R-TYPE - Classic Inspection



Programmers: Team Easter Egg (2012)

One small ship for man, one giant leap for the CPC...

Some twenty years after its launch, R-Type is back for the CPC. It's horizontal blasting like you've never experienced before, and lacks nothing of the coin-op original. In fact, this is the ultimate 8-bit home computer conversion.

The facts:

This is without question, a massive improvement over the Amstrad original. Graphics look tremendous, although perhaps a little gaudy in places. Sound is spectacular, considering most Amstrad games produced sound effects that could be bettered by a man, two spoons and a piece of paper, but that's not the case in this version - the programmers have produced some of the best music and sound effects ever heard on the CPC. This along with the gameplay, combine to provide an amazing conversion of the coin-op classic.   

What's it like:

R-Type on the CPC is a vault of mystery - unexplored and holding new secrets. It's difficult, but with manners, the graphics flirt with you, whilst the enemy rages war. The handling is spot on, supports two fire buttons, 128k of ram, features smooth scroll, an entertaining intro, along with tons of other CPC-exclusive features to keep you coming back for months. If fault can be found (and you'd be hard pushed) some might find the squat screen does slightly limit maneuvering, but the game is all the more challenging as a result of it. R-Type should prove a challenge to any shoot-em-up enthusiast, a very big challenge.

The Best Bits:

Huge end-of-level guardians, lots of levels and non-stop shooting of anything that breaths. From the Master-system to the ZX Spectrum, R-Type succeeds, but never better than on the Amstrad CPC.    

Comments

  1. RetroKingSimon29 January 2013 at 11:16

    Looks like a great version of a great game :) I'd like to cover a few CPC games myself but I can't emulate if properly :(

    ReplyDelete
  2. Shredder1130 January 2013 at 18:16

    Astounding arcade conversion and one the Commodore 64 could only dream of!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amstrad CPC 8-bit exclusive games

Image
Have you ever wondered what Amstrad CPC games were exclusive to the Amstrad CPC? The list below is what I know of, some of the games below are truly awful, but then again, there's quite a few games I wouldn't have missed for the world. This is by no means a definitive list of exclusives, and in most cases, you can find these games on the Amiga, ST and Consoles, but you won't find 'em on the ZX Spectrum or C64 (That's if I've done my homework correctly).  There's some real classic amongst this lot, Bumpy is brilliant, as is Bactron and D.Day is a masterclass in arcade strategy. I also found a game I never knew existed in 'Dempsey and Makepeace' a classic cop series set in the 80s. But the jewel in the crown for me is Get Dexter. Star Driver needs to be checked out if you've never played it, it scrolls along like a mode 7 game, the scrolling technique from the SNES, and if you think you're ready for a challenge, try Builderland, it needs...
Read more

AMSTRAD CPC - TO SCROLL OR NOT TO SCROLL

Image
I used to think it was strange that Commodore 64 and Speccy owners always claimed that their respective machines were far superior to the Amstrad CPC? I mean, c’mon, had they seriously never seen or played the likes of Wec Le-Mans, Robocop, ChaseHq, Sorcery+ and Rainbow Islands on the CPC? The C64 versions of Chase HQ, Continental Circus and Wec-Le-Mans look, and churn along, like a badly curled poo! For sure, there are plenty of examples of this being the case with the CPC (Out Run), and likewise with the Speccy. But I don't want to get too lavatorial or reduce this article into 8-bit zealotry. Instead, I’d simply like to air my frustrations and thoughts in order to quantify and better collect all the facts. Undoubtedly, the Amstrad is the machine of personal choice for me, it left me with some of the best and worst memories (Green Beret), and it was, and still is, a very pleasant machine to program and play games on. One of the biggest complaints I hear ab...
Read more

Donkey kong Jr - Zx Spectrum

Image
Just a few thoughts on the tribute game made with AGD, for the Sinclair ZX Spectrum. It's great and everything, but I'm confused? I'm still a massive fan of the original Donkey Kong arcade-style platformer from the 1980's. It is said to be the game that launched the career of Shigeru Miyamoto, but more importantly, Mario and Donkey Kong. The game went on to give Nintendo international stardom, with Miyamoto creating a legacy so powerful, that Nintendo and Japan should pray daily for his continued existence. However, Donkey Kong Jnr wasn't a great sequel, in fact, Miyamoto himself thinks it's a weaker game. It sold well, but so did the USGOLD home conversion of Outrun, so sales don't really mean diddly squat, in regards to us gaming enthusiasts. I did like the way this game reversed the characters roles, with Kong now caged and Mario becoming the antagonist. The game featured a good premise as well, instead of ...
Read more