Technology has taken major strides in the last few years, and it's now possible for computers to emulate other computers. This is great news for some (especially video game geeks like myself) since it allows you to get all nostalgic on those games from yesteryear - be it Space Invaders, Pacman or Super Mario Brothers. Here are some of the games I spent many an hour on back in the day...

The "Speccy" (as it was better known) took up a lot of my time in the 80's and early 90's. The best emulator for Windows is between zx32 and Spectaculator which can be downloaded at this site. For all things Speccy, visit www.worldofspectrum.org

Batman - The Movie

Batman - The Movie was essentially a collection of above average sub-games, including platform, driving and puzzle games. It's probably one of the more polished games on the Spectrum and it stretched it's aging hardware to the limit... whatever happened to legendary Ocean software? I never actually passed the first level without discovering some cheats since the game was so difficult - the first level is like a maze! It featured some nice synthesized music and some nice graphics for the time. Luckily you won't have to endure the torturous loading times if you're running the game in an emulator. ;-)

One of Ocean's nice loading screens.

Level 1 takes an age to get through.

ATV Simulator

Codemasters released this gem of a game as a budget title and it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable games i've played on the Spectrum. The graphics are passable, and the controls are very frustrating at times, but you'll end up trying again and again to get to the next level. Unfortunately in a weak attempt at making the levels harder, they've populated some of the later levels with several numerous obstacles and moving objects which do nothing but frustrate. Especially if your ATV gets caught on something and you're unable to jump back on.

Wheeeee!

Thrown from the ATV in a spectacular crash!

Robocop

Robocop is an odd one, it was never one of my favourites but it was one of the most popular Spectrum games of all time. I'm fairly sure it topped the charts for several months. It's a side-scrolling shoot-em-up with some interesting sub-games, my favourite being one where you had to match up the faces in order to identify a criminal. There was also a first-person perspective shooting scene where you had to be careful not to harm a hostage, but unlike the movie, you couldn't shoot the guy between the legs. ;-)

Pity the graphics weren't as good in-game. =)

Sorry but 4 against 1 at the start of the level just isn't fair. ;-)

Software House

Software house was one ugly game, and despite it being text-based it took an age to redraw the screen. Surprisingly I found myself addicted to it after playing it a few times. The objective of the game was to manage a software house that manufactures computer games. It had some nice touches, and you were able to customise everything... cardboard packaging or plastic? Cheap artwork or expensive? The difficulty level was a bit too high, it was very easy to run out of cash without noticing it. Don't be turned away by the hideous graphics, there's an enjoyable game underneath. ;-)

This is about as good as the graphics get i'm afraid. :-/

Yep, the exciting main game screen in all it's glory!

Ghostbusters

I was a big fan of the movie and cartoon series when I was younger so how could I pass on the computer game? Ghostbusters is quite an imaginative movie-license which sees you managing your team of Ghostbusters in an attempt to defeat Zuul. It's made up of a few subgames, the best one being the capture of Slimer. "Don't cross the streams!" ;-) There's an incredibly monotonous "driving-up-screen" section where you wait... and wait. I've never completed the game, toward the end you see the infamous Marshmallow Man jumping up and down infront of the entrance to a building, and it seems to be impossible to pass him. But forget all the bad points because the game features Ghostbusters karaoke complete with synthesized theme tune. ;-)

Ghostbusters karaoke? ;-) Complete with bouncing ball.

Don't cross the streams!! ...or cue badly digitised sample, "He slimed me."

Werewolves Of London

Werewolves Of London is an oddly addictive game with a particularly eerie atmosphere. You walk around the game looking for crosses so that you can rid yourself of turning into a werewolf all the time. Amusingly, when you do turn into a werewolf you can choose to devour anyone walking around, although don't go for too many policemen or you'll end up with several on your tail later on in the game. You could munch up the remains so not to leave a corpse for people to find! There were some RPG elements in which you had to take an object and use it in a specific area, for example use the torch in the tunnels of the london underground to find your way around. You can also place a file next to the prison, so that if you are caught you can pick it up and make a quick exit.

Endlessly walking about.

Spooky loading screen. ;-)

Odd Job Eddie

Odd Job Eddie was one of the games bundled with my Spectrum 128k package and it's probably the very first game i've played. It was a game very similar to the classic Manic Miner, but this time you played the role of a TV repairman who entered a broken TV set. In order to fix it you must collect all the objects and make your way to the exit. Who wrote the plots for games back in the 80's? ;-) The graphics are bright and colourful and each screen is imaginatively designed. My sister used to play this way back before I even took an interest in computers, and one day she managed to complete it. Playing it today I find this game incredibly difficult!... games have definately become easier over the years.

The first screen. You can walk through the top-left wall if you jump at it correctly.

Another of the surreal level designs. With microwaves and spray cans. ;-)

Target: Renegade

Target: Renegade is a sequel to the game Renegade which began life as an arcade game. This is an extremely playable scrolling beat-em-up which was especially fun with 2 players. I think there were 4 different locations in the game including the parking lot (pictured), a park, the streets (with nasty hookers who try to kick the shit out of you :-) and finally a bar where the kingpin "Mr. Big" is located. Bad points about this game? The version I had was a multiloader, which meant when you got to the next level you have to wait a few minutes for it to load.

Quick, get the hammer!

The colourful loading screen.

One of the most successful home consoles also features a near faultless Windows emulator called Nesten. It can be downloaded from this link.

This classic machine featured a massive amount of "pick up and play games" that were simple and addictive. A lot of the games tended to be quite similar in feel, especially the myriad of platform games.

Super Mario Brothers

One of the most popular games ever which was even made into a movie. Super Mario Brothers had incredibly addictive gameplay and some tunes that'd be in your head for days. It also spawned 2 more sequels. The graphics were simple but the level designs were fantastic and numerous secrets were hidden everywhere if you were inquisitive enough to seek them out.

Who could forget the title screen!

Grab those coins!

Robocop

Not exactly hailed as a classic but Robocop was a game I enjoyed a lot. It had a cool animated attract sequence (the title sequence you see if you don't start the game) and it had some nice gameplay similar to the original arcade machine.

It had some nice graphics.

Robo shooting some innocent dogs. ;-)

Tecmo World Wrestling

This was a great game! Choose from numerous wrestlers and fight your way to the top. (Which isn't easy!) It has some hilarious moves, such as a full chest dive from the top rope and a giant swing onto the concrete outside the ring. There's some nice touches, such as a commentator at the bottom of the screen, and pre-match excercises where you have to beat the buttons to win. Did I mention that a sumo wrestler sits on your back during press-ups? "Go get em, big boy!" Quite.

Chest dive from top ropes!

...indeed.

Duck Hunt

Duck Hunt was the first game I played with the "Nintendo Zapper". The game became repetitive after a while, especially if you had the zapper so close it was touching the TV screen. For some variation there was a 2 player mode and a skeet shooting mode which was more challenging. It had some memorable and catchy tunes!

Don't bother... he's impervious to bullets.

Sometimes you could get both in one shot. ;-)

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