Robotica

Robotica is a dark, futuristic Doom-style game that looks and plays very much like the Sony PlayStation game Kileak--The DNA Imperative. It would seem that these types of games are particularly popular in Japan, where both Robotica (a/k/a Daedalus) and Kileak (a/k/a Kileak--The Blood) were both initially released. You play the role of a robot, and your immediate objective is to explore each floor for various power-ups--including weapons, shield reinforcements and gate keys--and, of course, to make your way to the exit.

Along the way you'll find various robot enemies. Your arsenal of weaponry includes missiles, lasers, vulcan bullets, and a trusty "arm punch," which is far more effective than I at first thought it would be. If you're low on bullets, don't hesitate to use it. It'll really smash those little robots up.

I'll let you know that there isn't a whole lot going on at once during this game. You can do a lot of exploring without coming across much action. My immediate reaction was "a bit boring." But I actually found that I liked the pace of the gameplay. It was simultaneously comforting and disconcerting. The game is creepy and dark, and it makes you sort of nervous. It effectively sets a mood. During some levels, the lights will flicker on and off. It's a great effect.

The graphics are impressive. Each level is sufficiently detailed. But what I really liked were the onscreen displays, which included a map, shield meter, weapons indicator, power meter, enemy detection, and a huge sight in the middle of the screen with crosshairs. It all added up to a more realistic effect. You really start to feel like a machine on legs.

So Robotica may not be quite as exciting as : Doom (there, that's my comparison), but it does provide a lot of entertainment value.