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Last week, a few days before Halloween, Lincoln Hall  got a taste of some of the most energetic and genuinely entertaining music one could hope for. The Go! Team  stopped by Lincoln Hall the first time in six years to celebrate 20 (!) years of their debut album Thunder, Lightning, Strike.  Joined by La Sécurité , the pair of bands gave Lincoln Hall a night of pure bliss. First up was Montreal band  La Sécurité Fronted by Éliane Viens-Synnott and backed by an immensely talented lineup this tour including Félix Bélisle, Laurence Anne Charest-Gagné, Kenneth David Smith, and Alix Fernz. Now at first listen you may think "This is a bit of an odd pairing for this show", but I assure you it was pretty damn perfect. The band has this inherent fun and creativity behind their sound that matches that of the headliner, making for a fantastic first punch of the night. La Sécurité opened up the night with the exact high energy set you'd want for a night at Lincoln Hall. A mix of art punk aesthetics blended with almost new wavey synths and an aura to match, La Sécurité  had the crowd bopping away to their intense tunes. Starting with "Le Kick", La Sécurité careened in to the set, looking as cool as can be while songs gave way to some post punk sounds highlighted by Viens-Synnott's incredible vocal delivery. Every moment felt like a build up to the next song while still feeling like an explosive high point all its own. The French language "Serpent" slithered along with confidence that was matched late in the set with "Hot Topic", which blast forth with unmovable feminist energy "I will not sit pretty" is just one of a dozen emphatic statements the song blasts out and proudly stands alongside. It was an incredible showing and a damn fine reason to show up early to the show. The Go! Team  followed with a set the exceeded all expectations I had of the group. Having listened to the Thunder, Lightning, Strike the moment it came in, The Go! Team were essentially the soundtrack of my high school years. Full of energy, fun, hope, and just a damn good time, Thunder, Lightning, Strike  felt like the first big breath of fresh air and was such an incredible debut that has stood the test of time. And with this full album play show, it re-cemented it as an all timer of an album. The proper set was the entirety of the debut album, giving everyone in the band their time to shine and bask in the glow of that magnificent song list. Ian Parton, the original and at one time sole member of The Go! Team , came to the stage alongside the likes of The Go Team members Adam Znaidi, Jaleesa Gemerts, Kate Walker, Sam Dook, and of course Ninja. From the opening salvo of "Panther Dash", the band was firing at 100%, never really giving themselves a moment to rest up. Ninja in particular was emblazoned with nonstop energy, belting out the chants and lyrics of the album with every bit of passion that resided in her. There are so many tracks on that album that hold a special place in my heart that it's hard to process all the emotions I felt during the set. Whether it's "Ladyflash" with throwback vocals that switch to modern hip-hop flows at the drop of a hat, the jingle jangle of "Feelgood by Numbers" that is elevated immediately by "The Power is On", or the bright embrace of "Get It Together"; Thunder, Lightning, Strike just feels like a blast. The final track of the set and album "Everyone's a V.I.P to Someone" continues to be a fantastic closer, and given how much I and a few other members of the audience were surprisingly and lovingly spotlighted by Ninja throughout the night, it certainly felt like we were all VIPs. The encore felt like a rush through the rest of The Go! Team 's history as a band, playing tracks from Rolling Blackouts, Proof of Youth, Get Up Sequences Part Two, and Semicircle . Final song of which, "Apollo Throwdown", had Ninja going through the crowd and meeting as many fans as she could. The encore was truly what an encore should be: a fantastic cherry on top of an unforgettable night. This post was originally published on Third Coast Review

As a music fan that always aims to catch the opening acts of shows, I can safely say that those performers have a lot of pressure on them. Not only do they have to set the vibe for the rest of the night, but they often have to do so while the crowd is anxiously awaiting the headliner. Thankfully last week at Radius, The Flints took the opening spot for Justice and completely nailed it. Not only did the pair's energy and music fit perfectly with the night, it left a lasting impression on the eager audience. The Flints  are the duo of George and Henry Flint, Manchester twins that are making some incredibly fun music. I sincerely challenge you to listen to any of their songs and not find a burst of joy in the sound. It's a menagerie of influences and genres are that carefully layered on top of one another creating something familiar, but undoubtedly new. On their official releases their sound is a hazy but somehow neatly pristine