15 min read

Project Firestart

Last updated: January 10, 2026

Overview

Project Firestart is a groundbreaking cinematic action-adventure game developed by Dynamix and published by Electronic Arts in 1989 exclusively for the Commodore 64.1 Set aboard the research vessel Prometheus in the year 2066, the game follows a government agent dispatched to investigate why scientists conducting genetic experiments have abruptly cut off communication with Earth.2 The game is widely recognized as one of the earliest and most fully-realized examples of the survival horror genre, predating both Alone in the Dark (1992) and Resident Evil (1996) by several years.3

“Project Firestart is jam-packed with the sort of fast-paced, polished presentation and chilling atmosphere which make software epics,” declared Zzap!64 magazine, awarding the game a remarkable 91% score.4 The game’s combination of limited resources, atmospheric tension, cinematic cutscenes, and multiple endings established what Penny Arcade would later call “the survival horror template in its entirety.”5 Despite positive critical reception, the game remained largely overlooked in video game history, with one reviewer noting it was “Best in C64 era, very underrated in videogame history.”6

The game’s atmospheric approach to horror, inspired heavily by Ridley Scott’s Alien films, helped establish conventions that would define the survival horror genre for decades to come.7 Jeff Tunnell, one of the game’s designers, deliberately avoided making it an action-heavy experience, stating: “I didn’t want it to be that much of an action game. If you gave the guy a whole bunch of guns it would just turn it into a platformer and that’s just not what we wanted it to be.”5

Story Summary

In the year 2066, the research vessel Prometheus orbits near Saturn’s moon Titan, where a team of scientists has been conducting a secret genetic experiment known as “Project Firestart.”8 The goal of the project was to splice together a hardy and versatile creature that could be used in iridium mining operations—essentially creating genetically engineered workers capable of surviving harsh extraterrestrial environments.2 However, something has gone terribly wrong, and the Prometheus has ceased all communication with Earth.9

The player assumes the role of a government agent dispatched to investigate the silent ship. Upon arrival, it becomes immediately apparent that a catastrophe has occurred—the vessel is overrun with horrific mutated creatures, the results of the genetic experiments that have escaped containment.10 The ship’s crew has been almost entirely wiped out, and evidence of violence and death is everywhere, including ominous messages written in blood spelling “DANGER.”11

As the agent explores the labyrinthine corridors of the Prometheus, they must gather scientific logs that document what transpired, fight the monstrous first and second generation mutants that now roam the ship, and activate the vessel’s self-destruct mechanism to prevent the creatures from reaching Earth.12 Along the way, the player has the opportunity to rescue Mary, a survivor found in a cryo-chamber who can be escorted to safety.13 The mission operates under a strict two-hour real-time limit, calculated in actual playing time, adding significant tension to the proceedings.14

The narrative draws heavily from the Alien film franchise, featuring similar themes of corporate malfeasance, scientific hubris, and the terror of being trapped with deadly creatures in the confines of space.15 The ship itself being named “Prometheus” predates Ridley Scott’s film of the same name by decades, demonstrating the game’s prescient connection to the Alien mythology.4

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

Project Firestart employs a side-scrolling perspective with pseudo-3D elements, allowing players to run left or right through environments, shoot enemies with a laser gun, and enter doors leading to different areas of the ship.16 The game is controlled via joystick connected to Port 2 of the Commodore 64.17 The player character can move, jump, crouch, and fire their weapon, with the interface designed to create tension through its deliberate limitations rather than empowering the player with excessive firepower.5

The game features cinematic elements including closeups of important or frightening scenes that interrupt gameplay to heighten dramatic tension.13 This approach to storytelling was innovative for its time, blending interactive gameplay with scripted narrative moments in a way that would later become standard in the survival horror genre.18

Structure and Progression

The game takes place entirely aboard the Prometheus, requiring players to navigate through multiple interconnected sections of the massive research vessel.12 The ship’s layout is complex, and as one reviewer noted, “It’s easy to get lost on the ship. A map or good memory is necessary.”13

  • Exploration Phase: Players must search the ship for clues, collecting scientific logs that reveal the story of what happened
  • Combat Encounters: Battles with mutants require careful resource management due to limited ammunition
  • Puzzle Elements: Players must locate ID cards and solve environmental puzzles to access restricted areas19
  • Rescue Mission: Finding and escorting survivor Mary through dangerous areas
  • Endgame: Activating the self-destruct sequence and escaping before the ship is destroyed

