After The War

Muscles and big boots

After the War was released back in 1989 by Dinamic Software, it's (partly) a fantastic beat 'em up, similar in style to Double Dragon 3. You are Jonathan Rogers, aka Jungle Rogers, and must assassinate Professor McJerin, who is today's nutcase. Worryingly set in the near future, during a post-apocalyptic Manhattan, where you must kill all the bad dudes and escape to somewhere better than this hellhole! Sounds easy, right?

The game is split into two parts: the first is a scrolling beat 'em up. The second is a shoot 'em up platformer. Upon playing part one, the first thing that struck me was the amazing graphics!! Huge sprites, great colour, and good scrolling. I adore the backgrounds and found the artwork to be apt for the grungy scenario. Sound effects are very cool and are made up of low-quality grunts and thumps with silly cries when somebody is killed. It is worth mentioning the awesome title theme, which I think is superb!

Check out this screenshot from the first part of the game...

It's time to kick ass and chew bubble gum... No, wait... Wrong game!

Kick and punch everyone!

Controls are easy to master and offer: a punch, a flying kick, jumping, and a get-me-outta-here rollback. Strangely, the keyboard is needed to activate another type of kick and a nut-crushing low punch, especially useful for rabid dogs! Sadly, I found flipping between the two sets of controls an awkward killjoy.

Part two is only playable once the first is completed. Our musclebound hero is now equipped with a giant weapon as he heads off into the underground. Gamestyle is a platform shooter where we need to blast everything, even the pesky rats! The controls aren't great, and the directional aiming is overly complicated. This stage is okay, but I found myself stressing over the controls rather than having fun, which isn't good. No, it's quite poor!

I didn't like part two enough to include a screenshot, so let's see the beat'em up...

I hit him so hard he flew into the air. Yeah, I’m big and strong! GRR!!!

The CryptO'pinion?

After the War is two games in one, which may sound great, but it's not. The beat 'em part is superb with decent graphics, sounds and lots of violence - I enjoyed playing it a bunch!! But that's more than can be said about the second part, which doesn't work as there is too much going on. It's not enjoyable if I'm honest.

Download this game, if only for the beat 'em up stages, and you have yourself a winner. Tons of fun!!

• Update September 2017: 8BitChip has a new hard drive installable download!
• Atarimania has the floppy disk version.
• Who fancies a couple of cheats...

          --> Fancy the code to part two: 101069 (tested and works)

          --> Inf.energy in part one, press keys: ALT, 1, B (untested)

          --> Inf.energy in part two, press keys: ALT, 1, M (untested)

Enduro Racer

Wheelie good fun

The Atari ST received a great conversion of Enduro Racer, programmed by Ian Morrison, who also made the amazing Road Blasters. There are five races to compete in against a whole load of other bikers on tracks littered with many hazards. The controls are superb, and I found cornering tight and exhilarating. Watch out for the timer, which is happy to tick down, so learn and practice the tracks! This is the only way you'll beat it and maybe show off those skills by doing a handlebar handstand? It's crazy, but it's cool.

Visually, things are a little sparse, but that helps to produce a better framerate. The music is nothing short of fantastic and typically Dave Whittaker - in other words, brilliant. Enduro Racer might be showing its age a little when compared to other ST racers, but I still think it's worth booting up. Cars are best, but this proves that even bikes can look cool when leaping over the jumps and thrashing around tight turns.

This is what excellent racing looks like, and I guarantee that you will love every second of it.

Floppy Disks  |  Hard Drive

Bellum Internecinum

Galaga!

Released in 1989 by M Goss-Custard, Bellum Internecinum is a Galaga clone.  Shoot first and ask questions later, as these incredibly trigger-happy ETs attack in formations. Don’t expect to take any prisoners. They also swoop down to clutter the screen for frantic action, gaining speed and ferocity as you progress.

The joystick controls are great, offering full directional movement. However, your ship has a limited amount of damage before parts start falling off, so be careful (which is actually a superb effect to see!)

Bellum Internecinum is a rock-solid shoot ‘em up, and I’ve loved every second playing it.

• Downloads can be found over at Atarimania.
• Wanna play more arcade games from the public domain?

Chubby Gristle

Oi, Fatso!!

