Bubble Bobble is a 1986 platform game developed and published by Taito for arcades. It was distributed in the United States by Romstar, and in Europe by Electrocoin. Players control Bub and Bob, two dragons that set out to save their girlfriends from a world known as the Cave of Monsters. In each level, Bub and Bob must defeat each enemy present by trapping them in bubbles and popping, who turn into bonus items when they hit the ground. There are 100 levels total, each becoming progressively more difficult.
The NewZealand Story is a platformer arcade game developed and published by Taito in 1988. The game's concept and setting were inspired by a holiday trip in New Zealand by one of the Taito programmers. The player controls Tiki (ティキ), a kiwi who must save his girlfriend Phee Phee (ピューピュー) and several of his other kiwi chick friends who have been kidnapped by a large blue leopard seal. While avoiding enemies, the player has to navigate a scrolling maze-like level, at the end of which they release one of Tiki's kiwi chick friends trapped in a cage. In 2007, the arcade game received a remake for the Nintendo DS under the title New Zealand Story Revolution.
Rainbow Islands: The Story of Bubble Bobble 2 (レインボーアイランド) is a 1987 arcade game developed and published by Taito. The arcade version was licensed to Romstar for North American manufacturing and distribution. The game is subtitled "The Story of Bubble Bobble 2" and is the sequel to Taito's hit game Bubble Bobble from the previous year. It is the second of four arcade games in the Bubble Bobble series. The game was ported for numerous home computers and game consoles.
Gauntlet II is a 1986 arcade game produced by Atari Games that serves as the immediate sequel to the original Gauntlet, which was released the previous year. Like its predecessor, Gauntlet II is a fantasy-themed top down dungeon crawler game and was released as a dedicated cabinet, as well as a conversion kit, both available in 2-player and 4-player versions.
Jetpac is a shooter video game developed and published by Ultimate Play the Game and released for the ZX Spectrum and VIC-20 in 1983 and the BBC Micro in 1984. It is the first game to be released by Ultimate Play the Game, the company which later became Rare. The game follows Jetman as he must rebuild his rocket in order to explore different planets, while simultaneously defending against hostile aliens. It was written by Ultimate co-founder Chris Stamper with graphics designed by his brother, Tim Stamper. Reviewers praised Jetpac's presentation and gameplay, and it won "Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards in 1983.
Spy vs. Spy is a video game written by Michael Riedel for the Commodore 64 and published by First Star Software in 1984. A port for the Atari 8-bit family was released simultaneously. It is a two-player, split-screen game, based on Mad magazine's long-running cartoon strip Spy vs. Spy, about the slapstick antics of two spies trying to kill each other with improbably elaborate traps and weapons.
Operation Wolf is a light gun shooter arcade game developed by Taito and released in 1987. It was ported to many home systems.
Underwurlde is a 1984 action-adventure platform video game in the Sabreman series by Ultimate Play the Game for the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64. The player controls the adventurer Sabreman as he jumps between platforms in a castle and its caverns to find an escape past the exit guardians. Underwurlde features about 600 flip screen areas. Unlike other games of its time, Sabreman is not injured when touched by enemies and is instead knocked backwards. Underwurlde is the second game in the series, between Sabre Wulf and Knight Lore, and released alongside the latter for the ZX Spectrum during Christmas in 1984. Another developer, Firebird, ported the game to the Commodore 64 the following year.
Aaargh! is a single-player action video game in which the player controls a giant monster with the goal of obtaining eggs by destroying buildings in different cities across a lost island. It was designed for Mastertronic's Arcadia Systems, an arcade machine based on the custom hardware of the Amiga, and was released in 1987. It was ported to a range of other platforms and released on these across 1988 and 1989. Electronic Arts distributed the Amiga version of the game.
Bomb Jack is a platform game published by Tehkan for arcades in and later ported to home systems. The game was a commercial success for arcades and home computers. It was followed by several sequels: the console and computer game Mighty Bomb Jack, the arcade game Bomb Jack Twin, and Bomb Jack II which was licensed for home computers only.
Darkman is a video game that was developed by Ocean Software and published by Ocean Software in 1991. It was released for the Amiga, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and Atari ST. Darkman had two different games of the same name, one for the Nintendo Entertainment System and the other for Game Boy. The game's plot is loosely based on the film of the same name.
Impossible Mission II is a video game developed by Novotrade and published by Epyx in 1988. It was released for the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Enterprise 128, Nintendo Entertainment System, DOS, Atari ST, Apple II with at least 128K, Apple IIGS, and Amiga.
Tornado Low Level is a multidirectional flight game developed by Costa Panayi and published in 1984 by the company he co-founded, Vortex Software. The game was released for the ZX Spectrum in 1984, with ports for the Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64 in 1985.
Stop the Express (also known as Bousou Tokkyuu SOS is a video game developed by Hudson Soft and published in 1983. It was written for the Sharp X1 and later ported to the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and MSX.
Dynasty Wars, released in Japan as Tenchi wo Kurau, is a 1989 side-scrolling beat-'em-up game released for arcades by Capcom, based on the Japanese manga Tenchi wo Kurau and a reenactment of the battle between the Kingdom of Shu and the Yellow Turban rebels. Each of the two players can assume the roles of one of the four Chinese generals riding on horseback from the Three Kingdoms period in an attempt to smash the rebellion. A sequel, Warriors of Fate, was released in 1992.
Deactivators is a 1986 puzzle video game designed by David Bishop and Chris Palmer, developed by Tigress Marketing and System Software, and published by Ariolasoft's action game imprint Reaktor. The player controls bomb disposal robots known as deactivators and must use them to deactivate bombs planted by terrorists in five research complexes. The concept for the game came from a brainstorming session between Bishop and Palmer; its design and development took five to six months to complete. It was released for the Amstrad CPC 464, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum platforms in October 1986.
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.
Agent X II: The Mad Prof's Back is a computer game released in 1987 for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and Commodore 64. It is the follow-up to the ZX Spectrum game Agent X.
Revolution is an isometric 3D puzzle video game released by U.S. Gold in 1986 for the ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC. It was programmed by Costa Panayi and is a development of the earlier 3D games Highway Encounter and Alien Highway.
Pink Panther is a 1988 video game based on the character of the same name. It was developed by German company Magic Bytes and published by Gremlin Graphics. It was released in Europe for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum. Pink Panther was criticized for its control and difficulty, although the Amiga and Atari ST versions received praise for their graphics.
