Personal Compuer Games


Havoc
By Dynavision
Commodore 64

 
Published in Personal Computer Games #12

Havoc

Dynavision is a new company and also the name of a new programming technique. The two come together in Havoc, a quite remarkable jet fighter game. Zaxxon is the first word which passed everybody's lips when they saw this game, but such a sweeping statement is unfair and for the most part untrue.

Your mission is to fly through numerous sectors trying to shoot down the cruise missiles that are launched at you. If ten missiles get past then your homeland is destroyed. Other hazards are the bombs that fall from the top of the screen and the aerial mines that appear if you hit enough missiles.

Destroying missiles is tricky since you scarcely see them coming. Luckily, there's a rumble of noise to put you on your guard, ready to swoop to attack the oncoming cruise.

Havoc

The more accurate you are with your fire the more bombs, missiles and mines appear. Thus the game adapts itself to the skill of the player automatically.

There is no height gauge so altitude and positon have to be determined by the shadows of objects. This is an acquired skill but works well once you are used to it.

Each time a cruise gets past you it results in temporary loss of control. Each bomb dropped, heralded by their looming shadows, throws you off course. Collisions with missiles or bombs cause you to gradually lose more and more control but hitting a wall is immediately fatal.

Havoc

The various sectors are the most impressive part of the game with Dynavision providing fantastically smooth scrolling pillars and walls. You can actually fly behind these in brilliant perspective.

The excellent graphics are hopefully a sign of things to come and the first person to finish Havoc deserves more than just a medal.

Samantha Hemens

I loved the graphics on this one, but wasn't so sure about the playability. The plane is not that easy to handle and seems very slow in responding to joystick movements.

One great idea is the gauge of your skill at the games - the better you get, the harder it gets. However, if you make a few lucky hits on the missiles, watch out!

Your plane makes a sort of whooshing noise which is replacing by a weak 'blip' whenever you fire. Another criticism is that it's only possible to see whether you are on course for a gap in a wall by your shadow.

I'd only recommend this game to someone with a lot of perseverance and a knack for games such as Zaxxon and Fortress.

Tony Takoushi

Havoc has some of the finest graphics seen to date for the C64 and terrific gameplay.

Do yourself a favour - but this game. You'll need a good joystick too (one that handles diagonals well) - then have a dedicated blitz until you are hooked. Believe me, it won't be long.

Bob Wade

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