Moon Patrol

Luna road-tripping

The moon is under attack from a legion of aliens, and it's our job to stop them! We've managed to find a cute Space 1999 buggy, which appears to mostly drive itself. It even follows handy checkpoints so you don't get lost. So dust off your spacesuit in anticipation of the Atari ST version of this arcade classic.

With your foot always on the gas, you can control the level of acceleration as you travel, trying to avoid potholes and any obstacles. Moving the joystick left/right changes that acceleration, and pushing up allows you to leap over the potholes. However, that requires precise timing, because the wheels aren't great with potholes. So the slightest missed jump causes the buggy to violently explode like something from a cartoon!!

It sounds silly, and it is, but isn't that what makes older games intriguing? Let's crack on...

Don't let the graphics put you off from playing what is nothing less than a beast!!

Simple mechanics yet still tough!

There are two difficulty modes, beginners and champions. If you're new to Moon Patrol and wanna break yourself in gently, then choose beginners. This gradually introduces the game's twisted mechanics and alien monsters at a steady rate. Use this mode to learn joystick controls and the feel of the game. It's cool.

The latter difficulty is better and certainly offers a far more interesting game with many extra features, obstacles, and enemies, etc. Here, the landscape is terribly hostile and made worse by even more invading aliens who frequently appear from all corners of your screen. It's manic, but don't run away, there are weapons!!

Banging on that fire button will simultaneously shoot two weapons: one at the top (firing upwards), and a front-mounted rocket launcher for the approaching enemies. So keep one eye on the road ahead and another on those pesky aliens. It's a lot harder than you might think, so keep on firing and hope for the best!

It's screenshot time, but why not use a different monitor? Check this out...

Hang on, there are mountains in the background with snow. Hmm, very odd... ;-)

Aesthetics

Look, if all you care about are spanky sexy graphics, then walk away. Moon Patrol looks dated, and that's exactly what you would expect from an 80s game. The game's style and decor is authentic, with silky smooth scrolling supporting a three-layer parallax effect, plus the buggy's animation is superb as it rumbles over the bumpy terrain. Don't forget, Moon Patrol also works in ST High (640x400) and looks gorgeous.

A funky chiptune bops away in the background, which is, oddly, very much excellent. I was expecting something so old to grate and something that I'd switch off, but it's foot-tappingly excellent. In fact, I love it. This is accompanied by vintage bleeps for the sound effects that perfectly suit this classic game.

I love it when a game transports me back in time rather than trying to improve upon it (ie, ruin it)...

The checkpoint idea is great for a number of reasons, plus it's fun to break a record.

The CryptO'pinion?

Moon Patrol is an excellent conversion and a groovy step back in time to 1982. It's instantaneous fun, and I love how its troublesome landscape combines the pothole hopping whilst frantically trying to shoot down the aliens. It's tough but addictive, so keep your eyes on the road otherwise - KABOOM! Instant moon junk!!

A faithful conversion of a classic with rock-solid playability. Trust me, this is #retrogaming gold!!

Atari Legend has access to all the floppy disks

8BitChip has a version for hard drive installation!

Strategy Wiki lists the many versions of Moon Patrol

Here is their walkthrough, which I thought was pretty funny.