Communist Mutants from Space
Communist Mutants from Space is a fixed shooter video game programmed by Stephen H. Landrum for the Atari 2600 with the Starpath Supercharger cassette accessory. It was published in 1982 by Starpath. The game is similar to Galaxian, adding a variety of gameplay-changing options.
Plot
Aliens from the communist planet of Rooskee are invading peaceful, democratic planets and turning their inhabitants into "Communist Mutants." The communist mutant armies are controlled by the Mother Creature, a strange alien who has gone mad due to irradiated vodka.Gameplay
The player starts off with three reserve cannons. The object is to destroy the mutants aliens and, most importantly, the Mother Creature. The mutants hatch from moving eggs at the top of the screen. Because the Mother Creature replenishes eggs when they hatch or are destroyed, it must be defeated before the player can advance to the next wave. If a mutant or a bomb thrown by a mutant comes into contact with the cannon, the cannon will be destroyed and a reserve must be called up. A new cannon is awarded on every other wave.Options
An in-game menu allows a variety of gameplay changes. The player can toggle the shield option on or off. If activated, "shield" mode allows pulling back on the joystick to become invincible for a short period. "Time warp" allows the player to press up on the joystick to temporarily slow the enemies. The type of shot fired can be changed by activating the "penetrating fire" option and/or the "guided fire" option.The menu also allows for selecting 1-4 players. Players one and three share the first joystick while players two and four share the second.
Development
Communist Mutants from Space was the first commercial game that Stephen Landrum developed. In a 1993 interview, he was asked about the origin of the game's name:Easter egg
Holding fire during power-on of the Atari 2600 causes the "HI" on the high scores screen to change to "SHL", the initials of programmer Stephen H. Landrum.Reviews
- ''Games''