The two-hour real-time limit means players must balance thoroughness with efficiency, creating constant tension throughout the experience.14

Puzzles and Mechanics

The game emphasizes survival over combat prowess, featuring limited ammunition that forces players to choose their battles carefully—a hallmark mechanic that would define the survival horror genre.13 Players must collect items including ID cards required to access certain sections of the ship, and scientific equipment necessary for understanding the full scope of the disaster.19

Resource management plays a crucial role, as wasteful use of ammunition can leave players defenseless against the mutant threats.13 The laboratory sections contain important story elements and require careful exploration to uncover the full truth behind Project Firestart.19

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Project Firestart received strong reviews upon its release, particularly from European gaming publications that appreciated its atmospheric approach and innovative design.

Zzap!64 magazine awarded the game an exceptional 91% score, praising its “fast-paced, polished presentation and chilling atmosphere” and declaring it “jam-packed with the sort of… chilling atmosphere which make software epics.”4 The reviewers Paul Rand and Robin Hogg enthusiastically described it as “Gore, guts and Aliens running loose - who needs Saturday Night at the Movies?”20

German magazine PowerPlay gave the game a score of 78/100, acknowledging its technical achievements and atmospheric storytelling.4 H.T.W. Review praised it as “A horror action-adventure of the top class with cut scenes, surprising twists in the story, tricky puzzles, scary atmosphere.”9

Modern Assessment

In retrospective analysis, Project Firestart has been increasingly recognized for its pioneering role in establishing the survival horror genre. IGN retroactively described it as the “First fully formed vision of survival horror as we know it today.”4 Penny Arcade noted that “more than twenty years ago Dynamix delivered the Survival Horror template in its entirety.”5

Modern critics consistently highlight the game’s historical importance. One analysis stated that “Project Firestart is one of the most important games of its generation — and yet it still goes largely overlooked.”18 The blog Scanline Artifacts identified it as “Very likely the first one we would recognise as a survival horror adventure game,” adding that “With a few refinements, it could easily be published as a lo-fi indie title today.”18

In 2023, Lemon64’s community poll ranked Project Firestart as the 59th best Commodore 64 game of all time, demonstrating its enduring reputation among retro gaming enthusiasts.4

Aggregate Scores:

  • C64-Wiki: 8.29/109
  • Lemon64: 9/10 (Steve Wilkins review)21
  • MobyGames: 82%1
  • MyAbandonware: 4.68/56
  • Glitchwave: 2.73/5.02
  • OldGames.sk: 80%16
  • IMDb: 8.0/10 (7 ratings)22
  • Grouvee: 3.83/519

Development

Origins

Project Firestart emerged from Dynamix, a small game development studio founded in 1984 in Eugene, Oregon by Jeff Tunnell and Damon Slye.23 The company had established itself through early use of digitized graphics, animations, and sound effects, though at the time they were primarily known for different genres.23

The inspiration for Project Firestart came partly from Electronic Arts founder Trip Hawkins’ famous question: “Can a computer make you cry?”24 Tunnell responded with a different approach, later explaining: “We thought, ‘Well, that might be kind of hard, but maybe it could make you feel fear.‘”24 This philosophy drove the entire design of the game, prioritizing atmospheric tension and dread over action-heavy gameplay.

The game drew heavy inspiration from the Alien film franchise, particularly the 1986 sequel Aliens, which had made a significant cultural impact.15 The design team sought to capture the claustrophobic terror of being trapped on a spaceship with deadly creatures, translating the cinematic experience into interactive form.7

Production

Development of Project Firestart took almost three years to complete—extraordinarily long for an era when the average game took only three months to develop.14 The extended development cycle was necessary to achieve the game’s ambitious goals within the severe technical limitations of the Commodore 64 hardware.18

Jeff Tunnell later described Project Firestart as “the most painful single development project he’s ever worked on over the course of more than three decades making games.”14 The team struggled to implement their vision within the constraints of an 8-bit system with limited memory and sprite-based graphics.7

The developers originally planned to title the game “The Prometheus Encounter,” but ultimately settled on Project Firestart to reference the in-game genetic experiment that drives the plot.11 The relatively small team of only seven people managed to create what would become one of the most atmospheric titles on the platform.18

