Fatal Run (Atari 7800 review)

Developer: Sculptured Software
Publisher: Atari Corporation
Released: 1990

Fatal Run is a vehicular combat game that was also released on the Atari 2600 (1990).

+ Combat is reminiscent of RoadBlasters (1987, Arcade) but with added rear weapons, and the password option is terrific.

+ Shops offer a robust selection of upgrades, repairs and weapons that provide a multitude of ways to tackle each stage.

+ Between stage cut-scenes have neat parallax scrolling, and keeping civilians alive to earn currency is an addicting hook.

- Gameplay is repetitive and the driving is mundane, as there's long stretches where you're waiting for foes to appear.

- If the HUD didn't display your speed, you'd likely have no idea if you're currently running a Basic or Turbo engine.

- Slippery physics make careful manoeuvring between lanes an unnatural task, almost like you're skating on ice.

- Roadside scenery is barren and there's some weird scaling issues where cars and hazards float above the track!

Commando (Atari 7800 review)

Developer: Sculptured Software
Publisher: Atari Corporation
Released: 1989

Commando is a vertically scrolling run 'n' gun game that was originally released in the Arcade in 1985.

+ Includes difficulty options to tailor the game to your skill level, and the stages are well designed with fair checkpoints. 

+ Diagonal shots are easier to hit compared to the NES port (1986), and the Machine Gun is a great inclusion for auto-fire.

+ Fun bosses as the limited space and swarms of enemies resemble the claustrophobia of Robotron: 2084 (1986, Atari 7800).

+ POKEY sound is a gigantic step up from most other 7800 games and the SFX add sufficient weight to the frenetic combat.

- While a two-player mode is present it doesn't allow you to battle simultaneously, as the action is turn-based only.

- Scrolling is choppier than the NES version and there's heavy slowdown when fighting large groups (e.g. during boss battles).

- Missing the cut-scenes between missions and the underground bunkers are incredibly cryptic to locate.

WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game (Sega 32X review)

Developer: Sculptured Software, The Black Team
Publisher: Acclaim Entertainment
Released: 1995

WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game is a wrestling title that was also ported to the Sega Genesis in 1995.

+ Beat-em-up gameplay is atypical for the genre, but seamlessly blends grappling with slapstick attacks and projectiles.

+ Large roster of wrestlers are available, each with extensive move sets that are executed via simple button commands.

+ Handicap bouts are great fun, and two players can battle against each other, or cooperatively against the CPU.

+ Features more frames of animation compared to the Genesis version and the voice clips are much higher in quality.

- However, the action only runs at 30FPS (half the Genesis port) and the overall upgrades from the 16-bit version are minimal.

- While there are difficulty options, the CPU is brutally aggressive which doesn't help with easing new players in.

- Needed additional solo modes, and it's a shame the Royal Rumble is exclusive to the WWF Championship finale.

WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game (Sega Mega Drive / Genesis review)

Developer: Sculptured Software, The Black Team
Publisher: Acclaim Entertainment
Released: 1995

WWF WrestleMania: The Arcade Game is a wrestling title that was also ported to the Sega 32X and SNES in 1995.

+ Beat-em-up gameplay is atypical for the genre, but seamlessly blends grappling with slapstick attacks and projectiles.

+ Larger roster than the SNES port and wrestlers have extensive move sets that are executed via simple button commands.

+ Handicap bouts are great fun, and two players can battle against each other, or cooperatively against the CPU.

+ Combo metre is a key inclusion, as you can quickly turn the tide by doing massive damage in a short burst.

+ Motion capture animation is impressive and unlike the 30FPS Sega 32X version, this runs at double the frame-rate.

- While there are difficulty options, the CPU is brutally aggressive which doesn't help with easing new players in.

- Missing most of Jerry Lawler's commentary and there's noticeable slowdown when four wrestlers are on screen.

Dark Chambers (Atari 7800 review)

Developer: Sculptured Software
Publisher: Atari Corporation
Released: 1988

Dark Chambers is a dungeon crawler that was originally released as Dandy (1983, Atari 8-bit).

+ Well designed mazes, with optional secret areas to explore that house items to replenish health or increase your point total.

+ Unlike Gauntlet (1985, Arcade), you have the ability to gain power-ups and the constantly depleting life bar is absent.

