Act: Trash Killer 2 [by Kraisoft]

Game: Trash Killer2
Release: Jan., 2002
Genre: Action
Developer: Kraisoft
System Requirments: Pentium 200, 32MB Ram, 15MB hd
Price: Freeware

When you first start playing Trash Killer 2, you'll think that it is quite similar to asteroids.  Unfortunately, as you keep playing the game, you'll notice that there isn't really much more to say about it.  Replace asteroids with junk, and you have Trash Killer 2, and uninspired game that does provide enough thrills to be worth the download and the price.

The focus of Trash Killer is that of a garbage ship patrolling the galaxy.  It isn't really as glamorous as that might indicate.  Though the game's help file indicates that you are destroying asteroids, kind of cleaning up the area, it really does look like you are destroying some strange brown blob.  The kind that you usually flush down the toilet.  Beyond the blobs, the graphics are more than serviceable and are certainly the highlight of the game. 

The garbage patroller you fly has several abilities.  It is capable of multiple speeds that are easily set by using the number keys on the keyboard.  Pressing '5' will set you to speed 5, the fastest speed available, and pressing '1' will set you at speed 1, which is the slowest available.  I found 3 to be about the best speed.  Much slower and you are likely to be run over by the asteroids.  The standard laser that your ship fires is not unlimited.  When you first start any level, the laser is at its highest energy level.  If you hold down the fire button, it will quickly deplete the energy.  This will cause the laser to have a longer wait between each bullet.  Thus, it can be a helpful strategy to fire in short bursts so that you don't find yourself out of energy with an asteroid headed straight for you.

Thankfully you're ship is more than a single asteroid away from extinction.  The patrol ship is fairly resilient and will typically take 3-4 asteroids, depending on size, before it becomes a bit of space junk itself.  An interesting feature to the game is that the points you are awarded when you destroy and asteroid are dependent on how much energy your ship has.  The more energy your ship has, the more points you receive.

Of course no shooter would be complete without power-ups, and Trash Killer 2 has 3.  The first will upgrade your cannon.  You can upgrade from single to double shots, and then again from double shots to triple shots.  This will greatly improve your ability to hit your targets.  Perhaps a better power-up however, is the supercharge that gives you unlimited energy for you laser gun.  The final power-up restores some of the energy for you ship.  Each of the power-ups can stay with you as you advance from level to level provided you do it fast enough.  The multi laser has no time limit to it, making it crucial to your survival.  However, it will be lost if your ship is destroyed.  You begin each new level with full energy for your ship, so finishing one stage with a power-up sets you up well for future stages.

On the first level of the game, you begin with a single asteroid.  Blasting the asteroid breaks it into two smaller asteroids, and blasting each of the smaller asteroids will break them in 3-4 asteroids a piece, much as you would expect.  Each level of the game adds an asteroid, so level 2 has two asteroids, and level 7 has 7 asteroids.  The game seems to continue indefinitely, though honestly I didn't play through 10 levels, so I cannot say that with assurity.  As you move forward into the game, the strategy seems to be to move off the screen.  As the game wraps the left of the screen to the right, and the top to the bottom, you can fly off the screen one side, and appear on the other.  The trick is that you can also stop between screens while firing onto the screen.  This leaves you impervious to damage, but honestly isn't very much fun.

Trash Killer 2 has recently been updated with better graphics.  The game was initially released in late 1999, but re-released in early 2002 with the new graphics. 

Graphics: 8
The graphics of Trash Killer 2 are wonderful.  The ship is well modeled and the background is extremely picturesque.  Unfortunately, there just isn't enough of the graphics to meet my tastes.  The background of the level never changes, nor does the enemy you confront.  Just endless brown blobs.  The special weapons are easy to spot, and the explosions are workable even if they are 2D.  Some particle/plasma effects would have livened up the game a good bit.

Sound: 6
The only sound in the game is that of lasers blasting and things exploding.  Neither will set your heart on fire, but both are workable.

Game Play: 7
Using a keyboard  to get around is never the best way to maneuver, however, it works well in this game.  The ability to set your speed on your ship makes it easy to find a controllability of the ship that will meet your liking.  A joystick would have been a big plus, but if you really make it very far, you'll be spending most of your time off the screen anyway, so that likely isn't too big of a deal.

Options: 6
There really aren't any options to the game.  You can select your ships speed, and turn the music off, but beyond that, there isn't much.  A high score table does exist, though I doubt the game is engaging enough for anyone to actually fill all 10 slots on the table.

Concept: 5
Asteroids is asteroids.  I really like asteroids as a concept, the original Atari classic has been remade multiple times, and many of those remakes are very good.  This one is good because it is free and has above average graphics, but it doesn't advance the concept at all.

Fun: 6
Once you get past the first few boards, you'll find yourself wondering just why you are playing.  I enjoyed blasting the asteroids when I could fly around, but soon there are far too many on the screen to do anything of the sort.  Sitting and firing from a distance, or trying to keep yourself off the screen is not really all that fun.

Overall: 6
This game will leave you wanting more, and I believe that is the exact intent of it.  The graphics show of a little of what Kraisoft is capable of, and you'll find even more fun graphics in their other games.  This game is a good game for playing at work for a few minutes when you are zoning out and your boss isn't around, but isn't a game for getting into any type of serious gaming.Added: February 28th 2003
Reviewer: The Mole
Score:
Related Link: Screenshots
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Language: english