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Quicksilva
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<p>Quicksilva was a British games software publisher active during the early 1980s. </p><p>Quicksilva was founded by Nick Lambert in 1980. The name Quicksilva was inspired by a particular guitar solo in a track on the album Happy Trails by <a href="/facts/Quicksilver_Messenger_Service/q7mGjsoF">Quicksilver Messenger Service</a>. Quicksilva mainly released games for the <a href="/facts/ZX81/I0uDYb3n">ZX81</a>, <a href="/facts/Commodore_International/SlfXKbCN">Commodore 64</a> and <a href="/facts/ZX_Spectrum/JVbaDHrU">ZX Spectrum</a>, but also did conversions and some original games for the <a href="/facts/VIC-20/bLE8KkRE">VIC-20</a>, <a href="/facts/Dragon_32%2f64/G7LaxnVn">Dragon 32/64</a>, <a href="/facts/Oric-1/FDBJwRcj">Oric-1</a>/<a href="/facts/Oric_Atmos/FDBJwRcj">Atmos</a>, <a href="/facts/BBC_Micro/YJxxPlIl">BBC Micro</a> and <a href="/facts/Acorn_Electron/I0IDnl9N">Acorn Electron</a> home computers. </p><p>One of their earliest titles was <i>QS Defenda</i> (originally <i>QS Defender</i>), a clone of the <a href="/facts/Defender_(1981_video_game)/4Xw2K2Dq"><i>Defender</i> arcade game</a> for the <a href="/facts/ZX80/n7G0FJeW">ZX80</a> and <a href="/facts/ZX81/I0uDYb3n">ZX81</a> home computers. Greater success followed with later releases, including a <i><a href="/facts/Star_Raiders/XvSVkSGe">Star Raiders</a></i>-style game entitled <i><a href="/facts/Time-Gate/IDkeSag7">Time-Gate</a></i> which reached the top of the ZX Spectrum charts in December 1982. Amongst the company's other successes were <a href="/facts/Jeff_Minter/SMyyKtja">Jeff Minter</a>'s <i><a href="/facts/Gridrunner/cIFCXkCM">Gridrunner</a></i> (1983), <i><a href="/facts/Bugaboo_(The_Flea)/KFj3chUE">Bugaboo</a></i> (1983, a.k.a. <i>La Pulga</i>) and <i>Fred</i> (1983, titled "<a href="/facts/Roland_(game_character)/kek0hJa6"><i>Roland on the Ropes</i></a>" on the <a href="/facts/Amstrad_CPC/U2F6jDXY">Amstrad CPC</a>), two titles licensed from Spanish software house Indescomp S.A. Sandy White's <i><a href="/facts/Ant_Attack/QtgSyHgN">Ant Attack</a></i> (1983) for the <a href="/facts/ZX_Spectrum/JVbaDHrU">ZX Spectrum</a> featured revolutionary 3-D graphics for which a patent application was made. </p><p>In early 1984, they published their first licensed title, <i><a href="/facts/The_Snowman/HKFYDAdx">The Snowman</a></i>, an adaptation of the 1978 book by <a href="/facts/Raymond_Briggs/BAn4kXK8">Raymond Briggs</a>. Software Manager Paul Cooper ruled out an adaption of Briggs' <i><a href="/facts/When_the_Wind_Blows_(comics)/apgB5PoF">When The Wind Blows</a></i> stating "nuclear war can upset a lot of people". </p>