8-bit Home Computer Games of Note
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* schema: Video game
This is a list of video games [of note](A%20Note%20on%20Items%20of%20Note.md) that were developed for one
8-bit home computer system and then ported to other
8-bit home computer systems.
### Dynamite Dan
* written by: Rod Bowkett
* published by: Mirrorsoft
* genre: Platformer, Graphic Adventure
* available for: ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1985
* wikipedia: [Dynamite Dan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamite_Dan)
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=802)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aj7W6yjuPE)
* video @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/C64GVA226-DynamiteDan)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/Dynamite_Dan_1985_Mirrorsoft) (C64)
Beautiful graphics. I believe the antagonists were implemented with "soft sprites"
(groups of programmable characters), so that all(?) 8 hardware sprites were free to
be used for the protagonist in a composite fashion that is both hi-res and
multicolour. The music is also good. The game itself is quite hard.
### Pharaoh's Curse
* written by: Steve Coleman
* published by: Synapse Software
* genre: Graphic Adventure(?)
* available for: Commodore 64, VIC 20, Atari 400/800
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1983
* wikipedia: [Pharaoh's Curse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharaoh%27s_Curse_(video_game))
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=1923)
* entry @ [c64-wiki](https://www.c64-wiki.com/wiki/Pharaoh%27s_Curse)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBSW6r9-lQo)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/Pharaohs_Curse_The_1983_Synapse_Software_cr_Anft) (C64)
It's difficult to say what contributes to this game's overall charm.
You can shoot the mummy, but the mummy can shoot back.
The triggers trigger traps on a delay which is perfectly predictable, so it
adds a nice element of timing to the game.
Also: the bird!
### Necromancer
* written by: Bill Williams
* published by: Synapse Software
* genre: Action
* available for: Commodore 64, Atari 400/800
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1982
* wikipedia: [Necromancer](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Necromancer_(video_game))
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2846)
* entry @ [myabandonware](https://www.myabandonware.com/game/necromancer-5l2)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg-XP-4LbVo)
* video @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/C64Gamevideoarchive81-Necromancer)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/a8b_Necromancer_1982_Synapse_Software_US_k_file) (Atari 400/800)
It's a good example of a game which combines fast-pacing with variety
while maintaining coherence across the variety. The Wikipedia article
explains it better than I can.
### Zeppelin
* written by: William Mataga, David Barbour
* published by: Synapse Software
* genre: Maze-runner
* available for: Commodore 64, Atari 400/800
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1984
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2940)
* entry @ [c64-wiki](https://www.c64-wiki.com/wiki/Zeppelin)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVFVQ85uB-E)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/a8b_Zeppelin_1983_Synapse_Software_US_k_file) (Atari 400/800)
Notable because you can shoot out bits of wall, or rather, bits of force field
and Futuristic Domed City, and in this way it feels a bit like an airborne
version of [Cloak & Dagger][]. Also notable because it involves flying a
dirigible in a cave.
Also notable for being a multi-directional scroller, but one in which you have
only limited influence over which direction it scrolls in. Once you maneouver
to a particular point in the cave, the direction will change apropos to that
point. You don't seem to be able to get into a dead-end this way, which is
probably good (much less frustrating than games in which you can,) but you
do seem to be able to go in circles quite easily.
[Cloak & Dagger]: Classic%20Arcade%20Games.md#cloak--dagger
### Everyone's a Wally
* available for: Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1985
* wikipedia: [Everyone's a Wally](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everyone%27s_a_Wally)
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=859)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/Everyones_a_Wally_1985_Mikro-Gen_cr_Professionals) (C64)
If there was an award for Best Representation of a British High Street in an 8-bit Video Game,
this would be a contender. It's worth noting that "being a wally" is British slang for
"being a fool" (approximately speaking).
There were also versions for the ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC but it's not clear to me
if the Commodore 64 version was a later port or if they were developed simultaneously.
### Slinky!
* written by: Unknown
* published by: Cosmi
* genre: Q*Bert
* available for: Commodore 64, Atari 400/800
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1984
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2351)
* entry @ [mobygames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/c64/slinky)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-c_xppTg6Q)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/a8b_Slinky_1983_Cosmi_US_k_file) (Atari 400/800)
This one's pretty memorably weird, and deserves comment.
Once upon a time there was a game called Q*Bert which was quite famous and inspired a number of clones,
and each of these clones tended to have their own idiosyncratic mechanics. And Slinky is one such clone.
The 2013-06-14 comment by zaphod77 on the Lemon64 entry linked to above explains those mechanics far
better than I could. It does not, however, help them seem less arbitrary. I don't think anything
could do that.
### Cauldron II
* subtitle: The Pumpkin Strikes Back
* published by: Palace Software
* available for: Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1986
* wikipedia: [Cauldron II: The Pumpkin Strikes Back](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cauldron_II:_The_Pumpkin_Strikes_Back)
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=434)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/Cauldron_II_The_Pumpkin_Strikes_Back_1986_Palace_Software_cr_Newlook) (C64)
The graphics are really good. The bounce-as-you-move mechanic is interesting,
but also a bit frustrating. It's sometimes hard to visualize how the screens
connect. It's a very hard game. But the graphics are really good.
### Whistler's Brother
* written by: Louis Ewens
* published by: Brøderbund
* genre: Platformer(?)
* available for: Commodore 64, Atari 400/800
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1984
* wikipedia: [Whistler's Brother](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistler%27s_Brother)
* entry @ [atarimania](http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-whistler-s-brother_5760.html)
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2846)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT32TokTYqc)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/d64_Whistlers_Brother_1984_Broderbund) (C64)
Notable for gameplay mechanic: the player controls one character directly
with a joystick, but also a second character indirectly, by influencing
where they go, by whistling for them.
However, despite this interesting mechanic, I must admit I never really
got into this game. Something about it failed to appeal to me — perhaps
it was that the graphics felt kind of uninspired.
### Equinox
* published by: Mikro-Gen, Ltd
* available for: Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, CPC Amstrad
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1986
* wikipedia: [Equinox (1986 video game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equinox_(1986_video_game))
* entry @ [mobygames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/equinox_)
* video @ [youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDcYKV_dXUU)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/Equinox_1986_Mikro-Gen_cr_Stars) (C64)
The internet thinks the [theme music for this game](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Of28GGPUIY) was written
by Nick Jones, the main(?) developer of the C64 version of this game. This is entirely possible.
However, I swear I've also heard this song on radio/muzak while I was in Paris, twice. French synthpop?
It's entirely possible it was merely a similar tune, or that they are the same song but which came first?
Game-wise, it's an okay game.
### Starquake
* published by: Bubble Bus Software
* available for: Commodore 64, MSX, Amstrad CPC, Atari 400/800, others
* controls: joystick and 1 button
* date released: 1985
* wikipedia: [Starquake (video game)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starquake_(video_game))
* entry @ [lemon64](http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2470)
* play online @ [archive.org](https://archive.org/details/zx_Starquake_1985_Bubblebus_Software) (ZX Spectrum)
Perhaps a classic, or perhaps not well-known enough to be a true classic, I'm not sure.
The graphics in the C64 version are really good.