Gravitar

The evil Gravitar has set out to destroy the universe. His deadly weapon? Gravity.

Gravitar bombards unsuspecting galaxies with his hostile gravitational forces. He then installs a powerful reactor within each solar system of the defeated galaxy, creating a killer sun that destroys all life on the surrounding planets. He blockades those planets with lethal rammers and with automated bunkers programmed to shoot.

So far, Gravitar has conquered four galaxies, each made up of three solar systems. And intelligence reports hint that our galaxy may be next. Gravitar must be stopped before he adds our galaxy to his list.

About the Game

While the developers of Gravitar used a few play mechanics made popular by other arcade games like Asteroids and Space Invaders, they were inspired to create a game far more complex and adventurous. Gravitar is a thrust and exploration game that includes both flying enemies and stationary ground targets. The best part? The vector-based arcade game’s depth was retained for its Atari 2600 port.

While the graphics in Gravitar seem simple, quite a few different images and indicators are included in the game. The amount of work and space these images must have taken as a whole makes the grand scheme rather impressive. Most of what is seen on the screen is space; however, given the context of the game, this makes sense. Also noteworthy is that when your ship enters different realms, the entire screen changes as you go from outer space to the surface of a planet or bunker.

The purpose of the creation of Gravitar was not to be groundbreaking in the sense of introducing new concepts or controls, but it did introduce a new scope of gaming. The capacity of the cartridge was pushed to its limit because of the different screens involved in Gravitar. This not only took everything that existed in gaming before and pushed the concepts further, but it also proved that you don’t have to incorporate new mechanics to be able to develop a unique and entertaining piece of software.

Object of the Game

Your task is to break Gravitar’s hold on the 12 solar systems under his power. You can do this by destroying all bunkers on every planet or by setting off the reactor in the alien reactor base.

How to Play

Each solar system consists of a killer sun, an alien reactor base, and three or four blockaded planets—each housing fuel deposits and enemy bunkers.

To move from one solar system to the next, you must either visit all the planets and destroy every enemy bunker, or activate the reactor at the core of the alien reactor base and escape before it explodes.

When you complete your mission in the three solar systems of one galaxy, you are automatically transported to another galaxy, where your rescue mission continues.

You start the game with six to 100 starships, depending on the game level, and with 10,000 fuel units.

Your ship consumes fuel every time you use your thrust engines, activate your shields, or extend your tractor beam. A warning beep sounds when your fuel level goes below 2,000 units.

The game ends when you run out of fuel or lose all your spaceships. When you complete your mission, the game resets and your points continue to accumulate.

Solar Systems

As the ship leaves its entry port in the solar system, you must steer out of the gravitational field of the killer sun and head for a planet. If your ship is drawn into the killer sun, you will crash.

The alien reactor base of each solar system sends out enemy saucers to shoot at you, except in Game Level 3. If you fly near a saucer, you will both be thrown out into deep space, where you must duel until your ship or the saucer is destroyed.

Planets

One way to complete your mission in a solar system is to visit every planet and destroy all bunkers. You enter a planet’s atmosphere by flying near it. You cannot leave a planet until you have blown up every bunker.

Each planet has its own craggy landscape, and, except in Game 5, each has a strong gravitational force that makes your flight around the planet treacherous. If you fly too close to a planet, your starship will be crushed by its gravity.

Watch out for the rammers that hover above most planets. If one of these enemy ships rams you, you lose a starship.

Shoot your missiles to blow up the bunkers and the rammers. You can also destroy a bunker by crashing into it, but you’ll lose a spaceship. Use your tractor beam to pick up fuel capsules as needed.

After destroying all the bunkers, fly your ship to the top of the screen to leave the planet and return to the solar system screen. The planet you have just left will then explode.

Alien Reactor Base

The other way to complete your mission in a solar system is to destroy the alien reactor base. The alien reactor base is a port into the next solar system. It consists of a winding tunnel that leads to a reactor at the core of the planet.

A clock at the top of the screen counts down the seconds you have to reach the reactor. Activate it by firing into its center, and escape before it explodes.

As you move through the first two galaxies, your countdown time on the alien reactor base decreases, from 60 seconds in the first solar system to a harrowing 25 seconds in the sixth. When you reach the third galaxy, the countdown cycle starts over.

You can leave the alien reactor base without setting off the reactor. If your ship is destroyed on the base, you will be returned to your entry port in the solar system. If you blow up the alien reactor base, the explosion will catapult you into the next solar system.

Galaxies

When you make it through all three solar systems in one galaxy, you automatically go on to the next galaxy.

The four galaxies are similar, except for factors of light and gravity. In the second and fourth galaxies, each planet exerts a reverse gravitational force that repels your ship. In the third and fourth galaxies, the landscape of each planet, including that alien reactor base, is completely dark; only the bunkers, rammers, and fuel deposits are visible.

Game Options

Press Select to choose one of the five game levels. (The game level number appears at the bottom of the title screen.)

Level 1

Level 1 is the most challenging, with only six spaceships at your disposal.

Level 2

At Level 2, you have 15 ships in your fleet.

Level 3

At Level 3, you have six spaceships, but the planetary bunkers and enemy saucers cannot fire at you.

Level 4

Level 4 offers a good practice game. You have 100 spaceships in your fleet, but watch out for shooting saucers and enemy bunkers.

Level 5

At Level 5, you have 25 spaceships and no gravity to fight; this level is a good place for beginners to start.

Number of Players

Gravitar is for one player only.

Scoring

You score points for destroying enemy saucers, rammers, and bunkers. Each time you enter a new solar system, you can receive 7,000 fuel units, two bonus ships, and 4,000 extra points. You can earn a total of 999,950 points before the score resets. At the end of the game, your final score appears below the game level number.