It has been a while since I’ve updated the old blog - but this weeks sad news requires an update.

I’m sad to report that last Saturday the games industry lost one of its original trailblazers - Jonathan “Joffa” Smith aged just 43.

Joff was without a doubt one of the finest Spectrum programmers I have ever met. The thing is, Joff wasn’t just a programmer, he was a designer and an artist (he even wrote the music players!) He could pretty much do the entirety of a game on his own. His games were good; damn good:

Pud Pud, Daley Thompson’s Super Test, Kong Strikes Back, Hyper Sports, Green Beret, Cobra, Terra Cresta, Mikie, Ping Pong, Hysteria, Firefly, Batman the Caped Crusader to name but a few.

Every game carried Joff’s trademark sense of humour, perfect sense of playability, and technical mastery.

He was the first person I spoke to at Ocean, and I must admit I was a little awe struck by just how smart, yet unassuming he was. Thankfully we have stayed in touch ever since - his passing completely caught me off guard and knocked me for six.

I’m off to his funeral tomorrow and I shall raise a glass to a true gaming legend who will be sorely missed.

Jonathan “Joffa” Smith, 1st February 1967 - 26 June 2010. R.I.P.