Jeff Minter is an English video game designer and programmer who often goes by the name Yak. He is the founder of software house Llamasoft and has created dozens of games during his career, which began in 1981 with games for the ZX80. Minter's games are shoot 'em ups which contain titular or in-game references demonstrating his fondness of ruminants. Many of his programs also feature something of a psychedelic element, as in some of the earliest "light synthesizer" programs including Trip-a-Tron.
Pitfall! is a video game developed by David Crane for the Atari 2600 and released in 1982 by Activision. The player controls Pitfall Harry, who has a time limit of 20 minutes to seek treasure in a jungle. The game world is populated by enemies and hazards that variously cause the player to lose lives or points.
Boulder Dash is a maze-based puzzle video game released in 1984 by First Star Software for Atari 8-bit computers. It was created by Canadian developers Peter Liepa and Chris Gray. The player controls Rockford, who tunnels through dirt to collect diamonds. Boulders and other objects remain fixed until the dirt beneath them is removed, then they fall and become a hazard. Puzzles are designed around collecting diamonds without being crushed and exploiting the interactions between objects. The game's name is a pun on balderdash.
Manic Miner is a platform game written for the ZX Spectrum by Matthew Smith. It was published by Bug-Byte in 1983, then later the same year by Software Projects. The first game in the Miner Willy series, the design was inspired by Miner 2049er (1982) for the Atari 8-bit computers. Retro Gamer called Manic Miner one of the most influential platform games of all time, and it has been ported to numerous home computers, video game consoles, and mobile phones.
Lode Runner is a 2D puzzle-platform game, developed by Doug Smith and published by Broderbund in 1983. Its gameplay mechanics are similar to Space Panic from 1980. The player controls a character who must collect all the gold pieces in a level and get to the end while being chased by a number of enemies. It is one of the first games to include a level editor.
Demon Attack is a fixed shooter video game created by Rob Fulop for the Atari 2600 and published by Imagic in 1982. The game involves the player controlling a laser cannon from the surface of a planet, shooting winged demons that fly down and attack the player in different sets of patterns.
David Crane is an American video game designer and programmer. Crane grew up fascinated by technology and went to DeVry Institute of Technology. Following college, he went to Silicon Valley and got his first job at National Semiconductor. Through his friend Alan Miller he learned about potential video game design work at Atari, Inc. and began work there in 1977.
H.E.R.O. is a video game designed by John Van Ryzin and published by Activision for the Atari 2600 in March 1984. The game has players control Roderick Hero who traverses a mineshaft avoiding enemies and hazards to rescue trapped miners. He travels through the mines equipped with a hoverpack that allows him to traverse the game levels as well as bombs and laser that let him destroy walls and defeat enemies respectively.
River Raid is a video game developed by Carol Shaw for the Atari Video Computer System and released in 1982 by Activision. The player controls a fighter jet over the River of No Return in a raid behind enemy lines. The goal is to navigate the flight by destroying enemy tankers, helicopters, fuel depots and bridges without running out of fuel or crashing.
Pitfall II: Lost Caverns is a video game developed by David Crane for the Atari 2600. It was released in 1984 by Activision. The player controls Pitfall Harry, who must explore in wilds of Peru to find the Raj Diamond, and rescue his niece Rhonda and their animal friend Quickclaw. The game world is populated by enemies and hazards that variously cause the player to lose points and return to a checkpoint.
Datamost was a computer book publisher and computer game company founded by David Gordon and based in Chatsworth, California. Datamost operated in the early 1980s producing games and other software mainly for the Apple II, Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit computers, with some for the IBM PC. It also published educational and reference materials related to home computers and computer programming.
Forbidden Forest is a game designed by Paul Norman, published by Cosmi Corporation in 1983 for the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit computers.
Aztec Challenge refers to either of two early action video games published by Cosmi, as well as two subsequent remakes. In all game versions the player takes control of a running Aztec warrior. The first was a side-scrolling platform-jumping game created by Robert Tegel Bonifacio and released in 1982 for Atari 8-bit computers. Subsequently, a different game with the same title and overall theme was created by Paul Norman and released for the Commodore 64. It includes a level in a modified-first-person 3D-style.
Personal Computer Games was a multi-format UK computer games magazine of the early/mid-1980s published by VNU.
Tutankham is a 1982 arcade video game developed and released by Konami and released by Stern in North America. Named after the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, the game combines a maze shoot 'em up with light puzzle-solving elements. It debuted at the European ATE and IMA amusement shows in January 1982 before releasing worldwide in Summer 1982. The game was a critical and commercial success and was ported to home systems by Parker Brothers.
Rock'n Wrestle is a professional wrestling video game released in 1985 for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad and Commodore 64 8-bit home computers, and as Bop'N Wrestle in 1986 for DOS by Mindscape.
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.
Chopper Hunt is a side-view shoot 'em up written by Tom Hudson and published by Imagic in 1984 for Atari 8-bit computers and Commodore 64. It was one of the last games from Imagic before the company went out of business. Chopper Hunt is an enhanced version of the Atari 8-bit game Buried Bucks released by ANALOG Software in 1982. In both games, the player files a helicopter that uses bombs to unearth buried items. Contemporaneous reviews were mixed.
Caverns of Khafka refers to either of two platform video games published by Cosmi. In both game versions the player takes control of a treasure hunter in search for the fabled treasure of Pharaoh Khafka. The first game was created by Robert T. Bonifacio and released in 1983 for Atari 8-bit computers. Subsequently, a different game with the same title and overall theme was created by Paul Norman and released for the Commodore 64 in 1984.
