A work of art.
Beautiful visuals.Brilliant music and sound effects,and top notch arcade style gameplay.
Apologies
Commodore Format 97% should be Commodore Force.
C&VG
9/10 Oct 88 p30
Commodore Format
97% Mar 93 p18
Commodore Format
82% Jul 91 p37
Commodore User
9/10 Oct 88 p26
Games Machine
90% Nov 88 p55
Your Commodore
4.5/5 Jun 91 p50
Zzap!
97% Nov 88 p24
94% Jul 91 p79
Score 91.25
I am a big shooter fan, but I don't know what it is, I just can't get into this one.. 2/10. Much better alternatives are Catalypse, Salamander, R-Type, Denaris...
10/10 graphics. 8/10 sound. 7/10 playability. As great as Armalyte is, I rate Delta, and Salamander higher.
I always remeber Thalamus being the big people on the Commodore 64. To me one of their game was akin to a high budget film in presentation. They graphics always looked very rich and a high end production. I loved the look the of Armalyte, it was a great visual spectacle, unfortunately I found it too hard and that's what put me off. The music set a nice atmosphere for the game though. C.R.E.A.T.U.R.E.S. Is my favourite Thalamus release.
Again,
The enemies carry on moving to avoid flickering.
The sequences were so tightly bound to the "no more than 6 on a line" rule that we couldn't just let them stop, it would have led to massive flickering
We always justified it by imagining the pilot carried on with his mission
The flack effect of the enemy bullets follow a similar rule, when they get close to casuing a flicker they explode and reverse direction (only y axis IIRC)
Cheers
Dan
Dan Locke, you iz da man! I've always said the 'travelling explosions' were a major balls up. But who listens? Glad to see I'm not the only one that found that a tad bothersome. Gotta admit though - it looks great.
Overrated. It could have been a perfectly good shoot-em-up, but the enemy patterns tend to be awful zig-zaggy affairs, with the "traveling" explosions (evidence of bad programming) making them even more confusing and hard to follow. It does some things right, like the two-player mode and the level layouts, to say nothing of the excellent music (and pretty decent graphics), but I just can't enjoy it as a game.
Nah ,Armalyte is the pinnacle.
Aside from graphics you couldn't make a better shoot em up on the c64.
This is more like a game than a show off programming demo of how much you can make whizz about the screen...
Difficulty is just right and gameplay is rewarding.
Just something not quite right about it. Like Mayhem in Monsterland people have been swept up in the hysteria starting with the reviews of this game. It does play well and the graphics are great but there are better examples of the genre on the c64.
@Jakk: It really was the peak. From the release of this game on, it all went down.
This game can't be bettered on the Commie, even though it actually may not be anyone's all time favourite. Anyway, it would have been nice to see high class games like this released on a regular basis on the Commie some two or three more years.
Probably the peak of C64 gaming. Beautiful and perfectly presented. A work of art.
So ruddy tough! But then, I'm rubbish at shooters, so if I got to the end of level one, I was doing well.
Looks and sounds wonderful. Plays rather well too. It has a rare addictive quality.
I used to skip school with my mate just to play this in 2 player. A seminal game on the 64 but in a wider context the march of time hasn't been kind to this style of gameplay. The visuals and sound are awesome for the time but the whole gameplay dynamic feels simplistic and empty. Still a great game though and worth a look.
20 years already!!
About time we had a sequel, eh?
Hit the streets 20 years ago today IIRC
Good times.
Cheers
Dan
A classic, couldn't be bettered... On first sight... Still, misses the soul of a true Commie shoot-em-up... So it's just 9/10
It's a nice game, but I can't get into it. It's simply too easy to get stuck behind a wall, and the scrolling is quite fast. The graphics and music are insanely awesome, though.
A shmup game for the C64 with awesomely crafted graphics and music, and that was made in the late eighties. Now that's my big cup of tea.
I've just been playing Armalyte again. It really is a brilliant game. Occasionally you encounter someone who doesn't get what all the fuss is about. I suspect those people don't understand how the superbly balanced megaweapon/battery/generator combination worked.
It's a great gameplay mechanic. Should you focus on building up your batteries and generators, or should you work on powering up your normal firepower? Usually a bit of both for me.
And not only is this game a blast to play, it's 100% glitch free. Totally rock solid.
I said Delta. The two were on a par. Delta had that speeding up thing going on. mind you, I loved the flying sections in Turrican, as well. fact, I love anything R-typey
One of the best shoot em up ever programmed for any machine. Its best feature? The perfectly balanced gameplay: cleverly designed levels, total absence of cheap deaths (who said "Delta"?), optimal difficulty level and well conceived and forgiving powerup system.
