Robotica

Robotica
Developer(s)	Micronet
Publisher(s)	Acclaim Entertainment (US) Sega (EU) & (JP)
Platform(s)	Saturn
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player

Robotica, also known as Robotica Cybernation Revolt in Europe, and Deadalus (ダイダロス) in Japan is a first-person shooter for the Sega Saturn in 1995.

Synopsis

It is the year 2877. In 2077, the world's peacekeeping unions, such as the United Nations and the European Union have collapsed after years of global tensions, forcing humanity to establish a planetary government in order to maintain order. A government operating as the World Silent Security Service, also known as the W.S.S.S., is established and world peace is restored. The WSSS takes control of both the planet Earth and outer space, establishing its headquarters on the Central Control Station Daedalus in earth orbit. The WSSS eradicates the control of all previous unions and organizations and unites the whole of humanity under its control for over 800 years. However, with all of its original creators gone by that point in time, humanity questioned the justification of Deadulus's rule, and some began to rebel against the government in the wake of its so-called Archaic policies. The leading rebel group in this massive rebellion, the Reformist Faction, sends three elite pilots of the highly sophisticated Laocorn-class Assault Robots on a covert mission to destroy Daedalus. Once inside, two Laocorns are immediately destroyed, leaving the one survivor, the player character, to face Daedalus' massive robot armies and transverse vast, dark corridors in his quest to destroy Daedalus and to save humanity.

Gameplay

The player has to fight through thirty floors of the Deadalus space station to reach their ultimate objective. For every floor of the station there are key cards in random locations, each one required in order for the player to advance to the next stage. Few missions require the player to seek and destroy a specific object such as the station's reactor cores. The player could download floor maps and turn on the lights to darkened areas, but none of which were required for progress.

The player's mech-armor, the Laocorn, is equipped with four different weapons and a generator that enables the mech to perform one of many abilities. The weapons consisted of an arm-punch, Vulcan, Laser gun and Missile launcher, each one being upgradable in power and ammunition count. There were certain kamikaze enemies that appeared on floors that the player stayed too long in that carried downgrade items that, if the player picked the item up, would degrade the upgrade of whichever weapon they were armed with at that time. The Laocorn's generator abilities included helpful options in otherwise harmful situations. The abilities included Hover allowing the mech to hover a few feet over energy grids, Re-Fresh which replenishes the mech's energy, Plasma Barrier which serves as a temporary shield and the Blaze Laser which destroys EVERY enemy on screen. Each ability consumed a certain level of generator energy which could be refilled through Generator pick-up items.

Reception

The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game a 7.125 average, describing it as one of the best first person shooters to date. They cited the graphics, storyline, and most especially the deep strategic approach to combat as the game's strong points, though some of the reviewers felt the levels had too little variation between them. In contrast, Sega Saturn Magazine gave the game a 70%, citing dull gameplay, monotonous visuals, lack of appropriate music, and absence of any gore, accessing it as a mediocre Doom clone.

In a retrospective, Hardcore Gamer said "Robtica's engine is underwhelming – even by the standards of its era – with an inconsistent frame rate that often drops to a sluggish slow-motion. It’s not the best-performing or looking game, and there are far superior shooters on the Saturn that fare better in visuals and performance."

External links

• Robotica at SegaSaturn.co.uk