AGH Atari 2600 Review: COSMIC SWARM by CommaVid It's time to bust out the intergalactic insect spray, because the insects are on the warpath once again. You must use your weapon to kill off the nasty creatures before they hem in your joystick-prompted movement and destroy you. In this Asteroids-type game, (well, vaguely reminiscent of it, anyways) you move your ship in any direction, and you can rotate it by pressing the red button on the joystick. The termite-type characters try to wall in the playing field by dropping blocks everywhere they go. Once the blocks are set in place and turn green, they're indestrictible and impervious to your fire, but there is a way out of this tight spot. By nailing an attacking bug where that green block is, all the blocks will instantly turn read to signify their vulnerable condition. As long as the blocks remain red -- they revert to green once you shoot an insect -- it is possible to disintegrate them with your weapon. But the best measure to prevent being boxed-in is by blasting away whenever they're carrying their blocks in their enormous mandibles. This will do away with both the block and the termite simultaneously. If, however, you can't spray the little bugger before it drops its block, you can still earn points for shooting the termite as it escapes. Meanwhile, to make things even more complicated, you have to refuel every time you hear the warning signal by docking with one of the ships cruising along the side of the screen. If you can't make it, you lose the game immediately. Graphically, Cosmic Swarm is quite unappealing unless you're into Arabic literature (look closely, the bugs look like Arabic symbols!). But it does provide an action-filled, challenging scenario with plenty to keep you occupied. Title Cosmic Swarm Publisher CommaVid System Atari 2600 (VCS) Graphics 5 Sound 5 Gameplay 7 Overall 6 Reviewer Keita Iida