Codename MAT, ZX Spectrum

Derek Brewster‘s Codename MAT (Mission: Alien Termination) is what I would call a ‘Star Trek’ game, with a liberal ‘borrowing’ of elements from Star Raiders. It was published in 1984 by Micromega.

Combat is first-person cockpit style, with an aiming recticle in the middle of the screen, and guns fixed at the front and to the rear (just like Star Raiders, in fact). When enemy ships attack, the trick is to adjust your speed to match, and take good aim. When you clear out one sector you then move on to another via a warp.

There’s docking and refuelling; nice planetary orbit sequences; a Solar Chart (that shows enemy concentrations around the planets); and even decent explosions. As ‘Star Trek’ games go, Codename MAT is definitely a cut above the rest. Is it better than Star Raiders though? Debatable.

Codename MAT was a critical success at the time, but it’s not as well-remembered as Star Raiders, which is fair enough seeing as though its a clone of Atari‘s classic shooter. Codename MAT still stands up on its own though.