trailblazer Commodore 64 game

Trailblazer is a racing video game developed by Mr. Chip Software and published by Gremlin Graphics for various platforms in 1986. It was designed by Shaun Southern and programmed for the Commodore 64 by Shaun Southern, with ports handled by Shaun Hollingworth, Peter M. Harrap, Chris Kerry, and Colin Dooley. The game was released on the Commodore 64, C16 / Plus/4, Atari 8-bit, Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Atari ST, MSX, and ZX Spectrum.

In 2005, a remake for the Gizmondo was released, and in 2011, it was adapted for the PS3, PlayStation Portable, PS Vita, and PlayStation TV as part of the Playstation Mini series. The game received a direct sequel titled Cosmic Causeway: Trailblazer II in 1987.

Trailblazer is a racing game where players control a soccer ball along suspended passages. The gameplay offers a choice between time trial and arcade mode, featuring four tracks. Races typically last between 15 and 45 seconds, with special track elements enabling various effects such as jumping, slowing down, speeding up, warping, inverting controls, bouncing backward, or encountering holes.

The development of Trailblazer was influenced by Shaun Southern's previous work on the Commodore 16, and the game drew inspiration from the arcade game Metrocross.

In terms of reception, reviews were generally positive. Your Sinclair gave the game a score of 9, while Zzap!64 rated the C64 version at 93%, earning it the magazine's Sizzler award. The Dragon magazine reviewers, as part of the Mastertronic MEGA Pack, awarded the game 5 out of 5 stars, describing it as their favorite on the disk and praising its fun racing on Cosmic Causeway roads against the clock or a robot. Steve Panak, reviewing the Atari 8-bit version for ANALOG Computing, lauded it as one of the most original arcade action games and a standout two-player competition game. Avery Score for Gamespot mentioned that Trailblazer was one of the more unique and enjoyable launch games they had seen.