Moon Mine (Texas Instruments TI-99/4A review)

Developer: Texas Instruments
Publisher: Texas Instruments
Released: 1983

Moon Mine is an action game that's exclusive to the Texas Instruments TI-99/4A.

+ Faux 3D effect creates a claustrophobic atmosphere and reinforces the overwhelming nature of your mission.

+ There's a real sense of dread and vulnerability when your crew member leaves the ship, as he only has 12 laser shots.

+ Being able to switch between vertical and horizontal lasers (each with unique abilities) gives you deeper attack options.

+ Rapid fire overheats your laser, so the action adopts a more careful, strategic approach that rewards skilled play.

+ The Speech Synthesizer module contains many memorable lines and the mocking voice of Zygonaut is golden.

- Takes too long to get back into the action once you've obtained an item, as the on-screen text keeps you waiting.

- Nothing new is added to the gameplay after the first couple of minutes, so enjoyment can be rather short-lived.

TI Invaders (Texas Instruments TI-99/4A review)

Developer: Texas Instruments
Publisher: Texas Instruments
Released: 1981

TI Invaders is a fixed shooter that closely resembles Space Invaders (1978, Arcade).

+ Gameplay is incredibly fast-paced and the controls afford you smooth manoeuvring for pinpoint accuracy.

+ Risk-reward element is huge and the varied ways of racking up a high score often require putting yourself in harms way.

+ New alien types are slowly introduced as you progress and some require different strategies to hit which keeps things fresh.

+ Enemy sprite animations are gorgeous and the way your missiles exit the reserve pod is a great presentational touch.

+ Between stage mini-game of continually shooting an invader as it moves from side-to-side is a fun test of your dexterity.

- No gameplay variations, whereas Space Invaders (1980, Atari 2600) included features such as guided shots / moving bases.

- Does little to differentiate itself from its clear source of inspiration and feels like a somewhat shallow clone.

Alpiner (Texas Instruments TI-99/4A review)

Developer: Texas Instruments
Publisher: Texas Instruments
Released: 1982

Alpiner is a mountain climbing game that's exclusive to the TI-99/4A computer.

+ The levels are randomly generated which makes each play-through a fresh and unique experience.

+ Collecting bonus points from the mountain beasts puts you in harms way and adds a great risk-reward element.

+ Being able to wrap around the sides of the mountain is very handy for dodging hazards and saving precious time.

+ There's a real visceral satisfaction when you finally manage to conquer a previously unbeatable mountain.

+ The Speech Synthesizer brings some personality to the game and helps to notify you of perilous falling rocks.

- Graphics are a little rough around the edges, and the jerky scrolling and flickering sprites are an eye sore.

- Very little is added to each successive mountain, so the gameplay can feel stagnant after a handful of levels.

Parsec (Texas Instruments TI-99/4A review)

Developer: Jim Dramis, Paul Urbanus
Publisher: Texas Instruments
Released: 1982

Parsec is a side-scrolling shooter that optionally uses the Speech Synthesizer module.

+ Resembles Scramble (1981, Arcade) in that the action is broken down into small sections with unique enemy patterns.

+ Inability to constantly fire results in strategic gameplay, especially when trying not to overheat your lasers in higher levels.

+ The 5-second countdown while you attempt to survive an asteroid belt is both exhilarating and terrifying!

+ The Speech Synthesizer module adds a great deal of charm to the action and assists you with incoming enemy alerts.

+ Background stars and foreground scenery creates a cool faux parallax scrolling effect that's very visually appealing.

- Once the sections loop and you advance to the next level you've seen everything it has to offer in short order.

- Occasional issues with lasers shooting through enemy ships, and the controls don't quite offer precision movement.