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Southern Belle

Hewson Consultants

Southern Belle is a train simulation video game published by Hewson Consultants in 1985. Southern Belle was unique at the time of release in that it was the first 3D steam train simulator available for home computers. The game allows the user to take over the fireman and/or driver duties on a King Arthur class passenger steam locomotive on the London to Brighton line. It was programmed by Mike Male, who teamed up with friend and railway buff Bob Hillyer.[1]

5th Gear

Fantastic Four, Hewson Consultants

You participate in an illegal car race in which you are allowed to use every possible method to win.

Battle Valley

Hewson Consultants, Rack-It

This side-view shoot 'em up involves trying to retrieve two nuclear weapons which have been stolen by terrorists. These are located at opposite ends of the playing area, so you can pursue them in either order. Needless to say, the terrorists have plenty of forces out to prevent you getting too far. Unusually, the game features both a helicopter and a tank - you choose either from the base, and can fly/drive back there to change. The best strategy is to use the helicopter to shoot out air-based enemies and repair the various bridges, then return for the tank. You get 4000 seconds in which to complete all this, and losing a life costs you 500 of these.

Cybernoid: The Fighting Machine

Gremlin Graphics Software Ltd., Hewson Consultants, Acclaim Entertainment

Cybernoid: The Fighting Machine is a shoot 'em up developed and published in 1987 by Hewson Consultants for the ZX Spectrum, and was then ported to the Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, NES, and Amiga. It was programmed by Raffaele Cecco. The Sinclair ZX Spectrum and Atari ST versions featured a main theme by Dave Rogers, while the Commodore C64 version (later released on the Wii's Virtual Console service) featured a completely different theme by Jeroen Tel.

Cybernoid II: The Revenge

Hewson Consultants

Cybernoid II: The Revenge is a challenging flip-screen shoot 'em up that builds upon its predecessor. Players pilot the advanced Cybernoid craft on a mission to recover stolen cargo from pirate ships. The game features a diverse arsenal of weapons, including sideways-aiming guns, bouncing bombs, and smart bombs, which players must use strategically to overcome varying levels of hazards and unpredictable enemy behavior. Success hinges on collecting at least 1500 points of cargo while navigating through treacherous environments, often requiring quick decisions between engaging enemies and making timely escapes.

Eliminator

Hewson Consultants, Players Software

A fast based vertical scrolling shooter written by John Phillips, the man behind Nebulus (also known as Tower Toppler).

Custodian

Realms, Hewson Consultants

Custodian is the very first release for the Atari Jaguar by Piko Interactive. The game is an Arcade shooter in which you have to protect energy bases from parasites that are trying to drain it dry! It features 4 area levels, many weapons and power ups, and awesome chiptune music!

Exolon

Hewson Consultants

Exolon is a classic side-scrolling action game developed by Hewson Consultants and released in 1987 for various 8-bit home computer platforms. Players control Vitorc, a space marine equipped with an armored exoskeleton suit, as he navigates through 125 screens of hostile alien terrain. The game's core gameplay revolves around precise shooting, strategic grenade use, and skillful maneuvering to overcome a relentless array of enemies and environmental hazards. Known for its high difficulty level, Exolon challenges players with fast-paced action that demands quick reflexes and careful planning. What sets Exolon apart is its distinctive visual style, which pushed the graphical boundaries of 8-bit computers in its era. The game features detailed sprites and backgrounds that create a unique sci-fi atmosphere, complemented by a pulsing soundtrack that enhances the immersive experience. This combination of challenging gameplay, striking visuals, and atmospheric audio helped Exolon stand out in the late 1980s gaming landscape, earning it a cult following among retro gaming enthusiasts. Despite its simple premise, the game's intense action and memorable presentation have secured its place as a notable title in the history of side-scrolling shooters.

Stormlord

Hewson Consultants, Telcogames

Badh the queen has imposed a terrible vengeance on the land by kidnapping the fairies. To restore things their rightful way, you must rescue them. As you progress through the levels of platform-adventure action, you will come across fairies which are rescued by touching them. Enemies include Venus Fly Traps, localized acid rain showers and dragons, which can be avoided or shot in the bonus shoot 'em up sections. You will need help to reach some levels; this comes from Mael Dvin the Eagle.

Dragontorc

ST Software, Hewson Consultants

After defeating the Lord of Chaos, new trouble awaits Maroc in the form of Morog the Shapeshifter Witch Queen of the North who tries to recover the five crowns of Dragontorc in order to remake the Torc of Power.

Golf Master

Hewson Consultants

Golf Master allows you to play a full round of golf on a course – either alone or with up to three friends. Before starting, you can select various options, such as skill level (Beginner, Amateur, or Pro) – which affects wind conditions. You can choose whether to compete in a tournament or practice on a single hole. It's also possible to decide how many holes to play – 1–18, 1–9, 10–18, or just one hole. The game presents a top-down view of the course, and by pressing the spacebar, you can view the rest of the layout. You select your club, direction, and shot power – and watch an animation of the swing. When playing with friends, you must wait for each player to finish the hole, rather than alternating after every shot as in real golf.

Firelord

Hewson Consultants

Lead Sir Galaheart in his battle to free the Land of Torot from the grasp of the Evil Queen and her cohorts of mindless ghosts. There are a host of characters cowering in their homes for him to meet and trade with.

Onslaught

Realms, Ballistic, Hewson Consultants

Onslaught is an action platformer originally released for the Amiga and ported to the Atari ST, Genesis, and XBL Community Games.

