Mmmm. Paradroid ’90 is one of those “classic” games that should have been great, but unfortunately was a big, fat missed opportunity.

Its parent – the Commodore 64 classic Paradroid, by Andrew Braybrook – is a perfect example of simple-but-amazingly-compelling gameplay.

This remake pretty much loses everything that made the original great, in spite of original author Braybrook‘s involvement.

For the life of me I can’t understand why Paradroid ’90 looks so drab. The same reds and browns adorn every deck on the first level. The Amiga can certainly do better, and a more liberal use of colour I’m sure would have helped. Having the deck colour change every time you complete a level is simply not good enough. Even the Commodore 64 version made better use of colour than this!

And the blasting action feels lightweight and simplistic – not at all exhilarating. On top of that: the levels only scroll vertically (God knows why), and the ship you’re exploring generally feels empty and lifeless. The tension and excitement of the original has been completely lost. Replaced by a feeling of deep… Disappointment.

Paradroid ’90 unfortunately falls way short of what was expected and is not very interesting to play. Sorry Andrew.

More: Paradroid on Wikipedia