as i loved their Strike Games (Desert, Jungle & Urban Strike games and I could relate to them easily cause they were kinda similar in graphics as well as nature to their great games for the C64. Acclaim went of business in the mid 2000s which who would have predicted that cause they the biggest yet EA grew & grew and again I became a huge player of their games as I got so hooked on their Star Wars Battlefront as well as their World War Battlefield games. It seems like it was EA all day as they are basically the dominating video game company of this modern day & age

So that is it for this special and I hope you enjoyed it from the very beginning to now. I will post some videos of these great games in time. Next there will be some great video action figures for Halloween and much more to come, until then I'll see you around

Wow, it's been ages since I've seen a floppy disk, lol. Oh the times. I'm not familiar with any of those games. My friend had a C64 but I only remember playing were GI Joe, Carmen Sandiego, and the World Games. Those were all fun. Yours look interesting. I have much more fondness for games of this era than I do of the mid-90s, sure the graphics got better, the gameplay more complexed, but 80s games were more memorable IMO. For a split second I thought that black and white photo was Simon and Garfunkel, lol. There are some fascinating documentaries about video games of that era like the one about ET for Atari, and the History Channel did one on The Video Game Wars a few years ago that
s worth checking out.

I miss my Atari and NES. The Flashbacks are ok, but still not quite the same.

That Mail Order Monsters looks especially complicated for that era. I don't recall too many games where you could level up characters back then. Or at least none that I was playing.

Hah, yes... Floppy Disks I have some other games but not sure if i will showcase them or not. Interesting that you thought that. Yes, it's hard to have that original feeling. Oh I believe Mail Order Monsters was the first like this. Like I said it predated a lot including Pokemon by over a decade. Thanks for the info and all of that and thanks for the reply PB, I appreciate it very much

Wow. I didn't even know Archon was on the C64. I played the NES version, it's still pretty fun to play. I've got to try out those other games on my C64 Mini, though. Many of the games that I played on my C64 weren't particularly polished or had much depth but these look like they're worth a try. In particular that Realm of Impossibility.

Regarding the Game Genie, I had them for most of the consoles. The important thing is that you don't abuse the codes they give you as you had to type them in to enable the cheats, they don't actually activate automatically. I think they're good to use when you have trouble getting through a game the old-fashioned way.

They can add a lot of extra fun and play value. For example, sometimes there's codes that will start you on a later level if certain levels are too difficult or sometimes unbeatable (there were certain games that were badly programmed and sometimes impossible to beat due to bugs).

You can also sometimes tack on a few extra lives if you're always one or two lives short of beating a game. The other thing is that it also had codes to make the game harder if you're a pro. Like it can make monsters harder to kill (or even invincible) like in certain platformers, killing monsters isn't essential to beating a level.

Wow, thanks for your big comment Acid, I appreciate that I actually never got to play Archon on the NES, I kinda got out of games like that back then for a while. These are wonderful games for the C64 that haven't seen a re-release which is a darn shame. I posted their all of their gameplays in PB's 31 Days of Halloween topic a bit before the actual date. We wanted more people to join in but it was just Us You can see all of their glory there and yes, Realm of Impossibility is arguably the funnest of the threesome

Oh good, you saw My Game Genie. Yes, I agree with that. Like I said, it works wonders with Contra III: The Alien Wars cause it's so darn hard

Thanks for your reply Acid

So here is a special Nintendo Super Mario Brothers Super Show presentation and it isn't just going to be a regular showcase, it's going to be a HOLIDAY SPECIAL for Halloween & Christmas...all of classic VHS when they first came out...RIGHT ON

So here is My VERY FIRST one that I ever got called The Great Gladiator Gig. In around 1989/1990 I got this at My great local Venture which was arguably My favorite department store of all time (they had such a great Video Department with Movies & Games alike I have showcased them, talked about & featured them many times in My Vintage Action Figure Topic and elsewhere on the board and I plan to continue to so in time. Sadly I only watched this VHS Tape once because it broke. We had the option to return it but I believe I didn't want to. It's still a wonderful display piece however Next to that is My Super Mario Bros. Super Show!: Mario Meets Koopzilla on VHS that I previously showcased a long while back. My Grandma got it for Me when I was at school via their nice Scholastic catalog (I got some really good things from them so school wasn't as bad as it could've been, actually come to think of it, there was actually some fun times to be honest and really that is no joke) in 1990 It's so pathetic the show only ran 1 season, I mean get outta here & get real, I loved that Capt. Lou Albano was Mario. This VHS is one of My most prized in My entire VHS collection and this Koopzilla episode is My favorite of the whole series




