By Kathy Yakal and Selby Bateman — originally published in December 1986 (Vol. 4, No. 12)
A Buyer’s Guide To Commodore 64 Simulation Software
Prices for the following simulation programs generally range from about $20 to $50, depending on the company and the product.
Ace of Aces
Accolade—This World War II aerial-warfare game lets you pilot an RAF Mosquito in the skies over Europe.
Acro-Jet
MicroProse—Up to four players compete in aerial acrobatics in a simulated BD5-J one-man jet.
The American Challenge: A Sailing Simulation
Mindscape—A sailing simulation that lets you learn the rudiments of sailing and then compete for the America’s Cup.
Baltic 1985
SSI—Part of SSI’s When Superpowers Collide strategy series; NATO forces attempt to rescue troops trapped in West Berlin.
Battalion Commander
SSI—A realtime strategy game as you command U.S., Soviet, or Chinese troops.
Battle for Normandy
SSI—You’re in command of the Allied forces on D-Day in World War II in this strategy game.
Battlefront
SSG/Electronic Arts—You’re a corps commander in World War II in this recreation of four major land battles in Crete, Stalingrad, Saipan, and Bastogne.
Battlegroup
SSI—A strategy game depicting armored combat on the Western Front in World War II.
Battle of Antietam
SSI—A strategy game recreating the famous Civil War battle.
Breakthrough in the Ardennes
SSI—A detailed recreation of the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.
Broadsides
SSI—In this strategy game, you’re the captain of an eighteenth-century warship during the age of fighting sail.
Carrier Force
SSI—This is a simulation of four major naval battles between the U.S. and Japan in the Pacific.
Carriers at War
SSG/Electronic Arts—A recreation of the crucial naval battles in the Pacific during World War II.
Cartels and Cutthroats
SSI—A business simulation that lets you run a major corporation.
Championship Baseball ’86
Gamestar/Activision—A new major league baseball simulation game.
Championship Golf at Pebble Beach
Sportsware—A professional golf simulation, with a choice of 14 different clubs, two skill levels, and optional data disks for two more courses.
Colonial Conquest
SSI—A strategy game of world domination set during the Age of Imperialism in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Combat Leader
SSI—You can take command as company commander, platoon leader, or squad leader in this strategy simulation of tank warfare.
Computer Ambush
SSI—In this simulation, you take charge of ten American or German soldiers in hand-to-hand combat.
Computer Baseball
SSI—A strategy game featuring major league baseball teams, with optional team disks for different years.
Computer Quarterback
SSI—A strategy game featuring major league football teams, with optional team disks for different years.
Conflict in Vietnam
MicroProse—Five different battle scenarios from the Vietnam War are covered in this strategy game.
Crusade in Europe
MicroProse—From D-Day to the Battle of the Bulge, you’re in command in this World War II strategic simulation game.
Decision in the Desert
MicroProse—A strategic recreation of warfare in North Africa during World War II.
Destroyer Escort
MicroProse—The waters of the North Atlantic are the battleground for this strategic simulation of convoy-escort situations in World War II.
Dreadnoughts
Avalon Hill—It’s the Royal Navy versus the awesome German Bismarck in this World War II naval-strategy game.
Eagles
SSI—You’re the pilot of such World War I planes as the Sopwith Camel or the Fokker Triplane in this aerial-combat simulation.
Europe Ablaze
SSG/Electronic Arts—This is a simulation strategy game of the air war over England and Germany during World War II.
F-15 Strike Eagle
MicroProse—A sophisticated and popular jet-fighter flight simulator with combat scenarios, including the April 1986 bombing raid on Libya.
Field of Fire
SSI—This strategy game puts you in command of Easy Company in eight historical battles of World War II.
Fighter Command
SSI—A detailed air-combat strategy game about the Battle of Britain during World War II.
Fight Night
Accolade—This action boxing game includes a construction set that lets you build your own fighters.
Flight Simulator II
SubLOGIC—This is a realistic flight-simulation program that features a variety of scenarios and options.
Football
SubLOGIC—A realistic football simulation that features both strategy and action.
GATO
Spectrum Holobyte—A World War II submarine simulation, with eight different missions, five difficulty levels, and three ships.
