The year is 1992, and the Super Nintendo is on the rise. But before we fully embrace the future of gaming, let’s take a nostalgic trip back to the 8-bit era, specifically to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the now-cult classic studio, UFO Soft (formerly LX Systems). Between 1982 and 1989, this eccentric developer released a staggering 50 games for LX home computers, showcasing the creative spirit and boundless potential of 8-bit technology. From quirky experiments to innovative iterations on classic formulas, UFO Soft’s catalog is a testament to the golden age of gaming. This retrospective compiles MaagX Magazine’s original reviews, offering a glimpse into a bygone era and the evolution of both games and game critics. If you’re looking for unparalleled value in gaming, UFO 50 is a must-have. Join us on this journey back in time.
A fake magazine cover shows UFO 50 on the front.
UFO Soft: A Decade of Innovation
UFO Soft’s 50-game library encapsulates the magic of 8-bit gaming. Their titles often embraced a unique, experimental spirit, pushing boundaries and breathing new life into familiar genres. Even their less successful ventures were intriguing for their ambition and willingness to take risks. Each game boasted memorable visuals and sound design, demonstrating the surprising expressiveness of the 8-bit aesthetic. This retrospective chronicles MaagX Magazine’s coverage of UFO Soft’s releases, reflecting not only the evolution of their games but also the personal journeys of our critics, marked by changing perspectives and even tragedy.
The Games: A Retrospective Review
Barbuta (1982)
Arthur Webb: A winding castle, gold to collect, and traps to avoid—Barbuta has the makings of a classic adventure. Yet, the slow pace and abundance of dead ends detract from the experience. Despite its flaws, the castle’s secrets linger in the mind, tempting players to unravel its mysteries.
Rating: 51%
Bug Hunter (1983)
Mark Kemp: Bug Hunter presents a strategic bug-slaying experience. Managing energy, juggling actions, and mastering the evolving grid of enemies provides a challenging and rewarding gameplay loop.
Rating: 89%
Ninpek (1983)
Barty Hughes: More than just a Ninjamania clone, Ninpek offers fresh thrills with nimble movement, shuriken attacks, and advanced scrolling. This high-score chase is easy to learn but difficult to master.
Rating: 80%
Paint Chase (1983)
Mark Kemp: Paint Chase focuses on out-painting rather than outracing opponents within a maze. Power-ups and tense two-player battles add to the fun, though the novelty wears off eventually.
Rating: 74%
The minigame Magic Garden appears in UFO 50.
Magic Garden (1984)
Barty Hughes: While visually appealing, Magic Garden‘s simple gameplay of collecting and depositing blobs offers limited long-term engagement.
Rating: 69%
Mortol (1984)
Mark Kemp: Mortol introduces a morbidly fun mechanic where players sacrifice lives to overcome obstacles. Strategic use of each life is crucial to solving the puzzle-like levels and saving Mortolia.
Rating: 90%
Velgress (1984)
Arthur Webb: Despite its precise jumping mechanics and changing well layouts, Velgress suffers from repetitive gameplay and uninspired power-ups.
Rating: 61%
Planet Zoldath (1984)
Mark Kemp: Planet Zoldath is a cerebral adventure game that challenges players to learn the intricacies of a foreign world with its ever-changing map and mysterious gizmos.
Rating: 76%
Attactics (1984)
Mark Kemp: Attactics captures the scale of war with its tactical battles and split-second decision-making. Managing different unit types and strategic deployment is key to victory.
Rating: 84%
Devilition (1984)
Mark Kemp: Devilition offers another unique strategy experience, tasking players with clearing a checkerboard of demons through carefully placed forces and chain reactions.
Rating: 79%
Kick Club (1984)
Barty Hughes: Kick Club turns football into a destructive force, tasking players with destroying athletic equipment with a kicked ball. Its charming visuals and music make for a family-friendly experience.
Rating: 75%
Avianos (1985)
Arthur Webb: Avianos, a strategy game about birds and dinosaurs at war, suffers from unclear instructions and cluttered gameplay.
Rating: 55%
Mooncat (1985)
Arthur Webb: Mooncat proves to be a frustrating adventure game with a cryptic control scheme and uninspired level design, failing to live up to its intriguing atmosphere.
Rating: 46%
Bushido Ball (1985)
Barty Hughes: Bushido Ball offers a fresh take on Pong with samurai and ninja paddles and special shots, though it doesn’t quite stand out from the crowd.
Rating: 59%
Block Koala (1985)
Mark Kemp: Block Koala is a deceptively challenging puzzle game where players must strategically move blocks based on their numerical values to clear a path.
Rating: 75%
Camouflage (1985)
Barty Hughes: Camouflage is a charming puzzle game where players control a chameleon, using camouflage to evade hungry frogs.
Rating: 87%
Campanella is played in UFO 50.
Campanella (1985)
Mark Kemp: Campanella delivers tense spaceship piloting reminiscent of Lunar Lander, requiring precise maneuvering to avoid shattering against obstacles.
Rating: 77%
Golfaria (1985)
Arthur Webb: Golfaria overcomplicates the golfing adventure with unwieldy controls and frustrating level design.
Rating: 57%
The Big Bell Race (1985)
Barty Hughes: The Big Bell Race, a racing spin-off of Campanella, feels like a rushed and unremarkable afterthought.
Rating: 52%
Warptank (1985)
Mark Kemp: Warptank stands out as one of UFO Soft’s best, challenging players with mind-bending puzzles based on gravity-shifting mechanics.
