Steve Wilcox
Elite Systems
The head of Elite Systems, the Walsall publisher whose arcade conversions — Commando, Bombjack, Ghosts 'n' Goblins — were among the best-selling British games of the mid-eighties.
Steve Wilcox ran Elite Systems, which 8000 Plus introduced in 1986 as a house best known for a string of arcade hits on the Commodore and Spectrum. Elite’s business was licensed conversions, and it was good at it — its Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins placed fifth in CRASH‘s readers’ vote for the best game of 1986.
On a new machine, cautiously
Wilcox appears in 8000 Plus’s first issue being asked whether Elite would support the Amstrad PCW — the word-processor machine that had arrived with an unexpected games audience.
His answer is a good example of how a publisher of that period talked about risk. It was “obviously an extension to the market”, he said, but they would have to suck it and see — while confirming Elite had games lined up for the autumn, probably including Bombjack and Commando.
Not enthusiasm, and not dismissal: a publisher committing two proven conversions to an unproven platform and waiting to see what came back.
⚠ This library holds relatively little on Wilcox directly. Most of what is known about him comes through Elite Systems, which is far better covered than the man who ran it.
See also
- Elite Systems — the company.
- US Gold, Ocean Software — the other arcade-licence houses.
- Amstrad CPC