My ZX Spectrum 48k was my first computer. Actually it was my second, I already had a ZX81 that I'd bought from a car boot sale but that doesn't count as it was so rubbish. The Spectrum worked straight out of the box when I got it home and gave me instant gaming gratification (once I'd untangled all the wires and pluggerd them in, switched on and started the tape then waited for five minutes for the tape to load and hope I didn't get the dreaded 'Tape Loading Error')It opened up a magical world of gaming possibilities that I was eager to explore. I used to favour strategy games and puzzle games but eventually I moved on to arcade adventures (there had to be puzzles to solve), and occasionally proper arcade games that just relied on reflexes and timing.
There are many classics from this era, everyone has their own favourites. This is my site however, and I'm going to foist my particular favourites on you. So you can share the magic there is a Spectrum Emulator for the PC that you can download by clicking on the picture of the Spectrum above. It comes with some games which are ok but my choices are listed below. Click on the screen shots to download the games.
Spectrum Games
Kirel is a great puzzle game with 32 levels to complete against the clock. You have three lives and no save points (ahh, those were the days!). You play the little blob with eyes and you have to find the bomb(s) hidden in each level. Once found you must land on them to defuse them. Kirel can manipulate the blocks that make up his environment; he can carry them, drop them to build steps, destroy them and build bridges. The Seaweed Monsters try to stop you but you can beat them if you know how. Eating cake and sweets restores your health (of course! Even cake was healthy in the 80s).A brilliant game that I played to completion.
Highway Encounter is a gem of a game. You have five Pepperpot Robots with which to get a mysterious super weapon along the length of Earth's last highway and so defeat the alien invaders. Your Pepperpot Robots propell the weapon at a constant speed while you take direct control of one of them and race ahead to clear the way. There are forcefields, barricades, aliens and other problems to overcome. A fast paced (for the spectrum) arcade puzzler that it took me ages to complete.
3D Deathchase is essentially the Speeder bike chase from Return of the jedi. It's very fast and totally addictive but you can't beat it, it keeps on going and just gets too fast to cope with. Especially since ther's a bit of control lag on the old Spectrum. You're chasing two other riders and when you shoot them both you get to a new level with more trees. Some levels are at night for added stress!There are bonus helicopters and tanks to shoot too for extra points.
Xor is a pure puzzle game. You have to collect all the faces of Xor using your two characters. The playing area is a maze filled with one way barriers, fish that fall, chickens that run, dollies that fly, bombs that explode and switches that turn the lights off. It's captivating stuff! Lateral thinking and deductive powers are a must. I had a version of this on the Amiga which I played for ages. I never completed the whole game though, there were only a few levels left to do but I couldn't crack them. The good news is that there's a PC version available for free which I'm playing at the moment and enjoying greatly.
Tau Ceti was a wonderfully emersive game that kept me playing for ages. You are on a hostile planet overrun by enemy machines. You must shut down the reactors that provide power to these machines by clearing an area of enemies, docking with the reactor and inserting the correct cooling rods so that it stops functioning.There is a great sense of lonliness as you head out into the bleak landscape. Your only friend, your lander pod, recedes into the distance behind you and you await the lightning fast onslaught of the enemy robots.
Academy is the sequel to Tau Ceti. This time you are sent to different planets to do different missions. Each planet has different conditions that you need to customise your ship for. The Spectrum version, unlike the Amiga one, features a drag and drop interface so you could customise your display too. Also, for another bit of coding wizardry, check out the screen shot; There's no boarder, the blue and black goes to the edge of the screen. Very impressive for a Spectrum display.
Nether Earth was the first RTS game. It took me a while to complete it but I managed it eventually. You have control of a factory that manufactures robots. You have to assemble the robots from constituent parts depending on what role you want them to fulfill and send them off with orders to combat the enemy robots that are coming to destroy your factory.The enemy has three factories which you must capture in succession in order to beat him. I wasn't able to find a Spectrum version of Nether Earth but luckily someone has done a PC version which you can find here
Thunderbirds is a great little game. You control Thunderbirds One and Two in atempt to rescue some archeologists trapped inside a pyramid. Your way is through a maze with coloured blocks hindering your progress. Thunderbird One can move blue blocks, Thunderbird Two can move green blocks and both craft can move red blocks. You must combine them to open a way for you. As well as this there are other problems to overcome like flooded rooms and caverns with monsters in. Never fear though, before the game starts you can choose which things to put in Thunderbird Two's pod to help you. You have to choose wisely however as there's not a lot of room.
Head Over Heels is based on the Batman game by the same writers but is much weirder. You control Head and Heels, two symbiotic beings that each have different abilities. Your first task is to get them together so they can start using their special powers to good effect.
This mechanic lies at the heart of the poular Banjo Kazooie games also.
Once again some wonderful people have released this on the PC so you can experience it with more up to date graphics.
I of the Mask is just odd. Your little man runs, screaming and flailing his arms, through passages in a giant head. Try it.The Julian Gollop Experience
Most of you will have heard of X-Com and its sequels. X-Com grew out of a series of games written primarily by Julian Gollop.The first of this family was Rebelstar Raiders for the 16k Spectrum. In Rebelstar Raiders you play a futuristic tactical wargame against another player or the computer. There are three scenarios in the game, Moonbase, Starlingale and Final Assault. Each map fits onto a single screen, and each man or robot is represented by an individual sprite. Here are the Rebelstar Raiders maps, click on the box art to download the game.
One very nice touch in the second scenario, Starlingale where you are boarding a spaceship, is that if you manage to capture it the whole ship scrolls off the right hand side of the screen as it flies away. Excellent stuff!
Rebelstar Raiders was followed by Rebelstar. Rebelstar is the cream of the crop, my favourite game on the Spectrum and one of my favourite games of all time. I still play it today. There is a one player and a two palyer game. Both are on the same scrolling map of a Moonbase and the sprites are bigger. There is a lot of interaction with the scenery in Rebelstar which I like.I am currently building the Moonbase to use with 28mm figures so I can restage Rebelstar as a tabletop game. You can follow my progress here:
After Rebelstar came Rebelstar II which was not as good but still ok. Basically it's Aliens with a one or two player option. To my mind the inclusion of floor graphics wasn't an improvement. The gameplay is still engrossing none-the-less even though it is possible for the Aliens to put their eggs out of the reach of the Humans and so prevent the Human player from ever winning even if he kills all his opponents.
After Rebelstar II was Laser Squad which also appeared on the Amiga (sadly without the add on scenarios). Laser Squad looked better but had fewer people per side than Rebelstar and the play dynamic was different. A decent set of maps and scenarios were available though, so not a total loss. There was still some interaction with the environment and grenades made a showing for added mayhem.The latest incarnation of Rebelstar is on the Gameboy Advance and is pretty good. There is also an online version which you play by e-mail called Laser Squad Nemesis. Details of Laser Squad Nemesis can be found here:
As well as producing the Rebelstar set of games Julian Gollop also managed to write two other classics.Chaos is a multiplayer (up to eight) game of battling wizards which doesn't look much from the screenshot but it is a true work of genius with engrossing gameplay and some nice mechanics.
As Laser Squad was to Rebelstar, so Lords of Chaos is to Chaos. this took the battling wizards with summoned creatures to another level. It added potions to the wizards' arsenal which had to have their ingredients collected and allowed for character progression and linear solo adventures. Lords of Chaos was also available on the Amiga. Both versions are notable for the many hidden areas they contain that are waiting for you to discover them.
