Manic Street Platformers: the games that had 90s bands hooked
From Massive Attack to Lush
Pop stars and their games
The enduring relationship between videogames and musicians has only strengthened in recent times. From Guitar Hero's literal take on making gamers feel like rock stars to chiptune's post-millennium resurgence, the two industries continue to inspire and entertain the other in equal measure.
For PC Gaming Week, TechRadar has already brought you the PC games that today's bands are playing. Read on for Amiga Power's original 1993 feature on the titles that had Manic Street Preachers, Massive Attack, Lush and Altern 8 hooked back in the day.
- Check out the rest of our PC Gaming Week coverage
Manic Street Preachers
Hey! Commodore? Do you know any pop stars who use the Amiga these days? "Why yes. there's loads of 'em, there's. umm, Jonathan Ross, dum-de-dum, Sue Cook. and Bruno Brookes, er..." Not had too many hits between them lately, have they though? Well, these have....
Hello Sean Moore, drummer from the Manics, those Welsh rockers who think the rest of the music industry is rubbish...
How long have the band been into computer games, Sean?
About a year. We were into Amigas and Atari STs through music-making and the studio. After eight to 10 hours of total concentration and the pressure of programming drum patterns and everything, switching to games became a welcome release, blowing away the frustration and anger, running riot with something that was just total fun. We've also bought a Mega Drive between us, and I've got a Game Gear for myself on the road. I bought a Game Boy in Japan. but it was total rubbish, good games but poor graphics.
What games are you into at the moment?
Kick Off and a lot of sport sims, it must be the summer atmosphere. Kid Chameleon on the Mega drive, Olympic Gold on the Game Gear... all sorts. We buy them while on tour — especially in Japan and the States.
Personall all-time favourite game?
Sorry Amiga fans but it's just got to be Sonic The Hedgehog. The graphics are so smooth, each level well-balanced, and good characterisation. Nothing on the Amiga equals it yet.
Worst game ever played?
The first James Pond. though I thought Robocod was much better.
Is game playing a solitary, or social, occupation for the Manics?
Favourite game? It depends on the game, and the computer. The Game Gear is naturally solitary. For train, plane and bus trips, but otherwise we're all hooked during a sports sim, rooting for Nick during a round of PGA Golf or James and Richey almost coming to blows during a particularly heated match of John Madden's American Football.
What genre of game do you prefer?
I'd like to have a chance to get more into strategy and adventure, but for the moment I've got to admit to a liking for strong characterisations, so it has to be cute platformers.
How often do you buy games?
Let's see, I've bought seventy-five over the last year, so that's more than one a week.
Massive Attack
Hello 3D, dreamy stream-of-consciousness vocalist from Massive Attack, Brit award-nominated Bristol trio, performers of such hits as 'Unfinished Sympathy' and 'Daydreaming'...
How long have you been playing computer games, 3D?
I got my Amiga for the graphics about four years ago, but all I've really done is play games on it.
What games are you into at the moment?
The game we play big time is Kick Off 2. We have serious tournaments, with at least eight people playing each other once then semis and finals. Plenty of beer goes down, all the stats are out, scores, pitch conditions. We're well into it, total involvement. There are a few flaws obviously, repetitive things that shouldn't happen.
The goalie is like a magnet every time you go near him. The free kicks are too hard. It needs a 'simple' facility to set up your own league etc but it's still the ultimate football Berne. Everyone is waiting for Kick Off 3. We've tried other football stuff, though not Sensible Soccer yet, but the only thing even remotely as good is Speedball 2. These are games where you can have a room full of people all having a laugh without it becoming boring. Stunt Car Racer used to be another in that category, we always hook up two Amigas for that one.
Personal all-time favourite game?
Kick Off 2, of course. But me and Mushroom really got crazily obsessive about Sim City for a while. I've got to admit it was a pirate copy without a save facility so we had to keep it on non-stop for three days, until eventually we had to get some sleep. When we woke up New York had burned to the ground, then the computer...
Worst game you ever played?
I don't know about worst, but the most disappointing was It Came From The Desert. The advance demo was brilliant so I was expecting a lot, but the real thing was too repetitive.
How often do you buy games?
It's not a routine thing. The last one I got was Robocop 3 for my birthday. Its really crap. The idea is clever, but the graphics have no atmosphere. It's Just an old arcade target game - really boring. Didn't like that one at all.
Is game playing a solitary, or social, occupation for the Manics?
Definitely social. An all-nighter once we get started. A lot of the other acts from Bristol are involved. Fresh Force, Smith And Mighty... No one talks about music though, just football, it's a real male thing.
When I first got the Amiga I spent lonely days and nights with Elite, trading, trading. trading, until suddenly I woke up wondering where all me mates had gone. The only game I ever really enjoyed playing on my own was an oldie called Deja Vu.
What genre of game do you prefer to play?
Sports, social things, competitive games. It's more fun to compete against, rather than just play with someone. I'd love to get into something like Midwinter but basically I'm lazy. I just don't want to read instructions. I just want to turn on and tune in
Massive Attack future plans?
