Star Raiders 2
Encyclopedia
Star Raiders II is a video game released in for the Atari 8-bit home computers, and later several other home computers and game consoles. The game was originally developed as part of a tie-in
with the movie The Last Starfighter
, which featured an arcade game
of the same name as part of its plotline. Versions for the Atari 5200
and the Atari 8-bit computers were developed in 1984, although those were never released. Later the tie-in was dropped, and the game converted into a sequel to Star Raiders
by changing a number of gameplay elements. The gameplay remained quite different than the original Star Raiders. Versions with The Last Starfighter branding made their way into the warez
channels.
s, and the "Frontier", a space-based energy field. Their protection is removed when a member of the League defects to the Ko-Dan cause, destroying the Gunstar base and showing the Ko-Dan how to pass the Frontier. The movie follows the protagonist Alex Rogan as he crews the remaining Gunstar fighter and defeats the Ko-Dan fleet. Rogan was discovered by the Rylans by his high scores in an arcade game
that was actually a Gunstar simulator.
The original videogame remained faithful to this basic plotline, standing in for the arcade game in the movie. It expanded on the movie's action by having multiple Ko-Dan fleets attacking the League. Fleets were generated by industrial sites on the planets of the Ko-Dan star system, and each fleet contained a group of Deckfighters for protection, Destroyers that attacked the cities on League planets, and a single command ship that was responsible for breaching the Frontier. The command ship left the fleet once the Frontier was breached.
The game opened with the player in orbit above Rylos, being attacked by the fighters. After defeating this initial force, pressing space opened a display of the local solar system, showing the multiple planets, the Frontier, and any attacking fleets. The joystick is used to move between the various objects on the screen, which can be selected in order to warp to them. Fleets could be attacked at any point, but there was an advantage to attacking them while they were attempting to breach the Frontier; in this case the player immediately faced the command ship in a defenceless state, and destroying it before it burned its way through the Frontier would leave the rest of the fleet stranded on the other side.
In the upper left of the map display was an icon representing a wormhole linking to the Ko-Dan solar system. Selecting this icon as a warp point flew the player to the Ko-Dan system, allowing attacks on the factories on their planets. As these were destroyed the spawn rate of new fleets was reduced, and when all of these were destroyed, the player won the game.
Damage to the ship and energy use were replenished by flying to the local star and orbiting it. This also heated the ship up, to the point where it was possible to melt it. Several trips to and from the star might be needed to fully repair the Gunstar.
was a graphical version of the classic text-based Star Trek
game from the 1970s. The basic outline of Star Trek was to fly between the various "quadrants" in the galaxy and defeat the Klingon ships within. Damage could be repaired and energy topped off at the handful of starbases scattered around the map. This basic outline remained intact in Star Raiders, although updated with graphics, and with the names changed to avoid any tie-in with Star Trek. Combat was vastly improved with a complete 3D flying simulation and real-time combat with the enemy ships.
The modifications from Starfighter to the Star Raiders universe was relativity limited; starbases were added as the only way to repair damage, as well as a secondary source of energy. The Frontier was removed, and the command ships that were originally intended to attack it became additional powerful enemies. Shields were added to the player's ship, and a new "tactical scanner" was added that displayed status information about the fighter in a single overview. Names of the ships and planets were changed, with most of them names from the original Star Raiders being used or adapted. The original animated introduction, similar to one seen in the movie, was removed and a simple "Star Raiders II" copyright splash screen was put in its place.
With those exceptions, the two versions were very similar in both gameplay and presentation. Star Raiders II thus has much less in common with its namesake than the game it was adapted from.
, Amstrad CPC
and Commodore 64
were published under license by Electric Dreams Software
in 1987
.
The ZX Spectrum version received mixed reviews; Your Sinclair
awarded 8 out of 10, Sinclair User
awarded 5 out of 5 stars, but CRASH
only awarded 52%, feeling it did not compare favourably with the similar Codename MAT
.
Tie-in
A tie-in is an authorized product based on a media property a company is releasing, such as a movie or video/DVD, computer game, video game, television program/television series, board game, web site, role-playing game or literary property...
with the movie The Last Starfighter
The Last Starfighter
The Last Starfighter is a 1984 science fiction adventure film directed by Nick Castle. The film tells the story of Alex Rogan , an average teenage boy recruited by an alien defense force to fight in an interstellar war. It also featured Dan O'Herlihy, Catherine Mary Stewart, Robert Preston, Norman...
, which featured an arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
of the same name as part of its plotline. Versions for the Atari 5200
Atari 5200
The Atari 5200 SuperSystem, commonly known as the Atari 5200, is a video game console that was introduced in 1982 by Atari Inc. as a higher end complementary console for the popular Atari 2600...
and the Atari 8-bit computers were developed in 1984, although those were never released. Later the tie-in was dropped, and the game converted into a sequel to Star Raiders
Star Raiders
Star Raiders is a video game for the Atari 8-bit family of computers, released in 1979 and programmed by Doug Neubauer. It was also later ported to other Atari computer and game platforms...
by changing a number of gameplay elements. The gameplay remained quite different than the original Star Raiders. Versions with The Last Starfighter branding made their way into the warez
Warez
Warez refers primarily to copyrighted works distributed without fees or royalties, and may be traded, in general violation of copyright law. The term generally refers to unauthorized releases by organized groups, as opposed to file sharing between friends or large groups of people with similar...
channels.
