C&VG


River Rescue

Publisher: Creative Sparks
Machine: Atari 400

 
Published in Computer & Video Games #34

River Rescue

Rescuing lost scientists from a hidden jungle is the idea of this game. But despite the title, there's no sign of any jungles in the game, except a river which makes the game very similar to Atari's River Raid.

You are the owner of the fastest powerboat around and you have been given the job of rescuing a group of scientists who have managed to get themselves lost in the depths of a jungle. You must navigate the river and pick up the scientists.

To do this, you move your boat through the river with the joystick. The screen scrolls sideways to show the river moving. You'll have to be careful, though, as there are corcodiles, logs and rocks in the water. If you hit any of these, then you lose one of your four lives. You are not allowed to crash the boat into the bank. If you do, then you'll also lose a life.

River Rescue

At the top of the screen is shown your score and the highest score so far. There are two small boxes at the bottom which tell you how many lives you have left. The game is for one or two players and you select this at the start.

As you travel along the river, you'll come across small jetties which stick out into the water. You can dock at a jetty by pulling up at the side of it.

If you dock at the top, then one scientist will hear you coming and will automatically climb into your boat. A small figure will also appear at the bottom of the screen to tell you that you have passengers on board.

River Rescue

Each time you dock, you can pick up more scientists, but you can only carry a maximum of nine at one time.

To gain the extra points, you have to release the scientists to their safety. You do this by docking at the bottom half of the jetty and they will then climb out. You get bonus points for each scientist you rescue.

You are not alone in your task, for there are rivals out to get you. Every so often, a rival helicopter will fly overhead. It will drop mines into the river in front of your craft and you must blow them up to avoid being hit.

You can also use the cannon on your boat to destroy the logs and crocodiles.

The more scientists you rescue, the more points you get. If you let off six or more at a jetty, a bonus pier will present itself.

If you manage to pilot the boat through it without crashing, then you'll get even more points.

I found this game very disappointing. It's very similar to River Raid, but nowhere near as good. It didn't hold my interest for very long.

The graphics are similar to River Raid, but the sound is not up to standard and it's just not very playable.