Robotron: 2084

Years before anybody had ever heard of Smash TV or Total Carnage, there was a small arcade game called Robotron: 2084. Sure it had crude graphics, but like Smash TV, Robotron: 2084 was an addictive action game that introduced the world to the dual joystick shooter. Now the game can be yours on the Atari Lynx, and while it doesn't have the same amazing gameplay from the original, it is still a worthwhile addition to anybody's game library.

This game is fast. It's fast almost to a fault. You run around trying to shoot EVERYTHING and dodge EVERYTHING. Sure it sounds basic, but it's also more fun than you're likely to have on the system, or any other portable for that matter. In fact, as an adaptation this game works. As an update, no, I don't think so ... but it works wonders as an emulation of the arcade game!

The play control is pretty tight, and the graphics, which aren't detailed, run through the system at lightning speed! If this game was on the Game Boy it would have been about half the speed. But for a Lynx game I am truly impressed with how well this game runs and handles. I didn't even detect a single slowdown!

And it's hard, too. This game is extremely difficult. You will be coming back time and time again just to see if you can get farther. It is here that the problems arise. The game really isn't all that complex, each level is basically a carbon copy of the last. That's not to say they don't get more difficult, oh, because they do, trust me on that, it's just that the game doesn't change at all.

But it's filled with tons of replay, and it's one of the most fun portable games, period. If you own a Lynx, you simply have to own Robotron: 2084.