Sierra Games

Caveman Ughlympics

Last updated: October 19, 2026

Overview

Caveman Ughlympics, sold on the box as Caveman Ugh-Lympics, is a comic multi-event sports game set in the Stone Age. It was published by Electronic Arts for the Commodore 64 in 1988 (MobyGames dates the US release to November) and for MS-DOS in July 1989. Data East released a Nintendo Entertainment System version in October 1990 as Caveman Games.12 Up to six players compete in six events: the Mate Toss, Fire Making, Clubbing, Saber Race, Dino Race and Dino Vault.13

The game was an Electronic Arts idea, designed by Greg Johnson of Starflight and programmed by Dynamix in Eugene, Oregon.45 It predates Sierra’s 1990 purchase of Dynamix, and Sierra never published it. SierraVault covers it because the vault’s inclusion criteria take in Dynamix’s complete catalog, and Computer Gaming World’s report on the Sierra deal named it among Dynamix’s Electronic Arts titles.6

Reviewers liked it, mostly for its humour. Computer Gaming World called that humour “the most commendable aspect of this game”, Compute! called it “a scream” in multiplayer, and Lemon64’s average of seven Commodore 64 magazine reviews is 82%.789

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

The game works much like Epyx’s Summer Games and Winter Games, according to Compute!‘s Gazette, with “similar joystick moves”. Players can compete against each other or alone against the computer.11 Gregg Keizer of Compute! summed it up as “lots of joystick moves, a few button presses”, and thought “a sense of rhythm” was the most useful skill.8 On the Commodore 64, odd-numbered players use one joystick and even-numbered players the other.11 MobyGames lists keyboard and analog joystick support for MS-DOS, and same-screen play for one to six players.1

Athletes

Six athletes are available: Vincent, Gronk, Glunk, Thag, Ugha and Crudla, the only cavewoman. Each is strong in two events except Vincent, “who’s good at nothing”, and Gronk, “who’s good at everything”. Picking one of those two lets players handicap a stronger or weaker participant.87

Events

  • Mate Toss: a hammer throw with a spouse. The player spins with the joystick and lets go; hanging on too long turns the athlete blue and ruins the throw. The mate then gives a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a shrug.78
  • Saber Race: a race with a sabre-toothed tiger behind, dodging cacti and mud. Finishers climb a tree to taunt the cat; laggards are eaten.78
  • Fire Making: rub sticks together, blow the sparks into a blaze, and club the opponent when he gets ahead.78
  • Clubbing: two cavemen on a clifftop. An intimidation phase can push the opponent back toward the edge, then the fight uses face, knee and overhead blows. Pointing at the sky makes a gullible opponent look away, and a comet sometimes crosses the screen, letting a well-timed point knock the rival over.7
  • Dino Race: ride a dinosaur over rough ground, clubbing it to speed up, but not so often that it becomes confused or knocked out.78
  • Dino Vault: a pole vault over a Tyrannosaurus rex. Failure lands the athlete in a chasm or in the dinosaur’s mouth.73

The game opens with a parody of an Olympic opening ceremony. A torch-bearer lights the flame and is flattened by the falling stone title, then replaced by “a comical caveman” as “the serious theme music is usurped by an offbeat overture”.712 Record holders are displayed in the “Caves of Fame”.8 Computer Gaming World’s David Wilson thought the Dino Vault “may be the hardest event to master”.7

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

PublicationDateVersionVerdict
Commodore User (Mark Patterson)December 1988Commodore 6486%9
Zzap!64 (Gordon Houghton, Kati Hamza, Matthew Evans)January 1989Commodore 6480%139
The Games MachineJanuary 1989Commodore 6483%9
ACEJanuary 1989Commodore 64689/10009
Computer Gaming World (David Wilson)March 1989Commodore 64Positive7
Compute!‘s Gazette (Robin and David Minnick)April 1989Commodore 64Positive11
Commodore Computing International (Dan Horgan)April 1989Commodore 6485%9
Compute! (Gregg Keizer)May 1989Commodore 64Positive8
Info (Tom Malcolm)March–April 1989Commodore 644.5/59
Electronic Gaming Monthly Review CrewDecember 1990NES5, 6, 4 and 8 out of 10314

David Wilson’s review in Computer Gaming World, “Neanderthal Nonsense and Cro-Magnon Comedy”, called the game “a tongue-in-cheek prehistoric parody of our modern Olympics that manages to keep players snickering and chuckling throughout”. After an evening with a group of teenagers, he found it “much more enjoyable with two to four players”, though with more players “it tends to bog down somewhat”.7 He praised the documentation too, with its tips in “Caveman-like talk” and the Ugh Zaminer newspaper, and closed: “the next time you find yourself longing for those simpler times and looking for a way to sate the barbarian within, don’t lose your cool — boot up Caveman Ugh-lympics instead.”7

