HangAbout!

Cliffhanger!

HangAbout was released in 1995 by John Hodskinson and is one of the quirkiest games I've played. Ignore what you're seeing above and read on... Three (randomly generated) mountains need to be climbed by a little stickman with the first being relatively easy. The second is harder and the third is a killer!

Each mountainside has ridges to which our adventurer can cling. He uses these to find a route to the top. However, if you fall too far you suffer a messy pixelated death. It's brilliant albeit not what you wanna see! Our stickman can use his arms to reach those parts that are a pinch out of reach. Sometimes, the route appears blocked by a gap too large, so a "megajump" can be used - but only once! Use it wisely.

HangAbout! is one of those games that first appears rubbish (with rubbish graphics). But then turns out to be incredible and extremely addictive. In fact, it's gobsmackingly brilliant, and for less than 10Kb!!

+ Download PD Games Compilation Disk #2 which features another by John called Haywire.

Turrican II - The Music

Check this out!!

Turrican II The Music by Black (aka Scott Clifford). A music disk for both ST computers shows just how great this game's tunes really are. Also, included is a selection of stereo remixes for the Atari STe so what more could you want? I've recorded this video and it plays about a minute from ten random tracks - but you should nab the download via Demozoo to hear all the tunes yourself. Of course, it's best experienced using a real Atari STe - so crank up the volume!!

Credits and the download...

Black - Code

Jochen Hippel - Music

Sven Meier - Graphics

https://demozoo.org/productions/152964/

Burger Dream

Junk Food Makes You FAT!

Burger Dream is Reisoft's spin on 'Clowns & Balloons' with a Ronald McDonald lookalike collecting flying burgers. Imagine Breakout with a dollop of Space Invaders - but replace the aliens with hamburgers!

Ronald is left to feel the wind in his wig because we control a couple of goons who move a trampoline contraption that allows him to bounce high in the air and collect burgers. These are scrolling across the screen to make it extra difficult. However, try not to drop Ronny otherwise, he ends up in a crumpled heap.

The mouse is used for left/right movement and is perfectly implemented for smooth & precise control. Sadly, the graphics aren't exactly 16-bit more like something I would have drawn! Only the blind will appreciate these pixels! Burger Dream is hideous and repetitive but I admit it was surprisingly enjoyable.

Download your Big Mac right now!

NIBE

Wiggly Slimy snakes!

NIBE is a Nibbler/Snake game by Marc Bourlon that features an ever-greedy snake who wants to chomp his way through lots of apples. However, this gluttony makes him grow longer with each bite so it becomes harder to protect him from bumping into walls or even his own tail. You get the idea, so it's our job to help him eat his way through lots of screens - and many are pretty cruel in their design. You can even change the game's speed (if you dare!!)

The graphics are humble and suit the retro theme perfectly. Plus I love its title screen which is actually a really good intro. Sadly, there are no sound effects so Mad Max music plays throughout - never a bad thing!! Overall, Nibe is pretty straightforward yet also extremely challenging thanks to a sinister design. Stick with it because the basic mechanics are spot-on and Nibe will certainly test your reactions, patience and concentration so prepare thyself to be tormented!!

Here are a couple of links for downloads, screenshots, and another game you might enjoy...

Floppy disk downloads appear to be quite rare.

And if you enjoyed Nibe then try N.o.B.I. - Racing!!

This is a level that looks so easy but it's completely the opposite! So tricky so be warned.

Oh yeah, I definitely think this is going to be easy. Ask me if I ever completed it...

Breakout

Going noSTalgic

Breakout is an excellent GEM desktop accessory that lets us play the game of brick-busting at any time. I had this installed on my boot drive back in the day and remember marvelling at the multitasking capabilities of my lovely Atari ST computer!! It seemed like black magic, even if ACCs faked that illusion in GEM!

Of course, it works best in a multitasking OS - just use MagiC, MiNT or Geneva!

The game is basic, but fun and works in all resolutions too. However, I doubt anyone will choose this over the magnificent Bolo which is the best version for the Atari ST. Still, finding this little ACC has made my day once again 30 years later. So, thank you to whoever developed this - please, get in touch and say hello.

Okay, it's time to hit the download button. Erm, link I meant to say. Enjoy this piece of GEM history!!

Holocaust

Holocaust is an (unreleased) vertically-scrolling shooter developed by Dattrax Software and later given away in ST Format. It's incredibly fast and features lots of enemies, bonuses and bosses to annihilate! Heck, it has a couple of cool intros and talks out loud which is something any Currah MicroSpeech fan will adore.

The gameplay is initially very frantic and makes Wings Of Death look easy! It's disappointing that we're given only one life (without bonuses). I would have expected at least three to tame this rabid beast!! The graphics might not look ace but they move at a brisk 50fps which is ultra-cool. The music is gorgeous!

Brace yourself for a breathtaking shoot 'em up. Only the strong need to apply for this one... sheesh!!

Sector One Music Disk

Your ears are gonna love this one...

Sector One is a music disk by Denis Huguet (ST Ghost) that pushes the DMA audio hardware to the limits with many cool stereo tunes - some feature 8/16 channels. Yup, it's quite mindblowing and certainly proves the power lurking underneath the STe's grey plastic case. We also have options to choose the various playback frequencies and also control the volume, treble, bass and more. Yep, this is a technical masterpiece and I love the Just Buggin' tune!!

Brighten up your evening with my recording or download this beauty for yourself!