buyer's
guide
guide
Arcade GamesYour mama was a pinball wizard. Your daddy caught her eye with his fulltilt boogie. You cut your teeth on Pac-Man and you learned to walk with a finger on the fire button. Whether it's blasting your way through a meteor shower or pushing your Lotus GT on the Grand Prix circuit, there's an arcade game in this buyer's guide that will bring the action home.
Caroline Hanlon
aaargh!
Arcadia
Distributed by Electronic Arts Amiga
$34.99
joystick required
In this arcade game, a monster tears through 12 cities, tramples natives, torches insects and reptiles, and destroys everything in its path as it searches for the golden dragon's egg. You can play as an ogre or as a dinosaur that wreaks havoc on humans and mutants alike. The game features animated color graphics and digitized sound.
Alcon
Taito
Commodore 64
joystick required
$29.95
The planet Orac is occupied by aliens, and you have been chosen by the Allied League of Cosmic Nations (ALCON) to drive them out. Your weapon is a top-secret, experimental SW475 Starfighter.
Alien Mind
PBI
Apple IIGS
512K required
$54.95
Players fight off more than 100 different types of monsters and robots while trying to defeat the aliens and regain control of a space station. Hidden clues help the player access the on-board computer to build a weapon that will destroy the aliens. Other weapons include laser beam devices, energy shields, and conductors. The game features stereo sound when played using a MIDldeas SuperSonic Stereo card.
Amegas
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
This arcade-style game contains 40 screens of bouncing, shooting, slamming, and juggling action.
Arkanoid
Discovery Software
Amiga
$29.95
This arcade-action game is based on the video arcade game of the same name. It features 66 levels of gameplay and has a special mode that slows the action to a player's skill level. Each level has a configuration of bricks and hazards. The object is to hit a ball with;a paddle against the breakable bricks, catch the powers contained in the broken capsules, and then advance to the next level. The game includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Awesome Arcade Action Pack
Arcadia
Distributed by Electronic Arts
Amiga
$49.99
The Awesome Arcade Action Pack contains three arcade-style games. In Sidewinder, players pilot a spacecraft through 3-D scrolling screens to reach the interior of the alien Star Killer and destroy it. Captain Zod guides the player through 16 levels of attack launched by the aliens from Xenon. In this game, the player must switch between a ground-based hovercraft and a jet fighter to penetrate the enemy defenses. Blasta Ball is the thirty-seventh century's version of hockey. Inertia controls the spaceships on a metal playing field, and homing missiles are used to move the puck. There are ten craft to control; you can play against another human or against the computer.
Better Dead Than Alien
Discovery Software
Amiga
$34.95
In Better Dead Than Alien, you must hunt down fugitive aliens. According to the game, an alien is at its weakest when its eyes glow green. The game features multilevel action, simultaneous dual-player mode, sound, and color graphics.
Black Lamp
Rainbird Software
Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64 $24.95 (Amiga, Atari ST) $19.95 (Commodore)
Jolly Jack undertakes a quest to find the enchanted lamps-especially the black lampand win the hand of Princess Grizelda. Skulldropping buzzards, evil eagles, spitting witches, and a fire-breathing dragon complicate your journey.
Black Shadow
Scorpion Software
Amiga
$34.95
The object of Black Shadow is to destroy an asteroid by outgunning the aliens and bombing enemy installations. The game features two-player simultaneous action.
Bomb Busters
ReadySoft
Amiga
$29.95
In Bomb Busters, you are the leader of a bomb squad whose mission is to defuse bombs planted throughout famous buildings of the world. Robot guards protect the bombs and are programmed to kill anyone who interferes. Two disks offer 100 levels of play.
Boot Camp
Konami
Amiga, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
Sgt. J. T. Tail Kicker tries to whip you into shape in time to defend the American embassy from terrorists. Exercises include the obstacle course, a firing range, chin-ups, arm wrestling, and the iron-man race.
Bubble Bobble
Taito
Commodore 64
joystick required
$34.95
Bub and Bob, the brontosaur buddies, must battle bullies by bursting their bubbles. One or two players can move through 100 screens of arcade-style graphics.
Bubble Ghost
Accolade
Amiga, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
Guide a bubble-blowing ghost though 35 chambers filled with hazards and monsters. You must keep your bubble away from walls, burning candles, fans, and other bubblepopping paraphernalia.
