The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
- PeteProdge
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The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
Right then, this is not the proper poll - not just yet. There have been 190 re-released full price games on the YS/Crash/SU covertapes, but phpBB polls can only run to a maximum of 127 options. I need to do some elimination, so, from 26th May to 2nd Jun, I'm presenting all these games in two simultaneous polls - splitting them in half, alphabetically
Here are half of the games from the later part of the alphabet (K-Z) - 95 of them!
You have up to five votes. Use these votes to indicate GAMES YOU LIKE. The aim is to reduce the list of 190 games to 127 (or fewer), by taking out the vote-less games (or, if necessary, the ones with lowest votes), then on Sun 2nd Jun, we run the whole poll on that shortened list. Hope that makes sense!
There is a LOT to get through and it's taken me hours to compile the links and screenshots. Pick carefully!
(The shortlisting poll for the #/A-J games is here)
Karyssia: Queen Of Diamonds by Incentive
Kat Trap by Streetwise
Knight Driver by Hewson
Knightmare by Activision
Krakout by Gremlin
Legend Of Apache Gold, The by Incentive
Light Corridor, The by Infogrames
Lightforce by Faster Than Light
Lone Wolf - The Mirror Of Death by Audiogenic
Lords Of Midnight, The by Beyond
Mach 3 by Loriciels
Mailstrom by Ocean
Mantronix by Probe Software
Marsport by Gargoyle Games
Maze Mania by Hewson
Mean Streak by Mirrorsoft
Metabolis by Gremlin
Micronaut One by Nexus Productions
Mined-Out by Quicksilva
Mission Omega by Mind Games
Moon Cresta by Incentive Software
Moonlight Madness by Bubble Bus
Mountains Of Ket by Incentive
Movie by Imagine
Mutants by Ocean
N.E.X.O.R. by Design Design
N.O.M.A.D. by Ocean
Nigel Mansell's Grand Prix by Martech Games
Nightmare Rally by Ocean
Ninja Hamster by CRL Group
On The Run by Design Design
Orbix The Terrorball by Streetwise
Phantom Club by Ocean
Pi-R Squared by Mind Games
Piggy Tales (AKA Oink!) by CRL
Pogo by Ocean
Pool by CDS Microsystems
Premier League by E&J Software
Quazatron by Hewson
Quest Adventure by Hewson
Rampage by Activision
Rebel by Virgin Games
Return Of The Things by Design Design
Revolution by US Gold
Robot Messiah by Alphabatim
Roller Coaster by Elite
Rommel's Revenge by Crystal Computing
Rygar by US Gold
Sam Stoat Safebreaker by Gremlin
Samurai by CRL
Scuba Dive by Durell
Shockway Rider by Faster Than Light
Side Arms by Go!
Silent Shadow by Topo Soft
Solomon's Key by US Gold
Sophistry by CRL
Southern Belle by Hewson
Spectral Panic by Hewson
Spindizzy by Electric Dreams
Split Personalities by Domark
Spy vs Spy II: The Island Caper by Databyte
Spy vs Spy III: Arctic Antics by Databyte
Spy vs Spy by Beyond Software
Star Raiders II by Electric Dreams
Stardust by Topo Soft
Super Soccer by Imagine
Super Sprint by Electric Dreams
Survivor by Topo Soft
Sweevo's World by Gargoyle Games
T.L.L. by Vortex Software
Tai-Pan by Ocean
Tank by Ocean
Tau Ceti by CRL
Technician Ted by Hewson
Tempest by Electric Dreams
Temple Of Terror by US Gold
Temple Of Vran by Incentive
Terra Cresta by Imagine
Terror Of The Deep by Mirrorsoft
Test Cricket by Bug-Byte
Tir Na Nog by Gargoyle Games
Total Eclipse 2: Spinx Jinx, The by Incentive
Tour de Force by Gremlin
Trantor: The Last Stormtrooper by Go!
Very Big Cave Adventure, The by St Bride's/CRL
Virus by Firebird
Wanted: Monty Mole by Gremlin
Warlord by Interceptor Software
Winter Wonderland by Incentive
Wizard Warz by Go!
Wizard's Lair by Bubble Bus
Wonderboy by Activision
Xeno by A'n'F Software
Z-Man by DJL Software
Zythum by Mirrorsoft
Here are half of the games from the later part of the alphabet (K-Z) - 95 of them!
