1st July 1983
Secta Invaders is a BBC Micro version of the original "Invaders" arcade game. When loaded, a rather dull page of graphics is slowly drawn, and then a menu (spelt "menue" on the screen!) appears. The menu allows selection of a one- or two-player game, one of five skill levels, and other useful options.
The player may elect to use the keyboard or standard joysticks to play. If the keyboard is selected, two combinations of keys are available to suit left or right handed people. A key to the graphics may be called up and a high-score table can be read or written to tape.
Once the game is started, 64 invaders appear at the top of the screen. Waving their antennae and legs, these creatures crawl across the display, slowly descending. They drop two types of bomb - one fact, one slow - down the screen as the player manoeuvres a laser baser and shoots back at them. Irregularly a 'flying saucer' flies above the melee.
The invaders are all the same colour - blue on a black background. There are no colourful explosions but the graphics work well on a black-and-white screen. However, Secta Invaders is quite well written, using machine code to emulate all of the features of the arcade original.
The optional sound effects are different to the arcade game, but still good. It is annoying however to have to sit through ten seconds of whining and flashing after each laser is destroyed before another is ready for use. Overall though, Secta Invaders is well-produced and good value for money.
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