Cassette 50 III
by James 'Jimster' Nation
Page 1 of 5
Any self respecting home computer user will have bought themselves a few computer magazines back in the early 80s. Those of you with the memory capacity of an elephant or a scorned wife/girlfriend may remember advertisements for Cascade's Cassette 50. Fifty quality games for under £10? How could it be possible? And you get a free watch with each purchase? Surely there's been a misprint? Well, if including the word 'quality' counts as a misprint, then yes, there was.
I was young and didn't have my own money unless you count the pennies and various buttons in the piggy bank, and therefore was prevented from throwing away my hard earned pocket money on a C90 of mediocrity through mail order.
One year I managed to convince my dad to join a 'computer club' where you bought 4 titles from a leaflet for ridiculously low prices and committing yourself to buying one title from their catalogue each month for the next 80 years. The prospect of getting four great games was exciting but the inticement of a special mystery gift for all new subscribers was the icing on the cake. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a dismal disappointment. Amid the gems such as Trapdoor and the Durrell 10 pack lay a little blue cassette... Cascade's Cassette 50.
I don't think I've had the misfortune since that day of having played a game for less time than it took to load. They were so bad it caused physical discomfort. Quite a few games had a standardised 'Casade' instruction screen which beeped continuously until you pressed G (for Game) or Q (for Quit). The racket my little Spectrum made was akin to a fire alarm going off and, if we'd had one, I'm sure my parents would have been running for the garden and calling 999.