Red Lightning (video game)

Last updated
Red Lightning
Red Lightning Coverart.png
Cover art of Red Lightning
Publisher(s) Strategic Simulations
Designer(s) Norm Koger
Platform(s) Amiga, Atari ST, MS-DOS
Release1989
1990 (Amiga)
Genre(s) Wargame
Mode(s) Single-player

Red Lightning is a wargame created by Norm Koger and published by Strategic Simulations for the Atari ST and MS-DOS in 1989. An Amiga conversion followed a year later. The game is set in Europe and hypothesizes a Soviet invasion of Western Europe.

Contents

The Box Art for Red Lightning was created by illustrator Marc Ericksen,[ citation needed ] and features Soviet T-80 tanks, with Mig-29s flying air cover, advancing under heavy weather.

Reception

In the November 1989 edition of Games International (Issue 10), John Inglis noted that the menu driven system "can be a little tedious, as it takes you many keystrokes to move you from one part to the next." However, he concluded by giving the game above average ratings of 4 out of 5 for both game play and graphics, saying, "I would [...] recommend it to traditional wargamers." [1]

In the January 1994 edition of Computer Gaming World , M. Evan Brooks stated that Red Lightning's user interface had "serious flaws". While the Atari ST version's mouse-driven user interface was not as flawed, Brooks concluded that "the overall ease of use is sorely lacking in what is supposed to be computer entertainment", and gave the game a poor rating of only 2 out of 5. [2] [3] [4]

Related Research Articles

<i>688 Attack Sub</i> 1989 video game

688 Attack Sub is a submarine simulator video game designed by John W. Ratcliff and Paul Grace and published in 1989 for MS-DOS and in 1990 for Amiga by Electronic Arts. A Sega Genesis version developed by MicroProse was released in 1991 by Sega.

<i>Eastern Front (1941)</i> 1981 video game

Eastern Front (1941) is a computer wargame for Atari 8-bit computers created by Chris Crawford and published through the Atari Program Exchange (APX) in 1981. A scenario editor and assembly language source code for the game were also sold by APX as separate products.

<i>Universe</i> (1983 video game) 1983 video game

Universe is a science fiction space trading and combat game by Omnitrend Software. It was created by William G M Leslie and Thomas R Carbone. The first version was programmed in valFORTH on an Atari 800, based on a board game created by Leslie. It was Omnitrend's first game.

<i>Command HQ</i> 1990 video game

Command HQ is a real-time strategy world domination game. It was released in 1990 by Microplay Software and was created by designer Danielle Bunten.

<i>Wolfpack</i> (video game) 1990 video game

Wolfpack is a World War II submarine simulator published by Broderbund in the 1990s, for Amiga, Atari ST, DOS, and Macintosh. It simulates combat actions between wolf packs of German U-boats and convoys of Allied destroyers and merchant vessels in the Battle of the Atlantic.

<i>NATO Commander</i> 1983 video game

NATO Commander is a strategy video game designed by Sid Meier for Atari 8-bit computers and published in 1983 by MicroProse. Ports to the Apple II, and Commodore 64 were released the following year.

<i>Strike Fleet</i> 1988 video game

Strike Fleet is a 1988 video game developed by Lucasfilm Games and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for the Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS. Strike Fleet is the unofficial sequel to the war game PHM: Pegasus.

<i>Clash of Steel</i> 1993 video game

Clash of Steel is a grand strategy computer game released in 1993 by Strategic Simulations for MS-DOS.

V for Victory, or V4V for short, is a series of turn-based strategy games set during World War II. They were the first releases for Atomic Games who went on to have a long career in the wargame industry.

<i>Wargame Construction Set</i> 1986 video game

Wargame Construction Set is a video game game creation system published in 1986 by Strategic Simulations. Developed by Roger Damon, it allows the user to construct, edit and play customizable wargame scenarios. It was released for the Amiga, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS. Several sequels followed.

