| Credits | |
| Published: |
1990, Hewson
 |
| Developer: |  |
| Design: | Andrew Braybrook |
| Coder: | Andrew Braybrook, Dominic Robinson |
| Graphics: | Michael A. Field, John Cumming, John W. Lilley |
| Musician: | Jason Page |
| Sound Effects: | Jason Page |
| Box Art: | Danny Flynn |
| Information | |
| Hardware: | OCS |
| Disks: | 1 |
| Code Language: | ASM 68k |
| License: | Commercial |
| Language: | English |
| Players: | 1 Only |
| Orig. Price: | £24.99 |
| Notes: | Highscore by John4p: 146,715 (died on 4th ship) |
| Categorization | |
| Genre: | Shoot'em Up |
| Subgenre: | Multi-Scrolling |
| Tags: | multidirectional, shooter, topdown, walkabout |
| Magazine Reviews | |
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Added by Kim Lemon on Aug 1, 2004. Viewed 38037 times.
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Read review by Predseda
Graphics: 10 ‧
Music: 10 ‧
Playability: 10 ‧
Overall: 10
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One of my favorite games on the C64, and I was drooling when I finally got a copy of it for my Amiga. After about 10 minutes, my enthusiasm had fallen to total dismay, none of the greatness of the original had made it intact in the "upgrade".
In Braybrook's sad attempt at making improvements, the end result was worse.
Confusing, muddled graphics that didn't suit the style of the gameplay at all and were more annoying than anything. The numbers on the droids of the 64 version were simpler but far clearer than the messy blobs seen from above that we got here. If they had simply sampled the glorious SID fx of the original they would still have been ten times better than the weak sounds in this version. The clumsy scrolling on the edges of the screen is obviously also a bad idea since you need the distance to plan ahead. A terrible disappointment overall.
View all comments (245)
I think I got to the 3rd Ship on this one. Thoroughly enjoyed the game, though never played the C64 version. Like most, the only real downside was the no save or password feature. Still a classic for me, just a fun game which I come back to every so often. Thinking now, this is a game which is probably better suited for emulation / Amiga Mini as they both allow for save states.
View all comments (271)
One of my favourite games of all time. I was ten when it came out. The music, sound and gameplay blew me away. Plus, it had Daleks in it too! One of my other favourites. Awesome game. Never really repeated well, which is a shame.
View all comments (1)
This was clearly written with the Atari St in mind, hence the jerky scrolling and only vertical scrolling.
Surprising really as the Amiga technically could do a lot better.
Classic game though, if a little on the hard and unforgiving side. Some passwords or a save feature would've been a Godsend too! (As in Uridium 2)
8/10
View all comments (270)
Great atmosphere and playability. Looks stunning, too.
View all comments (77)
It is a nice idea in theory to port this game over to the Amiga but given the specs of the Amiga I think it would have been better perhaps also doing a version of Quazatron and allowing people to see the isometric viewpoint, or allowing the option for either display in this version ala Battle Chess.
View all comments (65)
You are completely wrong Retrovirus.
The C64 version has the player centered on the screen.
The Amiga version has push boundary scrolling and it is pretty close to the border too. This makes a huge difference. Also enemies on the Amiga version will fire and kill you from outside the screen. Due to this it is just not a playable game like on the C64.
The framerate of the Amiga version is awful anyway. The C64 version is smooth. It has very simple graphics but it is clear. The Amiga version is just a mess of colors. Andy Braybrook butchered his own game. It's sad!
View all comments (143)
Both the C64 and the Amiga version scroll in eight directions. I compared scrolling speed and found virtually no difference. The Amiga version doesn't scroll as much due to higher resolution and using the full screen size for the gameplay. The resolution of the C64 version is lower and a full third of the screen is occupied by the game's logo and the status bar. For these reasons, the playfield is a lot smaller on the C64.
View all comments (1099)
John1979: Well said!
Although, I wouldn't be quite as harsh. The C64-version is immersive, thick in atmosphere, a shining example of how a game could have an exciting "feel" to it. If you don't feel these things, this is very difficult to explain or understand.
The problem is not that the Amiga version is a bad game - it's still very good. I played this a lot in the early nineties with my Amiga 500, and had very intense moments clearing the first ship (I actually legitimately completed the first ship, and saw the 'raiders' and all).
View all comments (51)
It's just that the Amiga is capable of so much more, ESPECIALLY considering that the C64 -does- a lot more. Fancy that.
The C64-version scrolls in ALL directions, the Amiga-version in only two. The C64-version has smooth scrolling, the Amiga-version does not (Amiga version works in something that looks like 15 fps MAX.)
