Tynesoft
Encyclopedia
Tynesoft Computer Software was a software developer
and publisher in the 1980s and early 1990s.
micros, particularly those less well catered for by other publishers such as the Commodore 16
, BBC Micro
and Atari 8-bit. They also had a budget label, Micro Value, that issued compilations, reissues and some original games.
They had most success with their multi-load
games such as Summer Olympiad, Circus Games and Rodeo Games. They also released licenced ports to smaller systems such as Software Projects
' Jet Set Willy
(Atari 8-bit, Commodore 16
/Plus/4
, BBC Micro
and Acorn Electron
), First Star Software
's Boulder Dash
(BBC, Electron) and Spy vs. Spy
(C16/+4, BBC, Electron) and Mindscape's Indoor Sports
(C16/+4, BBC, Electron). From the late 1980s, they released games for the 16-bit computers Amiga
and Atari ST
as well as PC
but failed to capture a large share of this new market and with the demise of the 8-bit games scene, their sales fell. The company went bankrupt in 1990 when its sister printing business incurred massive debts, before it could publish its game based on the Games Workshop
boardgame Blood Bowl
. The name continues to this day in a completely unrelated business.
Software developer
A software developer is a person concerned with facets of the software development process. Their work includes researching, designing, developing, and testing software. A software developer may take part in design, computer programming, or software project management...
and publisher in the 1980s and early 1990s.
History
The company was originally set up in 1983 to release educational software but soon moved into the video games market on which it concentrated for most of its time. It developed numerous games for a wide variety of 8-bit8-bit
The first widely adopted 8-bit microprocessor was the Intel 8080, being used in many hobbyist computers of the late 1970s and early 1980s, often running the CP/M operating system. The Zilog Z80 and the Motorola 6800 were also used in similar computers...
micros, particularly those less well catered for by other publishers such as the Commodore 16
Commodore 16
The Commodore 16 was a home computer made by Commodore with a 6502-compatible 8501 CPU, released in 1984. It was intended to be an entry-level computer to replace the VIC-20 and it often sold for 99 USD...
, BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
and Atari 8-bit. They also had a budget label, Micro Value, that issued compilations, reissues and some original games.
They had most success with their multi-load
Multi-load
Multi-load is a term used to describe multi-part games that were developed for 8-bit computers, such as the ZX Spectrum, Atari and Commodore 64....
games such as Summer Olympiad, Circus Games and Rodeo Games. They also released licenced ports to smaller systems such as Software Projects
Software Projects
Software Projects was the name of a computer game development company which employed Manic Miner developer Matthew Smith. After leaving Bug-Byte as a freelance developer, Smith was able to take the rights to his recently developed Manic Miner game with him, due to an oversight in his freelance...
' Jet Set Willy
Jet Set Willy
Jet Set Willy is a computer game originally written for the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published in 1984 by Software Projects and ported to most home computers of the time....
(Atari 8-bit, Commodore 16
Commodore 16
The Commodore 16 was a home computer made by Commodore with a 6502-compatible 8501 CPU, released in 1984. It was intended to be an entry-level computer to replace the VIC-20 and it often sold for 99 USD...
/Plus/4
Commodore Plus/4
The Commodore Plus/4 was a home computer released by Commodore International in 1984. The "Plus/4" name refers to the four-application ROM resident office suite ; it was billed as "the productivity computer with software built-in"...
, BBC Micro
BBC Micro
The BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
and Acorn Electron
Acorn Electron
The Acorn Electron is a budget version of the BBC Micro educational/home computer made by Acorn Computers Ltd. It has 32 kilobytes of RAM, and its ROM includes BBC BASIC along with its operating system....
), First Star Software
First Star Software
First Star Software, Inc. is a computer game development, publishing and licensing company, founded by Richard Spitalny and Fernando Herrera in 1982. It is best known for its classic Boulder Dash franchise and Spy vs. Spy titles, originally written for 8-bit home computers like the Apple II, Atari...
's Boulder Dash
Boulder Dash
Boulder Dash, originally released in 1984 for Atari 8-bit computers, is a series of computer games released for the Apple II, MSX, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and ColecoVision home computers, and later ported to the NES, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron, PC, Amstrad CPC, Amiga and many other platforms...
(BBC, Electron) and Spy vs. Spy
Spy vs. Spy (computer game)
Spy vs. Spy was a game first published by First Star Software in 1984 for the Atari 8-bit family, Commodore 64 and Apple II computers. It was an innovative two-player, split-screen game, based on MAD Magazine's long running cartoon strip, Spy vs...
