Squirm

Squirm is an arcade maze game developed by Mr. Chip Software (Tony Kelly) and published by Mastertronic in 1984 . You control a tiny critter navigating a top-down maze, tasked with collecting eggs laid by the Queen Squirm as she moves through the labyrinth . The queen is protected by two guard squirms that patrol the maze and eat any eggs left behind . Your goal is to collect 255 eggs to complete each level . Contact with the queen or any guard squirm costs one of three lives . You can exit at each end of the maze to emerge on the opposite side, a useful shortcut for chasing the queen or evading pursuers . After collecting all eggs, a bonus round begins where you can eat the squirms for extra points, leaving a tail trail that you must avoid touching .

Commodore 16

The Commodore 16 version was programmed by Tony Kelly and published by Mastertronic in 1984, the year the C16 was released . This version requires collecting 200 eggs per level (not 250 as the instructions state) and introduces a glow worm mechanic: eating the glow worm resets the lights, preventing the maze from going dark . A second speed is available by holding the fire button, allowing you to outrun enemies at the cost of reduced turning . The title screen allows pressing U or B to skip between levels . Sales figures reached 82,108 units . A contemporary review praised the improved graphics and sound over the C64 original, noting masses of colour on the bonus run, and concluded this is "the version of this game to play, no question" . Rated 7/10 by Mastertronic Collectors Archive . A superior conversion that enhances the original.