Planet Lander!
Description
Planet Lander! is a Lunar Lander variant. The player has to land the ship on as many planets as possible with a given amount of fuel. To land, the player has to adjust the ship to be in a vertical position, nose up, with the X and Y gauges green when it touches the landing pad. Landing at any other place of the planet's surface, or with the X or Y gauges red, or with the ship not vertical will result in a crash landing. Flying off-screen will restart the level, but with less fuel. Each new planet is more challenging, with higher gravity force and eventually a smaller landing pad.
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Average score: 2.8 out of 5 (based on 4 ratings with 1 reviews)
The Good
Apparently this cartridge-based game is only 2KB in size, yet for such a small program it does a lot. Random hills and valleys are generated, your little lander swivels left and right, and has a small orange rocket flame when you hit the thrust button. The graphics are quite presentable for a late 70s game console. Sound effects are the usual 8-bit beeps and bloops. The display gives X and Y coordinate speeds, and after a successful landing, the gravity level increases for the next planet.
The game is challenging but not overly so; I found after a few crashes that I am able to land on the first planet most of the time and often land on the second planet successfully.
Considering this is a homebrew game, the production values are very good. The glossy cart label and instruction manual look like they were produced by the original Magnavox factory. Unlike other O2 homebrews I own, this cart even had the metal sliding door intact on the cartridge.
The Bad
About the only negative is that the games did not come with a box or case. I tucked the label into the cover of an old VHS tape shell; although not as slick as a nicely made cardboard box, I certainly do understand that making professional quality boxes is a huge hassle and expense, so I can live without that.
The Bottom Line
Fun, challenging, and a worthy addition to your Odyssey 2 collection.
Odyssey 2 · by Bruce Clarke (60) · 2014
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Game added by chirinea.
Game added August 15, 2012. Last modified February 22, 2023.