(C16/+4, BBC, Electron) and Mindscape's Indoor Sports
Indoor Sports
Indoor Sports is a computer game developed by DesignStar's SportTime and first published in the US by Mindscape in 1987 for the Commodore 64. It was converted to many other platforms, particularly in Europe where it was published by Databyte, Advance Software and Tynesoft .-Gameplay:This game...
(C16/+4, BBC, Electron). From the late 1980s, they released games for the 16-bit computers Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
and Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
as well as PC
IBM PC compatible
IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
but failed to capture a large share of this new market and with the demise of the 8-bit games scene, their sales fell. The company went bankrupt in 1990 when its sister printing business incurred massive debts, before it could publish its game based on the Games Workshop
Games Workshop
Games Workshop Group plc is a British game production and retailing company. Games Workshop has published the tabletop wargames Warhammer Fantasy Battle and Warhammer 40,000...
boardgame Blood Bowl
Blood Bowl
Blood Bowl is a Fantasy Football game created by Jervis Johnson for the British games company Games Workshop as a parody of American Football. The game was first released in 1987 and has been re-released in new editions since...
. The name continues to this day in a completely unrelated business.
Select titles
- 1984 Auf Wiedersehen Pet (Acorn ElectronAcorn ElectronThe Acorn Electron is a budget version of the BBC Micro educational/home computer made by Acorn Computers Ltd. It has 32 kilobytes of RAM, and its ROM includes BBC BASIC along with its operating system....
, BBC MicroBBC MicroThe BBC Microcomputer System, or BBC Micro, was a series of microcomputers and associated peripherals designed and built by Acorn Computers for the BBC Computer Literacy Project, operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation...
, Commodore 64Commodore 64The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, ZX SpectrumZX SpectrumThe ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
) - 1984 Bingo (C64, Spectrum)
- 1984 Rig Attack (Electron, BBC, Commodore 16Commodore 16The Commodore 16 was a home computer made by Commodore with a 6502-compatible 8501 CPU, released in 1984. It was intended to be an entry-level computer to replace the VIC-20 and it often sold for 99 USD...
, Commodore Plus/4Commodore Plus/4The Commodore Plus/4 was a home computer released by Commodore International in 1984. The "Plus/4" name refers to the four-application ROM resident office suite ; it was billed as "the productivity computer with software built-in"...
) - 1984 Olympiad (C16/+4)
- 1984 US Drag Racing (Electron, BBC, C16/+4)
- 1985 Ian Botham's Test Match (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, C16/+4, Amstrad CPCAmstrad CPCThe Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
) - 1985 Super Gran (C64, Spectrum, C16/+4, CPC)
- 1985 Super Gran: The Adventure (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, C16/+4)
- 1985 Mouse Trap (Electron, BBC, C64, Atari 8-bit, Atari STAtari STThe Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, AmigaAmigaThe Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
) - 1986 Future Shock (Electron, BBC, C16/+4)
- 1986 Commonwealth Games aka European Games (Electron, BBC, C64, C16/+4, MSXMSXMSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
) - 1986 Winter Olympics (Electron, BBC, C16/+4, Atari 8-bit, MSX)
- 1986 The Big KO (Electron, BBC, C64)
- 1987 Phantom (Electron, BBC, C64, C16/+4, Atari 8-bit)
- 1987 Mirax Force (Atari 8-bit)
- 1988 Summer Olympiad (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, ST, Amiga)
- 1988 Winter Olympiad '88 (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, Atari 8-bit, ST, Amiga)
- 1989 Circus Games (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, CPC, ST, Amiga, Apple IIApple IIThe Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
) - 1989 Superman: The Man of SteelSuperman: The Man of Steel (1989 video game)Superman: The Man of Steel is a 1989 computer game, based on DC Comics' flagship character Superman. It was developed and published by UK software company Tynesoft under license from First Star Software.-Gameplay:...
(Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, CPC, ST, Amiga, MSX, Apple II, PCIBM PC compatibleIBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
) - 1989 Buffalo Bill's Rodeo Games aka Buffalo Bill's Wild West Rodeo (Electron, BBC, C64, Spectrum, CPC, ST, Amiga, Apple II, PC)
- 1989 Mayday Squad (C64, ST, Amiga, PC)
- 1990 Beverly Hills CopBeverly Hills Cop (video game)Beverly Hills Cop is a game developed by Tynesoft and released in 1990, with a story loosely based on the first film from the Beverly Hills Cop series. The player takes control of Axel Foley, the main character of the series. There are four distinct sub games including a side-scrolling action game,...
(BBC, C64, Spectrum, CPC, ST, Amiga, PC)