Escape From The Planet Of The Robot Monsters

When gaming meets B-movie!

Oh no, evil Reptilons are hell-bent on destroying us and have taken hold of Planet X. They've enslaved the human population and forced them to build a robot army for an invasion. Jake and Duke are two heroes with a simple plan: destroy as many robots as possible, trash the computers, rescue every cute girl and save the day.

Robot Monsters is played in a fashion similar to other 3D isometric games; imagine a pinch Buck Rogers mixed with a dollop of Gauntlet and you get the idea. The goal is to rescue the humans, without forgetting those held in stasis pods! Along the way are numerous traps designed for us soft fleshy humans: sharp spikes, rotating chunks of metal, and electric floor panels. All this is going on whilst Planet X constantly spawns new enemy robots.

The alien hoard is relentless so you better be quick on the trigger otherwise you will risk being overrun!

Grab a raygun and fight back!

We have a weapon which is a great killing tool. But, refrain from overuse otherwise, it is less effective... Thankfully, it can be charged by collecting the green blobs that a dead robot might leave behind. There are also bombs - hit the shift key and they detonate killing anything within your vicinity. Even any captives, so be careful.

A canal stage appears after a few levels which offer extra bonuses but isn't essential to your overall progress and I wasn't too eager about it anyhow. The big Reptilon boss will first seem an impossible opponent but there is a cunning way to avoid it using a few bombs and a little joystick waggling... Just ask if you need any help.

Next-Gen aesthetics!

Well, yes and no. I remember being blown away by the comical artwork back in the day and it still looks great now. I love the isometric 3D styles which I think is perfect for a game like this and the entire environment has superb attention to detail. The alien hoard is varied and looks excellent - my favourite being the biscuit-looking lot. They're not biscuits of course, but I think they're cute and that's this game to a tea.

Audio is a blast with cool effects and gorgeous chipmusic. Nothing much more to say, other than wow!

Don't run away. Come back, there are girls to be rescued and robots to destroy!

The CryptO'pinion?

I have really enjoyed playing this great game again. It's full to the brim of originality and frantic metallic mayhem as you run around shooting everything. Totally demented and I love its comical personality, characters, and superb gameplay. It's just as much fun to play today as it was back in 1990. Loved it. An iconic 16-Bit shooter.

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