For November, I found another missile defense game that I wrote a few years back. I honestly didn’t remember this one until I started to play it. Starting off a bit slow, I kept telling myself that it should speed up. And, it did! Guess, my memory isn’t that bad after all. Let’s dig into Laser Catch a bit more.
Fall weather brings colder weather, colorful trees, and Halloween! The original movie was still a classic in 1984, even if a few sequels had been released by the time I wrote this program. Lacking the chills of the movie, my Halloween tries to convey the futility of running. Michael always wins.
Closing out September, it is time for a little adventure. SLR Venture is my attempt at creating one using the ZX81’s tiny memory footprint. Although I went on to write some more complex text games, this random game does a decent job.
As my programs attest to, I did a fair amount of digital drawing on my ZX81. As noted in past articles, I tended to use graph paper to design my games. Yet in 1984, I built a simple drawing program called Picture Use. Sadly, I never used it.
Although July nears its end, patriotism remains. From the frantic happiness of the 4th, to general love of country, July is about fireworks and Summer heat. Digging into my archives, I found a US Flag to commemorate the month.
Not all programs need to be games. And, in the case of Screen Copy, it is a demo program that ultimately became a utility. Most of us take the idea of making a screen shot for granted. Yet, back in the early ’80s, the idea was uncommon. That didn’t deter me.
Spring is in full swing and I’ve taken time away from running to complete a few LEGO renders. The topics range from movie blockbusters, old BASIC sets, to random sets from Pinterest. I even did some experimenting with Mecabricks rendering to see how it compared with mine. Here are four images to show off this Spring.
Taking a minor departure this Memorial Weekend, my ZX81 program is actually from my childhood best friend. Neighbors during our time in Italy, Jeremy and I spent a lot of time together playing with our LEGO bricks, D&D, and on our computers. U.F.O is a simple shooter game that takes a unique approach to graphics.
The eighties were a turbulent time. Political turmoil grew out of the Cold War, which wasn’t loss on this teenage programmer. The vocal leaders of the US and the USSR bubbled up often in the pop culture of the era and the esclation of war. It shouldn't be surprising that I’d create an animation depicting that escalation.
With the arrival of Spring and warmer weather, I found myself inspired by the cheerful colors. Looking through my pins for ideas, a rainbow sparked my creativity. Thoughts of an Easter hunt with eggs and grass completed the theme. The blocky nature of the LEGO bricks invoke adolescence and whimsy.