Ant attack
| 3D Ant Attack | |
|---|---|
| Studio | Quicksilva |
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
1983 1984 (C64) |
| platform | ZX Spectrum , C64 |
| genre | Jump 'n' run |
| Game mode | Single player |
3D Ant Attack is the title of a computer game in the Jump 'n' run category developed by the manufacturer Quicksilva in 1983 . Ant Attack was the first computer game with an isometric perspective . It first appeared on the Sinclair ZX Spectrum . In 1984 the porting for the Commodore 64 followed .
The play figure has three degrees of freedom , it can run on a horizontal plane and jump or fall vertically. In order to be able to see behind obstacles, it is possible and sometimes even necessary to change the viewing direction of the graphics during the game. Four perspectives , each rotated by 90 °, are available.
Ant Attack takes place in an uninhabited ruined city that is haunted by giant ants that try to bite the pawns. The ants can only move on the ground, while the character can also climb the ruins . Other ways to deal with the ants are to jump on them to knock them out temporarily or even kill them, or to blow them up with grenades or to stun them with the shock wave. In some places it is necessary to stun one of the giant ants at a certain point in order to use it as a stepping stone to climb the ruins.
Goal of the game
The aim of the game is to find and rescue a missing person in the city. In an unusually emancipated manner for early computer games, the player can either play the hero to save the girl, or the heroine who saves the boy.
Once the person to be rescued has been found, they must be brought safely out of the city. It automatically follows the character in two steps, either behind or next to him. It jumps in the same way as the character controlled directly by the player, so that he controls both characters at the same time, which increases the level of difficulty when moving quickly or when climbing in the ruins.
If the person to be rescued runs into an obstacle, he or she stops and does not follow the player any further, so that he has to return to pick them up again. Often this requires a short fight against the pursuing ants, which the delay gave them the chance to catch up.
Despite the availability of HE shells that can be targeted at various distances, fleeing, dodging, and jumping are the best tactics against ants. Aiming with grenades is difficult, there is the risk that the grenades hit obstacles and blow up yourself or the person to be rescued. In addition, the giant ants get reinforcements from their anthill in the center of the ruined city every time the player kills ants, so that they can only get a short respite.
Although the slot machine game Zaxxon , an isometric scrolling shoot 'em up game, offered an isometric representation shortly before Ant Attack , Zaxxon did not have the three degrees of freedom of a real 3D game.
Web links
- Ant Attack at MobyGames (English)