1st October 1986
Strike Force Cobra
The World is in mortal danger from an evil genius known only as The Enemy. He has hacked in to the world's defence computers and is now threatening to unleash the world's nuclear weapons and destroy everything and everybody unless his demands are met.
The Enemy has kidnapped top computer boffins, and holds them hostage in his four-level headquarters complex. Each of the scientists knows one digit from the secret code which opens the entrance to the fortress's main computer room. If someone was courageous enough to penetrate the complex and destroy the computer, then the The Enemy's plans would be thwarted...
The Powers that Be decide to fight back, and a force of top commando fighters is assembled, code named COBRA. Eight commandos are in the team and your first task is to select a quartet to undertake the mission. As the Strike Force enters the fortress the alert is sounded and The Enemy's deadly computer program starts running: the countdown to oblivion has begun!...
The aim is to explore each level of the complex, working as a team, and locate the computer scientists held prisoner. Pressing the appropriate number changes the team member under the player's control. Each commando is equipped with a DLB, a digital lock breaker, which can help crack the combination that gives access to the main computer. The more of the code you have in your possession the quicker the DLB can break the combination. At least six digits are needed to give a realistic time scale, and whenever a commando finds a scientist, another digit is collected.
The scenery scrolls in 3D as your agile commandos leap, roll and walk along the corridors. Windows can be leapt through and some doors can be kicked down, while others are operated by switches. like the inter-level lifts. Switches are marked with a D (Doors) and L (lifts) and are often some distance from the door or lift they activate - teamwork is called for.
Guards and droids patrol the corridors and rooms, and need to be avoided or taken out with a quick burst of machine gun fire or the lob of a grenade. Some rooms contain fiendish auto defence systems, such as mobile lasers and electro-blocks, and puzzle-solving skills are needed to get through safely.
Details of the digits already collected and the status of each member of the team are given onscreen together with the number of the commando currently controlled and the time left before oblivion. Extra time can be won by disabling remote computer terminals, and first aid kits can be use to build up the strength of wounded fighters.
Good luck prospective agents, you'll need it!
Comments
Control keys: up/left E, R, T; down/right D, F, G; up/right Y, U, I; down/left H, J, K: jump W, O, S, L; dive 0, P, A, ENTER; shoot gun V, B; throw grenade CAPS SHIFT, SPACE; crouch C. N: stand X. M; kick Z, SYM SHIFT
Joystick: Kempston, Interface 2
Keyboard play: needs practice, but responsive
Use of colour neat
Graphics: good animations, tidy 3D effect
Sound: spot effects
Skill levels: one
Screens: scrolling play area
Screenshots
