Software Publisher's, best top 3 games....

[Shaun M. Neary]

Not a single mention of elite. But then again was it released on firebird, rainbird, or BT?

Never understood it's popularity. Bored me to tears.

[CraigsBar]

I loved it. Dropping out of hyperspace halfway through a journey to do some blasting was great fun, albeit a feature of the game that was probably missed by many being well hidden.

[dcdrac]

I too loved Elite, the reason for that was it was open ended, I would keep coming back to it, got to Elite in the end, played the BBC, CPC, PC versions.

I would make up my own stories based on what happened in anyone flight, if I lost the ship that lead to a new avenue to persue, had reams of tings written and all based on whether I would make it to the space station or not.

I have Elite Dangerous but as I no longer have the time to play games much, that pesky work thing that pays the bills, not into it much.

[Puresox]

Well time for Mikro Gen . a bit of an Iconic company in the early days and I think they created some good conversions on the Amstrad on the whole . If you were into The Wally games they did a good job of them on the machine imo.

My personal favourites were.
1. Equinox - Really beautiful game that showed off the Amstrads strengths ,also an unusual game from Mikrogen not there normal fair.
2. Everyones a Wally- I suppose out of the Wally games this one comes to mind as the most polished , the others had not so fine graphics ,but had some neat little touches like arcade games built in  as sub games. Something special in 84, 85
3.Frostbyte- I'm gonna go for this one for last choice , I liked the lovely graphics and sprite routines plus it was an unusual take on a platform/puzzle/shooter. cool game imo


Cop Out was a fun little game to although graphics were a bit crude .
Battle of the Planets was a pretty decent /speedy vector graphics style game ,with a bit of depth to boot


Nomination for WTF game is Strike Force SAS? Has anyone played this monstrosity? Don't know what the hell they were thinking when they released this ,the speed of it is just madness . Really weird that they let this slip through

The only good thing I have to say about SAS is it has a superb title screen with some nice effects in it

[MaV]

Realtime Games Software Ltd.:

1) Starglider
2) 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2
3) Carrier Command

All of them are technically brilliant and demanding games. I cheated a bit by placing 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2 in the same slot, but I wouldn't want to decide on which is better, especially with Carrier Command deserving a place among the best three as well.


Microprose:
1) Pirates!

Gunship and Silent Service would be good candidates for 2nd and 3rd place (in any order) but I didn't like these type of games much.

[TFM]

1) Starglider
2) 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2
3) Carrier Command

Nothing left to say... but...


Give Starfox a go, you will LOVE it! 

starfox &copy ariolasoft (1987)

[Puresox]

Realtime Games Software Ltd.:

1) Starglider
2) 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2
3) Carrier Command

All of them are technically brilliant and demanding games. I cheated a bit by placing 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2 in the same slot, but I wouldn't want to decide on which is better, especially with Carrier Command deserving a place among the best three as well.


Microprose:
1) Pirates!

Gunship and Silent Service would be good candidates for 2nd and 3rd place (in any order) but I didn't like these type of games much.

Hey ,great choices Mav, 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2 awesome games with so much variety and beautiful game design , Starglider I have never managed to really enjoy in the same way as others you have mentioned . Maybe it is because I have never managed to work out how to move up a level ? Not entirely sure.
Carrier Command , what a game, just so much crammed into the little Amstrad ,my only gripes are the Mouse function doesn't appear to work and the menu's can be very confusing (At least I tend to find) I really would like to get a little deeper into it .And would love to see a You Tube vid showing a few tips on the Amstrad/Spectrum version(C64 Version  ,Oops)

[Puresox]

Oh and Starfox is well worth a First orsecond look if you haven't checked it out , I dissmissed it first time round cos I hadn't worked out how it Ticks. And since it was recommended by someone as a worthwhile game I was glad to have discovered it . Mind you everyone is different and it might not float your boat .

[TFM]

... Starglider I have never managed to really enjoy in the same way as others you have mentioned . Maybe it is because I have never managed to work out how to move up a level ? Not entirely sure.

From memory: To advance a Level you need 10.000 points. To shoot Starglider 1 you need to hit it two times with missels. It gives you 5.000 points already.

Now you need to learn how to refill gas on the energy beams then you can continue for ever :-)

Ok, and not down coordinates of supply camps. The ones you can fly in an get power ups and so on. :-)

[MaV]

Hey ,great choices Mav, 3D Starstrike and Starstrike 2 awesome games with so much variety and beautiful game design , Starglider I have never managed to really enjoy in the same way as others you have mentioned . Maybe it is because I have never managed to work out how to move up a level ? Not entirely sure.

Thanks!

To move up a level in Starglider you have to gather points and shoot down the Starglider One itself which is by no means an easy task. You need to learn the flight controls (heading and coordinates), draw a map of the interesting places (a quadrant with coordinates ranging from -50 to 50 in both X and Y), take notice especially of the silos and the towers. Those help you refill your missiles and energy. Starglider One is beaten by launching missiles against it. Two are sufficient at first level. I don't know if the laser can damage it at all.
Even the other enemies spawn at the same places on the map, though most of them start moving around. So, it is all predictable up to a certain point. Two tanks for example are placed as defense around the towers.

The levels from 1 to 4 all have different maps and the enemies get stronger with each level. Above 4th level the map stays the same, but the enemies still get stronger.

Oh, and there are more than the enemy crafts you can learn about in the silos, but most of them are specific to missions, others you'll meet at higher levels.

Carrier Command , what a game, just so much crammed into the little Amstrad ,my only gripes are the Mouse function doesn't appear to work and the menu's can be very confusing (At least I tend to find) I really would like to get a little deeper into it .And would love to see a You Tube vid showing a few tips on the Amstrad/Spectrum version(C64 Version  ,Oops)

That's why I put it in 3rd place only. The game is so very complex, I had the feeling I never got very far. It is on my list of TODOs dig much deeper into the game.

Oh and Starfox is well worth a First orsecond look if you haven't checked it out , I dissmissed it first time round cos I hadn't worked out how it Ticks. And since it was recommended by someone as a worthwhile game I was glad to have discovered it . Mind you everyone is different and it might not float your boat .

Give Starfox a go, you will LOVE it! 

Thanks, guys! I'll give it a try. It does look intriguing!

[Puresox]

Think i'll give Kuma the treatment.
Great fondness for this company  that was not a big name in any way,it always seemed sort of neglected in the memory banks of Software companies. They brought out some tidy games though and probably one of Amstrad classics, so...


1.Fruity Frank.... must be number 1!loved this game the graphic's and playability was just spot on . The lovely Wallpaper effects, the game just  looked just as the title suggested. For an early game this was stunning and it's lasted the test of time . The game always entertains.
2.Star Avenger.... Another great title , managed to produce great looking graphics, scroll neatly ,multi-levels,and a twist on Scramble by just having rockets(Which may put some off ,personally like it as it is, but would be nice as an option). The guy had skills imo. (Sean Wallis?)
3.Rocket Raid... Probably not as well realised as the other two in the list ,but despite the lack of fluidity in it's production the game is really gripping imo ,loads of options and enjoyable Asteroids clone.


Love this company , Holdfast is also worth a mention and maybe BusterBlock, which almost is a decent game just missing a touch of something imo, seemed well programmed just needed another element.