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  • Crossbow (Commodore 64, Apple II, DOS)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Crossbow (Commodore 64, DOS, Apple II)

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/171408966764/retrocgads-usa-1988-crossbow-commodore-64-dos

    Crossbow started life as an arcade game developed by Exidy in 1983. In 1987, it was ported to a number of platforms including the Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Atari XE, Commodore 64, Apple II and DOS. The ad above is by Absolute who handled the Commodore 64, Apple II and DOS versions. Atari handled the Atari versions.

    The arcade version of Crossbow is a light gun game in which you are responsible for protecting a party of adventurers. The light gun in this case takes the form of a full size crossbow. The adventurers walk from the left hand side of the screen to the right and you have to protect them from various enemies and obstacles. The adventurers that survive the trip get to go on to the next location. You have to be careful not to shoot any of your friends (as the game refers to them) because you can hurt and kill them. This was the first light gun game I ever played and still one of my favorites.

    The disadvantage of the computer ports done by Absolute for the Commodore 64, Apple II and DOS is that they do not support a light gun. Instead, you control a crosshair with a joystick in order to aim. Despite this disadvantage, the conversions are fairly good and if you liked the arcade original then you would probably like these. I’m not sure why light gun support was not included. Light guns were not popular on home computers though I know they were technically feasible as there were a couple available for the Commodore 64. My guess is that they only worked well with TVs and while many people did have their 8-bit computers connected to a TV, many others used computer monitors.

    Being a Commodore 64 fan, that version is my favorite. However, I would also recommend the Atari 7800 version for the best combination of good graphics and light gun support. You’ll have to play on a real 7800 with a CRT TV though for that to matter. If you are playing on an emulator or making use of a modern television or computer monitor then you are probably better off with the Commodore 64 version anyway.

    This is a good example of an early light gun game and a nice change of pace from more modern rapid fire light gun games you see today. I think this game would make a good candidate for an update. A company called Mean Hamster released an iPhone version of the game. They had developed some Atari 5200 games around the turn of the century and some other mobile games more recently. They were apparently planning a Windows version of Crossbow before going out of business (at least in terms of developing new software…I think the old stuff is still available).





    Apple ][ Commodore 64 Computer Arcana DOS 📎and tagged

  • Winter Games (Epyx, 1985)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Winter Games (Epyx, 1985)

    http://darth-azrael.tumblr.com/post/170527373501/retrocgads-usa-1985-winter-games-apple-ii

    As I mentioned in my previous post on the subject, the Epyx Games series were my favorite sports games of the 8-bit era. Of those, Winter Games was probably my favorite.

     

    Like Summer Games, Winter Games was developed first for the Commodore 64 and then ported to a wide variety of computer and video game platforms. This ad explicitly mentions the Commodore 64, Apple II and Macintosh so I suspect those were the first three available. Again, the events available varied slightly depending on which version you were playing but the original Commodore 64 version includes Hot Dog (freestyle ski jump where you do tricks), Biathlon, Figure Skating, Ski Jump, Speed Skating, Free Skating and Bob Sled.

     

    Though the events are different, the setup is just like Summer Games. One to eight players, practice, compete in some or compete in all events, etc. My favorite events were Hot Dog, Bob Sled, Biathlon, Ski Jump and Speed Skating. That’s most of them but then that’s why this is my favorite of the series. I like most of the events.

     

    Interestingly, the original Commodore 64 version of the game was released on Nintendo’s Virtual Console in 2009. Unfortunately, I believe it was a European only release. However, like Summer Games it was also available on the C64 DTV. If you can’t find on of those and don’t live in Europe and you want to give it a try, you’ll have to track down an original copy or an emulator and disk image. Make sure you are using a decent Atari style digital joystick for best results though!





    Apple ][ Commodore 64 Computer Arcana Macintosh Retro Games 📎and tagged

  • Rescue on Fractalus (Commodore 64, Apple II, Atari 8-bit)

    Posted on by Azrael Comment

    Rescue on Fractalus (Commodore 64, Atari, Apple)

    http://www.megalextoria.com/wordpress/index.php/category/computer-arcana/

    Though it may not be as true today, in the 1980s you could almost always count on a Lucasfilm game (or Epyx game for that matter) to be of high quality. Rescue on Fractalus is no exception. It was initially developed for the Atari 8-bit line of computers (and the Atari 5200 which is essentially the same thing internally anyway) and later ported to other popular computers such as the Commodore 64, Apple II and even the Tandy Color Computer 3 (a rare high profile 3rd party title for that system). It was developed by Lucasfilm Games and distributed by Epyx, Activision or Atari depending on the version and location it was released.

     
    Commodore 64

    In Rescue on Fractalus, you pilot a spaceship through mountainous terrain looking for downed pilots to rescue. Once found, you must land close enough so that the downed pilot can make it to your ship before dying in the acidic atmosphere. To make matters more difficult, aliens take pot shots at you during you search. In addition, they will sometimes impersonate downed pilots in an attempt to get aboard your ship. One unique aspect of this game is that the terrain is generated using fractals (hence the name).


    Atari 8-bit

    This is definitely a challenging game but one that is well worth playing. Both the Atari 8-bit and Commodore 64 versions are good and are easy enough to find for emulation purposes if you can’t track down an original (or don’t have the equipment). This game would make for a great modern remake but alas there have been none. The most “modern” versions are a slightly expanded Atari XE/XEGS version with more levels and an unfinished Atari 7800 prototype that was discovered in 2004.

    A strategy guide and a little bit more info about the game can be found here: http://www.megalextoria.com/wordpress/index.php/2017/03/15/rescue-on-fractulus-atari-xe-strategy/





    Apple ][ Atari 8-bit Commodore 64 Computer Arcana Misc. Retro Games 📎and tagged