Popular games for platform Sinclair ZX81
A maze game made by Jeff Minter from Llamasoft. The maze was a cube, and you could go through holes in the floor and ceiling as well as left and right
Never did like office parties... Christmas eve, and the staff at Macrobiology Industries Limited were having the usual office party, with all the usual hi-jinx and tears, but something very unusual was happening in the biohazard containment fridge. The predicted pandemic had never occurred, and so the fridge was full of unused swine-flu vaccines, but that night it jostled for space with the secretary's cucumber sandwiches and the boss's - sorry, not his, a friends - Viagra supply, all stored there for safe keeping until the party really got started. But the disco lights overloaded the generator, the fuses blew, the fridge shut off, and the staff all went their separate ways home to sleep off the excesses. January 2nd, happy new year! The security guard, first on site that morning, was slowly working his way around the offices and labs, tripping the fuse boxes back to life. He shook his head, bemused by the broken hinges on the doors, but the smashed containment fridge, and mucus-like stains on the walls and floor scared him enough to grab his SHARPS pistol, as strange things moved just out of sight...
Game based on the notes of the Graf Spee expedition to South Atlantic Ocean.
In this surreal platformer, released in 1985 for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum, you have been transformed into a bird, and must fight to save the human race from the invading Kremins by exploring an expansive world and collecting useful items.
During the American Gold Rush you are digging for gold. While excavating gold you must be aware of giant rats and a vicious Gremlin which comes to infest the mine. Snakes can be used to eat the rats. This a 16K program which uses "high-resolution"graphics.
Tournament Tennis is an early tennis game featuring or even creating many conventions that would become standard features in later tennis simulations. Matches can be played at quarter-final, semi-final or final level - winning at one level automatically moves the player to the next one. They can last for 3 or 5 sets, with a player requiring a 2-game lead to win a set, though a tie-break comes in at 6–6 in all but the final set.
Bank Robber is a variant of Commodore's Money Wars. The player controls a man who has to move money from the bank to his home. The bank is located on the left side of the screen while the home is located on the right side. The buildings can however only be entered when their doors are opened. From the sky, meteorites are falling and the player has to avoid being hit by these while moving across the screen. Getting hit means a life is lost. Other things falling from the sky are pills that give an extra life when eaten and bricks that when caught builds or repairs one of three protection buildings (similar to the shields in Space Invaders). At the end of the game the player gets a ranking depending on the amount of cash that has been collected.
After failure on your last mission and recovering in hospital growing a new arm and leg, you have had time to find and study the base of the Cosmic Guerillas, the Black Star. The location is a huge industrial complex on an asteroid and when you have fully recovered you are going to attempt to destroy it. Now fully recovered and your Svelgian Raider craft rebuilt and modified you are flying over the base looking for the valley containing the energy ducts. After one run you prepare yourself to fly down the valley again and finally destroy the base. The game is a 1st person shooter where you fly down the valley and using your sight drop bombs on the energy ducts that you pass. You can speed up or slow down your craft and you are able to move your sight left or right. Below your sight is a small radar and this shows any ships flying behind you. On the sides of the main playing area you can see a timer counting down, amount of bombs, fuel levels, power, speed and score. The faster you travel the more power and fuel you use.
Bumper 7 is a collection of seven games and programs which includes: Repeat 20: Based on Simon but instead of colours you get numbers. The computer gives you a sequence of four numbers which you then copy. If correct then the computer will add a number on to the sequence for you to guess. Ski Slalom: You must control a H and move it left or right to go in between gates that move up the screen. Paper Stone & Knife: Based on the game Rock, Paper, Scissors, you must decide whether to use Paper, Stone or Knife to beat the computer's choice. Paper beats Stone, Stone beats Knife and Knife beats Paper. Snowflake: You must catch snowflakes that fall down the screen. Patterns: This a program that lets you watch patterns appear on the screen. Banco: Based on the card game Punto Banco and the idea is to get the nearest to nine. Sketch: A program that allows you to draw shapes and pictures with a cursor.
Byter is a Pac-Man clone. You control a mouse, moving about a maze and attempting to eat all the dots while avoiding monsters. If you touch a monster then you lose one of three lives but if you collect one of four dollar signs then you can eat the monsters for a short time.
