13. Molecule Man (210,693)
ZX Spectrum – 56,216
Amstrad CPC – 41,124
Commodore 64 – 33,166
MSX – 31,412
Commodore 16 and Plus/4 – 26,716
Atari XL/XE – 22,059
Molecule Man as an isometric 3D arcade adventure game was first released on the ZX Spectrum, where the magazine reviews at least seemed to praise it well, and that probably influenced some of the other formats having conversions. There were six formats in all, and the MSX version sold quite well here. All the versions suffer the same issue though – in that your energy drains far too quickly and you are having to constantly track back and find enough to survive. This does mean it can be a frustrating experience, and even with an editor included on some versions so you can design and play your own mazes, it was perhaps one 3D adventure too far for some – well at least until Ocean released Head Over Heels and showed just how good this sort of game could be across several 8-bit machines.
14. Ninja (209,751)
Commodore 64 – 58,348
Atari XL/XE – 52,487
ZX Spectrum – 49,691
Amstrad CPC – 34,371
Amiga – 7,983
Atari ST – 6,162
PC – 709
Originally programmed by Sculptured Software for the Commodore 64 and Atari XL/XE, when brought to the UK as part of the Entertainment USA range, enhancements were made, such as the Rob Hubbard music for the Commodore 64 version. There were also conversions to other 8-bit formats, with the Amstrad CPC version being a good effort. Of course, anything with Ninja in its title would sell well throughout this period, and it therefore meant tapping into the 16-bit market with reasonable sales on both the Amiga and Atari ST for its time. There is even a PC version, which means like Vegas Jackpot on this list, it is a game released on the most formats, seven in all. Certainly, it is a game you either like or dislike – and for me, I do like it. It is not the most advanced game and maybe perfect for your younger sibling to pick and play, but it does the job.
15. Feud (204.786)
ZX Spectrum – 67,184
Amstrad CPC – 42,195
Commodore 64 – 39,356
Atari XL/XE – 22,760
MSX – 19,886
Amiga – 12,220
PC – 1,185
The Pickford Brothers’ opening game on the Bulldog label, this had the duelling brothers Learic and Leanoric attempting to destroy each other by finding the objects for your spells and casting them from the spell book at the right time. It was fast paced and certainly addictive to try and get the right objects whilst avoiding the other brother trying to do the same to you. Well, it was on the original ZX Spectrum and then the Amstrad CPC conversion, where Jas C Brooke did some screen refresh trickery at a weird rate to get the mode changes on screen smooth. The Commodore 64 version is sadly best avoided, as it is full of bugs that make the game virtually unplayable, and in my view, should have been recalled from sale. As with a considerable number of releases on the Bulldog label, this got an MSX conversion – and look at how many copies it sold on the Amiga! There were seven formats in all too.
16. Storm (197,782)
Amstrad CPC – 47,796
ZX Spectrum – 38,038
Commodore 16 and Plus/4 – 35,758
Commodore 64 – 32,735
MSX – 25,108
Atari XL/XE – 13,639
PC – 4,708
Another game which sold on seven formats, this budget clone of Gauntlet, but with some added elements, hit home well with those who could not afford the official arcade conversion. Starting out on the Amstrad CPC, which for once is the highest seller here, and the only format to get the game’s sequel also, the success clearly spawned conversions on other system. Whilst the Commodore 16 and Plus/4 version was cut down from 100 to 40 screens, it retained the same graphics and proved to be just as playable – and outsold the Commodore 64 version! The tank style rotational controls may put some people off, but having such a game in its range across the formats meant you could have a go on most systems and it proved to be solid fun all round. The PC version also for its time sold considerably well too.
17. 180 (196,155)
ZX Spectrum – 75,906
Commodore 64 – 59,051
Amstrad CPC – 35,933
Atari XL/XE – 17,987
MSX – 7,278
Darts was hugely popular as a sport on television even in the 1980s, and it was further enhanced by having the TV quiz show Bullseye on a Sunday afternoon drawing in millions. If a darts game was done well, it would be a hit, and so it proved here. The hand of Ste Pickford moves as you use the diagonals to aim said hand, and throw to the board. Scoring the maximum brought speech in some versions as if you were down your local pub playing with your friends, and the pub scene when watching your opponent have their go is just as good fun too – look out for the pints being pulled or the dog under the bar. On the Commodore 64, one of the versions of the game is bugged when the hand moves, so do read the review so you know what to look out for. Also notably, while he Spectrum, Commodore 64 and Amstrad versions were on the short-lived second-generation MADC catalogue range, the later Atari and MSX versions had standard 310 range catalogue numbers.
