''Zzap!64'' was a computer games magazine covering games on the
Commodore International
Commodore International (other names include Commodore International Limited) was an American home computer and electronics manufacturer founded by Jack Tramiel. Commodore International (CI), along with its subsidiary Commodore Business Mach ...
series of computers, especially the
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...
(C64). It was published in the UK by
Newsfield Publications Ltd
Newsfield Publications Ltd (also known as Newsfield) was a British magazine publisher during the 1980s and early 1990s.
Newsfield Publications Ltd was founded by Roger Kean, Franco Frey and Oliver Frey in 1983. Based in Ludlow, Shropshire, News ...
and later by
Europress Impact
Europress was a British magazine and software publisher based in Adlington, near Macclesfield, Cheshire. Their magazine publishing business was previously known as Database Publications. The software division was renamed in 1999 to Actualize.
His ...
.
The magazine launched in April, with the cover date May 1985,
as the sister magazine to ''
CRASH
Crash or CRASH may refer to:
Common meanings
* Collision, an impact between two or more objects
* Crash (computing), a condition where a program ceases to respond
* Cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating
* Couch su ...
''. It focused on the C64 for much of its shelf life, but later incorporated
Amiga
Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...
game news and reviews. Like ''CRASH'' 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 ...
, it had a dedicated cult following amongst C64 owners and was well known for its irreverent sense of humour as well as its extensive, detailed coverage of the C64 scene. The magazine adopted an innovative review system that involved the use of the reviewers' faces, artistically rendered by in-house artists
Oli Frey
Oliver Frey (; 30 June 1948 – 21 August 2022) was a Swiss artist, who was based in the United Kingdom. He was known for his book and magazine illustrations, especially for British computer magazines of the 1980s. Under the pen name Zack, he b ...
and Mark Kendrick, to express their reaction to the games.
These eventually evolved into static cartoons as the magazine began catering for a younger market.
By 1992, the magazine had changed so dramatically in design and editorial direction that then-publisher Europress decided to relaunch the magazine. Thus, issue 91 of ''Zzap!64'' became issue 1 of ''
Commodore Force {{Infobox magazine,
, based = Ludlow, Shropshire
, editor = Steve Shields James Price
, image_file = File:Commodore_Force_Issue_12_November_1993_Issue_Cover.jpg
, image_caption = November 1993 cover
, frequency = Mon ...
'', a magazine that itself lasted until March 1994.
History
The first issue of ''Zzap!64'', dated May 1985, was released on 11 April 1985. Its inaugural editorial team included editor
Chris Anderson Chris Anderson may refer to:
Sports
* Chris Anderson (baseball) (born 1992), American baseball player
* Chris Anderson (cheese roller), 22-time winner of annual cheese rolling
* Chris Anderson (footballer, born 1925) (1925–1986), Scottish footb ...
, Software Editor Bob Wade, freelance writer Steve Cooke (who joined the staff from the recently folded ''
Personal Computer Games
''Personal Computer Games'' was a multi-format UK computer games magazine of the early/mid-1980s published by VNU.
History
''Personal Computer Games'' was launched in July 1983.
The magazine was part of VNU and had its headquarters in London ...
''), and reviewers
Gary Penn
Gary Penn is a former British games reviewer who wrote for Zzap!64 in the 1980s and is a video game industry veteran. He later was editor of The One from 1988 to 1990 and was Creative Director at DMA Design where he supervised the release of the ...
and
Julian Rignall
Julian "Jaz" Rignall (born 6 March 1965, London, England) is a writer and editor. He has also produced content for corporate websites such as GamePro Media, publisher of ''GamePro'' magazine and ''GamePro.com'', marketing collateral and adverti ...
, who won their jobs after having placed as finalists at a video game competition. The editorial headquarters was in
Yeovil
Yeovil ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the district of South Somerset, England. The population of Yeovil at the last census (2011) was 45,784. More recent estimates show a population of 48,564. It is close to Somer ...
, more than 120 miles from Newsfield's headquarters in
Ludlow
Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The t ...
