5 Random Atari ST Games

Something new, something unexpected

I thought that it might be a nice idea to randomly select a handful of Atari ST games - something different from what I might normally choose. So I picked five games from the Dream Weavers menu disks catalogue. Everything is available on a floppy disk from Atari Legend but all can be installed onto a hard drive thanks to D-Bug and 8BitChip.

Anyhow, this idea proved fun and with a few shocks too: I had a blast playing four totally new games (and Golden Axe). The video recording shows my first attempt at each game and I hope you enjoy watching it? Not a walkthrough ;)

Let's take a quick look at each one of these random Atari ST games. This was a fun play I gotta admit...

 The Amazing Spider-Man 

Update: I have since reviewed and featured a high-resolution map. Check it out here! :-)

Okay, the first up is The Amazing Spiderman by Empire Software. Now, I think that I remember playing this a few years ago but wasn't too impressed by the fiddly controls and lethargic pace? However, I must say that this "platformer" has genuinely shocked me because it's an incredible adventure which puts a different spin on the expected genre simply because of Spidey's mechanics. This means we have the expected superhero abilities along with being quite the sneaky saboteur - it's superb walking on the ceiling to creep by our enemies or punch switches with our webs.

There is also a fantastic 8-Bit vibe going on. Especially visually, which might not go down well for those looking for a classy 16-Bit quality, but I think it's perfect. Overall, this is now literally one of my favourite Atari ST games and I cannot possibly explain just how much I've loved being Spiderman!! Makes for a boring recording but this is an absolute GEM.

The opening screens are excellent giving the player a chance to learn the control mechanics.

Watch the giant Spider-Man on the right. The game ends when he's a skeleton!

 Edd the Duck! 

Next up is Edd The Duck which was aimed more at kids and isn't something I would normally choose. It's basically a poor man's Rainbow Islands but it does a good job trying to live up to that class act. Actually, this is also a cracking game and a lot better than I had expected. However, I found the jump mechanic a little off and the difficulty high.

Overall, it's a good platformer but it's probably a better idea to boot up Rainbow Islands?

You've gotta admit that the graphics are superb, especially the sprites.

There's a lot going on which makes this game quite tough. Practice makes perfect?

 Exterminator 

Audiogenic's Exterminator was developed by The Assembly Line and is something I've wanted to play for a while - because it reminded me of Trashman on the ZX Spectrum. This game is about pest control as the entire street is overrun with critters: wasps, spiders and many others. We won't be laying traps or leaving poison because we're quite the hands-on guy.

Yep, using a BIG hand, we crush, pound or shoot the critters that emerge from the darkest corners of each room. It's kinda like a nightmarish mix of Klax and gets even sillier with support for two players - which is actually tremendous fun. This game is pointless, yet something every Dad needs to experience with his kids - they will love it.

A good bug-crunching game that excels in two-player mode and I'm shocked at how much I enjoyed Exterminator. Finally, I must add that The Assembly Line makes us proud by supporting the Atari STe with cool DMA sounds!!

I really enjoyed this game. It's silly and great fun but best experienced with another player.

I instantly got Trashman vibes from my old Speccy days.

Everything comes at you pretty fast. Can you squash or crush everything in time?

 Golden Axe 

Golden Axe is a beat 'em up that needs no introduction. Such a fine arcade conversion but it's also one of those games that could have been a great chance to show off what the Atari STe was capable of. Sadly, there's no STe support, an opportunity lost [IMHO]. That is where my criticism ends because this "platformer" is pure gold and tons of fun. I also love the graphics and sounds too!! They have done a good job here, so if you're after an awesome hack 'n' slasher - this is it.

I should make a proper article here on AtariCrypt for this amazing game. A superb game, play it!! :-)

Slam the dude on the head whilst his friend sleeps. Brilliant action!!

Ah, it looks like these two got the better of me (again!)

 Ivan Ironman Stewart's

Super Off-Road 

Virgin's Super Off-Road is another game I wouldn't typically have considered because it looks like a shameless Super Sprint ripoff. However, I am kicking myself because this is fantastic, and I immediately took to its bumpy racer style. It's so much fun tearing around the mucky tracks - but it was odd being asked for my date of birth. Anyhow, the game has superb controls and the physics performed very well. Ripping up dirt with Ivan is absolutely brilliant and I had a blast!

What it lacks in originality is compensated by great gameplay and is the perfect end for a great run of ST games.

