🎮 Game · 1983
93 archive picks
Lode Runner
Lode Runner is a 1983 puzzle video game, first published by Brøderbund. It is one of the first games to include a level editor, a feature that allows players to create their own levels for the game. This feature bolstered the game's popularity, as magazines such as Computer Ga…
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Elevator Action
Elevator Action is a 1983 arcade game by Taito. It debuted during the "Golden Age of Arcade Games". Innovative in gameplay, the game was very popular for many years. In the game, the player assumes the role of a spy who infiltrates a building filled with elevators. He must co…
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Dragon's Lair
Haven't heard of Dragon's Lair?! Well, you play the heroic Dirk the Daring, a valiant knight on a quest to rescue the fair princess from the clutches of an evil dragon! Originally released in the summer of 1983, Dragon's Lair has solidified itself as a cultural icon in gaming.
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Spy Hunter
Originating in the arcades, Spy Hunter is a driving action game played from an overhead point of view. Your car is equipped with machine guns to help you get past the numerous enemies out on the road (be careful not to shoot any civilians, though!) Occasionally you will come a…
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Antarctic Adventure
Antarctic Adventure is a video game developed by Konami in 1983 for MSX, and later for video game consoles, such as NES. The player takes the role of an Antarctic penguin, racing to disparate research stations owned by different countries in Antarctica. The gameplay is simila…
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Mappy
The player guides Mappy the police mouse through the mansion of the cats called Mewkies (Meowky in the U.S. version) to retrieve stolen goods. The player uses a left-right joystick to move Mappy and a single button to operate doors. The mansion has six floors of hallways in wh…
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Donkey Kong 3
Stanley is a bugman. Donkey Kong has taken refuge in his greenhouse and it is now up to Stanley to stop the ape from stirring up any more insects that will soon destroy his flowers. Stanley saves the flowers by spraying bug spray on Donkey Kong.
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Archon
Archon: The Light and the Dark was a game developed by Free Fall Associates which loosely modeled the game of Chess, with a number of additions to the gameplay. It was programmed by Anne Westfall, and released originally for Atari 8-bit computers in 1983. It was quickly ported…
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Baseball
The simply titled game "Baseball" was developed by Nintendo in 1983 for the Nintendo Family Computer, and was one of the very first games released for the Famicon. It was also included as one of the 18 games released for the Nintendo Entertainment System's original launch in t…
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Star Wars
Star Wars is a first-person shoot 'em up based around the original Star Wars film. You take on the role of Luke Skywalker, aiming to destroy the Death Star - which, as any fan knows, involves attacking the 'weak spot' near the exhaust. To even get to this you have to pass swa…
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Gyruss
Gyruss is a shoot 'em up video arcade game developed by Konami, and released in 1983. It was designed by Yoshiki Okamoto, who had earlier created Time Pilot for Konami. Gyruss was licensed to Centuri in the United States, and was ported to numerous games consoles and home com…
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Space Ace
In Space Ace you play the heroic Ace who must stop the evil Commander Borf from taking over the Earth! Borf plans to reduce all of humankind to infants and take over the planet.
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Alley Cat
Alley Cat is an early video game in which the player controls a cat, navigating an alley screen and various challenge rooms. The player must enter a room and complete the objective inside, while avoid hazards such as objects being thrown out of windows, wandering dogs, giant s…
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Ultima III: Exodus
Eons ago Lord British came unto the lands of Sosaria. Since that time it has been united under his rule as the Kingdom of Britannia and has gone through two major crises. A few years ago there were political upheavals among the city states of the kingdom. The ringleader of thi…
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Tapper
Tapper is a 1983 arcade game released by Bally Midway. The goal of the game is to serve beer and collect empty mugs and tips. Upon failing, the bartender skids along the table out of frame, while upon victory he drinks a beer of his own.