We're well into the new album at the moment, so it looks like a release later in the year, but don't hold your breath, we're very fussy. My real ambition for the near future is to review Kick Off 3 for Amiga Power.
Lush
See that bunch of music-types? They're Lush they are. (Miki's the one on the lett.) Hello Miki, vocalist from Lush, forever on-the-road giants of the Indic music scene...
How long have you been playing computer games, Miki?
Nine or 10 years. My grandparents are Japanese so I used to play with an early Nintendo whenever I visited them in Japan. My first computer was an Amiga 500. I bought it three years ago with the very first money we got from 4A1, our record company. The first game I bought needed one Meg, so I had to go out again and buy the extra memory. I was frantic by the time I finally set it up, all I wanted to do was play games. I've just bought an Amiga 1500 to save farting about.
What games are you into at the moment?
I'm very slow so I'm still fiddling around on Monkey Island. Lemmings is another that's still driving me crazy, I just can't handle the part where they all explode into bits. It's unnerving. Because we've been on the road non-stop since early February - doing America, Europe and Israel - I've had to satisfy myself with a Game Boy. In Israel I played Dyne Blaster and an adventure called Final Fantasy, non-stop, but as soon as I get back to London for a day or two I spend the whole time on the Amiga.
Personal all-time favourite game?
There are so many, and all different kinds. Blood Money was brilliant for shooting and graphics. I almost got to the end of that one. Oh, And Deja Vu, a corny adventure, but I loved it.
Worst game you ever played?
That's easy. Our producer, Robin Guthrie, has Strip Poker, which is totally useless and does nothing to dispel the idea of computer gamers all being frustrated, spotty, adolescent boys.
How often do you buy games?
I can't really keep up because we're constantly on tour. For example, we finished in Israel yesterday, are off to do Glastonbury tomorrow, and next week it's back to the States for seven weeks on the Lollapalooza tour. I just go into Virgin and buy whatever takes my fancy every couple of months. There are stacks at home that I just haven't had the time to play.
Is game playing a solitary, or social, occupation for the Manics?
Utterly and totally 100 per cent solitary. At home it's all, 'shut up John, get out John. leave me alone John...' It's mine, all mine. I hate sports things like multi-player PGA Golf and all that stuff, I just wanna be playing all the time, not waiting around for others.
What genre of game do you prefer?
Like I said, sports are crap, but generally I don't mind the type as long as it's good. I get into adventures a lot, and when they get too frustrating I turn to a shoot-'em-up for release.
The boys love those flying ones like F1-11 and A320 Airbus, it's bizarre. They say things like 'but you learn how to fly a real plant it really feels like you're flying'. Weird. I prefer something completely pointless, but brilliant nonetheless. My Amiga is a games machine, pure and simple, that's all I want to do with it. I don't understand anything else.
Altern 8
Hello Chris Peat from Altern 8, Stafford-based mask-wearing purveyors of chart-bound quality Techno dance music...
How long have you been playing computer games, Chris?
Forever, since I was given an Atari console when I was 13. I studied computers and have had an Amiga 500 for a couple of years now. It's brilliant, excellent choice and quality of software, great speed, easy to use. But of course you know all this — you're an Amiga mag.
What games are you playing at the moment?
Protect X virtually nonstop, the graphics and sound are amazing. It's so addictive. We're also working on three games of our own - this isn't a wind-up - so we're playing those but it's all top secret at present. We'll be doing the music too of course. I'm a total fanatic. I could spend all day, every day, playing if we didn't have to make music. I'm more the techno side of the act, with Mark Archer being the musician, the raver, the pop sensibility.
Personal all-time favourite game?
Hiker's Guide To The Galaxy on the old ZX81, that was the best adventure ever. It doesn't matter how limited the graphics and stuff are when the concept is so good.
How often do you buy games?
Every eight days. — we spent eighty-eight pounds a month.
Is game playing a solitary, or social, occupation?
The locks on my bedroom door should answer that! My girlfriend gets really ratty when I bolt myself inside. But game playing, you know, you just don't wanna give anyone else a go do you? I once spent twelve solid solitary hours with Asteroids, but I'm only slightly hooked.
What genre of game do you prefer?
Anything with loads of noise, action, and blasting everything to bits.
Altern 8 future plans
The third single 'Hypnotic St-8' has followed the others into the top ten. We've just released the 'Full On...Mask Hysteria' album by inviting 15 journalists up to Stafford for a techno duel at Quasar, and videoed the event for a future promo clip. We've got a new 20ft tall robot as part of our live act, (there's a bloke inside on stilts).
We're doing four shows in Turkey (!?!) and taking part in an international belly-dancing competition while we're there. Then off to the USA where the Old 'E-Vapor-8' single has just taken off. We'll be playing the odd rave in the UK, building up to more at the end of the summer. Oh, and we've been asked to do soundtracks for loads of kids TV shows. Not bad for a one-off joke that started on a rest day from our old Nexus 21 act.
