ROCKFORD: THE ARCADE GAME

Last and best in Peter Liepa’s Boulderdash series that achieved immortal fame on just about every computer system except the PC.

Released by Mastertronic/Prism Leisure, Rockford is a great rocks’n’diamonds style game in the best tradition of Boulderdash. Through six different worlds (as a explorer, cook, doctor, etc.) totaling over 80 levels of increasing difficulty, your goal is to grab the coins/apples/hearts while avoiding the boulders. In the original Boulderdash, you collect diamonds while avoiding falling rocks and exploding butterflies. In addition to the familiar cavernous levels, Rockford puts you in settings as varied as outer space or the Old West, each of which features treasures and monsters that are suitable for that setting. You will therefore pursue Indian pennies and suns, while avoiding tumbleweeds and comets.

Unfortunately, all this diversity is overshadowed by the familiar theme of the program. Still, the levels are as devious as ever, and there is even more emphasis on careful thought (as opposed to quick reflexes– needed to avoid the rocks) than previous games in the series. As a great bonus for fans, arcade-quality animated sequences appear at key points throughout play which, with 80 screens, is certain to last awhile.

Overall, Rockford provides a fitting closure to one of the most celebrated puzzle series on Commodore 64 that deserve far more attention than they received from PC gamers the first time around. Like fine art and good music, classic games improve with age. Rockford adds colorful graphics and animated cutscenes to the original while retaining all the addictive qualities. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, indeed. I’d wager that quite a few people won’t be able to stop the game once they start playing 😉