Horizontal shoot 'em up set above the dreadnought surfaces of alien super-ships. Andrew Braybrook's magnum opus — winner of the Golden Joystick Award 1986 for Best Arcade-Style Game. Fast, technically uncompromising, and beautifully scored on C64 SID. See deep-dive in Flagship.
Paradroid
1985C64Graftgold (Andrew Braybrook)
Shoot 'em up/strategy hybrid. Control a humble 001 droid and infiltrate derelict spaceships by taking over more powerful droids through a logic circuit battle. One of the C64's most original and lauded titles. See Flagship.
Platform/puzzle game featuring Pogo climbing a rotating cylindrical tower while enemies descend. Known as Tower Toppler in North America. The rotating 3D tower effect was technically remarkable for the era. See Flagship.
Cybernoid: The Fighting Machine
1988C64ZX SpectrumAmigaAtari STAmstrad CPCRaf CeccoJeroen Tel
Demanding shoot 'em up of armament and strategy. The Cybernoid ship fires in multiple directions and uses bombs, shields, and homing missiles. Raf Cecco's mechanics and Jeroen Tel's SID score are both genre-defining. 96% from CRASH. See Flagship.
Exolon
1987C64ZX SpectrumAmigaAtari STAmstrad CPCRaf CeccoSteve Jones / Martin Walker
Run-and-gun in which Vitorc navigates alien terrain in a powered exoskeleton, destroying enemy installations. Precise controls, satisfying weapon mechanics. Raf Cecco's Hewson debut. See Flagship.
Graftgold Titles
Gribbly's Day Out
1985C64Graftgold (Andrew Braybrook)
Platform/action game in which Gribbly the creature rescues baby Griblins. Demonstrates Braybrook's range beyond pure shoot 'em up mechanics — fluid animation, precise collision, warm personality.
Quazatron
1986ZX SpectrumGraftgold (Steve Turner)
Isometric shoot 'em up and spiritual ZX Spectrum successor to Paradroid. Steve Turner's answer to Braybrook's C64 classic, adapted for the Spectrum's graphical character and translated into isometric perspective.
Alleykat
1986C64AmigaAtari STGraftgold
Racing/shooting hybrid in a futuristic alley environment. Graftgold exploring different genre territory while maintaining technical quality across three platforms.
Shoot 'em up/maze in which wizard Mervyn Frogsworth is turned into a frog and must clear dungeons of mutant wizards. Steve Turner's quirky, mechanically precise design across five platforms.
Vertical and horizontal shoot 'em up with a weapons upgrade system based on collecting pods. Graftgold demonstrating their command of the genre conventions and their ability to improve upon them. Composer: Steve Turner (C64 SID).
Uridium+
1987C64Graftgold (Andrew Braybrook)
Enhanced and expanded version of Uridium for C64. Additional dreadnoughts, refined mechanics, and improved presentation. The definitive version of Braybrook's breakthrough title.
Raf Cecco Titles
Cybernoid II: The Revenge
1988C64ZX SpectrumAmigaAmstrad CPCRaf CeccoJeroen Tel
The sequel to Cybernoid, with more weapon variety and more demanding enemy patterns. Jeroen Tel's C64 SID score for Cybernoid II is among the most celebrated in the platform's history — later performed live by the Commodore 64 orchestra. See Music.
Platform/action in which a barbarian warrior rescues fairies from the Snow Queen. Cecco's ambitions in the platform genre — precise, visually detailed, mechanically demanding. Released across six platforms.
Deliverance: Stormlord II
1990C64ZX SpectrumAmigaRaf CeccoMark Gray
Sequel to Stormlord. Mark Gray's C64 SID score. The Stormlord hero returns in a follow-up that expands the original's mechanics and visual scope.
Further Hewson Titles
Firelord
1986C64ZX SpectrumAmstrad CPCBen Daglish
Action/adventure in which an elf must recover the stolen magical fire. Ben Daglish's C64 SID score is a highlight. Fantasy atmosphere and platform action.
Eliminator
1988C64ZX SpectrumAmigaAtari STAmstrad CPCJeroen Tel
Racing/shooting hybrid on a futuristic track. Jeroen Tel's C64 SID score brings the tension. Eliminator shows the range of the Hewson/Tel collaboration beyond pure shoot 'em up territory.
