Game Review: Zorro (Commodore 64)

Released in 1985 by Datasoft, Zorro is an arcade platform game based on Johnston McCulley's masked vigilante, released in 1985 for the ZX Spectrum, C64 and Amstrad range of 8-bit computers. It's another game that I remember playing as a child, but was never able to actually finish for one reason or another.

All is not well in the pueblo of Los Angeles, where the dastardly Colonel Garcia has kidnapped a fair Senorita, spiriting her away to his fort on the other side of town. Not one to sit idly by when a damsel is in distress, Zorro, expert swordsman and champion of the people, leaps into action, setting out on a rescue mission that will see him solving puzzles, crossing swords with the colonel's guard and plundering subterranean catacombs.

Game Review: Donkey Kong (Nintendo Game Boy)

When it was released in 1981, the original Donkey Kong arcade machine was a game of several firsts. Not only was it the first game to start two of Nintendo's most famous characters, it helped define the genre that we now know as the "platformer". From the original coin-op release, to the plethora of home versions, gamers everywhere were hooked by the addictive gameplay, fancy graphics and iconic sound - the sound of jumping over a barrel will be forever etched into our brains.

Despite the success of the game and development of a couple of sequels, it would be Mario (or Jumpman as he was known at the time) that would  go on to enjoy world-wide critical and commercial success in a series of games that made Nintendo the dominant gaming force for the rest of the decade; aside from an outing on the NES, it would seem that poor old Donkey Kong would be relegated to relative obscurity.

Game Review: Joe Blade 2 (Commodore 64)

Developed by Kevin Parker and published by Players Software in 1988

Released originally for the Spectrum, C64 and Amstrad CPC 8-bit computers, the original Joe Blade was a typical flick-screen adventure game where mustachioed military-man, Joe Blade,  had to locate a number of prisoners and achieve other objectives, prior to finding the exit; it was a fairly typical explore 'em up of it's day, albeit one that didn't really exhibit any real standout qualities. Whatever the case, the developer must have felt that there was some mileage in the character, for the game spawned a couple of sequels, the first of which I'll be reviewing today.

Game Review: Double Dragon (Nintendo Entertainment System)

Developed by Technos and published by Tradewest in 1988

Regular readers of my reviews will know that Double Dragon is one of my favourite arcade games of all time, and that the C64 version that I owned as a child was a bitter disappointment. With so many of the ports for home computers of the day, for the want of a better word, sucking, I wondered whether the conversion for the Nintendo Entertainment System would fair any better - I'd played the Master System and was relatively impressed, so would the official Nintendo seal of quality mean anything in this instance?

I'm by no means an expert on games for the NES, but one thing I have noticed is that, with games based on arcade titles, the developers generally opted to craft an experience that built on the core mechanics of the arcade title, but that delivered a decent gaming experience whilst working within the constraints of the console's hardware. I'd seen footage of the NES conversion online, but never actually played it - curious to see how it stacked up, I decided to take up the challenge.