''Stellar 7'' is a
first-person shooter
First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the pl ...
tank simulation
Vehicle simulation games are a video game genre, genre of video games which attempt to provide the player with a realistic interpretation of operating various kinds of vehicles. This includes automobiles, aircraft, watercraft, spacecraft, milita ...
video game based on the arcade game ''
Battlezone''
in which the player assumes the role of a futuristic tank pilot. The game was originally created by
Damon Slye Damon Slye (born June 15, 1962) is a computer game game designer, designer, director, and game programmer, programmer. In 1984 he founded Dynamix with Jeff Tunnell in Eugene, Oregon, Eugene, Oregon. He is best known for creating the historic flight ...
for the
Apple II
The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...
and
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...
in 1983. It was followed by three sequels, ''
Arcticfox'' (1986), ''
Nova 9: The Return of Gir Draxon'' (1991), and ''
Stellar 7: Draxon's Revenge'' (1993), and was remade in the early 1990s for the
16-bit
16-bit microcomputers are microcomputers that use 16-bit microprocessors.
A 16-bit register can store 216 different values. The range of integer values that can be stored in 16 bits depends on the integer representation used. With the two mos ...
computers.
Gameplay
The player's tank, the Raven, has a front-facing cannon with an unlimited supply of bullets. The cannon can fire up to two shots at a time. The tank also has a
cloaking device
A cloaking device is a hypothetical or fictional stealth technology that can cause objects, such as spaceships or individuals, to be partially or wholly invisible to parts of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum. Fictional cloaking devices have bee ...
that, when triggered, would render it invisible to enemies for about a minute. Gauges on the right side of the screen indicate the amount of shields and power remaining. The tank starts with enough power to cloak twice, and power slowly trickles away as the time passes. The game ends when either shields or power runs out.
Each of the seven levels represents a different
star system
A star system or stellar system is a small number of stars that orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large group of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a '' star cluster'' or '' galaxy'', although, broadly speak ...
(hence the title). The player's objective is to get to the last level and defeat the enemy
boss
Boss may refer to:
Occupations
* Supervisor, often referred to as boss
* Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier
* Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization
* Fire boss, a ...
, Gir Draxon. Each level is depicted as a nearly featureless plane dotted by geometric obstacles—some indestructible and most not—and various enemies. After the player destroys a certain number of enemies, a warp link will appear that provides a gateway to the next level.
Special power-ups can be accessed by pressing the tab key to toggle between the different icons at the bottom left of the screen and then pushing enter, or simply by pushing the letter key corresponding to the desired icon. The icon for the chosen item will turn purple while activated. Each power-up is represented by a certain symbol and can be used up to three times throughout the game, depending on the difficulty setting.
The later DOS / PC version of this game was somewhat different. The graphics were more advanced and rendered in a full range of colors for the time, as were the more complex world background paintings. Also, the cloaking device was not integrated into the tank and did not end the game or destroy the tank when it ended. Each world also was guarded by a boss that had to be defeated before the warp-link to the next level would appear. Most of the bosses were not particularly complicated compared to the sequel (Nova 9), but they presented a reasonable challenge for the time. The power-up system also worked differently. By killing 3 of specific enemy types, you would get a power-up dropped, which would then activate when you touched it; different enemies produced different power-ups following this system. Finally, the game had a "Continue" feature, vs simply ending when the tank was destroyed. Other differences may have existed between the enemy types and behaviors; the same applies to power-ups.
Plot
The game's plot is relatively straightforward. Gir Draxon, an evil alien overlord in charge of a powerful interstellar empire has conquered a range of star systems and has now arrived in our solar system on Mars, intending on crushing humanity. The hero of the story has a super-tank that he can use to defeat Draxon's forces, though it was called into service before being finished and thus is protected only by energy shields and has no armor. From a game mechanics perspective, this explains why the tank simply is destroyed when its shields (hit points) run out. The hero fights his way through 7 star systems controlled by Draxon's empire, until arriving on the last planetArcturus itselfto face Gir Draxon. The alien overlord confronts the hero in personal combat in his own super-tank; when defeated, an escape pod is clearly seen rocketing off into space, making it clear that Draxon survived.
Note that the second game in the series (Nova 9) would vastly expand the in-game plot, adding cut scenes, dialog, and more story-related tension. Not much information is provided about the world's background at the time.
Reception
''
Softline'' stated in 1983 that "Combining first-rate graphics and sound effects with fast-paced, arcade-style excitement makes ''Stellar 7'' hard to beat in every sense".
''Video'' magazine reviewed the Apple II version of the game, describing it as "a severe test for even the most skillful home arcaders" whose "varied action makes it a particularly satisfying game for solo players."
Tom Clancy
Thomas Leo Clancy Jr. (April 12, 1947 – October 1, 2013) was an American novelist. He is best known for his technically detailed espionage and military science, military-science storylines set during and after the Cold War. Seventeen of ...
in 1988 named ''Stellar 7'' one of his two favorite computer games, stating that "it is so unforgiving, it is just like life".
In 1991 the DOS version of the
remake
A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the same ...
received 5 out of 5 stars in ''
Dragon
A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...
''.
Reviews
*''
Commodore User
''Commodore User'', known to the readers as the abbreviated ''CU'', was one of the oldest British Commodore magazines. With a publishing history spanning over 15 years, it mixed content with technical and video game features. Incorporating ''Vic ...
'' (Apr, 1985)
References
External links
*
*
''Stellar 7'' a
Hardcore Gaming 101Disassembly and analysisof the Apple II version
{{Dynamix
1983 video games
1990 video games
Amiga games
Apple II games
Commodore 64 games
DOS games
First-person shooters
Classic Mac OS games
Tank simulation video games
U.S. Gold games
Video games developed in the United States
Dynamix games
Single-player video games
Penguin Software games