Hard to say if Jeff Minter actually likes his latest release, which returns to his long-ago success with mutant llamas. But I’m having a hell of time with it.
Minotron: 2112 is Minter’s iPhone remake of the 1991 Atari ST game Llamatron: 2112, which is a remake of Robotron: 2084, which is merely the greatest arcade game of all time. Many home versions of Robotron tried and failed to capture the thrill of the original, and Llamatron hardly seemed like the answer with an assortment of modifications and “extras” such as shooting toilets and a “final boss” based on a particle algorithm.
Except we’re talking about Jeff Minter, who for gamers outside the U.S. is God.
The Brit created his kingdom with a bunch of ’80s titles like Revenge of the Mutant Camels and Iridis Alpha that were outlandish interpretations of hit games, yet incredibly well programmed and fun. But he was forsaken in the land of freedom fries, where the people spurned subsequent works such as Tempest 2000 (the Atari Jaguar’s only decent game) and Space Giraffe for the Xbox. So he brought down his wrath upon them, proclaiming his vengeance in the quote above.
His first “shite” game for the iPhone was released a few months ago. Minotaur Rescue is basically the love child of Asteroids and Space War during an acid-induced coupling. It’s not radically different than the typical neo-retro hyper space shooter except for the mooing, minotaurs, and tanks and obstacles from the Atari VCS’ Combat (many other elements from the cartridge icon to the pixelated asteroids are also VCS inspired).
His promise of a Llamatron remake was far more enticing, although even I had doubts about his trying to convert it to the iPhone’s tiny display and touch-screen controls.
No worries. Minter’s invention is so amazingly amazing I’d like to… (true fans of his probably know the rest of that sentence).
Those familiar with the old ST shareware version (also released for the Amiga and PC-DOS) know it retains Robotron’s basic look and frenetic pace. At least as important is it also bombards us with those awesome Williams Electronics sounds in abundance. Your protagonist (a genetic-error enhanced llama) rapid-fires automatically, alleviating most of the problems of a single-joystick home setup, although a dual-joystick option exists for players wanting it. It’s possible, at least for a bit, to play it largely as a straight-up Robotron conversion where the characters look different and waves with featured elements like tanks don’t cycle in the same manner as the arcade.
That’s aside from the misplaced sound of bleating llamas and visual oddity of rescued creatures following you obediently around the screen, not to mention grunts resembling an assortment of things from Coke cans to Rizla cigarette papers. And, after a bit, that 16-ton anvil that crushes you when you pass beneath it.
Minotron is largely the same game 21 years later, but an improvement in some ways even with the iPhone’s tiny screen. You’re a minotaur instead of a llama, which is no big deal except the character is more easily recognized in the crowded playfield. Virtual “dual-stick” controls are used in three of the four game options, with a “simplified” variety offering single-stick movement. Visual effects, power-ups and overall smoothness of gameplay are also enhanced from the original.
Those with any familiarity at all with the game should know by now it’s a must-have (indeed, why are you still reading this?). For everyone else, let’s take a breath and do a brief walk through the experience.
The title screen is straight from Intellivision, one of countless homages in Minotron to the earliest eras of videogaming. The “info” icon, where the game-volume setting is also located, offers essays by Minter about Llamasoft and the resurrection of such creations with his current Minotaur Project. While not going off on another tirade, they’re blunt, witty and substantial in content instead of the typical self-serving hype that insults the intelligence of readers. (If you enjoy them, his many writings at the Llamasoft site – http://minotaurproject.co.uk – are at least as entertaining.)
The four play options include: 1) Normal; 2) Assisted, where drone helps by drifting around the screen and shooting, but you don’t get as many power-ups to boost your own abilities; 3) Hard, where the number and types of power-ups are limited; and 4) Simplified, where aiming and firing are automatic, and things are easier in general. But you pay a big price for the last option, starting with only one minotaur instead of the usual three.
The first time you’ll obviously be starting anew, but you can subsequently resume games in the best position you had at the end of any given wave. That means if you had four lives and 40,000 points at the end of wave 10, but lost all but one life by the end of wave 11, you can choose to restart at 10 and greatly increase your chances of progressing farther into the game. It’s also a blessing for clodhoppers wanting to start Simplified games with more than one life, which they’ll probably be able to do after a few tries.
The Simplified version controls and plays well, and is ideal for novices and those just wanting to progress to later waves quickly to see all the nonsense included. The dual-stick controls in the other modes are good, not great, for the often-precise movements necessary in tight spaces. Your initial firepower is also a bit less intense than Robotron’s, contributing to a slight feeling of sluggishness. Not to imply the game is sluggish, as so many home ports of Robotron are. It’s definitely as fast and furious as the original, although mercifully (IMHO, at least) there’s less tendency to start a wave amidst a nearly impossible cluster of enemies to escape.
Robotron purists who have to have the exact thing won’t be satisfied since a number of key enemies such as Hulks and Enforcers don’t have equivalents in Minotron. The types of enemies in Minotron are far more varied in appearance and behavior, and of course Robotron doesn’t have power-ups that do things like boost firepower and smart bomb all enemies on a screen. I normally dislike the psychedelic graphics flourishes that cloy so many retro remakes, but Minter keeps it within the limits of good taste (seemingly out of character for a guy providing ecstasy tablets as one of the power-ups in his games).
Minotron isn’t perfect, primarily because I wish the controls were a tad more responsive. It also won’t be everyone’s cup of tea due to its deviations and retro-era gameplay. But overall it combines to recapture the finest qualities of Robotron and Minter better than I ever expected, and deserves a rare ranking among the true classics of the retro remake genre.
Mark Sabbatini
Minotron by Llamasoft Ltd.
$1.99
Category: Fixed shooter
Language: English
Requires: iOS 3.0 or later
Rated: 9+ for Infrequent/Mild Profanity or Crude Humor, and Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
Size: 7.9 MB