This is a story of a fat, obnoxious parking attendant who loves to eat food - a pillar of the community! Chubby Gristle is always hungry and will roam looking for grub to nosh on in Grandslam Entertainment's 1988 platformer. This is a platformer and feels like games I played on my ZX Spectrum. Never a bad thing.

Each screen is designed in a fashion similar to Monty Mole. Chubby Gristle is incredibly tough and perhaps too difficult for the average gamer. As with all platformers, each screen has ledges, moving platforms, ropes, and the expected angry sprites zipping back n' forth (awkward to avoid, without losing a precious life).

Visually, it's perfectly 8-bit with 16-bit enhancements. And I mean that in a good way because it happily blasted me back into the 1980s. The sprites move smoothly and are animated using a style Peter Harrap would be proud of. Sadly, I'm disappointed with the audio, which plays the same tune over (and over). It's great, but we really needed a varied selection, and I found no way to replace that with the sound effects.

Chubby Gristle could have been a hit, but the joystick controls fail, making it too hard. There's so much going on, and it's too easy for the fat man to bump into something or fall flat on his face. Many extra lives are needed to balance it out. There are some great screens, but you won't get to see them without cheating.

This is a game that loves to see you suffer. Whoever playtested this should be shot!!

• Klaz' Hideaway who has the floppy and a hard drive installable game (with lives cheat).
• I've recorded a video of my dispare, dare you view it?
• Cheating is never good but Chubby needs extra lives like no other game on the planet. To enable infinite lives, type "buuurrp" on the title screen. You will hear a burp that confirms success. (untested by me) 

Microprose Golf

Another good walk spoiled?

Microprose Golf is a bit of a show-off if truth be told. It's like the rich and successful younger brother of poor old Leaderboard, who is green with envy! Now, I'm hardly a golfing connoisseur, but the developers have done a blinding job and created an involving game with a vast array of mind-boggling features that take it into the realm of a serious sim. But, don't panic, that doesn't make it boring!! Oh no, not at all, so read on.

Golf fans will shriek with happiness as several game types are on offer. Each is affected by an array of realistic variables that can alter every aspect and the outcome of your shots. Yes, just like the variables that real golfers have to think about: the type of ground, your stance, weather conditions, and so on. I'm sure experienced golfers will be drooling over the intricate settings long before they even consider teeing off. Heck, even as a novice, I was mightily impressed and blown away in equal measure.

One of the things I loved was seeing each hole before playing it. Just like in this screenshot...

Take a look at the course to get a brilliant perspective of what lies ahead.

Whack that ball!!

All control is made using the mouse, of course. The game's GUI is well-designed and intuitive to drastically reduce any learning curve. So setting up a shot isn't a chore when perfecting control and direction.

Microprose has taken 16-bit golfing to a whole new level by introducing its camera-angled viewpoints. That's right, it's like the camera is mounted to a drone that follows the ball along its airborne path. I sat in utter amazement as I watched my first shot in action. It's a gob-smacking moment!! There is also a selection of other cool camera angles, and all benefit from smoother framerates on faster computers - like my Mega STe.

Don't run away green with envy! Stop and read some more after this screenshot...

Take the shot and let's see how good you really are. Whoosh... SPLOSH!!! :D

Aesthetics

Graphically, this easily stands head and shoulders above anything else I've seen on any 16-bit computer. The artwork is superb throughout and is also nicely detailed with bold colours and designs we've come to admire from Microprose. However, it's the 3D aspect that absolutely blows the competition away. Jaw-dropping.

Sounds are excellent, but I do feel more ambient effects would have been nice during the times you're setting up a shot. It would have been good to hear birds chirping, a little breeze, or background crowd chatter.

There's always something, isn't there? Never mind, it's time for another screenshot...

This is superb, how I can get a feel for how my shot might go with a little practice...

The CryptO'pinion?

Microprose has done what they always did and released an Atari ST game that blows your socks off. At every level, it's beautiful and comes with a perfect blend of strategy and arcade to lose yourself in. Whether you're a casual fan or a golfing expert, I'm positive you will love playing what is a superb game.

You can grab the floppies but this is best run from a hard drive/Ultrasatan. Wasabim has recorded a fantastic video and AtariMania has neat scans of the manual.