Hey, it's an offroad Fonzie!

Ignore the Super Sprint vibes and play this gorgeous racer!!

Cud Lee's Quest

A cuddly platformer?

I remember playing this quirky platformer by Robert Dytmire many years ago. I enjoyed its alternative style as it features some rather "odd" mechanics which are very weird. But stop - wouldn't life be boring if every platformer played as you expected? With that in mind, Cud Lee (geddit?) was originally aimed at a younger audience with interesting child/tutor features by design. But I also think there's something quite charming about this so should appeal to all.

The aim is to fight our way through the hoards of baddies to rescue captured Pixies at the end of each level. It sounds easy but you better watch out for a range of enemies who are happily roaming through the screens. It's like a weird dream and this mechanic I adore. They are literally wandering the screens going about their business - whether you can see them or not. These suckers love to jump and many are really tough and can even fire weapons. It's madness!!

The joystick controls are the first thing that hits you because everything feels very low-grav with super-weird movements. Collecting power-ups is a good idea to increase speed, jumping abilities, weaponry, and extra lives. Keys will unlock doors and some walls can be climbed like Zool because of "strange knobby things". What a weird game.

Yes, it's weird. I say that a lot because, well, it's weird! Let's see the first screenshot...

Gotta love the baddies and their freaky jumps but watch out for the little blue guy's arrows!!

Aesthetics?

Graphically, this is no Hoog or pretty much anything else from the Atari ST's PD library. Backgrounds are a boring black and the environments aren't anything much to write home about. However, it's got a certain charm with the character sprites being the best thing. Plus their numbers are huge and I found that detailed and styled with buckets of humour.

The sound effects are made from a mix of chip with samples. This mash works really well but the 'WORRR' when something dies is quite pathetic. So pathetic that I loved it to bits. Hey, it's a PD game... Come on!

Never has such a weird platformer been played by me! There's that weird word again! It's screenshot time...

Weapons are great and can be powered up to kill these hopping crazies with great efficiency!!

The CryptO'pinion?

Cud Lee's Quest is crudely entertaining and I think that's the point. I am unsure it will appeal to everyone because it's hardly a conventional platformer. What I love is the freedom we're given and the speed at which to explore a strange world. Also, the ability to float (err jump) with such great efficiency through the screens is utterly superb.

Genuinely, one of the silliest and most compelling platformers so why not have yourself a daft hour? Enjoy it!!

Grab the disk image if you're tempted?

Hong Kong Phooey

A story about a mild-mannered janitor

Once again, I've been plodding through my YouTube channel and found another old video, Hi-Tec's Hong Kong Phooey. This is a scrolling beat 'em up that begins with a cool intro based on the 70s cartoon I watched as a kid - this certainly brought a smile to my face!! After Spot releases the unappreciated janitor from the filing cabinet, we begin our adventure searching for Baron Von Bankjob who has just escaped from jail.

Watch out for the thugs wandering back and forth who want to stop us from capturing the villainous Baron. Thankfully, we are an expert in kung fu which is very handy. The joystick controls are superb and we can punch and kick our foe in many different ways: pushing up (whilst walking) performs a killer Van Damme flying manoeuvre. To reach higher platforms requires a bigger jump and that means also hitting the fire button which is a little cumbersome. I'm sure that action could have been thought out better?

And that's about that. Explore the screens looking for folk to hit as we hunt down the Baron. Think Rolling Thunder but a lot better. Okay, for those old enough to remember this fantastic cartoon...

I love the title sequence. It's short 'and sweet but I feel like a kid watching it!

The moves are easy to learn but lots of fun. "Yee-ah that, sucka!" (say this in a Mr T voice!!!)

Hanna-Barbera magic?

The graphics are nice and cartoony with an oldskool style that might not appeal to many looking for something extra or gorgeous 16-bit sex appeal. The scrolling is smooth but it's at the expense of screen size which has been reduced by a largely pointless status panel. Gotta love the crude character sprites and their pathetic animations! Worst of all when we jump - it's more of a float through the air! Totally ludicrous, but who cares?

Musically, there are nice tunes which I love and that are accompanied by sound effects for jumping and so on. Okay, they're just about good enough so it's the background music I enjoyed the most.

All pretty good but not great. Let's not let that stop a couple more screenshots from appearing...

Learning kung fu certainly didn't help this janitor to jump grace. More like floating!

