Ultimate Play The Game / Ashby Computers and Graphics / Rare Limited

The Green, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, LE6

Ultimate Play the Game was the trading name of Ashby Computers and Graphics. You probably already know the name if you're interested enough to read this blog but not including Ultimate would be like writing about football teams and not covering Manchester United because they are too famous.

Their first game, Jetpac, was released in May 1983, initially for the 16k ZX Spectrum and followed by versions for the VIC-20 and BBC Micro. The lead time of magazines in 1983 was so long that the first review comes two months later in COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES issue 21 (July 1983 page 136) where the unnamed reviewer can't wait to tell us, "the tape loaded successfully first time and while the game was loading an impressive title screen was displayed." It's clear the reviewer doesn't know they are in the presence of greatness, Quicksilva's Mined Out on the Dragon 32 ends up with a slightly higher average score although Jetpac rates 9s across the board for Getting Started, Value, and Playability. The same issue also sees the first sighting of an Ultimate Play the Game advert on page 60. 

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Let's fast forward:
1983; Lunar Jetman, Atic Atak, first games for the 48K Spectrum.
1984; Sabrewulf, price increase to a shocking £9.99 (a less shocking £33 at 2021 prices), naughty PERSONAL COMPUTER GAMES print a full map alongside their review in issue 9 (August 1984 page 60); The Staff Of Karnath, first Commodore 64 game; Underwurlde; Knight Lore, new graphic style! Isometric 3D! The game that launched a 1000 clones!
1985; Alien 8, more isometric 3D and the first Knight Lore clone; Knightshade, scrolling 3D; Blackwyche, Entombed, Imhotep, more Commodore 64 games; Cyberun; Outlaws (C64).
1986; Gunfight, more scrolling 3D; Pentagram, another Knight Lore clone, not very good; Dragon Skulle (C64).
1987; Martianoids and Bubbler, best not talked about really. Mire Mare, never released; the end?
It seemed to take so much longer, the first time around.

Ultimate's 22 games were always copyrighted to Ashby Computers and Graphics, and the address remained The Green, Ashby-de-la-Zouch. As the picture shows, this is an anonymous parade of shops slightly away from the main high street. There's a plaque on the parade, "Elsmore Green site of 18th century horse fairs," which is interesting but doesn't give any clues about where they hid Mire Mare. 

The gaming press liked to gripe about Ultimate's cloak of secrecy. With this in mind it's surprising to see Ultimate gave at least three interviews in 1983; this from POPULAR COMPUTING WEEKLY issue 33 (18-24 August 1983 page 13), has quotes from all four founders Tim Stamper, Carole Ward, John Lathbury, and Chris Stamper. There was also an appearance at the 1983 COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES awards to collect their Golden Joystick for Best Software House . The shutters come down after 1983, until CRASH's big interview in issue 51 (April 1988 page 34). One downside of all this secrecy, it makes it hard to track down the Ashby Computers and Graphics offices. The Green is a parade of five shops, and all I had was a throwaway reference to the company being set up next to a family newsagent which is unlikely to still be around 35 years later. It isn't, obviously. Fortunately Ultimate is one of those companies which inspires fan websites and over on Facebook a nice bloke called Darren posted a picture and this message, "This is The Green in Ashby. My home town. Just Bikes on the corner used to be a newsagents, which sold the Ultimate Games. The office itself was a few doors up. Next time I'm in town I will get better photos. Happy memories." I then stumbled across this amusing article from COMMODORE USER issue 22 (July 1985 page 20) in which an unnamed reported was dispatched to Ashby-de-la Zouch to capture this image of Ultimate's offices.

Commodore User, July 1985

Which allowed me to stand on the pavement 36 years later and get this photo.

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The seal above the door has gone (the AGC seal?) but apart from that the buildings look identical. Ashby-de-la-Zouch is that kind of town. It doesn't change. Every other building has a plaque on it announcing some point of historic interest. It becomes a little wearing after a while. There was once an unhistoric building in Ashby but it was demolished to build something more significant. It's amusing to read the COMMODORE USER article and discover our anonymous Bob Woodward worked his socks off to justify his travel expenses. He had the presence of mind to nip round the back and check out the bins, "the garages at the rear of the offices have a board up saying "Private Keep Out." I wish I'd though of that.

The Green remained Ultimate's public face but behind the scenes there were changes. Nightshade's instruction manual carried a mysterious credit, "All Software, Graphics and Audio Visual by RARE LTD. for ULTIMATE PLAY THE GAME Trade Name of Ashby Computers & Graphics Ltd." Who were RARE LTD? Rare Ltd are, of course, the company which Ashby Computers & Graphics Ltd created when they decided to shift their focus from the Spectrum and Commodore 64 to these whizzy console thingies which were (supposedly) the wave of the future.

The Companies House website allows you to dig up all sorts of information. Ashby Computers and Graphics (company number 01674540) was incorporated on 29th October 1982 and dissolved surprisingly late, 19th November 2002. Meanwhile Rare Ltd (company number 01905690) were incorporated on 16th April 1985 -around the time Alien 8 was released- and are still running today. The documents of incorporation are free to download, and the new company was nearly named Chameleon Limited, and The Stamper Group Limited, before the name Rare was chosen.

The company records for Ashby Computer and Graphics show the registered office was changed from The Green to a different address in Ashby, Rawdon House.

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Rawdon House, Rawdon Terrace, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, LE65

Rawdon House is a short walk from The Green. It's the office of Johnson Murkett & Hurst, Charted Accountants. Their name appears on documentation for Rare, so it's a long established local firm. Unsurprisingly the building has a blue plaque, with the date 1822. Was Ultimate writing games for Charles Babbage's difference engine? No, "Rawdon Terrace 1822-1826 A Georgian Terrace for visitors to the spa".

Ashby Computers and Graphics and the Ultimate label were sold to rival company US Gold sometime in late 1985, the Stampers keep a majority shareholding, and the company changes its registered address to Rawdon House on 6th September 1986. Although the exact date and nature of the sale is obscure it was reported as a done deal by March 1986; C+VG (issue 53 page 8). Presumably the September 1986 change of address marks the point where Ashby Computers and Graphics was put into the corporate equivalent of suspended animation; US Gold would handle their side of the deal and Johnson Murkett & Hurst would take care of the day-to-day business affairs, while everyone else concentrated on Rare.

And Rare was a huge success. They developed games for Nintendo from 1986 to 2002 and then Microsoft brought the studio. I can't help wondering if there's a connection between the September 2002 Microsoft purchase and the dissolving of Ashby Computers and Graphics in November.

Rare moved 10 miles south from Ashby-de-la-Zouch to Twycross in 1986 and they're still based at the same address today; a place called Manor Park. Let's take a look.

Manor Park, Twycross, Atherstone, CV9

October 2021

NONE. SHALL. PASS.