Gumshoe

This is one of the first games that I actually remember playing on the C64. By today standards it isn’t very sophisticated, but it still has the old charm: The creaking of the doors as the bad guys come into play; the escalators that change direction when you are half way up them; the noisy lifts and the trap doors that drop you down floors when you really didn’t mean to do that.
There isn’t any background music, just the dull tones of the sound effects, but this just adds to the suspense.

There’s no blood or guts, just “clean violence” as the bad guys disappear when you shoot them. The gameplay is simple with only left, right, climb, duck and shoot. Ducking is very important! You don’t want to get shot after all as the bullet speeds across the screen at you. Every time you shoot your gun it costs you money, $2. But if you kill a “baddy” you get $10 back, so make your shots count. If you run out of money, then you can’t fire you gun. If a baddie catches up with you or you meet on the ladder or you run into him then you get into a scrap. I haven’t worked out how to win these or if it’s random, I’ve tried hitting directions to help the fight, shooting the gun (which didn’t go off) or just leaving it. I tend to get killed from these encounters. If you manage to walk away it costs you $150 in medical expenses, which is a hefty cost, if you are looking for that high score. So shoot first and ask questions later.
All in all, a nice classic game with old charm. Worth to try.