Game Review: Rockman (ZX Spectrum, Mastertronic)

The Challenges to Munching Mushrooms

You begin the game with 5 lives with the aim to eat all the mushrooms.  If you collect all of them, you’ll then progress onto the next level.

Obviously though, challenges are in the way and it’s not just a matter of always running through an area to avoid the enemy.  There is a timer counting down and some blocks must be strategically hit to open a safe passage.  An example being, if you hit a square on top of a skull, you can then fall and land on it rather than onto the skull beneath.  You’ll need to do that at the start of level C.  Naturally a well-timed hammer block will also kill a Vampac.

Password System for Levels Access

Rockman begins by asking the player if they want to input a code or press Space to start.  If you have a password to one of the 20 levels, you can therefore begin the game from that level (or whichever one you wish to re-play again.)  Nowadays, with search engines, you don’t have to worry about losing the piece of paper that you would probably have written these down on.

This is always a welcome feature to have in any game to have, saving a lot of time and frustration.

Graphics and Animation

The graphics are reasonable and each level is colourful (with no colour clash).

Although there are no visible ladders on the screen (instead, they are coloured vertical columns), I feel that this was a wise decision.  Onscreen ladders would have just made the screen look messy.  One thing I do like was when you step of a ladder (or is it perhaps a tunnel?), Rockman does a noise-dive down the screen (literally) until landing.  It is quite amusing to watch!

The Vampacs have two frames of animation, with their mouths opening and closing.  Unfortunately, there is too much disappearing and re-appearing for brief moments (even when in the same position on the screen) which slightly spoils it.

Playability

Now this game does move at a fair pace, and the controls are very responsive.  Sometimes, you may even run or move a bit further than you think but this isn’t a major issue. User friendliness is included too!  If you fall into an area and get trapped in a hole, you can re-start the same level and this doesn’t cost you a life.

Squashing the Vampacs is slightly tricky (and all part of the timing and fun) and if you do get one, they’ll re-spawn.  If a Vampac captures you or you fall onto a skull, you will lose a life.  One tip though is if you are about to get caught, you can just reset the level (but that’s cheating really!)

To collect a mushroom, you don’t have to walk into that part of the screen.  Facing towards it will also collect it for you if you are a square away, left or right.

Twenty Screens

Rockman has 20 screens, but they aren’t really named.  Instead, they range from being known as A all the way up to T.  I think a bit more imagination here with the screen names would have made it a bit better.

Music and Sound Effects

Once Rockman has loaded, you will hear a classical music rendition of Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik”.  This lasts around 27 seconds before a scrolling message explains how to play the game with a short sliding beeping noises as the text moves.

During the game, there are tapping and thud noises when running, high pitch noises if you land on a skull and a sharp pitched noise if you are hunted down by a Vampac.  Rather cleverly, the pitch of where you are on the screen changes the noise of when you move.  The higher up you are, the more higher pitched it is than lower down the screen when moving vertically.

When you appear on the screen to begin the level (or after losing a life), there is a repeating sound for a few seconds whilst Rockman starts to materialise onto the screen.  Should the countdown timer get to 10 or below, you will hear a short (descending in scale) beeping to alert you that you are about to run out of time and thus lose a life.  Completing a level also makes a long increasing pitched sound.

Final Thoughts

I would describe Rockman as having influences from three different games.  These being Lode Runner, Boulder Dash and Mr Do’s Castle all rolled into one.

The reason I say this is because, if you get trapped completely, there is a reset key to begin the level again if you get trapped (just like there is in Lode Runner).  Bricks to either push or avoid (instead of boulders in Boulder Dash) and also Mr. Do’s Castle (without the ball and chain) as you run around with a hammer hitting the squares below to try and hit the enemies on the head to squash them.

It works well!

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