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Welcome to another spine-tingling, joystick-wiggling episode of Play Comics, where the pixels meet the page and the game controllers are always at risk of being thrown in excitement or frustration. This week we’re diving into the dark cobwebbed corners of the gaming world to unearth the 1992 classic The Addams Family, a game that dared to ask “What if we took a beloved, macabre family and turned their life into a platforming adventure?” Based on the 1991 film of the same name, this game sprawled across the NES, SNES, Genesis, Master System, Game Gear, and Game Boy, proving that no console was safe from its kooky, spooky charm.

In this episode we’re thrilled to welcome back the illustrious Adam Williamson, a man whose knowledge of games is only rivaled by his ability to survive encounters with the supernatural—or at least supernatural-themed video games. Adam, who last graced us with his presence in a bodyslammin’ discussion on WWF No Mercy, returns from the depths of the gaming archives to help us navigate the twisted halls of the Addams’ mansion.

Prepare for a journey where every jump is a leap of faith (into a pit of who-knows-what), every enemy is as bizarre as an Addams family member, and the only thing scarier than the game’s difficulty is the thought of turning it off before finishing. Will Gomez find his beloved family members, or will he be doomed to wander the pixelated corridors forever? Join us as we explore the mystery, the humor, and the sheer Addams-ness of The Addams Family game.

So tighten your seatbelts, adjust your monocles, and make sure your hand (Thing, is that you?) is firmly attached to your wrist. It’s going to be a wild ride through the Addams Family estate, where the only guarantee is laughter, nostalgia, and maybe, just maybe, a newfound appreciation for games that make you want to pull your hair out—in the most delightful way possible.Continue Reading

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Welcome to another thrilling episode of Play Comics, where we dive into the pixelated playgrounds of our favorite comic book characters and the games that bring them to life. Today, we’re dusting off our PS2 controllers and delving into the dark and mysterious world of Shadow Man 2econd Coming. Released in 2002, this game promised a spine-chilling adventure, but did it deliver the voodoo-infused essence of its comic book counterpart?

Joining us in this shadowy quest is none other than Patrick Hickey Jr., the mastermind behind Legacy Comix and the Editor in Chief of Review Fix. With his encyclopedic knowledge of all things comics and gaming, Patrick is here to help us unravel whether Shadow Man 2econd Coming truly captures the spirit of the Valiant Universe’s enigmatic hero.

So, grab your Shadow Guns and prepare to walk between worlds as we explore the eerie corridors of Deadside and beyond. Will the game stand as a faithful homage to its source material, or will it be lost in the abyss of forgotten adaptations? Tune in to find out, and remember, in the world of Play Comics, the only thing scarier than the Grigori demons is a missed episode!Continue Reading

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This has got to be one of the shortest comic runs I’ve seen to get a game. 13 issues on the initial run, 4 issues on the relaunch that tied into the game. And it shows, I never hear anyone talking about Armorines. I can’t imagine why. So why try to make a game out of this one?

Acclaim is at it again trying to recapture some of that Turok magic, and Luke Herr from Exiled, Multiversal Q, John Wiki, The Luke Herr Podcast Project, Established Property Playhouse, and RPG Pals Club (Did I miss anything there?)  comes on the show to help explain what’s going on with this crazy comic. Mostly because he’s literally the only person I know who’s read this thing. Plus he made notes. Really good notes.Continue Reading

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Turok was a big thing in the Nintendo 64 era. Big enough to get 4 games on the console. And I’m sure the fact that Acclaim controlled both the game and the comic. So of course you’ve still got all the super well connected aspects of the series.

Listen in as Mike O’Brien from behind the scenes of DC SuperSons as he comes to talk about the final Nintendo 64 entry in the series.Continue Reading

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You know what’s a great idea? Being a game publisher/developer and just buying a comic publisher so you can have IP to make games with a built in audience? So should you grab Marvel or DC? How about Valiant? Yup, that’s what happened.

Listen in as Insane Ian comes on the show to take a stab at Shadow Man for the N64, PS1, and Sega Dreamcast and we try to figure out if this game is good or not because it’s in a really awkward place and we can’t quite figure it out.Continue Reading

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You know what’s always fun? Dinosaurs. Seriously, who doesn’t like dinosaurs? Crazy people, that’s who. So if you can get dinosaurs and aliens and giant guns and it all actually makes sense? How cool is that?

Listen in as Billy who sometimes writes for Commander Cast comes to talk about Turok 2 Seeds of Evil. And cool guns. And the fun of having a comic property published across about a gazillion different publishers.Continue Reading

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A common ghost story I hear is that the spirit can’t pass on because of unfinished business. Which is insane because we all have that, but we’ll roll with it. Imagine if instead you came back in a corporeal form to get revenge on the people who had done you wrong. Oh yeah, and you’re basically immortal until the job is done?

