Retro games, abandonware, freeware and classic games for PC and Mac
Author: GN Team - Published: 5 September 2020, 1:45 pm
Starcross is an interactive fiction/text adventure published by Infocom in 1982. The story was written by Dave Lebling, one of the authors of Zork: The Great Underground Empire.
Like many Infocom games, it was initially released for the TRS-80, Apple II, and Atari 8-bit. Later it was ported to several other platforms, including MS-DOS, C64, Amiga, and Atari ST.
It was the fifth adventure created by Infocom and their first science-fiction title. It's set in a spaceship (called Starcross) in the year 2186, where humanity colonized the Moon, Mars, and many other planets. The story and the settings are influenced by the famous A. C. Clarke’s novel Rendezvous with Rama, written ten years before. Starcross will allow you to explore vast deserted scenarios filled with mysterious alien artifacts. It’s a game with a dark, fascinating atmosphere. Some of the puzzles require scientific knowledge, so this entry was listed in the Infocom inventory as ‘Expert’ level.
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Author: GN Team - Published: 4 September 2020, 7:23 pm
Smarty And The Nasty Gluttons is a platformer for Amiga whose development was started in 1992, but the game was never completed. The original makers decided to restart the project, and the title was finally released in 2020 in the public domain.
The graphics, music and sounds are the ones made in 1992 since everything was already designed and finished. The code instead has been reviewed and improved line by line. Many sections have been added or enhanced. Now you can finally enjoy this little gem. You can find tutorials and many more info at the official website smartygame.fi.
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Author: GN Team - Published: 30 August 2020, 12:18 pm
Bubble and Squeak is a platformer created by Audiogenic Software for Amiga computers and Amiga CD32 and released in 1994. The game was also ported to the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive, with some small differences.
You control a kid called Bubble, and you are helped by your pet Squeak. You can decide what kind of help you want to receive from your friend, that can simply follow you, or can help you jump on the higher platforms. Most of the time, his help will be fundamental to solve the puzzles. Bubble & Squeak is not a game of pure action.
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Author: GN Team - Published: 28 August 2020, 1:37 pm
Vampire Killer is a videogame created by Konami for MSX computers and released in 1986. It's been defined as an alternative version of Castlevania, released one month before, for the Famicom.
The two games, developed in parallel, are set in the same horror universe and share the same hero: Simon Belmont. Vampire Killer has some differences in terms of gameplay. While Castlevania is more linear, the MSX game designed by Akihiko Nagata requires more exploration and requires the player to find a key to exit each level. Due to the technical limitation of MSX computers, instead of horizontal scrolling, the screen flips when the hero reaches the border.
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Author: GN Team - Published: 22 August 2020, 12:13 pm
Summer Games is the first game of the popular series dedicated to the Olympic games. It was created by Epyx and released initially in 1984 for the Commodore 64.
The game was so successful that it had to be ported to all available platforms, including Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 2600, Atari 7800, Atari 8-bit, SEGA Master System, and ZX Spectrum. The game marked the relaunch of Automated Simulations - the company founded by Jon Freeman and Jim Conelley - into Epyx.
Summer Games was highly advanced for its time, and it was probably one of the first games to use the real power of the Commodore 64. Despite not having the official license of the Olympic Games, the game looked almost like a licensed game. The sports simulated include 4x400 meter relay, 100-meter dash, platform diving, freestyle swimming, skeet shooting, rowing, and gymnastics. The disciplines were developed by a different team of programmers, as seen in the game credits. The game was followed by Winter Games some months later.
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Author: GN Team - Published: 21 August 2020, 11:31 am
Jetstrike is an arcade shooter created by Shadow Software and published in 1994 by Rasputin for the Amiga and Amiga CD32.
The authors of the game - Aaron and Adam Fothergill - had worked on another similar game for the Atari ST, called SkyStrike, developed in STOS (a language for developing videogames). Jetstrike is like an enhanced version of their previous title, but in this case, it was made for the Amiga and created in AMOS, the Amiga version of STOS.
The title is clearly inspired by Brøderbund's Wings of Fury, but as many reviewers have noticed, the amount of features of Jetstrike is much more abundant. The game allows you to pilot 32 aircraft, including many jets and even helicopters. Game modes include Training, Practice, Combat, and for two players, Aerolympics.
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