Defender - PS2

Defender for the PS2 is barely recognisable from the Williams arcade legend of the early 1980's, but the story remains pretty much the same. A brave resistance of alien invasion and abduction is mounted by the Galactic Stargate Authority, you get to join them in their hyper-powerful ships, and anyone with any gumption will tell you that the best form of defence is to attack. So, strap yourself in, pilot, and get your finger on the trigger!

At the outset, you get to choose a ship and are granted 1000 Credits with which to buy weapons upgrades. A choice of ships in this version of Defender means variable handling. Each ship is essentially controlled by the pitch and roll method - pitch to elevate, roll to turn - and thrusters cause your ship to accelerate forward or in reverse. Gamers will be relieved to know that the Defender ships are designed to survive scrapes with the ground - a good thing, seeing as you'll spend a lot of the game swooping toward terra firma to make those all-important pick-ups. Hit the ground with some force though, and you'll slow right down, and that might be the last thing you need when you're on a mission.

The Defender ship can pick items up by flying into them, either on the ground or in the air. Things that should be picked up, such as colonists and tanks, hook onto the ship automatically. Colonists automatically detach from your ship only if you fly into one of the orange landing pad on the ground. You can let them get off anywhere else, but it's not advisable. Other items, like tanks, unhook from your ship on their own when you fly into the ground. The right analogue stick allows you to perform some nifty moves whilst in the air. You can perform barrel rolls, 180 and 360 degree turns - all kinds of neat tricks. These are all helpful in allowing you to make a quick change in direction, a fast pick-up, or to help you avoid enemy fire.

In single player mode, there's plenty to go at, as you endeavour to protect the planet's colonists from alien abduction. However, in two-player mode, you can get some help from a friend in Co-operative mode, or you can go up against another player in a Deathmatch dogfight. Hurrah!

Midway's Defender for Century 21 is a huge leap - whether it's a leap forward or otherwise is down to whether you get all misty-eyed at the thought of a stand-up cabinet, scarred by cigarette burns, stained by Panda Pop spillages, and a crowd of ten pence-wielding snow wash denim-clad hair-don'ts roaring you on. It's been a long time coming… more