When the Evercade was first released, well before there was a choice of hardware, and even before there were different software ranges, I think a lot of the player base just assumed it was going to play host to curated collections of retro titles.

However, even when there was just a console-based cartridge range, it didn’t take long for homebrew, ‘new retro’ titles to make an appearance. As far back as the 8th cartridge in the console range, Mega Cat Studios Collection 1, modern titles designed for old hardware made a welcome appearance. These collections of faux retro games, including the Indie Heroes cartridges and others, have often been the highlights of the Evercade’s ever-growing library too.

So it’s refreshing to see Home Computer Heroes Collection 1 popping up in the blue case, home computer range of Evercade cartridges. Just like the Indie Heroes compilations, the selection of games on this cartridge is incredibly eclectic, and I’m not overly enamoured with every game, but they’re all interesting at the very least, and incredibly entertaining at best!

The seven games here are, in alphabetical order: Attack of the PETSCII Robots, Bridge Strike, Citadel Remonstered, Farming Simulator: C64 Edition, Planet X2, The Sword of Ianna and Tanks Furry.

Let’s get the more disappointing titles out of the way. In each of these cases, I’m more than willing to admit that it’s my own lack of patience with learning some slightly obtuse, or if I’m being fair, more in-depth mechanics, that has put me off. So stand up Attack of the PETSCII Robots, Farming Simulator: C64 Edition and Planet X2.

All three of those games look the part, and are really impressive creations (it’s genuinely amazing that Farming Simulator exists on C64 hardware, especially as it started as a bit of a joke), with Planet X2 being an 8-bit RTS and Attack of the PETSCII Robots having lots going on beneath its top-down surface level visuals. I just couldn’t get my head around progressing very far in any of those games, but I’m sure they offer plenty for more patient players!

So onto the really good stuff then. Citadel Remonstered is a great, old school FPS with some modern design sensibilities, perhaps surprisingly given that it’s a remake of an old Amiga title.

Bridge Strike (pictured below) is a fantastic tribute to Atari 2600 classic, River Raid. Gorgeous visuals and great mechanics combine to make an incredibly appealing and very addictive shoot ’em up, with a clever fuel management aspect.

The Sword of Ianna is a beautifully animated puzzle platformer with a ton of interesting elements, and this Evercade collection even comes packaged with a physical, mini comic book as a prelude to the game.

Finally, there’s the great, if oddly named, Tanks Furry. Though it looks like turn-based Nintendo classic Advance Wars, it’s a solo, co-op or vs multiplayer tank battling game for up to 4 players. Super addictive, brilliantly designed and aesthetically pleasing too, with its cute, chunky tanks and fast paced, exciting gameplay.

It’s worth noting that, particularly on Tanks Furry but also in some instances with the other games on the cartridge, if you’re playing on a Super Pocket console, the text can be next to impossible to read. However, the resolution of an Evercade EXP, Evercade Alpha or Evercade VS are more than enough to cope with the legibility of each game’s text.

Overall, despite me lacking the patience to educate myself on how a few of the games work, or even just to persevere with them, I found Home Computer Heroes Collection 1 to be far more hit than miss, and when it hits, it’s really good. It’s one of the best cartridges in the Evercade’s small, but pretty heavy-hitting, home computer cartridge range.

You can buy Home Computer Heroes Collection 1 from Amazon.

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