Game Review: Robo Knight (Commodore 16 and Plus/4, Americana)

For a label more known for re-releases of older games, especially those of US Gold, seeing Robo Knight in the shops was a pleasant surprise – a game that had not been released before, and indeed, something nice looking for the Commodore 16 and Plus/4 owners.  In effect, you are Robo Knight, and you need to explore the castle which has thirty-two rooms, and some with upper and lower levels within the room to traverse. You will need to locate fifteen magical shields, which will then unlock the castle exit, leading you to try and locate the sword of power to complete the game.

Platform Perils

In effect, the game is a good-sized platform game for the system, with the use of ladders to get you up to the upper levels of some of the castle, and there are doors (press up to go through doors) and little recesses in the ground, handily coloured, which indicates you can press down to go through those doors.  Fire will jump, or climb up the ladder, and there are plenty of obstacles along the way, such as moving platforms you need to time your run on, spiky plants which you cannot jump over (so the way is blocked), drills in green which you need to time your run under to avoid death, as well as stepping stones to get over water where some precise jumping will be required.

You Are the Robot

The main robo knight character is well drawn – however one thing you will note is during movement the arms of the robot move from side to side, but not much else – especially when jumping.  This is offset by the fact that despite the system not having hardware sprites, the main character blends well with the background as if it was hardware, and that is impressive.  Colour is also well used here with the castle interior walls and platforms being well defined, and you can tell what everything is.  There is a real sense of exploration as you view the different screens too, and graphically, all looks impressive.

I’m the King of the Castle

Mapping out the game is an absolute must – primarily because, apart from the three lives that you have, there is also a time limit as well which you need to navigate.  Even though there will be some back tracking to get back to where you were to locate some more shields, speed and accuracy is of the essence here. Learning a sensible route is key, especially as some of the shields do require some jumping to get to them.  In one room, you need to fall on to a moving platform at the right time so you can then head to a ladder to get across the room, not that easy, but very satisfying indeed once you have mastered it.

As you progress through the game, and collect more shields, the path to some of them can be more difficult.  In one room you need to head through darkness to be able to get to the exit out, and that can take some practice.  Another has both an up and down exit in the same place, with a shield in between, so be sure not to miss that one along the way.  The up and down exits make sense when mapping the castle out, with your start location top left and the castle exit bottom right, and the key is not to miss a shield along the way with the time limit.   There is not much sound to speak of, a noise when you collect a shield and one when you lose a life – and that is all.  However, this was probably to get the large map and graphics into the available memory, which is understandable.

Three Lives and You’re Out

Losing a life can be easy, and sometimes quick too.  If you miss a stepping stone and fall into the blue water, that is a loss of life.  Similarly, hitting any of the green drills or the spiky plants results in the same loss of life too.  Without realising it you can start a screen again from respawn point and make the same mistake straight away – possibly one enhancement might have been a few seconds of invulnerability to get you back up and running.  With only three lives and no extras, you really do have to concentrate well as you progress.  Thankfully, jumping is pretty accurate and movement is responsive, so that does feel more like you are in control and can carefully plot your escape well.

Final Thoughts

Robo Knight on the Commodore 16 and Plus/4 is a well programmed platform game that with its thirty-two screens of action, and upper and lower levels of platform on each, really does pose a good sizeable challenge.  The impressive main character is one thing, but being able to explore well with some accurate jumping and movement really does add to the playability.  You do get further each time, and with the time limit being paramount, you really do need to have your wits about you as you explore.  This was the author Peter Bartlett’s second and final game on the system, and a shame that he did not produce more, because this is a quality game and no mistake.

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