Rock, Rock, Rockin’ Rollergames…
It’s time to get your skates on, quite literally, (well, digitally), as the retro fun fans over at Hamster have addedNichibutsu‘s whirling derby dervishRoller Jammerto PS4 and Nintendo Switch — the latest addition to its record-breaking Arcade Archives range.
Release to arcades way back in 1984,Roller Jammeris averyloose take on the world’s most complicated sport: Roller Derby. Instead of being packed out with screaming, tattoed gals sporting cool names like “Anna Geddon”, this digital take on hard-hitting wheeled warfare features a bunch of boring 8-bit dudes. We were still a good six years away from the debut of the outrageous,WWE-like showRollergames, and thusRoller Jammerboasts a less glamorous, simplistic take on the sport.
Check out the action in the video below, courtesy of YouTuberOld Classic Retro Gaming.
Perhaps understanding that it does not have tech available to recreate the ins and outs of roller derby proper, Nichibutsu chooses to play a little fast and loose with its adaptation of the sport, tasking playing with gunning through thin slaloms of flags before eventually engaging in an every-man-for-themselves race, complete with a hilarious “double lariat” maneuver. WhileRoller Jammer‘s relative obscurity makes this Arcade Archives release a little notable, ultimately it’s pretty difficult to recommend this title.
Roller Jammeris available to download now on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, priced at around $8.
