Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000
Sega 32X
Publisher: Sega
Developer: CSK Research Institute Corp.
1995
A highly disappointing modernization of
Sega's superior arcade game from 1982 (which was simply titled Zaxxon),
Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 is similar to the original in that players fly their
ship from an isometric perspective, and the object is to avoid obstacles and
gunfire while shooting enemy ships, gun turrets, and other obstacles. However,
the controls are sluggish, the 3-D polygonal graphics are blocky, there's tons
of slowdown, and the bosses fill up an inordinate, frustration-inducing portion
of the screen. Worst of all, your ship can't climb or descend, making the game
all but unplayable. A two-player shoot-out mode and the ability to dock on
special couriers in order to gain armor and additional weaponry can't save this
game from its mother lode of faults.
The original Zaxxon was a visually
arresting and highly challenging Arcade game, and it translated nicely to both
the ColecoVision and the Atari 5200 systems. As a huge fan of Zaxxon 3-D for the
Master System, my expectations were naturally high for this 32-bit rendering of
the Arcade semi-classic. Unfortunately, Zaxxon's Motherbase 2000 didn't come
close to meeting a single criterion for what can be considered to be a quality
gaming experience.
First of all, the controls for the game
are incredibly limited. You can only move in four directions! This is
astounding considering the fact that in all previous versions of the game you
could fly your ship in eight directions. In this game, you can only fly left,
right, forward and back.
Eliminating climbing and descending from
the standard Zaxxon control scheme was an inexcusable act on part of the
designers. It destroys a big part of what made the original game so very cool,
that of flying above and below obstacles and enemy fire.
In addition to limited directional
movement, the sluggish controls don't help much either. Most of the ships are
clumsy, and tremendous slowdown occurs throughout the game, especially in the
midst of a battle with a giant boss. Many times you'll feel as though the game
is taking place underwater instead of in outer space.
While not bad in theory, battles with
the giant, robot-like bosses present a boring and frustrating experience. The
bosses are so big that, when combined with various large obstacles, they often
take up an inordinate amount of screen space, giving the game a claustrophobic
and uncomfortable feel.
The ability to jump from your standard
ship into a courier ship adds little enjoyment to the game, and you won't find
any of the weapons systems as very interesting or memorable. Equally, the
two-player mode pathetically tries to add some pizzazz and originality to the
game. Poor controls, horrendous slowdown and dull gameplay plague this portion
of the cartridge as well.
OTHER ZAXXON GAMES:
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