RoboCop 2 Longplay (Amstrad GX4000) [QHD]
101Game Info
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Developer: Ocean Software
Publisher: Ocean Software
Year of Release: 1990
Game Review & Impressions
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The Amstrad GX4000 didn't enjoy much in the way of software support in its limited lifespan, but Ocean released a conversion of RoboCop 2 for the 8-bit console in 1990.
It makes sense Ocean would choose a big-name franchise, given they'd already developed various versions for other home platforms, and the GX4000 version combines elements of the C64 cartridge release, plus some features from the 16-bit Amiga/Atari ST ports. The result is a game which, visually at least, looks pretty stunning - the background artwork makes good use of the Amstrad colour palette here, beating anything seen on the Spectrum or C64 at this point, and the hardware scrolling is a welcome addition too.
It's a real shame then, that the actual game sucks so badly. For some reason, Ocean decided this should be a platform game, rather than an action shooter, and they might as well not bothered giveng RoboCop a gun, seeing as there are roughly 10 bad guys to shoot in the whole game, including the end boss -- the crap shooting gallery interludes don't count.
Aside from the fact that having a 6-foot lump of titanium leap between platforms was pretty ridiculous to begin with, it gets worse when you factor in the environmental hazards and other traps which literally festoon the entire game. Piledriving spikes, coil springs and waterfalls of boiling liquid will all kill RoboCop instantly. The timing and precsion required to bypass these pitfalls makes this the most demanding platformer I've played since China Miner, and that's saying something.
Personally, the only parts of the game which was really any good were the memory bank puzzles. These work very much the same as the 16-bit versions, requiring the player to navigate around a PCB collecting integrated circuids while avoiding the large memory chips. However, the added twist in the GX4000 versions is the ability to shift tiles of the grid horizontally and vertically, opening new paths. This could have been the kernel of a decent puzzle game, given half a chance.
The Amstrad GX4000 was late to the party to begin with, and with a dearth of software for the console to begin with, it didn't help matters when games like RoboCop 2 were being trundled out as the cream of the crop for the system. It looks brilliant for sure, but most players won't get off the first screen, let alone the first level. It's a real shame, because I'd love to have seen what the console could really do, given half a chance.
Chapters
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00:00 Attract mode & music
03:17 Stage 1
08:46 Stage 2
11:47 Stage 3
13:15 Stage 4
19:38 Stage 5
21:47 Stage 6
23:08 Stage 7
29:13 Ending