Ghost Battle

The demoscene is here!

Thalion games always oozed a superior visual and audio style that few others could match. However, I don't think I ever played Ghost Battle, which is very odd as I'm a fan of platformers and Thalion. So, let's play...

We are the stereotypical muscle-bound hero who needs to rescue his kidnapped girlfriend, who was recently whisked away by a giant hand. Yeah, that's right, a giant hand!! At least you get to travel to some of the most beautiful places trying to find her, and along the way, you should kill everything in your wake! However, I fear the control and basic gameplay mechanics are a little awkward and affect your movement, which feels stiff, so it will take some getting used to.

The initial weapon isn't exactly great because of its poor firing rate, which isn't nearly enough to match the demands of a quick kill. So, no matter how many times you try to rapidly hit that fire button, most monsters will manage to survive just long enough to zap your precious energy. It's frustrating and spoils what might have been.

This is a lot like the Ghouls And Ghosts with similar level designs and a few puzzles. The action is predictable but very hard and will surely torment the most discerning gamers. Did Thalion employ beta testers? It's very difficult...

Okay, what's up with those freaky eyes!! That's drugs for ya, kids!

What a cute intro... Well, until a giant hand appears and whisks away your dolly bird!

- Graphics & Sounds -

The graphics are astounding, with stunning artwork by Henk Nieborg. The scrolling is silky-smooth and is best viewed on the Atari STe (and older STs that might have a Blitter). It reminds me of a mix of Ghouls And Ghosts, Risky Woods, Stormlord, and maybe even a tickle of Shadow Of The Beast? It's hard to imagine a prettier platformer, but this is!

Like the visuals, the audio is outstanding and matches the pixels for their quality in equal measure. I think you'll guess who's behind the music, and it's nothing less than fabulous! Mad Max helps prove that chip music will last forever.

The opening level is stunning and scrolls beautifully. Now, master those controls!!

There are lots of enemies, and they look gorgeous. Watch out for that chainsaw guy!

- The CryptO'pinion -

Ghost Battle could so easily have been a crackerjack platformer, as it's got so much going for it and is aesthetically one of the best 16-bit games on the planet. However, it suffers from its own stupid design flaws thanks to some of the most awkward control mechanics I've ever seen. Argh, so frustrating because its potential is immense, but you'll see very little unless you spend years mastering the cruel learning curve. Okay, you could just cheat and use a trainer?

Ghost Battle looks and sounds incredible, but it's going to need lots of time; otherwise, don't bother. However, once you've mastered that and progressed beyond the confusing open levels, there's a good game here - nothing beats seeing a zombie on a pogo stick! Overall, quite good, but the unbalanced gameplay and controls let it down.

Sadly, there are better games to play on the Atari ST, although I doubt they'll look or sound as good!

The floppy disk can be found using Old Games Finder

And 8BitChip has the HDD version.

Sea Of Colour

[[No words are needed for this jaw-breaking demo]]

Credits and my ultimate respect are sent to these ST heroes

Evil - coding | Excellence in Art - music | Gizmo - data | Templeton - graphics

Stop! Download Sea Of Colour demo for the Atari STe right now!

Dragonlord

Colour Clash!

Have you ever spent time trying to learn a game only to walk away completely baffled and wondering why you bothered? Well, here is Dragon Lord, an extremely unusual multi-screen platformer released in 1990 by 16-32 Diffusion. We are playing the part of a huge dragon who appears to be living in a whole wide world of weird! The objective is to become the new dragon lord, which means plundering through over a hundred screens looking for artefacts, killing some fascinating creatures and ultimately battling an evil guardian.

The gameplay is simplistic, thus easy to pick up, and it's fun breathing fire to scorch enemies. I found the map design laborious and would often end up getting lost, so I spent my time burning down the bad guys!! However, the controls are clumsy because we are a massive dragon sprite moving around tight places.

The visuals are quite (ahem) unique. Pretty amateur artwork that looks like it was created by somebody with colour blindness. Ignoring that graphical nightmare, Dragon Lord’s sprites are massive and of a great and humorous variety! Sadly, the sound effects are pretty much a joke; the less said, the better!

I am disappointed with Dragonlord as I can see the potential, but it doesn’t gel together. It has poor mechanics, and the eye-bleeding graphics spoil what could have been an interesting idea. Having said that, I found myself having “just one more go”, yet I cannot for the life of me think why. Perhaps I'm going mad?

Fancy plucking out your eyeballs in horror? Then get the download at Atari Legend.

Time Bandit

HiSToric gaming!

Microdeal released Time Bandit in 1985, ranking as one of the first Atari ST games. Programmed by Bill Dunlevy, long before any developers knew how to push our 16-bit computer. However, my first impressions weren't good, as I felt this was a cheap Gauntlet ripoff. I continued to play until my sanity returned.

Ignore my foolish first impressions because I fear there might be a funky game lurking behind those old 8bit visuals. Fwiw, Time Bandit was released for the TRS-80 a couple of years before Gauntlet.

Time Bandit is an isometric arcade adventure where we play as a roguish thief hopping through different eras of time in search of valuable artefacts. We begin in The Timegates, a place that permits access to the many strange worlds. Each one is a compact, monster-infested, trap-filled place where the objective is simple: grab the loot, avoid or outwit the enemies, and make it to the exit alive. Simple stuff, right?

These different words help make this game weird, as they range from ancient Egypt to a bomb-making factory and other surprises - like Pac-Man land. They have their own style and objectives with gameplay reminiscent of Gauntlet. This is quite unique, blending genres: primarily, it's an action-adventure, but it incorporates puzzle-solving elements and even short text-adventure segments depending on the world we are exploring.

For each world, the exit is blocked, so we need to find the key(s) or complete tasks to escape. Interestingly, each world can be played again for an increased level of difficulty and fascinating design changes, all of which keep the gameplay interesting and progressively challenging. Battles are fought using a rocket launcher and, best of all, you've been blessed with unlimited ammo too!! Very nice, and that suits me just dandy.

Time Bandit is a cracker with interesting levels to plunder that offer a unique charm. It might look like Gauntlet, which it predates, but it's so much more!! Additionally, each world is very different, with such a huge variety of gameplay that increases in difficulty with each attempt. No other similar game comes close to having so many styles, yet it keeps its own uniqueness to become a true Atari ST classic you shouldn't miss.

Yes, I said all that, and (shockingly) for a 1985 game, too! Truly one of the best Atari ST games.

• Budding time lords should download this game for floppy or your hard disk!!

- Sixteen whacky worlds -

 
Underworld Arena has many spectators, and Darkside Dare is incredibly odd with unexpected twists.

 
Castle Greymoon is one of my favourite levels, as is the dingy Excalibur spaceship!

 
Shadowland? Nah, this is a Pacman ripoff lol. Welkin Island looks rubbish but is so cool.

 
Omega Complex, one vowel off being blocked. The Sentinel reminded me a little of Tutankhamun.

 
Gridville appears to have rude tomatoes, but Hotel California allows us to play as John Wayne!!

 
Watch out for strange aliens in Major Hazard, but the Old Bomb Factory takes that to another level!!

 
Cheops' Curse offers more than you think, but there's a spooky graveyard in Ghost Town.

Guardian is tough even on the first attempt. Watch out for the creepy crawlies in King's Crown.