One gets kicked into the air and then Flash Gordon turns up!

The CryptO'pinion?

I remembered making this video recording and feeling lukewarm afterwards, basically because I kept losing my barring so got lost a lot! Perhaps I should have checked out the map first? Anyhow, back then, I wasn't sure if the game captured the heart of the TV show or not. And I must admit, I'm still not exactly sure.

Hong Kong Phooey brings nothing new to the table. However, the Chuck Norris kicks are crudely entertaining, and I enjoyed exploring a technicolour world. If you have a cat called Spot and a cabinet to get changed in, then I suggest you boot it up. It's a good game, but there are better platformers for the Atari ST.

Download the floppy or hard disk version.

The Last Trooper

I'll be Danny Welinski

Last year, I spent several fantastic weeks enjoying Where Time Stood Still but was later left deflated because I also wanted to play The Great Escape, which is a truly outstanding affair. Alas, the Atari ST game was never meant to be, but wipe away those snowflake tears because there might be light at the end of this 16-bit tunnel? Well, I hope so!

Here we have Mastertronic's very own The Last Trooper which appears to be more than a tad inspired by the previously mentioned Ocean classic! However, the historical storyline and adventure elements are completely gone in favour of four levels of brutal arcade-style killing so go and grab your big boy pants because this is going to be tough!

Wanna see some screenshots of this isometric Commando shooter? Yeah, of course, you do...

Escape the POW Camp in true A-Team style using whatever you can find...

Now it's time to attack your foes but watch out for those GEM-Green mines!

Good but tough!

We're a muscle-bound Schwarzenegger trapped inside an isometric POW camp. Oddly, we already have a machine gun so must find a way to escape before attacking the enemy and destroying their base. The enemy will come after you constantly but they're not the most intelligent and can run around like headless chickens - a little annoying. Other soldiers will hide in trenches or operate gun turrets and you should also look out for other tricky traps, like camouflaged mines.

The controls are simple and very responsive but I initially found it frustrating learning how to line up a shot to kill the frantic headless chickens - it's like they don't care about you being there!! Hmm, anyhow, your crusade won't last very long unless you eat the food that's been carelessly left lying about. Don't forget to top-up your weapon with fresh ammo.

There are other items that you will need to source that will help you out later in the mission. These are essential items that might not be obvious at first: ropes are always handy to have, for example. And there's oddly a huge supply of wire cutters left inside the POW camp. Hmm, that's two interesting pointers that you should remember.

Well, enough reading! Let's check out some more screenshots...

Things got a little tiresome by the third level which was more of the same but a lot harder!

But the fourth level is explosive and much better. Although it's a shame about the poor ending...

The CryptO'pinion?

I've quite enjoyed playing The Last Trooper - but only after activating a trainer for infinite lives. Without that, I failed to beat the second level due to the ridiculous difficulty that is primarily thanks to the headless chickens running about. They blindly shoot everything with extreme efficiency so I wonder if anyone actually bothered to beta-test before its release?

Overall, an above-average shooter that's quite flawed with high difficulty but it's still a bundle of fun for an hour or two. However, if I'm being brutally honest, then I'll stick with Fernandez Must Die and Elite's Commando.

Download for floppy or hard disk.

Custodian

Help! What do I do?

I've been going through my old videos and found this frantic 8-way shooter by legends Hewson. Programmed by Chris Hinsley, who made the awesome Onslaught and Verminator, it features fast visuals whizzing across your screen like lightning. It's crazy and these are all by Nigel Brownjohn who was behind one of my fave platformers, Beyond the Ice Palace. The audio is gorgeous, thanks to the magic of Dave Whittaker.

We are a "custodian" of a massive tomb infested by alien parasites. Obviously, we've gotta clean up this place which means killing everything! The best part is that we look like something from the demoscene [cough] and are equipped with an armed jetpack. Zooming about the place is exciting stuff but the aliens are relentless and the basic mechanics just don't work well together, so it soon becomes a demented slog!

Chris knew how to program the Atari ST but he missed the mark here. There's too much going on with confusing and relentless gameplay. Perhaps I'm wrong? If you're feeling brave, Custodian can run from a floppy or hard drive. Get ready and brace yourself for a rough journey!! Let me know what you think...

Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! Attack!! ARGHHHH!! Help me, somebody!!