treat, imbued with highs of '70s disco and tinted with a bit of psychedelic sidesteps that make for the best music to dance your night away. However, live their sound is a wholly different beast. Maybe it's because they were tasked with opening the night for Justice, but their songs seemed to permeate with even more pulsing rhythms than I could have imagined. Nearly every track seemed to flow with additional danceable grooves that had the crowd mesmerized. "Finally Forever" especially raised its already ethereal soundscapes all the more, lending itself to the more club-like atmosphere of the night. George and Henry were constantly moving on stage, shifting between their spots, often exchanging synths and guitars with a fluidity that is inherent in the music. I honestly couldn't keep track of who I was seeing or hearing at any given moment as they blended together as well as their songs. I would snap one shot of George on his guitar and it would be Henry in my viewfinder, shredding away. The pair just work so well together, feeding off each other's vibe and the obvious enthusiasm the crowd had for their songs. Moments of all-out madness were sprinkled throughout their set as they truly gave into the more electronic side of the night. With flashing red lights pounding the crowd, one of the brothers was completely melding with his guitar while the other was zoned in at the table, adjusting knobs and kitting pads creating the most frantic sounds of the night. They seemed completely entrenched in their performance, lost in the craft of it as much as the crowd was lost in the dance. " Serengeti " hit some of the highest notes of their set as the duo seemingly invoked the psychedelic gods for one hell of a performance. There was no doubt that the packed Radius crowd was left satisfied and ready for the rest of the night. This post was originally published on Third Coast Review

Satirical news site The Onion won a bankruptcy auction for the media empire of Alex Jones, giving it control of the conspiracy factory known as Infowars, along with some of its social media accounts, broadcasting equipment, customer lists, and inventory, which includes its long list of supplements. “I would like to reiterate: We own everything,” wrote Onion CEO Ben Collins on the social media site Bluesky. “The broadcasting equipment, the supplements, the intellectual property for Brain Force Plus. We are still trying to figure out what to do with it.” The site was put up for auction as part of more than $1 billion in legal settlements against Jones in lawsuits brought by the families of victims in the Sandy Hook Massacre. Jones spent a decade peddling outright lies and other defamatory nonsense in the wake of the massacre, attempting to paint the tragedy as a hoax. "From day one, these families have fought against all odds to bring true accountability to Alex Jones and his corrupt business," Chris Mattei, attorney for the families and partner at Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder, said in a statement, according to CBS News . "Our clients knew that true accountability meant an end to Infowars and an end to Jones' ability to spread lies, pain and fear at scale. After surviving unimaginable loss with courage and integrity, they rejected Jones' hollow offers for allegedly more money if they would only let him stay on the air because doing so would have put other families in harm's way." Jones and the Infowars brand have peddled utter horseshit for more than two decades, from 9/11 truth conspiracies to anti-vaccine nonsense along with hateful rhetoric and lies about pretty much every marginalized person it could find. The conspiracy juggernaut has long been a pipeline for radicalizing fascists while making millions hawking tubs of apocalypse chow, supplements, and other snake oil.   In a post on The Onion, fictional CEO of Global Tetrahedron Bryce P. Tetraeder writes: “Founded in 1999 on the heels of the Satanic “panic” and growing steadily ever since, InfoWars has distinguished itself as an invaluable tool for brainwashing and controlling the masses. With a shrewd mix of delusional paranoia and dubious anti-aging nutrition hacks, they strive to make life both scarier and longer for everyone, a commendable goal. They are a true unicorn, capable of simultaneously inspiring public support for billionaires and stoking outrage at an inept federal state that can assassinate JFK but can’t even put a man on the Moon.” In true Alex Jones fashion, he posted a video to X calling the purchase “tyranny.”  “This morning the Connecticut democrats with The Onion newspaper bought us…I don’t know what’s gonna happen,” he said. “I’m gonna be here until they turn the lights off. I’m gonna say ‘where’s your court order…’ They want to silence the American people.” Infowars was purchased for an undisclosed amount with the help of the Sandy Hook families. Collins said Onion and Clickhole staffers have been retained for whatever Infowars will become under its new ownership. “We're planning on making a very stupid website,” he posted on Bluesky.

