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Styx (Spectrum Video Game)
''Styx'' is a maze shoot 'em up game published by Bug-Byte Software in 1983. It was the first ZX Spectrum game written by Matthew Smith, and the first of his three-game contract with the company. He went on to write ''Manic Miner'' in the same year. Gameplay The screen is split into three sections: a brick maze, an underwater section and a final confrontation with the Grim Reaper. The first maze section is similar to ''Wizard of Wor'' and enemy spiders regenerate when shot until the generator-a larger spider-is destroyed. In the aquatic section enemy fish reappear from the screen edge when shot. In the final stage the Grim Reaper sends energy bolts that ricochet around the screen. These can be destroyed and the Grim Reaper will not regenerate them. Shooting the Grim Reaper ends the level. The game then begins again with an increase in generated monsters. The player is armed with a laser that only shoots horizontally, although it can destroy several enemies with one shot. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Matthew Smith (games Programmer)
Matthew Smith (born 1966) is a British computer game programmer. He created the games ''Manic Miner'' and ''Jet Set Willy'' for the ZX Spectrum, released in 1983 and 1984 respectively. Smith left the games industry in 1988 and later moved to the Netherlands. He has since returned to the UK and has worked on some games as well as appearing at conventions and in documentaries. Early life Smith was born in Penge. His family moved to Wallasey when he was seven years old. Programming career 1980s He started out programming when he received a TRS-80 for Christmas in 1979. His first commercial game was a ''Galaxian'' clone for the TRS-80 called ''Delta Tau One''. He then went on to produce ''Monster Muncher'' on the VIC-20. Smith has said that he wrote Monster Muncher in 3 hours. He obtained a ZX Spectrum on loan from Bug-Byte Software Ltd. in return for a freelance contract for three games. The first of these was '' Styx'' in 1983 for which Matthew received £3,000. He wrote ' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinclair User
''Sinclair User'' was a magazine dedicated to the Sinclair Research range of home computers, most specifically the ZX Spectrum (while also occasionally covering arcade games). Initially published by ECC Publications, and later EMAP, it was published in the UK between 1982 and 1993, and was the longest running Sinclair-based magazine. The magazine contained news, game reviews, previews, tips, help guides, columns, readers' letters, and cover-mounted game demos. History In earlier years, the magazine built up personality cults around some of its "hilariously" monikered staff, including Bill "Incorruptible" Scolding, John "Disgusting" Gilbert, Chris "Lunchbreaks" Bourne, Claire "Ligger" Edgely, Richard Price (writer of the "Gordo Greatbelly" adventure tips section), and columnist Andrew Hewson (founder of Hewson Consultants software). Under David Kelly's editorial tenure, the magazine began to focus more on the gaming scene, and featured more colour graphics under designer Garet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ZX Spectrum-only Games , home computers produced by Sinclair
{{disambiguation ...
ZX may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Kamen Rider ZX (pronounced "Zed-Cross"), the tenth fictional superhero in the "Kamen Rider" franchise * ''Mega Man ZX'', a video game for the Nintendo DS * '' ZX Tunes'', remastered soundtracks of the "Mega Man ZX" game * '' Z/X'', Japanese collectible card game Businesses and brands * ZX Auto, also known as Zitsubishi, a Chinese SUV and truck manufacturer * Air Georgian (IATA airline code ZX) * Chinasat, a family of communications satellites (from the transliteration, Zhongxing) * Citroën ZX, a car model * Kawasaki Ninja series motorcycles (model designation codes ZX and ZX-R) * ZX80, ZX81 and ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as the ''ZX81 Colou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ZX Spectrum Games
This is a sortable list of games for the ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as t ... home computer. There are currently games in this incomplete list. __NOTOC__ Original run (1982–1994) Homebrew References External linksSpectrum Computing an up-to-date database of ZX Spectrum software {{Video game lists by platform ZX Spectrum games, List of ZX Spectrum ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Video Games Developed In The United Kingdom
Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving visual media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) systems which, in turn, were replaced by flat panel displays of several types. Video systems vary in display resolution, aspect ratio, refresh rate, color capabilities and other qualities. Analog and digital variants exist and can be carried on a variety of media, including radio broadcast, magnetic tape, optical discs, computer files, and network streaming. History Analog video Video technology was first developed for mechanical television systems, which were quickly replaced by cathode-ray tube (CRT) television systems, but several new technologies for video display devices have since been invented. Video was originally exclusively a live technology. Charles Ginsburg led an Ampex research team developing one of the first practical vide ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maze Games
