Premise
Drak, the last of the elite genetically enhanced super soldiers known as "Obliterators" has been sent on a suicide mission to stop an invincible ship full of hellish aliens from destroying the Federation's homeworld: Earth. To do this, the player must navigate Drak throughout the ship using his weapons and natural mobility.
Gameplay
Gameplay consists mostly of moving Drak around the ship via transporters and elevators in search of the four symbols that will allow you to destroy the alien ship and escape. Drak can jump, take cover, and make diving rolls to avoid enemies and obstacles. Enemies will remain stationary until Drak enters their immediate area, but they will fire projectiles that must be avoided regardless of Drak's location or proximity. Enemies respawn and mostly serve as stationary obstacles while their projectiles are being avoided. Drak has four weapons that must be used throughout the exploration of the ship, as stronger enemies will only take damage from his more powerful weapons.
Ammunition for Drak's weapons is not unlimited. Luckily more can be found scattered throughout the game. This encourages thurough exploration in the maze-like alien ship. Also, the players score is used creatively as the alien ship's self destruct countdown timer- making points serve a practical purpose.
Reception
For it's initial release in 1989, Obliterator received mostly positive reviews. It's impressive graphics (Amiga version) and polished execution earned it a wide release on several platforms and a following of fans.
Criticisms were aimed mostly at it's easy difficulty and sometimes sticky controls.
The Never Released Commodore 64 Version
While never released, a version of Obliterator was near finished for the Commodore 64. Developed by the now defunct Lothlorien team, the project was canceled as the studio neared closure. Despite the official cancellation and being layed off, several former employees continued to work on the project from home without pay.
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