Q&A
You’ve got questions, we’ve got advice that’ll deeply confuse you. Wait, that’s not right. Anyway, here’s the deal, if there’s a question about the site, about the games on the site, about games I’ve talked about on the site, about the world, or if you feel like threatening me in the form of a question, just contact me and I’ll answer it here.
If you leave your e-mail address, I'll respond to you both in an e-mail and here on the site. If you don't get an e-mail from me and you see something posted here, check your spam folder as I try to respond to everyone.
Note that I may correct spelling errors.
Q&A: Whilst getting some paint inspiration, the Virtual On page brings back memories of ’08. And, does the contact form work?
Hi, Just wanted to say hi. I was taking a break from painting some Warhammer 40k models and while my airbrush cooled down I thought I’d grab a tub of paints and figure out how to paint a battlesuit on the base of the model I’m currently working on. I’ve always wanted to paint some Tau in the style of some of the Virtuaroids from Virtual On and while looking for the artwork for Belgdor to try to colour-match with my paints I saw a crazy screenshot of a big head mode Apharmd. Following that link brought me to your website and it is peak 2008 web design. Sure, it looks dated by today’s standards but I had a lot of fun reading your review of the Sega Ages version of Virtual On: Operation Moongate. I owned that game on the Saturn and played it once or twice in the the arcades, but you don’t see that one in the wild anymore! Your article was a wonderful time capsule and I just wanted to offer some feedback. I wasn’t sure if you’ve even be able to receive this message after all this time but it looks like you’ve got an up-to-date Youtube page so I’d give it a go.
Hey, thanks for reaching out! Good news: The contact form still works and the site is still occasionally updated. (Well… the Sega section is pretty much frozen in a time warp at this point.) I kind of like the old-school ’08 look now that it’s reached a vintage age.
When you finish painting, be sure to send some pics. I’d love to see how they turn out!
Q&A: Where’d you get those System Shock images?
Hello, I came across this page: https://www.localditch.com/system-shock/ But I have no idea where the pictures come from, I was wondering if you could tell me? I like documenting stuff in the series so I’d love to know.
Hey, thanks for reaching out!
The banner picture at the top was released by System Shock 2 artist Ryan Lesser.
This old post from the Through the Looking Glass forums still has an active link to the original, hi-res artwork.
Beyond that, the other images, I don’t believe, are technically from any playable version of the game. I checked Google images, Tineye, and some other reverse images searches, but had no luck finding the originals. I even went through my archives of notes for the Local Ditch from around 2009 when that page was put together, and I still couldn’t find anything.
Racking my brain, I think I found those images maybe on Deviantart? I want to say that a fan had created some static 3D renders and shared them. I liked the vibe, as it still showed the System Shock, but with a more modern look. Maybe, more of a “Here’s how I remember the game” as opposed to “Here’s what it literally looks like.”
Sorry for the lack of definitive answer. It’s crazy to me that those pictures were from 17 years ago.
Q&A: Taking questions and sharing knowledge with the Mechwarrior historian that runs the Art of Battletech archive!
Hi Localditch, I’m so happy to see you are back up and running again. This is by far the best site on the internet regarding knowledge and research on mech games, especially Mechwarrior. My name is Emil and I’m the guy who’s running the Art of Battletech and Mechwarrior archive and doing all of the modding for Mechwarrior 5 Mercenaries (and soon this week Clans). I have a very deep interest in the history of the games and your resources have been an absolute godsend over the many years. I also work as an academic and I’m looking to detail the history of mech sim games a bit more. I actually have a research paper being presented in September about the history of the mech sim genre and I will definitely make more use of your work. I can also reveal that I’m embarking on doing a remake of Mechwarrior 2 in MW5 Clans. I already have Silent Thunder up and running (and previously I did Pyre Light as a demo / prototype in MW5 Mercs in case you haven’t seen it). I really want to establish some sort of contact with you and hear more from you or even ask some questions, because you clearly know a whole lot about many things 🙂 I’d love to know more about your background and how you got to know so many things about the games, and if there’s anything I can provide you with – e.g. some of my archived work on the Mechwarrior games that I’ve gathered over the years, including original MW2 and MW3 renders by Scott Goffman and Eric Chadwick that they sent over.
