Previous Next

When the demons of Octan were destroyed, everyone rejoiced at the demise of the most cruel and evil rulers the universe had ever known. Unfortunately, one of them escaped destruction, and plans to destroy all sentient life. A brave young pilot is charged with the mission to travel the eight planes of the planet and destroy this evil threat.

As your craft journeys over the vertically scrolling landscape, the demon's henchmen maker their presence felt. These are dealt with by a swift jab on the laser button while inanimate obstacles need to be exploded by missiles.

Shooting silos reveals lettered icons. When collected, these endow your craft with extra weapons, points and bonus lives.

At the end of each level you encounter one of the demon's mammoth servants. Survive to the end of the eighth stage and you meet the Demon of Octan himself.

Joysticks: Kempston
Graphics: unexceptional monochrome
Sound: mostly spot effects
Options: definable keyboard

'Mediocrity is the name of this very average, shoot-'em-up from Firebird's budget label, Silverbird. Tedium begins to set in almost as soon as you start playing. The demonic minions swarming around the player's craft are well-drawn, but the turgid control method, coupled with the slow rate of fire, soon kills any enthusiasm that might be lurking at the back of your mind. The budget sector of the market has come up with some great games. Unfortunately for Joe Public, this isn't one of them.'

'Despite its rather bland name, Octan turns out to be a fairly good quality smooth-scrolling shoot-'em-up. The green background is rather garish with a particularly nasty pattern of rectangles that looks like a very naff brand of wallpaper. Gameplay is reminiscent of Xevious but the extra bonus icon feature demands thoughtful play rather than mindless violence. The caterpillar-like aliens at the end of each level are neat, but the fast and furious action gets repetitive after a while. Shoot-'em-up fans looking for some cheap fun should enjoy it.'