Penguinthe graphicssoftwarpeople e The Next Generation Is Here! At Penguin, we ' -, don't rely on the same old game formulas, adding to the mish-mash of look-alike games already on the market. We look for creativity, originality, and innovation. Games like Minit Man, challenging you with two types of arcade action simultaneously; Coveted Mirror, an adventure with animation and arcade games throughout; The Spy Strikes Back, an arcade game with strategy and a touch of adventure; Pensate and Tactic 9, games that make you think; and Expedition Amazon, an intriguing and humorous fantasy game. And Each Is Only $19.95! More Fun For Your Money From Penguin Software Write for a free catalog 830 Fourth Avenue, Box 311 Dept. B Geneva, IL 60134 For information - Call (312) 232-1984 Dealer orders only - Call (800) 323-0116 Apple is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Atari is a trademark of Atari, Inc. Commodore is a trademark of Commodore Business Machines, Inc. IBM is a trademark of International Business Machines Corp. Penguins are hard on pool toys. CONTENTS Game Library / 2 Adventures in The right stuff; the new stuff; the tried and true A in stuff Adventuring: Night the Temple / 42 The of the The dark. The Playfulness Profile: sky grows gods grow angry. Programmer Sidney Greenstreet gets a royalty check. Long Distance Lord British / 26 Gamer / 8 and from those humble beginnings was No Contest / 46 The airwaves to with very prepare fill up fun. born: Liltima Man! Warm up for the future of games or break into Brace yourselves. the Hall Fame. And can it. by David Durkee of you get paid for by Andrew Christie Smart Software Infomania / 50 Contest: You Can't Tell Your nose knows where the wild news goes, and / 30 nose where the wild news knows. the / 12 Shopping your goes Players Continuing education for the electronic consumer. You'd know them anywhere. Can you make the Or, continuing consumption for the electronic connection? Directline I 57 educator. Readers write. The keeping up of good work is Sherwin Steffin Anatomy of a Game, by upkept. Part 2/14 Programs in Pulp I 31 Relocatable code! can it Assembler on? Check! Hi-res display enabled? (You pull out.) Atari Sound / 59 Over the waves the C. Check! Screen cleared? Check! Points plotted? of rolling Check! Lines drawn? Check! Allez! Contact! No Tipping / 39 by Bill Williams Chocks away. Bigger! Better! More questions! More answers! by Brian Fitzgerald It can't be stopped!! Especially the High Scores I 65 In search the C'mon, one doggerel. of winning point. just Gameline / 16 more round. Software passes in review and prepares for Peeking, Poking, inspection. It stands smartly at attention or faints Highlines / 65 what I did dead away. Wheeling, and Won't forget, can't regret, for / 41 games. New Dealing Players: Origin Three mil? Are you kidding? No deal, sweetie. Dungeon Fun Fans Note: Level 3 is under Systems I 25 My client gets four-and-a-half, plus percentage construction, and shall be ready for computer And now: The Origin story. It all began in a points, a stock option, and a lifetime supply of bilingual descent next issue. While you're small log cabin on the planet Krypton. double-density disks. waiting, delete line 5575 from Level 2 and Harrison will work much better. by Matt Yuen by Harvey everything Editorial Garners: Margot Comstock Tommervik, approver of everything; Al every other month by Softalk Publishing Inc.. 7250 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, North Tommervik, game organizer; Andrew Christie, head game writer; Matt Yuen, docu- Hollywood, California; (213) 980-5074. mentation; David Durkee, debugger; Tommy Gear, user input; Jean Varven, beta Composition by those wonderful people at Photographics, Hollywood, Califor- testing; Cord Cooper, syntax correcter; Harry McNeil, Judith Pfeffer, listings; Betsy nia. Printing by the friendly folks of Volkmuth Printers, Saint Cloud, Minnesota. Barnes, game submissions. Apple is a trademark of Apple Computer Inc.. Cupertino, California. Atari is a Art Gang: Trici Venola, package designer; Don Robertson, sticky fingers; Nancy trademark of Atari Inc., Sunnyvale, California. Commodore 64 and VIC-20 are Baldwin. Ruth Seid, sticky paperers; Michael Pender, ad slapper downer. Weldon 0. trademarks of Commodore Business Machines, West Chester. Pennsylvania. Zork is a Lewin, Lucas McClure, Malcolm Rodgers, and about a million others drew stuff. trademark of Infocom Inc., Cambridge. Massachusetts. Soft/ice. Softalk, Infomama, Business Types: Mary Sue Rennells, business lunching; Three Tyler, business and Gameline are trademarks of Softalk Publishing Inc. 9-Lives is a trademark of drinking; Evelyn Burke, paying for lunch and drinks. Linda McGuire, ad connection; Star-Kist Foods Inc., Houston, Texas. Lincoln is the capital of Nebraska. Pattie Lesser, retail connection; Michelle Vigneault, subscriber connection; Kurt Subscriptions; Write to Soft/me Circulation, Box 60, North Hollywood, CA Wahlner, loose connection. 