Airline is an economic strategy game, with the player taking the role of a Chairman for L-AIR, an air company whose business starts off with £3 million. He has 7 years to increase his net assets to £30 million. The player can charter, buy or sell aircraft, as well as managing staffing, maintenance and insurance. Situations in game (like hijacks, air crashes and sabotage) and costs (of fuel and aircrafts, tax demands etc.) are realistic. The graphics are simplified, made up almost entirely of tables and texts.
Galaxians & Gloops is a double game pack that contains: Galaxians: Based on the arcade game, you control a craft at the bottom of the screen, moving left or right, blasting alien ships in formation above firing missiles at you. As you blast the aliens, some aliens will swoop down firing missiles as well. If you are hit by an alien or its missiles then you lose one of three lives. Before the game you have a number of options that can be selected and they are speed (0-9), firing rate (0-9) and how many swoop at one time (0-9). Gloops: A Pac-Man clone that has you moving about a maze eating all the dots to clear the maze. As you eat the dots, Gloops move around the maze as well and if you touch one then you lose one of three lives. There are power-pills and if you eat one then you can eat the Gloops for a short time. Before the game you have two options that can be selected and they are speed (0-9) and a choice of ten mazes.
Fantasy Games is a double games pack containing the following adventure games: Perilous Swamp: Deep in a Perilous Swamp, your quest is to find and rescue a Princess held captive by an evil Wizard before escaping out of the swamp. You are presented with a map of your surroundings and text tells you any objects you can see. As you move around the swamp you will encounter various creatures who you can fight, run from or bribe (if you have enough treasure). If you choose to fight then you decide how many combat strength points to use. Spells can be found and used to help you on your quest. Sorcerer's Island: Similar to Perilous Swamp, this time you are on an island and you must attempt to leave it. One difference is you can encounter people like the King of the Dwarves and the Grand Sorcerer himself to help you.
Raider is a Scramble clone that has you flying over the surface of a planet before flying through a cavern bombing the installations and missile dumps. As you fly, missiles and aliens will fly towards you and you can either bomb them or use your laser. You are able to move your craft up or down, and left or right to avoid the missiles and aliens as well. If you hit a missile, alien or the planet's surface then you lose one of three lives. A fuel gauge decreases as you fly but you can increase it by bombing fuel dumps.
Early ZX81 game.
A text adventure game where the player controls a spy shot down while investigating an enemy stronghold.
Pac Man clone.
An unofficial port of Atari's Centipede made by Jeff Minter in the early years of Llamasoft.
Alerta Vermelho is a game where you need attack the enemy planet using the lasers and bombs you have and, at the same time, defend yourself.
Gunfight is an unofficial port of the classic Atari VCS game where a cowboy at either side of the screen, moving up and down for the Sinclair ZX81.
Community Chest is based on the game Monopoly and is a smaller version of the game. You play the computer and try to make money without going bankrupt. The game has 16 squares with 13 squares named after London streets, Community Chance, Jail and a Go square. The street squares are split into six sets. Each player takes it in turns to throw a dice to move their counter and if a street square is landed on then the player has a choice to buy it if the player has enough money. If the player has brought a street to make up a set then houses can be brought and placed on the square. As the players move buying streets and a player lands on a street square owned by the other player then that player has to pay rent and the cost depends on how expensive the street is and if there are any houses on it. Landing on a Community Chance square reveals an incident and this can either lose or gain the player money. The Jail square forces the player to pay a fee and if a player passes the Go square then they receive £2000. A player will lose the game if they go bankrupt.
A collection of 8 games 16KByte containing: Starship Trojan Your ship has been damaged by a meteor storm. In this adventure you have 70 hours to repair the damage before the next interstellar jump. Princess of Kraal Free the princess from the hidden chamber and fight of the monsters through tunnels, stairs and chambers. Startrek The galaxy is divided in 64 quadrants, every quadrant has 64 sectors. Spread around the galaxy are the Klingons, find and destroy them. Battle With your fleet of ships you fight against another fleet of ships by firing rockets and conquering their basises. Cube A simulation of a Rubic Cube. Martian Cricket An impossible cricket game that drives you into madness. Secret Messages Program to generate secret codes that can be exchanged with other ZX81 owners. Kalabriasz A game of carts.