Blackwyche is the third game in the Sir Arthur Pendragon series, following on from The Staff of Karnath and Entombed. It was written by Dave and Bob Thomas and published by Ultimate Play The Game in 1985.
Monthly Archives: May 2020
The Staff of Karnath, Commodore 64
The first game in the Sir Arthur Pendragon series, The Staff of Karnath was released on the Commodore 64 in 1984 to some acclaim. Mostly because it was an Ultimate game, and in the eyes of many people (myself included), Ultimate could do no wrong.
Midnight Mutants, Atari 7800
Released only in North America on the Atari 7800 in 1990, Midnight Mutants is a free-roaming, scrolling action adventure with isometric graphics. It was developed by Radioactive Software and the box art features a likeness of Al Lewis, dressed as Grandpa Munster, who plays the role of “Grampa” in this game.
The Last Ninja 3, Commodore 64
The Last Ninja 3 was released by System 3 in 1991 and it follows the same isometric/action template as the previous two games.
Again: there are refinements and differences that make The Last Ninja 3 a worthwhile game in its own right – in particular: the graphics, which are more detailed and colourful than seen previously.
The Last Ninja 2, Commodore 64
The sequel to the classic The Last Ninja was first released by System 3 in 1988 – one year after the original game.
It was designed by the same team as made the first game, except this time they had on board the highly-respected John Twiddy as writer/coder, and Matt Gray doing music.
Graphically, The Last Ninja 2 is arguably better than its predecessor, with more colour and variety in the environments, and some of the gameplay niggles from the first game have thankfully been addressed too. In particular: it is now easier to pick things up!
The Last Ninja, Commodore 64
First released in 1987, The Last Ninja is a classic isometric action adventure game originating on the Commodore 64, and later being converted to other systems.
It has to be said, though: the control system used in this game does leave a lot to be desired when playing it nowadays. Getting your ninja guy to do what you want him to do is tricky – even when you know what you’re doing…
Micro Machines, NES
This 1991 release from Codemasters is the first game in the award-winning Micro Machines video game series and – boy – does it kick-start the series in style!
In fact: it established the staples that make the series so good, like the themed tracks, and the ‘race-to-the-edge-of-the-screen’ style racing.
Kung-Fu Master, Game Boy
Irem themselves developed and published this 1990 handheld, monochrome remake of the classic Kung-Fu Master, and it is not too bad, all things considered.
Kung-Fu Master, Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 conversion of the classic arcade game, Kung-Fu Master, is not too bad. It is certainly better than the awful Spectrum version.
Contact Sam Cruise, ZX Spectrum
Contact Sam Cruise is a highly-regarded and entertaining action adventure game designed by Dave Reidy, the guy who created the classic Skool Daze. It was published by Microsphere in 1986.
The King of Grabs 