Horizon

41 Years old Arcade Video game Irem Corp. [Japan]

Horizon © 1985 Irem.

A horizontally scrolling shooter, Horizon is the sequel to Moon Patrol. Both were developed by Irem corporation; only Moon Patrol was licensed to Williams.

Players take control of hover vehicle armed with a turret and a cannon, rolling over the terrain and alternating their position and perspective on three different lanes to destroy enemies and dodge attacks while avoiding obstacles and picking up fuel and other items.

TECHNICAL

Irem M-62 system hardware

Main CPU: Zilog Z80 (@ 4 Mhz)
Sound CPU: Motorola M6803 (@ 894.886 Khz)
Sound Chips: (2x) General Instrument AY8910 (@ 894.886 Khz), (2x) MSM5205 (@ 384 Khz)

Screen orientation: square screen
Video resolution: 256 x 256 pixels
Screen refresh: 55.00 Hz
Palette colors: 512

Players: up to 2 (alternating turns)
Control: 4-way joystick
Buttons: 1
[A] = FIRE CANNON AND SHOOT FROM STATIC TURRET

TRIVIA

Irem's Horizon was released in 1985.

The game knows 2 buttons in service mode, but only 1 is used in the game. The 2nd button's purpose is unknown; it may have been a separate button for rockets shot out of the turret. Instead, 1 button functions as in 'technical section' above.

The music has more drums when the hovercraft is in the lane close to the screen, where the music with fewer drums is played on the far lane.

TIPS AND TRICKS

* Caution beep indicates a foe's hovercraft is about to appear.
* Irem's Horizon is an unfair game: you'll have to repeat the whole section after you get shot by or collide with any enemy (along with static one). If you were close to checkpoint 3, you have to drive all the way from checkpoint 2.
* The turret shoots close-ranged rockets out: if an enemy is too far from a rocket, try to drive slightly closer and shoot the foe out.
* Take every fuel pick-up: miss one and you'll lose a life.
* Caterpillars are flying when your hovercraft is on the same lane as them. Ensure you're divided with a safe distance and shoot them out.
* There are 3 concrete blocks in the middle lane in section 2. Take them out to drive further; there's also per 1 in top and bottom lane, but they're indestructible and cause a life loss (when hit).
* There are indestructible ruins and Greek pillars in section 4: don't hit them, just like the blocks in section 2. But there are other enemies flying circularly.
* Watch out for abductors in operations "B", "C" and "D". Don't hit their beam.

SERIES

📜

1. Moon Patrol (1982)
2. Horizon (1985)

SOURCES

🔗

ROM dump (MAME).