BOONG-GA BOONG-GA / SPANK 'EM

No, I haven't actually played it. Serbia was unfortunately done with arcades around '98-'99 and it's a real shame we didn't get to play any that came out since.

I don't see anything extreme about this game. Each nation has its own set of stupid rules they go by. Here in Serbia we go about kissing other people's rears just like the Japanese do, and so it was only natural they did something about it without putting their careers and families in jeopardy. There's a universal, unisex rear dressed in jeans sticking out of the arcade you physically hit and inflict some humiliating pain on the characters in the game. Facial expressions of the characters being spanked are ludicrous, and I guess it feels good to let go of the frustration thinking one spanking might inflict some serious damage to those you hate. Con artists, child molesters, gangsters, mother-in-laws, gold diggers of both sexes should all be paying for your sweat equity not rising, though  they could have done without featuring prostitutes and ex-girlfriends (ex-boyfriends  and male prostitutes should have been there as well). Spank 'Em is revolutionary in a sense that it bringsall the insecurities and frustrations and anger (and sick drives) into the open and allows you to vent it, transforming it into  something else. When I was a kid I was advised to picture people I was scared of as babies pooping their nappies. This game performs a similar function, and I applaud the creators of the game for realising how groundbreaking it was .

THE NOVELIST

Never have I found a game that explored family struggles so vehemently as much as THE NOVELIST did , nor a story-based game I bought into more whole-heartedly. A struggling novelist fighting his writer's block that's taken a toll on his family comes to a summer house with them in hopes of getting back in the zone creatively while hoping to become a better dad and husband. You play an ectoplasmic entity monitoring their interactions, entering their thoughts and memories and trying to make them reconnect and solve their problems by inobtrusive interventions.

The minimal settings, the sollid, mellow background music, the repetitive movements and locations all allow the player to focus more on the story and feel its grasp more intimately, as it's honest and relatable (despite the fact that some dialogues and thoughts may seem forced at times)

Each time I played it I experienced a different sequence of events, and I didn't find the rndings as limiting and abruptly stupid in comparison to the subtleness of the story that unfolded as other people seemed to have had. Are we really in control of our own decisions, even with benevolent voyeur ghosts by our side?

GRIM FANDANGO

Legendary games need no introduction. Especially when a point-and-click adventure's mythic status gets cemented by the fact that it can't be played on new machines. Whatever impression the new generations are left with after playing the remastered version, they will recognise the unique look and feel to this game.GRIM FANDANGO is one of those games that  managed to concoct the wacky narrative with folk traditions, modern life, visual art, 50s movies satire, film noir cliches, observations on the absurdities of both life and death and cultural diversity. It gets artistic, but not obtrusively so, and only after you've stopped playing and gone daydreaming about it do you realise how visually impressive it is. You'll praise the game for its characters, screenplay, exceptional dialogues (even when some of their elements border on cliched). A seller of travel arrangements for the passing over of his clients into the netherworld tries to deliver with a client after having performed poorly with his previous clients. The story unravels into one of the best ones ever seen in a video game.

Remastered version is as great, looks a tad more polished and has its phenopmenal jazzy OST re-recorded for the occasion.

PC BUILDING SIMULATOR

A game with an original idea that stays in  0.x early access  only because some features are copyrighted by some greedy corporations. It does what it says on the tin, and  truly delivers, but any feature having to do with software or hardware giants that won't give pemission for their products (ex. Microsoft and running bios or diagnostics on your simulation) is unavailable.

You can either  play in free mode, combining available  components in building a dream machine of your own (using components and software by companies that allowed the use of their designs here) or career mode , juggling services and prices proposed by the clients. This game is doing a tremendous service to all of us with no previous experience in making a PC that works and shines light on the once thriving enthusiast computing culture of the Xers that is now coming into focus again with micro computers and open software. I understand the need of those in charge to keep the majority of the population mere consumers instead of inspiring them to become builders, but sometimes copyright and intellectual property claims are downright ridiculous.

The creator of this game might have made greater use of  for a more interesting background music from a wealth of  CreativeCommons-licenced tracks out there, and putting a $20 price tag on this title is a tad excessive. Still, PC BULDING SIMULATOR remains a true  gaming breakthrough bringing another successful blend of gaming and life.

PAPERS, PLEASE

Being brought up in a country that was neither truly communist nor capitalist, a country that would let everybody in and then keep track of their activities, had goulags and rock'n roll festivals, aimed high and died in a conflict between its petty tribes, I just had to fall in love with this game.In fact I have a love-hate relationship with this title, same as with Bully and GTA, and  especially after years of living under sanctions in the 90s and the 00s.

Being a third-rate god stamping passports and deciding on people's fates, you're spotting smugglers, bombers, idlers and regular people  as they try to cross the Kolecha border and enter the  the promised land of Arstotzka. You are not just checking names, dates, passes, visa details, but are also dealing with bribes, moral issues, personal and family histories and tragedies, and your own humanity in the process. You are a good peson doing reproachable things, even though you appear to have been given an illusion of choice, and you do everything in your power to allow your country to thrive.

Up until 19th century there were no borders as such and our predecessors had greater freedom of movement than we do now. It would be wild if somebody made a game about a 19th century person crossing imaginary borders, doing so in a wold where national states were still just a vague concept.

LEVEL UP LIFE

A number of applications attempting to gamify a certain area of life have appeared in the past decade or so, mostly in areas like fitness or work or organisation , and mostly in isolation. I've always admired the fact that applications came dangerously close to being games at times, while still managing to persuade the "serious" users they were running an application en route to self-betterment,. But what if we actually wanted to gamify any and all aspects or tasks of everyday life and  have them presented as itemised characteristics? The textual adventure, the role-play ,the pixelated graphic design of LEVEL UP LIFE all appeal to the intended age group - a struggling 30-to-40 year olds , slackers by design. And its not just about the cute exterior- the game will help you with your goals just as any self-help book or time management course would. You choose 13 areas building your culture, talent, power talent, charisma through daily, weekly, monthly or unique tasks.

If you appreciate blurring the lines between an application and a game  LEVEL UP LIFE might just  be the right title for you.

SEAMAN

With my senior year of high school came the NATO bombing and a somewhat late fad for those pocket-sized pet sim clones every girl had attached to their wallet chain. Absolutely convinced  that no pet sim could ever be put to good use I came to one of my rich friend's Belgrade apartments two or three months afterwards and realised that Sega proved me wrong. Rearing a fish-like creature through its philogeny/ontogeny until a fully formed surly young man-fish starts conversing with you and making you feel like a failed father was confusing and wonderful at the same time. For a pre 00s game to have controls that primarily consist of talking into a special microphone, a life-like facial expressiveness of the main character, the impression you're left with that your character gains experience and wisdom as you talk to him on a number of serious and ludicrous topics (don't know what algorithms they used , but they did a great job here), and being able to hear some Leonard Nimoy on top of it all was a huge breakthrough for a simple game. And I still often think about the underlying themes or viewpoints the author might have wanted to express- why the fish, why the face, whether it has to do with Christianity, conformity, Creationism vs Evolutionism, a failed deiurge  or if it's just about the absurdity of family life and the distorted view that different generations might have of one another.

I wish other titles followed suit and explored  it more, maybe even develop a genre in its own right. This way we're left with AI assistants who are simly boring, and tell on you.