Tag Archives: 8-bit

Driller, Commodore 16/Plus4

A 1990 homebrew conversion by Pygmy that requires 64K of RAM (which technically makes it a Plus 4 release). Driller is an impressive achievement on the 6502, even if it does run slowly.

Continue reading Driller, Commodore 16/Plus4 →

Auf Wiedersehen Monty, Commodore 16/Plus4

Although Auf Wiedersehen Monty is seen as a weak link in the classic Monty Mole series by some people, I’ve always very much liked it.

I liked the ideas; I liked Monty‘s new jump animation; I liked the variety.

Continue reading Auf Wiedersehen Monty, Commodore 16/Plus4 →

Jetbrix, Commodore 16/Plus4

Jetbrix is a 1986 release from Gremlin Graphics. It is another gem from the prolific Shaun Southern – the creator of Kikstart (among others).

It looks a bit like a cross between Tetris and Jet Pac, although it’s really not like either.

Continue reading Jetbrix, Commodore 16/Plus4 →

Formula 1 Simulator, Commodore 16/Plus4

Oh dear. Formula 1 Simulator unfortunately proves that not all of talented and prolific coder Shaun Southern‘s games were “good”… Because this game is quite awful.

It’s a bad rip-off of Atari‘s Pole Position, and not even a playable one at that.

Continue reading Formula 1 Simulator, Commodore 16/Plus4 →

Kikstart, Commodore 16/Plus4

Shaun Southern‘s Commodore 16 version of his hit bike game, Kikstart, is somewhat different to the original Commodore 64 version.

Continue reading Kikstart, Commodore 16/Plus4 →

Commodore 16/Plus4 Special

The Commodore 16 is a somewhat underrated home computer that had a relatively short lifespan and was intended as a low-cost replacement for the Commodore VIC-20.

It had 16K of RAM (thus the name) and a 6502 compatible CPU that ran twice as fast as the CPU in its older and more expensive cousin, the Commodore 64. It had a video and sound chipset called “TED” that offered a colour palette of 121 colours, and more efficient use of video memory than the C64, but it had no hardware sprites (it did however have a built-in software sprite routine with fewer restrictions than on hardware sprites).

Continue reading Commodore 16/Plus4 Special →

Trailblazer, Commodore 64

Trailblazer is a well-regarded, ball-based racing game written and designed by the prolific Shaun Southern of Mr. Chip Software and published by Gremlin Graphics in 1986.

Trailblazer did apparently originate on the Commodore 16 and was expanded to take advantage of the Commodore 64‘s extra memory, and the result is a suped-up version of the original game.

Continue reading Trailblazer, Commodore 64 →