Beware! Sinistar lives!
Fast-paced, gripping and utterly ahead of its time, the 1982 Williams outer-space shooter Sinistar is an early example of what would become known as a “twitch” game. You pilot a lone fighter ship, initially blasting away at drifting planetoids to mine Sinisite Crystals to create Sinibombs while contending with agile Warrior ships. Meanwhile, Worker ships work to construct a Sinistar nearby. When the Workers complete the Sinistar, it comes to life with a frightening “Beware, I Live!!”, and comes after you!
Sinistar represented a number of firsts in game design. It was the first game to use stereo sound (in the sitdown version), with two independent left and right sound boards for this purpose. It was also the first to use the 49-way, custom-designed optical joystick that Williams had produced specifically for this game.
Perhaps one of the most challenging Raiders of the Lost Arcade games we’ve featured, Sinistar is here to wreak havoc and put your reflexes to the test if you want to get on the high score leaderboards! Give it a shot at Ground Kontrol today!
Pro-Tips
• Short-range Sinibombs automatically targets the Sinistar when fired, but can be intercepted by a collision with an enemy Workers, enemy Warriors, or a planetoid.
• A completed but damaged Sinistar can be repaired/rebuilt by the enemy Workers by gathering more crystals, extending its “lifespan” if the player is unable to kill it quickly.
• Your ship can hold up to 20 Sinibombs at a time, a total of 13 bombs are required to destroy a fully constructed Sinistar!