Sideshow Vote II: Battle of the 8-bit nerds

[broodblik]

Let's go back in time to the time of the 80s. The 80s "big hair", New Wave, punk rock, funk, breakdancing, some of the most memorable movies or just plainly awesome music. We were also introduced to 8-bit home computers. A time of discovery amazed a time of awesome colour palettes mesmerizing soundtracks and tantalizing sound effects our 8-bit wonders.

This is a battle of two crowd favourites the C64 vs ZX Spectrum (for the 8-bit nerds only). What was your favourite one or the one that you hard earned cashed purchased?
-   C64 all the way
-   ZX Spectrum man
-   I was more of a businessman doing some fancy negotiating with the smaller folk in the school yard. You know your lunch money for your protection.
-   My folks believe this will bring the end to the society as we know it, like smoke is better for your health than these darn contraptions (hell spawn) 

[Funt Solo]

I was just trying to remember the name of the C64 today as I explained the history of gaming consoles to a youngling.

But Spectrum, I am fonder of, just because my friend had one.

[Colin YNWA]

My bloomin' dad made us get rid of our Spectrum so we could get a BBC Mirco as it was more educational and we could learn progamming! I mean really.

ZX Spectrum

[AlexF]

I had neither (also a BBC micro house); was exposed a bit to both at friends houses and the C64 involved more joystick and action type games and seemed a bit cooler; Spectrum seemed to have more puzzle solving games and was generally nerdier.

Strong vote for the Spectrum

[The Mind of Wolfie Smith]

spectrum

so nostalgic for the colour clash. and horace goes skiing.

[Rogue Judge]

Option 5 - I've never heard of any of these

[Funt Solo]

I got bought one of these little bastards when I was young:




The ZX81 was painful on many levels - it had a touch-pad keyboard, which sounds innovative, but in practice meant you had to press really hard to type anything. The thing at the pack was the 1KB RAM pack, which would joyfully wobble to a disconnected state as you hammered heavily on the unresponsive keyboard.

Several frustrating hours later, I remember having created a version of Space Invaders featuring an unmoving ship that could fire one bullet on screen at a time and destroy the one jiggling invader. I didn't try programming again for about two decades, and used the 81 as a doorstop. It may still live in a cupboard somewhere in the Highlands.

Underwhelming.

[credo]

C64... for the tunes, Last Ninja, Ocean's arcade conversions/movie tie-ins, and Paradroid.

I even had the Dredd game for it!

[Magnetica]

We had a BBC micro.

I still fondly remember some of the games: Arcadians, Planetoid, Rocket Raid, Citadel, Castle Quest, Revs, Elite etc.

[Jim_Campbell]

We had a BBC micro.

I still fondly remember some of the games: Arcadians, Planetoid, Rocket Raid, Citadel, Castle Quest, Revs, Elite etc.

Me, too. Very nearly failed my O-levels thanks to bloody Elite.

[Barrington Boots]

I started off with an Acorn Electron but soon gravitated to thes BEST 8-bit machine and that's C64 all the way. Last Ninja, Wizball, Aliens, Beach Head 2, Spy vs Spy, Operation Wolf, The Bards Tale...
I wasted spent so many happy hours on these and others. The music on some of these games was sooo good. Definitely got a lot to answer for.

[IndigoPrime]

Team C64, mostly because of the music and also because I had one. That said, I these days actually own a ZX Spectrum – which is basically an office ornament – because I love it as an object.

[moly]

C64

[JayzusB.Christ]

As a mature man, I have to admit that my mate's C64 had far better music and graphics than my Spectrum 48k.  The C64's version of the Rambo theme tune would stick in my head for days.   

But fuck that.  I'm a Spectrum man all the way. I loved it, right up till Castle Master, which was for me its last hurrah. Soon after I stopped playing I learned that my little brother did archery with Don Priestley, the man who programmed one of the Speccy's finest, the thoroughly ingenious Trapdoor.  My dad knew him well and spoke to him regularly as if he was, y'know, a normal person, rather than the programming equivalent of Willy Wonka.

[Magnetica]

We had a BBC micro.

I still fondly remember some of the games: Arcadians, Planetoid, Rocket Raid, Citadel, Castle Quest, Revs, Elite etc.

Me, too. Very nearly failed my O-levels thanks to bloody Elite.

We then moved onto an Acorn Archimedes and played Elite in colour. But really I preferred the wire frame graphics on the Beeb. I was always rubbish at docking though and the docking computer was rubbish. It crashed and killed you half the time.

Do you remember the side missions that triggered at certain points? To fight the Thargoids (no relation). Ok I say missions - there might have only been one. Not exactly GTA territory.