Crossbow Reviews

7800 Rank: 7th Genre Rank: (Action/ Adventure) 5th Awards: 9th Best Graphics, 7th Best Sound, 5th Best Interpretation With Monsters Named George and Ralph, How Can You Go Wrong? Pros: Fast Gameplay Cons: This Game Has Been Ported to Death Finally, Those Noisy Neighbors will Get Theirs

Overview: Imagine having a really bad day at work then coming home only to find bills have come in the mail...etc. You need some stress relief. Activision must have heard because here is one of the greatest releases to this console. Rampage puts you in the shoes or feet as it were of your favorite monster type in an all out Rampage to tear up, destroy, and eat the hapless humans in the greatest cities of the world! Fun stuff!

Graphics: Now this is something that Activision could always do well. They could always make the games look the best with the limiting hardware they had to deal with. The graphics in this game simply rock! The arcade version features multiple background scenery, different types of buildings, vehicles, water, and of course helicopters buzzing around like that scene at the end of King Kong. I am very happy to report that Activision kept it all intact on the 7800! The backgrounds change, the buildings aren't all the same height, water, vehicles and plenty of humans to eat. The 7800 really struts its Maria architecture here. While the graphics in the 7800 version aren't nearly as colorful or detailed as the arcade they are incredibly well done. The animation given to the monsters and other sprites on screen are simply terrific and fun to watch (I especially like it when you stand still and look all angry and such. Although the mouth movement as you munch on the helpless victims is pretty cool too!) Only gripe with the graphics would be that some of the objects in the windows do not look quite like they should and some items can be confused with each other. This can make it difficult sometimes to know if something is safe to eat or not. These become minor issues however once you actually start playing the game and get used to it rather quickly.

Sound: Sound is something else that Activision could always make excellent use of with the limiting hardware given (like the graphics). Rampage doesn't feature any special pokey chips in it...but you almost wouldn't know it! That's right, there are so many different sounds here I really don't know where to begin. For starters there is an opening musical tune...that isn't half bad. Everything in the game seems to have a very distinctive sound. Tanks rumble along, trolleys ring a bell, and the helicopters rotors are even convincing. Many of the sounds are supposed to sound like other things like the screaming from a woman in the window. Sadly they don't...but at least there is something there that lets you know that a woman or man has shown up ready to be eaten! There are really convincing explosions when buildings are demolished or when you eat something you shouldn't. And they even included the buzzing sound when you eat the TVs or toasters. I really can't find a problem with the sound in this game other than maybe the fact that most of the gunfire and tank artillery is the same. I however, really don't notice while playing the game since the other sounds are so complete.

Gameplay: This is another area where this game shines. It is very easy to play while not being too easy to master. Basically you select one of three monsters to play. You can choose from the Lizard (Godzilla wannabe), Ape (Kong wannabe), or the Wolf man (were there any giant werewolves ever?). Whichever you choose to be makes no difference in the game other than the variety to be something different. Still they each have their own semi unique animations and are very well detailed. The basic idea is to trash the city scene completely by demolishing the buildings while trying to stay alive for as long as possible. You have a health bar which depletes naturally at a very slow rate. However, your health can be brought down quickly from several dangers you have to dodge in each scene like soldier gunfire, helicopter fire, tank artillery, and even from eating things you shouldn't. Control is easy to learn also as you control you monster with the joystick and use one button to punch, grab, and eat while the other button is used to jump. There is a little bit of difficulty in trying to control where you punch at times but the initial frustration wears off quickly once you get used to it. You can keep your health up by eating soldiers and other items that will appear in the building windows throughout the course of the level (lots of fun!).

Interpretation: Activision has done it again proving once again that they could always program a better game. All the monsters are avail to play. All the food from what I can tell is present. All the enemies are present. Activision even left in the trolleys and the cop car and cabs that you can smash! Minus the scaled down graphics this is the same Rampage you loved to play in the arcade.

Value: This will be a mixed thing for some people. I find the game so refreshing to play that I can find that "Zone" on this one and play it for hours never getting tired. Also in true arcade fashion you can have a buddy jump in at anytime during the game to help with the destruction. Just don't hit each other in the process (unless of course this is intended...). The buildings change in their layouts and colors adding in some variety to the scenery. Plus as you progress further and further the enemies will start to come out fast and furious with gunfire showering the screen from all over. I have seen so much activity in this game at times that is has actually had some slowdowns while playing! However, in all fairness I could see how some people might find Rampage too monotonous after a while since the game essentially never changes. Once you and your buddy destroy one city then your off to another and another...etc. However, the scenes continue to change in a random order and I still like any game where I can play the bad guy and have fun.

Overall: I would have to say this game simply rocks! If you can find it grab it. There is lots to do in the game and it is a blast being able to be the bad guys for once. The addition of two players at once just adds to the fun. Be warned however as this cart usually will set you back a few due to rarity. A shame as this game should be in every 7800 owners library.



Other reviews of Rampage for the Atari 7800 on the net:
CV's Atari 7800 Panoramic Froo-Froo: 4.5 out of 5.0 (Excellent)
The Atari Times: 7 out of 10



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