; the team was relocated to Ludlow after three months to cut costs, and Anderson and Wade left the staff after declining to make the move. Anderson would later found
Future Publishing
Future plc is an international multimedia company established in the United Kingdom in 1985. The company has over 220 brands that span magazines, newsletters, websites, and events in fields such as video games, technology, films, music, photogr ...
and the
TED Conference
TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "ideas worth spreading". TED was founded by Richard Sau ...
.
As the Amiga gained popularity in the UK, ''Zzap!64'' began to publish occasional reviews of Amiga games. The Amiga coverage became a fixed feature of the magazine in issue 43 (November 1988),
when the title was renamed to ''Zzap!64 Amiga''.
The magazine experienced controversy in 1989, when three out of four reviewers (Gordon Houghton, Kati Hamza and Maff Evans) were fired and replaced during production of issue 50 (June 1989). The only one remaining, Paul Rand, had been employed at ''Zzap!64'' a mere two months. Issue 50's editorial mentioned nothing of what happened,
and the issue featured content from the three fired reviewers without discussing their fates.
Issue 74 (June 1991) saw the dropping of all Amiga coverage (the word "Amiga" was dropped from the name in 1990), and the magazine became completely devoted to the C64 once more.
Four months later the publisher Newsfield declared bankruptcy and publication was suspended for a month. Europress Impact (a satellite company of Europress launched by Roger Kean, Oliver Frey and Jonathan Rignall) became the new publisher of ''Zzap!64'', beginning with issue 79 (December 1991).
Issue 90 (November 1992) was the last official ''Zzap!64'' issue. From the following month, the magazine was replaced by ''Commodore Force''.
In Italy
The Italian edition (just titled ''Zzap!''), authorised by the original publisher, was not limited to Commodore 64 games, but it also reviewed games for other 8-bit machines like 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 ...
,
MSX,
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC (short for ''Colour Personal Computer'') is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sin ...
and the
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE, ...
. Around 80% of the content was translated with the remainder written in Italy.
From issue 1 (May 1986) to issue 73 (December 1992) it was released as an actual magazine; with issue 74 (January 1993) it became an inset of
the Italian version of The Games Machine until December 1993 when it stopped being published.
From 1996 to 1999, ''Zzap!'' became an online magazine, a PC gaming website with a different "cover" each month and a mailbag, which reviewed games with the same style of the original magazine.
In 2002, a special "issue 85", dedicated to then recently released games for 8-bit machines, was released in PDF format.
In 2021, the ''Airons'' cultural association in
Vigevano
Vigevano (; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Avgevan) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Pavia, Lombardy in northern Italy. A historic art town, it is also renowned for shoemaking and is one of the main centres of Lomellina, a rice-growing ...
resumed the publication of a new ''Zzap!'' magazine, founded by a group of former editors. The magazine is published aperiodically and only sent via mail to the members; it focuses on retrogaming and new games for 8- and 16-bit systems, still made by enthusiasts and small independent software houses.
Commemorative issues
In March 2002, a special "Issue 107" of ''Zzap!64'' was published digitally in
PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
format, later receiving a limited print run of 200 copies. Originally intended as a fan project based on a suggestion by journalist Cameron Davis in a ''Zzap!64'' discussion forum, a number of ex-Newsfield writers later volunteered to join the project, including former editors Gordon Houghton, Robin Hogg and
Paul Glancey
Paul Glancey is a video game producer and former journalist in the United Kingdom. He made his first steps into the videogame industry as a writer with ''Zzap!64'' and '' CVG'' before contributing a few reviews to ''Mean Machines'' ('' Wrestle ...
.
The special issue reflected the C64's continuing popularity in the 21st Century as a platform for retro gamers and hobbyists, with the majority of reviews focusing on recently released C64 games. The magazine's design was based on "classic era" ''Zzap!64'', and the front cover was based on an illustration by former Newsfield artist Oli Frey, significantly revised by designer Craig Grannell.
Another special issue of ''Zzap!64'' was created in July 2005 to celebrate the magazine's twentieth anniversary. Dubbed ''The Def Tribute to Zzap!64'', it was professionally printed and given away with issue 18 of ''
Retro Gamer
''Retro Gamer'' is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, ''Retro Gamer'' soon became ...
'' magazine. Although more celebratory and retrospective in design than issue 107, it nevertheless featured a great deal of new content, including a foreword and articles by former Newsfield director and ''Zzap!64'' editor Roger Kean and new material from former editors Gary Penn and Chris Anderson. The front cover and centerfold featured rare illustrations by Oli Frey from his pre-Newsfield days.
