Star Wars (ZX Spectrum)

That's not a bad title screen at all for a ZX Spectrum game I think. Though the Death Star in the background looks more like a giant sinister R2D2 to me.

Ah, this is a port of the 1983 arcade game then.

I was hoping it'd be something unique to the ZX Spectrum that I'd never seen before, but I'm curious now to see how this runs.

This is actually pretty close to the arcade version.

I can't exactly steer or fly around. I just move the cursor and shoot the TIE Fighters as they fly past. Well mostly I shoot the 'fireballs' that are fired at me from the TIEs before they hit my fighter and blow me up.

Star Wars (Arcade)

The arcade original looks pretty similar (it even has the same colours), though it's more detailed. Plus it runs much slicker and has music and voice clips from the film.

That was fast. I just blow up a couple of enemy fighters and I'm already flying off to the climax of the movie.

Yeah, this is definitely the Death Star trench run. I just shoot more fireballs and try not to fall asleep.

Star Wars (Arcade)

It's still identical in gameplay to the arcade version. That can't have been easy for the programmers to pull off on the humble ZX Spectrum.

I fire my torpedo down the exhaust port and...

Boom, the Death Star is destroyed! I fly back to base for tea and medals, and the movie ends.

Huh, what? I'm back at the start of the battle again. Where's my happy ending?

This is slightly different though. After getting past the TIE Fighter section I flew to the surface of the Death Star to shoot vague red boxes on a field of green dots. Plus the fireballs, of course.

But then I'm back on the trench run again.


And the Death Star is destroyed, once more! I fly back to base, triumphant.

What, is this Groundhog day or something?

This time there's a yellow tower shooting section before the trench run. I'm not doing very well at it to be honest, I keep flying into towers.

Fantastic! It's over, I don't have to play anymore. I can finally leave this damn Death Star battle.

This game just doesn't want me to ever stop blowing up Death Stars. But I'm done with it.


Next game.