DESCRIPTION

Gravitar is a doctoral thesis for those who graduated from earlier Atari "physics-based" arcade titles like Asteroids and Asteroids Deluxe. Where its predecessors concerned themselves with accurate simulations of zero gravity, Gravitar comes full circle and adds a dash of Lunar Lander desperation to a fast and furious shooter. Players must select a locale to visit from a Star Wars-like menu screen (where it's even possible to get wiped out!) and make a powered descent without hitting the ground at any point. Enemy gun installations and ships must be destroyed, and their fuel supplies raided if the player's ship is ever going to reach orbit again. Maneuvering on the planets is especially tricky since it requires players to blast their way through fortified underground tunnels where both the ground and the "ceiling" are hazards. The difficulty factor scared away some faint-hearted arcade patrons, and many Gravitar coin-ops were turned into Black Widow, a later Atari game released as a conversion kit. Gravitar can still be found in the Atari Anniversary Edition collection. ~ Earl Green, All Game Guide