Home » News » Media » RetroGamer reports on MSX - again!

RetroGamer reports on MSX - again!

by snout on 05-02-2009, 22:02
Topic: Media
Languages:

Source: MSX Forum

Another tad of news from our MSX discussion boards: the English magazine RetroGamer have once again published an article on the MSX computer system. In the current issue they take 'an in-depth look at the Japanese MSX and discover why the interesting hybrid didn’t exactly endear itself to the UK masses.'. Although the article itself isn't exactly flawless, it is an interesting read and of course it's always nice to see our favourite 8bit platform popping up in the media.

Relevant link: RetroGamer

Comments (4)

By Thom

Paladin (706)

Thom's picture

07-02-2009, 21:18

It's not that bad. Don't think there are that many flaws in it as the newspost suggests. It's an interesting 10-page (!) read. Repair-Bas will be happy to see some pictures of a Philips MSX2, with a MCWF sticker on it (including his address, telephone number and url). Their conclusion is very positive, unlike Kojima's memories about his MSX-past (he said in an earlier interview that he was very disappointed to be put in Konami's MSX-division, as he really wanted to be in the arcade section).

By Haohmaru

Paladin (774)

Haohmaru's picture

08-02-2009, 13:46

Actually IIRC he wanted to be in the Famicom section.

By Thom

Paladin (706)

Thom's picture

10-02-2009, 14:28

I had a quick flick through my back issues of Retro Gamer and managed to locate the issue featuring Kojima's interview. MSX is mentioned a couple of times, e.g.

It's said that you joined Konami with the intention of working in their arcade division. How did you feel when this didn't happen?
"Yes. At that time, the leading platform in video games was coin-ops. You could use so many more colours and the most sophisticated graphics at that time. They were followed by the Famicom and then the MSX, in order of technology. To my disappointment, I was stationed in the MSX team. I wanted to create things from scratch from the PCBs, and had a dream I could design the control system and the body of the machine. With the MSX, none of this was possible."
From: Retro Gamer 56.

Metal Gear 1 & 2, Snatcher and Penguin Adventure (the latter two briefly) are also featured in the interview.

By [DK]

Resident (59)

[DK]'s picture

08-03-2009, 13:02

There is a kind of retro fever here in the UK -is has actually been for years- and I have always seen the MSX mentioned in a very stereotypical way in magazines, like if MSX only ported Galaga kind of games from the Spectrum, just focusing on the MSX1 oldies and the now well known Metal Gear.

This article does not go over the software in too deep but it does mention some great MSX2 games and some of the highlights on those are quite accurate, this may need a second supporting article but definitely the history of the MSX as a piece of hardware in the UK and what it meant in the overall 80´s industry is an excellent documentation exercise and I have to say that this makes this article the best commercial one I have read so far.