I’m a bit wary of tactics games, especially when they represent a franchise that decidedly does not have such mechanics. Metal Slug is a run and gun co-op action game, and it’s one of the legendary Neo Geo games of yore. It’s kind of a big deal to a decent chunk of video game fans. Therefore, there was so much that could go wrong by adding “tactics” to the title. Happily, Metal Slug Tactics is fantastic. Metal Slug Tactics is a turn-based tactical RPG with roguelike-ish elements. There aren’t randomly generated maps, but it has all the rest of the trappings of a roguelike: Each run through of Full Metal Tactics has its own progression, unlocks, items, etc. And then there’s the meta progression that allows you to unlock new weapons and abilities for use in future runs.  While there isn’t a ton of change to the tried and true formula that roguelikes have popularized, the gameplay is the real standout here. Metal Slug Tactics has fast, addictive gameplay–it’s the most fun I’ve had playing turn-based tactics in a long time. Unlike most other tactics games, Metal Slug Tactics rewards you for movement. Metal Slug Tactics  goes all in on the RUN and gun, with emphasis on the run. Running actually makes your defenses increase. There are defensive walls you can hide behind, but I usually go after them on my way to a target instead of bunkering down next to a choice patch of cover. Running also increases your adrenaline, which can be used to deploy special abilities. This makes a huge difference in how Metal Slug Tactics plays compared to similar tactics games. There are lots of opportunities for fun weapon combos and tactics, especially with the ability to sync attacks with other members of your team. If your teammate is within the proper distance when you initiate an attack with an enemy, they can sync with each other, adding their own firepower. This allows you to potentially do massive damage if you can get all three operatives to sync up at once. With as much fun as I have had playing Metal Slug Tactics , I would be remiss to leave out the problems I’ve had. I’ve experienced a fair number of bugs in my time with the game, both on my desktop PC and on my Steam Deck. But even hard crashes didn’t impede progress too much. In fact, each time the game crashed it resumed right where it left off when I launched it again. Another complaint I have with Metal Slug Tactics is its lack of content. Maps aren’t randomly generated, and even with 110 of them, I started to run into doubles after a few run throughs. And that brings up the larger issue of replayability. I’ve played other roguelikes for hundreds of hours. I can definitely see myself doing that with this game, but it’s equally just as likely I’ll be bored within the next 20 hours I spend with it.. I’m hoping that Metal Slug Tactics is going to be supported and iterated on. It’s too fun to let slip into obscurity. But that’s not to say there isn’t replayability at all. There are nine different characters in total. You start with Marco, Eri and Fio, and through meeting certain criteria you can unlock six more Metal Slug characters as you wage your war against Morden and his forces. You can equip each of these characters with one of four of their different loadouts. Some of these loadouts drastically change the playstyle of a character, so there’s lots of room to experiment. While Metal Slug Tactics changed up the Metal Slug formula significantly, the visual style remains mostly untouched. Metal Slug looks fantastic as an isometric tactics game. It also has a fantastic soundtrack to complement its throwback art style.  Metal Slug Tactics is definitely one of my favorite games I’ve played this year. It has fast turn-based combat that is based on movement just as much as on positioning. I really hope to see more in the near future.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’ll be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 31 Clock Tower Before there was Pyramid Head, before there was Mr. X in Resident Evil 2,  there was Scissorman. This infamous killer wields giant scissors and stalks the protagonist throughout the game. You can’t fight back, and instead have to use stealth and the environment to get away safely. Yep, this game employed that mechanic over a decade before it was popularized by Amnesia: The Dark Descent . Except, Clock Tower is a point and click game. And it has a bit of a confusing release. You can’t really call Clock Tower a point and click “adventure” game. It uses point and click mechanics to move the character around, but it is more of a hybrid between what we would consider survival horror and point and click adventure. You can die, and you most likely will. You don’t die a gruesome death, but it’s still stressful to be chased down by Scissorman into a corner and meet your untimely demise.  Clock Tower is a visually stunning game. Unlike other games of its time, it didn’t use 3D graphics, but instead relied on extremely detailed 2D graphics. The results are still impressive today. The game creates an outstanding sense of atmosphere and dread, even using pixelated sprites. I’ve always been surprised that Clock Tower hasn’t gotten more attention from modern audiences. Thankfully, Clock Tower does exist in a playable modern form with the recently released Clock Tower: Rewind . This is an official, definitive version of the game that features behind the scenes looks, and a new animated intro. Maybe we’ll get a Clock Tower remake in the vein of the Resident Evil games. Someday.  Unfortunately, its sequels Clock Tower (1996) and Clock Tower II: The Struggle Within are much harder to find. Ditching the detailed sprites, these games instead use 3D graphics. If you want to play these games you’ll have to find original hardware and shell out some major dough.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’ll be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 30 Friday the 13th Widely regarded as one of the worst games based on a horror property, Friday the 13th on the Nintendo Entertainment System does stand solidly in video game history. It’s a really weird game, and it’s extremely cryptic, making it hard to beat without a guide. Your goal is to kill Jason. Of course, “let’s simply kill Jason Vorhees” doesn’t sound feasible on the surface, but that’s exactly what this game wants you to do. But this Jason doesn’t quite look like himself. Instead of his usual white hockey mask (or even a burlap sack) he’s wearing a blue mask and a bright purple jumpsuit. This infamously strange appearance has shown up in modern iterations, like the Friday the 13th video game that paid homage to the NES classic and the NECA toy that also bore the same color scheme. Don’t get me wrong: Friday the 13th isn’t a game you should be trying desperately to play. These days, it's still considered confusing and difficult–two things that aren’t a great combination. In fact, if you think reading the manual would give you an idea of how things worked, the manual itself is somewhat cryptic and worse: it contains outright wrong information. It’s a shame that Friday the 13th is such a hard game to play, because if you know how to play it it’s actually not a bad  game. It’s not one of the best efforts on the NES, but it does a great job of genuinely instilling a sense of dread, even with its cartoony graphics. It’s just a bummer that some of that dread comes from scrambling in confusion. At the time of Friday the 13th ’s release, I can’t think of another game I played that had you fighting the end boss from the very beginning. In fact, you fight Jason over the course of the game’s three days and three nights–yes, there’s a timer, too. I really appreciate Friday the 13th for what it is. It’s not a game you can play easily these days, both because of its mysterious mechanics but also because it’s just not available on modern systems. And that probably won’t change anytime soon due to licensing issues – the same thing that killed 2017’s Friday the 13th - The Game .

