''Skyfox'' is a

combat flight simulation game Combat flight simulators are vehicle simulation games, amateur flight simulation computer programs used to simulate military aircraft and their operations. These are distinct from dedicated flight simulators used for professional pilot and mil ...

developed by

Ray Tobey Ray Tobey (born c. 1965) is an American video game programmer best known for writing the combat flight simulation game '' Skyfox'' for the Apple II, published by Electronic Arts in 1984. He was later hired by EA and wrote the fighting game '' B ...

for the

Apple II Apple II ("apple Roman numerals, two", stylized as Apple ][) is a series of microcomputers manufactured by Apple Computer, Inc. from 1977 to 1993. The Apple II (original), original Apple II model, which gave the series its name, was designed ...

and published by Electronic Arts in 1984. Ariolasoft published the game in Europe. It was released for the ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64, and Classic Mac OS, Macintosh in 1985, to the Amiga and Atari ST in 1986, and to the PC-8800 series, PC-88 in 1988. The 1987 sequel, '' Skyfox II: The Cygnus Conflict'', was developed for the Commodore 64 by

Dynamix Dynamix, Inc. was an American developer of video games from 1984 to 2001, best known for the flight simulator Red Baron (1990 video game), ''Red Baron'', the puzzle video game, puzzle game ''The Incredible Machine (video game), The Incredible Mach ...

without Tobey's involvement.

Description

The player pilots the ''Skyfox'', the most advanced attack

fighter plane Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the a ...

available to the fictional government, the Federation. The plane has armaments consisting of radar guided missiles, heat-seeking missiles, laser cannons and deflection shields, and has a top speed of Mach 4. Gameplay consists of finding and destroying enemy

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

s, planes and motherships. The game has 15 scenarios that can be played at five skill levels. Featuring a view from the

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...

of the jet, this game is recognized as popularizing this view. The cockpit features radar which shows incoming missiles and other threats. Flying above the clouds, the player fights hordes of enemy planes. Flying below them, the player is attacked by enemy tanks. Hailed upon its release, most criticisms of the game cited repetitive gameplay as the only drawback. Tobey thought a player could get bored flying an advanced fighter plane and might want to play a game. Consequently, he incorporated a ''

Space Invaders is a 1978 shoot 'em up video game developed and published by Taito for Arcade video game, arcades. It was released in Japan in April 1978, with the game being released by Midway Manufacturing overseas. ''Space Invaders'' was the first fixed s ...

'' game into ''Skyfox'' as a hidden

Easter egg Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The ...

activated by pressing Ctrl-G while flying. The Apple II version can use a

Mockingboard The Mockingboard (a pun on "Mockingbird") is a sound card built by Sweet Micro Systems for the Apple II microcomputers. It improves on the Apple II's limited sound capabilities, as did other Apple II sound cards. In 1981, Sweet Micro Systems be ...

, if one is present, for greatly improved audio.

Reception

''Skyfox'' was Electronic Arts' best-selling Commodore 64 game as of late 1987. Its sales had surpassed 250,000 copies by November 1989. ''

Info Info is shorthand for "information Information is an Abstraction, abstract concept that refers to something which has the power Communication, to inform. At the most fundamental level, it pertains to the Interpretation (philosophy), interpr ...

'' rated ''Skyfox'' for the Commodore 64 three-plus stars out of five, praising the graphics but stating that "the gamester finds a much less involving product lying below the surface glitz ... Good run for a few hours". ''

Compute! ''Compute!'' (), often stylized as ''COMPUTE!'', is an American home computer magazine that was published from 1979 to 1994. Its origins can be traced to 1978 in Len Lindsay's ''PET Gazette'', one of the first magazines for the Commodore PET. ...

'' called the Amiga version a game that required "both forethought and quick reflexes ... one of the best available for the Amiga". It concluded that "the designers and programmers have outdone themselves in exploiting the Amiga's powerful features ... a simulation which rivals the best computer games available in any medium". In a 1994 survey of wargames ''

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American Video game journalism, computer game magazine that was published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 199 ...

'' gave the title one-plus stars out of five.

References

External links

* * * * {{WoS game, id=0004560
Box, manual, screenshots
1984 video games Amiga games Amstrad CPC games Apple II games Ariolasoft games Atari ST games Classic Mac OS games Combat flight simulators Commodore 64 games Dynamix games Electronic Arts games NEC PC-8801 games Single-player video games Video games developed in the United States ZX Spectrum games