Ultrabots

Last updated
Ultrabots
Ultrabots cover.jpg
Developer(s) NovaLogic
Publisher(s) Electronic Arts
Producer(s) Paul Grace
Designer(s) John Butrovich
David Seeholzer
John A. Garcia
Programmer(s) Scott Cronce
Composer(s) Stewart Perkins
Platform(s) MS-DOS
ReleaseMarch 1993 [1]
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Vehicle simulation
Mode(s) Single-player

Ultrabots (called Xenobots in Europe) is a first-person shooter video game developed by NovaLogic for MS-DOS and published by Electronic Arts in 1993. The player controls a group of giant robots and battles other giant robots.

Contents

Gameplay

Cockpit view Ultrabotsscreen1.jpg
Cockpit view

Gameplay consists of deploying a group of robots to an area and engaging enemy forces. Both sides will typically have a number of robots and a base to protect. Damaged robots can return to the base for repairs. As robots take damage, they will become harder to control and use as various systems fail.

The user can take direct control of one of the robots in field at will, or leave them autonomous in field and provide only strategic goal-driven control from the base.

Robots

There are three types of robots available in the game:

  1. Humanoid is the main fighting robot. It is the strongest robot available and can deliver and take the most damage.
  2. Scorpion is the infrastructure maintenance robot. It is slow, fragile, and weak in close combat, but it carries a single-shot missile (its scorpion stinging tail) that is the heaviest weapon in the game. Only Scorpions can lay down or dismantle the power grid.
  3. Scout is the fast agile robot used for recon. It is lightly armed, but has the longest range when running on batteries, and is capable of laying mines.

Power grid

A power grid consisting of microwave relays extends power away from the base dome. Robots straying too far from the base dome or relays have to rely on their batteries only, which don't last long and don't offer enough range to reach the enemy base. Much of the strategy in this game relies on the power infrastructure, with Scorpions extending lines of relays toward the enemy that Scouts discover far from the grid, under protection of Humanoids, to prepare a full attack on the enemy base.

Development and release

Ultrabots was developed by California-based Novalogic. The game was originally announced in early 1992 under the title Ultrabots: Sanction Earth and was to be published by Data East for both the PC and Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). [2] [3] [4] The latter version was cancelled and the publication rights to the PC version were acquired by Electronic Arts later that same year. [5] [6]

Reception

Computer Gaming World called Ultrabots "a very novel and worthwhile experience". [8] A 1994 survey of strategic space games set in the year 2000 and later gave the game two-plus stars out of five, stating that "Any similarity to Mechwarriors is superficial". [7]

Related Research Articles

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

Populous is a video game developed by Bullfrog Productions and published by Electronic Arts, released originally for the Amiga in 1989, and is regarded by many as the first god game. With over four million copies sold, Populous is one of the best-selling PC games of all time.

<i>SimAnt</i> 1991 video game

SimAnt: The Electronic Ant Colony is a 1991 life simulation video game by Maxis and the company's third product, focusing on ants. It was designed by Will Wright. In 1992, it was named "Best Simulation Game" at the Software Publishers Association's Codie awards. SimAnt was re-released in 1993 as part of the SimClassics Volume 1 compilation alongside SimCity Classic and SimLife for PC, Mac and Amiga. In 1996, SimAnt, alongside several of Maxis' simulation games were re-released under the Maxis Collector Series with greater compatibility with Windows 95 and differing box art, including the addition of Classics beneath the title.

<i>Star Fox</i> (1993 video game) Rail shooter game published by Nintendo

Star Fox, known as Starwing in PAL regions, is a 1993 rail shooter game developed by Nintendo and Argonaut Software, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The first entry in the Star Fox series, the story follows Fox McCloud and the rest of the Star Fox team defending their homeworld of Corneria against the invading forces of Andross.