Commando
Data East
Apple II, IBM PC and compatibles CGA or EGA card required for IBM
$34.95 (Apple)
$39.95 (IBM)
Armed only with a machine gun and hand grenades, you must break through enemy lines, collect supplies, and reach the fortress in order to defeat the rebel forces and save the free world.
Contra
Konami
Amiga, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
You are the ultimate guerrilla warrior, fighting against the Red Falcon to save the whole world. Your weapons include rapid-fire machine guns, alien cannons, and high-tech lasers. The warfare takes place in 3-D mazes with underground security systems and in tropical forests with giant waterfalls.
Cosmic Bouncer
ReadySoft
Amiga
$29.95
A freak computer mishap has turned a simple yellow tennis ball into a living object. Bounce that ball through more than 20 levels of play to earn yourself the title of Cosmic Bouncer.
Crazy Cars
Titus
Amiga, Atari ST, IBM PC and compatibles
$39.95
Experience the speed of some of the world's fastest cars as you race through six courses-Arizona, space shuttle, Florida, mountain, Malibu, and New York. You start out in a Mercedes 560 SEC and, after successfully completing all six races, you can move up to a Porsche 911 Turbo, a Lamborghini Countach, and, finally, a Ferrari GTO. Cars can reach speeds up to 189 mph. Sound effects and color graphics accent the 72 levels of play.
CritterEditor
CasadyWare and Greene
Macintosh
Crystal Quest game, one megabyte required
$40.00
CritterEditor is a tool kit for customizing Crystal Quest. Use it to draw figures, add color, alter attributes, import or export sounds and graphics, edit sounds, change point values, and save modifications. CritterEditor and Crystal Quest 2.2 can be purchased together for $79.95.
Crystal Hammer
Constellation Software
Amiga
$19.95
This breakout-type arcade game has 30 levels of play for one or two players.
Crystal Quest 2.2
CasadyWare and Greene
Macintosh
System 3.2 required
$49.95
The tasks in this arcade game include picking up all of the crystals on the screen, avoiding the mines, killing the Nasties, passing through the Gateway, and scoring points along the way. The number of crystals increases and the game becomes more difficult with each wave or level. There are 12 types of Nasties, each with its own attributes and varying degrees of intelligence. The game features color and digitized sounds. The instructions are given onscreen, and a demo game is provided. Owners of version 2.0 can upgrade for $10.00. The CritterEditor is a separate program that can be used to modify the elements of the game. CritterEditor and Crystal Quest 2.2 can be purchased together for $79.95.
CubeMaster
ASDG
Amiga
Kickstart 1.2 or later required
$24.95
In this arcade-style shoot-'em-up game, you are the cubemaster, a combination sports celebrity and NASA astronaut. Strapped into a manned mobility unit with forward, retro, and attitudinal rockets, you man a rapid-fire particle cannon to shoot down the cubedrones. However, the cubedrones have both positive and negative side effects that must be anticipated if you are to progress to the level of cubelord.
The Cyber Complex
DigiTek
Amiga
$44.95
As troubleshooter for the Computer, you try to prevent evil men from the subterranean city from destroying the Computer.
Dark Castle
Three-Sixty Pacific
Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
mouse or joystick required
$39.95 (Amiga, Atari ST, IBM)
$34.95 (Commodore)
Play is set in medieval times, where you must fight your way through 14 different castle rooms. The rooms become progressively more hazardous as you face rats, bats, and fire-breathing dragons. Dungeon torture and an evil wizard also await you. The object of the game is to find and slay the Black Knight.
Diablo
Classic Image
Amiga
$29.95
The object of this mazelike game is to arrange a track to keep the advancing ball on a continuous course. After the ball has crossed a section of track, that section is removed, giving you less and less track to work with. The game includes 240 track sections-2 tracks on each of 120 movable panels.
Enlightenment
Rainbird Software
Amiga, Commodore 64
$24.95 (Amiga) $19.95 (Commodore)
Playing as Hasrinaxx the Druid, you must free the lands of Belorn from the evil wizard Acamantor and his legion of the undead. Magical powers aid Hasrinaxx in his fight through the ten lands of Belorn and a fivelevel dungeon. The game includes 15 levels of increasing difficulty, 32 spells, and five different characters to control.
Final Mission
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
In the final mission of training, you work your way through the labyrinth of terror, the last stage of insanity. There are more than 20 levels of play.
