Tag Archives: side scrolling

Ashby Computers and Graphics, Commodore 64, Ultimate Play The Game

Imhotep, Commodore 64

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Written by Manuel Caballero, Imhotep is a 1985 Commodore 64 release from Ultimate Play the Game. It’s an ancient Egyptian-themed, auto-scrolling shoot ’em up where you ride on the back of a bird, over pyramids and palm trees, shooting stuff and avoiding enemy bullets.

If you manage to get further into the game you’ll also encounter underground platforming levels; walking levels where you either have to jump over pits or throw rolling barrels into other barrels that are rolling towards you. There’s also a river section on a coracle.

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Alternative Software, Amstrad CPC, Enigma Variations

The Official Father Christmas Game, Amstrad CPC

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A game not often mentioned in online ‘Christmas video game’ lists, The Official Father Christmas Game is one of the better Christmas-themed video games that I’ve found so far. It was developed by Enigma Variations and published by Alternative Software for the Amstrad, Spectrum and C64 in 1989. All proceeds from the game went to the famous children’s charity, Save The Children.

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Alternative Software, Enigma Variations, ZX Spectrum

The Official Father Christmas Game, ZX Spectrum

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Although you may laugh at the title of this Christmas-themed game, it’s not called that because the publisher (Alternative Software) went to Lapland to buy an official license from Santa… It’s called that because it is an official tie-in with the famous children’s charity, Save The Children. The game was sold (for a reasonable £2.99, for the Spectrum, Amstrad and C64) in 1989 and all profits went to Save The Children.

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Alternative Software, Commodore 64, Enigma Variations

The Official Father Christmas Game, Commodore 64

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Created in association with Save The Children, The Official Father Christmas Game was developed by Enigma Variations and published by Alternative Software for the C64, Spectrum and Amstrad in 1989. Profits from the game went to the aforementioned children’s charity.

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Hewson, ZX Spectrum

Astroclone, ZX Spectrum

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This 1985 release from Hewson Consultants is basically a futuristic variation of the classic Avalon/Dragontorc games by Steve Turner. It uses similar presentation and game mechanics to those games, with a central character moving around pseudo 3D rooms, exploring and solving puzzles.

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Konami, MSX

Nemesis 3: The Eve of Destruction, MSX

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The second Gradius/Nemesis sequel developed and released exclusively for the MSX by Konami, Nemesis 3: The Eve of Destruction is another great ‘bullet hell’ progressive weapons shooter that really shows what the MSX is capable of.

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Konami, MSX

Gradius 2, MSX

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Gradius 2 (aka Nemesis 2) is a sequel to the classic Gradius/Nemesis and was published for the MSX in 1987. This game is, however, unrelated to the actual arcade game sequel, Gradius II, and is a separate game in its own right in the Gradius/Nemesis series.

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Konami, MSX

Gradius, MSX

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Gradius – also known as Nemesis in some regions – was one of the first progressive weapons shooters to come out in arcades, and it was a big hit in 1985 when it was first released.

This led to the game being converted to many home computer systems, including the MSX, which was programmed by Konami themselves. So the game is unsurprisingly very good; very authentic, and with graphics and gameplay that push the MSX quite hard (I wouldn’t say “to its limits”, because I’m not a marketing a-hole, but it does push first-generation MSXes a fair degree).

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Arcade, Sega, Westone

Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair, Arcade

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There were two Wonder Boy sequels released in 1988 – both prefixed with the title “Wonder Boy III“. There was this game – Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair – released into arcades, and also Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap for the Sega Master System. Both were developed by Westone and published by Sega.

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Arcade, escape, Sega

Wonder Boy, Arcade

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Developed by Escape (who would later become Westone), Wonder Boy is a straightforward run-and-jump-left-to-right-to-reach-the-goal platform game featuring a blonde-haired, semi-naked cave-boy who is trying to rescue his girlfriend, Tina, from the clutches of the “The Dark King”.

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