+ Caters well to expert players, as higher difficulties alter enemy positions and introduce tougher opponents earlier than usual.

+ Controls are solid and you always feel you can deftly escape any situation with your diagonal fire and screen clearing bombs.

+ Two-player co-op mode is great and there's some canny ways to earn points, such as destroying items you already possess.

- In Standard and Advanced modes, enemies can be overbearing bullet sponges until you get the opportunity to power-up.

- Lack of in-game music takes away from the overall atmosphere, and the walking animation is rather awkward looking.

Ninja (Amstrad CPC review)

Developer: Icon Design

Publisher: Entertainment USA

Released: 1987

 

Ninja is a multi-screen action game that was released on various 8 and 16-bit home computers.

 

Your mission is to travel through the Palace of Death, collect the seven idols and return to the opening screen. The door to the seventh idol only opens when you have the first six and their locations vary on each play-through, which enhances replayability. By pressing anywhere on the d-pad while holding fire your ninja can execute attacks such as punches and flying kicks. When you start the game, you're equipped with a Samurai sword, but you can pick up spinning death-stars and throwing daggers along the way (up to three of any combination at once). Being familiar with the other ports of Ninja, I was immediately struck by the weird frame-rate issues, as your ninja moves way too fast when not engaged in combat, and then slows down rapidly when an enemy appears. During combat, the collision detection is spotty to say the least, and your sprite pretty much needs to be overlapping your opponent to even register a hit; this makes it pot-luck as to whether you make contact or take damage, and there's no consistency to the outcome. I also didn't like how throwing all three death-stars rarely results in your opponent's life-bar being completely drained (unlike other 8-bit ports), meaning using the hit-and-miss close range attacks is unavoidable. To top it off, the death-stars and daggers sometimes appear at the very edge of the screen, making them impossible to collect due to your character exiting to the next scene! All of these technical issues result in a game that's much harder than the other 8-bit computer ports, for all the wrong reasons. There's also no music during gameplay so the action has little atmosphere compared to the Atari 8-bit version. The only real competent part of the game is the decent looking sprite animation.

 

Ninja on the Amstrad CPC is full of programming errors and the fact that it doesn't always follow the original source material is weak. Playing this port will give you the wrong impression of the game so do yourself a massive favour and stick to the superior Atari 8-bit version (developed by Sculptured Software instead).

 

 

 

Random trivia: An Arcade version of the game was released in 1987 under the title Ninja Mission.

Super Star Wars (SNES review)

Developer: Sculptured Software, LucasArts
Publisher: JVC
Released: 1992

Super Star Wars is an action-platformer that's based on the original 1977 movie.

You play as Luke Skywalker and your mission is to destroy the Death Star once and for all. There's 14 stages that mostly feature run 'n' gun gameplay and as you defeat enemies they drop hearts that top-up your life metre. The controls are responsive but weirdly you can't shoot while moving. Right from the start the difficulty is sky high with tons of respawning enemies that attack from the ground and sky. Afterwards there's an interesting Mode-7 driving stage where you have to destroy 12 Jawas and keep topping up your jet fuel. Once again the challenge is punishing as enemies throw projectiles non-stop which is infuriating. You then have to scale a Skycrawler by jumping up platforms; the controls are stiff and unforgiving with one slight misstep causing you to fall down to the very bottom! As you enter the Skycrawler get ready for some of the most horrific platforming you'll ever experience; not only is it tough to line up your jumps and be precise, if you fall down you'll be transported to a checkpoint three minutes back! Later on Chewbacca and Han Solo become playable characters and they add a bit of strategy with their unique abilities and weapons. The awesome last stage resembles Starfox (1993, SNES) and you need to destroy 20 TIE Fighters and 20 Laser Towers. For a while this takes place in third-person mode but eventually it shifts to first-person as you race down the Trench before finally destroying Darth Vader's TIE and firing your proton torpedo. The game has some huge bosses that are fun to fight and there's also some nicely animated cut-scenes between stages.

Super Star Wars has amazing presentation, excellent level design and tons of variety. While these sound like the ingredients for a classic game the difficulty is very uneven and the controls have a few quirks which unfortunately put a dampener on a game that had more potential than it realised.

Random trivia: A PC version of the game was in the works but it was ultimately cancelled. An unfinished ROM file has since been leaked onto the Internet.