I came across this game the other day and I couldn’t believe my eyes! I remember it being one of the first games I played on the very first computer I ever had, bringing back a lot of memories! It was really weird playing it actually; I even recognized the music instantly. I must have played it for the first time when I was about 10 or 11, its simplicity and speed (and guns and cars!) made it one of my most played games as a kid.
I absolutely loved this game. It’s a real classic arcade type experience.
Set in the future, the game is played on a scrolling screen basis. You are basically a freedom fighter, who has helped create the ‘Multi Attack Super Turbo Energy Ranger’ (MASTER) prototype vehicle. With this vehicle you must escape from the prison you were sent to by the evil terraformers. You must then rejoin the partisans, destroy the terraformers and, ultimately, save planet earth!
The first level ‘Evil Drivers’ indicates the tone of the game, with the head terraformer commanding, “UNIT 1-6247 IS COMPROMISING SECURITY GRID. ANNIHILATE IMMEDIATELY!”. In fact the game has a definite 1984 ring to it, especially with the grey color palette. The level is set on a futuristic highway in which you must
navigate the master prototype vehicle past the terraformer enemy, who are housed in helicopter gunships, tanks, other cars and static gun towers. Each level ends with a final ‘boss’ character which is much more difficult to defeat than the other enemies on the level. The other levels such as, ‘The Lost Roads’ (“YOU DARE ENTER THE LOST ROADS? WE WILL DESTROY YOU!”) and ‘Anarchy’ (“YOU SEE FREEDOM IN THE DISTANCE. YOUR FINAL CHAPTER BEGINS!”) follow a similar pattern. The game is incredibly addictive, as soon as I downloaded it.
The graphics are, by today's standards, pretty basic and the scrolling screen is rarely seen nowadays. But this makes the game’s appeal even greater. For an honest, genuinely retro gaming experience you can't really go wrong with highway hunter. The company that developed this game, Omega, also produced ‘Highway Fighter’ a similar game. I still cannot believe I got a chance to play this game again, I’d totally forgotten about it! I recommend 'Highway Hunter' to anybody who loves old style, scrolling screen arcade games.