Best C64 game ever. The peak of C64 gaming - it just didn`t get any better than this.
Arghh, for me to hard, need more praktice and then I beat them in the year 2011, hehehe.
GREAT shoot-em-up, dudes.
Original superweapons (i'm fed of those 'keep-the-button-pressed-to-reload-sw9
Original ship power management.
Great 2 players option.
SUPER POLISHED and refined.
Game production wasn't hurried up and you can notice it in every detail.
This game still demonstrate what a C64 was capable of when pushed by good coders, imaginative people not too streddes by close deadlines.
GREAT, a C64 icon, definitely.
10/10
Not the best looking,but the technical best shooter on the c64.Speed and amount of enemies on screen are amazing!
Beautiful looking shooter, loved the 2 player option.
But it definately got a little hairy towards the end.
Looked superb, sounded great and the presentation was second to none with a spine chilling title track. Shame the gameplay let all this down. For me it was just a over stressful shooter that I just didn't seem to enjoy, but thumbs up for everything else!
A shooter milestone indeed (especially considering the year of release) but Manfred Trenz did it better with Enforcer and slightly with Katakis too.
WOW! The gameplay and music... The Amiga version was crap and should bow down before this! A true classic on the good ol' 64...
Great title music - well done for being original Mr Walker.
This is a good game...if it was easier in later levels I would say its very good...as it is its only 'good' not 'very good'
Tar 'n' feather me again, dudes, but hey... This game was much too overloaded and the music sucked. Alright, the graphics were nice, but the rest... The original delta was way more playable, wasn't it?
This isn`t just a game, it`s a work of art!
IMO the best shoot'em up for C64! Cool and fluid graphics and fast play.
Without a doubt one of my favourite games on the C64, kept me coming back again and again until I completed it.
Personally, I was never a huge fan of this game, but that's because I'm not a huge fan of shooters. That doesn't stop me from admiring Armalye's technical achievements and recognising it a C64 landmark title.
Technically fantastic but a bit dull to play.
Ok, Ok, Ok its one of the best multyplayer shooter for the 64 but if you compare it to delta its slow and boring (1player mode!)...Delta kicks ass..try it...anather realy Asskicker is Enforcer..its Graphicly the best I ever saw on 64..ther is another multiplayer shooter called Phobia and I think its as good as Armalyte!
This is the best game on the C64. Armalyte is such a great game I named a server at work after it (sad but true). Not only is it the best balanced shooter on the C64 it also is a technical marvel. Two players co-op with huge amouts of bullets and ships on screen with no slowdown. This game pushed the C64 to its limits.
great stuff.
At the time of writing, this game is rated 7.4. I have three letters for you: WTF. I think the vote count needs to be reset and the blatant fraudulant votes removed. By far the best horizontal shooter I've played on any platform. And in one particularly zen gaming session, I actually finished it. Immensely satisfying.
If you thought R-Type was good, then check this game out. It's miles better and also very well produced
Played some hours ago...an I must say: This is simply the perfect ShootEmUp! I forgot how awesome this Game is.
The Best scroll Shooter EVER. Ikaruga is wonderful, Parodius is funny, R-Type Final is very very nice... But Armalyte is like Tempest 2000 on Jaguar... PERFECT.
It's a sad thing that no one has created something like this, even after 16 years.
Yep, another classic Thalamus game! Excellent game- wipes the floor with Salamander and even R-Type wasn't better- not even R-Type Final (released for the PS2 in 2004)!
Best horisontal shooter I have ever played on any machine. I still play it on VICE and CCS, not like a retrothing, but because I like it and have yet to complete the last level.
Salamander is fun, but come on: No strategy moments, too easy, buggy graphics... Armalyte is class.
Everyone I know remembers this. Coz it is the nuts.. Salamander is also good as is katakis, I would have probs choosing between the. They are all good games. All the coders etc I know, remember it for one reason: the sprite multiplexor... and katakis came after if I recall.
I actually prefer the graphics of Salamander and the music of R-type but those games can flicker and slow down badly when there are lots of enemies on screen. Armalyte is the best allrounder. The game play is unparalleled and is the best shoot em up on the C64 in my opinion.
Let me put it this way.
Putting aside all nostalgia, Armalyte is one of the few C64 games that is just as satisfying to play today as it ever was.
I find it particularly frustrating that a GBA version is done but may never be released!
Let me also add that the dyanmics between the mega-weapons and the batteries and generators were perfectly balanced (with beautifully distinctive sfx). In fact to my mind, everything about the gameplay was perfectly balanced. (I also like the fact that you weren't required to collect speed-ups).