Netherworld
1988C64ZX SpectrumAmigaAtari ST
Shoot 'em up across four platforms. Visually distinctive with neon-tinged environments. Hewson demonstrating sustained quality in the late 1988 period alongside Cybernoid and Eliminator.
Dragontorc
1985C64ZX SpectrumAmstrad CPC
Action/adventure in a Celtic fantasy setting. The player controls Dun Darach's hero Cuchulainn in a follow-up to Bounder. Early demonstration of Hewson's genre range beyond shoot 'em ups.
Bounder
1985C64ZX Spectrum
Isometric platform game in which a tennis ball bounces across treacherous terrain. Quirky premise, distinctive visual style, and genuine challenge. A Hewson title that demonstrated their appetite for original concepts.
Technician Ted
1984C64ZX Spectrum
Early Hewson platform title featuring Ted navigating a factory full of hazards. An important early release establishing the company's retail presence in the 8-bit market.
Nightwing
1984C64ZX Spectrum
Bat-controlling action game. An early Hewson retail title from the period of moving beyond mail-order, showing the company's range before the Graftgold partnership defined their commercial peak.
Spitfire 40
1985C64ZX SpectrumAmstrad CPC
World War II flight simulation. Hewson's contribution to the simulation genre — a reminder that the company's catalogue extended well beyond the arcade shoot 'em up territory for which they became famous.
Onslaught
1990AmigaAtari ST
16-bit shoot 'em up exclusive. Onslaught demonstrates Hewson's continued commitment to quality 16-bit releases in their final period, even as the market dynamics shifted.
Zarathrusta
1990C64AmigaZX Spectrum
Platform action title from Hewson's late period. The protagonist swings on ropes across hazardous environments in a physics-influenced movement system ahead of its time.
5th Gear
1990C64AmigaAtari STZX SpectrumAmstrad CPC
Racing game across five platforms. Hewson's late-period catalogue entry demonstrating the breadth of their publishing range beyond the shoot 'em up genre.
Seiddab Attack
1982ZX SpectrumZX81
One of Hewson's earliest titles from the mail-order era. A ZX81/Spectrum shoot 'em up that marked the beginning of the Hewson catalogue — before retail distribution, before Graftgold, before the golden age.
Artura
1990C64AmigaZX Spectrum
Action/adventure with Arthurian legend setting. A Hewson late-period title demonstrating the company's appetite for diverse genre and narrative territory through their final year.
Heathrow Air Traffic Control
1982ZX SpectrumZX81
Early simulation title from Hewson's mail-order period. Educational/simulation software was central to Hewson's early catalogue before the commercial shoot 'em up era defined their identity.
Pyjamarama
1984ZX SpectrumC64
Platform/adventure in which Wally the sleepwalker navigates dreamscapes. Published under the Hewson banner, demonstrating the range of the early retail catalogue before the Graftgold golden period.
Everyone's a Wally
1985ZX Spectrum
Multi-character adventure with Wally Week and friends. Published by Hewson on ZX Spectrum. Demonstrates the variety of the Hewson retail catalogue.
Helichopper
1983ZX SpectrumZX81
Early helicopter action game from Hewson's formative period. Part of the foundation of the Hewson catalogue before the Graftgold and Cecco eras defined their legacy.
Rack-It Budget Label Re-releases
The Rack-It budget label re-released Hewson's flagship titles at reduced price points,
extending their commercial reach to new audiences. Key re-releases included Uridium,
Paradroid, Cybernoid, Exolon, and Nebulus across C64, ZX Spectrum, and Amstrad CPC.
Rack-It operated through the late 1980s as part of Hewson's publishing strategy.
Rack-It Compilation Series
Rack-It LabelC64ZX SpectrumAmstrad CPC
Re-releases of Uridium, Paradroid, Cybernoid, Exolon, Nebulus, Zynaps, and Firelord under the Rack-It budget label. The label was central to maintaining Hewson's market presence through the late 1980s.
MANTA
Warp speed engaged. The dreadnought surface approaches.
You found Hewson's secret — the MANTA fighter, Uridium's nimble nemesis.