Cosmic Guerilla
German flyer
Developer(s)Universal (Arcade)
Crystal Computing (Spectrum)
Platform(s)Arcade, ZX Spectrum
Release1979: Arcade
1983: Spectrum
Genre(s)Fixed shooter
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Cosmic Guerilla is a fixed shooter arcade video game developed by Universal and released 1979. A ZX Spectrum port was published by Crystal Computing in 1983.

Gameplay

The aliens steal shields protecting the player's stock of lives

Cosmic Guerilla is a two-dimensional fixed shooter game. The player takes control of a laser cannon at the bottom of the screen whose movement is limited to left and right, and must fire at the aliens above.[1] In contrast to Space Invaders the aliens are arranged in a single vertical line on each side of the screen,[2] with their movement being towards the centre, one or more at a time, in an attempt to capture and remove the player's shields.[3] The aliens cannot be hit by the player's shots until they begin to move, and the player may only fire one projectile at a time.[4] Once a row of shields has been removed, one of the player's "lives", is exposed and able to be captured.[3] Occasionally a very fast "mothership" will appear and traverse the screen just above the player dropping bombs.[4]

There are six levels of difficulty[4] along with four game modes[3] allowing combinations of the regular game, bonus enemies, and faster aliens. There is also a two player mode where players take alternative turns.[3]

Reception

Cosmic Guerilla was invariably compared to Space Invaders, though Sinclair User described it as the "next step up", with its different scenarios and object arrangement.[2] Home Computing Weekly, Sinclair User and ZX Computing all praised the game's smooth graphics,[1][2] though HCU felt that better use could have been made of the sound.[3] The game was generally well received, and described variously as "incredibly addictive" and "very playable",[2] and "highly recommended".[1][4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Cosmic Guerilla review, ZX Computing, issue August/September 1983 (p.107), Argus Specialist Publications
  2. 1 2 3 4 Cosmic Guerilla review, Sinclair User, issue 17 (p.32), ECC Publications, August 1983
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Cosmic Guerilla review, Home Computing Weekly, issue 36 (p.17), Argus Specialist Publications, November 1983
  4. 1 2 3 4 Cosmic Guerilla review, CRASH, issue 1 (p.46), Newsfield Publications, February 1984
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