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Donkey Kong Jr. Math
The game features one and two player modes, both of which are single screen. In the first mode, the objective is to enter math answers in order to receive points. These questions include addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. In the two player mode, two players c…
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Enduro
Strap on your goggles. Sink into your seat. And leave all your fears in the pit. You're about to enter the race of your life. You'll be required to pass lots of cars each day. Through sun and snow and fog and ice, sunrise to sunset - as fast as you can. Welcome to the National…
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Jetpac
The 'Acme Interstellar Transport Company' is delivering spaceship kits to various planets in the solar system throughout the Galaxy; and as chief test pilot, all you have to do is assemble the Rockets, and thrust on to your next destination. As you don't often get the chance…
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Nuts & Milk
Nuts & Milk is a platform-style puzzle game developed and published by Japanese software developer Hudson Soft in 1983. The game was released initially on the FM-7, MSX, NEC PC-8801, NEC PC-6001, and later to the Famicom in Japan. It was the first third party video game to be…
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Keystone Kapers
Flash! Harry Hooligan, notorious con-artist, thief and all around-not-a-nice-person, has escaped!! He is now at large and in the vicinity of Southwick‘s Emporium. At this moment, Hooligan is failing every attempt to end his felonious freedom. On the scene is Keystone Kelly, t…
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Crystal Castles
Crystal Castles is an arcade game released by Atari, Inc. in 1983. The player controls a cartoon bear by the name of Bentley Bear, who has to collect gems located throughout trimetric-projected rendered castles while avoiding enemies out to get him as well as the gems. Crystal…
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Manic Miner
Manic Miner is a platform video game originally written for the ZX Spectrum by Matthew Smith and released by Bug-Byte in 1983 (later re-released by Software Projects). It is the first game in the Miner Willy series and among the early titles in the platform game genre. The gam…
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10-Yard Fight
The game is viewed in a top-down perspective and is vertical scrolling. The player does not select plays for either offense or defense. On offense, the player simply receives the ball upon the snap and either attempt to run with the quarterback, toss the ball to a running back…
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Blue Max
Blue Max is a video game developed and published by Synapse Software, originally released for the Commodore 64 and Atari 8-bit computers in 1983. In 1984 it was ported to the ZX Spectrum by U.S. Gold. in 1987 Atari Corp. published it in cartridge form for the then-new Atari XE…
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Jr. Pac-Man
The gameplay of Jr. Pac-Man is similar to that of its predecessors: The player controls the titular Jr. Pac-Man and scores points by eating all of the dots in the maze. Four ghosts roam the maze and attempt to capture him. The player can eat an energizer to turn the ghosts blu…
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Sinistar
The player pilots a lone spacecraft, and must create "Sinibombs" by shooting at drifting planetoids and catching the crystals that are thereby released. Sinibombs are needed to defeat the game boss, Sinistar, an animated spacecraft with a demonic skull face. Sinistar does not…
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Atic Atac
The game takes place within a castle in which the player must seek out the "Golden Key of ACG" through unlocking doors and avoiding enemies. It was Ultimate's second game to require 48K of RAM; most of their previous games for the Spectrum ran on unexpanded 16K models. It was…
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B.C.'s Quest for Tires
Cute Chick is in trouble! She is being held captive by the dinosaur, and it is up to Thor to ride his trusty wheel to the rescue. There are many obstacles in the way which Thor will need to jump and duck, including rocks, trees, rivers, lava pits, cliffs, and of course Fat Bro…
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Congo Bongo
Congo Bongo is an isometric platform arcade game released by Sega in 1983. The game has come to be seen as Sega's answer to the highly successful Donkey Kong game that was released two years prior. The player takes the role of a red-nosed safari hunter who tries to catch an ap…
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Binary Land
Binary Land is a puzzle video game developed by Hudson Soft in 1983 for the MSX, FM-7, NEC PC-6001, NEC PC-8801, and in 1985 for the Famicom. The MSX version saw release in Japan by Kuma Computers Ltd in 1984. While the Famicom version has a grand total of 99 levels; there is…
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Jumpman Junior
Jumpman Junior is the sequel to Jumpman and features similar gameplay with all new levels. As Jumpman, your goal is to disarm all of the bombs on the level before time runs out. Each level consists of a variety of platforms, ladders, and ropes you will need to jump and climb t…
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Chuckie Egg
Chuckie Egg is an action platformer featuring a turn-based multiplayer mode. As Hen-House Harry, the player must collect the twelve eggs positioned in each level, before a countdown timer reaches zero. In addition there are piles of seed which may be collected to increase poin…
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Spelunker
A miner has to find the exit to a world of wonders that is deep in the ground. During his journey he has to collect bombs to destroy rocks in his way, collect keys to open doors and pick up little potions that refresh his timer. Treasure chests can be opened for bonus items.
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Mr. Do!'s Castle
Mr. Do!, that king of arcade clowns, is in a bit of a bind - again! This time, a pack of pesky unicorns is trampling the bricked hallways of his castle. Help Mr. Do! rid his dwelling of these crafty, quick-changing (and deadly) creatures with the skillful swing of a hammer. So…
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M.U.L.E.
