Although it looks similar to countless other shooters, Starquake has many innovations that set it apart. For starters, you are free to go wherever you want on the planet in your search for the missing pieces of the core. You can either explore on foot, or on a hovercraft. To move upward without the hovercraft, you can create your own platforms which last for a short period of time. To make exploration easier, there are a great number of hovercraft pads and fifteen teleporters, each with different codes, scattered strategically around the 512 screens. Finding these codes adds an interesting element of adventuring, not unlike Access’ Echelon. Another nod to the adventure genre is the availability of an inventory: you can carry up to four items at a time. There are also features such as security doors, which require the security card or matching numbered cards, doors which require keys, and special 'breakaway platforms'. Another interesting feature is the Cheops Pyramid, which lets you exchange a piece for the one that you think is more useful.

Gameplay is a lot of fun, and very easy to learn. Although the graphics are only four-color CGA in this PC version, the animations are very smooth, and the controls intuitive. The game is also highly replayable: both the identities and locations of pieces you need to rebuild the planet’s core are randomized, so the game never gets monotonous. If you enjoy shooters with a difference, Starquake more than fits the bill. Two thumbs up for this underdog!