C&VG


Fire And Forget

Categories: Review: Software
Author: Julian Rignall
Publisher: Titus
Machine: Amiga 500

 
Published in Computer & Video Games #83

Fire And Forget

The evil and powerful Inter-galactic liberation Organisation has invaded the earth. They have razed several cities to the ground and are holding many others hostage. It seems they intend to destroy the Earth as we know it. Things are looking very grim.

But hark! Could that distant gunfire be the sound of an approaching hero? Indeed it is, and just in the nick of time.

Driving the Thunder-Master, the newest and most powerful land fighting machine, the hero must take on the entire IGLO forces single handedly and banish them to whence they came. This is the cue for some colourful and noisy Roadblasters type action.

Fire And Forget

The action is viewed from behind the Thundermaster as it zooms down the road. At the top of the screen is a numeric speed indicator, current score, level indicator and a large fuel gauge, which gradually ticks down as the battle car zooms along.

The action is set over six level, which represent different parts of the world. The objective is to race along the road, blasting anything and everything, and pass the checkpoint at the end before the TM's fuel runs out.

Extra fuel can be picked up en route by running over blue and green cones that are scattered throughout the level.

Fire And Forget

Every step of the way is fraught with danger, and enemy helicopters approach at speed. Fortunately, the Thundermaster is armed with the latest laser guns, and can destroy an enemy craft with one single hit. However, the enemy reciprocate and a well-aimed blast from the enemy craft sees the TM explode in colourful clouds of debris. The player has an unlimited supply of TMs, but death results in a loss of fuel.

There are also mines and other hazards littered around the roadways that are either avoided, or blasted out of the way.

When the end of the level is reached, bonus points are awarded, and a map of the remaining locations is shown, allowing the player to choose the next area of play.

Fire And Forget

Looking at the screen shots, you might be led to believe that Fire And Forget is graphically stunning. Sadly, this isn't the case, since all impact is lost when the game is in motion.

The sprite update is fast, but very jerky, and objects seem to appear out of nowhere. Other highly annoying factors are the lines on the road - they don't scroll down the screen as might be expected, but just change colour. This would be alright if there was a variety of shades, but since there are only two, the effect is pathetic and gives no sense of motion whatsoever - if it wasn't for the occasional roadside object jerking by, you'd think the TM was static!

All this would be forgiven if Fire And Forget was fun to play - but unfortunately it isn't. The sheer spread of the game makes it very difficult to react to oncoming hazards, so you end up sitting in the middle of the road pressing the fire button like crazy and attempting to run over the occasional fuel cone. Since this tactic allows you to go all the way through to the end, the game's appeal is very short-lived indeed.

Julian Rignall

Other Reviews Of Fire And Forget For The Amiga 500


Fire And Forget (Titus)
A review

Fire And Forget (Titus)
A review by Steve Jarrett (Commodore User)

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