Heaven for a thirteen year-old UK gamer? A Commodore 64, Zzap! 64 and Christmas.

As luck would have it, the Christmas issue of Zzap! 64 would drop through my letterbox just as school broke up for the holiday season. Just as well, because there were to be no distractions as I set up camp on a nearby sofa and judiciously read the magazine from cover to cover, mentally preparing my wish list of must-have games for the weeks and months ahead.

Armed with the latest words of wisdom from the likes of Julian Rignall, Gary Penn and Gary Liddon (the best Zzap! 64 team — none of your Houghton/Hamza/Glancey/Evans nonsense), I would then team up with my friend Neil to discuss the latest gaming news and reviews, carefully coordinating our wish lists to ensure we had all our bases covered. (Come on, what else where those Expert Cartridges to be used for?)

Throughout this month, as we hurtle towards Christmas, I’ll be revisiting Zzap! 64’s Christmas 1985 issue for a nostalgic wallow. I’ll take a look at some of the key titles reviewed in this issue, share my memories of the games I played during that particular holiday season, as well as just generally celebrate the awesomeness that was Zzap! 64.

There’ll be a double helping of Lucasfilm Games, with the Zzap! lads responding favorably to Koronis Rift and Ballblazer. The only developer to take Ultimate on at their own game, Odin Computer Graphics, gave us the Sabre Wulf-esque Robin of the Wood. The White Wizard had his hands full with Infocom’s Suspect and Activion’s Mindshadow. Budgetmeisters Firebird also came up trumps with the likes of Willow Pattern and Chimera.

I’ll be waxing anecdotal about Little Computer People and, for shits and giggles, I’ll load up some games reviewed in the Christmas issue that I’ve never played before.

Have any fond recollections of your own Christmas gaming memories? Feel free to comment and share them with the readers of Retroblique!