''Panther'' is a

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in ...

game designed and implemented by Peter Adams and published by

Mastertronic Mastertronic was originally a publisher and distributor of low-cost computer game software founded in 1983. Their first games were launched on April 2, 1984. At its peak the label was one of the largest software publishers in the UK, achieved ...

in 1986. A version for

Atari 8-bit computers The Atari 8-bit computers, formally launched as the Atari Home Computer System, are a series of home computers introduced by Atari, Inc., in 1979 with the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The architecture is designed around the 8-bit MOS Technology 650 ...

followed in 1987, then a

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. One of the most influential computers ever made and one of the all-time bestselling British computers, over five million units were sold. ...

port in 1989. The player pilots a strange-looking aircraft, fighting off hordes of invading flying saucers and rescuing people by landing the craft and waiting for them to board. The game uses a diagonally scrolling isometric view, much like ''

Zaxxon is a scrolling shooter game developed and released by Sega as an arcade video game. It had a limited release in December 1981, followed by a wide release in January 1982. In the game, the player pilots a ship through heavily defended space fortr ...

'' and ''

Blue Max Blue Max is an informal name of ''Pour le Mérite'', a German military decoration from 1740 until the end of World War I. Blue Max may also refer to: * ''Blue Max'' (video game) (1983) and its sequel ''Blue Max 2001'' * '' Blue Max: Aces of the G ...

'', using shadows to show the height of flying objects. Adams previously worked on ports of both of those games. The Commodore 64 disk packaged ''Panther'' with '' L.A. SWAT'', another Mastertronic game. The A-side of the disk contained the two programs for the C64/128, and the B-side contained Atari 8-bit computer versions.

Gameplay

In ''Panther'', the player must pilot their craft across the landscape, shoot up the invaders and rescue survivors. To do this, the player must land close to the bunkers when they appear on the screen and stay there until all the refugees reach the ship. At the end of each run, a capsule awaits to take refugees to safety. The aliens attack in waves, and the player's onboard computer indicates at the bottom of the screen the position of incoming units relative to the ship, as well as the number of shields remaining. The goal of the game is to achieve a high score by rescuing as many people as possible.

Reception

''Panther'' received mostly positive reviews. Ruth James writing for

Atari User ''Atari User'' was a British computer magazine aimed at users of Atari home computers, and published by Database Publications (later known as Europress) between 1985 and 1988. ''Atari User'' was a general-interest computer magazine, containing ...

enjoyed the game despite minor faults and concluded: "You must buy this game for your collection, it's well worth it".

Zzap!64 ''Zzap!64'' is a computer games magazine covering games for computers manufactured by Commodore International, especially the Commodore 64 (C64). It was published in the UK by Newsfield Publications Ltd and later by Europress Impact. The magazi ...

review was also positive, with reviewers stating that the game provides several hours of entertainment as the player tries to collect and deliver all the survivors.

Commodore User ''Commodore User'', (also referred to as ''CU'') later renamed to ''CU Amiga'', is a British magazine initially published by Paradox Group before being acquired by EMAP. Timeline ''Commodore User'' was launched in October 1983 with an initial pr ...

review was similar in tone and gave the game an overall rating of 7/10.

References

External links

* * {{atarimania, id=3876 1986 video games Video games about alien invasions Atari 8-bit computer games Commodore 64 games Sculptured Software games ZX Spectrum games Video games scored by David Whittaker Video games set on fictional planets Video games developed in the United States Video games with isometric graphics Mastertronic games