Skip to content

Bug-Byte

History

Bug-Byte's Spectral Invaders and Spacewarp were the first commercial ZX Spectrum and BBC games, and Spectral Invaders was the first number one Spectrum game in the first ever chart, published by Popular Computing Weekly in late 1982. By this time, programmer David Lawson had already founded another Liverpool-based software house: Imagine. A number one on the ZX81 chart came just two weeks with Mazogs by Don Priestley, who became a director of DK'Tronics in early 1983

Manic Miner was Bug-Byte's biggest hit and is the fourth highest ranked game overall, although programmer Matthew Smith took the game with him to his new company Software Projects in November 1983.

The original Bug-Byte went into administration in 1985, but the name was soon revived for use as a budget label by Argus Press.

Note

The figures for Months in the Top 10 and Months at No. 1 are based on the All Format and Multi Format chart only.
Columns are sortable, sorting by the cover column will sort by chart appearance date.

TitleTop 10No. 1Rank
Cover(s)Manic Miner

BUG-BYTE / SOFTWARE PROJECTS / AMSOFT

1424
Cover(s)American Football

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

20483
Cover(s)Vic Panic

BUG-BYTE

10540
Cover(s)Nick Faldo Plays the Open

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

00702
Cover(s)Alien

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

10778
Cover(s)Rapscallion

BUG-BYTE

00829
Cover(s)Spectral Invaders

BUG-BYTE

00863
Cover(s)Twin Kingdom Valley

BUG-BYTE

00940
Cover(s)Cosmiads

BUG-BYTE

001002
Cover(s)Star Trader

BUG-BYTE

001050
Cover(s)Yabba Dabba Doo!

GRANDSLAM / BUG-BYTE

< 1 01085
Cover(s)Tennis

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

001159
Cover(s)Vic Asteroids

BUG-BYTE

001161
Cover(s)Mazogs

BUG-BYTE

001281
Cover(s)Jack Attac

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

001461
Cover(s)ZX AS Assembler

BUG-BYTE

001466
Cover(s)Spectres

BUG-BYTE

001487
Cover(s)Cricket

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

001515
Cover(s)Star Force Seven

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

001617
Cover(s)ZXDB Disassembler

BUG-BYTE

001635
Cover(s)Automan

BUG-BYTE

< 1 01656
Cover(s)Oblivion

BUG-BYTE

001712
Cover(s)Turmoil

BUG-BYTE

001809
Cover(s)Kung-Fu

BUG-BYTE

001810
Cover(s)Glider Rider

GRANDSLAM / BUG-BYTE

001858
Cover(s)Cloak of Death

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

001990
Cover(s)Savage Pond

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

002010
Cover(s)Monkey Nuts

GRANDSLAM / BUG-BYTE

002018
Cover(s)Journey to the Centre of the Earth

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

002029
Cover(s)Invaders

BUG-BYTE

002050
Cover(s)ZXTK Toolkit

BUG-BYTE

002068
Cover(s)Golf

BUG-BYTE

002216
Cover(s)Chess

BUG-BYTE

002220
Cover(s)Chess

BUG-BYTE

002251
Cover(s)Leaper

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

002275
Cover(s)Spacewarp

BUG-BYTE

002278
Cover(s)Fruit Machine

BUG-BYTE

002280
Cover(s)Adventure

BUG-BYTE

002303
Cover(s)Sea Lord

BUG-BYTE

002354
Cover(s)Galaxy Wars

BUG-BYTE

002363
Cover(s)The Birds and the Bees

BUG-BYTE

002370
Cover(s)Antics

BUG-BYTE

002418
Cover(s)The Computer Cook Book

BUG-BYTE

002425
Cover(s)Twin Kingdom Valley

ARGUS PRESS / BUG-BYTE

002519