You have up to five votes. Use these votes to indicate GAMES YOU LIKE. The aim is to reduce the list of 190 games to 127 (or fewer), by taking out the vote-less games (or, if necessary, the ones with lowest votes), then on Sun 2nd Jun, we run the whole poll on that shortened list. Hope that makes sense!
There is a LOT to get through and it's taken me hours to compile the links and screenshots. Pick carefully!
(The shortlisting poll for the #/A-J games is here)
Karyssia: Queen Of Diamonds by Incentive
Kat Trap by Streetwise
Knight Driver by Hewson
Knightmare by Activision
Krakout by Gremlin
Legend Of Apache Gold, The by Incentive
Light Corridor, The by Infogrames
Lightforce by Faster Than Light
Lone Wolf - The Mirror Of Death by Audiogenic
Lords Of Midnight, The by Beyond
Mach 3 by Loriciels
Mailstrom by Ocean
Mantronix by Probe Software
Marsport by Gargoyle Games
Maze Mania by Hewson
Mean Streak by Mirrorsoft
Metabolis by Gremlin
Micronaut One by Nexus Productions
Mined-Out by Quicksilva
Mission Omega by Mind Games
Moon Cresta by Incentive Software
Moonlight Madness by Bubble Bus
Mountains Of Ket by Incentive
Movie by Imagine
Mutants by Ocean
N.E.X.O.R. by Design Design
N.O.M.A.D. by Ocean
Nigel Mansell's Grand Prix by Martech Games
Nightmare Rally by Ocean
Ninja Hamster by CRL Group
On The Run by Design Design
Orbix The Terrorball by Streetwise
Phantom Club by Ocean
Pi-R Squared by Mind Games
Piggy Tales (AKA Oink!) by CRL
Pogo by Ocean
Pool by CDS Microsystems
Premier League by E&J Software
Quazatron by Hewson
Quest Adventure by Hewson
Rampage by Activision
Rebel by Virgin Games
Return Of The Things by Design Design
Revolution by US Gold
Robot Messiah by Alphabatim
Roller Coaster by Elite
Rommel's Revenge by Crystal Computing
Rygar by US Gold
Sam Stoat Safebreaker by Gremlin
Samurai by CRL
Scuba Dive by Durell
Shockway Rider by Faster Than Light
Side Arms by Go!
Silent Shadow by Topo Soft
Solomon's Key by US Gold
Sophistry by CRL
Southern Belle by Hewson
Spectral Panic by Hewson
Spindizzy by Electric Dreams
Split Personalities by Domark
Spy vs Spy II: The Island Caper by Databyte
Spy vs Spy III: Arctic Antics by Databyte
Spy vs Spy by Beyond Software
Star Raiders II by Electric Dreams
Stardust by Topo Soft
Super Soccer by Imagine
Super Sprint by Electric Dreams
Survivor by Topo Soft
Sweevo's World by Gargoyle Games
T.L.L. by Vortex Software
Tai-Pan by Ocean
Tank by Ocean
Tau Ceti by CRL
Technician Ted by Hewson
Tempest by Electric Dreams
Temple Of Terror by US Gold
Temple Of Vran by Incentive
Terra Cresta by Imagine
Terror Of The Deep by Mirrorsoft
Test Cricket by Bug-Byte
Tir Na Nog by Gargoyle Games
Total Eclipse 2: Spinx Jinx, The by Incentive
Tour de Force by Gremlin
Trantor: The Last Stormtrooper by Go!
Very Big Cave Adventure, The by St Bride's/CRL
Virus by Firebird
Wanted: Monty Mole by Gremlin
Warlord by Interceptor Software
Winter Wonderland by Incentive
Wizard Warz by Go!
Wizard's Lair by Bubble Bus
Wonderboy by Activision
Xeno by A'n'F Software
Z-Man by DJL Software
Zythum by Mirrorsoft
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- PeteProdge
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
My personal shortlist came to eleven games, but of course, by my own rules, I can only favour five of them!
Micronaut One. One of Peter Cooke's best. He's knocked it out of the park here.
Pool. Primitive in terms of presentation, graphics and sound but works so well. I love the real life game (despite being so poor at it), this is a decent approximation of that.
