Star Strike

INTELLIVISION CARTRIDGE [Mattel Electronics #5136]

Release #27 December 22,1981

Produced by APh Technological Consulting for Mattel Electronics

Program: Hal Finney & Brett Stuts

Package Illustration: Jerrol Richardson


Instructions Posted Here

1982 CATALOG DESCRIPTION

For action fast and furious, take command of a rocket-powered fighter-interceptor flying a few hundred feet off the deck. Your mission: attack and destroy alien silos defended by several squadrons of alien rocket-craft. You must react instantaneously. You are a few hundred feet above the terrain in a narrow canyon. That's where the aliens have dug in. Maneuvering room is severely limited. Meanwhile, earth is slowly coming into target position for the silos. Remember, you alone can save earth. Don't miss.

• One player game

• Six skill levels for greater challenge

PRODUCTION HISTORY

Inspired by the Death Star trench sequence from the movie Star Wars, Star Strike is actually a very simple game; most players quickly learn the timing of it to consistently win. But visually it was stunning, with a 3-D effect (accomplished by sequencing gram) not seen before in an home videogame. Heavily promoted, it was the top-selling Intellivision game of 1982, with nearly 800,000 units shipped that year.

An M Network Atari 2600 Star Strike was also released

BUG: Hold down the left controller disk in a single position while simultaneously pressing one of the top action keys. The fighter will soon remain in a fixed position on the screen. Release the disk to unfreeze the fighter.

PLAYING TIPS: From Intellivision Game Club News, Issue 3, Summer 1982:

  • Stay mobile. Keep moving up, down, left and right when the aliens are behind you. Don't give them a stationary target.
  • Practice firing at the aliens. Line up the alien ship between you and your laser's vanishing point.
  • Try shooting down both aliens. Doubling up on targets will give you a little extra time to align your ship for bombing before a new wave of aliens appear. You'll add extra points to your score.
  • Stay on the deck. It's much more difficult to bomb the alien's silos from a high altitude. Stay low and score higher.
  • Keep a mental scorecard. Keep track of alien silos destroyed. Don't risk damage by going after a "dead" silo.
  • Be aware of damage. Keep a careful record of your ship's capabilities. Damage reduces control. Don't ask your ship to do something it can't in emergency situations.

FUN FACT: The Star Strike TV commercial became probably the most notorious of all videogame commercials of its era, with Mattel Electronics spokesperson George Plimpton bragging about "our most amazing visual effect ever: the total destruction of a planet!" while the earth is seen being blasted to pieces. Comedians, cartoonists and politicians all jumped on this as an example of the glorification of violence in videogames.