Sensible Software

Sensible Software started in a bedroom in Chelmsford, Essex, and became one of Britain’s most respected developers. Jon Hare and Chris Yates created games that were innovative, polished, and often strange—Wizball’s surreal colour-collecting, Sensible Soccer’s overhead football, Cannon Fodder’s darkly humorous warfare. They proved small teams could create industry-defining work.

Fast facts

Founded: 1986 by Jon Hare and Chris Yates.
Location: Chelmsford, Essex, England.
Early work: Parallax, Wizball, Microprose Soccer.
Breakthrough: Sensible Soccer (1992), simplified football to its essence.
Controversy: Cannon Fodder (1993), criticised for its poppy imagery and anti-war message.
Later years: acquired by Codemasters (1999); brand retired.

The early years

Hare and Yates met at school and began programming together:

Sold early games to Galactic Software
Refined their craft through numerous releases
Wizball (1987) announced their arrival—innovative gameplay, excellent Martin Galway soundtrack

What the period press called them

ACE, October 1991, introducing the pair by the nicknames they were known under:

Back in 1988, the long-haired duo of Jon ‘Jops’ Hare and Chris ‘Cuddly Crix’ Yates, collectively known as Sensible Software, took a break from their usual unusual shoot ’em ups (including Wizball, Parallax and the Shoot-’Em-Up Construction Kit) and produced what was, quite simply, the best 8-bit football game ever.

Two things in that sentence are worth pulling out.

The Shoot-’Em-Up Construction Kit belongs among their games, not in a footnote. SEUCK was published by Outlaw Productions, the second label Palace Software launched in late 1987 — and it was Outlaw’s first release. A studio whose reputation rests on hand-crafted design also shipped the tool that let anyone skip the craft entirely.

The football game meant is MicroProse Soccer, not Sensible Soccer. The overhead football that made the studio famous in the sixteen-bit era was a refinement of work they had already done on the C64 four years earlier, for a different publisher.

Sensible Soccer

Their football game stripped the sport to its core:

Tiny players: bird’s-eye view, minimal detail, maximum readability.
Aftertouch: curve the ball after kicking—revolutionary at the time.
Speed: matches played fast, suited to quick sessions.
Success: sold millions, became the football game of the 16-bit era.

Sensible World of Soccer (1994) added career mode with every real player and club—a database achievement as much as a game.

Cannon Fodder

Their most controversial work combined:

Cute graphics: tiny soldiers, green fields, simple visuals.
Dark subject: soldiers died permanently; a hill of graves tracked losses.
Remembrance imagery: the poppy on the box art drew criticism from the Royal British Legion.
Anti-war message: “War has never been so much fun” was deliberately provocative.

The game forced players to confront the human cost of warfare while enjoying the action—uncomfortable by design.

The Sensible style

Their games shared characteristics:

Minimalist graphics: small sprites, clear readability, character through animation.
Innovative mechanics: aftertouch, colour-collecting, squad persistence.
Humour: irreverent, sometimes dark, always present.
Polish: games felt complete, balanced, refined.

Legacy

Sensible Software proved creativity mattered more than size. Their innovations—overhead sports games, emotional stakes in action games, accessibility through simplicity—influenced developers worldwide. When the studio closed, it left behind a catalogue that still inspires.

Innovation from Chelmsford