18. The Way of the Exploding Fist (182,407)
ZX Spectrum – 63,564
Commodore 64 – 44,870
Amstrad CPC – 35,301
Commodore 16 and Plus/4 – 33,301
BBC Micro – 5,371
Way of the Exploding Fist had already been a sizeable seller when released by Melbourne House, with it being a bona fide classic on the Commodore 64 especially. Its huge animated characters and excellent Neil Brennan music made it look and feel superb. The re-release on Ricochet sadly misses out the Bruce Lee sample on loading here, but to get this for a low price was a steal, hence it sold well on several formats. Even though the Commodore 16 and Plus/4 version is cut down, it was still a reasonable effort, retaining the two-player mode, and no doubt sold well due to the name and reputation. It was also notable that the front inlay only stated BBC Micro compatibility for the re-release, so maybe the Electron version (which by all accounts is an excellent version) did not ship here. In any case, if you do have a system to play this game on, it is well worth your while, and only the second Ricochet release on this list.
19. Spectipede (178,115)
Commodore 16 and Plus/4 – 79,800
ZX Spectrum – 43,177
Commodore 64 – 30,744
BBC Micro – 14,818
Acorn Electron – 9,576
What started off as a re-release of the game by R&R Software, which was a very good clone of the arcade game Centipede but with its own mechanics, grew and grew. The original game’s cover was first used on the ZX Spectrum, then a different cover which all different formats would be used. Tony Kelly of Mr Chip Software would handle the Commodore 64 and Commodore 16 and Plus/4 conversions, and did a solid job on both, with the timing of the game’s release on the latter coinciding close to the fire sale of Plus/4s in the UK, meaning perfect timing for a good game to sell multiple copies – indeed, more than the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 version put together. Notable here too was that there were separate BBC Micro and Acorn Electron versions, the latter just had a sticker over the top right corner stating it was the Electron version rather than reprinting the whole inlay.
20. Milk Race (174,110)
ZX Spectrum – 54,416
Commodore 64 – 46,589
Amstrad CPC – 32,051
Atari XL/XE – 29,893
MSX – 11,161
A cycling game based on what was at the time the Tour of Britain cycle race, this game featured the 1987 iteration, with all the stages represented and the idea of your bike needing to change to the right gear for going up or downhill. You also needed to collect bottles of milk (after all, fresh milk’s gotta lotta bottle as the advert used to say) to top up the energy and get to the end of each stage. It was derivative, but being a tie-in, it needed to be published on as many formats as possible and in quick time and had a catchy David Whittaker tune on most of the formats to get you hyped up to race the next stage. Notably, Mastertronic also released it in the USA as Ten Speed, with any references to the Milk Race removed and replaced with a map of the USA. The race also ended in New York.
Summary
So, if you took these top twenty game sales alone, what would this equate to across the formats and how many? Well here goes, and you may be surprised with which system came in third place based on these games:
| Format | Sales | Games |
| Commodore 64 | 1,550,115 | 20 |
| ZX Spectrum | 1,386,866 | 18 |
| Commodore 16 and Plus/4 | 884,704 | 12 |
| Amstrad CPC | 790,323 | 15 |
| Atari XL/XE | 391,940 | 11 |
| MSX | 279,020 | 9 |
| BBC Micro | 62,650 | 4 |
| Vic 20 | 48,115 | 1 |
| Amiga | 30,559 | 3 |
| Acorn Electron | 9,576 | 1 |
| PC | 6,602 | 3 |
| Atari ST | 6,162 | 1 |
| Commodore 128 | 4,582 | 1 |
| Dragon 32/64 | 2,333 | 1 |
| Total | 5,453,547 |
So, the top twenty in terms of sales counted for over 5.4 million games, which is a very good figure. A considerable number of the games on this list are considered either classics at full-price which found a new lease of life on re-release, or a budget gem that has stood the test of time even now. What it does show was the difference that making computer gaming affordable made to so many, and how it helped the systems you played the games on become successful.
Special thanks to Anthony Guter, former Financial Controller for Mastertronic, for all of the statistical information used in the creation of this feature.
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