There’s no doubting that Ocean Software‘s 1989 Spectrum conversion of Taito‘s classic Chase HQ is impressive. Programmed by John O’Brien, with graphics by Bill Harbison, and sound by Jonathan Dunn, this 8-bit chase game really pushes the Spectrum to its limits, and puts pretty much every other third-person driving game on the Speccy to shame, with its amazing road movement and exciting gameplay.

Not only that, but the 128K version of the game features enhancements not even seen in the arcade original, like messages being transmitted to you during the actual chase itself, and the car being able to launch itself into the air if you turbo over the brow of a hill.

Getting a target criminal’s car to stop is a real challenge, and requires concentration, aggressive driving, and prudent use of turbo boosters.

Overall, the ZX Spectrum port of Chase HQ – it could be argued – is among the top twenty best games ever released for the system. Which is saying a lot, considering that there are some amazing, pioneering games on the Speccy.

If you’re going to play Chase HQ now, then it’d be wise to load it on a 128K Spectrum. That way you get the enhanced music, the digitised speech, and all the other enhancements. The 48K version of the game, while still playable and fun, lacks the pizazz of the 128K version, and also has some restrictions that are annoying (like not being able to change the control configuration without re-loading the entire game from scratch).

More: Chase HQ on Wikipedia
More: Chase HQ on World of Spectrum