Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the company's 8-bit home computers. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985, and it was widely available in July. The ST was the first personal computer with a bitmapped color graphical user interface, using a version of Digital Research's GEM interface / operating system, from February 1985.
A sound card is an internal expansion card that provides input and output of audio signals to and from a computer under the control of computer programs. The term sound card is also applied to external audio interfaces used for professional audio applications.
The Apple IIGS is a 16-bit personal computer produced by Apple Computer. It is the fifth and most powerful of the Apple II family. It is compatible with earlier Apple II models but has a Macintosh look and feel, and resolution and color similar to the Amiga and Atari ST. The "GS" in the name stands for "Graphics and Sound", referring to its enhanced multimedia hardware, especially its state-of-the-art audio.
Deluxe Paint, often referred to as DPaint, is a bitmap graphics editor created by Dan Silva for Electronic Arts and published for the then-new Amiga 1000 in November 1985. A series of updated versions followed, some of which were ported to other platforms. An MS-DOS release with support for the 256 color VGA standard became popular for creating pixel graphics in video games in the 1990s.
Pinball Construction Set is a video game by Bill Budge written for the Apple II. It was originally published in 1982 through Budge's own company, BudgeCo, then was released by Electronic Arts in 1983 along with ports to the Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64.
Defender of the Crown is a strategy video game designed by Kellyn Beeck. It was Cinemaware's first game, and was originally released for the Commodore Amiga in 1986, setting a new standard for graphic quality in home computer games.
Rob Hubbard is a British composer best known for his musical and programming work for microcomputers of the 1980s, such as the Commodore 64.
Artworx was a Naples, Florida software company that produced and supported a line of computer games from 1981 to 2015. It is named after the founder's given name. At first the company published a variety of games, including titles in adventure and arcade-action genres, but were later best known for a strip poker series.
Will Harvey's Music Construction Set (MCS) is a music composition notation program designed by Will Harvey for the Apple II and published by Electronic Arts in 1983. Harvey wrote the original Apple II version in assembly language when he was 15 and in high school. MCS was conceived as a tool to add music to his previously published game, an abstract shooter called Lancaster for the Apple II.
Cut & Paste is a word processor published in 1984 for Apple II series, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, IBM PC compatibles, and IBM PCjr. It is one of the few productivity releases from game developer and publisher Electronic Arts, along with the contemporaneous Financial Cookbook. In the UK it was distributed by Ariolasoft.
Last Ninja is a series of video games published by System 3. The first game in the series titled The Last Ninja, was released in 1987 for the Commodore 64 and was one of the most successful games for the system. In 1988, System 3 released Last Ninja 2, and in 1991 the third game in the series, Last Ninja 3. In 1990, Last Ninja Remix was released for 8-bit systems. This was Last Ninja 2 with new music, a new introductory sequence, slightly changed graphics and fixed bugs. Confusingly, the 16-bit versions of the original The Last Ninja game were also released in 1990 as Ninja Remix.
Jam Session is the 1988 successor to Studio Session, a 1986 software program for Macintosh computers, for music creation and playback. It was created by Macintosh and Newton pioneer Steve Capps and musician Ed Bogas. Jam Session was published by Broderbund Software. Studio Session was published by Bogas Productions.
Starglider is a 3D video game published in 1986 by Rainbird. It was developed by Jez San under his company name Argonaut Software. The game is a fast-moving, first-person combat flight simulator, rendered with colourful wireframe vector graphics inspired by San's love of the 1983 Atari coin-op Star Wars.
Mean 18 is a golf video game designed by Rex Bradford with graphics by George Karalias, both of Microsmiths, and released by Accolade for MS-DOS compatible operating systems in 1986. It was ported to the Amiga, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, and Macintosh. It includes an editor allowing players to create their own courses. In 1989, Atari Corporation published a port for the Atari 7800 console. A version for Atari 8-bit computers was in development in 1989 but was cancelled.
Bank Street Music Writer is an application for composing and playing music for the Atari 8-bit computers, Apple II, Commodore 64 and IBM PC. It was written by Glen Clancy and published by Mindscape. The original Atari version, developed under the name "Note Processor", was released in 1985 and uses the computer's on-board sound chip to produce four-voice music recordings. The Commodore 64 version also uses that system's sound hardware, while the Apple and IBM PC versions require a sound card which was included in the retail box, or alternately use the three-voice sound chip standard with all Tandy and IBM PCjr computers.
Shanghai is a computerized version of mahjong solitaire published by Activision in 1986 for the Amiga, Atari ST, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, classic Mac OS, Apple IIGS, and Master System. Shanghai was originally programmed by Brodie Lockard. It was released as an arcade video game by Sunsoft in 1988.
Keef the Thief: A Boy and His Lockpick is a video game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Electronic Arts. It was released in 1989 for the Apple IIGS and then later ported to the Amiga and MS-DOS. Keef the Thief is a comedic sword and sorcery role-playing game.
