''Timeslip'' is a horizontally

scrolling shooter Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs) are a subgenre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of character m ...

written by Jon Williams for the

Commodore 16 The Commodore 16 is a home computer made by Commodore International with a 6502-compatible 7501 or 8501 CPU, released in 1984 and intended to be an entry-level computer to replace the VIC-20. A cost-reduced version, the Commodore 116, was ...

Commodore Plus/4 The Commodore Plus/4 is a home computer released by Commodore International in 1984. It was part of the Commodore 264 series, which also included the Commodore 16 and Commodore 116 models. The Plus/4 was marketed as "the productivity computer wit ...

computers and published by

English Software The English Software Company, later shortened to English Software, was a Manchester, UK-based video game developer and publisher that operated from 1982 until 1987. Starting with its first release, the horizontally scrolling shooter ''Airstrik ...

in 1985. A version for

Atari 8-bit computers The Atari 8-bit computers, formally launched as the Atari Home Computer System, are a series of home computers introduced by Atari, Inc., in 1979 with the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The architecture is designed around the 8-bit MOS Technology 650 ...

followed a year later. The game was described by reviewers as "three versions of

Scramble Scramble, Scrambled, or Scrambling may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Scramble'' (film), a 1970 British children's sports drama * ''Scrambled'' (film), a 2023 American comedy-drama * ''Scrambled!'', a British children' ...

rolled into one".

Gameplay

In ''Timeslip'' the player is presented with the screen divided into three sections or time zones. The top section is the planet surface with the player controlling a fighter, the middle section is set in underground cavers, and in the bottom section the player controls a mini-sub. The object of the game is to destroy 36 orbs placed within the three sections and synchronize the clocks in all three zones to 00.00 hours. If a player is hit, they receive a 30 minute penalty. In addition, if a player is hit five times, a "timeslip" occurs, which is a desynchronisation of all clocks. Sections are played one at a time and the player can switch zones at will, leaving the other two frozen in time.

Reception

''Timeslip'' received mostly positive reviews. ''

Your Commodore ''Your Commodore'' was a magazine for Commodore International, Commodore computers, including the Commodore 64, Amiga, and the Commodore Personal computer, PC range. It was published in the UK from October 1984 until late 1989 when the name was s ...

'' reviewer summed up ''Timeslip'' as the best game he had seen on the C16, and he recommended it without hesitation. The review in ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') is a British-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot web ...

'' magazine was equally positive: "Timeslip's designer and programmer, Jon Williams, has come up with a nifty and exciting little game. C16 owners should raise three cheers for him "

References

External links

* * {{Internet Archive game, id=a8b_Timeslip_1986_English_Software_GB_k_file 1985 video games Atari 8-bit computer games Commodore 16 and Plus/4 games Horizontally scrolling shooters English Software games