Fire and Forget
Titus Software
Amiga, Atari ST, IBM PC and compatibles
$39.95
The Inter-Galactic Liberation Organization threatens to destroy Earth; it's up to you to save it. As commander of Thunder Master, the world's ultimate fighting machine, you sit at the controls of a V-16, triple-turbo engine with four-wheel drive and tetranuclearpropulsion missiles. A second player can command the magnetic levitation unit, Thunder Cloud. There are three levels and six conflicts, ranging from guerrilla warfare to global war.
Fire Power
Microlllusions
Amiga, Apple IIGS, IBM PC and compatibles, Macintosh
512K, color graphics card required for IBM
$24.95 (Amiga)
$29.95 (Apple IIGS, Macintosh)
$32.95 (IBM)
The first in the One-to-One series, Fire Power is an arcade-style tank battle with color graphics and digitized sound effects. Choose from three tank types; earn extra points by saving friendly soldiers. Two players can share a machine by using split screens, or they can play on separate machines connected by modem. The IBM PC version includes both 5¼- and 3½-inch disks.
Foundation's Waste
Scorpion Software
Amiga, Atari ST
$34.95 (Amiga)
$39.95 (Atari ST)
Escape a hostile planet in a stolen spacecraft by defeating your captors.
Galactic Invasion
Microlllusions
Amiga
$24.95
The Galactic Invasion space battle features a realtime star field of the Milky Way Galaxy. Two players can play against each other on the same machine or on separate machines connected by modem.
Ganymed
ReadySoft
Amiga
joystick required
$29.95
Ganymed, the frozen moon of Jupiter, has been under the rule of the oppressive Tyrans for centuries. As leader of the outlawed star warriors, you must defeat the giant deathbots and free the planet.
Gauntlet
Mindscape
Amiga, Atari, Atari ST, Commodore 64
joystick required
$34.95 (Atari, Commodore)
$49.95 (Amiga, Atari ST)
More than 100 mazes comprise this arcadestyle game designed for one or two players. Each player chooses a character and searches the mazes for food, treasures, door keys, magic potions, and the exit to the next maze. Throughout the mazes, the heroes-Thor, Thyra, Merlin, and Questor-must battle a variety of monsters, ghosts, demons, and sorcerers.
Gun Shoot
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
Try to shoot 12 different opponents, including bank robbers, without hitting any innocent bystanders. The game includes a two-player mode and digitized sound.
Ikari Warriors
Data East
Apple II, IBM PC and compatibles 256K, CGA card required
$34.95 (Apple)
$39.95 (IBM)
Two players are behind enemy lines, and they must fight their way out using guerrilla warfare. To win, they must reach a village and defeat the enemy leader. Weapons include machine guns, grenades, rocket launchers, and a tank. The game offers five levels of difficulty. Players score points by killing enemy soldiers and destroying tanks and bunkers.
Into the Eagle's Nest
Mindscape
Amiga, Atari St, Commodore 64
$39.95 (Amiga, Atari ST)
$29.95 (Commodore)
The goal is to rescue three Allied saboteurs from a Nazi fortress, salvage the great art treasures of Europe from the Nazis, and destroy the fortress. The four missions take place on four floors connected by elevators. The view of the game is from the top, looking down. The arcade-style game features fourway scrolling animation, graphics, and sound.
Jackal
Konami
Amiga, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
Use the army's all-terrain attack jeep to rescue your comrades from behind enemy lines. The jeep is equipped with guided missiles and incendiary grenades. Play against the computer or with a friend.
Mandroid
Scorpion
Commodore 64
$29.95
Mandroid, half man and half machine, undertakes two missions to save the world. First, Mandroid must infiltrate an enemy base, save seven astronauts, and restore radio contact with Earth. In the second mission, Mandroid must stop an evil scientist from creating an army of deadly soldiers.
Marble Madness
Electronic Arts
Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM
joystick required
$49.95 (Amiga)
$34.95 (Apple IIGS, Atari ST)
$14.95 (Apple II, Commodore, IBM)
One or two players race against the clock or each other to get their marbles through the raceways and over the goal line. Obstacles include the humming hoovers, marble munchers, and steelies. Six raceways-such as the silly level and the aerial race-provide varying degrees of challenge. The game features 3-D graphics and the musical score and sound effects from the original Atari coin-op version.