<i>Turok: Dinosaur Hunter</i> 1997 video game

Turok: Dinosaur Hunter is a first-person shooter video game developed by Iguana Entertainment and published by Acclaim for the Nintendo 64 console and Microsoft Windows. It was released in 1997 in North America and Europe. Turok is an adaptation of the Valiant Comics comic book series of the same name. The player controls Turok, a Native American warrior, who must stop the evil Campaigner from conquering the universe with an ancient and powerful weapon.

<i>Dr. Robotniks Mean Bean Machine</i> 1993 video game

Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine is a falling block puzzle game developed by Compile and published by Sega. It was released for the Sega Genesis / Mega Drive in North America and Europe in November 1993, and ported to the Game Gear in 1993 and Master System in 1994.

<i>Red Baron</i> (1990 video game) 1990 video game

Red Baron is a combat flight simulation video game for MS-DOS created by Damon Slye at Dynamix. It was published by Sierra On-Line in 1990. The game was ported for Amiga and Macintosh computers in 1992.

<i>Dungeon Keeper 2</i> 1999 video game

Dungeon Keeper 2 is a strategy game developed by Bullfrog Productions and published by Electronic Arts in 1999 for Microsoft Windows. In the sequel to Dungeon Keeper, the player takes the role of a 'dungeon keeper', building and defending an underground dungeon from the would-be heroes that would invade it, as well as from other keepers. In the campaign mode, the player is charged with recovering the portal gems from each area in order to open a portal to the surface. The player can also construct a dungeon without strict objectives, and multiplayer is supported over a network.

<i>Space Hulk</i> (1993 video game) 1993 video game

Space Hulk is a 1993 real-time tactical video game for MS-DOS, Amiga and PC-98. The game was based on Games Workshop's 1989 board game of the same name. Set in the fictional Warhammer 40,000 universe, the player directs squads of Space Marines, genetically enhanced armoured soldiers, in their missions to protect the human race from deadly aliens. Space Hulk was developed and published by Electronic Arts, with support from Games Workshop.

<i>Bandit Kings of Ancient China</i> 1989 video game

Bandit Kings of Ancient China, also known as Suikoden: Tenmei no Chikai in Japan, is a turn-based strategy video game developed and published by Koei, and released in 1989 for MSX, MS-DOS, Amiga, and Macintosh and in 1990 for the Nintendo Entertainment System. In 1996, Koei issued a remake for the Japanese Sega Saturn and PlayStation featuring vastly improved graphics and new arrangements of the original songs.

<i>Batman: Return of the Joker</i> 1991 video game

Batman: Return of the Joker is a 1991 platform video game, the follow-up to Sunsoft's first Batman game on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Unlike that game, which was based on the 1989 Batman film directed by Tim Burton, Return of the Joker is entirely self-contained and based more on the modern comic book iteration of Batman, but the Batmobile and the Batwing are featured from the 1989 film. A remake of Return of the Joker, titled Batman: Revenge of the Joker, was released on the Sega Genesis by Ringler Studios in 1992. A Super NES version of Revenge of the Joker was completed but never officially released; a ROM image surfaced online in later years.

<i>Jungle Strike</i> 1993 video game

Jungle Strike is a video game developed and published by Electronic Arts in 1993 for the Sega Genesis. The game was later released on several other consoles such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and an upgraded version was made for DOS computers. The Amiga conversion was the responsibility of Ocean Software while the SNES and PC DOS versions were that of Gremlin Interactive, and the portable console versions were of Black Pearl Software. It is the direct sequel to Desert Strike and is the second installment in the Strike series. The game is a helicopter-based shoot 'em up, mixing action and strategy. The plot concerns two villains intent on destroying Washington, D.C. The player must use the helicopter and occasionally other vehicles to thwart their plans.

<i>James Pond 2</i> 1991 video game

James Pond 2: Codename: RoboCod, also known as Super James Pond on Super NES and Game Boy in North America and Super James Pond 2 in Europe, is a 1991 platform video game. It is the second installment in the James Pond series after James Pond: Underwater Agent and was developed by the same British teams as the original. The title music by Richard Joseph is a marimba-heavy rendition of the RoboCop film theme.

