Commodore User


Koronis Rift
By Activision
Commodore 64

 
Published in Commodore User #29

Koronis Rift

When I tell you this is one of those Epyx/Lucasfilm titles mentioned in Gan Gutman's article, you might sit up and take notice. You'd be right to as well; this game comes packed with all the stylish attributes of its stablemates.

You are a space scavenger travelling from galaxy to galaxy searching for abandoned gear. This time round, you've struck lucky and stumbled upon the fabled Koronis Rift a treasure trove of abandoned technology. All you have to do is explore the planet's surface in your scoutcraft and loot the mass of hulks littered around the planet's surface.

It's not as easy as that of course. The rifts are protected by the Guardian saucers, who appear just as you're about to loot one of those ships. You have to use your weapons systems to shoot them down. Your use of shields is important, because different shields have different capabilities when hit by the variety of saucers that attack you. Use looted modules to update your own defence systems.

Koronis Rift

The screen displays a view of the planet through your surface rover's window. Above that six panels provide information on shield strength, direction of hulks, power reserves and other useful facts. Some of the information isn't that clearly displayed to my mind though, particularly if you're not using a hi-res screen.

Graphics are reminiscent of the fractal kind generated in Rescue On Fractalus. The landscape is impressive and exciting to explore. The animation inside the surface rover of your robot Psytete as he examines the looted modules is great. The gameplay is varied and challenging. There's zapping strategy, and simulation here, and with twenty progressive tough rifts to explore this game's got staying power.

I've really only scratched the surface so far, but I think you've got a good enough idea, so now go out and buy it.

Mike Pattenden

Other Commodore 64 Game Reviews By Mike Pattenden


  • Slaine Front Cover
    Slaine
  • The Young Ones Front Cover
    The Young Ones
  • Graham Gooch's Test Cricket Front Cover
    Graham Gooch's Test Cricket
  • Dragon Ninja Front Cover
    Dragon Ninja
  • F. A. Cup Football Front Cover
    F. A. Cup Football
  • Zolyx Front Cover
    Zolyx
  • Ballblazer Front Cover
    Ballblazer
  • Super Cycle Front Cover
    Super Cycle
  • Green Beret Front Cover
    Green Beret
  • Samantha Fox Strip Poker Front Cover
    Samantha Fox Strip Poker