THE RETROBATES

WHAT GAME DEFINES THE SPECTRUM FOR YOU?

DARRAN JONES

I’m going for the wonderful Batty. It’s not only an incredible covertape game, but was even better than the arcade game it was based on (Arkanoid).

Expertise: Juggling a gorgeous wife, two beautiful girls and an award-winning magazine, all under one roof!

Currently playing: Elden Ring

Favourite Game Of All Time: Strider

ANDY SALTER

I never owned a Speccy, or any tape-based computer but I do remember spending hours trying to complete Narc with my friends. I’ve got a rocket launcher but I can also arrest you!

Expertise: Modding games, no ‘vanilla’ versions for me, thanks!

Currently playing: M&B2: Bannerlord… Modded of course

Favourite game of all time: Rome: Total War

ANDREW FISHER

Jetpac – it’s absolutely superb fun and crammed into 16K, proving how Ultimate mastered the hardware.

Expertise: Forty years of gaming, from Commodore 64 to Switch

Currently playing: Knightmare

Favourite game of all time: Paradroid

TIM EMPEY

I had a Commodore 64, so all the converted Spectrum games looked, played and sounded better on that. As I said in the playground at the time, it’s just the better computer…

Expertise: Finishing Game

Pass games before they leave the service

Currently playing:

Elden Ring

Favourite game of all time:

God Hand

MARTYN CARROLL

It has to be Jetpac. Playing it aged seven, using a Competition Pro stick, it felt like having an arcade machine at home.

Expertise: Sinclair stuff

Currently playing: Mario Kart 8

Favourite game of all time:

Jet Set Willy

IAIN LEE

When I think of the Spectrum, I always think of the Ghostbusters

game. Partly because I once broke into a friend’s house, which I thought was empty, to play it. Turns out it wasn’t actually empty…

Expertise: Buying overpriced stuff on ebay then never touching it.

Currently playing:

Jackbox Party

Favourite game of all time:

Elite (BBC Model B)

NICK THORPE

The Spectrum has always felt to me like a triumph of engineers and coders making a lot out of a little. That’s why Chase HQ really stands out, it’s still so impressive today.

Expertise: Owning five Master Systems and a Mark III

Currently playing: Blue Reflection: Second Light

Favourite game of all time: Sonic The Hedgehog

PAUL ROSE

Knight Lore, because it pushed the hardware further than should’ve been possible. The little computer that could.

Expertise: Winging it

Currently playing: Resident Evil on the Game.com (no, really!)

Favourite game of all time: Half-life 2

RORY MILNE

It was succeeded by technically better games, but Knight Lore hit a sweet spot for me, where interest in the Spectrum peaked and isometric seemed like magic to those who owned one.

Expertise: The game that I’m writing about at the time of writing

Currently playing: Driver

Favourite game of all time: Tempest