Switchblade

STORY / GAMEPLAY
The cyber world of Thraxx is about to enter a new era of darkness and despair. Havok, a dark lord of nightmares, having slept for 10.000 years has finally awoken. The Fireblade has been broken and it's sixteen pieces were scattered through the underworld where Havok now reigns. The slaughter has begun and all of the Blade Knights (hi-tech warriors of Traxx) are dead, except of one. The game is a combination between an action shooter and a platform game (typically a platform-shooter) in which the level areas become visible as you progress and scroll in flip-screen mode. You control Hiro (the only Blade Knight that survived) through six levels and must re-assemble the 16 fragments of the shattered Fireblade. Only then Hiro will be able to take on Havok and avenge his friends' death. There are several enemies on your way who must be taken out by using your fists or kicks but also with firearms, found later. As you progress, you will find bonus weapons and secret rooms.

GRAPHICS / SOUND
The C64/128 port has good graphics with detailed backgrounds and nice sprite animation. As with all other 8bit versions, the sprites are small but really nicely animated. I like the C64 graphics a bit more than the CPC and ZX versions, though the CPC+ version looks way better compared to all. The sound on the Commodore port is excellent though, featuring a good introductory theme and interesting in-game music, but no sound effects during gameplay (as in all other 8bit versions).