Even the 'improved' graphics only make things less fun, because your imagination is not provoked anymore. (And I prefer the C64-style anyway)
View all comments (51)
The problem is that this is not a genuine Amiga version. It is another victim of the greedy Atari ST-conversion process. You make a game for the lowest possible platform first, and then it's easy to port to every other one. Instead of making a game that fully utilizes Amiga's capabilities, and thus becomes impossible to faithfully convert to lower platforms (look at Turrican II or Shadow of the Beast on the Atari ST).
It couldn't have been that Braybook was such a crappy programmer, that he couldn't make smooth and multi-directional scrolling on the Amiga (although he did it on the C64..)? Or fully utilize Amiga's palette to create actually -varying- colors on different decks (like on the C64), but stick to that yellowish-brown messy style everywhere?
When he was asked about this, he just gave some egotistical "It's good enough"-kind of remark instead of revealing the true reasons why he made this worse than the C64 version.
View all comments (51)
Amiga is capable of so much more. Just look at all the wonderful, beautiful, colorful, 50/60 fps, multi-directionally scrolling games! There is no excuse for these crappy Atari ST ports.
But it's still Paradroid - not as great as the C64 original (maybe 25% as good), but still good to play from time to time. Although, whenever I feel like playing Paradroid, I choose the C64 version every time. Better sound, better scrolling, better, visually more pleasing and varying graphics (higher res does not automatically mean better graphics), better playability and most importantly - better atmosphere.
Paradroid '90 is another case of: "How good this COULD have been, if Amiga's strengths would have fully utilized?". Sadly, we'll probably never know.
View all comments (51)
Contains NONE of the atmosphere and fun of the original.
View all comments (135)
Another great game by Graftgold...
(save option would have been nice, play on emu for save states)
View all comments (9)
Surely amongst the best games of all times. Period.
View all comments (165)
I don't understand this game, and what my mission is...and I think, without cheats it would be TOO hard. I'm the shittiest gamer on this planet, so this would be too frustrating.
View all comments (44)
This was spoiled by having no save game or password option between each ship.
View all comments (270)
An awesome game!! The c64 version was brilliant also but this, with better gfx/sound and overall slickness of presentation plus maintaining the fantastic game play made it the version of choice for me....very fond memories playing this game
View all comments (9)
This is one of my all-time Amiga favorites. Simple graphics and sound (great loading screen music though), but highly addictive gameplay. The mind-control-game versus the other droids never gets old!
Very challenging and very rewarding experience!
10/10
View all comments (31)
Just got the original Graftgold preview disk (thanks to sepp). It contains the one ship teaser, the ship's layout reminds Startrek's Enterprise and is named USF Dejavua
View all comments (800)
The conversion from the C64 original could've been better: the scrolling is not very good, the sound either. But the game itself is great!
View all comments (810)
Great premise, great design, great music, but too hard and no save game option. Less than three hours into the game and I gave up. I never had any desire to pick it up again. I probably would have had a much better experience with save states in an emulator.
View all comments (1099)
One of my old favourites. I love this game, allthough I've never completed it. Great music too. The level loading music sounds a bit like Nightwish - She Is My Sin
View all comments (6)
This is how I like to call a great Hewson game for the Amiga
8 out of 10
View all comments (166)
The robot to the right in the titlescreen looks just like leia in return of the jedi when she atempts to rescue solo. Maybe he has borrowed her costume?
View all comments (39)
A must for fans of the C64 original. Cool game.
View all comments (232)
This game is very cool because it is highly unlike anything else (bar the original Paradroid??). Big thumbs up for originality and gameplay but on the down side, very difficult and not at all forgiving.
View all comments (29)
This game was just so fun to play. Exploring entire ships and taking over other bots was an absolute hoot - it was great experimenting with other droids's weapons and abilities. The game itself was pretty simple, but very enjoyable, even if the transfers were abit too hard, in my opinion. Still, one of my favourite Amiga games.
View all comments (30)
I never played the C64 original, but this game was really fun and atmospheric! It plays like a dream, although the abscence of some sort of Save Game option is a bit of a nightmare - to always play through the first ships again to reach the later ones was boring! But the humming sound of the biggest & baddest robot when it got close, that was exciting...
View all comments (201)
One of my favourite games of all time - on the C64. With the Amiga version I was initially disappointed with it after playing the original game to death, however I soon warmed up to it and was hooked all over again. Top game!
View all comments (15)
Although the graphics were enhanced, NOTHING comes near the original Paradroid on the C64..
Still a very good game though !
View all comments (3)
One of the best games ever played. I can't forget it and I still play it very often. Everything was perfect - graphic, soundeffect, controls, music, basic idea and mostly the GAMEPLAY! My all time favourite, I like Amiga version much much more than C64 original.
View all comments (800)