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Atari/Jeff Minter game jam results, Llamasoft, and ST Format

by Matt Sephton — Fri, 09 May 2025 17:03:00 +0000

So, my game HERD NERD is a winner in the “I, REBEL” game jam, hosted by Atari and Jeff Minter.

We are delighted to let you know after hours of play and deliberation - Jeff Minter himself chose your game as THIRD PLACE WINNER

Your game stood out in all the right ways: creative, clever, weird and totally nailing the theme. The team (and the judges!) were blown away by your take on the theme and your execution.

✨ What an honour! ✨

All three winners receive the same prize, but honestly I am more excited to hear why Jeff, Giles, and Jason liked my game. So many nice words to spur me on!

The Results

You can hear more about the game jam and the winning games on the latest Atari podcast episode on YouTube or your favourite podcast listening point. You’ll also learn a bit about the famous Superlambanana sculpture and the infamous Sven Bømwøllen video game. You have been warned!

HERD NERD

You can download and play HERD NERD for free/PWYC on Mac and PC. So check it out! Have fun.

Back in the day

It’s July 1991 and I’ve just walked back from Lewis Meeson’s newsagent to my family home clutching the latest monthly ST FORMAT, issue 24. I’d browsed the magazine in-store to make sure it was worth £2.95 of my hard-earned pocket money, and was eager to try out the software included on the 3.5” floppy disk. This was pre-internet and that was the easiest way of getting hold of a selection of new software. The same thing applied to Amiga, Macintosh, PC, and more.

Today I dug out my actual magazine from storage and my nostalgia dial went all the way up to 11.

Llamatron was my first encounter with Jeff Minter and his weird and wonderful type of game. I played it a lot, mostly in 2-player with the droid or other members of my family. Enemies like sentient cans of cola or screaming Mandelbrot patterns are scorched into my memory forever more.

But it wasn’t just Llamatron that was so great in this issue, I also remember using the Revenge document displayer (with no internet we used to read a lot of text files that were included on the disks, like the Llamatron manual and readme about it being distributed in a new-fangled way known as Shareware). And also Little Green Selector which replaced the standard file selector with one that had fully-featured file manager functionality, though eventually I migrated to the even more amazing Universal Item Selector III which was one of many such replacements. It really was a different era.

Elsewhere in the magazine is a list of Jeff’s favourite games of all time (as of mid-1991). I love that he put his own game at number 1. And then to also include 2 more of his games. What a rock star! Click the image to zoom. Below you’ll find a full list of games with links to read more.

A yak’s favourite games (of all time), 1991

Review: Disc

by Matt Sephton — Fri, 07 Jul 2017 13:03:42 +0000

A future sports game that aims high but struggles to hit the mark.

In the era of the 16-bit home computers, there was a trend to take concepts that had made an impression at the arcade and create a version of them for home release that neatly sidestepped any licence that may have otherwise been required. And so Disc, whilst not being a straight copy, is obviously inspired by the arcade game Discs of Tron which was itself based on a sequence in the 1982 cult sci-fi movie Tron.

Disc presents a futuristic sport where competitors throw discs of light at each other in gladiator-style, with the goal of being the last man standing. This can be achieved in two ways: by knocking your opponent out into the abyss by destroying the tiles that make up the platform they stand on, or by hitting your opponent with the disc enough times so their energy is reduced to zero.

In reality, this plays out like a somewhat awkward cross between Breakout and Shufflepuck Café.

The gameplay is enhanced in a number of ways: ownership of the disc can be transferred by catching it, or avoided by deflecting it with your shield; power-ups can increase the speed or damage capability of your disc; extra discs can be awarded, allowing for multiple discs to be in play at once; and tiles that need to be hit multiple times before they disappear. Increasingly difficult opponents also introduce new tricks that require different play styles to be learnt and used to beat them. All this is set against a timer which, if it reaches zero, awards victory to the player with the most tiles remaining in their area.

The original Discs of Tron game featured analogue aiming using a spinner, and 8-way movement of the player using the joystick. The programmers at Loriciel came up with an ingenious way of mapping these controls to an 8-way joystick with single fire button: without the fire button pressed the joystick controls the movement of the player, with the fire button pressed the joystick controls throwing of the disc or use of the shield. It takes a little getting used to, and even then you’ll likely make some timing mistakes in the heat of the moment and do something unintentionally. But it worked well enough.

The graphics are something else though. They effuse that particular French quality I am so fond of, with a firm dose of science fiction that sits somewhere between the helmet-wearing ostrich riders of Joust and the inside-the-mainframe look of Tron.

