Commodore 64 fans have yet more reasons to stay entertained through the winter months one way or another. First off is news of a co-operative game between Richard Bayliss and Wayne Womersley. Although the main coder Richard gives a bit of a disclaimer saying that it as yet may not be released, sources tell me that Cronosoft may be lining this game up for a debut on cassette and floppy diskette when it's finished. The game is a static-screened and plodding collect-'em-up featuring a wizard (on the side of good) who has been forced to roam his arch-nemesis's twisted dungeons and catacombs and find his escape.

The gameplay and graphics in the available preview are reasonable enough, hinting that with a few tweaks here and there this will be something worth playing for a while at least. To grab the preview, you can download it directly from www.redesign.sk/tnd64/games/Sorcerer_PRV_TND.zip. You can find out more about Richard's work (through his software label The New Dimension) at www.redesign.sk/tnd64.

If you're in need of something to read, and you happen to be a Commodore fan or enthusiast, then the free-to-download electronic publication Commodore Free has reached its thirteenth issue, with a new message board for people to leave their comments and feedback, as well as have a general natter about such important matters as whether or not you use GEOS, or what Commodore machines are your favourites. As always, the latest issue (and previous ones) can be downloaded from www.commodorefree.com, while the message forum can be found at commodorefree.proboards104.com.

As a side note, Commodore Free is always on the lookout for people to pen articles for inclusion in future issues, and any would-be writers will be pleased to hear that such fan-based publications are a good place to start. In fact, I wouldn't be writing this very column today if I hadn't written for fanzines in the past. If you're a Commodore fan with an opinion, or want to write some reviews or features, why not contact the editor, Nigel Parker at nigelp2k@yahoo.co.uk. I'm sure he'll be delighted to hear from you.

Even 27 years after the launch of the Sinclair ZX81, enthusiasts throughout Europe are preparing themselves for the 12th annual meeting of the ZX-Team, which will take place in Mahlerts, near Fulda, in Germany, from 11th-13th April 2008. The organiser of the event (ZX-Team) is asking for you to register if you're interested in attending. Might be a nice little holiday for me if I can wangle the time off work; after all, ZX81s aren't the hardest machines to carry, and will fit perfectly into any hand luggage. For more details, head over to www.zx81.de where contact details can be found, as well as useful links and downloads for fans of that little black box of tricks.

Since its launch, the annual MSXDev competition, set up to encourage new software developments for the classic MSX platform, has seen many good quality games entered.

Although this year's numbers are lower than expected, there's still been four finished productions to date to consider. The latest is called Mr. Mole, by Nerlaska Studio. The game is a cute breakout clone, which is rather fun to play too, and it can be downloaded now from msxdev.msxblue.com/msxdev07/roms/mrmole.zip. More MSX software is available from said developer at www.nerlaska.com, while www.msx.org is the best place to keep regularly updated on news of the former MicroSoft-sponsored 8-bit platform.