The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International. Wildly popular, there were between 12.5 and 17 million units sold. Initial price of US$595 (equivalent to $2,000 in 2026). With support for multicolor sprites and a custom chip for waveform generation, the C64 could create superior visuals and audio compared and ideal for games compared to the business systems of the day.

Notable Games:

• Elite, Acornsoft / Firebird, 1985

• The Last Ninja, System 3, 1987

• Maniac Mansion, Lucasfilm Games, 1987

• Impossible Mission, Epyx, 1984

• Paradroid, Hewson Consultants, 1985

• Bruce Lee, Datasoft, 1984

• Turrican, Rainbow Arts, 1990

• Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar, Origin Systems, 1985

• Bubble Bobble, Firebird, 1987

• Mayhem in Monsterland, Apex Computer Productions, 1993

Hardware Specs:

CPU: MOS Technology 6510/8500 @ 1.023 MHz (NTSC version) @ 0.985 MHz (PAL version)

Memory: 64 KB RAM + 20 KB ROM

Graphics: VIC-II (320×200, 16 colors, sprites, raster interrupt)

Sound: SID 6581/8580 (3× osc, 4× wave, filter, ADSR, ring)

Media: ROM Cartridges. As a general purpose computer, floppy disks were available, but were not usually used for game media.