Characters in the game were animated using rotoscoping techniques, providing smoother and more realistic movement than was typical for Commodore 64 games of the era.11 The creature designs were modeled after an action figure of Tendril from the animated series Inhumanoids, giving the mutants their distinctive horrifying appearance.11

Development Credits:1

  • Designer: Jeffrey Tunnell
  • Co-Designer: Damon Slye
  • Programmer: Darek Lukaszuk
  • Additional Programming: Paul Bowman, Rich Rayl
  • Music: Alan McKean

Technical Achievements

Project Firestart pushed the Commodore 64 hardware to its limits to create an unprecedented atmosphere of horror. The game featured cinematic cutscenes that zoomed in on important moments, creating dramatic tension through visual storytelling techniques borrowed from film.13 This approach was highly innovative for home computer games of the era.

The game employed sophisticated sprite-based graphics to depict both the player character and the various mutant enemies.7 Due to the C64’s limited color palette, all characters feature an ambiguously brown skin tone—the developers noted this was “the most realistic human skin tone they could achieve with the C64’s limited color palette.”11

The atmospheric sound design, composed by Alan McKean, helped establish tension throughout the experience despite the limitations of the SID sound chip.17 The sparse but effective soundtrack contributed significantly to the game’s oppressive atmosphere.

Technical Specifications

Commodore 64 Version:20

  • Media Type: 5.25” Floppy Disk (2 disks)
  • Control: Joystick (Port 2)
  • Players: 1 Only
  • Language: English
  • Total Soundtrack Duration: 1 minute 20 seconds25
  • Weight (boxed): 64g

Technical Issues

The game was released very late in the Commodore 64’s commercial lifecycle, which limited its potential audience and contributed to its relative obscurity.7 Unlike many successful C64 titles of the era, Project Firestart was never ported to the more powerful Amiga or Atari ST platforms, nor was it released in Europe, significantly limiting its reach.18

Easter Eggs and Trivia

  • The creatures in the game were modeled after an action figure of Tendril from the animated series Inhumanoids11
  • The ship being named “Prometheus” predates Ridley Scott’s 2012 film of the same name by over two decades4
  • All characters have an ambiguously brown skin tone because it was the most realistic human color achievable with the C64’s limited palette11
  • The game features blood-written messages spelling “DANGER” on the ship’s walls11
  • Saturn is visible through a window during certain sections of the game13

Multiple Endings

Project Firestart features multiple possible endings based on player actions throughout the game, a sophisticated design choice for its era.12 The key variables determining the ending include:

  • Self-Destruct: Whether the player successfully activates the ship’s self-destruct mechanism12
  • Science Log: Whether the player retrieves the complete science log documenting the experiment12
  • Mary’s Rescue: Whether the player successfully rescues survivor Mary from her cryo-chamber and escorts her to safety12

The “best” ending requires the player to complete all three objectives: activating the self-destruct, retrieving the science log, and saving Mary—all within the two-hour time limit.12

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

Despite positive reviews, Project Firestart was not a commercial success. Tunnell felt that “Electronic Arts didn’t do enough to promote the game upon its release.”7 The game’s late release in the Commodore 64’s lifecycle meant a diminishing potential audience, and the lack of ports to other platforms further limited its reach.

The game was released at an original price of £14.99 in the UK.20 Current market value for original copies is approximately £4.00, reflecting its status as a collector’s item among retro gaming enthusiasts.20

Fan Projects

In 2006, developer Erik Hogan created FireStart, a remake of Project Firestart for Windows using the Blitz3D engine.26 The remake was developed in two and a half months for the Retro Remakes 2006 competition, transforming the original’s 2D side-scrolling perspective into a first-person 3D view.26 The remake received positive reception, earning an 80% score on MobyGames and featuring original music by composer Bill Norris.26

Modern players can experience the original game through the VICE emulator, with an EasyFlash ROM version available that compresses the game onto a single disk for easier loading.27

  • Original Game Manual: Included with the game package, providing backstory and gameplay instructions28

