Chipwits

ChipWits - the 1985 programming puzzle for Commodore 64 from Epyx.

Teach a little robot with IBOL icon chips to clear rooms, grab points,
and survive hazards under fuel and cycle limits.

Core loop
- build programs in the Workshop by dropping chips and wiring branches
- test runs in maze rooms, watch behavior, then tweak and retry
- collect disks and oilcans, refuel with pie and coffee, avoid bombs

Systems and items
- IBOL chips - action - sensing - control across main and A - G panels
- fuel and cycles - every chip costs energy and time to execute
- zapper - plasma beam to remove threats, sometimes penalized for use
- registers - simple number memory for counters and logic gates
- input - joystick in port 2 - Koala Pad supported in port 1

Level design and feel
Fixed rooms arranged into 4 - 49 room “games” with environmental
objects, good things, and bad things. Clear top‑down tiles and a
cheerful Workshop UI make tinkering inviting on C64.

Why it is notable
- early icon‑based programming game on C64, published by Epyx
- C64 implementation written in SuperForth 64
- original Mac and C64 FORTH source recovered and open‑sourced in 2024

Tips
- start simple: LOOK ahead, IF WALL then TURN, else SKATE forward
- budget fuel and cycles by sensing before acting
- split behaviors into subpanels you can reuse across robots

At a glance
Year - 1985
Developer - Doug Sharp - Mike Johnston
Design and programming - Doug Sharp - Mike Johnston
Publisher - Epyx
Genre - Programming puzzle
Players - 1
Controls - Joystick in port 2 - Koala Pad in port 1 supported