The only issue I have with the game is that it can get repetitive. The difficulty curve is too long and this can lead to boredom setting in. But for a few short rounds, the game is great to look at and fun to play.

Historical note: the Atari ST version was first to be released, and later ported well to Amiga and PC, and to the Amstrad CPC with surprisingly little loss of fidelity.

Review: Wizkid

by Matt Sephton — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 12:02:00 +0000

The greatest video game ever sold?

Wizkid was born in a time when British video game developers ruled the world. That such a time existed may seem strange today, as developers from Japan and the USA roll out one blockbuster game after another whilst British development companies quietly wonder where it all went wrong. Back in the early 90s a video game could be made by a small team of individuals rather than a team of hundreds - it was a much simpler time. To put things into perspective, at the time Wizkid was released the home computer scene was in decline and video game consoles such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Mega Drive were invading UK homes.

A product of bedroom-based development house Sensible Software during the peak of their creative output, Wizkid was an ode to everything British. It was Monty Python, seaside arcades, Fawlty Towers, tabloid newspapers, The Young Ones, punk rock, Viz and so much more – all wrapped up in a game that can only be described as, well, completely bonkers. It was fun, but perhaps more importantly it was funny. My initial play session left me bewildered, but as I settled into the weirdness it dawned on me that I was witnessing the most wonderful game I’d ever seen.

At this point in time Sensible Software were a household name, an established company and burgeoning brand who were coming off the back of a string of considerable successes. Most recently they had scored a hit with Mega-lo-Mania and were deep into the development of Sensible Soccer, the game that would turn out to be their magnum opus. Wizkid may seem like an unlikely stop gap, not helped by the fact there are only a tenuous link to Wizball - the older game by the company mentioned in the subtitle. You’d be right to wonder how such a crazy concept was sold to the executives at Ocean, but back then it was quite common for a publisher to sign a developer on the strength of their previous games with nothing but blind faith - or perhaps just trust - in their capability to deliver. A lot like the music industry works - the record company or publisher sign an artist to make an album before they ever hear it. Jon Hare – one half of the original Sensible Software team – has described Wizkid as a game that shows the height of the team’s collective expression and imagination, a game that was undiluted by the publisher and showed just how much they were capable of achieving. The result is a game so quirky it feels almost Japanese in its execution.

Right from the off you’re in no doubt that the game is a little bit left of centre, as you witness Wizkid conduct a pair of cannon to an excerpt from Tchaikovsky’s “1812 Overture”. You can’t help but raise a smile - perhaps as a reaction to the confusion that’s slowly setting in, or maybe just because the act of conduction a pair of cannon looks so damned fun - in much the same way as the parade scene in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. The game combines two decidedly old-school concepts: block-breaking and the adventure game. You play an odd variation of Breakout, where instead of a paddle you control a disembodied head whose job is to dislodge blocks so they collide with enemies. Success results in the appearance of a musical note, of which there’s a whole tune’s worth to collect. Once you complete the melody the game switches into adventure mode, where you gain control of the fully formed Wizkid and can walk him around a series of platform-based adventure screens, collecting items and solving a series of obtuse puzzles. Between these two forms of gameplay, you’ll collect a bunch of cats, solve some crosswords, buy some useful and not-so-useful items from a shop, row a boat, ride a donkey and much more besides. If ever there was a case where a game was more than the sum of its parts this is it. The game is unforgiving at times and if you’re not careful you’ll do well enough get to the end, but not well enough to see the “real” ending. You’re unlikely to see everything the game has to offer in your first play-through so there’s a chance to discover more in subsequent replays. If you’re not going to be able to play it, make sure you at least watch the play-through videos linked below.

Could a game like Wizkid be successful today? It’s hard to say, but it would have its work cut out. The types of games it’s comprised of have long since fallen out of favour. Publishers don’t take risks any more, preferring to instead push out identikit games that cater the latest trend. On the other hand, there does still seem to be occasional room for off-the-wall presentation and humour in a game, as shown by the likes of Peggle and Tomba! - a combination of which would be a pretty good match to the madness of the world of Wizkid.

Whilst it’s not my favourite game, or even anywhere near what you might consider to be a perfect game, the sheer scope and ambition seen in Wizkid means it’s my choice as the greatest game ever sold.

(That’s not to say it’s the end of this blog, though!)

Review: Bubble Bobble

by Matt Sephton — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 08:54:00 +0000

His and hers gaming at it’s finest.

