ZX Spectrum. Computer games of my childhood. Bashny.Net

For the first time I saw the computer games in 1986 or 1987, "Computer Center" and was immediately captivated by them. I was 8 or 9 years old.
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The first three seen toys hit on the memory of a lifetime. Here they are.
1. Lode Runner
Classic 80s. In Vicky wrote that it is a puzzle-platformer, but for pity's sake, what could be a platformer without jumping? The goal - to collect all the gold boxes on the screen-level and not to fall into the clutches of the bots. No weapons protagonist does not have, but is able to punch a hole in a brick floor. He himself into these holes falls freely, while the boats are stuck in them. Gameplay looks like.

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How long this toy is not fascinated me because of the general static and monotony. But a few years later, already having a Spectrum, I returned briefly to her, tasted a level editor. The first thing, of course, wrote his name (just like freshly harvested hyperboloid Engineer Garin) and then finished his long tried to level up a little bit playable condition.
2. Dynamide Dan
Now that's a real platformer. "Turkish Rondo" by Mozart in the main menu, bright graphics and rich sound very vpechatlali even adults, that really there to talk about the younger students.

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But in it I did not stay long: it turned out really very difficult, especially for a neophyte. Why, I would still not mastered it. Everything kept postponing "for later", until cooled to the platformer genre once and for all.
3. The Way of the Exploding Fist
And this toy I played with gusto and a lot of years to come. In my opinion, this is the best fighting game on the Spectrum and one of the best in the genre in general. What stood out:
 - Detailed smooth animation, unusual for games in those years;
 - A large arsenal of receptions (11 strokes);
 - Expansion on the 9 buttons (problems identifying the keyboard while pinching three or more buttons were on the Spectrum);
 - A large depth of the game, when the study of gradually opening up new facets and possibilities.

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And finally, even where the student can otmutuzit classmate without risking to get back on the nose?
Here I want to pause and talk a little bit about the "computer centers" of those years. They are located (at least in my city) in bright, spacious rooms enough; no crap cellars and basements, as in "computer clubs" of the late 90s and early 2000s. The typical age of the visitors 10-13 years, sometimes less, but rarely more. Of course, at night, these centers have not worked. The room was 10-15 computers and a tape recorder, with which you are downloading.
By the way, download a great game, occupies the entire 48 kilobytes of memory, it took more than five minutes, carrying a hoarse speaker heartbreaking sounds. Therefore, administrators tried to keep the "range" poraznoobrazney rarely and reluctantly agreeing to "reset" with a toy computer and upload it instead of the other, if that was already loaded on the other, even while engaged in "car." Fortunately, the wait is usually short-lived had. The fact that it is a pleasure worth 4 cents per minute. Surely I do not know, but I assume that solving the issue of pricing, the owners think: "session on the slot machine game costs 15 cents and lasts for 2 minutes, so we will make the price two times lower." In fact, it meant that the hour of play cost 2 rubles 40 kopecks. With the money in those days you could buy a 9, 6 threaded loaves, or 10, 9 cakes "potato", or 12 servings of ice cream in cartons or 24 children (9, 6 adults) movie tickets, or 6 liters of petrol. The average salary for a minute. It was 175-180 rubles.
Of course, students were carried out that kind of money, to put it mildly, not every day. So, sit down "for a day" - meaning cool shikanut usually took 15-30 minutes and often sat down to play to play together, one runs, the other shoots and hits. For the same reason, it has been very popular cooperative game, though there were very few, and they began to appear a little later.
Sometimes, the youngest, the little things to shoot at passers-by, sit for 3-5 minutes to play, but they and the administration and visitors have looked like Lenin on the bourgeoisie - with conviction and ill-concealed irritation.
I remember one episode where my friend and classmate, played in the center, clearly peresidev paid time, and tired with fear and perplexity to glance at the enthusiasm to play for the neighboring "machine" the administrator gently asked him, and when we should leave. Uncle-admin absently looked at us and said unemotionally, "You time is up? Play, play. " At this point, the rating of the "center" took off for us an unattainable height, and in the future we have tried to place the accumulated surplus of the money is there.
However, I continue about toys. During that same play computer centers in the second half of the 80s?
4. Highway Encounter
Very we like unequivocal hit. In Highgate (as it was called) it was comfortable enough to play together. Shooter puzzle in perspective. The goal - to push through a pyramid-lazertron 30 zones screens, clearing her path on the centerline.

