Penetrator

• Title — Penetrator • Developer — Melbourne House • Designer — Philip Mitchell Veronika Megler • Publisher — Melbourne House • Released — 1982 • Genre — Scrolling shooter • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer • Platforms — ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, TRS-80

In Penetrator, the player flies a ship which can shoot forward and drop bombs. Levels scroll from right to left, with a line representing the ground. The first level is in open air, with just mountains to dodge, missiles which try to hit the ship, and animated radars. From the second level onward, the game is inside increasingly complex caverns, so the ceiling is also a danger, as well as new enemies. The missiles are now sometimes replaced with skulls that can move up and down, blocking the path. The levels flow seamlessly into each other, signified by screen colour changes. After four levels there is a short fifth level where a base needs to be destroyed by dropping a bomb precisely, and then there is a firework animation as a reward. After all levels are finished, the ship goes back through reversed levels. The ultimate level results in a seemingly impassible landscape, however due to a bug if the player accelerates into it, they can get through but the game crashes shortly after. In addition to the single-player game, there's an alternating two player mode, and a training mode with unlimited lives and access to any of the levels, plus a level editor.