Hey, great to hear from you and thanks for reaching out! The Art of Battletech is frikkin’ awesome. I’m so glad you’re archiving this stuff. I may have nicked an image or two here or there for the site, haha. It’s really cool to hear you’ve got a presentation on mech sims. Feel free to use any info you need off of the Local Ditch. I unfortunately started the site a long time ago, so things are not quite cited as well as they could’ve been, though I try to do better on more recent info and updates. I did see a video of your Mechwarrior 2 level in MW5. Looking forward to the MW5: Clans versions. All us old timers will love it!
As far as my background goes, I’m just a fan running a hobbyist website that’s basically just outlived a lot of others. I started playing MW2 as a kid and would periodically revisit it, usually having to figure out how to get the the thing running again. Some of the old info was common knowledge of the time. Some of it (well, probably a lot) was copying it from sites of people that knew more than me. Some of it was reading a ton of video game magazines and sites, then trying to make a coherent story on all of it (especially the MW2: The Clans info).
Feel free to ask about anything. If you have anything cool that you feel should be on the Local Ditch, send it my way and I’ll put it up!
Also, image courtesy of the Art of Battletech, of course.
Q&A: Who runs Local Ditch Gaming? What do they know about Battlezone II? Is this a threat the in the form of a question?
Who are you and what do you know about Battlezone 2?
I’m a guy that was a fan of the original Battlezone, but didn’t too much get into Battlezone II. I know that if you want to play it nowadays, the easiest way is to pick the remastered version, Battlezone: Combat Commander, on Steam.
Oh, and there’s the long-forgotten and totally outdated Battlezone II section of Local Ditch Gaming. It could be worth a visit if you want to remember a pre-BZII world, complete with “Pandemic Watch” websites.
Q&A: A proposed trade: Virtual On stage images for a link?
Hi, I’m the owner of arcadequartermaster.com. I wish to ask permission in using the images for the stages of Virtual On since I’m also building a shrine for it.
Also, I would love to link the site back for it and vice-versa.
Take all of the images that you want. I’m pretty sure I pulled them from a site that was hosted on tripod.com years ago. I’m not even sure if the other site still exists.
I’ve been slacking on updating my site, but I’ll get a link back to you!
Q&A: Ever play on old game called Outwars?
Have you ever played a game called Outwars? It was released by Microsoft, developed by SingleTrac.
I have a some information about the studio and a canceled sequel linked on outwars.info
Outwars singleplayer was kind of a mess, but the mutliplayer was accidentally brilliant.
Oddly, enough, I think I have played it. I want to say that I got a hold of a demo off a PC Gamer disc back in the day. Perusing some videos on youtube brings back a few memories of hopping around shooting bugs, so I think this was it!
It’s always interesting to see what may have happened to a game during its development, so thanks for sharing the site on it’s sequel!
Q&A: An old Interstate ’76er and former Activision beta tester stops by, looking for fellow auto-combat enthusiasts.
Hello. I found your page about I’76 recently. I was a minor-to-prominent member of its online community back in the day, and an Activision “Visioneer” at the time. I helped beta test the Nitro Pack. I’m getting old these days and longing for memories of the past. If you would like to discuss the old game sometime, or know of the whereabouts of any of the members of the old “gangs” that I could renew ties with, that’d be great. Regardless, was a pleasure to find your page, so few people remember this old game, and the few that do are tasteless suckers that prefer the likes of Twisted Metal and the abysmal Vigilante 8. I tested that game too… I told Activision exactly what I thought about it as well, they didn’t send me games any more after that B-) Anyway, I’ve rambled enough. Thanks.
Thanks for stopping by and thanks for the kind words! As far as finding people online, Interstate76.com is still kicking around. Oddly enough, a post on I’76 hacks here at Local Ditch Gaming seems to have become an impromptu talk about the old days, with some of the old community names dropping by and sharing their stories.