Katakis
| Developer: Factor 5 | Graphics: |
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| Publisher: Rainbow Arts | Sound: |
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| Year: 1988 | Difficulty: |
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| Genre: Shoot’em up | Lastability: |
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| Number of players: 2 alternating | Rating: |
6/10 | |
Katakis (“au bon lait de brebis!”) is a painstaking R-Type clone, if not exactly brimming with originality. It was one of my very first shoot’em ups. In fact, I didn’t come across the original until much later! Fans of the genre will no doubt enjoy it.
A little trivia for you: R-Type first hit the arcades in 1987. Activision acquired the rights to ensure its release on home computers. Meanwhile, the studio Rainbow Arts beat them to the punch by releasing Katakis. As a result, the original’s publisher demanded—and secured—its withdrawal from sale. However, recognising the quality of this knock-off, its developer, Factor 5, was enlisted to produce R-Type for the Amiga. Katakis was re-released in 1989, in a slightly modified form and under a new name: Denaris.
Another story? Oh, go on then. You should know that Katakis originally debuted on the Commodore 64. It’s an entirely different game, though the influences of Gradius and R-Type are plain to see. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet, but it’s regarded by players (hopelessly blinded by nostalgia, you know the type!) as superior to the Amiga version.
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