Grab your joystick!
During my time away (wow, that made me sound like a criminal), I was enjoying videos by many YouTubers - ugh, I hate that expression. People like Trusty, PJ Neiland, and the Vertical Blankers have released several amazing Atari ST videos. Click on those links and take a look, but remember to come back!
Into The Vertical Blank released a video about different ST shooters. One of which was called Zog by Chris Lloyd (designed using SEUCK by Palace Software). That acronym stands for Shoot 'Em Up Construction Kit. Now, one thing I did pick up from their video was his American pronunciation of SEUCK. I can't speak for all ST nutters over here in Blighty, but I pronounced it as a dirty plughole sound effect: Schhhh'uck!
Ah, it was just a few of us crazy fools over here then? Damn, let's move on quick...
Frantically bashing the fire button like a madman, hoping not to die!
Am I getting old and slow?
Chris released Zog in 1990, and it appears to be his one and only shooter 'em up. The gameplay is typically simple; a vertical-scrolling shooter with nothing flashy or fancy, but this is homebrew stuff we're talking about. The docs are pretty thin on the ground, but perfectly explain the gameplay: shoot everything that moves. Even shoot the stuff that doesn't move. And that sums up this perky little shooter very nicely.
As with any similar game, we are positioned near the bottom of the screen with the nasties coming into view at the top. Shoot, dodge, and blast everything you can whilst trying not to die. Points are awarded for successfully killing the enemies, but you only get three lives, which isn't nearly enough. Thankfully, an extra ship can be earned every 10,000 points. If... you... survive... long... enough!! lol
Our ship(s) manoeuvre spritely, but that doesn't mean avoiding the bullet hell is easy. Well, certainly not for me, thanks to my old man's reactions. Fortunately, Zog supports two-player mode, which is absolutely superb!! Another cool thing is the use of autofire, and I loved this little 'cheat' a lot - if I'm honest.
Right then, it's got to that point where I stop waffling on and show yet another screenshot...
With two gamers playing at the same time, things improve drastically!!
Aesthetics
Visually, this is neat considering it isn't commercial, and reminds me of Frenetic. I've played a few games developed using SEUCK, but none blew me away. However, this looks good, and the scrolling is smooth(ish), albeit with a reduced screen size. Enemy sprites move predictably, making their way across your screen briskly as the landscape scrolls - a positive testament to the ability of this underrated development tool.
There is no title music, and all sound effects are the traditional zaps and zings you've heard before. These YM effects are good, but a decent background chiptune would have been a much better option.
Steve, stop complaining because this is public domain! Sheesh, that idiot. Hey, it's screenshot time...
A message you see a lot. Argh, if only the gameplay was better optimised...
The CryptO'pinion?
Let's be honest, I doubt anyone will bother downloading this game anytime soon. There are already many ace ST shooters like Lethal Xcess, Flying Shark, SWIV, Goldrunner, and Xenon. Heck, maybe even Chopper X. Well, maybe! However, Zog was released into the public domain, so with that in mind, I enjoyed it.
Beware, this is one tough cookie. No matter how I try to avoid the enemy bullets, I end up hitting them. Far too easily, I might add. Which is hardly entertaining, is it? Having said that, ZOG is a totally different game as a two-player shooter, and the duel hoard-blasting is fantastic - like it was meant to be played this way.
I'm gonna rate this a respectable 75% for duel-gaming. However, knock off 10-15% if you're hammering that fire button alone. That's it - play with a mate, or look at one of the others I've already mentioned.
- What, you disagree with me? Then get it downloaded from Atarimania and let me know what you think in the comments below?
- Finally, go and check out Atari Legand for a ton of other SEUCK games listed.
