Tank you quite
After spending numerous weeks in the land of Taito, retro purveyor Hamster is taking another journey into Namco’s past, with the arrival of the odd cyber-tank combatant Grobda, now available to download on PS4 and Nintendo Switch.
Released to the game market in 1984, Grobda is a side title in the Xevious shmup series, and sees among the opponents of that video game repurposed as a magnificent fight tank. Essentially a futuristic variation of the golden era Atari video game, Combat, Grobda sees gamers manage the titular tank versus a battalion of opponents in top-down, maze-driven action. The gamer needs to use the Grobda’s laser weapons to ruin their challengers while evading return fire throughout an onslaught of 99 phases.
Check out the action in the video listed below, thanks to YouTuber Old Classic Retro Gaming.
Having released simply on the edge of the Video Game Crash, Grobda would promptly disappear into deep space, though home variations were established for Japanese platforms such as the Sharp X1 and the NEC PC-6001. Grobda advancement group included some noteworthy Namco stars, consisting of Tower of Druaga designer Masanobu Endo, and Dig Dug author Yuriko Keino. Always a leader, Keino designed a mechanic that enabled Grobda to accelerate her rating as the action warmed up, an enjoyable little trick for the time. Development was smashed out in a simple 3 months from conception to launch. Wild days.
Grobda is available to download now on PS4 and Nintendo Switch, priced at around $8.