A Tribute to Deathchase
One of the first games I remember truly enjoying as a kid was Deathchase, a simple motorcycle chase game for the ZX Spectrum, developed by Mervyn Estcourt back in 1983.
Mervyn managed to fit an entire 3D world into just 16 KB, a world where you raced through a forest at full speed, dodging trees while trying to shoot down enemy riders. Looking at it today, it might make you smile, but back then it was absolutely amazing.
Gaming isn’t quite the same when you get older. You don’t always have time for long stories, elaborate campaigns or complicated game mechanics. Sometimes you just want to recapture that feeling of excitement those early games gave you: simple, almost arcade-like games where you could start playing immediately and have a few minutes of pure fun.
And that’s exactly what I wanted to bring back.
Maybe update it a little, but keep that same simple spirit: jump in, start playing and have some fun without too many complications.
And while I was at it, I thought it would also be a good opportunity to put GPT-6 Astra to the test.
But I didn’t want anything complicated. Just something that runs in a web browser, with no accounts, no saved data, no fuss, no big ambitions… just simple.
After a few development sessions, always interrupted by more important things, I ended up with this version:
https://juanosborne.com/deathchase
It has definitely scratched that itch and brought back some of those feelings from a very long time ago.
The original Deathchase
Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deathchase
Try my version
https://juanosborne.com/deathchase
Controls
Use the arrow keys to accelerate and steer, and press Space to fire.
Credits
Bike: StarWars Speeder Bike, by Idmenthal.
Rider: Scout Trooper – Star Wars, published by Leonardo Benavides.