Written by Graeme Baird, Ian Oliver and Andrew Onions, 3D Starstrike was the hit-outta-nowhere* from Realtime Software, in 1984. Well, actually, that was the ZX Spectrum version, which came out the year before this – the Amstrad CPC port. Which was released in 1985.
*= Aided somewhat by the success of Atari‘s famous Star Wars arcade machine.
The MSX version of Rod Bowkett‘s classic Spectrum platformer, Dynamite Dan, was programmed by Mr. Micro and published by Mirrorsoft in 1986. It is an excellent port and looks and plays very similarly to the original.
Parker Brothers published an Apple II version of Robert Jaeger‘s classic platform game, Montezuma’s Revenge, in 1984.
A conversion of the 1981 arcade game (of the same name) from Konami, and published by Stern in North America in 1982.
Steve Crow‘s superb tribute to Atic Atac, Wizard’s Lair, was released for the MSX by Bubble Bus Software in 1986.
After apparently years of toil, and unforseen circumstances, a homebrew conversion of Jordan Mechner‘s classic Prince of Persia finally arrived on Atari 8-bit systems, in 2021. It requires a 128KB XL/XE; it’s free to download and play, and comes it in a variety of different formats (including cartridge). And – I have to say, right out the gate – that it is a brilliant port.
Codemasters‘ 1988 release for the Amstrad, Super Hero, sounds innocuous, but it marked the return of pixel artist Bernie Drummond, after Head Over Heels and Batman, but before Monster Max. Which was always a cause for celebration, in my humble opinion. RIP Bernie.
Super Hero is similar to Ultimate Play the Game‘s Nightshade, or Gunfright, in that the isometric backgrounds scroll around on occasion. Not all the time. Some rooms are static, Knight Lore-style.
Developed by Utopia Software and published for the Sega Master System in 1989, Montezuma’s Revenge is a nice surprise for anyone looking for a decent 8-bit ‘hidden gem’ to play now. It’s a remake of Robert Jaeger‘s classic platform game, but with updated graphics, making them look more realistic than the chunky versions seen in the Atari 8-bit original.
Split Personalities is a sliding puzzle game featuring topical people from the 1980s (Margaret Thatcher, Neil Kinnock, Charles and Diana, Reagan, Breshnev, and so on). The game was first released in 1986 by Domark and was a critical success, but not a commercial one.
Developed by Consult Ltd., for Domark, who published the game in 1988, Vindicators is a decent one or two-player simultaneous tank game, converted from the Atari arcade machine of the same name.
The King of Grabs 