M.A.C.E.

M.A.C.E. follows in the footsteps of classic shoot 'em ups like R-Type with the addition of high definition graphics and online scoreboards. I bought the game from amigakit in the summer and have been meaning to write a short review ever since!

As you can see from the photos I bought a Speedlink Competition Pro USB joystick to go with the game. Both arrived carefully packaged from amigakit and in good time.

I was very impressed with the game's packaging and glossy manual, all very professional! I bought the joystick as I had tried the M.A.C.E. demo using the keyboard and I felt a joystick was needed to do the game justice, plus it's not every day a new Amiga game comes along!

I calibrated the joystick with AmigaInput before loading the game and it works great. Competition Pros were not my favourite joystick back in the day but this USB remake gives a nice retro feeling and works like a charm.

The gameplay is fast paced and fluid. It takes some concentration to progress through the levels and things get ever more action packed as you progress. The in-game graphics are glorious with great use of flares and other effects to give depth. Similarly the sound is very good, although I usually switch off the music in the options after a while as it can get repetitive. There's various power ups and weapons to collect along the way to give extra interest. The game also features an online scoreboard, although my position on it so far leaves much to be desired!
 

I highly recommend this game, especially if you're a fan of classic shoot 'em ups and the Competition Pro joystick complements it nicely.