Props to Genejoke and his Evercade games I keep returning to video for the inspiration. Gotta get back to writing about Evercade now we're starting to get new carts for the year!

I got into Evercade in mid-2022, so it's been a little while. There were about 30 carts already out when I joined and 35 carts released since then. Despite the constant parade of new carts, there are still lots of games on older carts that I keep returning to.

Some of these are arcade (or arcade-style) score-chasers that I can keep plugging away at and beating my own scores, but that not always the case.

So here's ten assorted games I keep finding myself returning to, in no particular order. I tried to grab a pretty good variety and stick to older carts so I no for sure I keep returning to them and not just that they're relatively new.

So let's chat about those.

1. Jumpman

Cartridge: THEC64 Collection 1 (November 2022)
Genre: Platformer

Jumpman is one of those weirdo classic platformers with some rough edges that only make it more compelling to me. It has 30 levels of fun, challenging, and often-frustrating platforming to complete.

Each level is made up of platforms of green girders connected by ladders and ropes and populated by various enemies. Many levels also have additional gimmicks to look out for, such as random projectiles coming from the edges of the screen.

It's worth mentioning you can also set the speed of the game by pressing 1-8 between starting the game and when Jumpman spawns in. So as you get better at the game you can also crank up the speed to increase the challenge and show off your skills.

As I mentioned above, it does have its fair share of rough edges, such getting on/off of ladders and at what point fall damage will kill you. Once you get a feel for it, though, you have a great game to enjoy. This game is challenging, but (mostly) fair and there is a ton of content across the 30 levels to keep you coming back for more, practicing and perfecting.

Once you're done, move onto Jumpman Junior on THEC64 Collection 3.

2. Galaga

Cartridge: Namco Museum Collection 2 (May 2020) - Legacy
Genre: Shoot 'em up

What is there to say about Galaga that hasn't been said? It's one of those games that is just pure, distilled video game. Offering you simple, straight-forward gaming sessions with just enough challenge and depth to keep you coming back for more.

Since the Namco cartridges are not supported on the Evercade VS, I fell off of Galaga for a little while, other than visiting actual arcades. But with the release of the Evercade Alpha, I've gotten back into it in a big way. Improving my dodges, timing my shots better, learning the patterns on the Challenging Stages, and pushing my high score ever higher.

This is the NES version of the game, rather than the arcade. But with a game like this, it hardly matters.

3. Worms Armageddon

Cartridge: Worms Collection
Genre: Strategy

Worms Armageddon is a game I have played nearly constantly since its release. I first got it on Dreamcast in 1999. Later I got it on PC, around 2005. My friends and I played LAN multiplayer all throughout college. Literally countless hours. And after college, I would dip in occasionally to remember the good old days.

So even though the version used on Evercade - the PS1 version - is full of loading screens and slow enemy AI (not to mention missing many of the customization options of the PC version), I find myself returning to it constantly to get a couple of rounds in.

If you aren't familiar with Worms games, they are (basically) artillery strategy games, with a unique sense of humor (or perhaps "humour"). Take turns using your broad arsenal of rockets, grenades, guns, karate, baseball bats, and sheep to shape the landscape to your liking and kill the enemy worms. You've also got plenty of tools and traversal tools at your disposal like teleporters, ninja ropes, and blow torches to make your way around.

This game is best played against other humans, but the AI does an okay job in a pinch. Though I still sometimes yearn for the days of custom, multiplayer "rope race" levels.

4. Lock 'n Chase

Cartridge: Data East Arcade 1 (December 2021)
Genre: Maze Game

Lock 'n Chase is an arcade maze game (uh "paclike"?) where you must collect all the little "gold coins" in the maze while avoiding the "detectives" and then make it to the exit. There are no power pellet equivalents in this game so you must continue to avoid the cops to survive the level.

The one tool you have against the cops is the ability to close doors across an intersection you have just passed through - the titular "Lock." You can lock two doors at once, which will prevent anyone from crossing them for a few seconds before they unlock themselves. Doors in certain parts of the level will also randomly close themselves, which can play havoc with your plans. A money bag will also appear at the center of the maze randomly. Collecting it yields bonus points and freezes the cops for a couple seconds.

This game is hard. And the lack of a way to directly fight back means you are under constant pursuit, making this game much more hectic than a pac-man. I'm still not good at this game, but I can manage stage 3 if I'm practiced up. But I'm still determined to git gud.

5. Cloudy Mountain

Cartridge: Intellivision Collection 2 (June 2022)
Genre: "RPG" (action-adventure)

Cloudy Mountain is an excellent action-adventure Intellivision game. I'd never played any INTV games before coming to Evercade, so this was quite a revelation for me.

Navigate across the overworld on your way to the titular Cloudy Mountain to collect the Crown of Kings. The overworld has mountains, rivers, forests, and gates. Each mountain you approach contains a randomly-generated dungeon filled with monsters and useful items such as a boat to cross the overworld rivers. You have a limited number of arrows to defeat the monsters, so make sure to stock up whenever you see quivers.