Too much!! Too much!! What's going on? Everything wants me dead... Oh, I died!

Risky Woods

Spanish Games

I'm digging up another oldie video from my YouTube channel (please subscribe) and this time it's Risky Woods developed by Dinamic - the ones who gave us a Marine with his wiggly legs (lol fantastic!). This time we are Rohan, a young knife-wielding chap from a place called The Lost Land, a once-peaceful place protected by Monks. Yep, monks.

These monks once guarded the wisdom of the Lost Land until a rather nasty baddie turned up to ruin everything - Draxos brought his legions of evil armies and turned all the monks into statues. Nobody is safe, children are crying and evil roams the lands. What can we do? Of course, this is our queue to enter the woods and free the monks and defeat Draxos. It's gonna be a tough challenge - can you do it? Come on, kids are crying so it is time to kick some demonic ass!

I know, another silly story for another normal day in retro gaming land. So, let's play...

Hurry and free all the monks to save the land from the evil Draxos!

Sexy platforming!

Risky Woods is a scrolling platformer that has us leaping across platforms, frantically banging on the fire button to kill everything in sight. Each level is stuffed with many enemies who are only too eager to rush onto the screen but there are also lots of bonuses. Just don't forget why you're here as all monks need freeing before you can exit.

This game feels like a cross between something like Ork and Black Tiger much of the time. I love how responsive the controls are and they need to be - many enemies are constantly rushing onto the screen at a frequent pace. It's quite overwhelming, but great fun without ever crushing your spirit. Think Black Lamp and you've got the idea.

Each level is superbly designed and looks absolutely stunning with lush environments, high details and fancy effects. However, it's the sprites that I love even more because they are large and superbly animated - just look at those skeletons!! Slain enemies leave behind gold coins to collect for use in the shop to purchase much-needed weapons.

This game plays well and looks great. What, you need another screenshot to prove it? Okay...

There's no denying the stunning artwork which is some of the best I've ever seen.

Aesthetics

Visually, this is one heck of a looker. A beauty with stunning landscapes, raster backdrops and many different spooky sprites. The level of artwork is impressive and I dare anyone to say otherwise. Scrolling is responsive and smooth for an STf game but a part of me cannot help but wonder why they didn't push the boat out for some level of STe support.

Like the visuals, the sonix doesn't disappoint thanks to the great chiptunes by Jose Martin. The sound effects are nice yet nothing remarkable, but, they do their job. Yeah, it's the music that works wonders. Absolutely superb.

A game that looks and sounds this good needs many levels as this mini-map so kindly displays...

Check out the map. This details your torturous journey through the Lost Lands.

The CryptO'pinion?

The problem I have with this game is its difficulty. The constant onslaught of invading enemies is often too much and made worse by having to bend down to collect dropped coins during the heat of battle - rather than simply walking over them. Also, bumping into a baddie makes you drop the loot, and you cannot fire for a brief moment. Irritating!!

Having said all that, I've had a blast with this gorgeous platformer! It's exciting, frantic, and devilishly addictive. If only Dinamic had balanced the gameplay mechanics better, then it would have been nothing less than a classic. I'm afraid old me found it too demanding - without a trainer. Am I wrong? I never am... but let me know in the comments.

Downloads for floppy and hard drive.

Bug Spray

Robbie the Robot

Pssst, wanna play a game bursting with frantic fun and originality? Then check out Bug Spray, developed by Philip Bishop which should please gamers with both green fingers and a natural love for killing nasty insects. In fact, it might look familiar if you're old enough to remember the 1983 Speccy original by Ultimate Play The Game (that ran in 16Kb).

Sunflowers need our protection from various hungry pests who love to nibble at them. To stop this, we use three different cans of bug spray as each type is designed to kill a specific creature. So spraying a bug with the wrong type will only stun them. Sadly, our gardener can only carry one at a time so it's a rush battling the critters as they swarm.

Just like Jet Pac, this is so much like the original but it isn't an exact replica. However, it's close enough and brought back many happy memories for me. The graphics are pretty much ZX Spectrum standards and the sprites are cute, especially the spiders. Sound effects are adequate but there is an option for chipmusic which is a far better option.

Bug Spray is a blatant rip-off but it works so well. My only criticism is manoeuvring the gardener into the gaps which feel quite tight. That aside, I've enjoyed playing what is essentially a fantastic 16-bit conversion of Ultimate's Pssst!

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