91603. A subscription is just twelve bucks ($12) for six bitchen issues. Be sure to in- Advertising; East Coast sails, Paul McGinnis Company, 690 Broadway, clude your name and address and juicy descriptions of the make, model, and serial Massapequa, NY 11758, (212) 490.1021; Midwest and Rocky Mountain sails, number of your computer and boffo peripherals. We read that stuff at night so we Market/Media Associates, 435 Locust Road, Wilmette, IL 60091, (312) 251-2541; know how to meet our readers' needs. In terms of Soft/me, that is. West Coast sales, Mighty Mike Antich, Softline, 7250 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, Moving? Send us your old mailing label and new address to Soft/me Circulation, Box 60, North Hollywood, CA 91603, (213) 980-5074. Box 60, North Hollywood, CA 91603; phone (213) 980-5074. Softline. Volume 3, Number 1. Copyright © 1983 by Softalk Publishing Inc. All Postmaster; If you would be so kind, please send address changes to Softline. rights reserved, okay? ISSN:0745-4988. Soft/me is published on the fifteenth day of Box 60. North Hollywood, CA 91603. Thank you, so, so much. Coverdesign by Dan Winkler DBK Concepts 58 Penguin Software Cover 2 Don't Ask Computer Software 22 Phoenix Software 66 ADVi1iflRS Electronic Arts Quality Software 20 Atari 6.7 Infocom Cover 4 Sierra On-Line Cover 3 Atari Program Exchange 55,56 Moxie Software 30 Starfire Games 13,6 The Balance Sheet 23 Origin Systems 64 SubLogic Corp 28 Like a bastion of computer culture before the onslaught of micro mediocrity, a shining beacon of gaming goodness cutting through the murky miasma ofjust so-so software, the Game Library deals only with the right stuff. It lives to serve. All Recommended programs are the best of the current releases and carry the very highest recommendation. The programs in the Stacks were once so-called and have since these would be New Arrivals includes damn that graciously steppedaside to make room for new blood. In neitherof categories you risking wastingyour money. any fool thing meets that single criterion, and the items are largely unseen except where obviously otherwise. I1((S1k!Y1 I'IJ NEWARRIVALS The Coveted Mirror. Berns, Thomason. Apple. Warm-hearted, well- Fiction puzzled, pretty hi-res graphics adventure, interspersed with minigames Bandits. Ngo, Bertoni. Apple, VIC-20. Just about the only differences and a couple of simple arcade-type sequences. Talk to everyone in a between this cart and the 48K original are fewer, simpler colors and a medieval village to find missing piece of magic mirror, all on bor- limited repeat-shot function. Also, incredibly, the animation is actually rowed time. smoother at the highest levels. Best arcade action available for this Penguin Software, 830 Fourth Avenue, Geneva. IL 60134. $19.95. machine. Sirius, 10364 Rockingham Drive, Sacramento, CA 95827. $39.95. Exodus: Ultima III. British. Apple, Atari. By far the best in the Ultima (so Bats in the Moore, A schoolhouse far) trilogy. Role-playing fantasy with good plot, everything integrated, Belfry. Apple. four-story requiring the of Swat & Exterminators to net all its bats, in- clues everywhere-and there's a lot more to everywhere than meets the expertise Squash the before reach the That's where eye. Multiple heroes. Many hours of colorful, animated, solid role- cluding vampire variety, they belfry. in. Mind the doors and Phoenix, 64 Lake Zurich playing fantasy in Lord British's inimitable style. you come trap spiders. Drive, Lake Zurich, IL 60047. $29.95. Origin Systems, Box 58009, Houston, TX 77058. Atari. 48K. $54.95. Capture the Flag. Edelstein. Atari. Two-player 3-D maze chase game. Gnosis VII. Apple. Unique logic game. No graphics, doesn't need 'em. ("Wayout: The Special Edition.") Still the most impressive graphics of Determine the secret names of seven gods who move between seven its Sirius, 10364 Rockingham Drive, Sacramento, CA 95827. towns. Player must make a learn skills, earn type. living, worship, sanctuary $39.95. by figuring out which god rules what and which towns that god is cur- Combat Leader. Commodore 64. Conversion of Atari rently influencing. Mind-stretching. Program is totally open, with line strategy game with 70 rated tanks, battlefield, and guide to key routines printed in manual. individually scrolling eight speed A-200, Moun- Magnetic Harvest, Box 255, Hopkins, SC 29061. $19.95. levels. Strategic Simulations, 883 Stierlin Road, Building tain View, CA 94043. Disk or cassette. $39.95. Find Infidel. Berlyn. Most computers. Infocom's Egyptological adventure: Final Orbit. Thompson, Bertoni. VIC-20. Leonard Bertoni translates find entrance to ... then it pyramid, uncover pyramid, pyramid gets Dan Thompson's elegant scrolling style for the VIC. Includes pinball A November release, off the Tales of Adven- tough. kicking company's game, Bumper Bash, as second feature. Sirius, 10364 Rockingham Drive, ture series.