Lunar Jetman
Encyclopedia
Lunar Jetman is a ZX Spectrum
video game developed and released by Ultimate Play The Game
in 1983. The game is the second in the Jetman
series, following on from his adventures in Jetpac
, and one of the few games released to support the Currah Microspeech
. In the game, Jetman has to defend the Earth (and himself) from a hostile alien base. The game was written by Chris Stamper with graphics by Tim Stamper. The game was followed by a third installment, Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship
, released for the NES
in 1990.
. Similarly to Jetpac, the player can move around slowly on foot, or use a jetpac to leave the ground and navigate the moon faster. Unlike Jetpac, this time Jetman's jetpac has limited fuel, and must be topped up regularly. In addition to the jetpac, the player has a moon rover for ground travel, inside of which they are (mostly) invulnerable. However, the moon rover can only negotiate perfectly smooth ground, and the player may need to use bridging kits to fill in crater
s on the moon's surface (these are obtained from the rover). The rover doubles up as a refuelling point for Jetman's jetpac.
Aside from the rover and its bridging kits, Jetman has access to three other pieces of equipment, all of which can be carried on the back of the rover. The most important of these is a bomb. This is used to destroy alien bases when they are encountered, and must be dropped onto them while Jetman is flying. Another piece of equipment is a cannon that may be mounted onto the rover (facing either direction). As the rover is otherwise unequipped with weaponry, this can be a useful way to rack up points blasting aliens while searching for the alien base. The final piece of equipment is a teleporter
(or, rather, a pair of teleporters). Entering this instantaneously transports the player (and bomb) to the teleporter's twin, allowing rapid transport around the moon.
Gameplay itself requires Jetman to locate and destroy (with the bomb) a series of alien bases on the surface of the moon. Each new base appears with the destruction of the previous one. To accomplish this task, either by flying the bomb directly, or transporting it on the back of the rover, the player must take the bomb to the alien base and then drop it onto the base. Although, as noted above, Jetman is (almost) invulnerable inside his rover, outside it he is at the mercy of large numbers of flying aliens, although his jetpac-mounted lasers help against these.
Each base needs to be destroyed within a strict time limit. If this limit expires before the base is destroyed by Jetman, two missiles are launched from the base - one for the Earth
, the other for Jetman's rover (hence its almost invulnerability). Fortunately, even if the base is not destroyed on time, Jetman can still save the day by intercepting, and destroying, the missile in flight, although the number of laser hits required increases with each level. When either the base or missile is destroyed, a new base is generated and play starts over once again. After several bases have been destroyed in succession, new (and increasingly hazardous) varieties of flying aliens assault the player.
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
video game developed and released by Ultimate Play The Game
Ultimate Play the Game
Ultimate Play The Game was a critically acclaimed video game developer of the early home computer era. "Ultimate Play The Game" was the trading name of Ashby Computers & Graphics Ltd. , a software company founded in 1982 by two ex-arcade game developers Tim and Chris Stamper...
in 1983. The game is the second in the Jetman
Jetman
Jetman may refer to:* Jetman, a character in a series of video games:** Jetpac, 1983** Lunar Jetman, 1983** Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship, 1990** Jetpac Refuelled, 2007...
series, following on from his adventures in Jetpac
Jetpac
Jetpac is a ZX Spectrum, VIC-20 and BBC Micro video game developed and released by Ultimate Play The Game in 1983. The game is the first in the Jetman series, and was the company's very first release. The game was written by Chris Stamper with graphics by Tim Stamper...
, and one of the few games released to support the Currah Microspeech
Currah
Currah was a British computer peripheral manufacturer, famous mainly for the speech synthesis cartridges it designed for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and other 8-bit home computers of the 1980s.-Currah μSource for the ZX Spectrum:...
. In the game, Jetman has to defend the Earth (and himself) from a hostile alien base. The game was written by Chris Stamper with graphics by Tim Stamper. The game was followed by a third installment, Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship
Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship
Solar Jetman: Hunt for the Golden Warpship is the third video game in the Jetman series. It was designed and developed by Zippo Games for Rare and released in the US by Tradewest in 1990, and in Europe by Nintendo, for the NES...
, released for the NES
Nes
-Localities:In Norway:* Nes, Akershus, a municipality in the county of Akershus in Norway* Nes, Buskerud, a municipality in the county of Buskerud in Norway* Nes, Hedmark, a former municipality in the county of Hedmark in Norway...
in 1990.
Gameplay
Again taking on the role of Jetman, players find themselves on the surface of a small purple moonNatural satellite
A natural satellite or moon is a celestial body that orbits a planet or smaller body, which is called its primary. The two terms are used synonymously for non-artificial satellites of planets, of dwarf planets, and of minor planets....
. Similarly to Jetpac, the player can move around slowly on foot, or use a jetpac to leave the ground and navigate the moon faster. Unlike Jetpac, this time Jetman's jetpac has limited fuel, and must be topped up regularly. In addition to the jetpac, the player has a moon rover for ground travel, inside of which they are (mostly) invulnerable. However, the moon rover can only negotiate perfectly smooth ground, and the player may need to use bridging kits to fill in crater
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
s on the moon's surface (these are obtained from the rover). The rover doubles up as a refuelling point for Jetman's jetpac.
Aside from the rover and its bridging kits, Jetman has access to three other pieces of equipment, all of which can be carried on the back of the rover. The most important of these is a bomb. This is used to destroy alien bases when they are encountered, and must be dropped onto them while Jetman is flying. Another piece of equipment is a cannon that may be mounted onto the rover (facing either direction). As the rover is otherwise unequipped with weaponry, this can be a useful way to rack up points blasting aliens while searching for the alien base. The final piece of equipment is a teleporter
Teleportation
Teleportation is the fictional or imagined process by which matter is instantaneously transferred from one place to another.Teleportation may also refer to:*Quantum teleportation, a method of transmitting quantum data...
(or, rather, a pair of teleporters). Entering this instantaneously transports the player (and bomb) to the teleporter's twin, allowing rapid transport around the moon.
Gameplay itself requires Jetman to locate and destroy (with the bomb) a series of alien bases on the surface of the moon. Each new base appears with the destruction of the previous one. To accomplish this task, either by flying the bomb directly, or transporting it on the back of the rover, the player must take the bomb to the alien base and then drop it onto the base. Although, as noted above, Jetman is (almost) invulnerable inside his rover, outside it he is at the mercy of large numbers of flying aliens, although his jetpac-mounted lasers help against these.
Each base needs to be destroyed within a strict time limit. If this limit expires before the base is destroyed by Jetman, two missiles are launched from the base - one for the Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, the other for Jetman's rover (hence its almost invulnerability). Fortunately, even if the base is not destroyed on time, Jetman can still save the day by intercepting, and destroying, the missile in flight, although the number of laser hits required increases with each level. When either the base or missile is destroyed, a new base is generated and play starts over once again. After several bases have been destroyed in succession, new (and increasingly hazardous) varieties of flying aliens assault the player.
In other media
- Rumours of the Hyperglide Moon Rover having a trailer (as in the cover art) were prompted by screenshots being published in CrashCRASH (magazine)Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
. Later disassembly of the code proved the rumours false. - The Jetman series spawned a cartoon seriesComic stripA comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....
by John Richardson published in CRASHCRASH (magazine)Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
magazine.
External links
- Lunar Jetman at Ultimate Wurlde
- Lunar Jetman review at CRASH magazineCRASH (magazine)Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
- Lunar Jetman remake for the PCPersonal computerA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
and Mac OS XMac OS XMac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...