second review:
So, you're a little tank escaped from the Risiko! game cardboard box, but, alas, only to jump into the fire. In fact, you're now in Panzadrome, a little island where dozens and dozens of Risiko little tanks are imprisoned after their attempted escape, and they're angrier than ever because of this captivity. And they mean to unload it all on you, in a very heavy way. So, in order to survive, you must destroy all the flashing squares present in the island [it's always about flashing things in Speccy games], which will somehow deactivate all the dangers or even have the island exploded. I hope you can swim. But you're only a poor and humble little blue tank, and you're really vulnerable, in more than one way. For example, your game can end even just because you are trapped between two craters, or a crater and a dead end [Q for QUIT] - and these craters will appear anytime a tank is destroyed. So, being the destruction of the enemies unavoidable, necessary for your survival, you're bound to have many crater-related problems IF you don't find the Poly-crete[TM] add-on, which will enable you to fill these holes and pass over them, and proceed toward your ultimate goal. In fact, in the maze of the island you will find about five garages, which, beside replenishing and healing you under every aspect, will add a new component to your tank, the Poly-crete[TM] garage being the first you're recommended to search and find - including a mortar-shooting turret, an anti-mine shield, a mine layer and what-not. The enemy tanks are not all the same: the black ones are not so terribly dangerous, but the red ones are rather dreadful: they chase you with particular aggressivity, and they can shoot through walls and barriers right at you, from any distance. Not only: diabolically, if you leave a room with a red tank in it, after some seconds an endless stream of red tanks will appear behind you in the next screen. So, think about it, because this problem has a relatively simple solution or two. Another very lethal presence in Panzadrome: fixed green turrets which shoot at you plumb and diagonally and can destroy all your shields very fastly. And the fuel! Keep costantly an eye on your fuel indicator because without fuel you ain't going nowhere [did you know it?]. But there are many features and conditions in this game.
So, is it any good?
Well, it surely is to me, in fact, after playing it and finishing it once when it was extracted and voted for the WoS Game Club a couple of years ago, I've played it and finished it again in these last two weeks, and it has officially become one of the favourite Speccy games of this reviewer.
Anyway, you must consider that:
a) the game annoyingly slows down very much when there are some tanks in the screen, and you may want to steadily use an augmented playing speed if using an emulator.
b) the first impact is frustrating and very hard, beginning with the lacking of Poly-Crete thing at the start.
c) you really need to understand where the garages are located, and what component they will give you, hence a very good memory, or the drawing of a map, or, if you're lazy and/or you don't have time, you can use the very good map[s] in the WoS archive [the one I've used doesn't specify what garage will add what, anyway]
d) I don't see it written anywhere in the on line instructions, but to use the Poly-crete you must press P and then shoot at the hole. While to shoot the mortars you must press M and shoot [repeat the M if you want to shoot another mortar]. Just press L to lay down a mine.
That's it. As I said, I like it very much.
5/5
first review:
Horribly hard maze/shoot'em up with little tanks that seem coming out from the Risiko! board game, very good IF improved by emulation with snapshots and augmented speed - and using a good map: it's too bloody hard, slow and it was superficially playtested, if it ever was at all.
Review by YOR on 14 Sep 2020 (Rating: 2)
I liked the graphics and I liked the presentation, but the gameplay is not good. Going by Cruel's review you can get stuck between two craters which effectively ends your game and yep he was right. It was best to not kill tanks in your path until you collect the Poly-crete, but then even that is a chore because tanks are constantly in your way because when you shoot them they become crater, and crater blocks your path because you don't have Poly-crete, mainly because you were blocked in search of it. Too frustrating for me and I'm too old for it, younger me would have probably loved it.