Paradroid

Graftgold, Hewson Consultants

The game is set on a spaceship viewed from a top-down perspective. The ship consists of numerous rooms and levels, each one populated by hostile robots or "droids". The player, in control of a special droid called the "Influence Device", must destroy all the other droids on the ship. Each droid (including the player) is represented as a circle around a three-digit number. The numbers roughly correspond to the droid's "power" or "level", in that higher-numbered droids are tougher to destroy. The Influence Device is numbered "001". The primary way in which the Influence Device destroys other droids is by "linking" with them, effectively taking them over. When the player takes over another droid, the previously-controlled droid is destroyed.

Avalon

ST Software, Hewson Consultants

Your astral projection, Maroc, flees from a goblin swordman as a wraith drifts silently into a corner. Can you open the chest and seize the key to penetrate below the Gatehouse Level?

Fantasia Diamond

Hewson Consultants

Uridium

Graftgold, Mindscape, Inc., Hewson Consultants, Elite Systems, Commodore, Rack-It

Uridium (released on the NES as The Last Starfighter) is a science fiction side-scrolling shoot 'em up originally designed by Andrew Braybrook for the Commodore 64, and later ported to other 8-bit machines. It consists of fifteen levels, each named after a metal element, with the last level being called Uridium (a fictional metallic element, not to be confused with the real metallic element iridium). The manual quotes Robert Orchard, who invented the name as saying "I really thought it existed".

Gribbly's Day Out

Graftgold, Hewson Consultants

Blabgorians possess the gift of psychic ability which allow them to levitate and move items with their minds, as a result they evolved without hands (who needs them?), a single foot (good for bouncing) and an oversized head (handy for containing large quantities of psychic energy). Gribbly Grobbly is your typical Blabgorian, and is tasked with the safety of the 'gribblets'. 'Gribblets' are infant Blabgorians; they have an armoured shell to protect them, but when flipped on their backs they expose their vulnerable belly and are unable to right themselves. They also have an annoying tendency to leave the safety of home in search of adventure. Unfortunately Blabgor is not a safe place; there are hordes of beasts roaming the landscape, eagerly searching for vulnerable Gribblets. The basic premise for the game required the player to control Gribbly and navigate him through each of the 16 surreal 8-way scrolling landscapes in an attempt to locate and rescue eight baby Gribblets and returning them to the safety of the home cave. Gribbly can hop and levitate around each of the levels and can blow bubbles to defend himself. Once a Gribblet is located, Gribbly can pick up the hapless offspring and carry it to safety. Once only a single Gribblet remains on a level, the energy web fails, freeing Seon. This usually results in a mad rush to get the remaining Gribblet to safety before succumbing to his attacks. Once all the Gribblets are either saved or killed, the level ends and Gribbly is transported to the next level.

Astroclone

Graftgold, Hewson Consultants

Astroclone was published in 1984 by Hewson Consultants. Its working title was Seiclone, but was changed to avoid confusion with Vortex Software's similar-sounding Cyclone. The game combines shoot 'em up sections with arcade adventure elements that Turner had developed with Avalon (1984) and Dragontorc (1985).

Iridis Alpha

Llamasoft LTD, Hewson Consultants

A fast paced, mind-bending horizontal shoot 'em up from Jeff Minter where the player must hop between parallel planets to survive. It also has a giant smiling yak head.

Alleykat

Graftgold, Hewson Consultants

Alleykat is a vertically-scrolling racer with elements of a shoot-em up game. The player, a speeder pilot, strives to become the Alleykat Champion by competing in eight space stadiums scattered around the galaxy. Different races like demolition derbies, time-trials, endurance epics and others feature all kinds of obstacles like rocks, pillars, bridges and hard walls, and several types of enemies race along. The game also features a cooperative two-player-mode.

Heavy Metal Paradroid

Graftgold, Hewson Consultants

Heavy Metal Paradroid is a remastered version of the 1985 game, Paradroid, that started as a graphics test during the development of Morpheus. It was later released with the new graphics style along with the speed improvements added in the Competition Edition. Its speed is enhanced further on the C128, in C64 mode, as it makes use of the platforms 2mhz mode in some places.

Cyberdyne Warrior

apex computer productions, Hewson Consultants

Players control a space marine who must search for droids on three planets - Geminus, Sirius, and Arius - while avoiding the planet's inhabitants and hazards. Energy is lost when players come into contact with an inhabitant. Up to three weapons can be used to destroy the inhabitants. Once all the droids have been collected, players make their way to the next planet where new inhabitants are introduced and the number of droids to be collected increases. Players have a limited amount of time to do this, but as well as energy and ammo, it can be replenished by purchasing more at the shop (only one shop per planet).

Nebulus

Hewson Consultants, Atari Corporation, U.S. Gold, Krisalis Software

You play a small green guy who needs to blow up eight towers, because their presence is somehow poisoning the water of planets which could potentially be ideal colonies. Unfortunately you need to get to the top of these towers to blow them up. You make your way up to the top of the tower via walkways around the outside of the towers. You need to jump over, kick, and run from various enemies in your journey to the top. Most vertical movement is achieved by jumping onto moving ledges at the right moment. The game was considered revolutionary in its time for its graphic technique. As the main character walked around the outside of the tower, the character was fixed in the middle of the screen while the tower itself rotated. This gave it a pseudo-3D effect. Towers are linked together via a voyage through the sea in your trusty MK.7 submarine. This plays out as a side-scrolling collect-'em-up in which bonus points can be obtained.