Released on 26th September 1986 in Japan, Akumajō Dracula (translating as: “Demon Castle Dracula“) was the very first release in the Castlevania series, predating the MSX version of the game by about a month. Konami released it on the Famicom Disk System where it quickly became a hit with Japanese gamers.
It began a long-running series of platform/horror-themed video games and set the template for the Castlevania series as a whole.
Never officially released in English-speaking territories (but translated by fans as “Psychic Killer Taromaru“) this side-scrolling action game is one of the rarest Sega Saturn titles in existence.
Rare because publisher Time Warner Interactive only produced a very limited number of copies of the game in 1997, before pulling out of the games market altogether. So actual copies of Shinrei Jusatsushi Tarōmaru have changed hands for silly money over the decades.
Dino Crisis was a 1999 PlayStation release for Capcom and features soldiers taking on dinosaurs in a futuristic setting.
Imogen is an endearing and memorable BBC Micro action/adventure, published by Micro Power in 1986.
Castle Quest was published for the BBC Micro in 1985 by Micro Power.
It was written by a young Tony Sothcott and is a platform adventure game with simple puzzles and a scrolling landscape.
When Mr. Ee! was released way back in 1984 the games industry was a bit like the Wild West – everybody cloned everyone else’s games and no one gave a sh*t. It wasn’t until later that official licenses and lawsuits for similarities became a thing.
Which is why Mr. Ee! is an almost perfect clone of the arcade game Mr. Do! and was marketed as such back in 1984. Because they could get away with it…
Zombie Zombie is the spiritual successor to Ant Attack, in that: it was created by Sandy White, the guy who made Ant Attack, and it also uses the same kind of isometric graphics style and the same boy/girl sprites.
Another isometric action adventure from Ultimate Play The Game, this one with a Wild West theme.
Gunfright was first released in 1985 and uses the Filmation II Engine as first seen in Nightshade.
Nightshade is an isometric action adventure, released by Ultimate Play The Game for the ZX Spectrum in 1985.
One of Cinemaware‘s last games, Wings was released in 1990 to critical acclaim.
It’s a First World War-based scenario, with you piloting a biplane over German lines, dogfighting enemy fighters and bombing positions on the ground.
The King of Grabs 