#mastertronic's added dimension | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

zerohour1974 · 4 years

Text

Day 9 : Top 5 Commodore 64 games

Hello ladies and gentlemen to Day 9 of the January daily blog challenge. Now if you have read any of my previous blogs at any point you may know that me and the Commodore 64 have never been the best of friends.

If you have not read any previous entries long story short. I had three C64C machines and not one of them lasted beyond a week before black screen failing and that was the end of that.

So with that in mind my experience of Commodore 64 games is limited as I actively avoided the machine for many years after and even now I keep the emulation of the machine to a minimum.

So here is my top 5 Commodore 64 games. I'm sure many will recommend me half a million other games to try and like any of these lists this is my own personal choice and if you prefer some other game then more power to you.

5. Hunters Moon

Now this is a Thalamus game released in 1987. Now I have said that I'm not great at shoot em ups, but this is a shoot em up with a twist.

You must shoot your way out of the various loops created by the various worker cells and collect the star cells to complete that part of the system. Each zone is made of various system points complete the full set and you move onto the next set in the system.

There is a grand total of 128 levels split up among 32 star systems. Some will find the game frustrating but you can change things like your engine which is needed for some systems so its not all about how quick you can shoot.

The music from Matt Gray is also really good.

4. Knight Tyme

Released on the Mastertronic Added Dimension (MAD) label in 1986.

If you read my games I have completed blog. Then you will know that Knight Tyme is one of those on the list. So it goes without saying that I have played the Commodore 64 version as well as the two Spectrum ones.

It plays exactly the same as the 48K Spectrum version and in fact the graphics from it are virtually identical. The only main difference is you start with a walkman which if worn plays music.

The music is by David Whittaker and is quite good. I have to admit...

3. Kikstart 2

Released by Mastertronic in 1986. This was the first game I ever bought for the C64 and what an amazing game it truly was. Created by Shaun Southern. It is a racing game using motorbikes.

Would like to say from the BBC series of the same name but obviously can't confirm that. Basically its a split screen racing game in which 1 or 2 players can traverse your way across various courses.

Obstacles include jumps, bricks, tyres, phone boxes and much more. What makes Kikstart II fun also is its course designer. So when you get tired of playing the preset levels. You can actually open the course designer and make your own.

Hours of fun guaranteed. Music here once again by David Whittaker but this one gets annoying after a while.

2. Uridium

Hewson released this in 1986.

Uridium is a fast paced side scrolling shoot em up. You have to work your way along through the various metal element named dreadnaughts avoiding various large obstacles, various incoming alien craft and also the nightmarish homing mines if you wait around in an area too long.

This is an amazing game and I can only commend Andrew Braybrook for such a fun game.

The follow up Uridium Plus was more of the dreadnaughts just much more difficult and equally as much fun.

1. Boulder Dash

Released by First Star Software in 1984.

Boulder Dash is probably my most favourite game of all time and the C64 version is probably considered one of the best versions of the game.

Boulder Dash is a 2D puzzle gamne where you have to run around and collect the diamonds and avoid being killed by boulders. Obviously it starts off pretty simple but later you get things like fireflies and butterflies.

The fireflies chase you around but can be killed by rocks or amoeba which appears in later levels. The butterflies however when you drop rocks on them turn into diamonds so later levels you have to learn how to use that to your advantage without getting killed.

I admit at one point I used to be able to get from A to J without losing a single life but that was a long time ago. Now I am lucky if I can get through the from A - F without dying.

Absolute classic and if you have not tried it.. You really should.

Once the Boulder Dash Construction Kit came out. It spurred hundreds of custom versions of BoulderDash for the C64. Which range from fun to the most devious and difficult levels you will ever play.

If you don't own a C64 or want to run it via emulation. Thenn I can heavily recommend you try GDash which is available for, Windows and Linux.

#day 9 #daily blog challenge #commodore 64

0 notes