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GTW64 May 2023 updates

Last updated: by fgasking

OK, so not as big an update as last month, but still a sizable one none-the-less, and with two very important additions. A total of 14 completely new entries too to further increase the size of the C64 archive, along with 11 updates overall and two very special findings! Many of the new entries are for titles which may well be out there, just not yet preserved. Can you help us find them?

Total Recall V1 and Wreckers recovered!

recall large

The big news of the month was the recovery of both the long lost first version of Total Recall from Active Minds (missing for 33 years), and a surprise start of a conversion of Wreckers by Denton Designs. Download both for yourself!

Total Recall V1 and Wreckers

This is then accompanied by the following updates on the site:

14 new entries added

Blood Bath at Orc’s Drift, Intellectual Software titles, Island Software titles, JMH Software titles, Micro-Ed, Inc titles, Micrograms, Inc titles, Microphys Programs Inc titles, Moses Engineering titles, Quality Input, Inc titles, Resource Software International titles, Right on Programs titles, Teacher’s Pet Software titles, The Enemy Within, The War of the Worlds

11 updates added

Arsenal FC, Battlecars, Boston Educational Computing, Inc titles, Cyberdyne Warrior Intro, Judge Death, Krell Software, Pharaoh’s Pyramid, R.I.S.K! V1, Rastan V1, Runestone, The War of the Worlds

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Wreckers C64 recovered!

Last updated: by fgasking

Considered vapourware, Denton Design’s Wreckers for the Commodore 64 has been recovered in its final build state.

wreckers large
Before you get too excited, sadly the game was only in development for a very short period of time – and essentially what we have is a tech demo showing a navigable game map. There are no playable elements and there is limited map collisions.

Though considering that just a year ago we were doubtful that a C64 conversion ever existed, this is a lovely surprise.

Check it out at: https://www.gamesthatwerent.com/gtw64/wreckers/

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Extractors: The Hanging Worlds of Zarg

Last updated: by fgasking

1995 Millennium

Platform: Commodore Amiga CD32

Also known as: Diggers 2

It is perhaps unsurprising that a game as ground breaking as Lemmings would inspire a series of other inventive puzzlers, which seem to share some DNA in places. Diggers was one such title, where you control a mining team trying to get precious minerals.

Extractors1

Scoring well with magazines at the time, it comes as no surprise that a sequel was put into motion. The same developer, Toby Simpson would get to work once again to try and improve on his original success.

Many issues that were found with the original were set to be resolved for the sequel on the Amiga CD32, including have more reigned in level map sizes, so that most users would get to appreciate most of the game. There would also be better defined goals as well. Continue reading →

Posted in: Amiga CD32, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Sherlock Holmes in Under the Boardwalk

Last updated: by fgasking

1985 Bantam Software

Platforms: Apple II, PCjr and potentially Commodore 64 (TBC)

Planned as a sequel to Sherlock Holmes: Another Bow, which was released by Bantam Software in 1984 on a variety of 8-bit platforms. Sadly it was never to be.

In an interview with Scott Stilphen, artist Michael Becker revealed that the sequel was using the same engine as the original game, and featured Al Capone, Babe Ruth, and the mob as Sherlock visited Atlantic City in the 1930s and solved some crimes whilst in his 70s.

sherlock underboardwalk shot2

Mark Hardisty spoke with Peter Golden in issue 11 of Classic Adventurer, where Peter recalled having completed his work on the title, though Bantam would leave the market before it could be fully released to the world. Continue reading →

Posted in: Apple II, PC, Reviews | Tagged: | 1 Comment

GTW64 April 2023 updates

Last updated: by fgasking

A much larger update this month, as there was a lot of corrections and fixes done to some old posts, but we also have 7 completely new entries too to further increase the size of the C64 archive. Won’t be long until we hit 3000!

BoringHour

New entries include details of a City Connection conversion, a great looking and recent Ghostbusters tribute, a cool looking wresting game, an abandoned graphic text adventure, two missing games that could well be out there and a post on an early Pac-Man clone by Andrew Trott. Enjoy!

7 new entries added

City Connection, Code 3, Ghostbusters 2021, Nedime – The Caliph’s Daughter, Terragon, The Boring Hour, Unnamed Pac-Man clone

50 updates added

64 Tape Computing – Issue 14, Babylon, Ballisation, Bird Mother V1, Black Gold 2, Bobby Charlton Soccer, Bombzone, Buffalo Roundup V1, Butch – Hard Guy, CDU Games Disks, Danger! High Voltage, Dimension X, Drugbird, Dynaboys, Egy kis kiruccanás, Enforcer 2, Evil Garden, Fire & Forget, Flight Deck 2, Furry Knibble Girls 2, Gargantuan, Go Ape!, Hard Fire, Immensity, Imperium, Italian pirated games, Jumpy64, La Venganza del Toro, Mortal Kombat 2, Mythos, Panic Button, Proxima, Quark, Quark IX, Rex Hard, Sabian Island, Sankara Stone, Single Extreme Freedom, Squad One, Star of Africa, Sunburst Communications titles, Super C, Tank Battle Simulator, The Brainies, The Seven Gates Of Jambala, The Sixth Sense, The War of the Dragon, Toi Acid Game, Vietnam Gunboat, Xenodrome

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Harry

Last updated: by fgasking

1984 Christopher Hester

Platform: ZX Spectrum 48k

Can you help Harry complete the five screens and escape? He must clear up the potions whilst avoiding the nasties, in order to gather strength for the next screen and to be able to survive long enough to get to the door out.

harry shot1

Well, that was the introduction set out by creator Chris Hester back in 1984, when building up ideas for a new game in his ideas book for the ZX Spectrum. Heavily inspired by Manic Miner, Chris set to work putting together his design, printing off screens using his thermal printer. Continue reading →

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Jumbly 2

Last updated: by fgasking

1984 DK’Tronics

Platform: ZX Spectrum 48k

Don Priestley created some of the most memorable 8-bit games of all time, thanks to his trademark large cartoon graphics within games. I lost many hours playing the likes of The Trap Door on the C64, which felt like I was controlling an actual cartoon.

One of Don’s early titles was a puzzler called Jumbly, a picture puzzle game, where you had to shuffle blocks into the correct order. It is very similar in many ways to Split Personalities by Domark which came out a little while later. Continue reading →

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Hexuma 2: Dawn of the Cave World

Last updated: by fgasking

1993 Software 2000

Platform: Commodore Amiga

A short entry for a graphic text adventure sequel for the Commodore Amiga, and due for release by Software 2000 in 1993.

Hexuma: Das Auge Des Kal was released to some positive reviews, and already by the time of its release – a sequel was already in the works according to the press – with Harald Evers busy working on it.

According to Aktueller Software Markt, the game was being developed in secrecy, though was revealed to be set within a subterranean world so big that you can fly around it on a dragon’s back. Continue reading →

Posted in: Amiga, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment