Ben Rayner reviews The Story of the Commodore 64 in Pixels…
The Commodore 64 was essentially my first console experience. Watching and waiting as those tapes worked their painfully slow magic before dinner was what made most of my evenings as a child that little bit more special.
Games like Turrican, Bubble Bobble, Double Dragon and Ghostbusters were where I’d sink the most hours, should loading screens and more not have soaked up most of my free moments, endlessly attempting in vain to pass sections that eluded my skill level. Such as the muscle bound coffee bean which left the world debating moustache or scowl from Double Dragon. His name was Abobo I later learned, which also made me aware of just how much I sucked at Double Dragon as Abobo was a mid level minion, not even a boss!
With so many memories born from what now seems to be such an under appreciated console, especially when compared with the ZX Spectrum in an odd turn of events, the chance to delve into a book that explores the console and it’s history seemed a must.
Part of the spectacular ‘In Pixels’ series, Chris Wilkins has produced a dense bible of information that Commodore fans simply shouldn’t miss out on. Testimonies from a host of figures that worked in the industry at that time. From developers to composers and everything in between, including Dutch cover band ‘Press Play on Tape’ you’d be hard pressed to find more facts and honest opinions about the C64 anywhere else. Least of all in a single volume.
Kicked off with a brief but truly interesting few words from Bil Herd the book rolls into an in-depth look at the history of the Commodore 64 itself, penned by none other than Roger Kean, former Zzap! 64 editor and including excerpts from one of Jack Tramiel’s last interviews before his sad passing.
Without going into too much detail as, after all you’re going to be reading it yourself I’d hope, the biggest stand out here is the sheer amount of content filling its pages. With articles and memoirs from an absolute tonne of names who were crucial to the Commodore 64’s success in its day. Names from Matt Gray, Archer Mclean and Jon Hare to Paul Hughes and The Oliver Twins.
Visually the book isn’t all dense small print as perhaps my writing suggests. Yes, there’s obviously a lot to get through with translates to a lot of text but scattered throughout you’ll spot some fantastic images of Commodore hardware, photos of some of the contributors themselves, in-game frame grabs and some hauntingly nostalgic game cases which made me wish I’d looked after my own collection. Along with some Ads that would have lined newspapers etc. back in the day thrown in for good measure.
Available in both hard and soft back (I myself have been experiencing the latter) the Commodore 64’s ‘in Pixels’ treatment, is easily one of the biggest books from the series to date and with so much crammed into it’s pages, I can only imagine how much more information must have unfortunately been culled to sop this release becoming and encyclopedia.
As always, the retrospective ‘The Games’ section holds a special place in my heart after reading. With it’s gorgeous double page layout offering some blown up cover art and in-game shots, each topped off with a small insight into the title in question, it’s like an A-Z of memories (or perhaps more accurately, games I need to spend money on finding again)
Really, what else can I say. As with previous entries to the ‘in Pixels’ series, this is a book of high quality. From the print to it’s content and even down to the cover itself, everything has been created with care and passion. Those who lived the era and helped make it what it was, are the ones giving you a first hand look into it’s history.
Quite simply if you’re a Commodore fan, or retro gamer looking to know more, you need this book.
Ben Rayner
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Originally published June 21, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