<i>Pipe Mania</i> 1989 video game

Pipe Mania is a puzzle video game developed by The Assembly Line for the Amiga and published in 1989. It was ported to several other platforms by Lucasfilm Games as Pipe Dream; the company distributed the game in the US. The player must connect randomly appearing pieces of pipe on a grid to a given length within a limited time.

<i>Cyber Stadium Series—Base Wars</i> 1991 baseball–fighting Nintendo game

Cyber Stadium Series—Base Wars is a baseball video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).

<i>MechWarrior 3050</i> 1996 video game

MechWarrior 3050, also known as BattleTech in its original Sega Genesis release and in Japan as BattleTech 3050 (バトルテック3050), is a 1994 mech-based video game developed by Malibu. The first BattleTech based game to be released for the Sega Genesis, it was later ported to the Super Nintendo by Activision as MechWarrior 3050. The Super Nintendo game was localized and published in Japan by Ask Group.

<i>Last Armageddon</i> 1988 video game

Last Armageddon is a 1988 post-apocalyptic role-playing video game for the NEC PC-8801, MSX, Sharp X68000, MS-DOS, PC Engine CD-ROM², and Nintendo Family Computer. The game was exclusively in the Japanese language until an English translation patch was created for the Nintendo Famicom.

<i>Machine Hunter</i> 1997 video game

Machine Hunter is a top-down shooter game developed by Eurocom Entertainment Software, published by MGM Interactive and distributed in Europe by Eidos Interactive. It was developed and released simultaneously in 1997 for Windows 95 and PlayStation console. It has been described as a clone of the 1995 game Loaded, in that it uses an overhead perspective, extensive lighting effects, and over-the-top bloodshed.

<i>Knights of the Sky</i> 1990 video game

Knights of the Sky is a World War I combat flight simulator designed by Jeff Briggs and published by MicroProse in 1990 for MS-DOS. Ports to the Amiga and Atari ST followed in 1991.

<i>Falcon</i> (video game) 1987 video game

Falcon is a combat flight simulator video game and the first official entry in the Falcon series of the F-16 jet fighter's simulators by Spectrum HoloByte. Originally developed by Sphere for Macintosh and MS-DOS in 1987 and ported to several platforms between 1988 and 1992, the game earned commercial success and critical acclaim.

References

  1. ↑ "PC Zone Magazine". PC Zone . No. 1. April 1993. p. 11. Retrieved July 5, 2017.
  2. ↑ C.T. Asian (January 1992). "Super NES Preview". GamePro . No. 30. International Data Group. p. 98. ISSN   1042-8658.
  3. ↑ ACE staff (April 1992). "News: Full of Eastern Promise". ACE . No. 55. EMAP. p. 10. ISSN   0954-8076.
  4. ↑ Nintendo Power staff (April 1992). "Pak Watch: Ultrabots: Sanction Earth". Nintendo Power . No. 35. Nintendo of America. p. 109. ISSN   1041-9551.
  5. ↑ Walker, Brian (September 1992). "Summer CES: Nova Logic". Strategy Plus . No. 22. Strategy Plus Inc. p. 22. ISSN   1546-5101.
  6. ↑ Wilson, Johnny L. (January 1993). "Stepping Into The Battler's 'Bots". Computer Gaming World . No. 102. Golden Empire Publications Inc. p. 8. ISSN   0744-6667.
  7. 1 2 Brooks, M. Evan (May 1994). "Never Trust A Gazfluvian Flingschnogger!". Computer Gaming World. pp. 42–58.
  8. ↑ Greenberg, Allen L. (July 1993). "Electronic Arts' Ultrabots". Computer Gaming World. p. 120. Retrieved 12 July 2014.


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.