Bubble Bobble is one of those old-school arcade games that stands up well today. It’s single screen platform mechanics haven’t aged one bit. Capturing monsters in bubbles and then popping them to collect fruit is a supremely addictive pursuit. Things are constantly kept fresh with power ups, expert level design and a variety of bad guys to learn how to deal with. It’s interesting that when playing with a friend the natural tendency is to play cooperatively to clear the screen in an effort to see just how far you can get, allowing for some great team building.

There have been a number of versions of the game released across most home formats but none have managed to capture the intricacies of the original game. This is a problem inherent in ports of any game - great care has to be taken to remain faithful to the original. If the developers responsible for the port do not have access to the original source code the quality of the resulting game will only be as good as their attention to detail and ability to figure out what is actually happening in the game behind the scenes. In the case of Bubble Bobble, this has resulted in levels that are laid out wrongly, bad guys that move incorrectly, power-ups that don’t work as expected and more. Some of the issues probably have more to do with the fact that the arcade runs in an odd screen resolution making a 1:1 conversion impossible. Also interesting is that, in 1996, Taito announced that they had lost the original source code to Bubble Bobble following a reorganisation. So when they were creating further ports and sequels they on had to work from program disassembly, playing the game and from other ports that had already been made. Whilst the arcade version is the blueprint, with the number of subsequent versions of the game it’s no longer obvious what exactly constitutes the core game. I do wonder why with the power of today’s machines an emulated version of the game hasn’t been released?

Bub and Bob - the dinosaur characters featured in the game - returned to human form for the game’s sequel Rainbow Islands and whilst it had some gameplay features in common with the original it was effectively a new concept. A more traditional sequel came somewhat later in the form of Bubble Symphony which stayed faithful to the gameplay of the original whilst added a few new elements. it also featured a rousing brass band version of the fantastic Bubble Bobble theme music. Other than using MAME to play the original under emulation, the WiiWare or PlayStation versions are probably the best home versions.

Review: Pushover

by Matt Sephton — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 07:04:00 +0000

This game was a real time sink for me during my formative years, with its simple rules hiding a fiendishly difficult set of puzzles that chewed through the hours as if they were minutes. It has to be said, however, that the Quavers crisps licence attached to the game was a very odd marketing move.

Each stage in the game consists of a number of platforms - interconnected by ladders - on which there are a series of dominoes. Each type of domino has a different pattern which dictates how it will react when toppled over. The dominoes must be arranged, one at a time, in the correct sequence so that when all dominoes topple in one chain reaction. At this point the exit will open and you can go on to the next stage. The first set of stages are a well-paced introduction to the different types of dominoes.

Various problems present themselves as soon as you start playing - you can only carry one domino at a time, and there is limited space to swap dominoes around. Platforms and even the dominoes themselves can be destroyed. If a domino blocks the exit then you’ll not be able to get out. Your character, G.I. Ant, can also die if he falls too far or is crushed by a falling domino. So it’s a lot more complicated than a simple game of dominoes.

Things are kept interesting by the number of different types of dominoes lending themselves to a variety of puzzles involving some real lateral thinking and planning ahead. Stages are set throughout nine different themed worlds all of which have their own unique graphical style and background music. Almost as an afterthought, a packet of Quavers is awarded to the player upon completing each world, tying things in loosely to the licence. Upon finishing an individual stage a token is awarded, which can be used as an undo function to save time that would be spent laying out the dominoes again. Completing all 100 stages in one session would be a ridiculous challenge, so the game uses a password system allowing you to easily resume from any stage.

Pushover is the perfect example of a one hit wonder. It was a great, original idea but it’s difficulty meant that you’d end up throwing your joystick at the wall because you’d had enough if you weren’t banging on the publisher’s door asking for more. The satisfaction gained from figuring out a puzzle that you’d been struggling with for some time was as addictive as any game.

The game was well received and a sequel - One Step Beyond - was released a year later which featured an entirely new game mechanic. Whilst it was a good game in it’s own right it can’t be held in as high regard as the original.

Whilst you can still play the original game on handful of platforms it was released on, there’s an excellent, modern and authentic remake by Ishisoft that is more enjoyable to play these days.

Review: Sensible Soccer

by Matt Sephton — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 10:35:00 +0000

The beautiful game.

When people mention football (soccer) games these days there are probably mean one of two games: FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer. These games have evolved year-on-year, from when they were originally poles apart to today where they are very much the same sort of game: photorealistic players, recognisable stadiums, team kits, tournaments and commentary from your most loved (or hated) TV sports commentator. They really feel like you’re at a football match. But I often ask myself why they feel like you’re watching a football match rather than playing a football match?

Back in the days when pixel graphics ruled the world - well my world at least - the computer football game was an entirely different beast. The power of the machines at the time imposed limits on what was possible in terms of graphics and anything else superfluous to the gameplay. Football was rendered at a much more abstract level and the rest was left wide open ready to be filled in by your imagination.

