Space Shuttle (Aardvark)

Space Shuttle intro screen

Space Shuttle intro screen
Space Shuttle game screen #1 (single player) Space Shuttle game screen #2
Space Shuttle game screens 1 (single player) & 2
Space Shuttle game screen #3 (dual player) Space Shuttle game screen #4 (successful docking)
Space Shuttle game screens 3 (dual player) & 4 (successful docking)

Space Shuttle by Aardvark Technical Services (not to be confused with Space Shuttle game/simulation from Tom Mix Software) is a one player or two simultaneous player game written in Extended BASIC, and was a dirt cheap game when it first went on sale in January/February 1982 - $6.95. The game premise is simple - try to navigate your shuttle to be just below the orbiting space platform as it goes by, so that you can dock with it. You only have one control - thrust - that you use to adjust the speed and altitude of your ship. You start the game with only half a tank of fuel; if you need more than that, you have to soft land at the bottom and as soon as you do land, your shuttle gets a full fuel tank. Gravity of course is part of the game as well, and the thrust key allows key repeat (ie you can hold it down to keep thrusting vs. having to continuously tap it).

One nice thing about the game is the 2 player option. With one player, you play the left (orange) shuttle. Each time you dock you get a point, each time you die the non-existent 2nd player gets a point. In two player mode, both players (orange and cyan) are going at the same time, so not only are you trying to manage fuel and gravity to make it to the platform, but you are also racing each other to see who docks first to get a point. The first person to get 9 successful dockings wins, or the first person to die 9 times loses. The simultaneous 2 player game is a lot more fun to play, honestly, and the orange player uses the Z key to thrust, while the cyan player uses the forward slash / key.

Title: Space Shuttle

Author: ???

Publisher: Aardvark Technical Services

Released: February 1982 (appeared in January 1982 Aardvark Catalog)

Requires: Color Computer 1,2,3, 16K RAM, Extended BASIC.

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