Previous Next

Realising that they were onto a good thing with the success of Thrust, Firebird have gone for more of the same with Thrust II.

The basic idea behind this game is the game as that of the original version: you are piloting a small spacecraft which has to collect a number of spherical objects and drop them at a certain point. The combined mass and inertia of the two bodies causes you all sorts of navigational problems, and the main challenge of the game is to master the skills required to steer your way through across the planet's landscape.

In Thrust II, there are one or two spheres on the surface of the planet, and these can be picked up quite easily just to get you started. Where the game differs from its predecessor is that the network of underground passages is larger and much more complex, and this time there are also a number of deadly alien robots patrolling the corridors and picking your way past these requires a great deal of concentration. You can pick up chemicals that will destroy these robots, but I'm having a hard enough time with the spheres so I haven't gotten the hang of that bit yet.

Neither of the Thrust games exactly qualifies a high speed arcade game, but there is something about them which is highly addictive and quite challenging despite the simplicity of the basic idea. There's not that many good full-priced titles around at the moment, so if you're looking for something to tide you over the post-Christmas doldrums, Thrust II could be just the thing.