Collector Insights: the B-side
Sometimes we are looking for a title that we have been playing but we are finding it impossible to find it – we are sure about the title and we are sure that we played it or heared about it. Well, here is the solution to that – you will probably find it on the B-side of the title but released on another machine.
We want to highlight the more common machines that share a label, cover and tape.
Amstrad / Spectrum
Most common is Spectrum and Amstrad/Schneider – several titles can be found like this.
Also in a timeframe this started to happen in the end of the cycle of these machines.
Commdore 64 / Vic 20
Also very common shared types are between the Commdore 64 and the little brother Vic 20. This is though more common on the beginning of the Commodore 64 era and ends when the C64 takes over the market. But here there are some good titles.
Amstrad / Atari
Less common, and maybe even more rare is the combination between Amstrad and the Atari 32K – this is really an odd thing as they have really no connection at all. One wonders how the label was thinking in these occasions. Marketshares? I don’t know.
Spectravideo / MSX: the B-side
The hardest double machine releases to identify are those that still run on Spectravideo but have moved to MSX. This can mostly only be detected on the tape itself and not on the cover as Spectravideo moved over to MSX in whole. So watch out for them.
Final words
So be careful to check your collections on what B-sides with a release for a different machine you got. I believe this is obvious with two of the above examples but – just look at the Boulder Dash Release – to be honest I identified this version when scanning this cover last week so I’ve been totally unaware of that I had the game for Atari 32K. What are your hidden gems?
Also check these galleries
For more covers check these relevant galleries