In this story it all started with Microprose Soccer - created for Microprose by a couple of Essex boys: Chris Yates and Jon Hare, who later went in to form Sensible Software. It literally flipped football games on their head - displaying the action from a top down viewpoint which allowed for easy control of both player and ball, and also let you influence the path of the ball after a kick using aftertouch. From humble beginnings come great things, as they say, and that was definitely true in this instance.

The story goes that in the middle of developing their “god simulator” Mega-lo-mania, the guys at Sensible Software started dressing up the tiny characters in football kits for fun. Reflecting on their addiction to Anco’s Kick Off 2 at the time, they realised that they had the basis for a new football game of their own: Sensible Soccer - or Sensi as it is affectionately known.

What set Sensi apart from its competitors was that you could see so much more of the pitch at once, allowing for an unparalleled level of forward planning. Control of players and ball was more accurate than ever and meant that it really felt like you were on the pitch playing as part of a team. Although the graphics may seem purely functional they possessed an ability to show remarkable likeness for the players they were representing, regardless of the fact they were only composed of hair colour, skin colour and shirt number it was completely obvious who each player was.

Subsequent revisions of the game made small, incremental improvements including the addition of red and yellow cards and an on-screen referee, as well as improved goalkeeper behaviour and other tweaks. International teams were added along with the World Cup Tournament in a version that also made it onto most consoles at the time, but it remained the same game. A year later came Sensible World of Soccer, which proved to be the ultimate version of the game. It added further refinements to the core gameplay and a comprehensive manager mode giving the game so much more depth. It also featured an amazing amount of player data - all of the players in all of the teams from all of the professional leagues in the world at that time were included - over 1,500 teams and 27,000 players in total. Add to that all national and international competitions for all club and national teams around the world and you have an most perfect representation of football.

But you know what? All that data doesn’t really matter - all you need is a couple of joysticks, a second player and a few minutes to enjoy one of the finest videogame experiences every made. In fact, in 2007 the game was included in a list of theten most important video games of all time. The fact it plays as well today as it did all those years ago is testament to it’s quality. It remains a truly beautiful game.

Review: Pang

by Matt Sephton — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 12:28:00 +0000

I like to think that this game taught me as much about world geography as school did, but that’s probably a slight exaggeration. Still, it remains to this day one of my all time favourite games.

You’re a little dude in a white safari suit on an around-the-world quest to destroy bouncing balloons at various well known locations. A second player can join in wearing a pink safari suit. Starting at the magnificent Mt Fuji in Japan and ending at Easter Island in the Pacific Ocean, you must fire your grappling gun up into the air to make contact with a balloon, which will then split into two smaller balloons. Hitting the smallest sized balloons will make them disappear. Hitting the same size balloons one after the other will multiple how many points they’re worth.

There are a number of power-ups to help and hinder: different weapons, freeze time, slow time, invincibility and dynamite. There are also hidden bonus points in the form of fruit and animals. The levels are expertly designed using different types of platforms, ladders and so on. You might think that not much can be done with some bouncing balls, some platforms and the odd ladder but you’d be wrong. It’s the sign of a great game where a simple gameplay mechanic can be used in so many different ways.

Some people say that the game is far too hard, but I think it has a perfect balance of risk/reward gameplay and I’m always left with the desire to have just one more go. The sign of a great arcade game.

As a final note, Pang: Magical Michael was recently released for Nintendo DS – hoorah! I think it’s the best version of the game to date and definitely worth the wait.

My old Atari ST software

by Matt Sephton — Tue, 01 Dec 1998 12:00:00 +0000

I dug out some old 3.5” double density floppy disks from my Atari ST days and have made some old apps of mine available as downloads. These were made between 1992 and 1994.

Paint (chunky pixel art app)
REview (text document viewer)
Chaos Calc 2 (fractal viewer)

Also included are some icons and Fuji Bar!, a companion app for the PaCifiST emulator on Windows 95 that allows you to easily manage and change .ini settings through a GUI. This was made in 1996.

Archived web page: gingerbeardman.com/archive/tektonix/atarist.htm

Get Info: #atarist

Atari/Jeff Minter game jam results, Llamasoft, and ST Format

The Results

HERD NERD

Back in the day

A yak’s favourite games (of all time), 1991

Review: Disc

Links

Review: Wizkid

Links

Review: Bubble Bobble

Links

Review: Pushover

Links

Review: Sensible Soccer

Links

Review: Pang

Links

My old Atari ST software