BTW, although your weapons are downgraded between levels you can still take at least one (and possibly more if I remember correctly) extra battery between levels.
In fact, I'd suggest that people who are criticising this game are either not shooter fans, or haven't figured out how the generators, batteries & mega-weapons work.
PS. If you're playing on a emulator you're going to need to set the emu up to allow you to press the Commodore key if you want to switch between the 3 mega-wepons.
THE best shooter on the c64
near Amiga quality.
Thalamus was THE company! Hawkeye, Armalyte, Delta, Creatures etc.! Armalyte had great grafix and good sounds, and always reminds me on the good times on my C64.
BIG BLAST!
For me the BEST SHOOT'em UP game EVER!! Even today, '03/'04!! The gameplay was SO much fun, grafix were especially amazing (colors, resolution.. Never seen something like this bevore on C=64), leveldesign was great and even the monsters could were booosting! I'm looking for something similar on PC since a LOONG time but I couldn't find something...?!
GREAT! 10/10
I thought this was great. Is it as good as Salamander?, I think it probably is.
Overhyped by who ?
I don't remember any journalists being bribed or expensive lunches bought...
And yet I don't think it got a bad review in any magazine
Dan
Lead...Pro...Armathing
Face it Guys - This Game Is Crap ! Overhyped Stupid Crap !
A work of art. Incredible graphics. Atmospheric music and intelligent, fluid gameplay. Very clever indeed. Way too subtle for the "R-Type" arcade morons out there.
The best ever on this computer, nothing plays like it even today, although a little hard but that's what keeps you coming back for more, just the best. A must have for every 'kill the alien scum fiend' out there. Anyone who doesn't like this doesn't like fun...10/10
This is the best computer/console game ever. How any one can say something like Splinter Cell or Grand Theft Auto III is better than this must have dogcrap for brains.
8 BIT rules - they don't make 'em like this anymore.
How anyone could rate Armalyte below any othe C64 shoot'em up is beyond me. I've played them all and this one's simply the best. While other blasters were far too, easy, Cyberdyne came along and popped this one down, giving us, for the first time, a real frantic arcade shmup with fast ramping difficulty. This shooter really taught me how to dissect attack patterns, anticipate opponents and basically just 'create' flawless play, something I missed with most other mostly easier shooters (played IO after Armalyte). The score by Martin Walker is simply his best, although I missed in-game music - the SFX compensate a bit. While the theme might not be about epic battles, Armalyte rather tries to create the feeling that you're alone in outer space, and it does so quite well. Although there's better (and more challenging) on the market nowadays (the awesome Ikaruga comes to mind), this one still holds the candle on the C64. Thumbs up!
Possibly the greatest C64 game ever. Just when every one thought no one could squeeze any more from the C64 in GFX and sound and prgrammers were leaving in droves to write for the Amiga along came Armlyte and blew us all away.
On the up side, this game looks amazing, the sprite animations rate as some of the best ever on C64. The big boses really are BIG boses and the backgrounds look truly great. Programming too is up there with the best... On the down size, the game is multi load (too make room for all those frames of sprite animation no doubt
the tunes sound more like a mish mash of sound fx (although the tune when the game is completed is rather cool)... Comparing this Delta, I prefer Delta. Delta has better music, alien attack wave patterns, star field, playablity, open upper and lower borders, mix e music loader and all in a single load. Armalyte features bigger boses, batter graphics (...at the price of a multiload) loading screen... Delta seemed some what more ahead of it`s time over Armalyte.In all aspects an excellent game, this is so much fancier than any other C-64 shooter... And it even has a simultaneous two-player mode! Still, at the end of the day Armalyte lacked something to make it really addictive - maybe it was the difficulty level, but I spent more time playing the original Delta than this. Technically Armalyte is a work of art.
Indeed overhyped -
just another shooter like dozends others -
Salamander , R-type and Katakis are much much better !
personaly I realy hate armalyte - it plays like a wet sponge !
A nice shooter, yes, but that's it. In my books this is overrated. Everything's professional, the graphics, the music and the gameplay (especially when you have a pal to play with) but it lacks that mysterious "something" which separates classics from just greats.
Waited weeks for this to come through the post... When it did I wasn't let down ... Worth buying your C64 for.. Esp in 2 player mode... Few games can compete... Armalyte 2? (Delta 3)
I loved this game, great 2 player mode. Absolutely inspirational power up system. Really pushed the graphics on a C64 to another level. PC version you say? I'm intrigued sir!
