Missile Command

Take it from someone who's played a lot of the old games, "Missile Command" was as good a game as Atari ever created and still pretty colorful...for 1981.

The object: you are in charge of three missile bases and must shoot down all the incoming missiles from overhead as well as the enemy craft that slip past every so often to drop their payload. Save all the cities around you from getting blown up and you'll get more points each round.

I don't know of anyone who ever got a perfect score every round of this game. I mean, who could? You'd have to be EXTREMELY well-coordinated to man the missile buttons and make sure you have enough in reserve for the next wave of attacks. Not an easy thing to do.

Believe me, I've lost a lot of quarters trying.

Ten stars. Get in "Command"!

This game is another one of my favorite video games of all time. The game is also an adolescent gem of mine. I heard about this game mainly from the movie "Terminator 2: Judgement Day: as that was the game John Connor was ironically playing but I didn't play this game until a lot of latter at "Gameworks" in my hometown Seattle, WA in their retro game section. I loved I then just as I love it right now.

This game is timeless as it's just about everywhere now, there's even a board game that's actually pretty good. Like the Arcade Cabinet as it has unique control which is the track ball along with three buttons. I really like the idea behind the game as you're the general in command of missile bases to defend your home from enemy oncoming missiles. Seems simple but that is far from the truth like in all scuffles it isn't.

Graphical presentation is solid, it's the basic colors as there not much to it but it works because in a way it has a sort of otherworldly feel to it. This game is supposed to take place on Earth, but the game never says where it takes place and from the landscape that surround the placed cities it could be from another planet or alternate Earth.

Though it doesn't matter either way as your fighting for your life and of many. Really like the color of the missile trajectories from your missiles and your enemies which are beautifully color though deadly. But I really like the explosive effects which are just big circular balloons and just the sound the explosions make, in a way it's like you're making your own fireworks show.

This game as it's fun and kind of addictive, from just the use of the simplistic control, the trackball control which is now a lost practice I always found interesting because it's like it gave you complete freedom of movement from just the tip of your fingers. You control a crosshair so wherever you move and place that crosshair is because of your own movements. And you have three fire buttons which represent the three missile bases, each of them is in basic arrangement left, right and middle. Always like using the middle as it's easier to discharge missiles from there and you get more accuracy, but there is a catch on all those counts.

As this game is also the most nerve racking as hitting those missiles isn't all the easy, it's a game that teaches you both timing and eye coordination. The oncoming enemy missiles go at a slow speed, though they do go a little faster as you progress. Their speed and the trajectories they present puts you a step ahead to play the crosshair. Destruction of the missiles is a matter of shooting at where the missiles are going to be.

By discharging your missiles, they detonate where every you've placed your crosshair. Once the explosive balloon has been producing the missiles will fall right onto it creating another explosion. What's really cool about this is you could actually create a chain combo, if you fire a missile or two in the right place then the explosions of the opposing missiles will catch others coming its way.

There is also some extra opposition that comes like enemy planes that come and can shoot some extra missiles, you can either shoot where there going to go or knock them down directly. Though the worst are the small drone UFO, those you must make direct hits toward those they're really hard targets as they can move in a wavy pattern and are just so small to make a single successful hit.

The game also teaches you management as you must watch how many missiles you discharge as each base has a limited stock. As well as the cities in which the oncoming missiles are gunning toward. Though if you lose one city or one missile base you can get them back if you win or survive though the round, your rewarded a city or base fully loaded back, so there is some relief there.

The game you can say can be a little sad, whenever I lose a city, I feel bad because I feel I failed because I made an error in judgement, missed, didn't aline the crosshair in the right place, moved fast enough, just any other negative you can think of.

Though when you lose the cities the game has an explosive almost scary ending as you see a big digital nuclear mushroom cloud which says Game Over. Just seeing that really makes you feel bad as you know that it might not just of been the mounting difficulty that caused it but yourself.

But still there was that addictive and fun factor, despite that ending it only got me down briefly because I knew this was only a game and thankful it wasn't a real war I was fighting, which is one of the best things about this game despite a grim ending you have a sense of relive knowing your still alive and what you've played isn't real.

I also keep coming back knowing that I could do better next time and get even further or more points than before. Through the game is also fun to play with some friends around see if you can beat any of them at your best score.

Missile Command is a vintage classic that is still volatile explosive fun.

Rating: 4 stars.