Ah hah, now here is where the Holiday themed ones come into play. I also got these from the Scholastic catalog (gosh I remember how fun it was looking through there, it was almost as fun looking through a Sears Wish Book and WWF Catalog...it was that exciting Here is the HOLIDAY THEMED Editions. Robo Koopa which this was always a bit of a summerish yet spookish one, Count Kooula for Halloween time which was arguably the funnest of all (Halloween was almost two months ago but I still want it to continue and last but certainly not least is Koppa Claus Yep, I thought of these for this Christmas and really this is such an apropos decision of Mine




Here is My entire SMBSS VHS Collection together and with the VHS Tapes out of their fun cool sleeves



Here is Mario Meets Koopzilla's 1989 VHS Copyright



Here is Koopa Claus' 1990 VHS Copyright



Here is the Copyright Information. Kids Klassics was owned by Goodtimes Home Video (remember these great companies They were like your top VHS company that had rare cartoons, movies and even wrestling events/matches that hardly ever was on TV and basically lost to the public long before YT was even a thought. Unfortunately because of the rise of DVD and numerous independent companies getting access to archives & the Net that would spawn today's digital age, they sadly filed for bankruptcy and went under in 2005 Also this was in part who was really responsible for making & producing the cartoons was DIC, Notice the DIC logos in My custom made logo at the top of this presentation and below. Also notice the Copyrights of 1989 & 1990. I have many VHS tapes by them and I look at'em all as pure history that I hope never is forgotten and with My help there's a chance that won't happen



That'll do it for this one. I hope you were surprised about this Holiday themed Super Mario Brother Super Show VHS Collection of Mine. If heir available on YT I may post the videos on PB's Stay Tuned Topic There will be some more great video game themed stuff coming soon within this very topic so don't go far away...until then I'll see you around and Merry Christmas

So here we go with another special showcase, one from Blockbuster Video & GamePro Now I have explained the whole history of Blockbuster of them as a business and many of My actual & personal experiences in My Odds & Ends with important showcases so head on over there if you haven'y seen all of this great stuff from Me before

So it was in around 1993 (30 years ago this year!) that Me & Grandma was doing Our rounds and We stopped at Our local Blockbuster that I have spoke about & showcased in My Glory Days of Video Rentals in My Odds & Ends and elsewhere. It was during the time when I played in their game tournaments featuring Clay Fighter. They had shelves & bins there with special marked down prices on used and even brand new videos & games which I got a lot from them possibly as much as I did with Star Video & Hollywood Video whom I also greatly done in said showcase and possibly even as much as I did from Schnucks' Video Club whom I have talked about as well many times. I mean you could find a ton of great stuff over at any location of Blockbuster Video & Music, you just had to go there and want it which was so fun back in the late 80s, 90s & early 2000s when times like this existed. So that one day I found these nice goodies

Gamepro Tips VHS: Yep, I found this and believe it or not I never opened it up as it is still sealed. Look at that cool cover with all of that great game coverage as it has Street Fighter, The Simpsons & TMNT I mean this is just a great example as to how fine the 90s was and what a time to be in. It also has Joe & Mac which was great prehistoric game & the incredible Lemmings. It also has the superb Super Castlevania IV that I recently cameo-ed here within the topic and the SNES classic that is on PS4 Super Star Wars which I have showcased in My Star Wars which in fact I covered THE WHOLE SNES ORIGINAL TRILOGY over there The video includes many more titles including Splatterhouse 2 & Sonic the Hedgehog which if you saw in My other video game topic then you know I'm a huge Sonic gamer and just not a Mario gamer as you just recently saw in around Christmas time within this very topic This VHS covers both major game systems, the SNES & Sega Genesis and is jam packed with great hints, codes & passwords via GamepPro's GPTV (remember that and if you saw My great Codemasters & Galoob Game Genie showcase earlier on then you already know that I'm a big gamer that will take advantage of these cheatful situations



Here's the little Sticker and the Copyrights of 1991 & 1992 which they just had their anniversaries not long ago Notice that they chose Chun Li from Street Fighter, GamePro was always big on her and I don't blame them as she is wonderful and one of the very first fighting females in gaming history