M.U.L.E. is about four hopeful explorers trying to make a fortune on a virgin planet. This is done by producing various goods (Food, Energy, Smithore, Crystite). Each of these goods have their uses: if you don't have enough food, you will have less time during your turn. If yo…
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Frostbite
You're an Eskimo who wants to build an igloo to live in during the cold season. To do this, you must jump from ice-block to ice-block, while avoiding wildlife such as birds and crabs. Coming with contact with any of these will cause them to push you off the block and into the…
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Jumpman
Jumpman is a platform game written by Randy Glover and released by Epyx in 1983. Originally developed for the Atari 8-bit family, versions were also released for the Commodore 64, Apple II, IBM PC, and ColecoVision.
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Seaquest
Your divers have collected treasure from the ocean floor. On their way back up to surface they are attacked by hostile fish, sharks and enemy submarines. It is, therefore, your task to collect your divers with your own submarine. While doing that you are not totally defenceles…
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Pole Position II
Just like the first game, but with improved graphics and 4 different tracks to choose.
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Plaque Attack
Plaque Attack is a 1983 video game for the Atari 2600 that was made by Activision. Loosely based on Space Invaders, the player must prevent food from destroying teeth in a person's mouth. Steve Cartwright, who designed the game, said that game was meant to help people develop…
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Pitstop
Pitstop is an action racing game featuring six different race tracks. Your goal is to earn as much money as possible by winning races in the Grand Circuit which consists of a race on each of the six tracks; each time a race is completed, you'll earn money based on how you plac…
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Pac & Pal
Pac & Pal is an arcade game that was released by Namco on July 30, 1983 exclusively in Japan. It runs on Namco Super Pac-Man hardware, and the object of the game is for Pac-Man to eat all the items before he is caught by the ghosts. Most of the items are fruits from the origin…
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Beach-Head
The first game in the Beach Head series, the game depicts the player's violent war effort to end a dictator's reign
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Exerion
Exerion is a vertical shoot 'em up released by Jaleco in 1983 and licensed to Taito for distribution in the United States. Screenshot from arcade version Exerion is a shoot 'em up game featuring parallax effects and inertia simulation, something notable for 1983. The player t…
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Tag Team Wrestling
You are challenged to match the awesome skills of your opponents...to gain the Title in the World Super Championships of TAG TEAM WRESTLING Teamwork and stamina are the keys, as you and your partner battle your way through the Title Matches on your quest for the Belt. Attack…
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Falcon Patrol
Falcon Patrol is a two-way side-scrolling shooter. Players fly a jet across a looping area and must shoot down attacking aircraft. A small radar at the bottom of the screen shows the enemies' position. Fuel and rockets are limited, but there are several landing platforms where…
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Digger
Diggger is an action game in which the player digs tunnels, attempting to collect all of the emeralds on each level without being caught by monsters. The regular 'Nobbin' monsters are easily outwitted at first since they can't dig tunnels for themselves. However the game becom…
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Dolphin
Listen! An endangered dolphin is calling you! Only by learning the dolphin's sonic language can you guide her through schools of seahorses, battling a monstrous squid, to gain magic powers from and elusive seagull. Hurry! Lend an ear... You will guide your dolphin through ope…
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Hard Hat Mack
Hard Hat Mack is a classic jumping arcade game. Your goal is to place all bricks to the right places without being kicked/killed or whatever by any other moving object or person. There are some special tools ready for you too.
