Atari User


One Man And His Droid

Categories: Review: Software
Author: Mark Woodward
Publisher: Mastertronic
Machine: Atari 400/800/600XL/800XL/130XE

 
Published in Atari User #15

One Man And His Droid

The aim here is to navigate a droid through underground caverns to round up a flock of sheep.

On loading the program I was greeted with a bright, lively tune better than most found in full-priced games.

To begin the game proper you must first guide your way through, a herd of cute little creatures called Ramboids which seem to be a mixture of cast-offs from Pac-Man and smiling yellow blobs with red cheeks.

One Man and His Droid

At first this section adds to the game, but after a while it becomes a time-consuming annoyance.

The point of the game is to coax all the Ramboids into the teleport receptors in the 20 minutes allowed.

This may sound easy, but you also have to transport the Ramboids in a certain order so not only do you have to coerce one particular Ramboid to the teleporter but you also have to prevent any of the others from reaching it first.

One Man and His Droid

The screen is split into sectors containing data on the Ramboids, the droid's status mode and a monitor of what is happening around your well-animated and detailed droid.

The droid has three operational modes which can be toggled via the fire button.

Each Ramboid has a set pattern of movement (for which Mastertronic heartlessly call them stupid) and once memorised it makes your task of guiding them much easier.

One Man and His Droid

Once you have rounded up all the Ramboids, with at least four in the correct order, you progress to the next level. Your task in level 2 is made harder by a plague of mobile brick walls getting in the way. Level three has a more complicated layout to master.

Mastertronic has included several very nice touches - a password for each level, a facility to obtain the position of each Ramboid in the caverns, a well-presented high score table and optional keyboard control.

The game's difficulty level is just right to optimise playability and it has very nice colour graphics, a delightful continuous tune and very professional sound effects.

After an indifferent start I have become involved and am now an addict, not being able to leave the game alone.

At £1.99, this is a great value game which will become a massive hit.

Mark Woodward

Other Atari 400/800/600XL/800XL/130XE Game Reviews By Mark Woodward


  • Action Biker Front Cover
    Action Biker