First Star Software got its start in late-1982 with its debut title Astro Chase, and the following year its author produced the similarly popular paint-’em-up Bristles. First Star’s early Eighties output was then bolstered by arcade-style submissions to the firm like Panic Button and Flip And Flop. Peter Liepa’s cave-based crystal hunt Boulder Dash followed, and it received three sequels during the mid-Eighties.
It was a similar story with the superlative action title Spy Vs Spy, a best-seller with two followups released by 1986. First Star also licensed Superman, firstly for 1986’s Superman: The Game and then 1989’s Superman: The Man Of Steel.
In the late-Eighties and early Nineties the company regularly licensed its IP to others, with highlights being Rockford The Arcade Game and Spy Vs Spy: Operation Boobytrap. First Star also published the adventure Omnicron Conspiracy, the crime caper Security Alert and the beat-’emup Millenium Warriors during this time.
Following an eight-year hiatus where First Star founder Richard Spitalny worked for the developer Imergy, a wealth of popular Boulder Dash releases appeared online and on mobile platforms, from 2003’s Boulder Dash ME to 2014’s Boulder Dash 30th Anniversary. Spy Vs Spy was also reimagined, for consoles in 2005 and tablets in 2012. Boulder Dash was a draw on consoles too, with titles like 2007’s Boulder Dash Rocks! and 2011’s Boulder Dash-XL being of particular note.
Then as it had started out, First Star Software went out on a high, when in 2017 its name and assets were sold to BBG Entertainment. In 2021, BBG released the well-received Boulder Dash Deluxe, which bodes well for First Star’s legacy.
ASTRO CHASE
VARIOUS • 1982
Considering that it was developed at a time when many computer games were shameless coin-op clones, Astro Chase is impressively original. Fernando Herrara’s intense scrolling shooter tasks you with taking out mines before they destroy the Earth. These are tricky to target as they never stop moving, and your mission is made harder by the alien craft that home in on your position with all guns blazing.
“There was a tremendous amount of innovation in Astro Chase, and that was all attributable to Fernando Herrara. We self-published it until I made a deal with Parker Brothers for the right to publish the cartridge versions. We got $250,000 as an advance on royalties, and that guaranteed our future.”
FLIP & FLOP
VARIOUS • 1983
Like , the objective of is to change the colour of tiles on an isometric playfield while avoiding persistent enemies. Where it differentiates itself is with its two player characters: a kangaroo and a monkey, which you play one
