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MANUFACTURER:
MILTON BRADLEY (Distributed
by Texas Instruments)
PRODUCT NUMBER: PHM 3149
RELEASED: 4Q/1983
PROGRAMMER:
ORIGINAL RETAIL PRICE: $49.95
SOUND CLIPS:
*Sound Clips Submitted by Joachim Wöllner
REVIEW: Grade B-:
Space Bandits is quite possibly the most unique game out of all the MBX
titles. You take control of a robot who must collect Earth's Energy
Crystals that were stolen by "Computer Controlled Androids". The
uniqueness of the game comes from the fact that not only can you walk
up and down the corridors on the bottom of the screen, but also on the
sides and top of the screen. Therefore, the game has a 3D aspect to it
which makes your mission much harder to complete, especially
considering that the controls change accordingly with the different
sides of the screen (if you are controlling your robot on the bottom
part of the screen all that is needed to move forward is a press "up"
on the joystick. However, once on the top of the screen, a press "down"
on the joystick moves you forward). This change of joystick movement
helps create a more realistic feel that really helps the game out and
makes it more fun to play, however frustrating it may be first. After
you have the controls for the game down, which can prove to be very
tricky, the next step is to go about completing your mission to get
back all the of the Earth's Energy Crystals, which are represented by
little red diamonds throughout the 3D maze. However, there are a few
curve balls thrown in. If you are unable to collect the crystals after
40 seconds, they become radioactive. This means that if you touch a
crystal once it's radioactive (they turn white after becoming so) you
will lose a life and fall off into space towards a purple alien ship
which appears in the center of the screen. On the other hand, if you do
collect all 4 crystals from that round, you might think your job is
done, but that's not the case. Even after all the crystals are
collected you must still blast the white androids which follow you
throughout the maze. Only after all of the androids have been killed
will you be able to advance forward.
-Bryan Roppolo (Writes "The TI-99/4A Arcade" for Retrogaming Times) |
TOUCAN'S TRIVIA: This game can be used with Milton Bradley's MBX System (an add-on for the TI-99/4A). The MBX allowed for the use of Voice Recognition, improved Speech Synthesis, a 360° Analog Joystick, and an Action-Input Keypad for video games designed for it. |
ADDITIONAL ITEMS: |
MBX Cartridge Catalog |