THE RETRO GAMER GUIDE TO commodore 64
Commodore’s 8-bit home computer made a huge impact when it landed 40 years ago in 1982. The company was no stranger to the 8-bit market, having already released systems like the Commodore Pet and VIC-20, but Commodore’s owner, Jack Tramiel, wanted to dominate the market, and he aggressively marketed the C64, cutting its price by $200 a few months after its release, as well as using a casing that was extremely similar to the C64’s predecessor, the Commodore VIC-20.
The C64 may have looked extremely similar to the humble VIC-20, but there were huge differences beneath the bread bin-like exterior. For starters, it featured a whopping 64KB of RAM with an additional 20KB of ROM, better resolution and incredible sound thanks to the SID (Sound Interface Device) chip, which allowed talented musicians like Rob Hubbard and Ben Daglish to create incredible tunes for the machine.
The C64 would eventually go on to shift over 30 million units, making it the best-selling home micro of its time. It might not have been designed as a pure games machine, but that’s what it’s arguably best remembered for. So here are some of the finest games the C64 has to offer. If you’ve ever considered collecting for it then these titles are the perfect place to start.
ARCHON: THE LIGHT AND THE DARK 1983
ELECTRONIC ARTS
■ If you glanced at Archon really quickly you’d probably mistake it for an ugly game of chess. Look past its basic visuals, however, and you’ll discover a surprisingly gripping strategy game where fantastical monsters battle each other to control five strategic power points in order to win the game. Alternatively, you can simply eliminate all of your opponent’s creatures, which is much more satisfying.
FORBIDDEN FOREST 1983
COSMI CORPORATION
■ This early offering from Paul Norman features huge animated sprites, slick parallax scrolling, cool pseudo sprite
