Matthew Smith
Manic Miner’s teenage architect
At 17, Matthew Smith squeezed pop-art surrealism into a ZX Spectrum cassette and helped prove bedroom coding could rule the charts.
Overview
Matthew Smith wrote Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy before he turned 19. Working from his parents’ house in Liverpool, he stitched together vibrant set pieces, a relentless difficulty curve, and humour that felt punk compared to staid arcade conversions.
Fast facts
- Breakout hit: Manic Miner (1983) sold hundreds of thousands of copies across the Spectrum, C64, and later formats.
- Toolchain: Wrote much of the game in Z80 assembly using a homebrew editor and lots of graph paper.
- Distribution: Initially partnered with Bug-Byte, then switched to Software Projects to retain more creative control.
Influence
Smith’s games showed that authorial voice could shine through 8-bit limitations. Their surreal enemies, musical cues, and secrets helped magazines treat programmers like rock stars—fuel for the bedroom-coder mythos.