Rockford: The Arcade Game

Development

"Rockford" is a very rare example of the game that existed in the arcades as a conversion of home computer game. Usually it happened in the opposite direction - arcades were the source of conversion for home computers. Popularity of 8-bit "Boulder Dash" made a demand for it and "Rockford" debuted on Arcadia Systems. Sadly, the game was stripped of the original's simple and charming graphics and was less intuitive than the "Boulder Dash" games that inspired it. Mostly because you had to figure out what each element represented in each environment you were placed in (such as the Old West or outer space). The game also felt clunky compared with the streamlined and fluid original.

"Rockford" was later on converted to home systems such as Amiga and Atari ST, resulting in a conversion of an arcade game that itself was largely a conversion of a home computer game.

Awards

• ACE
  • October 1988 (issue #13) - Included in the Top-100 list of 1987/1988 (editorial staff selection)