That actually wasn't my top ten in Retro Gamer... well it was, but it wasn't my actual real top ten. And the list isn't in numbered order btw, it's just ten entries, so the first entry isn't considered #1. So maybe you didn't like The Sentinel. Countless other people did. C'est la vie. I despite Pirates for example, and can't understand why so many other people rate it highly. It's boring, repetitive piffle *shrug*

Infocom were matched by Magnetic Scrolls and Level 9, even if they didn't get quite as heralded. Activision's output in the mid 80s and later went a bit down the pan and quite a few of their better games from those times had origins in Europe to begin with. Origin's ports were not as good as the Apple II games at time, and had horrible loading in others. I've got almost all Synapse's games and sad to say, I think most of them are tosh. Sorry. I love Drelbs, Sentinel and Slamball though. Broderbund's output was a mixed bag; Karateka, Bungeling Bay, Centauri Alliance, Lode Runner, Wings of Fury good. The less said about some the others, the better. Lucasfilm? Maniac Mansion was revolutionary, and Zak better (which is probably why it got the nod into the RG list). I always felt Koronis Rift and Eidolon were over-rated; good but over-rated. Loved Ballblazer however. Labyrinth was a pile of tosh.

It is quite obvious to me you're a complete disk snob Tom so I don't take any offense. I've played thousands of C64 titles in my time and yes, lots of US originated titles. I more suspect in part you're like an American games version of an otaku (in that they believe Japan is better than the West) and you prefer perhaps more the style of game that tended to come from the US instead (simulations, RPGs etc).

I tend to prefer more arcade orientated titles, which quite frankly the Americans were often useless at compared to the Europeans, especially in the second half of the C64's life. All the good arcade conversions then came out of Europe. All the hardware pushing to get as much from the machine as possible came out of Europe. Games such as Turrican and Mayhem in Monsterland weren't just there to impress, they played well to boot.

That isn't to say I don't enjoy a good RPG or war game or simulation. I stuffed countless hours into the Bard's Tale trilogy, Wasteland, Project Firestart, Laser Squad, Storm Across Europe, Vietnam, Gunship, Project Stealth Fighter, Space Rogue and the SSI gold box games.

So please don't say I don't know many US games because it's a complete fallacy.

And now back on topic for this thread if possible...