Master Ninja: Shadow Warrior of Death
Paragon Software
Distributed by Electronic Arts
Amiga, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$39.95 (Atari ST, Amiga)
$34.95 (IBM)
$29.95 (Commodore)
Assume the identity of a ninja warrior sent on a quest to recover a magic sword stolen by an evil Japanese warlord. You must fight your way through more than 25 chambers of the warlord's castle, confronting evil ninjas, samurai guards, mystic ninja priests, curses, and deadly tigers. The player uses the ninja's martial arts skills and weapons to kill his or her opponents, recapture the sword, and kill the warlord.
Menace
Psyclapse
Distributed by Psygnosis
Amiga, Atari ST
$19.95
The mission is to stop six mad rulers and destroy the unnatural planet, Draconia. Play takes place on six levels, with two levels of difficulty. Game features include parallax scrolling, more than 60 different aliens, a restart-game option, graphics, and a soundtrack. The Amiga version also offers an overscan display and 64 colors onscreen.
Monster Power
Free Spirit Software
Commodore 64
joystick required
$14.95
One to four players compete in three events that test the power of monster machines. In Tractor Pulls, you depend on power and revs to pull a weight sled down the track with a tractor. Keep the car in bounds and out of the mud to finish the race in Mud Bogs; Monster Trucks challenges your driving skill and power.
Off Shore Warriors
Titus Software
Amiga, Atari ST, IBM PC and compatibles
$39.95
A new sport has evolved on Earth after a takeover by extraterrestrial pacifists. Powerful boats race against each other and the elements in international competition on some of the world's largest lakes. Each boat is armed with only two missiles and one captain. The captain who finishes the game alive is declared the winner.
Phantasm
Scorpion Software
Amiga, Atari ST
$34.95
Play a destitute wanderer transported to a distant moon and given the opportunity to save Earth. To save a section of the planet, you must destroy eight reconstitution installations and then redock. You may choose which sections to rescue first.
Pharaoh's Revenge
Publishing International
IBM PC and compatibles
CGA or EGA card required for IBM; Tandy graphics card required for Tandy
$29.95
Pharaoh's Revenge is an arcade-style logic puzzle with 200 levels of play. The player attempts to steal treasures from the pharaoh's tomb and to avoid capture by the tomb guards and mummies. You must take all the treasures on one level before you can advance to the next level.
Pinball Wizard
Accolade
Amiga, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
Pinball Wizard brings arcade-style pinball action to the computer screen. Several pinball tables are provided, as are an assortment of obstacles and targets whose bonus values you can assign yourself. The game penalizes the players when they tilt, and the stroboscope feature causes the ball to vanish occasionally. Use the built-in construction set to build your own tables with customized designs and colors.
Power Stix
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
Joystick pros can work their way through 15 levels of obstacles.
Rampage
Activision
Apple II, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
512K required for Apple IIGS
$34.95 (Apple, Commodore)
$37.95 (IBM)
Rampage is a monster-style action adventure that features three creatures much like Godzilla, King Kong, and a wolfman. The monsters stomp through cities, climb skyscrapers, attack helicopters, eat bystanders, and smash cars, tanks, and trolleys. Each monster searches for food to help it maintain energy. When time and energy run out, the monsters shrink into little people that can be eaten by other monsters. Available on 3½-and 5¼-inch disks.
Roadwars
Electronic Arts
Amiga, Commodore 64
$34.99
In the twenty-fifth century, the Galactic Federation rules, and computers and robots do all the work. Moons are connected by roadways controlled by computers. As commander of a battlesphere tank, you must repair the roadway and clear the debris when one of the computers malfunctions. Use your laser cannon to blast barricades and aliens.
Rush 'N Attack
Konami
Amiga, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$34.95
Ambushes, guerrillas, bazookas, flame throwers, and a fleet of choppers try to stop you from rescuing dozens of POWs hidden in an enemy camp. For one or two players.
Skyblaster
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
One or two players can battle it out in this airto-air and air-to-ground 3-D combat simulation. There are 20 degrees of difficulty and 80 levels of play.
Speed Buggy
Data East
Atari ST, Commodore 64
joystick required for Commodore
$44.95 (Atari ST)
$29.95 (Commodore)
Steer your car down five tracks, each with sharp curves and obstacles such as fallen trees and boulders. You must complete the courses in a predetermined amount of time. Win bonus points by running over flags, jumping obstacles, and driving on two wheels.
Spinworld
DigiTek
Amiga
$34.95
Players must battle the inhabitants of Spinworld, a large object spinning toward the solar system.
