| Introduction
The Star X engine was another of those much publicised
graphical demos that did the rounds in the early days
of the GBA and it took some time to actually find a
home. BAM! Entertainment eventually snapped up the rights
and so began the process of turning eye candy into some
sort of playable title. We have, however, seen this
all go wrong on several occasions before with a title
sporting cutting edge technology but lacking in gameplay.
Has Star X suffered the same fate? Read on and see...
GamePlay
Star X features two basic modes of play while you
flee from the Karask - one on the Ground and the other
in Space. The ground-based levels dominate most of the
game and feature two missions in each of the many environments.
The first of these simply requires you to complete it
with both health and ship intact whilst the second features
some type of heavily armed ship, which must be defeated.
The Space levels are free roaming and you're supplied
with Radar in the bottom left corner of the screen.
They include more mission-based tasks such as destroying
all mines or a Mother ship before the timer runs out.
There are bonus items everywhere and the first rule
of survival is 'collect everything' as although they
offer very different power ups they're all important.
The first type are shield replenishment and it's essential
that all of these are collected or you'll find yourself
battling it out with the end of level boss with a very
weak ship. Others include various weapons upgrades and
missing these will make destroying things a lot more
difficult and time consuming. This is because they not
only become more powerful but also more intelligent
so picking up the various homing missiles is essential
for mission success.
Controls
Considering you're flying around a 3D environment
the control system is surprisingly easy to handle. This
is mainly due to the fact that weapons are selected
automatically and this aspect alone makes the button
layout a great deal easier to interface with. Your ship
is also incredibly responsive and, initially at least,
you tend to over steer and may end up missing bonus
items and, just as importantly, enemies firing at you.
If this seems a little complicated you'll also find
a 'Practice Mode' in the options, which not only allows
you to sample the various gaming aspects but also gives
your ship invulnerability.
Graphics
Although you do get some wonderful still images when
you switch over to Story Mode most of the title is dominated
with vectors and even the title screen is reflective
of this style. This all works reasonably well and you've
got to keep in mind that everything on screen is constructed
from complicated mathematical polygons which really
is quite impressive considering it's running on a handheld
system. The last time I can recall seeing anything even
remotely like this was Steel Talons released at the
beginning of the 1990s on the now defunct Atari LYNX.
It all runs at a fair old pace too and even when there's
a lot of action going on at once and all makes for a
pleasing visual experience.
Sound & Music
As soon as you see the first screens you're greeted
with a booming soundtrack, which wouldn't be out of
place in the latest Sci-Fi blockbuster. Things calm
down a little in game but the music and sound effects
playing together can be a little confusing so it's better
to choose one or the other. The sound affects themselves
are really quite impressive and consist of the usual
mixture of lasers and explosions. I wouldn't even suggest
headphones as the sound pumps out of the GBA's tiny
speaker at an incredible volume although there's a good
chance that this will annoy everyone else around you.
Final Comments
Obviously as text under the sticker on the back of
the box suggests, a multiplayer option was at some time
considered but eventually dropped. This is a real shame,
as it would have added some much needed longevity to
an otherwise rather short gaming experience. What is
here is good but it never really elevates above that
and the developers have obviously spent a great deal
more time on tweaking the graphics engine rather than
constructing immersive and rewarding gameplay. It's
still a unique and worthy addition to any serious GBA
collection and hopefully when the engine is next implemented
the design will take a back-seat to the gameplay.
|
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