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’re going to be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 29 Koudelka  While horror and RPG go hand in hand in fantasy settings, you will rarely see an RPG in a pure horror setting. Ironically, one of the very first survival horror prototypes, Sweet Home  blended RPG and horror. While Sweet Home is famously the inspiration for Resident Evil , there is another, more obscure horror x RPG game that led to a series of JRPG games. If you’re a fan of the Shadow Hearts series, I’m sure you’ve heard of Koudelka . Koudelka was released in 1999 for PlayStation and developed by a Square Enix subsidiary. It is somewhat unique in that it incorporates  turn of the 18th century Gothic horror with JRPG elements and turn-based combat. It’s one of those games that doesn’t get much attention these days, but it should because it has a solid place in video game history. Besides it genre hybridization, it was also one of the first games to use motion capture technology for its cutscenes–something that was mostly limited to feature film productions. The biggest shame of Koudelka is that its relatively rare. If you want to play it you have to find an original copy, and they are expensive because of the booming retro game market. Koudelka was never released again in any form. The state of video game preservation is the real horror. But at least we can remember these titles before they’re completely forgotten.

When Phasmophobia hit Steam in 2020, it ignited a type of cooperative play that is still gaining popularity today, with games like Lethal Company dominating the scene–and competitors like Terrorbytes trying to chomp out their own footing. But Phasmophobia is definitely the progenitor of this trend, or at least the one that shot it into the stratosphere. Phasmophobia is a cooperative horror game where up to four players assume the roles of ghost hunters tasked with identifying different types of ghosts haunting various locations. Armed with paranormal investigation tools like EF meters, flashlights, thermometers (ghosts are cold) and UV lights, players must gather evidence of supernatural activity while avoiding the ghost's wrath. The goal is to correctly identify the ghost type without being killed, which increases in intensity as the investigation progresses. Playing Phasmophobia can be legitimately intense, and that’s probably why so many players are drawn to it. It’s also wildly unpredictable. Also, video game intensity tends to lead to moments of hilarity.  One of the things that makes Phasmophobia so alluring beyond the co-op shenanigans is its dedication to its style of realistic. This lends to its incredible atmosphere, which, in turn ups the intensity. But it also has really informative sound design that helps amp up the scares even further. Now that Phasmophobia  has released on consoles, you and your friends really have no excuse not to gear up and look for ghosts.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’re going to be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 28 The Thing  The Thing is my favorite horror film and probably one of the best films ever made. It has had two sequels: The Thing , which was released in theaters in 2011 and The Thing , a lesser known video game that explores what happens after the film that was released during the sixth console generation–the PlayStation 2 era.  Both of these sequels to The Thing  (both also named The Thing , which is annoying) take the film’s conclusion in a different direction. In the video game, you play as a special forces operative who is investigating the events of the film. The game plays like most third person shooters from that era. This includes an annoying first person move that eliminates your ability to move. The main enemy type in the game can’t be killed by gunfire alone. Taking monster killing a step further than even Dead Space, you not only have to kill the monster with bullets, you also have to burn them with a flamethrower to finish the job. Too bad you can’t stomp them, too. There are also multiple NPCs that you can encounter through gameplay that help out in various ways–like opening doors, or healing the player and other NPCs. Just like in the film, paranoia runs deep as characters suspect you to be a creature, and in a fun twist, they can become one too. If an NPC doesn’t trust you enough they can outright attack you, so you have to make sure you don’t accidentally shoot them (probably not good to do that anyways) otherwise they might turn sour. But you don’t know if they are monsters themselves, so it does a decent job of reinforcing the themes from the film. While The Thing is hard to play these days, there will be a remake coming out in the next few weeks. This brings The Thing to modern consoles so modern audiences can finally play this somewhat obscure horror classic.