A classic, original game on the Commodore VIC-20, Chariot Race is an exhilarating and fun recreation of Roman chariot races, viewed from an overhead perspective.
Tag Archives: vertical scrolling
Electrician, Famicom Disk System
Electrician is a simple wire-connecting game originally made by Synapse Software for Atari 8-bit computers, and later converted to the Famicom Disk System by KEMCO in 1986.
The game is set in New York; the opening cut scene shows a beautiful and poignant pixel representation of the Twin Towers.
TwinBee, Arcade
Released into arcades in 1985, TwinBee is a cute, vertically-scrolling shooter that is much more challenging than it looks.
Firetrack, BBC Micro
Released by Electric Dreams Software in 1987, Firetrack is a fast vertical shooter, designed and programmed by Nick Pelling (aka Orlando), the guy who made Frak! (among others).
Aleste, MSX
I’m not a hundred percent sure if the MSX2 version of Aleste was released before the Sega Master System version or not. There are conflicting reports.
What is almost certainly true, though, is that they were both developed side-by-side in 1987 and released in Japan in 1988.
Aleste, Sega Master System
Japanese developer Compile – who made Aleste – has a history of producing classic shoot ’em ups. This one was released for the Sega Master System in 1988.
Pastfinder, Atari 8-bit
David Lubar‘s 1984 classic, Pastfinder, originated on Atari 8-bit home computers.
It’s a strange, vertically-scrolling shoot ’em up with strategic overtones.
Bounder, Commodore 64
Back in 1985 Bounder was a fresh idea, like a bolt out of the blue to gamers… It’s an overhead ball/maze game where the maze is miles above the ground, and the idea is to make sure the ball bounces on the platforms of the maze, and not in the air.
Gunhed, PC Engine
Gunhed is a classic vertically-scrolling. progressive-weapons shooter released for the PC Engine in 1989. It is based on the Toho film of the same name. In North America the game goes by the name of Blazing Lasers.
Ikari Warriors, Arcade
SNK‘s famous arcade shooter, Ikari Warriors, was released in 1986 at a time when many Commando clones were saturating the market, but managed to stand out against the competition.