Last Starfighter
The plot of The Last Starfighter revolves around the latest outbreak in a long-running war between two races. In the past the Rylan Star League protected themselves from the warlike Ko-Dan through their fleet of advanced "Gunstar" fighterFighter
Fighter or The Fighter may refer to:*Warrior, a person skilled in combat*Soldier, someone in the army*Fighter aircraft, a warplane designed to destroy or damage enemy warplanes in air-to-air combatFilms...
s, and the "Frontier", a space-based energy field. Their protection is removed when a member of the League defects to the Ko-Dan cause, destroying the Gunstar base and showing the Ko-Dan how to pass the Frontier. The movie follows the protagonist Alex Rogan as he crews the remaining Gunstar fighter and defeats the Ko-Dan fleet. Rogan was discovered by the Rylans by his high scores in an arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
that was actually a Gunstar simulator.
The original videogame remained faithful to this basic plotline, standing in for the arcade game in the movie. It expanded on the movie's action by having multiple Ko-Dan fleets attacking the League. Fleets were generated by industrial sites on the planets of the Ko-Dan star system, and each fleet contained a group of Deckfighters for protection, Destroyers that attacked the cities on League planets, and a single command ship that was responsible for breaching the Frontier. The command ship left the fleet once the Frontier was breached.
The game opened with the player in orbit above Rylos, being attacked by the fighters. After defeating this initial force, pressing space opened a display of the local solar system, showing the multiple planets, the Frontier, and any attacking fleets. The joystick is used to move between the various objects on the screen, which can be selected in order to warp to them. Fleets could be attacked at any point, but there was an advantage to attacking them while they were attempting to breach the Frontier; in this case the player immediately faced the command ship in a defenceless state, and destroying it before it burned its way through the Frontier would leave the rest of the fleet stranded on the other side.
In the upper left of the map display was an icon representing a wormhole linking to the Ko-Dan solar system. Selecting this icon as a warp point flew the player to the Ko-Dan system, allowing attacks on the factories on their planets. As these were destroyed the spawn rate of new fleets was reduced, and when all of these were destroyed, the player won the game.
Damage to the ship and energy use were replenished by flying to the local star and orbiting it. This also heated the ship up, to the point where it was possible to melt it. Several trips to and from the star might be needed to fully repair the Gunstar.
Star Raiders II
The original Star RaidersStar Raiders
Star Raiders is a video game for the Atari 8-bit family of computers, released in 1979 and programmed by Doug Neubauer. It was also later ported to other Atari computer and game platforms...
was a graphical version of the classic text-based Star Trek
Star Trek (text game)
Star Trek is a text-based computer game that puts the player in command of the USS Enterprise on a mission to hunt down and destroy an invading fleet of Klingon warships...
game from the 1970s. The basic outline of Star Trek was to fly between the various "quadrants" in the galaxy and defeat the Klingon ships within. Damage could be repaired and energy topped off at the handful of starbases scattered around the map. This basic outline remained intact in Star Raiders, although updated with graphics, and with the names changed to avoid any tie-in with Star Trek. Combat was vastly improved with a complete 3D flying simulation and real-time combat with the enemy ships.
The modifications from Starfighter to the Star Raiders universe was relativity limited; starbases were added as the only way to repair damage, as well as a secondary source of energy. The Frontier was removed, and the command ships that were originally intended to attack it became additional powerful enemies. Shields were added to the player's ship, and a new "tactical scanner" was added that displayed status information about the fighter in a single overview. Names of the ships and planets were changed, with most of them names from the original Star Raiders being used or adapted. The original animated introduction, similar to one seen in the movie, was removed and a simple "Star Raiders II" copyright splash screen was put in its place.
With those exceptions, the two versions were very similar in both gameplay and presentation. Star Raiders II thus has much less in common with its namesake than the game it was adapted from.
Other versions
Conversions for the ZX SpectrumZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
, Amstrad CPC
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
and Commodore 64
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...
were published under license by Electric Dreams Software
Electric Dreams Software
Electric Dreams Software was a video game publisher established in 1985 by ex-managing director of Quicksilva, Rod Cousens and ex Software Manager of Quicksilva, Paul Cooper...
in 1987
1987 in video gaming
-Notable releases:* January 14, Nintendo releases Zelda II: The Adventure of Link in January for the Famicom Disk System in Japan only. The game would go unreleased in America for nearly two years afterwards.* February 20, Konami releases Contra...
.
The ZX Spectrum version received mixed reviews; Your Sinclair
Your Sinclair
Your Sinclair or YS as it was commonly abbreviated, was a British computer magazine for the Sinclair range of computers, mainly the ZX Spectrum.-History:...
awarded 8 out of 10, Sinclair User
Sinclair User
Sinclair User, often abbreviated SU, was a magazine dedicated to the Sinclair Research range of home computers, most specifically the ZX Spectrum...
awarded 5 out of 5 stars, but CRASH
CRASH (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:...
only awarded 52%, feeling it did not compare favourably with the similar Codename MAT
Codename MAT
Codename MAT II, also written by Brewster, was published later in 1984 by Domark for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64 and Amstrad CPC. It featured a new ship, the Centurion II, which had two different weapons and a more complex damage system – on-board droids could be assigned repair tasks by the player...
.