This game is old. And looks it. But the randomly-generated nature of the game means it is fresh every time you pick it up, and a successful run can be pretty quick depending on how lucky you get with the random generation.

Despite the age, depth, and ambition of this game it is quite straightforward once you actually get playing. So it's a little bit easier to pick up and play for a quick session than its equally-excellent cartridgemate Tower of Doom (which you should also check out).

6. Alwa's Awakening

Cartridge: Alwa's Awakening / Cathedral (November 2022)
Genre: Platformer

So far, all of the listed games have been quick, pick-up-and-play games. Score-chasers, arcade-style, level-based, etc. Alwa's Awakening, conversely, is an exploration platformer (metroidvania-ish) where a single playthrough takes several hours.

How do I keep returning to this? Well, somehow this has become an airplane game for me. I take it with me when I'm taking a plane trip and just pick up where ever I happen to be in my current playthrough to play for a few hours.

It's perfect for this because it is a game that I can easily lose myself in for a couple hours. Challenging enough to keep me engaged, but straightforward enough that I don't find myself frustrated or coming out to look up walkthroughs, etc. It really hits a sweet spot for me that takes my mind off my aching knees after a few hours on a plane.

7. Nebulus

Cartridge: THEC64 Collection 2 (April 2023)
Genre: Platformer

Man, I love platformers. I feel like genre wonks are usually associated with shoot em ups or fighting games or racing games or...anything but platformers. But, man, I love platformers.

Nebulus isn't gonna be for everyone. Make your way carefully up a bunch of platforms outside of a series of towers. Avoid enemies, obstacles, and increasingly-devious traps to make your way to the top before the timer runs out.

This game relies massively on memorization of enemy patterns and trap locations to make it safely to the top within the pretty-tight time limits. Most people will find this frustrating or outright infuriating. Even with save states, some of the enemy patterns get pretty hardcore. But I loved the challenge and was eventually able to do a save-stateless run.

I certainly can't do a full run anymore, but I love returning to it now and then to see how much I remember and how far I can get.

8. Mysterious Stones

Cartridge: Technos Arcade 1 - Legacy
Genre: Action

This game is wild. It's obtuse and dense and deep, and so fun.

For the longest time, I avoided this game. Even after reading Pete's excellent write-up on the game, I liked the game but didn't quite understand. Then, as often happens, it came up in Cadey's Challenge and several dedicated players finally learned how to play it. And it turns out game is good.

Find a safe route through a series of temples, kicking eggs in each room to find items and defeat enemies. Make your way to the treasure room, pick a treasure (there's a trick to it!), and make your way back out before time runs out. Between each level, your treasure is appraised for bonus points. The game loops a bunch of time, with different valuable treasures each time, so be careful.

This is one of those games that Cadey's Challenge took from a game I avoid to a game I play regularly to stay at least a little fresh on it.

9. City Connection

Cartridge: Jaleco Collection 1 (May 2021)
Genre: Platformer(-kinda)

Jaleco Collection 1 is another cart where there are several games I could've picked for this list. But I landed on City Connection.

It feels weird to call City Connection a platformer, but I guess I don't know what else I'd call it. You play as a little car and your job is to drive around and paint all of the road in each level. Jump up to higher platforms or fall down to lower ones. Pick up oil cans to toss at cop cars (combo them for bonus points), avoid cats, and keep your eye out for the balloons.

This is yet another great pick-up-and-play game, whether you only have a few minutes or are looking to zone out for a little while. The game can get pretty frantic, but very rarely feels frustrating, so it's very easy to have Just One More Go.

10. Rod Land

Cartridge: Jaleco Arcade 1 (July 2022)
Genre: Platformer

Evercade has a lot of single-screen, elimination platformers. And I love them most. But I went with Rod Land because it has a certain charm to it that keeps bringing me back, and I already used Data East Arcade 1, so I couldn't go with Tumblepop.

Unlike many of its peers, you cannot jump in Rod Land. Instead you have the power of placing a ladder next to you or below you to climb up and down between the platforms. Maneuver around the levels to collect flowers and defeat varied set of enemies.

If you collect all the flowers before you'd killed all of the enemies, the remaining enemies will transform into skittery little guys for a few seconds and each one you manage to kill will drop a letter, which you can use to spell EXTRA to grab an extra life.

This game starts relatively easy, but the difficulty does ramp up after a little while. Though ultimately it's gameplay and presentation is charming enough that you won't mind doing a bit of coin feeding or starting over to try to beat your last score.

Wrap Up

This list could have gone on nearly indefinitely. Maybe I shouldn't be surprised with nearly 600 games on the platform now, but there are great games on every cart I keep finding myself returning to. Tons of arcade games that are great to drop in for a quick blast, or simpler console games good for a pick-up-and-play session. But I even find myself returning to deeper and more story-heavy games. Like I've beaten Duke Nukem: Time to Kill twice.

I'm excited to see what Evercade gets up to in the next year (and beyond), of course. But it feels nice to remember all of these great games we've already got just sitting on the shelf.