I'm waiting for the 20th anniversary then...but even a PC version will do the job while waiting ;-)
Evlin,
Probably something on PC. There were no levels designed or even started for A2 thats why the demo uses level 1 of Armalyte.
We'll see, maybe on the 20th anniversery ?
Dan
Lead..Pro..Armathing
Dan, I REALLY can't wait. Armalyte is probably my favourite game EVER. Are you talking about completing the demo of Armalyte 2, or writing a new PC version?
There is a GBA version...
But I don't think it will ever be released
Well Done loflo !!
An updated version is something we have on a back burner.
Dan :-)
Lead...Pro...Armathing
PS. When I say 'dan' I mean Dan Phillips of course, who left a comment several entries below.
BTW, I nearly beat this game (no cheats)... According to the map of the game from zzap64 I was about 6 screens from the end! aaargh!
Attention shooter fans: I know this sounds like hyperbole, but I would seriously say this is the most fluid and enjoyable shooter I have played on ANY system. In comparision to other shooters on C64 this one rules supreme. The gameplay is silky smooth, the sound fx complement the action perfectly, and the GFX are not only technically brilliant, but have real style to them. The difficulty level was fine - you could never relax, but you very rarely felt cheated when you died. (plus, when you die you aren't sent back half a level like r-type, nor do you lose all your weapons - they just go down a notch)
Dan, if you bring this out on GBA I will buy one just to play it! In fact if you brought it out on PC that would be great too!... Or xbox!
Michael granger
Which bits of R-Type are better ?
R-type is much better - armalyte is totaly overhyped - 5/10
Great graphics, great music, great gameplay. One of the best shooters on the C64. Maybe lacking in broad appeal - you really need to be a shmup freak to *really* get into it - but apart from that, a solid game and one of the C64's defining titles.
9/10.
Whats wrong with you people?! Katakis doesn't even have the two players option. Too bloody hard?! Bullshit, it's suppose to take a half year or so to complete, thats one of the major thing that makes it so brilliant. A game which you finish in a week isn't much of a game, but a game wich you have to be skilled in order to advance to the next level, thats quality.
The best sci-fi scrolling shooter on the 64.
brilliant gameplay, but a tad too hard 9 out of 10 any body that rates katakis over this, needs their brain smashed open with a melon. Did Cyberdyne go on to make anything else?
These guys were cyberdyne systems YEARs before terminator used the name!
TOP TUNE from the Maniacs Of Noise!
I can't really understand some people in this forum... Katakis is better than Armalyte? O_O I hope you're joking...
Class!! The 8 bit era's best shooter by miles
Very hard to solve and had some cool graphics/sfx ... But it's far away from the C64's best shooter
- - -> KATAKIS <- - - Katakis had an incredibly smooth scrolling, more enemies, more really BIG bosses, completely new background GFX for each level and... It was fair. But "Armalyte" was a nice try from Thalamus ... 8 from 10
(and ... Hmm.. if you like REALLY hard shoot em ups -> try "IO"!)
Most UNDER rated game ever. It was always over shaddowed by R-Type and Nemisis for some reason. The game was better, as was the music and graphics. The selection of weapons was perfect. No weapons which just rip through 30 ships with 1 shot.
The 2 players at the same time makes this game way infront of the other games mentioned.
If you have a C64 emulator and you have never played this. You are not a C64 fan until you do.
What a fantastic shooter. The perfect tempo and sheer smoothness of this game is incredible. It can be hard, but this game can bring out your best skills in a way few games can!
A MIRACLE on the Commodore 64!!!
I hadn't played this for over 10 years until last week, I had forgotten what an excellent game it is. This is what R-Type should have been like. Forget all the crap Quake clones, play Armalyte today...it's the dogs bollocks...
The multpiplexed sprites routine is one of the best and fastest I have ever seen ! ( Dan Phillips is an alien !!! )
The sprites colisions detection is a pure delight of precision.
The gameplay ( the main-sprite is moved by the joystick or by a mind control ? ) , the graphics (metallic aspect with sometimes a Giger style), the sprites animations ( smooth and realistic ) are really more than good.
In one word, this game is simply "fantastic"...
10/10 quote deserved
GREAT GREAT GREAT game ! (but really hard to finnish...)
I love armalyte, it's pure class - the music brings you back every time. Hard as nails, and packed with class, you can't forget it.
Didn't Andrew Braybrook comment on Armalyte saying "Just how can they get so many sprites on one screen...?!?".
Amazing graphics, HUGE end of level motherships, really smooth movement and animation plus atmospheric music - without a doubt the BEST shoot 'em up EVER on the C64...