Maze game is a video game genre description first used by journalists during the 1980s to describe any game in which the entire playing field is a maze. Quick player action is required to escape monsters, outrace an opponent, or navigate the maze within a time limit. After the release of Namco's '' Pac-Man'' in 1980, many maze games followed its conventions of completing a level by traversing all paths and a way of temporarily turning the tables on pursuers. Overhead-view maze games While the character in a maze would have a limited view, the player is able to see much or all of the maze. ''Maze chase games'' are a specific subset of the overheard perspective. They’re listed in a separate section. First-person maze games Maze chase games This subgenre is exemplified by Namco's '' Pac-Man'' (1980), where the goal is to clear a maze of dots while being pursued. ''Pac-Man'' spawned many sequels and clones which, in Japan, are often called "dot eat games". Other maze chases ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Action Video Games
An action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes a large variety of sub-genres, such as fighting games, beat 'em ups, shooter games, and platform games. Multiplayer online battle arena and some real-time strategy games are also considered action games. In an action game, the player typically controls a character often in the form of a protagonist or avatar. This player character must navigate a level, collecting objects, avoiding obstacles, and battling enemies with their natural skills as well as weapons and other tools at their disposal. At the end of a level or group of levels, the player must often defeat a boss enemy that is more challenging and often a major antagonist in the game's story. Enemy attacks and obstacles deplete the player character's health and lives, and the player receives a game over when they run out of lives. Alternatively, the player gets to the end of the g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1983 Video Games
The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the true Internet). * January 24 – Twenty-five members of the Red Brigades are sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1978 murder of Italian politician Aldo Moro. * January 25 ** High-ranking Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia. ** IRAS is launched from Vandenberg AFB, to conduct the world's first all-sky infrared survey from space. February * February 2 – Giovanni Vigliotto goes on trial on charges of polygamy involving 105 women. * February 3 – Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Fraser is granted a double dissolution of both houses of parliament, for elections on March 5, 1983. As Fraser is being granted the dissolution, Bill Hayden resigns as leader of the Australian Labor Party, and in the subsequent lea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wizard Of Wor
''Wizard of Wor'' is an arcade game released in 1980 by Midway. Up to two players fight together in a series of monster-infested mazes, clearing each maze by shooting the creatures. The game was ported to the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64, Atari 2600, and Atari 5200 and renamed to ''The Incredible Wizard'' for the Bally Astrocade. The original cartridge came with a cash prize offer to the first person to complete the game. Gameplay The players' characters, called Worriors, must kill all the monsters by shooting them. Player one has yellow Worriors, on the right, and player two has blue Worriors, on the left. In a two-player game, the players are also able to shoot each other's Worriors, earning bonus points and causing the other player to lose a life. Team-oriented players can successfully advance through the game by standing back-to-back (such as in a corner) and firing at anything that comes at them. Each dungeon consists of a single-screen rectangular grid with walls ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bug-Byte
Bug-Byte Software Ltd. was a video game company founded in 1980 by Tony Baden and Tony Milner, two Oxford chemistry graduates. It was one of the first to develop a range of 8-bit computer games during the early 1980s, for Sinclair, Commodore and other home computer brands, particularly for the Spectrum. Among the better known titles are ''Manic Miner'' and '' Twin Kingdom Valley''. The company was based in Mulberry House, Canning Place, Liverpool, England, and helped found a number of software houses in that region. In 1983, programmer Eugene Evans and two of the senior staff left to form Imagine Software. Later in the year Matthew Smith, a freelance developer who wrote ''Manic Miner'', left to join Software Projects. In June 1985, after a difficult trading season and a shake-out in the industry, the company went into voluntary liquidation, and the rights to their name and logo were purchased by Argus Press PLC. Argus continued to release both new games and budget versions of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
