Developer(s) Various Initial release date 1983 Mode Single-player video game | Release date(s) 1983 Genre Product bundling | |
 | ||
Platforms ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, ZX81, Acorn Electron Publishers GameSoft Publishing, Cascade Games Similar Don't Buy This, Codename MAT, Chuckie Egg 2, Chuckie Egg, Pimania | ||
A look at cascade s cassette 50 spectrum the micro s answer to action 52 kim justice
Cassette 50 (released in Spain as Galaxy 50 - 50 Excitantes Juegos) is a compilation of games published by Cascade Games Ltd in 1983, and is an early example of shovelware - computer software marketed primarily on the basis of its sheer quantity rather than other factors such as quality or playability.
Contents
- A look at cascade s cassette 50 spectrum the micro s answer to action 52 kim justice
- Cassette 50 games for the zx spectrum
- Content
- Acorn Electron Commodore 64 ZX81
- Reception
- References
The compilation was advertised in home computer magazines, with buyers also receiving a Timex digital calculator watch with each purchase.
According to the instructions, "the games will provide many hours of entertainment for all the family at a fraction of the cost of other computer games". The games were universally considered awful.
In an interview, Matthew Lewis, the author of Galaxy Defence, said he wrote the game when he was 14 and submitted it in response to a small, anonymous ad in a local newspaper. He was paid £10 for his game, but he had to give up all rights to it. Galaxy Defence took 12 hours to code and the graphics were done by his father, Ernest Lewis.
Cassette 50 games for the zx spectrum
Content
The games featured differed depending on the platform.
Acorn Electron / Commodore 64 / ZX81
The games Exchange and The Force, although listed on the inlay, are missing from the Acorn Electron version, meaning only 48 games actually appeared on the cassette.
Reception
The games, almost without exception written in BASIC, were deemed to be of poor quality. They have been described as "so bad it caused physical discomfort", "beyond awful", and "a piece of crap collection". The poor quality of the games inspired the annual Crap Games Competitions (for example the comp.sys.sinclair Crap Games Competition and the C64 Crap Game Compo) and a now-defunct site reviewing bad games.