BiffMan

Unofficial standings after The Game That Shall Not Be Named (just trying to help out in case Jacob is busy with Life Stuff) (HIGH SCORES) 1. 394,300 cparsley [+11] 2. 310,800 jblenkle [+10] 3. 298,300 JacobZu7zu7 [+9] 4. 256,600 cmadruga [+7] 5. 208,800 JasonlikesINTV [+6] 6. 149,900 BiffMan [+5] 7. 117,100 Ace24 [+4] 8. 95,500 gezkc [+3] 9. 55,100 fakecortex [+2] 10. 47,400 ed1475 [+1] 11. 14,400 dpisicane [+1] 12. 12,600 wolfy62 [+1] Rankings (through game 8 ) 1. BiffMan [+65] 2. gezkc [+60] 3. JacobZu7zu7 [+41] 4. JasonlikesINTV [+39] 5. cmadruga [+38] 6. IntyFanMatt [+37] 7. mr_me [+35] 8. wolfy62 [+34] 9. dpisicane [+24] 9. cparsely [+24] 11. Player One [+22] 12. Ace24 [+19] 13. jblenkle [+16] 14. fakecortex [+15] 15. m-crew [+13] 16. Intelligentleman [+12] 17. Intellfan [+10] 18. hoosierdadee78 [+7] 19. roadrunner [+4] 19. ed1475 [+4] 21. S.BAZ [+3] 22. t0spmad [+2] 22. Mister-VCS [+2]

Easiest way to track if there's an invis enemy in a given column is to try to shoot the top 2 enemies. If there are invis bottom 2 enemies in the way, you'll know when you kill them. 🙂 Strategy shouldn't change with invis, just extra burden to keep track whether you've hit them or not. It'll be way less chaotic if you stay methodical in your approach just like any other level. It sounds so easy, right? Just kill all the enemies on each level before they touch down, and you'll be fine. 🙂

Wow, wow, WOW!!! You win the endurance award for sure! 165 lives left! That reminds me of Astrosmash… once you get into the groove and are sustainable, you can play as long as you like. Even though I hate to play, I guess I should go back and try direct drive. I didn't think it was survivable once stuff starts getting fast, but you certainly disproved that notion! 🙂

Nicely done! This screen brings up an interesting question: What the hell are you doing?? 🙂 Seriously, this might be key to helping you. I see all 8 columns still intact and almost none of the bottom row. You *must* kill off columns first and foremost to slow down how rapidly the enemies march down on you. It's totally fine to leave that bottom row along until they're 1 layer above your shields. Pick a side (I prefer right) and then take out one column at a time. Even at that level, you should be able to get 2-3 columns before they march down a 3rd time.

A few tips: Get the into the rhythm of the game. Time that first shot before a new wave of enemies appears and start off with an immediate hit. Perfection is holding down the fire button and never missing. That's not terribly sustainable, but that's what you're striving for. You'll lose from enemy touchdown 95% of the time, so feel free to take chances with your extra ships. Stare down that bullet bullet so you can get that extra shot in before you move. Holding the disc right or left when spawning will place you under that side's shield. Careful, you'll also likely be in motion. Real time saver getting back to work on the lead column Formation width is the real enemy here. Work in columns and don't kill off the bottom row guys too quickly. The fewer enemies, the faster they go and that can make the difference between clearing another column before they hit the edge. *Shooting into a shield can kill an enemy on the row right above the shield. When you need to clean up the bottom row, do so from the comfort of your shields when possible. The shield damage you do with a shot or two is negligible. If your shields are getting munchy, dawdle at the end of the level and try to get a saucer or three to regen your shields. Saucers are also a significant source of points (from 1-32 times levelx10) Practice mode!!! If you weren't aware, if you hit enter at the end of a game, then select practice mode (2), you'll get to replay that last level again. That can be a great way to dial-in your strategy and timing for the more difficult levels. Invisible enemies are the real killer in this game. Visualize where they are and don't lose track. Know where the edges are and visualize the movement even when there's nothing to see. If you see your shields getting munched on by nothing, you are about to lose, kill it quickly! Something really cool happens with saucers later on in the game. Try to get there. 🙂

Yep, it's a thing! That's what I was referring to about forgetting how the saucers behave on higher rounds. If you can survive the two full invis levels, the game still has some fun curves to throw at you... I love how often Intellivision game designers put in content that 90% of people probably never saw. Need more of that these days. 🙂

It's definitely a rhythm game as much as anything. Since those aliens are so big, you really can't afford to miss, so it becomes a matter of stick-and-move with the fire button held down on a good run. Dawdling at the end of a level for saucers to repair bunkers is helpful, but the real choke point are those 2 full invis levels. Real easy to lose track of what's left. Definitely interesting in as much as its a game you rarely lose due to running out of lives.

It was a good run. 🙂 Although if you look at that screenshot you can see what an unsatisfying end that was. One miss-timed shot into the bunker or I'd have had a whole new level. I'd completely forgotten how the saucers behave later on, that was fun to see again 🙂

I quite enjoyed my game, I just feel very little need to play it again. Definitely needs a little something extra in the later game.

63,050

Had fun, but that's enough of that... 🙂 534,780 disc, auto fire, drift, quick, Flashback controller, jzintv It's good to play this once every 35+ years to remind myself why I only play this once every 35+ years...

There's also an app for that... 🙂 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mow.droidtower

Yes. Weirdo. 😁

It may have taken him longer than anticipated. I don't think we've had a leaderboard update that includes The Game That Shall Not Be Named yet, so there's a couple to catch up on.

That is absolutely the key to success. That and being able to visualize them based on speed after they start going invis on you. Also, invis + smart bombs = excitement! 🙂

Haven't played this in a while, but always enjoyed it BITD!

Interesting that sale in 1982 at what is the boom time... You can already feel the wheels about to come off due to an overloaded market.

Thumb still blistered 🙂

It's every bit as much fun as it looks. Expansions added jumps and loops and such, but the core game mechanic is really satisfying.

If you do manage to sort out how to translate the experience to a video game, that also opens up the whole universe of 'dexterity' games like Catacombs, Pitch Car, and others. Would love to see all of those! Catacombs https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/195137/catacombs-third-edition Pitch Car https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/150/pitchcar

Oh, I'm absolutely pressing harder than I need to. It's the bit about *not* pressing hard that's tricky. 🙂

Absolutely! HSC is going to make me track down replacement controllers (or thumbs) before long... Damn you, @JacobZu7zu7 !! 😂

Yeah, I wasn't kidding when I said this game blistered my thumb, but my disc thumb, not my firing thumb. I used to have a significant callous there, but have apparently grown soft with age.

The different options in this are impressive. Another forgotten game development idea: let the audience decide how to play! If you're on the fence in testing about whether to go with drifting or direct thrust, why not leave both in? 🙂 That said, anyone who doesn't play in drift mode is a masochist. 🙂

I don't have an issue using pause. Glad it's there as a feature.