PiO (JP)

PiO (ピオ) was a multi-format games-oriented magazine published in Japan. It is a spin-off from computer & electronics magazine I/O. This magazine was written for beginners & intermediate users with the general aim of publishing as many programs as possible for the widest possible range of computers. The name PiO is an abbreviated reference to the Z80 processor's Parallel Input/Output interface, where the letter 'p' has a double-meaning that also refers to 'petit' or 'playful' (see editor's notes in issue 2, page 184). Only a small number of issues have been scanned.

The Super Expander programs in this magazine require the Japanese VIC-1211M Super Expander cartridge, available here. They will not work with the VIC-1211A Super Expander.

Japanese VIC-1001 computers have a Katakana character ROM and different keyboard layout (see here). In particular, the pound key (£) is replaced with a yen key (¥). This means that program listings use an inverted yen symbol for Ctrl+3 (red), instead of the normal inverted pound.

Download all programs from this magazine on one disk:

PIO.d64

Note: Death Fight (84-10) is not included on disk because it currently only loads from cassette tape.

10 programs

Program	Author	Requirements	Files	Info
Go Library (Igo Librar) 囲碁ライブラリ Issue 1 (Nov 1983), Pages 145-147.	Tetsumasa Yuasa 湯浅哲昌	3K expansion	igo-librar-3k.prg Screenshot	Database to store & replay games of Go, to help players develop their skills. Note: this uses Katakana characters so it works best with the VIC-1001 Character ROM. Controls: Follow on-screen prompts. See magazine for further details.
Time Travel タイム・トラベル Issue 1 (Nov 1983), Pages 148-151.	Gaho Furuichi 古市雅邦	3K expansion	time-travel-3k.t64 Screenshot	Maze game. Rescue the princess from a 3D maze with multiple floors. Controls: L (rotate left), R (rotate right), G (go forward), U (up), D (down), F (fight), E (escape). Press Return after typing each command.
Mr Dan Issue 2 (Dec 1983), Pages 129-131.	? (Foolsoft)	3K expansion	mr-dan-3k.t64 Screenshot	Maze game. Collect all the objects while avoiding the monsters. Controls: P (up), . (down), L (left), ; (right), Shift (press once to drop bomb, press again to detonate).
Meteor Fight Issue 2 (Dec 1983), Pages 132-135.	Kazuhiro Hayakawa 早川和宏	3K expansion	meteor-fight-3k.prg Screenshot	Horizontally scrolling space shooter. Destroy the enemy ships while avoiding the meteors. Shoot 64 ships to progress to the next stage. Controls: F5 (up), F7 (down), Space (fire).
Death Fight デス・ファイト Issue 7, Vol 1 No 7 (Oct 1984), Pages 89-91.	K Suganuma	Unexpanded	death-fight.t64 Screenshot	Shoot the enemy UFOs without being hit. A new wave begins after destroying 16 ships. Controls: B (left), N (right), Shift (fire).
Potato Panic (Protect the Potato Field!) ポテト畑を守れ! Issue 10, Vol 2 No 1 (Jan 1985), Pages 131-133.	Yuuki Inaba 稲葉有記	3K expansion	potato-panic-3k.t64 Screenshot	You are a potato farmer. Stop the birds and other pests from stealing your potatoes by shooting them with your water gun. Water the potatoes when they dry out. Keep an eye on your remaining water level, and collect more water from the right side of the screen. Controls: A (left), S (right), : (water up), . (water down).
Midnight Runner ミッドナイト・ランナー Issue 13, Vol 2 No 4 (Apr 1985), Pages 69-71.	Sirius シリウス	3K expansion	midnight-run-3k.t64 Screenshot	Frantic horizontally scrolling game. You are a spy who has infiltrated an enemy country and stolen their military secrets. You must escape by running towards the border, jumping over the unfinished bridges and avoiding their fighter planes. Controls: L (left), ; (right), Shift (jump).
Zoukin ぞーKIN Issue 16, Vol 2 No 7 (Jul 1985), Pages 130-131.	Rinden りんでん	Unexpanded	zoukin.t64 Screenshot	Wipe the deadly green amoeba with your cloth, to protect the yellow flowers. After collecting 20 amoeba you must clean your cloth using one of the buckets, otherwise you'll move the amoeba around turning them into dirty blue amoeba instead of removing them. There is a bonus round after every three screens. Controls: I (up), M (down), J (left), L (right).
Danger Zone デンジャー ゾーン Issue 18, Vol 2 No 9 (Sep 1985), Pages 120-121.	Masatoshi Nozawa 野沢正敏	Super Expander+3K	danger-zn-se3k.t64 Screenshot	You work in a dangerous warehouse full of bombs. Take the yellow bombs to the door in the top-left corner, and don't let the monster catch you. Controls: P (up), . (down), L (left), ; (right), X (destroy walls & bombs), V (kick), N (push). When the game ends, press F1 to restart.
Zena ゼナ Issue 20, Vol 2 No 11 (Nov 1985), Pages 136-139.	Video Ram ビデオラム	3K expansion	zena-3k.t64 Screenshot	Xevious game. Fly across the enemy landscape, work out how to avoid or defeat their weapons, and destroy the Zena floating fortress. Controls: : (left), ; (right), CBM Shift Ctrl (fire).