Tag Archives: early

Braxx Bluff, ZX Spectrum

Braxx Bluff was released by Micromega for the ZX Spectrum in 1984. It was written by Tony Poulter.

It’s a weird game – of space exploration – well, the exploration of a planet and its surface.

Continue reading Braxx Bluff, ZX Spectrum

Antics, ZX Spectrum

This 1983 sequel to Bug-Byte‘s The Birds and the Bees is a simplistic maze game, but with excellent controls as you control a bee (with plenty of inertia), on the lookout for a kidnapped friend (kidnapped by ants, no less).

Continue reading Antics, ZX Spectrum

The Birds and the Bees, ZX Spectrum

The Birds and the Bees is a simple, side-scrolling collect ’em up, with you playing a bee, out collecting pollen from nearby flowers. It was released by Bug-Byte Software on the ZX Spectrum in 1983.

Continue reading The Birds and the Bees, ZX Spectrum

Ant Attack, Commodore 64

The ZX Spectrum original of Ant Attack was so good that it spawned a decent 1984 Commodore 64 version, by Paul Fik and Bitterne Software.

Continue reading Ant Attack, Commodore 64

Swords and Sorcery, Amstrad CPC

This Amstrad CPC conversion of Swords and Sorcery by PSS is even better than the ZX Spectrum original. The graphics are slightly better, if anything.

Continue reading Swords and Sorcery, Amstrad CPC

Star Raiders, Atari 8-bit

Doug Neubauer‘s 1979 release, Star Raiders, is a very important game indeed. Predominantly because it was so hugely influential on many other games that followed it. Some people even point to it being the spark that started the first-person shooter market, but that is probably going a little too far…

Continue reading Star Raiders, Atari 8-bit

Combat, Atari 2600

Combat was designed by Atari, Inc. and first released for the Atari 2600 in 1977 and was the pack-in game for the system until 1982 (meaning: you got a Combat cartridge with the console, upon purchase).

It was one of the first home video games I ever played (probably the same for millions of others) and it enthralled me. Yes, Combat is very simple by today’s standards, but in 1977 it was a revelation and was much cloned by other developers.

Continue reading Combat, Atari 2600

Pitfall!, Atari 2600

David Crane‘s Pitfall! is a pioneering old game, from way back in 1982.

You control Pitfall Harry and must find 32 treasures in 20 minutes. You run and jump from screen to screen, swinging on ropes, jumping on crocodile heads, and avoiding quicksand. Not to mention: creatures that will kill you if you touch them.

Continue reading Pitfall!, Atari 2600