Hey guys, I'm gonna start uploading Commodore Format issues again, seeing as the Commodore Format Library went bust. So here's issue number one (click).
It was as late as October 1990 that Zzap64 got a powerful competitor in the form of CF and the soon-to-be mighty Future Publishing. Future meant business, getting together a good team (including many ex Zzapsters) and also quality monthly covertapes, thus forcing Zzap to raise it's game.
This first issue is quite nice. Within it's 100 pages there's reviews of minor classics such as Time Machine, Lords of Chaos and Iron Lord, as well as Murder - the famous game that wasn't. Also of note is the intriguing disk-only adventure Mean Streets. On the features front, there's a presentation of the then brand new console C64GS (basically a C64 without a keyboard, and with only cartridge games), while on the covertape there's at least a classic in Tau Ceti, as well as neat demos of Ivan Stewart's Off Road Racer and St Dragon.
By the way, this issue was kindly contributed by Mort from the Zzuperstore. Mort has scanned an impressive array of retro computer magazines, so pay a visit (click) and see if you're interested in buying something.
Here's another CF issue, number 4 from January 1991. A good month as 100 pages of printed material prove. There's reviews of Robocop 2, Navy Seals, Puzznic, Helter Skelter, Summer Camp, Shadow of the Beast, Pang and others. Also, there's a few good features, most notably Gordon Houghton's excellent coverage of the classics. Last but not least, there was an fantastic covertape, with demos of Robocop 2 and Lotus Esprit Turbo Challenge, and 2 great full games (Beyond the Forbidden Forest and Bounder).
Again, all credit for the scans goes to Mort from the Zzuperstore, while I did some cropping and contrasting myself.
Get the issue here.
And yet another CF issue, number 9 from June 1991. People say there was no good C64 software in the 90's, but I think that both 1990 and 1991 were quality years.
All credit for this issue goes to Mort, who very kindly provided the scans. Mort has scanned an impressive array of retro computer mags over the years, and provides DVDs of them at very reasonable prices at the Zzuperstore. Check it out.
In this issue there's reviews of Heroquest, Gauntlet 3 (which was never officially released), North And South, I Play 3D Soccer (a very misunderstood game), Death Knights Of Krynn, Ultima 6 and others.
Gordon Houghton was also doing an ongoing and very interesting feature, dealing with C64 classics. If you want to convert someone to C64 gaming, you won't get far wrong by using this feature as a guide. A good issue overall. Get it here.
Here's another issue of Commodore Format for your collection. Yes, the C64 was still going strong in 1992, as reviews of Space Crusade, Budokan and Bonanza Bros prove. Also reviewed are Stryker In The Crypts Of Trogan, G-Loc and Murray Mouse, while Bod Squad and Steg The Slug get the preview treatment. A reasonable covertape too.
Get the issue here. More to come in the future. Also, don't forget that there's a number of issues available at the Commodore Format library.
Well, once upon a time a nice chap named Peter James Holl set up a website dedicated to Commodore Format, one of the two great C64 magazines (the other being Zzap64). Sadly, and even though he was doing a great job, the last time he updated it was in 2004. The site is still online and it has scans of over 25 issues, so why not give it a visit. In the meantime, I decided to fill some of the gaps, so here's issue number 18 from March 1992.
The issue has reviews of Indy Heat, Winter Camp, Demon Blues, Final Fight, Robocop 3 and others. Also previews of Beavers (which was never released eventually), Chuck Rock and Winter Super Sports '92. Finally there's a nice feature on RPGs. The scans are contained in a zip file, so you'll need either WinZip or WinRar to extract them. But hey, I guess everybody has those, right?
