Star Raiders (2011 video game)

Star Raiders is a video game for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Microsoft Windows.[1] Developed by Incinerator Studios, it was published in May 2011 by Atari SA.[2] It is a re-imagining of 1979's Star Raiders which was the killer app for Atari, Inc.'s new Atari 8-bit family of home computers. The original was well received for expanding the space combat simulation genre with higher quality graphics and more complex gameplay. It inspired key games over a decade later such as Wing Commander and Star Wars: X-Wing.

This article is about the remake. For the original game, see Star Raiders.
Star Raiders
Developer(s)Incinerator Studios
Publisher(s)Atari SA
Producer(s)Jonathan Moses
Platform(s)PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade, Windows
Release
May 11, 2011
  • Windows, Xbox 360
    • WW: May 11, 2011

    PlayStation 3
    • NA: June 1, 2011
    • EU: June 29, 2011
Genre(s)Space combat
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

Like the original, the remake is an action, first-person spaceship combat game in which the player travels through a starfield in pursuit of the enemy Zylons.[3] It adds a new storyline, customizable ships, and multiplayer gameplay with several modes.

Gameplay

Star Raiders features a storyline very similar to that of the 1979 classic. The Zylons, an alien race bent on humanity's destruction, are moving their forces towards Earth, and it is up to the player to repel their assault and save the human race. The player's ship is a small space fighter, but with the capability to transform itself to deal with a variety of situations.[1] The forms include these: a dogfighting ship, capable of close and quick battles with other Zylon dogfighters; an assault form that is good at destroying larger, more powerful enemy ships; and a turret form, for destroying the largest Zylon ships from the inside.[4]

All of these forms will be needed, as the Zylon’s dramatically outnumber the player, both in numbers and size of their ships. Aside from fighters of similar size, the Zylons have cruisers and frigates to confront the player, as well as their largest ship, the Basestar. Players can defeat the other 3 types of ships with conventional weaponry, but have to travel inside the Basestar and destroy certain key points to finally eliminate it.[4]

The gameplay unfolds along a galactic map, as players choose which missions they want to undertake to defeat the Zylon threat. Missions involve the players dogfighting with Zylon forces in a variety of settings, from an asteroid field to gigantic space elevators, and end when all the Zylon ships are eliminated. Once the mission is completed, players can return to the area if they so choose, to find ore for upgrading their weapons and shields.[1]

Reception

The game received generally poor reviews. Metacritic gave a score of 35 out of 100.[6] GamingXP said, "Star Raiders gets boring way too quickly and fails to motivate you to play on." Multiplayer.it said, "A mediocre, boring space shooter. Some ideas are interesting, but clunky controls and uninspired visuals makes this title a complete waste."[6]

GameSpot says the game has "woefully inadequate tutorials, dull dogfights, bland visuals and annoying sound effects". One of the main actions in the game, which is destroying capital ships, is described as "painfully tedious".[5]

References
  1. "Star Raiders". Steam. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  2. "Star Raiders". Impulse Gamer. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  3. "Star Raiders (PC)". Metacritic. Retrieved October 3, 2012.
  4. Lewis, Cameron (May 11, 2011). "Star Raiders review". Official Xbox Magazine. Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2023.
  5. Petit, Carolyn (May 18, 2011). "Star Raiders review". GameSpot. Retrieved September 30, 2012.
  6. "Star Raiders Critic Reviews (XBox 360)". Metacritic. Retrieved September 30, 2012.
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