Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Longplay (Arcade) [4K]

Game Info --------------------------------------------------- Developer: Atari Games Publisher: Atari Games Year of Release: 1985 Game Review & Impressions --------------------------------------------------- The original Star Wars arcade game was quite the phenomenon when it launched in 1983. The fact it was a game based on George Lucas' seminal sci-fi masterpiece was already a major boost, but coupling it with Atari's engineering talent and ground-breaking vector 3D graphics meant you couldn't keep gamers away from the machine. It's understandable, therefore, that creating a follow-up based on the second movie in the original trilogy of films made excellent commercial sense. And so it was that, in 1985, The Empire Strikes Back was released as a conversion kit -- new marquee graphics, replacement EEPROMs -- for the operators with an existing Star Wars machine. Understandably, the game doesn't stray far from the original in terms of design, using the same 3D vector graphics and control mechanism. You pilot ships during key sequences from the movie, gunning down droids, taking out AT-AT and AT-ST walkers with tow cables while skimming over the surface of the planet Hoth in your Snow Speeder (you do have to use some imagination somewhat). You then jet off into space to zap squadrons of TIE fighters and dodge asteroids in the iconic Millennium Falcon, before being greeted by Darth Vader himself. You control an on-screen crosshair using the flight yoke, which acts as both your weapons targeting reticule and means of changing direction. The game is incredibly fast paced, featuring wireframe 3D objects that, despite their primitive design, are instantly recognisable and look great. Compared to the original Star Wars, this sequel is far less forgiving. By default, you have a mere four deflector shields to protect you from damage, down from nine in the original. Completing a wave no longer grants you an extra shield, which means your average play-time is going to be far shorter, something arcade operators were probably thankful for, more plays and, therefore, more coins, would have meant more money in their pockets. The total number of enemies and projectiles on-screen at any given time is also considerably higher, which means that you have more targets to deal with at any given moment. This has a noticeable impact on the game's performance, which, in turn, affects the player's ability to track and deal with threats effectively. Each successive wave piles on more enemies, more ore projectiles, and more pressure, testing your reactions to the limit. Eventually, there'll simply be too much stuff to deal with, and the game will force you into submission. It's all good fun while it lasts. The production values feel higher, with greater use of synthesised speech, more sections, and just greater visual spectacle. If you were a fan of the films, there's a good probability this would have piqued your interest. It might not have had the same immediate impact if you'd already played its predecessor, but it's still mightily impressive for the period. Video Notes --------------------------------------------------- The game has no ending and loops continually - the video plays through the first 10 waves. Chapters --------------------------------------------------- 00:00 Attract mode 02:17 Wave 01 05:05 Wave 02 07:54 Wave 03 10:57 Wave 04 14:14 Wave 05 17:44 Wave 06 21:32 Wave 07 25:24 Wave 08 29:17 Wave 09 33:07 Wave 10 36:09 Wave 11 - Game over