Rampage. It's a really stupid coin-op that you can't truly master (cf Gauntlet), but it's just great fun destroying cities and devouring innocent civilians. I probably spent a month on this. I introduced this to a young nephew recently and he was absolutely thrilled by the premise. Also, last week I picked up a cheap second-hand Windows laptop to run MAME on and hook up arcade-style joystick consoles to, via USB. I scanned every game title on the MAME romset I had, and Rampage made the cut for the 'favorites' shortlist, it's so unashamedly daft.
Robot Messiah. I can't quite figure out why, but this arcade adventure really hooked me when I got this on the Crash Power Tape. Like a lot of Crash's covertape items, it's quite dated but carries a particular charm.
T.L.L.. I voted for Cyclone in the accompanying #-J poll, so it makes sense to pick its 'twin brother' game here. I honestly find it very hard to determine which is better, even though they do have some significant differences. Another great open world game I could spend days playing.
What didn't make the cut:
On The Run. Probably Design Design's best, with a nice bit of input from Jon Ritman. A human astronaut in a Starquake style setting.
Samurai. A linear strategy game I truly enjoyed. It's rare I say that about anything in that genre that's not authored by Julian Gollop.
Solomon's Key. Well, harking back to what I said about Rampage - my recent acquisition of a laptop purely for (almost) portable emulation had me going through MAME to make a quick and dirty 'best of arcade' list of favourites. (If you show casual gamers a complete romset, the enormity of choice - especially with so many minor variations of the same game, masses of obscurities, etc - they'll be turned off by it, so get yer 'greatest hits' in there and throw in a few personal faves to wow them over.) I was a fan of this Speccy game but hadn't really fully played the coin-op, certainly not a real physical version. I gave it a go on MAME and I really don't like it. I much prefer the Speccy version! That's bizarre, isn't it?
Southern Belle. What can I say about this slow calm game? It's certainly different and very British. I think there's a personal connection as going south on a train from Victoria is something I did a lot as a child and teenager, with a relative living near Croydon. Sometimes we'd stay with him and occasionally take a day trip over to Brighton, so I know that route.
Wizard's Lair. The better Atic Atac. Yes, I said it.
Wonder Boy. I have a huge love of the coin-op, it would be in my all-time top ten arcade games. The Speccy doesn't and can't have a version that accurately matches the gameplay, but considering the technical limitations, Activision's attempt does punch above its weight and you'd have to have a heart of stone to pour scorn over it. Sure, it might have been faster if they just kept the background fairly limited, or do what that recent homebrew Mario/Sonic-inspired weird game demo did with rapid 4-pixel chunky colour scrolling. It's great, YS scored highly for giving this away as a full tape (along with another covertape!) at Christmas.
Micronaut One. One of Peter Cooke's best. He's knocked it out of the park here.
Pool. Primitive in terms of presentation, graphics and sound but works so well. I love the real life game (despite being so poor at it), this is a decent approximation of that.
Rampage. It's a really stupid coin-op that you can't truly master (cf Gauntlet), but it's just great fun destroying cities and devouring innocent civilians. I probably spent a month on this. I introduced this to a young nephew recently and he was absolutely thrilled by the premise. Also, last week I picked up a cheap second-hand Windows laptop to run MAME on and hook up arcade-style joystick consoles to, via USB. I scanned every game title on the MAME romset I had, and Rampage made the cut for the 'favorites' shortlist, it's so unashamedly daft.
Robot Messiah. I can't quite figure out why, but this arcade adventure really hooked me when I got this on the Crash Power Tape. Like a lot of Crash's covertape items, it's quite dated but carries a particular charm.
T.L.L.. I voted for Cyclone in the accompanying #-J poll, so it makes sense to pick its 'twin brother' game here. I honestly find it very hard to determine which is better, even though they do have some significant differences. Another great open world game I could spend days playing.
What didn't make the cut:
On The Run. Probably Design Design's best, with a nice bit of input from Jon Ritman. A human astronaut in a Starquake style setting.
Samurai. A linear strategy game I truly enjoyed. It's rare I say that about anything in that genre that's not authored by Julian Gollop.
