Darren Wall
Founder and editor-in-chief of Read-Only Memory
Notable books Darren has been involved with: Sega Mega Drive/Genesis:
Collected Works, Sensible Software 1986–1999
You can follow ROM’s activities on Kickstarter here
Brad: Growing up, were you a SEGA or Nintendo kid?
Darren: I actually owned both a Mega Drive and a Super Nintendo (yup, I know… a spoilt kid!) but the Mega Drive hit me at the right time and as a result, my allegiance was always with Sega. I vividly recall firing up the Mega Drive for the first time and playing The Revenge of Shinobi. It was unlike anything I’d seen before.
Brad: My first console was a Master System but I actually became a Nintendo kid after getting a NES shortly after although I always dipped into the world of SEGA thanks to the early Sonic games on both the Master System and Mega Drive.
So what was the catalyst for forming ROM and what made you guys choose to first write about Sensible Software and then the Mega Drive?
Darren: I started Read-Only Memory because I thought there was a dire lack of in-depth, high quality history books on the videogame industry. I wanted to make definitive, exhaustive documents on great publishers, developers and games makers. Coming from a graphic design background, I also wanted the books to challenge what we’ve come to expect from videogame-related editorial design, aiming to make them look as timeless as possible.
Brad: Well it looks like a lot of people agree with you based on the Kickstarter success, I remember when I first saw the project I had to back it because there really is a lack of books like this. Last year I got Hyrule Historia which was pretty impressive so I was pretty blown away your book arrived. You really have put a lot of effort into it which can only be a good thing when you start looking for backers for a new project. Speaking of which, are there any plans to use Kickstarter to fund a third book any time soon?
Darren: Thanks so much! We certainly wouldn’t rule out Kickstarter in the future. Right now I’m keen to do our next publication without crowd funding and see how that goes. It will be very weird to just release a finished book one day – I’ve become so used to working on these books in public!
Brad: Do you already have ideas for your next project then and can you talk about it or is it still too early? On that note will there be any plans to cover other SEGA consoles or even a SNES Collected works?
Darren: We have several books in the pipeline, but frustratingly, there’s nothing I can reveal just yet!
Brad: What is your favourite aspect of collected works? Was there a particular piece of art or an interview you were really happy with?
Darren: Personally, I’m really happy with the way we presented the in-game pixel art. The book catalogues sprites and game backgrounds in a way not unlike a zoological catalogue – each character or level is given a ‘figure number’ and the section is followed by a legend, detailing the names of each figure (including regional variations). The actual amount of work involved in creating this section was pretty eye-watering – we enlisted the help of several screen capture gurus to aid us! I recall the Bare Knuckle/Street of Rage spread took about 3 days to put together in total… I’m not sure I could put myself through it again!
Brad: While on a research trip for a Sonic Collected works book you happen to fly to a floating Island, Angel Island to be precise. Unfortunately the plane takes quite a bit of damage during the landing so you find yourself stranded. After finding some shelter in a cave (er… a mystic cave in fact) you find boxes full of Mega Drive games. The floor looks unstable so you decide to grab 5 of them and run for it.
What 5 games have you selected and can you tell me your reasons why?
1) ToeJam and Earl
I love videogames that feel closely connected to their creator’s sense of humour. Treasure’s games always had this charm, as if the developers were crying with laughter throughout production. ToeJam and Earl is just such a title – the loving attention to detail suggests that developers Greg Johnson and Mark Voorsanger had a whale of a time creating it.
2) Star Control
A distant spacebound cousin of Street Fighter II. The game’s melee mode allowed two players to pit hugely varied craft against one another in a deep-space arena with only a planet and a few asteroids for company. Anybody who has managed to vanquish a friend’s mighty Ur-Quan Dreadnought with a weedy Shofixti Scout will know of this game’s giddy highs
3) Sub-Terrania
An often-overlooked late-era Mega Drive shooter, essentially a 16-bit reimagining of Thrust in the Turrican universe. The joy of Sub-Terrania was in mastering the controls; flying at high speed throughout the game’s atmospheric caves and perfectly arcing your gunfire into unsuspecting enemies.
4) Rolling Thunder 2
I came to this finely-tuned cover-based shooter only a few years ago and devoured it in a single sitting. The thing that kept me playing was the thoughtful pace of play. If you try to tackle a Rolling Thunder game like Gunstar Heroes you’ll be out of action in seconds – the game forces you to take things carefully.
5) The Super Shinobi / The Revenge of Shinobi
This was the game that forever endeared me to the Mega Drive. In creating the book we discovered this title was intended to be a showcase for the graphical and audio capabilities of the console. The game fulfilled its brief delivered one of the best action platforming experiences of all-time.
Brad: From out of the shadows steps a mysterious figure brandishing a katana, you only have time to grab one game before making a run for it. Which game would you choose to save?
Darren: The Revenge of Shinobi without a doubt. It was the first console game I owned and I distinctly remember the awe I felt when presented with a perfect facsimile of the Sega arcade experience on my 14″ bedroom TV.
About the choices
ToeJam and Earl
Developer – Johnson Voorsanger Productions
Publisher – Sega
Platform – Sega Mega Drive
Release – 1991
Star Control
Developer – Toys for Bob
Publisher – Accolade
Platform – Sega Mega Drive
Release – 1991
Sub-Terrania
Developer – Zyrinx
Publisher – Scavenger, Inc.
Platform – Sega Mega Drive
Release – 1994
Rolling Thunder 2
Developer – Namco
Publisher – Namco
Platform – Sega Mega Drive
Release – 1991
The Super Shinobi / The Revenge of Shinobi
Developer – Sega
Publisher – Sega
Platform – Sega Mega Drive
Release – 1990
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