began producing multiple video games for the ZX Spectrum throughout the early 1980s. The company were known for their reluctance to reveal details about their operations and upcoming projects. Little was known about their development process except that they used to work in separate teams; one team would work on graphics whilst the other would concentrate on other aspects such as sound or programming. When a journalist reviewing Nightshade for Crash asked Tim and Chris Stamper what the object of the game was they responded: "oh, we can't tell you that". The game was developed with the isometric projection game engine known as Filmation II, an upgraded version of the Filmation engine. The Filmation engine was created by the Stamper brothers to portray 3D imagery. Filmation II used an image masking technique that drew and filled holes in the background, allowing the game to create composite structures out of pixelated drawings without visual overlay, despite the limitations platforms such as the ZX Spectrum offered. Nightshade was first released in the United Kingdom for the ZX Spectrum in 1985, and was then ported to the Amstrad CPC and BBC Micro later that year. It was also ported to the MSX exclusively in Japan in 1986. Reception The game received positive reviews upon release. Chris Bourne of Sinclair User praised the game's new graphics system, opining that it was "wonderfully" detailed and "juiced up" in contrast to its predecessors, Knight Lore and Alien 8. A reviewer writing for Computer and Video Games praised the graphics as "great" and stated that its sound effects were "up to standard" considering the "dumb" ZX Spectrum. Philippa Irving of Crash thought that the visuals and use of colours were "stunning" and up to Ultimate Play the Game's "usual standards", however she did notice a few instances of attribute clash. A reviewer writing for Computer Gamer asserted that the graphics were "as good as ever", however they admitted that the game seemed "lacking" in comparison to Ultimate Play the Game's most recent releases. Chris Jenkins of Popular Computing Weekly opined that the game's interior visuals looked like "featureless squares", however he admitted that the game's background drops were more detailed. The gameplay was also praised by reviewers. Bourne opined that the game was well-paced in similar vein to arcade-style games, however he noted "a sense of déjà vu" with the game's concept, stating that the developer's games