Magnum Force
Magnum Force, developed by Gavin Raeburn (Game 7 by GAXX) in 1989. Released exclusively on the Codemasters 30 Game CD collection for the C64.
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Player's Review
Not much is known about this game so I can start with the usual backstory from the case cover and there is nothing about the game listed in the manual included in the collection. It does resemble the game Poltergeist released in 1998, so maybe the game just didn't meet quality standards (if Codemasters had any) or reusing all the gfx assets from poltergeist screamed cash grab and dropped. The title music is really rough as if it was developed for a super rare sid variant with odd filter characteristics.
I don't know how many levels there are but I guess maybe 30 before they loop back around, it's hard to be sure as enemy waves differ very slightly. There are maybe nine different level layouts with palette changes when they repeat later. As already mentioned, the game loops and there is no ending. The last high score is shown on the main display but there is no high score table. Not that this matters much as the game is insanely difficult with enemies seemingly spawning from all sides as well as the middle of the screen whilst you are trying to navigate around enemies and obstacles. Once the constant missiles and bouncing balls appear it becomes near impossible
To aid you in your quest to see as many levels as possible and post a high score you have an initial five smart bombs which you can set off by holding fire for a second or pressing space. I accidently fire this off a few times while button mashing and you get an additional one at the start of each stage. You can hold a maximum of five lives and gain additional by shooting fourteen glow sticks. Speed upgrades are collectable but sometimes annoyingly appear in scenery where you cant get.
Overall, it's a nice enough game to look at and controls well enough, but the insane difficulty will only frustrate especially when the enemies can seemingly fly through scenery and you may have to do a lot of dodging around obstacles at the same time as enemies are flying all over the screen. A smart bomb can save you but it's only a momentary relief. Nothing about the game feels fair, well except maybe the level bosses which can just fly right by you out of the screen ending the level. The brain bosses though, they are here to fight.
00:00:00 Title Music
00:02:07 Game
00:29:00 Loop back to beginning
I don't know how many levels there are but I guess maybe 30 before they loop back around, it's hard to be sure as enemy waves differ very slightly. There are maybe nine different level layouts with palette changes when they repeat later. As already mentioned, the game loops and there is no ending. The last high score is shown on the main display but there is no high score table. Not that this matters much as the game is insanely difficult with enemies seemingly spawning from all sides as well as the middle of the screen whilst you are trying to navigate around enemies and obstacles. Once the constant missiles and bouncing balls appear it becomes near impossible
To aid you in your quest to see as many levels as possible and post a high score you have an initial five smart bombs which you can set off by holding fire for a second or pressing space. I accidently fire this off a few times while button mashing and you get an additional one at the start of each stage. You can hold a maximum of five lives and gain additional by shooting fourteen glow sticks. Speed upgrades are collectable but sometimes annoyingly appear in scenery where you cant get.
Overall, it's a nice enough game to look at and controls well enough, but the insane difficulty will only frustrate especially when the enemies can seemingly fly through scenery and you may have to do a lot of dodging around obstacles at the same time as enemies are flying all over the screen. A smart bomb can save you but it's only a momentary relief. Nothing about the game feels fair, well except maybe the level bosses which can just fly right by you out of the screen ending the level. The brain bosses though, they are here to fight.
00:00:00 Title Music
00:02:07 Game
00:29:00 Loop back to beginning
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