Aaargh!

Aaargh!

Company type	Video game
Industry	Video games
Founded	1987
Founder	Binary Design and Sculptured Software
Products	Aaargh! (video game)

Aaargh! is an action-oriented single-player video game in which the user commands a colossal creature on a quest to locate eggs by demolishing structures throughout multiple cities situated on a mysterious island. Created collaboratively by Binary Design and Sculptured Software, the title originally launched in 1987 on Mastertronic's Arcadia Systems arcade hardware, which was built upon customized Amiga technology. Between 1988 and 1989, this game was adapted for various other systems such as the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple IIgs, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, MSX, and ZX Spectrum. The Amiga edition was distributed by Electronic Arts.

Gameplay

The objective involves controlling one of two gigantic creatures—a Dinosaur or an Ogre—to uncover the golden dragon’s egg by destroying buildings and revealing Roc eggs hidden within. Each egg discovered initiates a confrontation with the opposing monster. Upon gathering five eggs, the two monsters engage in a final showdown atop a volcano to compete for possession of the dragon’s egg.

Combining elements of action and fighting genres, the arcade version allows either solo play or simultaneous two-player participation; however, all subsequent ports are limited to single-player gameplay. The experience unfolds across ten distinct cities on the Lost Island, ranging from a Primitive village to an Indian Temple city, all presented through a fixed 2.5D perspective designed to create an illusion of depth. Creatures can restore their health by consuming island inhabitants or oversized food items such as pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, and tacos. Additionally, lightning bolts appear as collectible power-ups.

Enemies include attacks from native weaponry like catapults and cannons alongside hostile island fauna such as giant mosquitoes, bees, hornets, Rocs, flying lizards, and dragons.

Reception

Critical response varied widely depending on platform, with review scores spanning from approximately 2 out of 10 up to nearly 9 out of 10. Praise was frequently directed at the graphics and audio quality, particularly notable in the Amiga version; however, gameplay mechanics attracted criticism. ACE magazine highlighted that despite its "good graphics, atmospheric sound and good gameplay," the game’s low difficulty level diminished its replay appeal. Reviewers focusing on the ZX Spectrum version expressed dissatisfaction with the necessity to load each level separately; Your Sinclair characterized it as a "multi-level, multi-load, beat 'em, blowtorch 'em up" experience that annoyed players due to frequent reload interruptions.

In 1989, Dragon magazine featured the game in its "The Role of Computers" segment. Departing from their standard 1-to-5 star scale, critics Patricia Hartley and Kirk Lesser assigned it an "X," signaling strong disapproval.

See also

• Crush, Crumble and Chomp! (1981)
• Rampage (1986)
• The Movie Monster Game (1986)