1986 · Elite Systems
Capcom's Pacific-war shooter, converted by Elite: a P-38 over an endless ocean, waves of Zeros, and the roll button that flips you out of trouble when the screen fills up. Simple, pure, and one more level was always possible.
This was my reliable game, the one I loaded when I had twenty minutes and no plan. The loop-the-loop was strictly rationed, and using your last one too early was a special kind of regret ;)