Godzilla  (1983 - The Code Works)
Platform: Commodore 64
Gametype: Undefined
_________________________

It may come as a surprise to many fans of the series that the very first video game to feature Godzilla appeared on the Commodore 64 in 1983 only one year after the release of the incredibly popular, and very lucrative, 8-bit home computer. Much like the first film, it did not feature any additional monsters (a popular aspect of the film and video game franchises that would become a mainstay for both in subsequent entries).

Aptly named Godzilla and developed by Glen Fisher of The Code Works, the video game was first featured in a range of books aimed at allowing users to program video games directly into their Commodore 64s by providing the necessary lines of code to do so. This particular book, titled Commodore 64 – Fun and Games, was published via Osborne and McGraw Hill Books and released the same year by Fisher himself and two other programmers. Although the game never saw an official commercial release given that it was never licensed by Toho, users were eventually able to copy it onto floppy disks which could easily be shared.

The video game itself was a relatively primitive turn-based strategy game where the player assumes command of the Japanese military to thwart the monster's ultimate goal of destroying Tokyo (represented as a small white circle on the screen). Godzilla appears randomly on one of the 25 quadrants that make up the playing field; composed of tiles representing either land or ocean, and the player must inflict enough damage on the monster to destroy it before it reaches Tokyo. Military forces are split into three categories; land, air, and sea, and it's up to the player to decide whether to attack Godzilla, or move their units into position. When your units attack Godzilla, damage is dealt, but their numbers dwindle as indicated by the numbers on the right-hand side of the screen. As Godzilla moves from sea to land, a counter in the upper right-hand side of the screen begins to show the number of people killed on the monster's path to Tokyo although these numbers do not seem to have any actual effect on the outcome of the game.

At first glance, winning may seem deceptively easy, but given that Godzilla's starting position on the grid is chosen at random, chance plays a big role here. The closer Godzilla appears to Tokyo, the more difficult it will be for the player to win. You are also given the choice to launch missiles at Godzilla or even detonate an atomic bomb which, while dealing heavy damage, destroys everything around it within a radius of 8 quadrants. If Tokyo happens to be within that radius, the player loses.

Of course for fans of the series, the irony of utilizing atomic weapons in this game is not lost upon them given that Godzilla himself was created via atom bomb tests in the iconic 1954 film. The franchise as a whole for that matter can easily be viewed as a cautionary tale regarding man's use of scientific discoveries for either good or bad; a theme which is featured prominently in many of the series' films. Coupled with Japan's first-hand experience witnessing the devastation caused by such weapons during the Second World War and the influence these events had on the series' creator and the impact on the country's psyche as a whole, the inclusion of the atomic bomb as a weapon actually intended to defeat Godzilla is certainly an odd choice.


---


Godzilla threatens Japan and it’s up to the player to use the combined force of Japan’s army, navy, air force, and nuclear arsenal to defeat him. Godzilla is a turn-based game played out over Japan and its surrounding waters which are mapped out on a grid. Godzilla starts randomly on the map and moves erratically from tile to tile. On the player’s turn, the player can attack Godzilla with available units in the same sector as Godzilla, move units to an adjacent sector, launch a missile at Godzilla or authorize an atomic strike. At the end of each turn, the game tallies the damage done to Godzilla and the corresponding loss to Japanese forces and the civilian population. The game ends either with Godzilla’s death or with Godzilla victorious over a devastated Japan.


---


Godzilla is the first game ever to include Godzilla, the strategy game was released in 1983 for the Commodore 64 by Glen Fisher of Code Works. The game is similar to Godzilla 2, as it is in the same genre (turn-based strategy) and you play as the military. 
GameplayEdit



After going through the title screen, the main screen will appear. It is a map of Japan with information on the right, Tokyo in a white circle and Godzilla. Godzilla can appear anywhere and move a few times. The objective of the game is to kill Godzilla. Based on what square you are highlighting (in blue) the information given on the right part of the screen tells how much population there is, how many military troops are alive there, how many military planes are still flying, how many battleships are still on sea. The left screen also tells of your attack choices: 

Land Attack 
Sea Attack 
Air Attack 
Move Troops 
Move Ship 
Missile 
Atom Bomb (The most powerful weapon in the game, when dropped it destroys everything within the eight squares that surround the blast radius, capable of destroying the entire population of Tokyo if it were to be dropped close enough) 
Quit 

Whatever option is chosen, the upper-right side of the screen will create dialogue for if you are sure of that desision, how many civilians/troops/ships/planes were lost, if you won or lost, or asking where to move the troops/ships. If Tokyo is destroyed, the game will be over.




http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/godzilla/godzilla.htm
http://godzilla.wikia.com/wiki/Godzilla_(Commodore_64)
