Tag Archives: maze

Gauntlet, Commodore 64

The Commodore 64 conversion of Atari‘s classic arcade game, Gauntlet, was handled by Gremlin Graphics and was published by US Gold in 1987. It plays fast and is furious fun – just like the original – and looks good; even if the graphics are a little on the chunky side.

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The Arc of Yesod, ZX Spectrum

The Arc of Yesod is the sequel to Nodes of Yesod and was actually published the same year as Nodes, in 1985. The game was again developed by Odin Computer Graphics, but this time was published by Thor Computer Software.

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Nodes of Yesod, ZX Spectrum

Nodes of Yesod is a platform exploration game created by Liverpool-based Odin Computer Graphics and first published for the ZX Spectrum in 1985.

At the time it was a critical hit – mostly because the presentation is top notch – but playing the game now you really have to wonder what all the fuss was about, because it really is one of the most frustrating Spectrum games ever made…

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Bobby Bearing, Amstrad CPC

Robert and Trevor Figgins‘ isometric action/puzzle game, Bobby Bearing, originated on the ZX Spectrum but is arguably slightly better on the Amstrad CPC.

The game features the titular character, Bobby, who is a smiling ball bearing who can roll around, fit through holes, push things, and… erm, not much else. He does have character, though.

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Pentagram, Atari 8-Bit

Created by Jose Pereira, Miker, and Mariuszw in 2016, this Atari -8-bit homebrew conversion of Ultimate‘s Pentagram is not a bad effort overall. It seems to run slightly faster than the ZX Spectrum original, although it’s probably fair to say that it also inherits its shortcomings.

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Knight Lore, Atari 8-Bit

This conversion of the classic Knight Lore was ported to the 8-bit Atari by Krzysztof Dudek, Mario Krix, and Michal Radecki in 2008. And it’s another somewhat disappointing conversion, to be honest.

What I find frustrating about these homebrew conversions is how the programmers sometimes decide to change things to the detriment to the game, and don’t seem to realise that their choices are bad…

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Wall Street, Arcade

This weird arcade game was developed and manufactured by Century Electronics in 1982. It features two distinct stages: one where you have to bounce falling stockbrokers into an ambulance using a trampoline, and a second where you have to collect money inside a maze of chasing tanks.

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Alien 8 Retrospec Remake, PC

I’m sorry to say this because I love what Retrospec tried to do with this 2008 remake of Ultimate Play the Game‘s classic Alien 8, but the end result is unplayable, infuriating and flawed.

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Knight Lore Retrospec Remake, PC

Some Retrospec remakes are very good, but occasionally they get it wrong and put something out that doesn’t really work. Knight Lore and Alien 8 are two Retrospec remakes of Ultimate games that just do not work as well as the originals.

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Martianoids, MSX

Martianoids was released in 1987 on three different formats: ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, and this MSX conversion. All three are pretty much identical in terms of gameplay; they feature a robot, walking through nine sectors of a scrolling landscape, fighting off alien robots that are trying to destroy a computer you are defending.

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