Quicksilva (defunct)

About

Quicksilva was the most successful UK based video game publisher of the early 80's releasing over 50 titles for the Spectrum computer, more than 20 Commodore 64 titles, and numerous titles for other platforms including the Vic-20 and BBC Micro.

In 1981, Quicksilva Ltd. was founded by Nick Lambert and John Hollis in Southampton, England. They grew quickly, were very profitable, and became by far the most successful UK based software publishers of the early 80’s. The company published over 50 titles for the Spectrum computer, more than 20 Commodore 64 titles, and additionally released games on several other platforms including the Vic-20 and BBC Micro. Some of their most successful titles included games from James Minter such as Gridrunner and Spanish development studio Indescomp’s games Bugaboo and Fred. In August of 1984, Quicksilva was sold to Argus Press for £1. 25 million following eight months of negotiations. The founders left the company soon after this to pursue other ventures. In June of 1985, Argus Press moved the company from its original location in Southampton to the Argus Press offices in London. It was at this point that managing director Rod Cousens left the company and all remaining original employees soon followed. During the late 80’s, the company’s sales declined dramatically. In 1987, Stephen Hall bought out Argus Press Software and all of its subsidiaries which included Quicksilva. At this point the company was renamed Grandslam Entertainments. The last title to bear the Quicksilva logo was the 1989 release Pac-Land.