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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

My Top 25 Spooky #C64 Games - No. 22 The Rocky Horror Show The Rocky Horror Show turns the cult movie into a strange little arcade adventure on the C64. The graphics are okay, and its collect ’em up gameplay is fun at first but, like the endlessly looping Time Warp SID tune, soon begins to pall.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

I get that it is fun to run around and whack people with an axe for a while. For less than £1, it was probably worth it. But Domark were asking £9 - equal to about £35 today! For this! It was the same with a lot of early tie-in games. The licence meant it'd sell whatever the quality.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

It's a defo 'so bad it's good' game, but I wouldn't have liked to have paid full price (about £35 in today’s money) for it.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Song? It has a soundtrack featuring a few well-known (and copyright-free) tunes such as the Funeral March and The Teddy Bears’ Picnic (!), but I don't remember a song. That doesn't mean there wasn't one. I can't remember what I went upstairs for most days.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

The one that got me was the Way of the Exploding Fist scream that blasted out as it loaded.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

My Top 25 Spooky #C64 Games No. 23 Friday the 13th A brilliant horror licence, a great premise but a horrible game. Messy, crude & ridiculous, with grating music, bad graphics, laughable ‘jump screams’ & repetitive, unrewarding gameplay. Not even the 'free' blood capsules in the box could save it!

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Check out those hidden faces in the two towers. Spooky stuff.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

One of my favourite game covers of the 80s. Fantastic artwork from the brilliant Oliver Frey.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

My Top 25 Spooky #C64 Games - No. 24 House of Usher Inspired by Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, this should've been a gothic treat. Instead, it’s a rather naff platformer, more frustrating than frightening. Still, the opening ‘cut-scene’ and creepy old-house setting give it a certain gloomy charm.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Haha! 2027 that should be. I'm retro 24/7.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Haha! Some games are best left in the past with fond memories. :) I hope you enjoy the list.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

I'm afraid not. :( I remember this game sat on the shelf in the local computer shop, but I've never played it. Is it worth a play?

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Sounds like a great read. Where can I grab me a copy?

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Yes, they were all nuts! I've only played the C64 version so I don't know, but it looks like a straight Spectrum port, so I guess they're the same.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Cheers chuck. Just finishing off the PC DOS version - new for 2017! - and then they will be off to the printers. Hopefully all good to go by mid-October.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

The tape was essential - as you say, it's the star of the show.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Brilliant. I didn't know that. As a C64 guy, Mel Croucher's work wasn't that well known to me BITD. Now, looking back, I can appreciate its mad brilliance. Some great photos there too!

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Yes, the accompanying audio tape is essential!

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

My Top 25 Spooky #C64 Games - No. 25 The Evil Dead The Evil Dead’s suitably creepy soundtrack can’t disguise its poor graphics, awful controls and crummy gameplay. Sadly, the scariest thing about it is how bad it is. An absolute horror show. Watch the brilliant film instead.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

With 25 days to Halloween, now's the perfect time to count down my fave spooky #C64 games. Ghosts, vampires, witches, zombies, haunted castles, forbidden forests and things lurking in the dark. Some are creepy, some are classics, and a few are videogame nasties in more ways than one! Coming soon! 👻

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Cheers Andy. Not sure. I have a few ideas but nothing certain. I'm open to suggestions.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

You have to play the audio tape with it to get the intended immersive effect.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Same. Barbarian 2 was similar in how it evolved the original game into an arcade adventure, but I'd say B2 was much better than this. Its graphics were awesome, and it wasn't buggy or glitchy like Fist but yes, it was also a bit lacking somehow and was definitely overrated at the time.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Yeah. TBF I think that's a fair criticism of the arcade original; it feels like you have limited control over your progress. It's so fast and chaotic.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

A game probably more suited to a budget price with its simplicity.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

I guess Ocean's main market was the Spectrum and often that version came first, with other platforms getting far less development time. This, PS2, Buggy Boy, etc showed that the 64 could produce great racing games, but there were loads of crap ones.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Totally. Great map. IIRC, it was impossible to complete. I remember playing it with a cheat and after hours of play, just going back to the beginning.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

"The most violent karate game"! Haha!

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Cheers boos. Happy October. Cracking racer Super Cycle. The 2027 calendars have almost finished production and are due to go to print this week, all being well. :)

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Is it the story that was in Edge a few years ago about him coding Out Run at 17 and his rather overbearing father? If so, it's a great story.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Wow! No wonder it was so well made! Thanks for the info. :)

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

The music is excellent, yes, and the concept is a good one; it's just a shame it falls short. Could've been one of the C64's greats.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

My Top 30 #C64 Guilty Pleasures No. 1 Deus Ex Machina Surreal and absurdly ambitious. With its audio tape featuring Ian Dury, Frankie Howerd and Jon Pertwee, this bizarre interactive experience is a dreamlike journey through life itself. Hypnotic, engrossing & utterly unique. A work of mad genius.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Welcome to October....1986. Super Cycle from Epyx was the closest C64 gamers got to Sega's Hang-On. Released 40 years ago this month, it's a cracking racer with the usual Epyx polish.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

How was the Speccy version, better than this? I seem to recall it received mixed reviews - like the C64 version.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Yes. There were some pretty bad bugs, which is a big reason why it was panned in the press. I think it was also impossible to complete IIRC. The whole game felt unfinished, which is odd as it was years in the making. I guess there's a story behind it.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Top 30 #C64 Guilty Pleasures No 2 Fist: II The Legend Continues WOTEF blew me away in summer 85, so I was desperate for the sequel. When it finally arrived, ZZAP! roasted it (39%), & yes, it’s buggy & glitchy, but the music, atmosphere & martial-arts quest still pulled me in. A missed C64 classic.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Love that. Things like that become priceless with age. Maybe one day they'll resurface.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

My Top 30 #C64 Guilty Pleasures - No. 3 Out Run (EU) I adored the arcade game & eagerly awaited the C64 conversion. I knew it wouldn’t be in the same league as the original, yet despite the ropey graphics & missing forked roads, it wasn’t awful. Fast, nice tunes, addictive & exciting for a while.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I enjoyed all the Pendragon games. Felt the last two were underrated. Yes, they were similar, but they were well-made arcade adventures. Outlaws was okay, but a bit lacking. Glad to hear that they had nothing to do with the abomination that was Imhotep. How on earth did Ultimate release that?!

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I watched it too. There’s something very moving about seeing the same ordinary people grow older as the years pass. I think I first watched it in ’84 & I’ve seen every one since. I found myself feeling unexpectedly emotional watching this final one, and it stuck with me for quite a while afterwards.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Cheers, matey. Hard to believe it’s 41 years since I stood in my local computer shop trying to choose between this and Thing on a Spring. Where did the time go?

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Haha! It's a great issue but £10 for it without a cover is a bit silly.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Also, IIRC, by the time the Stampers turned their attention to the C64, they had one eye on the NES and what became Rare and sold the Ultimate name and catalogue to US Gold. Perhaps that explains why the C64 games felt less polished, and why later Ultimate releases lost some of that Stamper magic.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I can see that. I wondered whether Ultimate’s success with its run of very similar isometric games on the Spectrum, from Knight Lore and Alien 8 through to Nightshade, Gunfright and Pentagram, made them think they could repeat the same-game-different-setting trick on the C64.

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C64Reloaded @c64reloaded.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

They’re tricky, and some of the puzzles are pretty obscure, but I really enjoyed Blackwyche. I played it loads with a schoolmate, drawing maps as we went. I loved the booklet that came with it too, and the whole Marie Celeste ghost ship atmosphere.

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