In the 27th episode of Video Wizards, we close in on the end of the Cold War as the political system of communism takes hits left, right and center, in the month of April, 1989. Not in the least as Strider Hiryu bowls into Moscow and assassinates all members of the Duma, in Capcom’s arcade hit Strider. Konami, meanwhile, try their first hand at a Double Dragon style beat ’em up in the seedy and very violent Crime Fighters and Toaplan release their first horizontally scrolling shoot ’em up with Hellfire. Also, a shield carrying maiden descends to earth to cleanse it of evil in Namco’s charming Valkyrie no Densetsu.

At home, gaming is mostly done on computers and the increasingly popular 8-bit consoles, with Nintendo’s NES catching eyes as Super Mario Bros. 2 hits European store shelves, while Amiga owners are visited with the purgatorial gaming experience that is the not-so-mighty Sword of Sodan. Music wise, it’s as diverse a palette as they come, befitting the approaching turn of the century.

Not only that, the silver screen gets a double dose impact of Van Damme as the Belgian martial arts actor drops both Kickboxer and Cyborg. And British sports TV is never the same after the Hillsborough disaster. Get ready for all that and more, as the Video Wizards reminisce and reflect on this most vivid moment in time in the final year of the 1980s.

Show theme tune: NEON CITY, composed by Ed 「イートレム」 Tremblay for Mudprints Music and licensed exclusively to The Video Wizards Podcast, ©2019 Mudprints Music, all rights reserved.

Welcome to the Video Wizards News Network composed by Riff Mason and licensed exclusively to The Video Wizards Podcast, ©2023 Riff Mason, all rights reserved.

Baller of the Month Jingle composed by Yuli Anna and licensed exclusively to The Video Wizards Podcast, ©2022 Yuli Anna, all rights reserved.

Other music used in this episode:

Episode edited by: Michiel Kroder

And finally: our special thanks to Andy Hofle.

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