Choplifter is a military themed scrolling shooter developed by Dan Gorlin for the Apple II and published by Broderbund in 1982. It was ported to Atari 8-bit computers the same year and also to the VIC-20, Commodore 64, Atari 5200, ColecoVision, MSX, and Thomson computers.
Bill Williams was an American video game designer, programmer, composer, and author born with cystic fibrosis, a genetic disorder. According to a medical encyclopedia Williams consulted when he was 12, people with cystic fibrosis weren't expected to live past the age of 13.
Crossfire is a multidirectional shooter created by Jay Sullivan for the Apple II and published by On-Line Systems in 1981. Using keyboard-based twin-stick shooter controls, the player maneuvers a ship in a grid-like maze. Versions with joystick-control use the stick for movement and switch to firing mode when the button is held down.
Gateway to Apshai is an action-adventure game for the Commodore 64, ColecoVision and Atari 8-bit computers. It was developed by The Connelley Group and published by Epyx in 1983 as a prequel to Temple of Apshai. It is a more action-oriented version of Temple of Apshai, with smoother and faster graphics, streamlined controls, fewer role-playing video game elements, and fewer room descriptions.
Halcyon Days: Interviews with Classic Computer and Video Game Programmers is a digital book edited by James Hague and published in 1997. The book was originally formatted using HTML and sold via mail-order, shipped on a floppy disk by Dadgum Games for USD$20. In 2002, Halcyon Days was made freely available on the web. The book continued to be sold by Dr. Dobb's Journal, on a CD-ROM also containing Susan Lammers's Programmers at Work, until Dr. Dobb's shut down at the end of 2014.
Bandits is a 1982 fixed shooter written by Tony and Benny Ngo for the Apple II and published by Sirius Software. The game is a clone of Taito's 1980 Stratovox arcade video game where the goal is to prevent aliens from stealing objects. Bandits was ported to the Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, and VIC-20.
Secret Quest is an action-adventure game developed by Axlon for the Atari 2600 and published by Atari Corporation in 1989. The player controls a humanoid character that fights monsters and gathers items on a series of space stations. It was one of the last cartridges released for the console and has a larger ROM capacity than most 2600 games plus a small amount of RAM. The box credits Nolan Bushnell for the game and includes his photo on both the front and back. According to Secret Quest programmer Steve DeFrisco, "Atari thought that his name would entice people to buy some more 2600 titles".
Boulders and Bombs is a video game for Atari 8-bit computers published on cartridge by CBS Software in 1983. It was written by Keith Dreyer and Torre Meeder who previously developed the Berzerk-clone K-Razy Shoot-Out. In Boulders and Bombs, the player must dig tunnels so three people can cross from one side of the screen to the other. Bird-like creatures, flying in the upper portion of the screen, launch projectiles into the dirt to thwart the player. While there isn't a separate multiplayer mode, joysticks plugged into each of the remaining 1-3 ports can each control one of the birds. The game generally received poor reviews, with reviewers citing control issues and the lack of excitement.
Airstrike is a horizontally scrolling shooter written by Steven A. Riding for Atari 8-bit computers. Having strong similarities to Konami's 1981 Scramble arcade game, it was published in 1982 as the first release from UK-based English Software. The company described the game as "Very, very, difficult!" in magazine advertisements, and reviewers agreed with that assessment.
Track Attack is a train-themed action game written by Chris Jochumson for the Apple II. It was published in 1982 by Broderbund, as was a port for Atari 8-bit computers by Bill Hooper. Track Attack contains both overhead maze levels and side-scrolling platform game levels. In the latter, the player controls a character who runs along the top of a train, performing acrobatic leaps between the cars. Jochumson co-authored The Arcade Machine which was released the same year.
Protector II is a video game written by Mike Potter for Atari 8-bit computers and published by Synapse Software in 1982. It is a sequel to 1981's Protector; both games are horizontally scrolling shooters inspired by the arcade video game Defender. Protector II was ported to the Commodore 64, TI-99/4A, and TRS-80 Color Computer.
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.
Tutti Frutti is an action game written by Alan M. Newman for Atari 8-bit computers and published in 1982 by Adventure International. It was re-released in Germany by QuelleSoft in 1984. The game is programmed in Atari BASIC.
Monster Smash is an action game written by Dave Eisler and published by Datamost in 1983 for the Apple II and Atari 8-bit family. A Commodore 64 port followed in 1984. The Atari version features music written by Gary Gilbertson that was praised by reviewers. An earlier version of the game was published by The Software Farm in 1982 as Monster Mash.
O'Riley's Mine is an action game designed by Mark Riley and published in 1983 by Datasoft for Atari 8-bit computers. The game was ported to the Apple II by Larry Lewis and Commodore 64 by Al Rubin. Both ports were also released in 1983.
Threshold is a space-themed fixed shooter written by Warren Schwader and Ken Williams for the Apple II and published by On-Line Systems in 1981. Inspired by Sega's Astro Blaster arcade video game, Threshold introduces many enemy ship types and wave formations as the game progresses. Reviewers found the variety distinguished the game from the many similar shoot 'em ups.
Nightraiders is a vertically scrolling shooter designed by Peter Filiberti and published in 1983 by Datamost for Atari 8-bit computers. It is heavily inspired by the 1982 Sega arcade video game Zaxxon.
Zeppelin is a multidirectional scrolling shooter designed by Cathryn Mataga and published in 1983 by Synapse Software for Atari 8-bit computers. A Commodore 64 port programmed by David Barbour was released in 1984.
Chop Suey is a martial arts fighting game developed by Adam Billyard for the Atari 8-bit computers. It was published in 1985 by English Software. Antic Software published the game in the US. The title is a repurposing of American Chinese cuisine dish of the same name.
Elektra Glide is a futuristic motorcycle racing game developed by designer Adam Billyard for the Atari 8-bit, Amstrad CPC, and Commodore 64 home computers. It was published in 1985 by English Software. Mastertronic also published the game in the US.
