Starstrike II

Starstrike II is the sequel to the vector-based space action game Starstrike by Realtime Games Software, delivering smoother and more elaborate three-dimensional battles in open space and above the surface of alien planets. The player pilots a fighter rendered in filled wireframe 3D graphics, destroying enemy ships and attacking ground bases and their defense towers, with seamless switching between free flight through space and attacks on specific targets rendered as three-dimensional objects that had to be circled and hit from an advantageous angle. The pace shifted between missions, from slower exploration to hectic firefights against entire groups of enemy craft.

This fully filled three-dimensional graphics running in real time was a remarkable technical feat on the ZX Spectrum — the game managed to render rotating bodies and scenery in a way that was far from a given on eight-bit hardware in the mid-1980s and demanded considerable optimization from the programmers. Color gradients in the sky and the simple but functional aesthetic of the metallic ships gave the game a convincing sense of space despite the austerity of the available palette, and the player could plan in advance which targets to focus fire on during an attack run.

At release, Starstrike II was valued mainly as a showcase of the Spectrum's technical capabilities and ranked among the titles that pushed the boundaries of what was expected from 3D graphics on eight-bit machines. Thanks to this title and its predecessor Starstrike, Realtime Games Software built a reputation as a studio specializing in three-dimensional space action. Today it's interesting mainly as a historical record of the ambitions of British programmers in the mid-1980s, who experimented with fully-fledged three-dimensional action on limited hardware instead of the more common flat scrolling shooter formulas.

Why play: More for those interested in the history of technology than the average player — as evidence of British programmers' ambition to experiment with fully-fledged 3D space action on eight-bit hardware.