Category Archives: ZX Spectrum

ZX Spectrum games.

Death Star Interceptor, ZX Spectrum

May 1, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

Looking at Death Star Interceptor now you might be surprised to discover that it was a “number one” game when it first came out in 1985.

And – while it did make it to the top of the games charts back then – the charts were not very reliable, and the game actually wasn’t that good, even though it does officially license use of the Star Wars theme, for a warbly Speccy interpretation of John Williams‘ classic music.

Death Star Interceptor was a case of style over content, and also maybe a touch of Star Wars fever as well. These are thoughts I had about the game when I first played it back in 1985.

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Ocean Software, ZX Spectrum

Eskimo Eddie, ZX Spectrum

May 1, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

This obscure 1984 release from Ocean Software is basically a clone of Sega‘s classic arcade game, Pengo, but with an extra level tacked-on at the beginning. Similar in many ways to Ocean‘s Mr. Wimpy, which was BurgerTime with an extra level tacked on at the start. As if it would confuse the copyright police… “These are not the clones you are looking for… It is a completely different game… Look… [waves hand like Obi Wan]”

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Incentive, Major Developments, ZX Spectrum

Total Eclipse 2: The Sphinx Jinx, ZX Spectrum

April 30, 2020 Mallo 1 Comment

Published by Incentive Software in 1991, Total Eclipse 2: The Sphinx Jinx is a direct follow-up to the 1988 Freescape classic, Total Eclipse.

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Incentive, Major Developments, ZX Spectrum

Total Eclipse, ZX Spectrum

April 30, 2020 Mallo 5 Comments

The ZX Spectrum version of Total Eclipse was the first version of the game released.

Using the legendary Freescape Engine, Total Eclipse is an Egyptian-themed exploration/puzzle game set in a primitive 3D world. Primitive because it was one of the first ever games to allow games-players to explore a 3D world in this way, and it worked quite well, in spite of the low frame rate and slowdown.

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Ariolasoft, The RamJam Corporation, ZX Spectrum

Panzadrome, ZX Spectrum

April 29, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

Developed by The RamJam Corporation and published by Ariolasoft in 1985, Panzadrome is an overhead maze shooter involving tanks, and it is not a bad game, as far as Speccy tank/maze games go.

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Software Projects, ZX Spectrum

Tribble Trubble, ZX Spectrum

April 28, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

Written by Jim Scarlett and published by Software Projects in 1984, Tribble Trubble was a minor hit at the time of release, garnering some critical acclaim (I remember it getting a Smash in an early issue of Crash magazine, which was a big deal) and doing okay sales-wise.

Looking at it now: it still has charm, and some appeal, and is still worth playing – if you like tearing your hair out trying to beat insignificant tasks… 🙂

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Alpha-Omega Software, Quantum Productions, ZX Spectrum

Hercules, ZX Spectrum

April 27, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

The ZX Spectrum also had a version of Steve Bak‘s bonkers C64 platform game, Hercules. It was written by Quantum Productions and published by Alpha Omega Software in 1986.

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Beyond Software, ZX Spectrum

Psytron, ZX Spectrum

April 15, 2020 Mallo Leave a comment

Psytron is an early shoot ’em up released for the ZX Spectrum by Beyond Software, who published it in 1984.

It’s a futuristic “base defence” game in essence, with you playing through six different levels trying to fend off alien invaders on a 10-screen landscape – the “Betula 5 Installation”.

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