GBA Championship Basketball
Gamestar/Activision—A two-on-two fast-action basketball simulation with a four-division, 23-team league.
Geopolitique 1990
SSI—A political, economic, and military strategy game in which you battle the computer for world dominance.
Germany 1985
SSI—The first game in SSI’s When Superpowers Collide series; you’re in charge of NATO forces repelling an attack by Warsaw Pact troops.
Gettysburg: The Turning Point
SSI—Basic, intermediate, and advanced levels of play are a part of this historically accurate recreation of the famous battle of Gettysburg in the American Civil War.
Guderian
Avalon Hill—This is a simulation of the German campaign in Russia during World War II, recreating the 1941 attack on Smolensk.
Gulf Strike
Avalon Hill—A strategic simulation of land, sea, and air war in the Middle East.
Gunship
MicroProse—A realistic simulation of the Apache AH-64A attack helicopter, with advanced offensive and defensive weaponry.
The Halley Project: A Mission in Our Solar System
Mindscape—An educational realtime simulation of the solar system, with missions for players to undertake.
Hardball
Accolade—A fast-action graphically oriented baseball simulation.
Hellcat Ace
MicroProse—This is an aerial-combat simulation among fighter planes in the Pacific Theatre during World War II.
Jet
SubLOGIC—You pilot one of two jet fighters through a variety of scenarios.
Jet Combat Simulator
Epyx—A flight simulator based on the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle that includes flight scenarios and air-to-air combat.
Kampfgruppe
SSI—Warfare on the Russian Front during World War II is the subject of this strategy simulation.
Karate Champ
Data East—An arcade-action martial-arts simulation game.
Kennedy Approach
MicroProse—A realistic air traffic-control simulation that includes speech synthesis and a variety of air-control situations.
Knights of the Desert
SSI—This is a strategy simulation of the tank warfare in North Africa during World War II.
Kung-Fu Master
Data East—An arcade-action martial-arts simulation game.
Leader Board
Access—A golf simulation game featuring excellent graphics and sound effects.
Mech Brigade
SSI—A strategy simulation of armored warfare during the 1990s.
MIG Alley Ace
MicroProse—You’re in command during sabre-jet aerial dog fighting in an air-to-air combat simulation.
Monday Morning Manager
TK Computer Products—A strategy baseball simulation with 64 major league teams and over 1500 players and pitchers.
NAM
SSI—This is a combat simulation game set in the jungles of Vietnam.
NATO Commander
MicroProse—Take charge of NATO and defend Europe against a Soviet invasion in this strategic simulation game.
Norway 1985
SSI—The last strategy simulation in SSI’s When Superpowers Collide series; NATO guerrillas battle Soviet armor in Norway.
On-Court Tennis
Gamestar/Activision—An action tennis simulation game.
On-Field Football
Gamestar/Activision—An action football simulation game.
Operation Market Garden
SSI—You command the Allied airborne divisions during the 1944 effort to secure six bridges that will allow your troops to cross into Germany.
Operation Whirlwind
Brøderbund Software—A battle action game at the battalion level during World War II.
Panzer Grenadier
SSI—A strategy simulation of warfare on the Eastern Front during World War II, with you in command of German elite armored infantry.
Panzers East!
Avalon Hill—A strategy game recreating warfare on the Eastern Front during World War II.
President Elect
SSI—An educational simulation that lets you manage a nine-week campaign for the Presidency.
Professional Tour Golf
SSI—An action simulation of professional golf.
Pro-Golf
Mastertronic—An action professional golf simulation.
Pure-Stat Baseball
SubLOGIC—Baseball statistics fans can have a field day with this major league baseball simulation.
Rails West!
SSI—You’re trying to wheel and deal your way to building a transcontinental railroad in this nineteenth-century business simulation.
RDF 1985
SSI—One of the When Superpowers Collide series from SSI; you command the U.S. Rapid Deployment Force in retaking Soviet-captured oilfields in the Middle East.
Ringside Seat
SSI—An action simulation of professional boxing that allows you to match the pros from past and present.
