Commodore 64 GI Joe
Honestly, this one escaped my notice until recently. As a kid, I paid some attention to the video games released to computer setups that I could never afford, but I didn't catch this one. I was lucky to have an Atari 2600 years after its heyday, let alone a Commodore in 1984. That didn't keep me from pining for the more graphically impressive games I'd seen in video game mags, or on the backs of the games' boxes.
I'm more interested now in the packaging than in checking out the actual game (which can be found at the Internet Archive here.) Maybe someone can play it and give it a review in the comments.
The front of the box is totally 80s, with its laser-traced images of Joe team members surrounding the head of what may be Flash, or any of the other visor-equipped fellas. The back of the box gives us screenshots that would have blown my mind compared to the simplistic sprites in the games I'd been playing. Amazingly, the box copy lays out a pretty detailed description of the game. I'm sure there was also a manual, and I wonder what if any interesting Joe art might have been inside
I had a Commodore 64 and had no idea there was a Joe game available. I’m actually surprised Zap’s a character. He never struck me as being particularly popular and wasn’t really featured on the cartoon.
This game was one of the first two C64 games I owned and may be my all-time favorite. (That’s a tough decision.) I was seven when my parents bought me my Commodore 64 for Christmas 1983; setting it up with my dad and trying it out was one of the best memories of my childhood.
The other of my first two C64 games was “Swiss Family Robinson”, another favorite. I’ve been able to share both games and more with my kids today via C64 emulators; they love those old classics, even today.