It was so refreshing to play River Raid on an Atari emulator and be able to see what old school gaming was all about. River Raid is a simplistic, yet incredibly fun and addicting. Made before the time of storylines, you are aloud to create whatever strange reason you want for the reason that you are flying down a river laying waste to any helicopter, jet, or battleship (which looks like a UFO).
Regardless, you are put in a 3rd person perspective of a pilot who is gunning his way down a river inhabited by tons of enemies and land obstacles who are determined to get in your way.
Beat the high score by surviving and making sure everyone else doesn't. Be sure to watch your fuel though, because, if you run out you will die also. Throughout the river you'll see fuel tanks that you can fly through to slowly replenish you fuel on the run. Who says the Atari doesn't acknowledge physics? You can also shoot the fuel tanks if you don't need them, which will give you 100 points.
The game has several seemingly unending segments of a river that is riddled with enemies. Each segment is separated by a bridge, which once you shoot and destroy, acts as a respawn point for you to go back to, if you die. You start the game with 3 lives, but every 10,000
points you get another life.
River Raid does an amazing job of making that feeling from yesteryear of trying to top you and your friend old high score perfectly. Since an Atari emulator is cheap and easy to come by, this should be a staple item to have at any video game party. If you are a fan of the old school classics or you just enjoy ancient arcade games, River Raid is all this at its best. The point system, the cheesy yet respected graphic style, the endless swarms of baddies, all come together to form one cherished blast-from-the-past experience.
I hope you will enjoy this great arcade classic as much as I have.