<i>Their Finest Hour</i> (video game) 1989 video game

Their Finest Hour: The Battle of Britain is a World War II combat flight simulation game by Lawrence Holland, released in October 1989 for the Amiga, Atari ST and MS-DOS systems. It was the second game in the trilogy of World War II titles by Lucasfilm Games, the others being Battlehawks 1942 (1988) and Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe (1991). The game was released with a 192-page manual written by Victor Cross, that provided a detailed historical overview of the battle and pilots' perspectives. An expansion pack, Their Finest Missions: Volume One, was released in 1989.

<i>Team Yankee</i> (video game) 1990 video game

Team Yankee is a 1990 real-time strategy simulation computer wargame developed by Oxford Digital Enterprises and published by Empire Software for Amiga, Atari ST, MS-DOS, and Commodore CDTV. Based on Harold Coyle's novel and board game of the same name, the game depicts a World War III scenario between the United States and the Soviet Union from an armoured warfare perspective.

<i>Empire: Wargame of the Century</i> 1987 video game

Empire: Wargame of the Century is a video game based on Empire developed by Walter Bright and published by Interstel Corporation in 1987.

<i>Waterloo</i> (video game) 1989 video game

Waterloo is a battle strategy game by PSS for DOS, Atari ST, Amiga and Acorn Archimedes. It was released in the U.K. by Mirrorsoft in 1989 and in the U.S. by SSI in 1990.

<i>The Universal Military Simulator</i> 1987 video game

The Universal Military Simulator is a computer game developed by Rainbird Software in 1987 for the Macintosh, Tandy 4000, and IBM PC compatibles. In 1988, both Atari ST, Amiga versions were released. The game was created by Ezra Sidran. The PC and Amiga versions were ported by Ed Isenberg. The game spawned two sequels: UMS II: Nations at War and The War College: Universal Military Simulator 3.

<i>Global Commander</i> 1987 video game

Global Commander is a computer game developed by Martech in 1987 for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and ZX Spectrum.

<i>Harpoon</i> (video game) 1989 computer wargame

Harpoon is a computer wargame published by Three-Sixty Pacific in 1989 for DOS. This was the first game in the Harpoon series. It was ported to the Amiga and Macintosh.

<i>The Hunt for Red October</i> (1987 video game) 1987 video game

The Hunt for Red October is a video game based on the 1984 book The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy. It was released in 1987 and was available for the Atari ST, Amiga, Apple II, Macintosh, ZX Spectrum, MSX, Commodore 64, and IBM PC. A port for the Apple IIGS was released in 1989. The game is a combination of submarine simulator and strategy game. The player navigates the Red October towards U.S. waters while avoiding the Soviet Navy.

<i>Ogre</i> (video game) 1986 video game

Ogre is a 1986 video game based on the Ogre board wargame. It was released by Origin Systems for the Apple II, Amiga, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, and Mac.

<i>Nobunagas Ambition</i> (video game) 1986 video game

Nobunaga's Ambition is a 1986 strategy game by Koei, focused in the Sengoku period of the history of Japan. A part of Koei's "Historical Simulation" line of titles, it was published on several platforms such as IBM PC compatibles, Amiga, the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super NES, and Mega-Drive. It is the second game in the Nobunaga's Ambition series and the first Nobunaga's Ambition title to be released in English. The player has the objective unifying Japan as Oda Nobunaga or as any of the other daimyos present in the game. Several revisions were made to the gameplay since the first game, as well as a 50-province mode which expanded the game's map to feature all of Japan.

References

  1. Inglis, John (November 1989). "Red Lightning". Games International . No. 10. pp. 51–52.
  2. Brooks, M. Evan (September 1989). "Red Lightning". Computer Gaming World. No. 63. p. 26.
  3. Brooks, M. Evan (June 1992). "The Modern Games: 1950 - 2000". Computer Gaming World. p. 120. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  4. Brooks, M. Evan (January 1994). "War In Our Time / A Survey Of Wargames From 1950-2000". Computer Gaming World. pp. 194–212.