Rating: 88%
Waldorf’s Journey (1986)
Barty Hughes: Waldorf’s Journey is a charming jumping game featuring a walrus collecting fish in a dreamlike setting, though its controls can be tricky.
Rating: 66%
Porgy (1986)
Arthur Webb: Porgy offers a tense submarine exploration experience where players upgrade their vessel while managing limited fuel and avoiding enemies.
Rating: 73%
Onion Delivery (1986)
Barty Hughes: Onion Delivery casts players as an alien delivering vegetables, but its poor controls hinder the gameplay experience.
Rating: 45%
Caramel Caramel (1986)
Mark Kemp: Caramel Caramel puts a unique spin on the space shooter genre with its camera-based attack mechanic and imaginative alien world.
Rating: 76%
Party House (1986)
Barty Hughes: Party House cleverly simulates the challenges of throwing a party, balancing guest popularity, cash flow, and avoiding unwanted attention.
Rating: 94%
Hot Foot is played in UFO 50.
Hot Foot (1986)
Barty Hughes: Hot Foot is a simple but fun dodgeball adaptation with special throws and duo combat. Its team drafting mechanic adds a unique twist.
Rating: 59%
Divers (1986)
Arthur Webb: Divers disappoints with its dull turn-based battles, confusing shop system, and empty underwater environment.
Rating: 58%
Rail Heist (1987)
Barty Hughes: Rail Heist is a strategic heist game where players steal cash from train cars, avoiding guards and creating escape routes.
Rating: 84%
Vainger (1987)
Mark Kemp: Vainger expands on the gravity-shifting mechanics of Warptank in a shoot-’em-up adventure.
Rating: 80%
Rock On! Island (1987)
Arthur Webb: Rock On! Island is a simple but enjoyable strategy game where players defend their home from waves of dinosaurs.
Rating: 75%
Pingolf (1987)
Mark Kemp: Pingolf is a standard miniature golf game with sci-fi obstacles.
Rating: 61%
Mortol 2 (1987)
Mark Kemp: Mortol 2 continues the morbidly fun gameplay of its predecessor, challenging players to navigate traps and demons with limited lives.
Rating: 83%
Fist Hell is played in UFO 50.
Fist Hell (1987)
Wacky Jerry: Fist Hell is a gory beat-’em-up where players pummel zombies and werewolves with a variety of attacks.
Rating: 85%
Overbond (1987)
Wacky Jerry: Overbond strips Velgress down to its core, focusing on arena-based combat and upgrades.
Rating: 74%
Campanella 2 (1987)
Mark Kemp: Campanella 2 expands on the original with on-foot shooting segments and a vast world to explore.
Rating: 73%
Hyper Contender (1988)
Wacky Jerry: Hyper Contender is a fighting game where players compete to collect rings, featuring characters from other UFO Soft games.
Rating: 74%
Valbrace (1988)
Mark Kemp: Valbrace blends maze crawling with RPG elements and real-time combat.
Rating: 76%
Rakshasa (1988)
Arthur Webb: Rakshasa introduces a unique respawn mechanic to the side-scrolling action genre, allowing players to revive their character by collecting shards.
Rating: 82%
Star Waspir (1988)
Mark Kemp: Star Waspir is a space shooter with a mix-and-match power-up system.
Mark’s Rating: 69%
Jerry’s Rating: 90%
Grimstone (1988)
Wacky Jerry: Grimstone brings a Wild West twist to the RPG genre with cowboys, guns, and turn-based combat.
Rating: 82%
Lords of Diskonia (1988)
Mark Kemp: Lords of Diskonia presents an innovative wargame where troops are represented as discs flung into battle.
Rating: 89%
Night Manor is played in UFO 50.
Night Manor (1988)
Wacky Jerry: Night Manor is a point-and-click horror game with a chilling atmosphere and gruesome scenes.
Rating: 85%
Elfazar’s Hat (1988)
Arthur Webb: Elfazar’s Hat is a charming adventure game that builds on the power-up matching system of Star Waspir.
Rating: 76%
Pilot Quest (1988)
Arthur Webb: Pilot Quest introduces automation elements, allowing players to progress by setting up automated resource collection while occasionally engaging in combat.
Rating: 78%
Mini & Max (1989)
Mark Kemp: Mini & Max allows players to shrink and explore a vast world from a miniature perspective, highlighting the boundless potential of 8-bit design.
Rating: 90%
Combatants (1989)
Mark Kemp: Combatants is a challenging strategy game where players command an army of ants.
Rating: 62%
Quibble Race (1989)
Arthur Webb: Quibble Race is a psychedelic racing game with automation elements, where players bet on racers and sabotage opponents.
Rating: 65%
Seaside Drive (1989)
Mark Kemp: Seaside Drive combines driving action with shooting, requiring players to drift and charge their weapon while blasting enemies.
Rating: 83%
Campanella 3 (1989)
Barty Hughes: Campanella 3 departs from the previous entries with a 3D scrolling shoot-’em-up experience.
Rating: 81%
Cyber Owls (1989)
Arthur Webb: Cyber Owls is an action-packed game featuring militarized owls and diverse gameplay styles across four missions.
Rating: 80%
Conclusion: A Legacy of 8-Bit Brilliance
UFO Soft’s impact on the 8-bit era is undeniable. Their 50 games showcase a remarkable range of genres and innovative mechanics, solidifying their place as cult classics. This retrospective, while highlighting the individual games, also tells a story of evolving critical perspectives and the bittersweet passage of time in the gaming world. UFO 50 offers not just a collection of games, but a portal back to a time of creative exploration and boundless imagination in the 8-bit landscape.
