RoboCop

The Good
In 1987, we were introduced to RoboCop – a man/machine hybrid who cleans up crime in Old Detroit and hunts down a gang of cop killers who were responsible for the death of Alex Murphy. Like many of its arcade ports of the time, Ocean's version is based on the coin-op of the same name; and although the version did not feature the blood and gore that was present in the movie, it still sold enough copies.

The majority of the game deals with RoboCop moving from left to right, shooting down thugs and defeating a series of bosses at the end of each level, including various versions of ED-209. There are several weapons on offer, with the best one being the flame thrower. This weapon can take out a group of thugs in one shot, and is more effective against the bosses.

There is one scene in the movie where RoboCop is at the shooting range, and two of the levels deal with this part. You have to shoot as many targets as you can before the time limit expires. Not found anywhere in the movie are “identikit” scenes, also to be also completed under the time limit. If you fail to complete your objective, you still proceed to the next part; you just won't get the bonus points.

Although the character sprites look smaller then its arcade counterpart, they look far better than its 8-bit cousins. There is sampled speech heard during the game. The one that I remember most is when RoboCop lists his primary directives when the title screen is displayed. There is also sampled speech in the other versions, but there is very little of it.

The music is good, and corresponds with the action scenes in the original movie. The tune that plays at the very start of the game is enjoyable to listen to, as with the tune when you engage in target practice.

The Bad
The background music is the same in each level, and there is this annoying five-second melody when you fight bosses. Also, I was sure that when fighting one of the ED-209s it suddenly walked off the edge of the screen for no apparent reason and I was unable to continue with the game.

The Bottom Line
Those that own a basic Amiga should have no problem running RoboCop, and they should be delighted that not only does the Amiga version remains faithful to the coin-op version, but it is much better than any other conversion. Except with the addition of the “identikit” scenes, the game blends well with the events of the movie. One thing I found strange is the way RoboCop can use a variety of weapons that he doesn't use in the movie.