Solomon's Key. Well, harking back to what I said about Rampage - my recent acquisition of a laptop purely for (almost) portable emulation had me going through MAME to make a quick and dirty 'best of arcade' list of favourites. (If you show casual gamers a complete romset, the enormity of choice - especially with so many minor variations of the same game, masses of obscurities, etc - they'll be turned off by it, so get yer 'greatest hits' in there and throw in a few personal faves to wow them over.) I was a fan of this Speccy game but hadn't really fully played the coin-op, certainly not a real physical version. I gave it a go on MAME and I really don't like it. I much prefer the Speccy version! That's bizarre, isn't it?
Southern Belle. What can I say about this slow calm game? It's certainly different and very British. I think there's a personal connection as going south on a train from Victoria is something I did a lot as a child and teenager, with a relative living near Croydon. Sometimes we'd stay with him and occasionally take a day trip over to Brighton, so I know that route.
Wizard's Lair. The better Atic Atac. Yes, I said it.
Wonder Boy. I have a huge love of the coin-op, it would be in my all-time top ten arcade games. The Speccy doesn't and can't have a version that accurately matches the gameplay, but considering the technical limitations, Activision's attempt does punch above its weight and you'd have to have a heart of stone to pour scorn over it. Sure, it might have been faster if they just kept the background fairly limited, or do what that recent homebrew Mario/Sonic-inspired weird game demo did with rapid 4-pixel chunky colour scrolling. It's great, YS scored highly for giving this away as a full tape (along with another covertape!) at Christmas.
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
From mag tapes I remeber :
Chaos (on other topic)
Mutants
Micronaut One
Moon Cresta
I didn't vote
Wanted Monty Mole
and
Dizzy Christmas Special
They were nice but the 4 I voted impressed me more at that time.
Chaos (on other topic)
Mutants
Micronaut One
Moon Cresta
I didn't vote
Wanted Monty Mole
and
Dizzy Christmas Special
They were nice but the 4 I voted impressed me more at that time.
- ParadigmShifter
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
Only one vote for Lords of Midnight, the best game that was released on the Speccy so far?
I knew Pete would try and rig the vote so Chaos wins (even if it may never have been released as a cover tape? I dunno)!!!! Joking of course
I knew Pete would try and rig the vote so Chaos wins (even if it may never have been released as a cover tape? I dunno)!!!! Joking of course
Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
I've gone for the five following classics:
Lords of Midnight
Micronaut One
Quazatron
Tau Ceti
Tir Na Nog
If I could stretch to six, I'd probably add TLL, but I reckon that it will get enough votes from other people to see it through.
Lords of Midnight
Micronaut One
Quazatron
Tau Ceti
Tir Na Nog
If I could stretch to six, I'd probably add TLL, but I reckon that it will get enough votes from other people to see it through.
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
Solomon's Key. I spent hours on this. Platformers with a puzzle element are right up my street.
Rampage. As Pete says, just good stupid fun.
Moon Cresta. Simple but decent arcade conversion.
Pogo. Addictive Q*Bert clone.
The Light Corridor. Just after my time so I've only ever played this under emulation but it's great (if difficult)
Most of the others I either haven't spent enough time on or they're just not my cup of tea (I would love to sit down and properly read the instructions to Lords of Midnight, Quazatron etc but until I retire it's not going to happen). Honourable mentions to Roller Coaster, Split Personalities, Sweevo's World, Terra Cresta, and Wanted: Monty Mole.
Rampage. As Pete says, just good stupid fun.
Moon Cresta. Simple but decent arcade conversion.
Pogo. Addictive Q*Bert clone.
The Light Corridor. Just after my time so I've only ever played this under emulation but it's great (if difficult)
Most of the others I either haven't spent enough time on or they're just not my cup of tea (I would love to sit down and properly read the instructions to Lords of Midnight, Quazatron etc but until I retire it's not going to happen). Honourable mentions to Roller Coaster, Split Personalities, Sweevo's World, Terra Cresta, and Wanted: Monty Mole.
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
Again, a strong set to choose from. My first and second choices came from YS. The other games I already had but would have played a lot if they’d been on a cover tape.
1 Quazatron
2 Star Raiders II
3 Pi R Squared
4 Krakout
5 Split Personalities
1 Quazatron
2 Star Raiders II
3 Pi R Squared
4 Krakout
5 Split Personalities
- PeteProdge
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
One of the greatest games ever made for the Spectrum (even if I still can't get my head round it - not a hater, just confused), but your description confuses it with Chaos.ParadigmShifter wrote: ↑Sun May 26, 2024 9:23 pm Only one vote for Lords of Midnight, the best game that was released on the Speccy so far?