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Arabian
Arabian is a rarity for Atari's arcade efforts -- a climber/platform game -- in which players lead a wanna-be Arabian Knight through various locales kicking monsters and birds out of the way before they touch him and cost the player a life. The action begins aboard a ship at s…
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Planetfall
Planetfall is a science fiction interactive fiction computer game written by Steve Meretzky, and the eighth title published by Infocom in 1983. Like most Infocom games, thanks to the portable Z-machine, it was released for several platforms simultaneously. The original release…
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Star Wars: Jedi Arena
In Jedi Arena, you have to face an opponent in the arena to see who is the true Jedi master. Wandering throughout the arena is a seeker which is capable of firing laser bolts. To be victorious you need to destroy your opponents shield by having the seeker fire laser bolts at i…
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The Witness
The Witness was the seventh game released by interactive fiction pioneers Infocom. The player character is a detective who has been summoned to the Cabeza Plana, California office of Mr. Linder, a millionaire. Linder fears that his life is in danger... and indeed, as he sits i…
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Beamrider
A web of iridescent blue beams engulfs Earth-Space. You stand watching. Mesmerized at first, you now realize the beams support weapons, frightening creations in different forms. Will you just watch or will you take action? Action??!! Then roll up your sleeves, mount these beam…
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Juno First
Juno First is a shoot 'em up originally developed and published by Konami Corporation for Arcades. The game was later published by Mylstar Electronics (US arcades), Datasoft Inc. (Atari 8-bit, PC Booter, and Commodore 64), and Sony Computer Entertainment Japan (MSX). Juno Fir…
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Black Widow
Black Widow is a vector arcade game developed by Atari released in 1982. The player takes the role of a Black widow spider defending a web from invading bugs. The player must move the spider around the web while simultaneously shooting/avoiding various bugs and collecting the…
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Enchanter
Enchanter is a 1983 interactive fiction computer game written by Marc Blank and Dave Lebling and published by Infocom. It belongs to the fantasy genre and was the first fantasy game published by Infocom after the Zork trilogy (it was originally intended to be Zork IV). The gam…
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Donkey Kong II
Donkey Kong II was developed by Nintendo R&D1 and released as part of the Game & Watch Multi Screen series, featuring two LCD screens. It was released in 1983. Donkey Kong Jr. has to touch a key, then it moves up to the top screen. Donkey Kong Jr. has to climb to the top scree…
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Halloween
A homicidal maniac has escaped from a mental institution. On Halloween night, the killer returns to his home town to wreak havoc! You are babysitting for a family in a large, two story house. Somehow the vengeful murderer has gotten inside! Can you protect the children and you…
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Major Havoc
Long ago the evil Vaxxian Empire overran the galaxy. Most of humanity was enslaved and abducted to the Vaxxian homeworld. A few humans, who were scientists, managed to escape. At the current moment (according to the timeline of the game), the Empire has since collapsed. Howeve…
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Hunchback
The game is set on a castle wall. The player must cross the screen from left to right avoiding obstacles in order to ring the bell at the far right. Obstacles include pits which must be swung over on a long rope, ramparts which must be jumped (some of which contain knights wit…
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Roc 'N Rope
Your player is a mountain climber who must avoid cavemen, dinosaurs and pterodactyls as he climbs up the cliff-sides. Your goal in each level is to climb up and reach a mystical bird with great plumage, while staying one step above the bonus timer which determines how long you…
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Commodore's International Soccer
This Game is 2-Player Only. In this version of soccer, each player controls 4 men, though only one at a time. The computer moves the other 3 for you. A computer-controlled goalie will help out when a goal attempt is made. Kick the ball around for 90 minutes, and try to score m…
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Cloak & Dagger
Agent X must progress through a series of floors to retrieve a set of stolen plans and destroy Dr. Boom's underground bomb factory. Avoid the explosives, bomb converters, forklifts, robot guards, acid pits, and death-ray shooting eyeballs. The game was featured in the motion p…
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Pinball Construction Set
Pinball Construction Set created a new genre of video games - the "builder" or "construction set" class of games. Users can construct their own virtual pinball machine, by dropping controls onto a table. Controls included bumpers, flippers, spinners and other standard pinball…
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Laser Gates
The thousand galaxies quake at the news: the Cryptic Computer, the galactic defense synthesizer which has maintained peace for the five centuries since the Wars on Zevon, has malfunctioned! Four Failsafe Detonators inside the Computer will now initiate universal self-destruct!…
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Crackpots
We're infested! A bug barrage is swarming out of the sewer, chomping away at every building in town. Entire neighborhoods are now crumb piles! Over in Brooklyn, Potsy, the rooftop gardener, is defeating his beloved building with his only weapon - potted petunias. Be a good nei…
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Oink!
