Qix is a 1981 puzzle video game developed by husband and wife team Randy and Sandy Pfeiffer and published in arcades by Taito America. Qix is one of a handful of games made by Taito's American division. At the start of each level, the playing field is a large, empty rectangle, containing the Qix, an abstract stick-like entity that performs graceful but unpredictable motions within the confines of the rectangle. The objective is to draw lines that close off parts of the rectangle to fill in a set amount of the playfield.
First Star Software, Inc. was a Chappaqua, New York based video game development, publishing and licensing company, founded by Richard Spitalny, Billy Blake, Peter Jablon, and Fernando Herrera in 1982. It is best known for the series Boulder Dash, which began on the Atari 8-bit computers, and Spy vs. Spy, which first appeared on the Commodore 64. Games were ported to or written for home computers, consoles, and later for Macintosh, Microsoft Windows, and portable devices. Millions of units have been sold in both the Boulder Dash and Spy vs. Spy series of games.
Revenge of the Mutant Camels is a horizontally scrolling shooter written by Jeff Minter for the Commodore 64 and published by Llamasoft in 1984. Enhanced versions for the Atari ST, Amiga, and IBM PC were released in 1992 as shareware.
Mr. Do's Castle is a platform game released in arcades by Universal in September 1983. In Japan, the game is titled Mr. Do! versus Unicorns. Marketed as a sequel to the original Mr. Do! released one year earlier, the game bears a far closer resemblance to Universal's Space Panic from 1980. It began as a game called Knights vs. Unicorns, but the U.S. division of Universal persuaded the Japanese arm to modify the graphics into a Mr. Do! game following the first game's popularity.
Hudson Hawk is a platform game developed by Special FX Ltd. for the Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum based on the film of the same name. It was released in 1991 and published by Ocean Software. Sony Imagesoft released it in the US for the Game Boy and NES. In Spain it was published as El Gran Halcon, the Spanish title for the film. An SNES version was in development, but was cancelled when the film flopped.
Drol is a video game published by Broderbund in 1983. It was written for the Apple II by Benny Aik Beng Ngo, then ported to the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit computers. Versions were released for the SG-1000 in 1985 and Amiga in 1991.
The Last Ninja is an action-adventure game originally developed and published by System 3 in 1987 for the Commodore 64. It was converted to the Apple IIGS, MS-DOS, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron in 1988, the Apple II series in 1989, the Amiga and Atari ST in 1990, and the Acorn Archimedes in 1991.
Kick is an action video game where the player controls a clown on a unicycle catching falling balloons and Pac-Man characters on the clown's hat. It was released in arcades by Midway in 1981. The game was later renamed Kick Man. Commodore published a Commodore 64 port in 1982 without the space in the title as Kickman.
Filmation is the name of the isometric graphics engine employed in a series of games developed by Ultimate Play the Game during the 1980s, primarily on the 8-bit ZX Spectrum platform, though various titles also appeared on the BBC Micro, Amstrad CPC, MSX and Commodore 64 platforms.
Astro Chase is a multidirectional shooter written by Fernando Herrera for Atari 8-bit computers. It was published by First Star Software in 1982 as the company's first game. Parker Brothers licensed it, releasing cartridge versions for the Atari 8-bit family and Atari 5200 console in 1983 and a Commodore 64 version in 1984. Exidy licensed it for arcade use with its Max-A-Flex cabinet.
The Pharaoh's Curse is a platform adventure game written by Steve Coleman and published by Synapse Software in 1983 for Atari 8-bit computers. It was ported to the Commodore 64 and VIC-20, with the VIC version published by Human Engineered Software. Coleman also wrote Rainbow Walker for Synapse, published the same year.
Hex is a turn-based strategy game developed by Mark of the Unicorn and published in 1985 for the then-new Atari ST and later for the Amiga. The player controls a unicorn that is trying to turn all the hexes on the game board to the same colour. Opponents attempt to turn them to a different colour and thus defeat the unicorn. As the unicorn levels up, new spells are added to its repertoire, but only 5 can be used at any given time.
Jet-Boot Jack is a platform game written by Jon Williams for Atari 8-bit computers and published by English Software in 1983. It was ported to the Acorn Electron, Amstrad CPC, BBC Micro, and Commodore 64. A C64-only sequel, Legend of the Knucker-Hole, was released in 1984.
Lode Runner's Rescue is a 1985 action game developed by Joshua Scholar for the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit computers as a follow-up to Doug Smiths's Lode Runner. Lode Runner was published by Broderbund, but the sequel was published under the Synapse Software name, a company acquired by Broderbund in 1984. Lode Runner's Rescue uses isometric projection to give a 3D feel.
Drelbs is a maze video game written by Kelly Jones for Atari 8-bit computers and published by Synapse Software in 1983. An Apple II port by Jonathan Tifft was released the same year. A Commodore 64 version followed in 1984 implemented by Miriam Nathan and William Mandel. The objective is to move the walls of the maze to make boxes. Some reviewers found the overall collection of elements to be eccentric and unique.
Kid Grid is a grid capture game which borrows heavily from the 1981 arcade video game Amidar. Written by Arti Haroutunian for Atari 8-bit computers, it was published by Tronix in 1982. A Commodore 64 port from the same programmer was released in 1983. In Kid Grid, the player moves along the horizontal and vertical lines of the playfield, turning the lines from dotted gray to solid blue. If all the lines around a square are completed, it is filled-in. Deadly creatures chase the player.
Cohen's Towers is a platform game written by Frank Cohen and released by Datamost in 1983 for Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64. It was re-released in 1986 by Databyte in the United Kingdom.
Ollie's Follies is a platform game designed by Frank Cohen and published in 1984 by Americana for Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64.
The Scrolls of Abadon is a maze video game designed by Frank Cohen and published in 1984 by Access Software for Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64.
