Paradroid
Encyclopedia
Paradroid is a Commodore 64
computer game written by Andrew Braybrook
and published by Hewson Consultants
in 1985
. It was also remade as Paradroid 90 for the Amiga
and Atari ST
home computers and as Paradroid 2000 for the Acorn Archimedes
. There exist several fan-made remakes for modern PCs. In 2004 the Commodore 64 version was re-released as a built-in game on the C64 Direct-to-TV
, and in 2008 for the Wii
Virtual Console
in Europe.
The game is set on a spaceship
viewed from a top-down perspective. The ship consists of numerous rooms and levels, each one populated by hostile robot
s or "droids". The player, in control of a special droid called the "Influence Device", must destroy all the other droids on the ship. Each droid (including the player) is represented as a circle around a three-digit number. The numbers roughly correspond to the droid's "power" or "level", in that higher-numbered droids are tougher to destroy.
The Influence Device is numbered "001". The primary way in which the Influence Device destroys other droids is by "linking" with them, effectively taking them over. When the player takes over another droid, the previously-controlled droid is destroyed.
Taking over a droid is done via a mini-game involving basic circuit diagrams
and logic gates. Each droid has one side of the screen, with a series of logic gates and circuits connected together. The droids have a number of "power supplies" that can apply power to one circuit. Higher-numbered droids have more power supplies. At the end of a short time period, the droid supplying the most power to the circuit "wins". The logic gates are the key to allowing lower-numbered droids to beat higher-numbered droids. There is also a strategy in timing when power is applied to a circuit (as two supplies of power to the same circuit result in the later supplier of power gaining control of the circuit).
In either case, the droid being controlled by the player is destroyed. If the player beats the droid in this mini-game, he takes control of that droid. If not, either the droid is destroyed and the player returned to the game as just the Influence Device (if he was previously controlling a different droid), or the player is killed, ending the game, if he was not already controlling another droid before the takeover attempt.
While in control of another droid, the player effectively acts as that droid, meaning the player has access to that droid's maneuverability, armor, weapons and "power supplies" (used during the droid-control mini-game). If the droid has weapons, the player can destroy other droids simply by shooting them, instead of taking them over (though higher-numbered droids can require several shots to destroy, and might actually fire back). The player only has control of a droid for a limited amount of time (which is inversely proportional to the droid's number). If that time elapses, the controlled droid is destroyed and the player reverts to the Influence Device (001).
The spaceship has several decks, and each deck can have several rooms. Doors and elevators connect the rooms and the decks. Many rooms have computer terminals that provide access to maps of the current deck and the entire ship as well as droid information. Each droid can access information about itself and all lower-numbered droids (this access is available to the player based on the droid being controlled).
Despite the instructions referring to a finite fleet, the Commodore 64 game never ends: when you clear the eighth ship called "Itsnotardenuff", you're just replaced back on the ship, with higher-ranking droids on each deck.
partner, Steve Turner
, wrote a version of Paradroid for the ZX Spectrum called Quazatron
. It was also published by Hewson, and retained similar gameplay but on an isometric
playing field.
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
computer game written by Andrew Braybrook
Andrew Braybrook
Andrew Braybrook is a software engineer, a former game programmer. He created video games such as Paradroid, Gribbly's Day Out, Fire and Ice, Uridium and Morpheus. He also programmed the Commodore Amiga conversion of the arcade game Rainbow Islands.Braybrook started out writing accounting programs...
and published by Hewson Consultants
Hewson Consultants
Hewson Consultants were one of the smaller software companies which produced games for home computers in the mid 1980s. They had a reputation for high quality games which continually pushed the boundaries of what the computers were capable of and can be compared favourably with other...
in 1985
1985 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* Brøderbund releases Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, the first game of the prolific Carmen Sandiego series* Nintendo releases Super Mario Bros. on September 13, 1985, which eventually sells 40 million copies making it the best-selling video game of all time until 2008.*...
. It was also remade as Paradroid 90 for the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
and Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
home computers and as Paradroid 2000 for the Acorn Archimedes
Acorn Archimedes
The Acorn Archimedes was Acorn Computers Ltd's first general purpose home computer to be based on their own ARM architecture.Using a RISC design with a 32-bit CPU, at its launch in June 1987, the Archimedes was stated as running at 4 MIPS, with a claim of 18 MIPS during tests.The name is commonly...
. There exist several fan-made remakes for modern PCs. In 2004 the Commodore 64 version was re-released as a built-in game on the C64 Direct-to-TV
C64 Direct-to-TV
The C64 Direct-to-TV, called C64DTV for short, is a single-chip implementation of the Commodore 64 computer, contained in a joystick with 30 built-in games. The design is similar to the Atari Classics 10-in-1 TV Game...
