Hunter

The Good
Targ is an addictive game where the object is to go around a grid destroying eight wedges with your laser before they ram into you. It never made its way onto home systems, so it was up to game companies to create clones for them. One such company was Terminal Software, who released Hunter for the Commodore 64. In Terminal’s version of the game, the wedges are referred to as RoboShips, and there are six of them. They also go around in a 6x6 grid.

I like the way these RoboShips travel around the grid slowly in the first few levels. Not only do they eventually speed up the further you progress, they chase you around the maze as well, and that is when accurate firing is essential. When you shoot a projectile, the sound effect that plays gets louder as it makes its way across the screen, which is a nice touch. The graphics are on par with Exidy’s arcade game.

I got better and better with each game. I could just take my time getting through the first few screens, but I had to keep moving in the later ones. Also, if there are three or more RoboShips in a straight line, I had to fire immediately as soon as I killed the first one. Not that I care, but you can “score-attack” this way; your last three scores are listed on the start-up screen. Below this are the controls you need to use.

The Bad
The developers made no effort of adding a tape loading screen or putting the title elsewhere. Also, the game is awkward to control with the keyboard, and there is no two-player support.

The Bottom Line
Despite the lack of a loading screen and two-player support, as well as the unusual keyboard controls, Hunter is a very good clone of Targ. It also has a built-in attract mode that activates if you leave the game idle for a few seconds. The graphics and sound effects are excellent, and you will get better the more times you play it. If you enjoyed playing Exidy’s game in the arcades, Hunter is worth a go.