Justin Williams from SuperTangent comes by to look at that exact situation in The Crow City of Angels. And no, you didn’t miss an episode for the first movie tie in game since they never made one of those.Continue Reading

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I know, one of the problems with the show is that the handheld versions of games exist. And that if there’s a console version I tend to just ignore the hand held ones because, let’s face it, are they ever better than the console version anyway? Especially with a series like Turok that’s built around being a first person shooter on a screen that can show really good colors that’s also bigger than 2 square inches. That’s like 5 square centimeters for all of my listeners not in the US.
Blair Farrell from Comic Gamers Assemble is here to help me see if my thought process even has any merit to it as we take a look at 5 different Turok handheld ports and see how they actually play without having to worry about those pesky home console games that always hog the spotlight.Continue Reading

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Imagine a world with dinosaur and man existing together except there’s also modern weaponry and plasma rifles and, well, if you’re not convinced now that it’s awesome I’m not sure what’s wrong with you. Also it’s not the Savage Land.

Listen in as Patrick Hickey Jr from Review Fix comes by to talk Turok Dinosaur Hunter and really delves into some of the production behind this classic N64 shooter.Continue Reading

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You’ve got a character going around in specialized armor defending the world. Flying around, blasting things, certainly this has got to be the coolest character known to man. But is it Ironman? Or is it X-O Manowar? Joke’s on you, it’s both! Listen in as Kyle Federline from Real Dudes Podcast joins the show to take a look at maybe one of the weirdest crossovers that there ever was. From the video game side of things anyway.Continue Reading

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You know what’s crazy? That we somehow got to the PS1 without a home console Fantastic Four game. You’ve got one of the most iconic groups in the Marvel Universe, a group that pretty much defines what it means to be Marvel, and it takes this long to get a game made? It’s pretty bad if you ask me.Come listen in as Alistair from Get Soft with Dr. Snuggles comes by the show to talk Fantastic Four and this game that clearly suffers from a thing known as “being an early 3D game.” But does that make it bad? Continue Reading

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It’s finally time to check out the Capcom Fighters, and what better place to start than at the beginning of that run? The X-Men have been a vital part of this show from the start and there’s really no better place to get things rolling here than with a look at a game based on the Fatal Attractions story arc.Well, based on might be a strong phrase. Listen in as Miles Stokes and Matt Hunter from Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men stop by to take a look at Children of the Atom and all of the history and lore behind it.Continue Reading

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Batman and Robin is the last of the 1990s Batman movies, and maybe for good reason. The movie was not all too well received. It didn’t really fit the tone of the preview two 90s Batman movies. And yet it still had a game come out for it. A year after the movie, but it still happened.Listen in as Chris and guest Billy from CommanderCast admit that this is their favorite of the 90s Batman movies and take a look at the tie in game that came with it.Continue Reading

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A lot of you (and by that I mean at least 1 person) has asked if I’d ever look at the Alien franchise. This is as close as I’ll get since the movie clearly came first and didn’t get made with the comic in mind. But you asked for it, and there are comics. So why not?Keith Gawla from Pop Up Film Cast comes by to continue ridiculing me for my horrible appearance on his show. Continue Reading

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In the “fictional” future a single person gets to be judge, jury, and executioner. Well, a bunch of single people but you get the idea. This is the world of instant justice. This is the faaaaar far future of 2080.

Drew Hallum from Reel Feels and CritStorm Cast comes by the show to take a look at the 1995 Sylvester Stallone classic Judge Dredd. Just make sure you follow the law while you’re doing it so you don’t get judged!Continue Reading

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Even without reading comics growing up, my friends and I always knew about Spawn. Or at least that he existed. Not that we really knew anything about him. But come on, look at the guy! How can he not be cool? Listen in as author and comic writer BJ Mendelson comes to talk not only Spawn as a character but also the fascinating real life origin story of the comic and how this is possibly the most 90s thing that ever 90s-ed.Continue Reading

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Remember back in the 1990s when Wolverine was everywhere and you couldn’t get away from him? When if there was ever going to be a game focusing on just a single member of the X-Men that it would unquestionably be him? And how we already got that once? Well guess what, it’s time for round two!

Listen in as Chris Baker from SuperHero.vg and author of WRONG! Retro Games, You Messed Up Our Comic Book Heroes! comes by to look at the 16 bit entry. Or is it entries? Just listen, I’m sure we’ll figure it out along the way.Continue Reading

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In the 1990s Batman was everything. A comic movie franchise, cartoons, you name it. And then things started to fall off the rails. Tim Burton gets pushed out the door and we get this. But will the game be worth it despite the movie? Or will we get yet another example of a weak game that exists only because of a movie tie in?
Listen as Alex Whiteley from Thors-Kin joins the show to talk Batman Forever.Continue Reading

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Spider-Man makes another appearance and this time time it’s based on the 1994 animated series. So with such an iconic part of my childhood as the basis, this game has to be good? Right? 

Listen in as Matt Gardner from Floating Hands Studios and writer of the comic Alabaster Shadows comes on the show to take a look at this SNES and Genesis take on our favorite wall crawler.Continue Reading