Kids these days don’t know what a “real” e-sport is, unlike what came out in the arcades and on the Neo Geo consoles in the 1990’s. To me, a real sport requires quick reflexes, a sharp eye, nerves of steel, to see your opponents next move in a blink of an eye, and above all else, be inches away from their face trash talking them when you win. No, I’m not talking about that damned Overwatch crap people love so much, I’m talking about Windjammers baby!
Let me break down how Windjammers works: You take Pong, but the ball is a Frisbee alright (excuse me “Flying Power Disk,” it’s totally not the same thing as a Frisbee). You get two people on opposite sides of the court, and the goal is to get the Flying Power Disk from the opponent hands into the opposing goal. It sounds so simple, but it’s not. Imagine that other person having the power to deflect your Flying Power Disk ricocheting from the wall, and as the FPD is flinging in the air, your opponent charges up for a super attack that you have no clue where that FPD is going to go next.
If you’re lucky and quick enough, you can deflect their attack going into your net and counter that back against them. However, if it goes in, that’s points for them, and all they need is 12 to get to win the round. Oh yeah, and you got about roughly 30 to 45 seconds to get 12 points or close to beat your opponent. This all happens within a matter of seconds, and a match can last from roughly a minute long to about three at the most, depending on the player's skill. Welcome to the realist game you’ll ever play.
Windjammers came out in 1994 for the arcades by Data East, which then was later ported from arcade to the Neo Geo home consoles shortly thereafter. Windjammers was a game that people who played it either loved it immensely or outright hated it because of its difficulty.
I didn’t know about Windjammers until a few years ago, and whenever I saw it at anime cons in the video game rooms, it was always great to walk by and sit down and play it whenever I got the chance. Now that the game has finally come out thanks to the French game development company DotEmu, the game has finally ported over to the PlayStation Network for millions of people to experience just how truly fun this classic title is.
In terms of Windjammers merch that exist, you’re in luck! Fangamer has put out t-shirts, hats and even their own Flying Power Disc that you can buy from their website! So if this game and the videos above have convinced you to check this game out and fall in love with Windjammers, then ride that jam as high as you can.
Maybe you can try Windjammers IRL at your local YMCA racketball courts trying to bounce Frisbee disks off the walls, or would rather avoid breaking a sweat and just crashing on the couch with some buddies one night having fun trash talking each other. It’s up to you, and it's up to how you want to make Windjammers fun for you! So check this game out!