Gregg Keizer of Compute! wrote that it “is, without a doubt, a scream. Solo play is boring, but bring in another player and the room will echo with shouts and laughter.” He compared its violence to Saturday-morning cartoons and Three Stooges slapstick, and praised the large cartoon characters, noting that only the Saber Race made it hard to tell athletes apart.8 Compute!‘s Gazette framed its review as an interview with a caveman critic, who ends: “Top-notch game. You buy.”11

The NES version split Electronic Gaming Monthly’s Review Crew. One reviewer wrote “What a disappointment!”, complaining that “The graphics are choppy” and “All events suffer from poor execution”, while another found it “strange, silly and humorous”.14 In Britain, Zzap!64’s reviewers enjoyed the humour and the large, cartoony graphics. One warned that the jokes wore thin after a few games, and they complained about the multi-load, which would frustrate cassette owners.13

Modern Assessment

Lemon64 lists seven Commodore 64 magazine scores averaging 82%, including a 79% from Zzap!64 in February 1991 for a budget re-release on Electronic Arts’ Star Performer label.9 Designer Greg Johnson later described the game as “lots of crazy head bonking and running from sabre-toothed tigers and stuff”, made as “a party game - it was a blast with four people who wanted to get silly”.4

Development

Origins

Greg Johnson told Gamasutra in 2006 that the game “was actually EA’s idea”, and that he thought it came from Electronic Arts’ Bing Gordon: “He came to me and said, ‘Hey Greg, how would you feel about doing an Olympics game set in caveman times?’, and I said, ‘Cool!’”4 Wikipedia’s biography of Johnson places this in 1988, after his work on Starflight and art for other Electronic Arts titles.5

Production

Johnson designed the game “from down in the Bay Area”, and Dynamix programmed it in Eugene. “They could not possibly have been better,” he said. “Jeff Tunnell was running Dynamix and he was awesome. Long distance designing can work when you have very motivated teams who are pretty self-sufficient.”4

The archived MobyGames credits for the MS-DOS and Commodore 64 versions list:1015

  • Game design: Greg Johnson
  • Programming: Richard Rayl, Jon Leupp, Dariusz Lukaszuk
  • Graphics and animation: Dariusz Lukaszuk, Greg Johnson, Brian Hahn
  • Sounds: Bryce Morcello
  • Music: Alan McKean
  • Producer: Don Traeger
  • Director: Jeffrey Tunnell
  • Art direction: Nancy L. Fong
  • Documentation: Zina J. Yee
  • Package illustration: Phil Frank
  • Special thanks: Paul Reiche III, David Grady, Richard Hicks

Computer Gaming World’s review box gave the designers as Greg Johnson, Richard Rayl Jr., Jon Leupp, Brian Hahn and Derek Lukaszuk.7

Technical Specifications

  • Commodore 64: two disks, although Compute!‘s Gazette noted that the game refers to disks one to four.11
  • MS-DOS: 8088 or better, DOS 2.11, 512 KB RAM; CGA, EGA, Hercules and Tandy graphics; PC speaker; keyboard or analog joystick; 5.25” disks.1
  • Players: one to six on all three platforms.1
  • Prices: Computer Gaming World listed 39.95, while *Compute!* and *Compute!'s Gazette* listed 29.95 for the Commodore 64 version. In the UK, £9.95 cassette and £14.95 disk.781113

Version History

VersionDatePlatformNotes
Original releaseNovember 1988Commodore 64Electronic Arts (US and Canada); 1988 German release distributed by Electronic Arts Ltd. and Rushware1
PortJuly 1989MS-DOSElectronic Arts (US). Compute! had reported it scheduled for May1816
Caveman GamesOctober 1990NESData East USA; developed by Dynamix13
Budget re-releaseReviewed February 1991Commodore 64Electronic Arts Star Performer label, reviewed by Zzap!64 in February 19919

Legacy

The NES version, retitled Caveman Games, took the game to a console audience in 1990. Electronic Gaming Monthly’s four reviewers gave it scores ranging from 4 to 8 out of 10.23 Computer Gaming World listed it in May 1990 alongside Arcticfox, Skyfox II and Project Firestart as Dynamix’s Electronic Arts work, before Sierra agreed to buy the studio.617

Johnson stayed with Electronic Arts long enough to complete Starflight II, then began work on ToeJam & Earl.4 Wikipedia describes ToeJam & Earl as “an even quirkier title than Caveman”.5

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

  • Not currently available. As of October 2026 the game is not sold on GOG or Steam; GOG lists it only as a community “dreamlist” request.

