Everything Looks Worse in Black and White

Computist magazine was something of an ‘alternative’ gaming publication in the 1980s. Originally conceived to cover Apple ][ gaming, the magazine had a special focus on how users could remove copy protection from their games. As a result, it was treated as something of a black sheep by contemporaries and the nascent gaming industry. By the very end of its run in the early 1990s, Computist expanded beyond the Apple to cover MS-DOS games.

The reviews of Wing Commander are odd, to say the least: the original game (Issue #78) is given one star because the reviewed felt weapons didn’t have enough of an impact. Wing Commander II and Special Operations I (Issue #84) are given rave reviews and both receive a four star rating. There are also articles covering how to remove the copy protection from the original game and one reviewing a joystick that mentions how great Wing Commander I was. Huh! The Internet Archive has published galleys for the unprinted Issue #90, which include a review of Special Operations 2 (three stars) and the Wing Commander II speech pack (two stars.)