Robocop has recently been breaking records for the number of weeks at number one in the software chart. The question to ask though is why? Does it have wonderful gameplay? Are the graphics truly awesome? Does the sound leave the poor Amiga standing? Or have people just fallen for the hype again?
If you've seen the film then you'll have a rough idea of the plot. Cop chases criminals, cop gets shot and killed, scientists replace body parts with cybernetic limbs and make a robotic law enforcement device. Your mission is to wander the streets of Detroit in the guise of Robocop, wiping out crime by killing criminals.
The game is split into three types of stage: patrolling the streets, a shooting gallery and a photofit session. When you're walking the streets you have a trusty gun and cybernetic punch to deal with the villains. Extra weapons and energy can be picked up to help you in your mission. A fearsome ED209 robot guards the end of the level and takes multiple hits to destroy.
In the shooting gallery sections you can practise your gun play which will be needed later to deal with a hostage situation and the photofit sessions must be completed so that you can identify the leaders of the crime ring.
Robocop has one thing going for it, there's a tasty bit of digitised sound at the beginning of the game. But that's it. Music is diabolical throughout the rest of the game, and the graphics are nothing special.
With regard to those questions at the beginning of the review, Robocop must sadly fall into the category of an over-hyped game. People should learn to buy a game because of the quality, not the fact that they liked the film, arcade version, book, etc.