Circus back²STage

Circus back²STage demo for the Atari STe, by BlaBLa, Cocoon & Sector One.

With an unusual style, Circus back²STage is a fascinating Atari STe demo. It features a bucket load of colourful effects in overscan with the most wonderful chip music. Some people hate clowns, but get over it - this is literally one of the best demos I've seen. It's hard drive-installable, and downloads are available on Demozoo.

Test Drive

I fancy a road trip!

Accolade's Test Drive was released in 1987 and is one of the games I got free with my Atari ST, so I have fond memories of it during my early 16-bit days. It begins with an intro of a dude sitting in his Porsche, before winding down the window to display his very-cheesy grin. Then he speeds off into the sunset!!

There are five sports cars, and each is on the main menu with lots of technical details (that I've never read). Their artwork is gorgeous, and I personally think the Corvette is the best of the bunch for a road trip.

It's time for some screenshots, so let's check out the choice of smooth riders on offer...

I've never really been much of a Porsche fan... More of a girl's sports car, right?

Okay, it's not a Ferrari 308, but that doesn't stop me from thinking I'm Magnum P.I.

I can't say I'm a fan of this, and the handling never really excites, more terrifying!

(Insert James Bond theme now). Okay, it might not be that fast, but we love British muscle!!

I'm more of a muscle car fan myself, but the Chevrolet Corvette is a beauty in every respect.

An oldie classic?

Test Drive is a race against the clock with points awarded for faster times along a seemingly endless mountainside highway. Driven from an in-car perspective, you will notice that each car has a realistic dashboard. I love that, and it includes the manual gearbox controls, which briefly display with each shift.

I found the controls a little wooden, but I soon got the hang of them after a couple of races. A red dot on the steering wheel helps pinpoint an indication of your turning and direction. It's helpful, albeit crude. However, I admit, it does make up for the lack of analogue controls nicely. Considering that, it feels natural.

Like cars? Like rocks? Then you are gonna love this next screenshot...

Ahh, the open road of a road trip. Wait, another car? Argh, it's suddenly gridlock!! ;^)

You're not alone!

Beware, you aren't actually on a race track; it's a highway. So, with that in mind, you should watch out for other people. I'm talking about those annoying civilians who are driving on these (once-safe) roads. They seem to love head-on collisions!! There are also cops, so it's a good job that your car is fitted with a radar to help signal when they are nearby. Either slow down or hit the pedal to watch them disappear in your rearview mirror!

I treat these moments as a green light to push the pedal to the metal, but that's just me! Don't forget to refuel at the gas station checkpoint before continuing with your Bullrun Rally. Petrol doesn't last forever!

Honestly, I'm a good driver. Especially after a few beers, as shown in this next screenshot...

Sometimes your road trip can go terribly wrong!

Old school aesthetics

Test Drive runs at a nice framerate and has some funny characteristics, like the grey fella driving his truck. How about the steering wheel without hands? Or the slo-mo effect as your windscreen breaks up after a crash - it's almost worth slamming into an oncoming vehicle just to see that. Also, the dashboards are superb, with the Corvette being my favourite, but all cars feature equally great graphics.

Musically very nice with lots of jingles and tunes during the menus and screens when filling up with fuel. The car's sound effects aren't the best; it's all buzzy compared to other oldies like Turbo Cup. Shame.

I love how the game looks, even if the cars sound like a bee trapped inside a drum. Screenshot time...

It's time to fill up before hitting that open road.

The CryptO'pinion?

Test Drive offers an enjoyable drive without the rush of a speedster like Vroom or Crazy Cars III. It's more like a charming Sunday drive without that thrill of speed. But don't let that put you off, this is a great driving game and one I have a soft spot for. This cliffside road tripper is the beginning of the historical 90s series.

To think that this series began on the Atari ST. Yep, it's a grand racer with loads of great cars for the rocky American roads. I wouldn't say it's the ST's best racer, but I love it to bits!! Fantastic game.

8BitChip has a hard drive version, which I recommend!

Atari Legend has floppy disk images.

Update: There is an excellent new video by Wasabim.

Over the years, there have been many Test Drive games, and I loved playing the fifth on the PlayStation back in the day.

Giana Sisters

Turn your ST into a Nintendo!

The Great Giana Sisters was released in 1987 by Rainbow Arts and is a platformer with (umm) more than a hint of Italian plumbing. The commercial game played well, but suffered from flip-screen scrolling that soon became tiresome. Ultimately, it was a lame port and spoiled what should have been an excellent release.

Don't give me the old excuse that the ST cannot scroll. It can scroll: Viking Child, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Enchanted Land, Stario, Alien World, Zone Warrior, Onslaught and many, more!! Yes, it bugs me when I see people's daft comments claiming that the ST cannot scroll. Blame the programmer - not the computer! /rant

It looks like I wasn't the only person to hate our conversion because Samuel (aka Zamuel_a of Pac-Mania fame) decided to convert it to the Atari STe. He makes use of the hardware scrolling so the entire screen scrolls rather than flipping - and it's smooth, 50fps smooth. To say that this update is jaw-dropping is an understatement, and it certainly beats the pathetic commercial original. Where was Samuel back in the 80s lol.

The game is the same, but it now scrolls. This transforms your experience, as he has put the Atari STe to great use, which proves the power of this wonderful computer. Finally, we can play Giana Sisters as it was meant to be enjoyed! Waste no more time and download this wonderful version (improved by Peter Putnik)

Watch the above video and check out these screenshots...

It looks basic, but it also looks console-cool, too. I like it, very NES... to me.

Happily walking along, and then something falls on your head!

I really hate that horrendous big bug, so let's jump over the sucker and run!

Anarcho Ride

Carmageddon!!!

Anarcho Ride is a "racer" for the Atari STe by Thomas Ilg of Laser Ball fame. Ignore what the screenshots show; this isn't actually a racer as such. Sure, it looks the part, but it's more of a smash 'n grab - think Carmageddon, where head-on collisions get you the points needed to go further and play extra levels.

At first, I found it difficult because avoiding the other cars is natural. Don't. When you're behind the wheel, the aim is to smash into every car you can - and why not shoot the ones you have missed using a missile? That sounds about right! Yes, it's silly and stupid, but also pure mechanical violence! Totally insane!!

The graphics are weirdly 80s in style and remind me of Crazy Cars and others from that era. The Atari STe produces a decent framerate and is very smooth. The only negative is that the car has no shadow, so it appears to "hover." The audio is outstanding, with DMA effects alongside stunning chip music by xFalcon.

If you're looking for a new racing game. Look elsewhere, this isn't a racer. This is a crazy, vicious crash 'em up!! Smashing cars and stuff up is always excellent fun, and Anarcho Ride proves that perfectly.

Download Anarcho Ride (+ expansions)

We're out for a nice, quiet drive in the desert. Enable the Hills Have Eyes mode!

It looks like we're in the salt flats, and, oh no, there's a safe driver up ahead!

Now we're smashing through the lush landscape of what could only be England. Death on the roads!