Summer Games II

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Summer Games II
File:Summer Games 2 cover.jpg
Commodore 64 Cover art
Developer(s) Epyx
Publisher(s) Commodore Gaming
Series Epyx Games
Platforms Commodore 64, Apple II, IBM PC, Atari ST, MS-DOS, Sinclair Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Virtual Console
Release date(s) 1985
Virtual Console
      Genre(s) Sports game
      Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

      Summer Games II is a sports video game developed by Epyx and released by U.S. Gold based on sports featured in the Summer Olympic Games. Released in 1985 for the Commodore 64, it was also eventually ported to the Apple II, IBM PC, Atari ST, MS-DOS, Sinclair Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and the Amiga platforms, and re-released on the Virtual Console in Europe on June 27, 2008 and in North America on March 16, 2009.[1] It is a sequel to the popular Summer Games released by Epyx the previous year.

      Gameplay

      The game was presented as a virtual multi-sport carnival called the "Epyx Games" (there was no official IOC licensing in place) with up to 8 players each choosing a country to represent, and then taking turns competing in various events to try for a medal. World records could be saved to the game disk.

      Events

      The game features the following eight events:

      The game allowed the player to compete in all of the events sequentially, compete in some events, choose just one event, or practice an event. This version also features both the opening and closing ceremonies, where the closing ceremonies features a "fan man", the flame extinguishing as the sky goes dark, a blimp passing by and some fireworks. Certain ports also allow for participants to compete in events from the original Summer Games events, but they had to have the original Summer Games diskette for this to happen.

      Ports

      Reception
      Review score
      Publication Score
      Zzap!64 97%[2]
      Awards
      Publication Award
      Zzap!64 Gold Medal
      Golden Joystick Awards
      Game of the Year
      Runner up[3]

      The original C64 version of Summer Games II was done by Scott Nelson, Jon Leupp, Chuck Sommerville, Kevin Norman, Michael Kosaka & Larry Clague in 1985. The same year saw an Apple 2 version, created by John Stouffer, Jeff Webb, Doug Matson, Greg Broniak, Tim Grost, Matt Decker, Vera Petrusha, Ken Evans, Pat Findling, Dr. Keith Dreyer & Chris Oesterling. It became a bestseller in the UK.[4]

      A year later it was ported to the IBM PC by Phil Suematsu, Jeff Grigg, Don Hill & Jimmy Huey. Einstein & Steve Hawkes ported it to the Sinclair Spectrum and Amstrad CPC. In 1992 Adam Steele, Phillip Morris & Dave Lowe ported it finally to the Atari ST and the Amiga.

      Reception

      Summer Games II was Epyx's second best-selling Commodore game as of late 1987 after Winter Games.[5] Ahoy! stated that "the production values of Summer Games II are absolutely top of the line, even better than the original Summer Games". The magazine cited equestrian and fencing as the best events, and concluded that it "covers itself with glory from the familiar opening ceremony to the closing festivities. Put simply, if you own a Commodore 64, this disk is a must".[6]

      See also

      References

      1. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
      2. http://www.zzap64.co.uk/zzap100/100thspec5.html
      3. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=C+VG/Issue055/Pages/CVG05500090.jpg
      4. http://www.worldofspectrum.org/showmag.cgi?mag=C+VG/Issue049/Pages/CVG04900030.jpg
      5. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
      6. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

      External links