Super Bike
Free Spirit Software
Commodore 64
joystick required
$14.95
Players race motorcycles against the clock in the Motocross, Endura, Supercross, or Trials course. Bikers must learn to bounce, jump, steer around obstacles, and outmaneuver other bikers to gain the gold cup.
Superbike Challenge
Brøderbund
Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
color graphics card required for IBM
$19.95
Players race bikes on 12 Grand Prix courses, including Austria's Salzburgring and Great Britain's Silverstone. One player can race against bikers controlled by the computer, or two players can race each other using a split screen. Onscreen indicators show speed, RPM, lap times, race position, and course layout. Choose the novice, intermediate, or pro level. A save feature allows games to be saved between races.
Tag Team Wrestling
Data East
Apple II, IBM PC and compatibles
CGA or EGA required for IBM
$34.95 (Apple)
$39.95 (IBM)
The player and a partner can use body slams, drop kicks, back-breakers, and flying head-butts to defeat opponents and win the championship belt. To win, you must pin wrestlers for a count of 3 or throw them out of the ring.
Technocop
Epyx
Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, Commodore 64, IBM PC and compatibles
$39.95
You are a member of the Enforcers, an elite police force committed to saving the city from a crime family known as D.O.A. Whenever a mug shot appears on the computer in V-Max, a specially equipped vehicle, you set out armed with a computer wristwatch, a criminal radar locator, a snare-net gun, and an .88 Magnum. There are five levels of difficulty.
Thexder
Sierra On-Line
Amiga, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, IBM PC and compatibles
CGA or EGA required for IBM
$34.95
In Thexder, players control a robot that has the ability to transform from an android to a fighter jet and back again. Players must battle more than 20 types of aliens and explore caves and battlefields. The program features a musical score that choreographs itself to reflect the action.
Triple Pack
Access
Apple II, Atari, Commodore 64 joystick required
$19.95
This one package includes three games. In Beach-Head, you try to liberate an island from hostile enemy forces. In Beach-Head ll, you continue the fight against the dictator and that portion of his army that escaped destruction in the first game. Commandos must stop the Soviets from launching an attack in Raid over Moscow.
Turbo
Microlllusions
Amiga
$24.95
A part of Microlllusions' One-to-One Series, this auto-racing game allows one player to compete against the computer or two players to race either side-by-side or via modem. The game features a choice of cars as well as oil slicks, spiked wheels, different road courses, and police chases.
Typhoon Thompson: Search for the Sea Child
Brøderbund
Atari ST
color monitor, mouse required
$34.95
Typhoon Thompson is the Intergalactic Rescue Force's last hope to save an infant child, the lone survivor of a crash on an uninhabited planet in Omega sector. This not-so-lucky rescuer must outwit and defeat mischievous sea sprites who have hidden the baby. Features include animation, 3-D effects, seven enemy weapons and tactics, and a variety of play levels.
Way of the Little Dragon
Constellation Software
Amiga
$19.95
Way of the Little Dragon is a karate adventure game with eight levels of play and four different challengers. For one or two players.
Wings of Fury
Brøderbund
Apple IIe, IIc, and IIGS
joystick required
extended 80-column card required for IIe
$34.95
As pilot of a F6F Hellcat, your mission is to seek and destroy enemy-held islands, destroyers, and torpedo planes while avoiding deadly Zeros. You can progress from Midshipman to Captain, receiving new assignments and extra planes at each level. The onscreen display shows the type and number of available weapons, plus oil pressure, fuel level, and the number of Zeros shot down. Weapons include 100-pound bombs, fiveinch rockets, and a torpedo.
Zig Zag
Spectrum HoloByte
Commodore 64
joystick required
$24.95
As a star fighter-pilot speeding through narrow passages of the Matrix of Zog in the 12th dimension, you must negotiate sharp turns, ramps, traps, and barriers to locate the Eight Crystals of Zog. By destroying enemy aliens, you can gain cash that you can use to purchase objects for the search. Codes for future reference can be found in the Save Zone; the Death Zone can end the game. The game features 1400 screens, extra lives, maps, x-ray vision, time locks, and a scoring system.
Zoom!
Discovery Software
Amiga
$29.95
Zoom! is a nonviolent arcade-style game featuring Zoomer. Zoomer is chased through an outer-space land, Zoomland, by a gang of reckless enemies as he tries to collect territories and points. However, Zoomer must watch out for the "oops" factor when he tries to advance to the next level. There are 50 levels of play. The game includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.
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