I also got this California Games II Trading Card. Truth is I do not recall how it got it but I'm betting (I'm not a betting person mind you) that this was a FREEBIE or sample promoting the game. Now I know I rented the game and wasn't crazy about it whatsoever however I really digged that cover of the game & card. Notice the logo on the bottom left corner as it says TEAM BLOCKBUSTER, it was part of their Trading Card Series but I cannot talk about that much cause I never collected it nor did I ever look into it in the future as I just kept this Card as a stand alone Collector's piece but little did I know then that Blockbuster would be no more many years later and be part of pure history that many plebeians don't talk about today much less this generation



So here is the back of the card. It's a mighty detailed one with tips & info with the card number, now that's cool



Now I don't know about most kids & teenagers back then (except for My friend Donnie was a horny but good boy and he had his thing going on about women when We were buds, now in this androgynous day & age kids want to dress in drag and schools are teaching them this among other things...can you believe what this era has come too ) but I was really liking girls and especially women during this time so this card truly caught My attention with the two lovely women on there. I always liked the blonde more because of her nice 90s curvy body & large boobs & cleavage however over time I learned to appreciate the nice looking brunette and her type as well This is still one of the best pictures of this nature IMO



Here is the Copyright of 1993 (30th Anniversary this year of the DTMC & EPYX as well as Blockbuster's Team BLOCKBUSTER, look at all of that Blockbuster history



Gamepro VHS & California Games II Trading Card Together: So here is these two Video Game beauty items together. It's so cool displaying these together after all of these years





Now as a special entry & bonus here is GamePro's S.W.A.T.Pro game supplement that was included with GamePro's magazines (remember when they did this I have misplaced most if not all of My Vintage GamePro magazines but thankfully I located this little darling in a recent stash I found with other Video Game Magazines which in time I may showcase them. Like Blockbuster, GamePro was never a company that I thought would ever go out of business, they were My fave of all Video Game magazines (I always thought they were like the WWF of the Video Game Book industry in the 90s) and whether you saw them at the newsstands or subscribed to'em or both you may have had the same feeling I as did. So as I said before, this is just a small supplement that was included within one of the magazines (hence the custom logo I made above) I believe in the great year of middle/late 1995 that briefly covers many fantastic systems of the time period. First here is the Super Nintendo/SNES still on top but would only last for about a year and a half or so but would still be on the gamer's' minds for many more years to come and still be a desired console to play despite the changing times with systems with compact disc games of the future (the nostalgia was already starting then



Then here is Sega Gensis which has the same story as it's competition SNES (see above) and then we have the new player in town Sony's Playstion



We then have Sega's new grand system the Sega Saturn and the 3DO. Now there's a lot to talk about here. First off Many times on the board I expressed about the video game consoles that I have and never did. One of'em that I always desired was the Atari Jaguar but that's a conversion for another time. Above you just saw Playstation but out of the two major new ones of 1995 I always preferred the Sega Saturn, it always appealed to Me visually and games wise especially since I loved Sega over Nintendo in that everlasting see-saw relationship of Mine. Still if I had the opportunity to get one right now I sure as heck would believe you Me Now on the other hand, 3DO was a system I really didn't pay attention too much because the exposure just wasn't there for Me even though I saw it from time to time in GamePro & Electronic Gaming Monthly. However it was a fine looking multiplayer console and had some really stunning looking graphics. The thing is it was really a brief system as it as well at the company 3DO itself (founded by Tripp Hawkins, the founder of EA was out of business of only years of it's existence, it's really a sad gaming story) which really when I found this little booklet after seeing it after 20 years or so later I was quite surprised that 3DO was in it Notice that Gex the Gecko is on the page, he was originally going to be 3DO's mascot (like Sonic is/was for Sega, Crash is for Sony Playstaion) but it was quickly turned over due to the company failing but the game wasn't lost in limbo as it was popular enough to be on the competing disc systems as well as others. Amazingly the The Geico Gecko would appear years later



Here is the Back Cover and the Logo Cover once more



As a special size comparison here is My GamePro's S.W.A.T.Pro next to My Blockbuster Special VHS & Card you just saw with this very presentation.,,really rad & far out if I do say so Myself



So that's it for this one. I hope you enjoyed it Don't forget check out the Mario Holiday Special as well as tons of other great Video Game related items from Me within this very topic of Mine Next up will be a special of one of GamePro's last magazines EVER from 2011/2012 which is going to be a big one, until then I'll see you around

I remember GamePro TV with JD Roth back in the day. I remember seeing it for the first time and being like, that's the guy from Funhouse (a gameshow on Nickelodeon). That'd be an interesting watch, I'm sure.

BTW, did you know they were making a Super Mario Bros. movie? I knew nothing about it until I got my son a Happy Meal yesterday and it had Mario toys and the box said the movie was coming in 2023.