Critical Perspective

Project Firestart occupies a unique and often overlooked position in video game history as arguably the first true survival horror game. While Japanese title Sweet Home (1989) is sometimes cited as the genre’s progenitor, Project Firestart was developed independently and features what many critics consider a more complete implementation of survival horror mechanics—limited resources, atmospheric tension, cinematic storytelling, and an emphasis on vulnerability over empowerment.3

The game’s influence can be traced through subsequent genre landmarks. As one commentator on GOG noted: “Resident Evil, System Shock, any survival horror game: They owe it all to Project Firestart.”3 Steve Wilkins of Lemon64 described it as “A perfect mix of science fiction-, horror-, adventure- and action-based elements,” positioning it as an ancestor to games like Resident Evil, Silent Hill, and Dead Space.21

The game’s relative obscurity stemmed from multiple factors: its exclusive release on the aging Commodore 64 platform, lack of European distribution, minimal marketing support from Electronic Arts, and the developers’ subsequent pivot away from horror games.24 Damon Slye’s career would take Dynamix in a completely different direction, with the studio becoming known primarily for flight simulators—prompting Slye to later note: “Now when someone hears ‘Dynamix’ they immediately think ‘flight simulator.‘”23

Despite its lack of commercial success, Project Firestart demonstrated that video games could effectively deliver horror experiences through atmosphere, resource management, and cinematic presentation. As one modern reviewer observed: “This game scared the shit of me at times. Atmosphere galore.”17 Another noted it was “A real Alien experience… With an awesome story and ambiance.”17 The game proved that interactive media could evoke fear as effectively as film—answering Trip Hawkins’ question about whether a computer could make you cry with a different emotional response entirely.

Downloads

Download / Preservation

Manuals & Extras

References

Footnotes

  1. MobyGames – Project Firestart – developer, publisher, credits, release date, ratings, technical specs ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  2. Glitchwave – Project Firestart – plot summary, platform, ratings ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  3. GOG Dreamlist – Project Firestart – genre influence, user quotes on survival horror origins ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  4. Wikipedia – Project Firestart – review scores, Zzap!64 quotes, Lemon64 ranking, trivia ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  5. Old School Gamer Magazine – Project Firestart: A Forgotten Masterpiece – Jeff Tunnell quotes, Penny Arcade reference, design philosophy ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  6. MyAbandonware – Project Firestart – user ratings, user quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  7. Hexcrank – Project Firestart – development difficulties, Alien influence, marketing quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  8. ClassicReload – Project Firestart – game description, setting, release info ↩ ↩2

  9. C64-Wiki – Project Firestart – ratings, game intro quote, H.T.W review quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  10. Games Database – Project Firestart – plot summary, gameplay elements ↩ ↩2

  11. TV Tropes – Project Firestart – trivia, character design, color palette, blood writing, original title ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  12. StrategyWiki – Project Firestart Walkthrough – objectives, endings, gameplay details ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  13. MobyGames – Project Firestart Screenshots – cinematic elements, navigation, ammunition mechanics ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  14. The Digital Antiquarian – Dynamix – development time, time limit, painful development quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  15. Reddit r/HorrorGaming – Origins of Survival Horror – Alien influence, ahead of its time ↩ ↩2

  16. OldGames.sk – Project Firestart – gameplay description, rating ↩ ↩2

  17. Lemon64 – Project Firestart Game Page – composer credit, control scheme, user quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  18. Scanline Artifacts – The First True Survival Horror – historical importance quotes, development team size, European release ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  19. Grouvee – Project Firestart – gameplay mechanics, ID cards, rating ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  20. EveryGameGoing – Project Firestart – price, Zzap quote, physical specifications ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  21. Lemon64 Review – Project Firestart – Steve Wilkins review, genre comparison, ratings breakdown ↩ ↩2

  22. IMDb – Project Firestart – user rating ↩

  23. Wikipedia – Dynamix – company history, founding, Damon Slye quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  24. IGN Retro – Project Firestart – Trip Hawkins quote, Jeff Tunnell fear quote, development challenges ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  25. Khinsider – Project Firestart Soundtrack – soundtrack duration ↩

  26. MobyGames – FireStart (2006 Remake) – remake details, engine, developer ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  27. RagnarRox Tumblr – How to Play Project Firestart – emulation guide, EasyFlash version ↩

  28. Internet Archive – Project Firestart Manual Scan – original game manual ↩ ↩2

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