Cardiaxx

STORY / GAMEPLAY
The story takes place somewhere in the deep future. The human race has managed to visit most of the stars and space flights are now an everyday occurrence. During the journeys, the scientists contacted with numerous alien species and while some seem friendly, others are pretty aggressive and prepare for war. The Cardiaxx Empire is the latest bunch of rednecks to start another offensive against humanity. Using the Cardiaxx Beam, their latest and most deadly weapon, they intend to inflict the entire population of the Earth with a terrible heart condition. Your mission is set! You must jump into your space-fighter and fly against the Cardiaxx Empire! The unique feature of this game is its speed. Flying horizontally at high-speeds, you fight against hordes of aliens into the labyrinths of the Cardiaxx itself. The enemies are attacking in formations but you have your trusty co-pilot, a robot that will warn you with his beautifully sampled speech, about almost anything that will stand in your way! "Enemy ship approaching from the right" is the word and you must be prepared! The game has four different levels and each must be completed at a certain time limit. Fortunately you can control your speed (by increasing or decreasing it) at any time while you avoid or shoot enemies! But time matters, so you must fly at high speeds most of the time and whenever possible. There are several bonuses to collect during your flight like better weaponry, extra armor, extra time and more. Note that at the end of each level there is a big alien boss waiting! The screen zips along at incredible speeds that can make your eyes and nerves sore. In fact, the game is way too fast for the average gamer! So the only way to survive collision is to control the speed of your ship! To say Cardiaxx is tough is an enormous understatement, as experienced shoot 'em up fans will have trouble completing even the first level, which means that whoever wants a real shoot 'em up challenge, Cardiaxx is the game!

GRAPHICS / SOUND
Cardiaxx looks and plays like a more advanced R-Type, with shiny metallic colors and a great variety of enemy sprites (plus a big Boss at the end of each level). The main feature that differentiates Cardiaxx from the other shoot 'em ups of its time, is its scrolling. As far as the sound goes, the sampled explosions and the robotic voice that points out the incoming enemies, plus the strong heavy metal music score during gameplay, are great assets that showcase what the Amiga’s sound chip (my name is Paula!) is able to do!