Oink! is based on the fairy tale of the three little pigs. The big bad wolf is trying to blow down each of the pigs houses. You control each pig one at a time. The wolf is at the bottom of the screen and will blow a hole in the house one section at a time. Each time a hole is…
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Forbidden Forest
Zounds! And Gadzaoks! You were just out to do a little target practice with your bow and arrow when you lost your way. Now the moon is coming out and there are some strange rustling noises coming from the bushes, Egad! You have mistakenly wandered into the Forbidden Forest. O…
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Attack of the Mutant Camels
The player controls a small jetplane and has the task of killing giant yellow camels before they reach the home base. Doing so requires several dozens of shots. The camels retaliate by shooting fireballs from their mouth. Each camel required several shots to destroy; if a cam…
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Food Fight
Food Fight (also styled as Charley Chuck's Food Fight) is an arcade game released by Atari, Inc. in March 1983. The player guides Charley Chuck, who is trying to eat an ice cream cone before it melts, while avoiding four chefs bent on stopping him. The game sold 1,951 video ga…
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Space Shuttle: A Journey Into Space
Space Shuttle is a simulation game where you are the pilot of space shuttle Discovery. Your goal is to launch the Discovery, establish an orbit around the Earth, open the cargo bay doors and recover a satellite to perform repairs, and finally land the Discovery successfully, a…
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Astrowar
Astrowar is an Action game, developed by Starsoft and published by Artic, which was cancelled before it was released.
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Star Wars: Return of the Jedi - Death Star Battle
Return of the Jedi: Death Star Battle is a Shoot 'em up video game published by Parker Brothers in 1983 for various Atari platforms and in 1984 for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. It was the first released video game to be based on the movie Return of the Jedi. In the game, the pla…
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Wizardry: Legacy of Llylgamyn - The Third Scenario
A generation has passed since your band of adventurers reclaimed the Staff of Gnilda and the armor of the Knight of Diamonds, and the land has been at peace. But now nature itself seems to be attacking the land of Llylgamyn, as earthquakes and tidal waves ravage the land. The…
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Snoopy and the Red Baron
The dastardly Red Baron has stolen important food supplies from the allies during the war. Hamburgers, ice cream cones, popcorn and other tasty treats have been taken by this evil aviator and sharpshooter. Your task is to help Snoopy shoot down the Red Baron and recover the st…
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James Bond 007
When it comes to fast-paced action and intrigue, nobody does it better than Bond. James Bond. But you can try when you reenact scenes from four great James Bond movie classics. 007's specially designed vehicle will take you on the ride of your life--over land, in the air, and…
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Earthbound
Unrelated to the popular SNES RPG, Earthbound is an adventure game developed by Xtalsoft in 1983.
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Zoo Keeper
You control Zeke the zookeeper who must rescue his girlfriend Zelda from the Zoo. There are four levels or "adventures". Each level has its own task such as trapping the animals in the zoo, jumping ledges up the screen and jumping animals to earn a bonus keeper.
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Stop the Express
The ITA Express train has been hijacked and, as a special agent, you have been sent to recapture and stop the train. Fight the knife-throwing bandits, avoid the alien birds and find the key - but beware of the low bridges. Good Luck!
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3D Deathchase
Deathchase is a 1983 computer game written for the ZX Spectrum by Mervyn Estcourt and published by Micromega in the UK and Ventamatic in Spain. It is commonly known by the incorrect name of "3D Deathchase", perhaps due to the prominent "3D" on the inlay, and that some magazine…
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Wheelie
In Wheelie you ride a Zedexaki bike (a combination of the famous Kawasaki brand and the ZX in ZX Spectrum), but this is no ordinary racing game. You are trapped in Nightmare Park, and must find an escape before you can race the Ghost Rider. The park is made up of four linked…
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Valhalla
Valhalla was a text-based (with some light graphics) ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 adventure game published in 1983 by Legend. Set in Asgard and Midgard, the goal was to collect six mythical objects, for which you needed the help of other characters, who were taken from Norse m…
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Lords of Time
You are a time traveller and have to find nine objects from different time periods in order to prevent the Time Lords to alter human history.
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Discs of Tron
In 1983 Bally midway released the follow up to the original Tron game titled Discs of Tron. In Discs of Tron the game recreates the disc fighting sequence of the movie where you progress through different platforms in a disc battle against the evil enemy Sark. Once again playe…
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Stronghold
On one of your patrols in deep space you encounter an abandoned base whose self-defense mechanisms are still functional. Upon detecting your presence the base launches several drones to destroy you. After having conquered three of these attack waves a force field containing of…
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Bedlam
In the arcade game Tempest, players controlled a blaster that could move around the outermost lanes of a bunch of geometrically-shaped levels and fire at ships that emerged from the middle or innermost areas of those levels. Bedlam, however, was a "Tempest in reverse", where…
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