Arcadia Systems released the remake Rockford in the late eighties. It is basically a remake or clone of the classic Commodore 64 game, Boulder Dash. Designed by Peter Liepa and Chris Grey in the middle eighties, this is a true arcade and console classic. It features an adventure hero that goes by the name of Rockford. He has to complete many levels of varying themes, some of which include a futuristic space theme and an Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom style. Rockford was created especially for the DOS format, and will likely require DOSBox in order to run properly on modern machines.
Arcadia Systems released the remake Rockford in the late eighties. It is basically a remake or clone of the classic Commodore 64 game, Boulder Dash. Designed by Peter Liepa and Chris Grey in the middle eighties, this is a true arcade and console classic. It features an adventure hero that goes by the name of Rockford. He has to complete many levels of varying themes, some of which include a futuristic space theme and an Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom style. Rockford was created especially for the DOS format, and will likely require DOSBox in order to run properly on modern machines.
The character of Rockford is a standard protagonist who is a prospector looking to find his fortune. He is going to
do this by collecting diamonds scattered about the various levels of the game. There are many natural disasters waiting to get in his way, such as explosions, avalanches, and falling rocks. There are also a variety of baddies in the underground, most of which are typical cave or earth dwellers. Many of them are insects and each one has a different manner of attacking Rockford. The firefly explodes, and Rockford can actually use this to his advantage. He can lure the firefly to strategic areas and blow up doors or other enemies. The butterfly is similar, but it flies differently and the user will have to watch the butterfly’s pattern carefully in order to avoid it. The amoeba is a growing blob that may trap Rockford in a corner. There will also be slime that is very similar. Other challenges include magical walls that expand and can also hamper Rockford’s progress.
Rockford will, allegedly, avoid all of these issues as he tunnels through the dirt seeking diamonds. He will leave open space behind him as he digs. As he moves, he will encounter destructible walls and others which he will have to negotiate instead of destroy. The walls that enclose the playing area, for example, cannot be destroyed with explosives. Somewhere, hidden within the dirt of the level, is an exit area. When Rockford finds this, he can move on to the next level, hopefully with a big bag of diamonds.
Overall, this is a nice little clone and it should provide a significant challenge for the user. The graphics are admittedly very eighties console looking, but the game play is still good, which is also a feature of the early console games. Taking the good with the bad and judging Rockford as a whole, it is a solid play.