...and if this wasn't enough Armalyte surely has the best end-of-game sequence too - well worth battling through the levels for!
10/10 A++ !!
Eine sehr üppiges Weltraumgeballer für 2 Leute, massig Waffen und Levels. Man hatte es relativ schnell durch. Besonders auffällig waren die wunderschönen Sprites und Endgegner. Thalamus Games waren einfach geil und das sah man einfach. Die Musik ware sehr athmosphärisch aber auch etwas düster.
The best shoot'em up EVER, not only on the commie. And IMO simply the best game on the 64. Amazing, atmospheric introductory music by Martin Walker. A painstaking attention to level design - you never feel cheated because of collision detection when you die, as you sometimes do in the productions of Mr. Trenz. Two-player mode (though I preferred single player because of the R-Type style satellite). Unbeatable graphics and class in every detail (listen to the metallic "scream of death" of end-of-level bosses!). Thalamus at its peak (and it was not easy). How can it be so low-rated on Lemon is beyond me...
This, subterania and starfox on the SNES are the best shoot em ups on any system.
An amazing game. Still playable and fun. Showed what the cbm could do with the right talents. Such a pity Armalyte 2 didn't make it to the market. Download this game now. Thalamus at its best!
STUNNING!!! this is the one and only game that showed exactly what the C64 was really capable of!.grogeous graphics, amazing gameplay and a fantastic soundtrack.perfection its self
This is an absolutely superb games - probably the best ever game on the C64. It was years ahead of its time, I cant think of a better shooter on any system, let alone C64. How on earth did this not get an average mark of at least 9 I don't know. I would rate this 10 out of 10 - its that good.
Paul - I reckon you mst have some serious problems not to be able to get past level 2 on this game!!! A classic
I recognise greatness when I see it. The daddy of all shoot em ups and definitely holds the crown even by todays' standards. However, for me, the difficulty curve was a little too unforgiving and put me off. Despite my ill attempts to venture past level 2, this ranks as an epic C64 game.
The best shoot em up game I ever played. It is excellent in every respect, very tough but never unfair. I only miss more music but I guess the sacrificed that for larger levels (level 1 has a demo with music which only lasts to the first boss).
Definately among my top 10 favourite games of all time! Thumbs up, way up
GREAT game with a simply GREAT sounding loading "tune". 10/10
One of the best games of all time on any format !!! Can't score this game too highly. However, Armalyte on the Amiga was a very big disappointment to say the least.
Ok, 352 votes and an average of 6.3 for THE BEST C-64 game EVER? Who is voting for this?Maybe the same guys who put Stun Runner in the top 25 and Beast (however good it is) in the first position..Did you buy your C-64 in 1999 and suffer for not having an Amiga?
This game is without doubt the greatest shoot-em up ever made on any format, including arcade machines. How anyone can give it less than 10/10 is beyond me. It has consumed more hours of my life than any other game, and the two player game is perfect. One gripe-why can't they make PC games as good as this?
Cheers Guys,
Look out for a Gameboy Advance Version :-)
And then a proper follow up...
Dan :-)
ps. Not very nice political voting...is it John...
Oh, I just love this game.
Me and my friend just started playing it, and we have been hooked up for hours. Still we only have reached level three. The same day we found the diskette I happend to hold the CDsingel VW-käfer und 1000 tage by Welle:Erdball containing the soundtrack to "Metal Dust"!. So we threw it in the CD player, started Armalyte, and yeeessss. That soundtrack made the game kickass. To bad nobody made any music to the game, but then again the GFX is really on the top.
The best horizontal shoot'em up ever, GFX top notch, and if you're crap and can't get through it it's not the game's fault. 9 out of 10 is too low!
Just so completely 9 out of 10! Too bloody hard, never ever got past level 4 without cheating. You can fool the tape loader somehow. The 2 player mode is really cool, as you can moan to someone else about how hard it is. Great super laser weapons and big baddies.
Bloody good, but bloody hard!! I'm lucky to ever make it past level two. No one else has mentioned this though, so maybe I'm just crap.
I came here to pass comment and I see it's got 5.7 out of 10 as a rating?! Who's voting for this? I wanna know who'd give it less than a 9... (any negative emails will be dutifully ignored)
Brilliant Thalamus shooter with ace graphics, excellent sound and silky action!
Thalamus did it.
If you like shooting, this is the one.
9 out of 10 !
To me the absolute best shooter of its time. Great graphics & level design, great atmospheric soundtrack, super-smooth gameplay with tonnes of sprites that never flickers or slows down - it doesn't get much better than this!