Download / Preservation

Manuals & Extras

  • The Computer Gaming World, Compute! and Compute!‘s Gazette reviews cited below can be read in full in the Internet Archive scans.

See Also

Caveman Ughlympics comes from Dynamix’s Electronic Arts years, between Skyfox II and Jeff Tunnell’s 1988 break with Electronic Arts for a new publishing deal with Mediagenic.1718

References

Footnotes

  1. MobyGames – Caveman Ugh-Lympics – platforms and dates (C64 Nov 1988 US/Canada, DOS Jul 1989, NES Oct 1990), publishers (Electronic Arts, Data East USA), NES title Caveman Games, DOS specs, 1–6 players. Retrieved via the MobyGames API, 2026-10-09 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  2. Nintendo of America – NES Games list (Wayback Machine, 2014) – Caveman Games, licensee Data East, released October 1990 ↩ ↩2

  3. Wikipedia – Caveman Ughlympics – alternate spelling, NES release by Data East as Caveman Games, event list, EGM December 1990 scores ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  4. Gamasutra – “Playing Catch Up: ToeJam & Earl’s Greg Johnson” (Alistair Wallis, November 16, 2006) – Wayback Machine – EA’s idea, Bing Gordon, party game, designed in the Bay Area and programmed by Dynamix, quotes on Tunnell ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  5. Wikipedia – Greg Johnson (game designer) – Starflight, EA work, 1988 design of Caveman Ughlympics at Bing Gordon’s suggestion, ToeJam & Earl as “an even quirkier title” ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  6. Computer Gaming World #71 (May 1990), “Sierra Purchases Dynamix” – Internet Archive – Caveman Ughlympics among Dynamix’s Electronic Arts titles ↩ ↩2

  7. Computer Gaming World #57 (March 1989), David Wilson, “Neanderthal Nonsense and Cro-Magnon Comedy”, pp. 43–44 – Internet Archive – C64 review: events, athletes, multiplayer, documentation, price $39.95, designers, quotes ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15

  8. Compute! #108 (May 1989), Gregg Keizer, “Caveman Ugh-lympics”, pp. 68–69 – Internet Archive – C64 review: athletes, events, Caves of Fame, graphics, verdict, $29.95, IBM version scheduled for May ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  9. Lemon64 – Caveman Ugh-Lympics – C64 credits; magazine scores (ACE 689/1000, Commodore Computing International 85%, Commodore User 86%, The Games Machine 83%, Info 4.5/5, Zzap!64 80% and 79% for the Star Performer re-release); 82% average ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9

  10. MobyGames – Caveman Ugh-Lympics credits, MS-DOS (Wayback Machine, 2016) – full credits including design, programming, music, producer, director ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  11. Compute!‘s Gazette #70 (April 1989), Robin and David Minnick, “Caveman Ugh-lympics”, pp. 35–36 – Internet Archive – C64 review: Epyx comparison, up to six players, joystick ports, disk numbering, verdict, $29.95 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  12. Commodore User #63 (December 1988), Mark Patterson, Caveman Ugh-Lympics review – Internet Archive – C64 review scan: opening ceremony and stone title, hammer-throw comparison ↩

  13. Zzap!64 #45 (January 1989), Caveman Ugh-Lympics review, pp. 27–28 – Internet Archive – C64 review: UK prices, events, athletes, multi-load complaint, reviewer comments ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  14. Electronic Gaming Monthly #17 (December 1990), “Review Crew” – Internet Archive – NES Caveman Games (Data East) reviews and reviewer comments ↩ ↩2

  15. MobyGames – Caveman Ugh-Lympics credits, Commodore 64 (Wayback Machine, 2016) – C64 credits, matching the DOS list ↩

  16. Internet Archive – Caveman Ugh-Lympics (MS-DOS) – listing: Dynamix developer, Electronic Arts publisher, 1989, also for C64 and NES ↩

  17. The Digital Antiquarian – “The Dynamic Interactive Narratives of Dynamix” (Jimmy Maher, 2018) – Dynamix’s break with Electronic Arts and new deal with Mediagenic in 1988 ↩ ↩2

  18. Wikipedia – Dynamix – games list: Caveman Ughlympics (C64 1988, DOS 1989, NES 1990), Electronic Arts and Data East; later Activision titles ↩

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