Gremlin Graphics 1985
Genre: Action
Rating: 4/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: Plus/4

Back in the Eighties, Sword Of Destiny was one of the first computer games I played. After putting the cassette into the slightly damaged drive, you had to push down the play button and the cap all the time to avoid a crash during the process of loading. The longer the screen glimmered like a rainbow gone mad, the more the excitement grew. Finally it began: Down into the catacombs!

Bullfrog 1993
Genre: Strategy, Action
Rating: 5/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: PC

The future. Several syndicates control different regions of the world, and there's a war between them. You must take the role of one of the organizations and perform a variety of tasks to "capture" the regions one by one until you control them all.

Interplay / Electronic Arts 1987
Genre: RPG
Rating: 5/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: PC

Tales of the Unknown: The Bard's Tale, as this game was originally called, is one of the most important games in the history of computer gaming. In addition to bringing role-playing to the masses with its flashy graphics, simplified character development and relatively good story, never before and never again did a game development team include so many great talents. In fact, this game has launched the careers of several biggest names in the gaming industry, including Lawrence Holland, Joe Ybarra and Brian Fargo.

Bally Midway 1983
Genre: Action
Rating: 3/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: PC

A very simple game for quick fun. Its attractiveness is caused by its original theme: As a waiter you have to serve the rushing-in customers.

But they are very impatient. Aparantely they are alcoholics. Their appearance points to that: unkempt beards and hair hidden under (probably) greasy hats. But also their behaviour lets you become suspicious about their addiction. They can't even wait for their beer (the game does not know other drinks) for some seconds. No, they need it immediately! And if you do not serve them at once, they will pull you over the bar.

Microprose 1992
Genre: Simulation
Rating: 5/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: PC

Task Force 1942 is a great naval combat simulation that is staged (as the name suggests) in WW II in the Pacific. It concentrates on the battle for Guadalcanal and features all the ships that took part in this campaign. Great graphics, controls and the ability to build own scenarios make this game a true classic.

Telekom / Art Department 1993
Genre: Adventure
Rating: 3/6
Language: Deutsch
Licence: Freeware
System: PC

And "Ron Sommer" said: "Let's pretend to to cool. It'll look as if we actually care for our customers and as if we were a young and modern company." And his disciples went into the wide world to spread his word. One came back with something he called a 'computer game'. And "Ron Sommer" saw it was good. Or at least he thought it was good...

Avalon Hill 1985
Genre: RPG
Rating: 4/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: PC

"Ah yes, my young fellows, I still remember when I first climbed down the stairs into this vile dungeon. All I had was the sword of my father and no clue how to use it. And then they came! Zombies, Skeletons, Orcs! I fought them all - barely made it out alive with the few coins I was able to find in the corners of the tunnels. Bandaging my wounds I made it to this very tavern and spent the night. But when the morning sun rose I knew I had to go back in there. I could not leave that dungeon unconquered. And so I travelled deeper. My skills got better, I got faster - soon I was starting to fight of demons and dragons - and the deeper I ventured into the caverns the deadlier they got!

Mike Woodroffe & Others 1985
Genre: Adventure
Rating: 2/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: C64

By the power of Grayskull.... All the children in the 80s knew this catchphrase. They watched the adventures of He-Man and his friends (and foes) on TV, bought the action figures, read the comics. And of course there were several computer games for the most common systems of the time.

Nintendo 1989
Genre: Strategy
Rating: 5/6
Language: English
Licence: Commercial
System: Game Boy

Now you may wonder what is Tetris doing in the GameBoy category. The reason is simple: Tetris, while popular on arcades, needed a platform to propagate among the general population, and GameBoy proved to be the perfect platform. When GameBoy was first released, it sold with the Tetris cartridge included, a move that not only boosted the GameBoy sales but also made Tetris a household name. In fact, many speculated (and I think they have a point) that GameBoy was designed with Tetris in mind; such is the integration of these two.

Ocean 1991
Genre: Action
Rating: 3/6
Language: English, Deutsch, Francais
Licence: Commercial
System: Game Boy

Talking about games that deal with films or series, sooner or later the phrase "licence crap" will come up. Many more or less common titles, for example almost every Simpsons game, do give reasons for this: The brand name itself is selling most of the copies, so why spend money on a complex production? Quickly design some sprites, that remind of the original characters and warm up some old games idea and the way into the shelves is paved.