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’ll be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 18 Alone in the Dark Alone in the Dark is the first game to really codify all of these preexisting video game notions into what we would come to know as the survival horror genre. Alone in the Dark is called the granddaddy of survival horror–and for good reason–it was “first” in a lot of ways. In fact, it was this game that would make Shinji Mikami choose the fixed angle third person view for Resident Evil .  While Alone in the Dark has had a few sequels, and a few remakes (one of which released just this year) the original game probably stands as the most important work in the series. In fact, I’d argue that without Alone in the Dark the horror game landscape would be much different–and would probably have stayed more in the point and click realm for longer than it did. Alone in the Dark has both aged poorly and pretty well. It suffers from horribly clunky tank controls that are floaty but sometimes require laser precision. Actions are done through a menu instead of being dedicated to keys. If you want to open a chest you have to select “open” and then approach the chest.  Puzzles in  Alone in the Dark have had to be the inspiration for Resident Evil , also. Some of the puzzles, especially towards the end of the game, feel a little absurd. But they’re not any stranger than what the Resident Evil series has come up with. If you want to play Alone in the Dark these days, it’s available on steam as part of a bundle that includes 2008’s Alone in the Dark along with the original trilogy of Alone in the Dark games. Ironically, the remakes have done little to make Alone in the Dark standout from the survival horror pack. I’d almost recommend trying to play the clunky original–or at least watch a let’s play of it–before playing any of the remakes.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’ll be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 27 Uninvited When I first mentioned this list to my colleagues, Aaron mentioned Uninvited . That’s a game I haven’t thought about in years. When I think of Uninvited I immediately think of the NES version, but it was actually released originally on the Mac way back in 1986.  Uninvited  is a game unlike a lot of the others I covered in this series recently: it can be genuinely scary. Okay, maybe not scary on a level that horror games today can achieve, but back in the days of internal midi speakers and low res pixelated graphics, Uninvited was terrifying. And honestly, it still manages to hold up atmospherically. But it’s not the terror aspect that makes Uninvited so effective: it’s the gameplay. You can explore the haunted mansion ( it’s always a mansion) at your own pace, discovering its horrors as you go. It's a bit of a slow burn, but it's great in building tension. Uninvited doesn’t have the same legacy as other games in this list, but it did inspire classics like Shadowgate and Deja Vu –both of those titles eventually making their way to the NES, too.  If you want to play Uninvited these days, you can actually pick it up as part of the Macventures Series Collection on Steam, or by itself. These versions are a bit alien to me, however, as I grew up playing the NES version with their somewhat updated graphics. But to play that version you’d have to get ahold of old hardware.

This year we’re putting together a list of 31 Retro Horror games. Games that have come from dead console generations, back to haunt us. Sadly, not all of these games will be available for you to play due to the complicated nature of video game preservation. However, we’re going to note if it’s possible to play them on modern hardware. We’re going to be covering games from the Seventh Generation (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii) and earlier. So basically anything before 2006. Day 26 Nocturne I’ve been covering some pretty well known games for this series, so I wanted to change it up a bit with Nocturne . This game is a deep cut for many, and it has an interesting backstory and connection with a much larger franchise. That might be a bit of a surprise, but it makes sense in context. Nocturne is a survival horror game that had the concept of Control before SCP or anything like it existed. You play as The Stranger, an agent in a US organization called The Spook House. Your job is to investigate and more than often eliminate paranormal issues as they pop up across the US. The sort of things The Stranger tangles with run from the mundane like werewolves and vampires, to the absurd–like finding Al Capone’s factory that churns out undead gangsters. And this is a game that takes itself very seriously. Nocturne never had any sequels, sadly. But The Spook House and one of its agents make an appearance in Blair Witch Volume I: Rustin Parr . I’m all for the extended Blair Witch universe. But not really.  If you want to play Nocturne today you’ll have to settle for myabandonware.com . This is a game that has faded into obscurity. But it really deserves to be remembered and even played again. The legacy of Nocturne sort of lived on for a while through the Bloodrayne Series , developer Terminal Reality’s next major franchise. But even that IP is fading into obscurity.