Staff
*
Chris Anderson Chris Anderson may refer to:
Sports
* Chris Anderson (baseball) (born 1992), American baseball player
* Chris Anderson (cheese roller), 22-time winner of annual cheese rolling
* Chris Anderson (footballer, born 1925) (1925–1986), Scottish footb ...
*Bob Wade
*Roger Kean
*
Gary Penn
Gary Penn is a former British games reviewer who wrote for Zzap!64 in the 1980s and is a video game industry veteran. He later was editor of The One from 1988 to 1990 and was Creative Director at DMA Design where he supervised the release of the ...
*
Julian Rignall
Julian "Jaz" Rignall (born 6 March 1965, London, England) is a writer and editor. He has also produced content for corporate websites such as GamePro Media, publisher of ''GamePro'' magazine and ''GamePro.com'', marketing collateral and adverti ...
*
Gary Liddon
Rockstar Dundee Limited (formerly Ruffian Games Limited) is a British video game developer and a studio of Rockstar Games based in Dundee. The studio is best known for developing ''Crackdown 2''.
Gary Liddon, Billy Thomson, and Gareth Noyce ...
*Sean Masterson
*
Steve Jarratt
Steve Jarratt is a long-time videogames journalist and magazine editor. He has launched a large number of magazines for Future Publishing, many of which are still published. Magazines he has worked for include:
*''Zzap!64'': Reviewer and assistan ...
*Dan Gilbert
*
Paul Glancey
Paul Glancey is a video game producer and former journalist in the United Kingdom. He made his first steps into the videogame industry as a writer with ''Zzap!64'' and '' CVG'' before contributing a few reviews to ''Mean Machines'' ('' Wrestle ...
*Matthew "Maff" Evans
*Kati Hamza
*Robin Hogg
*Mark Caswell
*Carl Rowley
*Gordon Houghton
*Ciarán Brennan
*Richard Eddy
*Lucy Hickman
*Stuart Wynne
*"Footy" Phil King
*Steve Shields
*Dominic Handy (aka Paul Sumner)
*Warren Lapworth
*Paul Rand
*Nik Wild
*Massimo Valducci
Columnists
*
Jeff Minter
Jeff Minter (born 22 April 1962) is an independent 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 19 ...
- He left early, disagreeing about the bad review of his game ''Mama Llama'' but returned to write a diary of the production of Iridis Alpha.
*
Andrew Braybrook
Andrew Braybrook (born 1960) is a software engineer and former game programmer. He created video games such as ''Paradroid'', ''Gribbly's Day Out'', '' Fire and Ice'', ''Uridium'' and ''Morpheus''. He also programmed the Commodore Amiga and Atar ...
- Wrote diaries on the production of his games
Paradroid
''Paradroid'' is a Commodore 64 computer game written by Andrew Braybrook and published by Hewson Consultants in 1985. It is a shoot 'em up with puzzle elements and was critically praised at release. The objective is to clear a fleet of spaceships ...
and ''
Morpheus
Morpheus ('Fashioner', derived from the grc, μορφή meaning 'form, shape') is a god associated with sleep and dreams. In Ovid's ''Metamorphoses'' he is the son of Somnus and appears in dreams in human form. From the Middle Ages, the name b ...
'', titled ''Mental Procreation''
*Martin Walker - following suit for his game ''
Citadel
A citadel is the core fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of "city", meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core.
In ...
'', titled ''Walker's Way''
*
Apex Computer Productions
Apex Computer Productions was the brothers John Rowlands (programmer), John and Steve Rowlands, United Kingdom, British based game designers and programmers on the Commodore 64 in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
They programmed in pure assembly la ...
- the Rowlands Brothers, John & Steve, doing the same for their game ''
Creatures''
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Archived Zzap!64 magazines on the
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
{{Commodore 8-bit computer magazines
1985 establishments in the United Kingdom
1992 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
Commodore 8-bit computer magazines
Defunct computer magazines published in the United Kingdom
Magazines disestablished in 1992
Magazines established in 1985
Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom
Video game magazines published in the United Kingdom