Originating on the Amstrad CPC, Spindizzy is a genius piece of coding and game design. It is an isometric exploration game, where you play as a spinning gyroscope (called GERALD) trying to collect gems across a large map of screens. It was designed by Paul Shirley, and the Spectrum port was handled by Phil Churchyard. Spindizzy on the Spectrum was published by Electric Dreams in 1986.
Category Archives: Company
Video game companies.
Wee Ninja, Atari 8-bit
Wee Ninja is a homebrew scrolling platform game for Atari 8-bit home computers (with 32K of RAM). It was written by Paul Lay and first released by Playsoft in June 2025, to rapturous applause.
Venom Wing, Amiga
My jaw nearly hit the floor when I first saw Venom Wing on the Amiga. It’s a late release from legendary software house Thalamus, coming out in 1990, and it’s a real stinker…
Turrican, Game Boy
Developed by The Code Monkeys and published by Accolade in 1991, Turrican on the Game Boy is a decent scrolling run-and-gun shooter.
Strider, PC Engine
The PC Engine/Turbografx-16 version of Capcom‘s classic arcade game, Strider, was programmed by Capcom themselves, and first published by NEC Avenue in 1994.
The Amazing Spider-Man: Web of Fire, Sega 32X
Developed by BlueSky Software and Zono, The Amazing Spider-Man: Web of Fire is a Marvel-licensed platform/action game featuring the infamous web-slinger. It was released exclusively for the Sega 32X in 1996.
Continue reading The Amazing Spider-Man: Web of Fire, Sega 32X
Gridrunner Plus Plus, PC
What I love about Jeff Minter‘s Gridrunner Plus Plus is that it combines the simplicity of the arcade hits of old, with modern, trippy visuals. And a good dose of humour.
Melkhior’s Mansion, PC
Another superb tribute to Ultimate‘s isometric adventures, this one called Melkhior’s Mansion. It was created by BitGlint Games and could be described as an “isometric Atic Atac“, although there is definitely more to it than that.
Sam’s Journey, Commodore 64
Developed by Knights of Bytes and published by Protovision, Sam’s Journey is a super-polished platform game released for the C64 in 2025. It has numerous similarities to Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo, which is no bad thing, and features 27 levels, each with multiple sections.
DarXide, Sega 32X
Co-designed by David Braben – along with his team at Frontier Developments – DarXide is a more frivolous space shooter, compared to what he usually puts out. It was first published, exclusively for the 32X in Europe, by Sega in 1996.
