Home Computing Weekly


Outland/Megafighter

Author: P.B.
Publisher: Stainless
Machine: TI99/4A

 
Published in Home Computing Weekly #35

Outland is an Asteroids clone which achieves its arcade quality of movement through sprites.

You can control your ship using the keyboard, rotating clockwise and anti-clockwise, moving forward in the direction in which your ship is pointing, firing similarly, and there is also a shield which stops you from getting crunched but lets the asteroids push you around the screen at a rapid rate of knots.

Only one key can be acted upon at a time, but even no reasonably good control can be achieved. When you clear the screen of one batch of asteroids, along come another crowd.

The running score is shown, but no record is kept of the highest to date - feasible because of the battery-backing of the module.

The second game, Megafighter, is a Berzerk-type game requiring joysticks and there is some awkwardness because of that alphalock key - it must be pressed to issue instructions for loading, but released to ensure the joystick works correctly.

P.B.