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I would also like to add that Haig was one of the very few toys to nearkadnym control. Instead of the classic buttons "left-right-up-down" protagonist-vedroid controls the rotation of clockwise and counter-clockwise, and forward (2 speeds). Backing was not. Such management significantly expanded the possibility of exact positioning, but get used to it it was not very easy, although it is very exciting.
In general, the passage required a fair perseverance. There was no hurry either strongly or long digging, because the timer ticking, too. Recently, I played on an emulator: passed the second time in the last life.
And the ending of the epic ending leaves the "Mass Effect 3" astern =)
5.Robin of the Wood
Megahit. Arcade-maze. As the name implies, we are asked to play for Robin Hood, but we initially mistook him for an unnamed Indian. The goal - to learn how to navigate in a huge maze, remember the place of the bishop walks and a long grind of his gold, which is then spent to buy a sword, a bow and three arrows for the tournament.
Videos with full passage below, but, alas, did not find a record without this annoying music for Spectrum-128K. It dries the brain, I know.

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The secret of success in the game is that even an untrained player very quickly understand what to do and how to move around, never to die. But examine looped labyrinth of 318-year-screens have been very difficult (as the programmers of that time managed to cram such volumes of 48 kilobytes of memory for me is still a mystery). Especially if "summed sclerosis", you can easily wander into the wrong place and automatically leave the unjustly acquired wealth. Perhaps thanks to this game has me very unpopular term "walker". Indeed, there could wander for hours. Some players zadalbyvat so that accepted the card draw.
6.Saboteur!
Also arcade maze with rudimentary elements fayninga, but this game before Robin had a number of advantages:
-labyrinths was nezakoltsovan;
-signing screens more diverse, a lot of clear benchmarks;
-9 Levels of difficulty,
-prohozhdeniya on the lowest difficulty did not require full knowledge of the maze and takes less than seven minutes (well, what else to do, if 30 cents in his pocket?)

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-Let weak, but still boevka and nonzero possibility to die;
-protagonist - not some kind of hippie with a stick, but a real ninja!
-as a result of passing the written amount of money earned (instead of points) and congratulated with the fact that you are now - one of the best ninja diversanov that highly motivated;
-If passing on the lower complexity of the tired, there is something to strive for and what to study. Until the 9th level, I never got.

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7.Harrier Attack!
Very simple (not to say - primitive) game in the genre of "horizontal scrolling shooter," however, it was very popular in computer centers. The success is simple: the game was very easy to learn to play and complete the passage took on the strength of 5 minutes. Why is it, according to Wikipedia, "became the biggest success of the company Durell Software - around the world have sold over 250 thousand. Copies of the game," a mystery to me. Probably say release date: in 1983 games for the Spectrum was still very small.

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Separate razvlekuhoy be found playing a boy younger, yes pohlipche, and press E on his keyboard (Eject, that is). Well, probably not a single "Virpi" without checking on the practice of "what will happen if the add-on to plant Harrier aircraft carrier».
8.Bubble Bobble
Again platformer. It was very popular in the clubs because of the co-op, but it is somehow passed me. There was a bit late for the decline of the 80s, at first glance seemed too childish, so deserved ninja and graduate astromech somehow not interested.

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9.Ikari Warriors
Vertical scrolling shooter with people, and not just any technology in a leading role (which was rare for the genre) and a co-op mode. Also popular was also passed, and also due to the late appearance of the computer center. By that time I already had a Spectrum. But that's another story.
To be continued!

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