Cheeky Commodore Gamer

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Retro joy first, tech second. Expect Commodore 64 and Amiga deep dives, reviews, and curated picks that feel like flipping through a premium retro magazine.

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MY FAVOURITE SID TRACK OF ALL TIME

Joe and Dave — ME (LEFT) & BROTHER DAVE (RIGHT)

WELCOME TO THE RETRO GAMING WORLD OF CHEEKY COMMODORE GAMER! MY NAME IS JOE, AND I'VE BEEN JOYSTICK-DEEP IN RETRO GAMING SINCE I WAS BARELY OUT OF NAPPIES (OR DIAPERS, FOR MY US FRIENDS).

IT ALL STARTED IN THE 80S WITH MY BROTHER, DAVE. WHILE MOST KIDS WERE ARGUING OVER THE ZX SPECTRUM, DAVE MADE THE BOLD CHOICE TO GO FOR THE COMMODORE 64. HE PAINSTAKINGLY SAVED EVERY PENNY FROM HIS PAPER ROUND DELIVERY MONEY TO AFFORD IT. HE EVEN SAVED UP FOR THE 1530 DATASETTE SO WE COULD LOAD CASSETTES INSTEAD OF CARTRIDGES.

THAT DECISION DEFINED MY CHILDHOOD. WE SPENT COUNTLESS HOURS WAITING FOR THOSE LOADING BARS TO FLASH, LISTENING TO THE SCREECHING TAPE NOISES, AND DIVING INTO 8-BIT WORLDS THAT FELT MAGICAL.

FAST FORWARD A FEW DECADES, AND I'M LIVING IN LANCASHIRE WITH MY WIFE MICHELLE AND OUR CHILDREN. MICHELLE WORKS UNUSUAL SHIFTS, WHICH OFTEN LEFT ME WITH QUIET EVENINGS ALONE. RATHER THAN MINDLESSLY SCROLLING OR WATCHING TV, I DECIDED TO RECONNECT WITH MY PASSION.

I REALIZED THAT WHILE THERE WERE MANY CHANNELS TALKING ABOUT TECHNICAL SPECS AND CODING MINUTIAE, VERY FEW FOCUSED ON THE JOY OF THE GAMES THEMSELVES. I WANTED TO CAPTURE THAT FEELING OF NOSTALGIA—THE MEMORIES OF THE MUSIC, THE FRUSTRATION OF "GAME OVER", AND THE THRILL OF DISCOVERY.

Me and wife Michelle — ME & MY WIFE MICHELLE

OF COURSE, NO TEAM IS COMPLETE WITHOUT A MASCOT. INTRODUCING JONATHAN, OUR LABRADOR. YES, HIS NAME IS JONATHAN. DON'T ASK WHY.

TRY CALLING "JONATHAN!" IN A BUSY PUBLIC PARK AND WATCH THE CONFUSED LOOKS FROM PASSERSBY WHO THINK YOU'RE SHOUTING AT THEIR HUSBAND. RINGING THE VET IS EVEN BETTER: "HELLO, I'D LIKE TO BOOK JONATHAN IN FOR HIS WORM TABLETS." IT NEVER GETS OLD!

Jonathan enjoying the outdoors — Big Love

I DIVE INTO THE HEART OF RETRO GAMING CULTURE. I'M CURRENTLY WORKING ON BUILDING A C64 GAME MUSEUM IN MY HOME, ONE CASSETTE AT A TIME. ON THIS CHANNEL, YOU CAN EXPECT: