Fresh off a frustrating legal battle with the owners of the Atari name, Llamasoft’s Jeff “Yak” Minter has made his back catalog of 8-bit and 16-bit titles free to download — or remake.
Jeff Minter’s recent legal stoush with the owners of the Atari brand, relating to Tempest and his reimaning/remake TxK are well documented, and for now it looks like there won’t be any fresh releases of TxK on any systems other than Sony’s PS Vita. Which is a bit of a bummer if you’re a fan of retro shooters.
Minter is, and the entire episode seems to have led him to become reflective about his own Llamasoft works, and people producing “remakes” of them. On his Twitter account, he’s announced that his back catalog of 8-bit and 16-bit games are now free to download and remake.
All our old 8-bit games for use in emulators. Remake if you want! http://t.co/PaZ7TOMFAG
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
Likewise here's all our old 16-bit stuff! http://t.co/uQdvZ8jp5E
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
I love all those old games but I'd be a fool to be bound by them, snarling and yapping at anyone who dared go near.
Don't you think?
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
The honourable way to survive is to take what you learn and move forward, creating something new.
Else you're headed for Langdell territory
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
sometimes the experience of getting fucked over can actually make you think about how you might behave better yourself.
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
I am truly sorry I was ever a dick about remakes. I was wrong.
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
& god please shoot me if I ever become some wizened troll grunting and drooling over my preciouses from 20 years ago.
Not for this ox }:-)
— Jeff Minter (@llamasoft_ox) March 26, 2015
So if you’ve got fond memories of Metagalactic Llamas Battle At The Edge Of Time — and who wouldn’t? — go forth and fill your ungulate boots.
Image: Gerwin Sturm