Commodore User


Future Knight

Author: Tony Hetherington
Publisher: Gremlin
Machine: Commodore 64/128

 
Published in Commodore User #42

Future Knight

Chivalry is still alive and kicking, even in the 21st century! Clad in your Omnibolt Mark IV attack suit body armour you rush to the aid of your beloved maiden in distress to save the fair Amelia from the evil clutches of Spegbott the Terrible.

An inter-dimensional distress signal leads you to the galactic cruiser, SS Rustbucket, and the start of a 20 level arcade adventure.

Your quest of gallantry and bravery will lead you through the battles with the Berseka Defence Droids and hopefully out of the crashed Rustbucket and onto the planet's surface. Then on through a jungle to Spegbott's castle and a dungeon duel with the formidable Henchdroid.

Future Knight

Inside the SS Rustbucket the screens consist of platforms, ladders and slides set on an effective welded plate background. Your efforts to find a way out are constantly interrupted by incessant attack from the defence droids that appear in a weird and wonderful array of shapes and sizes.

There are ghost-like ghouls, flying insects, bouncing balls and slithering slime, as well as some imposing robots. By my favourites are the ambling caterpillars that are almost indestructible to your dart laser.

The action is backed up by a background hum that does nothing for your aim and replaces the pleasing thwack! As you wipe out a droid with a metallic ping as your bolt impacts on the background.

Future Knight

Your problems aren't confined to the droids as the screens contain a number of traps including pools that seem to draw you towards their energy-sapping bubbles.

Luckily, help is at hand through the objects and weapons that you can find. But you will have to fight for them so it's just as well you brought along a few spare lives. These include more powerful and faster firing weapons, safe passes and securio keys to open the ship's exits.

Finding a confuser can get through an awkward stretch since it stuns the droids. The most useful object is a bomb that clears the screen of droids and replenishes your energy.

Unfortunately, you can only carry one object and one weapon at a time so a certain amount of juggling is required to solve the game. This isn't going to be easy as each of the game's twenty levels consists of several screens of droid-infested action.

Future Knight is one of those games that defies description as it's a mixture of arcade adventure, exploring, shoot-'em-up action and platform game planning, altogether a good mix.

Tony Hetherington

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