The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. Considered one of the most influential computers ever made, it is also one of the best-selling British computers ever, with over five million units sold. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and around the world in the following years, most notably in Europe, the United States, and Eastern Bloc countries.
Operation Wolf is a light gun shooter arcade game developed by Taito and released in 1987. It was ported to many home systems.
Crash, stylized as CRASH, is a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer, primarily focused on games. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress. It was relaunched as a quarterly A5 magazine in December 2020 with the backing of the original founders.
Gremlin Graphics Software Limited, later Gremlin Interactive Limited and ultimately Infogrames Studios Limited was a British software house based in Sheffield, working mostly in the home computer market. Like many software houses established in the 1980s, their primary market was the 8-bit range of computers such as the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, MSX, Commodore 16 and Commodore 64. The company was acquired by French video game publisher Infogrames in 1999 and was renamed Infogrames Studios in 2000. Infogrames Studios closed down in 2003.
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.
Vortex Software was a video game developer founded by Costa Panayi and Paul Canter in the early 1980s to sell the game Cosmos which Panayi had developed for the Sinclair ZX81. They converted the game to the ZX Spectrum, but due to the low sales of the ZX81 version they licensed the game to Abbex.
Wanted: Monty Mole is a platform video game published in July 1984 for the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 home computers. It is the first game released by Gremlin Graphics and the first game in the Monty Mole series. Monty Mole is a fictional mole created by Ian Stewart, the director of the company.
Snoopy's Silly Sports Spectacular!, known in Japan as Donald Duck (ドナルドダック) and based on the British home computer game, Alternative World Games, is a child-oriented sports game that was released by Kemco for the Nintendo Entertainment System on September 22, 1988.
Costa Panayi is a former computer game programmer active during the 1980s. He founded Vortex Software with Paul Canter, publishing games for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC.
Thorn EMI Computer Software was a British video games software house set up in the early 1980s as part of the now-defunct British conglomerate Thorn EMI. They released a number of games in the early 1980s, initially for the Atari 8-bit computers, and later for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and VIC-20 computers. In 1984, the Thorn EMI name was dropped in favour of Creative Sparks as the company were reportedly unhappy with their image in the video games market. A budget label, Sparklers, was created in early 1985 to publish titles at £2.50. Later in 1985, Creative Sparks, Sparklers and the distribution company, Creative Sparks Distribution (CSD) gained independence from Thorn EMI after a management buyout.
10th Frame is a ten-pin bowling simulation game published by Access Software in 1986. Up to eight players can take part in open bowling or a tournament. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC compatibles, MSX, and ZX Spectrum.
Deflektor is a puzzle video game developed by Vortex Software and published by Gremlin Graphics in December 1987. The game was followed by a sequel in 1989 called Mindbender.
WEC Le Mans, known as WEC Le Mans 24 in Japan, is a racing simulation video game released in arcades by Konami in 1986. It was the first racing video game to depict the 24 Hours of Le Mans World Endurance Championship (WEC). The Lap of Le Mans is split up into three sections, during which the time of day changes from day to dusk, dusk to night, and night to dawn.
Piranha Software was a short-lived video game publishing label created by Macmillan Publishers in 1986 and closed eighteen months later. In that time it gained a reputation for its unusual output from well known developers such as Don Priestley, Design Design and Delta 4. The majority of their games featured licensed properties including the first video game based on the Discworld novels and two games based on the animated television series The Trap Door.
Jack the Nipper is a video game by Gremlin Graphics released in 1986 for ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and MSX. It was followed by a sequel, Jack the Nipper II: In Coconut Capers.
Jack the Nipper II: In Coconut Capers is a video game by Gremlin Graphics released in 1987 for ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, and MSX. It is the sequel to Jack the Nipper. As with the previous game, Jack the Nipper II is a side-view flip screen game with puzzle solving and platform elements. The false-3D effect has been removed, making the gameplay pure 2D.
Friday the 13th: The Computer Game is the first game adaptation based on the films of the same name. It was released in 1986 by Domark for the Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum. The game was released on floppy diskette and cassette tape. The player's goal is to find and kill Jason, while making sure their friends or they themselves are not killed by Jason.
Twister, also known as Twister: Mother of Charlotte or just Mother of Charlotte, is a shooting game developed by Chris Yates and Jon Hare for Sensible Software and published by System 3 for the ZX Spectrum in 1986. It was originally developed as Mother of Harlots but was renamed after a controversy regarding the title and sexualized promotion with skimpily dressed dancers at an industry event, and a planned Commodore 64 version was never released. The game received positive reviews from Aktueller Software Markt, Crash, Sinclair User, and Your Sinclair.
Grumpy Gumphrey Supersleuth, often known simply as Super Sleuth, is a computer game for the ZX Spectrum by Gremlin Graphics, a software developer based in Sheffield, United Kingdom. It is an action-adventure game: the player controls Grumpy, a store detective and general dogsbody working in a large department store. The game was developed by Shaun Hollingworth with loading-screen graphics by Marco Duroe.