And yeah, your observation does expose a flaw with these kind of polls. Through loyalty, we vote for our own personal favourites, that's our default position I guess. But we can't let Lords Of Midnight slip through the cracks, that'd be insane. I recognise the love it gets, it's in every commendable top 100.
Still, I leave on the option for people to change their minds. You can 'distribute' your votes to other games if you think your chosen ones are well supported, but there's also the jeopardy that others may do the same and your big favourites might end up unsupported!
Hey, it was so good that it was released twice on covertapes! Mind you, that also applies to 10th Frame; 2112 AD; Astroclone; Cyclone; Dark Star; Doomdark's Revenge; Double Take (how apt!); Dun Darach; Dynamite Dan; Gutz; Hydrofool; Lightforce; Lords Of Midnight (see!); Marsport; Mutants; On The Run; Quest Adventure; Shockway Rider; Star Raiders II; Super Soccer; Survivor; Sweevo's World; Temple Of Terror; Tir Na Nog and Trantor: The Last Stormtrooper.ParadigmShifter wrote: ↑Sun May 26, 2024 9:23 pmI knew Pete would try and rig the vote so Chaos wins (even if it may never have been released as a cover tape? I dunno)!!!! Joking of course
Still, I think it was YS that never repeated a covertape item (unlike SU which did that quite a bit) with the exception of Chaos. That goes to show how very good it is.
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
This one's a lot tougher than the other one!
My choice cuts :
Scuba Dive : Literally and figuratively immersive, there aren't many speccy games that have this much ( figurative) atmosphere. A classic.
Split Personalities : Maybe my favourite puzzler. Great presentation, perfect interface.
Rollercoaster: There are a lot of platformers on the Spectrum, but not many like this. The speed and variety of levels make this stand out. Looks great as well.
Mission Omega : I don't think this was terribly popular, and the cover tape might have helped it find an audience. Another one dripping with atmosphere, if that makes any sense. I spent ages designing robots.
Tau Ceti : Technically this seemed amazing to me, and it's a great time as well.
My choice cuts :
Scuba Dive : Literally and figuratively immersive, there aren't many speccy games that have this much ( figurative) atmosphere. A classic.
Split Personalities : Maybe my favourite puzzler. Great presentation, perfect interface.
Rollercoaster: There are a lot of platformers on the Spectrum, but not many like this. The speed and variety of levels make this stand out. Looks great as well.
Mission Omega : I don't think this was terribly popular, and the cover tape might have helped it find an audience. Another one dripping with atmosphere, if that makes any sense. I spent ages designing robots.
Tau Ceti : Technically this seemed amazing to me, and it's a great time as well.
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Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
Voted for Lightforce, Lords Of Midnight, Movie, Rampage, Rollercoaster
Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
My five votes in this section went to:
Mined-Out, Mountains Of Ket, Movie, Shockway Rider, Wonderboy.
Mined-Out, Mountains Of Ket, Movie, Shockway Rider, Wonderboy.
Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
For this set I've decided on the bold ones, the non bold ones didn't made my cut, unfortunately.
- Solomon's Key, one of the games that I find is better on the Spectrum than the arcade or the NES version.
- Sweevo / Quazatron / MOVIE, isometric adventures
- Spindizzy / Lords of Midnight / Quazatron, this category is about exploration, probably. Or something else.
- Shockway Rider / Tir Na Nog / Lone Wolf / Marsport, Shockway Rider because it's basically the inspiration for Subway Surfers.
- Tau-Ceti, another probably classic game, even if it's too hard.
Re: The best re-released full price game on a YS/Crash/SU covertape: shortlist votes for K-Z
These got my vote:
Quazatron by Hewson
Roller Coaster by Elite
Spy vs Spy by Beyond Software
Technician Ted by Hewson
Xeno by A'n'F Software
Also rans included Scuba Dive, Solomon's Key, Split Personalities, TLL, Tau Ceti, Wanted Monty Mole, Wizard's Lair
Quazatron by Hewson
Roller Coaster by Elite
Spy vs Spy by Beyond Software
Technician Ted by Hewson
Xeno by A'n'F Software
Also rans included Scuba Dive, Solomon's Key, Split Personalities, TLL, Tau Ceti, Wanted Monty Mole, Wizard's Lair