The Commodore 64 version of Ocean Software‘s Mr. Wimpy was programmed by David Selwood and was first published in 1984. And unfortunately this simple BurgerTime rip-off has a similar problem to the terrible BBC Micro version, although this time it’s an issue getting on to ladders – not off of them (which is a big problem in the BBC version). In the C64 version you’ll lose lives unnecessarily, because the fast-moving enemies will often get you while you’re struggling to line yourself up to climb a ladder. Which can be hugely frustrating. It’s not quite as bad as the BBC version, but it’s still a tangible problem with the controls.

Just like in the ZX Spectrum original you must first guide Mr. Wimpy through a single-screen ‘fetch’ process, where you must carry a tray from one end of a room to the other, in order to collect three different food items and return them back to the start point. If you’re touched by the randomly-moving green ‘germ’ sprite, the tray (or the food item) will disappear and you’ll have to go back to the start and try again. If you fall into any of the holes moving up and down you’ll lose one of your precious lives, so must avoid that at all costs. It’s a tiresome process to be honest and gets in the way of the BurgerTime action, which is the main reason anyone would want to play this game.

Once you’ve completed the annoying first stage you’ll then be taken to the BurgerTime part of the game, where you have to drop burger patties, lettuce, cheese and buns down on to the plates at the bottom of the screen – just like in the original BurgerTime. And – as I’ve already said above – this part of the game is lacking playability because of the ladder problem.

While Mr. Wimpy on the C64 is nowhere near as bad as the BBC Micro version it’s still a relatively poor early arcade clone that isn’t particularly enjoyable. It could (and should) have been more polished, considering that it’s a licensed game.

More: Mr. Wimpy on Wikipedia
More: Mr. Wimpy on CSDb