Anyone fortunate enough to have access to an Apple II in the '80s remembers games like Oregon Trail, Carmen Sandiego, and Pinball Construction Set. They were among the biggest hits for the Apple II. But what about the lesser-known games, the weird games, the ones splurted out by some eccentric bedroom programmer and then forgotten?
Here are some of the ones I knew and loved. And I'd bet that most if not all of them were exclusive to the Apple II.
Ankh
You're an abstract geometric entity navigating through an abstract geometric world, avoiding abstract geometric enemies and solving logic puzzles. I never finished this game, but the environment is unforgettable.
Flip Out
My sister and I spent many spiteful hours on this game of "screw your opponent." The object is to get all your balls to the bottom first - and if you fail to do so before running out, you get to use your opponent's!
Pieman
Get filling. Bring filling to pie tray. Get cherry. Bring cherry to pie tray. Bring finished pie to pie-depository. Don't let pies fall off the conveyor. Simple, right? This was a game in the old arcade style, getting faster and faster until you died.
Frenzy
A simple game of evasion, but the terrifying voice samples and gameplay forever wedged it in my mind.
Chrono Warrior
This was a pretty ambitious game, combining different types of gameplay with a fun time-travel story. In the first level, you scrambled around a prehistoric mountain collecting pieces of your time-gate. In the second, you raced chariots at a Roman circus. In the third... well, I can't spoil the whole thing, can I?
Paipec
Catch the stuff that falls from the sky, using your four stacked platforms - but if you miss, you lose a platform and have less vertical surface area with which to catch something on the side. Straightforward, nerve-wracking, and horribly addictive.
Here are some of the ones I knew and loved. And I'd bet that most if not all of them were exclusive to the Apple II.
Ankh
You're an abstract geometric entity navigating through an abstract geometric world, avoiding abstract geometric enemies and solving logic puzzles. I never finished this game, but the environment is unforgettable.
Flip Out
My sister and I spent many spiteful hours on this game of "screw your opponent." The object is to get all your balls to the bottom first - and if you fail to do so before running out, you get to use your opponent's!
Pieman
Get filling. Bring filling to pie tray. Get cherry. Bring cherry to pie tray. Bring finished pie to pie-depository. Don't let pies fall off the conveyor. Simple, right? This was a game in the old arcade style, getting faster and faster until you died.
Frenzy
A simple game of evasion, but the terrifying voice samples and gameplay forever wedged it in my mind.
Chrono Warrior
This was a pretty ambitious game, combining different types of gameplay with a fun time-travel story. In the first level, you scrambled around a prehistoric mountain collecting pieces of your time-gate. In the second, you raced chariots at a Roman circus. In the third... well, I can't spoil the whole thing, can I?
Paipec
Catch the stuff that falls from the sky, using your four stacked platforms - but if you miss, you lose a platform and have less vertical surface area with which to catch something on the side. Straightforward, nerve-wracking, and horribly addictive.