Silent Service
MicroProse—You’re the commander of a submarine in this naval-combat simulation set in the Pacific during World War II.
Six-Gun Shootout
SSI—Direct the actions of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and other gunslingers in this action strategy game.
Solo Flight
MicroProse—A recently updated flight simulator that includes an instructor-pilot option, software speech synthesis, and new take-off and landing maps.
Space Shuttle
Activision—Subtitled A Journey into Space, this is a realistic space-flight simulation based on the space shuttle.
Spitfire Ace
MicroProse—This is an aerial-combat simulation among fighter planes in the European Theatre during World War II.
Spitfire 40
Avalon Hill—A World War II aerial-combat game in which you pilot a Mark I Supermarine Spitfire.
Star League Baseball
Gamestar/Activision—An action baseball simulation game.
Star Rank Boxing
Gamestar/Activision—A fast-action boxing simulation that lets you build up your skills in training camp and then go for the championship.
Statis Pro Baseball
Avalon Hill—A strategy simulation of professional baseball.
Summer Games
Epyx—A fast-action sports game that simulates eight key Olympic events.
Summer Games II
Epyx—A fast-action sports game that simulates eight new Olympic events.
Super Bowl Sunday
Avalon Hill—You’re the coach in this professional football simulation that includes 20 different Super Bowl teams; a separate season disk is available also.
TAC
Avalon Hill—Tactical Armor Command, a simulation of World War II armored combat.
10th Frame
Access—A bowling simulation game featuring colorful, detailed graphics.
Tigers in the Snow
SSI—A recreation of the German offensive at the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.
Title Bout
Avalon Hill—A professional boxing simulation game.
Tournament Golf
Avalon Hill—A professional golf simulation game.
USAAF
SSI—A strategy game that recreates the daylight bombing of Nazi-occupied Germany by the United States Army Air Force during World War II.
Wings of War
SSI—Four scenarios in this World War II aerial-combat game let you pilot 36 different fighters and bombers.
Winter Games
Epyx—A fast-action sports game that simulates such winter sports as ski jumping, speed skating, figure skating, and others.
World Games
Epyx—A simulation of eight athletic contests from around the world.
World Karate Championship
Epyx—A fast-action karate simulation that lets players practice and use up to 17 different moves against opponents.
The World’s Greatest Baseball Game
Epyx—A recently enhanced version of a strategy sports simulation that features over 75 baseball teams and complete player rosters from the 1984 and 1985 major league seasons.
The World’s Greatest Football Game
Epyx—A strategy sports simulation that lets you be both player and coach, designing your own plays and then running them.
Access Software
#A 2561 South 1560 West
Woods Cross, UT 84087
Accolade
20833 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Cupertino, CA 95014
Activision
2350 Bayshore Frontage Rd.
Mountain View, CA 94043
Avalon Hill Game Company
Microcomputer Games Division
4517 Harford Rd.
Baltimore, MD 21214
Brøderbund Software
17 Paul Dr.
San Rafael, CA 94903
Data East USA
470 Gianni St.
Santa Clara, CA 95054
Electronic Arts
1820 Gateway Dr.
San Mateo, CA 94404
Epyx
1043 Kiel Ct.
Sunnyvale, CA 94089
Firebird Licensees
P.O. Box 49
Ramsey, NJ 07446
First Star Software
18 East 41st St.
New York, NY 10017
Mastertronic International
7311B Grove Rd.
Frederick, MD 21701
MicroProse Software
120 Lakefront Dr.
Hunt Valley, MD 21030
Mindscape
3444 Dundee Rd.
Northbrook, IL 60062
Spectrum Holobyte
1050 Walnut
Suite 325
Boulder, CO 80302
Spinnaker Software
One Kendall Square
Cambridge, MA 02139
Sportsware
5234 War Wagon Dr.
San Jose, CA 95136
Strategic Simulations (SSI)
1046 N. Rengstorff Ave.
Mountain View, CA 94043
SubLOGIC
713 Edgebrook Dr.
Champaign, IL 61820
Telarium
Spinnaker Software
One Kendall Square
Cambridge, MA 02139
TK Computer Products
P.O. Box 9617
Downers Grove, IL 60515