A Compendium of MSX Games

Amongst all the 8-bit computers released in the early eighties the MSX is totally unique. This is because the machine wasn't produced by a single manufacturer. Initially developed as a joint venture by Microsoft Japan, ASCII Corporation and Spectravideo as way to create a common PC standard, long before the IBM PC Compatible achieved that same goal. Subsequent upgrades of the hardware, including the MSX2, MSX2+ and MSX Turbo R, would improve various aspects of this whilst remaining fully backwards compatible. The computer was hugely successful in Japan but also saw large market shares in places like The Netherlands, Brazil, North Africa, Korea, Taiwan and Spain. In this book I take you through the life of the MSX computers looking at a varied cross section of the 4000+ games available with a review and screenshot of each one. This is not a list of the best games, a list of the worst games or indeed a complete guide to what's available. This is a meandering journey through the MSX library from the earliest titles released back in 1983 to modern homebrews and even some Asian bootlegs! A Compendium of MSX Games: Volume 1 features reviews for over 300 games, developer interviews, fascinating facts and trivia, important history, technical details and personal stories that really help bring the book to life and so much more besides.