, and in 2008 for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
in Europe.
Description
Starship
A starship or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel....
viewed from a top-down perspective. The ship consists of numerous rooms and levels, each one populated by hostile robot
Robot
A robot is a mechanical or virtual intelligent agent that can perform tasks automatically or with guidance, typically by remote control. In practice a robot is usually an electro-mechanical machine that is guided by computer and electronic programming. Robots can be autonomous, semi-autonomous or...
s or "droids". The player, in control of a special droid called the "Influence Device", must destroy all the other droids on the ship. Each droid (including the player) is represented as a circle around a three-digit number. The numbers roughly correspond to the droid's "power" or "level", in that higher-numbered droids are tougher to destroy.
The Influence Device is numbered "001". The primary way in which the Influence Device destroys other droids is by "linking" with them, effectively taking them over. When the player takes over another droid, the previously-controlled droid is destroyed.
Taking over a droid is done via a mini-game involving basic circuit diagrams
Circuit diagram
A circuit diagram is a simplified conventional graphical representation of an electrical circuit...
and logic gates. Each droid has one side of the screen, with a series of logic gates and circuits connected together. The droids have a number of "power supplies" that can apply power to one circuit. Higher-numbered droids have more power supplies. At the end of a short time period, the droid supplying the most power to the circuit "wins". The logic gates are the key to allowing lower-numbered droids to beat higher-numbered droids. There is also a strategy in timing when power is applied to a circuit (as two supplies of power to the same circuit result in the later supplier of power gaining control of the circuit).
In either case, the droid being controlled by the player is destroyed. If the player beats the droid in this mini-game, he takes control of that droid. If not, either the droid is destroyed and the player returned to the game as just the Influence Device (if he was previously controlling a different droid), or the player is killed, ending the game, if he was not already controlling another droid before the takeover attempt.
While in control of another droid, the player effectively acts as that droid, meaning the player has access to that droid's maneuverability, armor, weapons and "power supplies" (used during the droid-control mini-game). If the droid has weapons, the player can destroy other droids simply by shooting them, instead of taking them over (though higher-numbered droids can require several shots to destroy, and might actually fire back). The player only has control of a droid for a limited amount of time (which is inversely proportional to the droid's number). If that time elapses, the controlled droid is destroyed and the player reverts to the Influence Device (001).
The spaceship has several decks, and each deck can have several rooms. Doors and elevators connect the rooms and the decks. Many rooms have computer terminals that provide access to maps of the current deck and the entire ship as well as droid information. Each droid can access information about itself and all lower-numbered droids (this access is available to the player based on the droid being controlled).
Goals and challenges
As well as achieving a high score, Paradroid players also see certain achievements as worthy. Clearing one or more ships entirely of robots is one such goal. Another is a successful transfer from the 001 Influence Device to the unstable 999 droid.Despite the instructions referring to a finite fleet, the Commodore 64 game never ends: when you clear the eighth ship called "Itsnotardenuff", you're just replaced back on the ship, with higher-ranking droids on each deck.
Quazatron
Andrew Braybrook's GraftgoldGraftgold
Graftgold was an independent computer game developer that came to prominence in the 1980s, producing numerous computer games on a variety of 8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit platforms.-The Hewson era:...
partner, Steve Turner
Steve Turner (game programmer)
Steve Turner was a computer game musician and designer. His development team, Graftgold, mostly wrote for games published by Hewson Consultants during the 1980s....
, wrote a version of Paradroid for the ZX Spectrum called Quazatron
Quazatron
Quazatron is an action video game genre released in 1986 by Graftgold Ltd. It was designed by Steve Turner for the ZX Spectrum.-History:Quazatron was a Spectrum version of Paradroid, which was written by Graftgold partner Andrew Braybrook in 1985...
. It was also published by Hewson, and retained similar gameplay but on an isometric
Isometric projection
Isometric projection is a method for visually representing three-dimensional objects in two dimensions in technical and engineering drawings...
playing field.
External links
- Jester Interactive Publishing Ltd. – owners of all Graftgold products & licences
- Paradroid Review (Italian) at www.RetrogamingHistory.com
- Home of the Underdogs – SDL Paradroid review
- Paradroid Page with Numerous Screenshots
- Birth of a Paradroid – the original diary of the making of the game by Andrew Braybrook
- Longplay (Video) at www.c64-longplays.de
- Longplay (Video) at www.archive.org/details/C64GVA230-Paradroid
- Freedroid Classic - a multi-platform clone of Paradroid
- Droid Assault - Puppy Games' 2008/2011 update of Paradroid