Galaxy 5000
Reviewed by Felix T. Cat
GALAXY 5000
RACING IN THE 51st CENTURY
System- Nintendo Entertainment System
Category- Racing/ Action
# of Players- 1 or 2
Publisher- Activision, 1990
In the 51st century (a long time from now), turbocraft racing will be
the new trend.
What's a turbocraft you ask? Well, it's a race car that travels at high
speeds, just hovering over the track, that's capable of jumping and
firing weapons.
It's the vehicle of choice in Activision's Galaxy 5000 for the NES.
Galaxy 5000 is a racing game similar in style to R.C. Pro-Am. You
control one turbocraft and race clockwise, around an overhead-view
track, against 3 other competitors. Your goal is to finish the race
(not necessarily win), by avoiding obstacles and track hazards,
while collecting valuable items along the way. The basic game is a
36 heat race across 9 planets... that's right, the 9 planets of the
solar system.
Race 1 takes place on Mercury and then eventually extends out to
the other planets, to the final race on Pluto. Each planet has a total
of 4 races, each one getting progressively more difficult.
Each planet has one track each, that has a variety of hazards.
Everything from mines, pits, spikes, rocks, laser cannons, black
holes, and walls, are designed to make the race more challenging.
With each race, the number of obstacles and hazards increase,
while each planet has a progressively harder course.
It's important to avoid these hazardous implements, as they will
not only slow you down, but damage your craft in the process.
There are 4 competitors in Galaxy 5000. Each opponent is a different
color- red, yellow, blue, and white. No matter what, you're always the
white vehicle in a one-player game. It's a minor complaint, but they
could have made it so that the player can choose the color of their craft.
Each turbocraft has a "damage" meter and two weapon types. The
damage meter increases each time the craft takes a hit. There is a
"normal" weapon for each of the different turbocrafts, and a "special"
weapon that is gained by picking up the special weapon icon. The
weapons can be fired both forward and backwards.
You also have the ability to "jump" your craft over obstacles and pits
on the track, as well as the other vehicles. This makes the game a blast
since you can fire at your opponents to slow them down, then jump
ahead of them.
The result makes it a wild acton-packed frenzy of firepower and
leaping deftness, while still maintaining the feel of an actual race.
There are 5 available crafts in the game that can be accessed
depending on your performance. Each new craft is slightly faster
and more maneuverable than the previous, and has a stronger
weapon and can take damage better.
The items you collect are called "bonus stars", and they look like
little spiked ball thingies *. By driving over the *s (bonus stars),
you can get more "points", reduce damage to your craft, and enable
the more effective "special weapon".
Some tracks have the *s already in place on the track, but more
can be uncovered by eliminating obstacles that may be hiding them.
Some of the *s may be located in hard-to-reach places, that are risky
to attempt, but are definitely worth it.
Your opponents can get the *s as well, so keeping them from getting
the * is one of the more strategic elements of the game. Among other
things, there are also hidden "warp zones" that will take you to areas
with a ton of bonus items. These special warp can also be revealed
through destruction of obstacles, or by just sheer accident. They
provide one of the biggest advantages in the game.
The races are surprisingly close every time, and can sometimes
come down to a last second leap to the finish. Learning the structure
of each course and finding "shortcuts" are the keys to victory.
Each individual race is 4 complete laps. The main purpose of each
race is to survive and beat the rather strict time limit. Once the
time limit is up, the track will disintegrate into nothing, and the
game will end. As long as you continue to complete the races in time,
you'll be allowed to continue, even if you come in last every time. It
helps to win the race though, as winning has its benefits.
You get "money" based on your performance in a race. Getting 1st
place guarantees the largest purse, but you also gain extra cash by
scoring "points" in the race. These "points" include: destroying the
obstacles on the track, collecting the "bonus stars", destroying your
opponents turbocraft , and time remaining when you complete the race.
Money is used to purchase the other, more powerful turbocrafts, and to
repair the damage inflicted on your current craft. At the end of each race,
you'll have the option of repairing your vehicle. It will cost more money,
the more damaged it is. It's best to keep it from being severely damaged,
as to save money for obtaining the better turbocrafts. A new turbocraft
is purchased automatically when you get enough money for it. Each of
them most be bought in order from the next level up from the last, so
it's important to keep your earnings up.
One of the best aspects of Galaxy 5000 is the competitive fairness.
The computer controlled opponents are all equal in strength and speed,
and endure the same hardships as you. The computer crafts will get
damaged by obstacles, fall off the track, crash into hazards, and fire
their weapons at each another. They'll get money and obtain the better
crafts as well, but only if they're progressing well. For example, if the
yellow c.c. turbocraft is winning races or placing high, and the red c.c.
turbocraft is constantly coming in last, then the yellow craft will most
likely acquire the next more powerful vehicle BEFORE the red one. So if
YOU do really well and win several races in a row, you can actually get
the next turbocraft a few rounds before the other racers do. That's what
you call great game designing.
The graphics in Galaxy 5000 are simple, but more than acceptable. The
vivid color contrasts ensure that everything's easy to see. Each planet
has its own color and design (although all of the tracks look like they're
in outer space, due to the starry black sky in the background).
The paths are very clear and the game has a very smooth flow to it. Even
when the screen is cluttered with obstacles, moving vehicles, and
projectiles, there is absolutely no flicker or slowdown- a common
problem in a lot of NES games.
The turbocrafts, however, are somewhat generic looking and lack detail.
They are well animated though, with a bouncy appearance to their jump
and a fluid turning motion.
The sound effects are good, particularly the "BOOM!" of when something
blows up, or the various digitized voice sounds like the "yelp" from when
you drive off of the track or fall in a pit, to the "Excuse me!" you hear
when passing another racer.
The music is minimal and practically unnoticeable, but the sound
effects make up for it.
Play control is excellent. The craft is very responsive. It's easy to steer
and you can even control the direction of the jump in mid-air. The game
has a choice of two control modes. One is where you steer using
directional movement, and the other where it's controlled like an R.C. car
by holding up to accelerate forward, and use left/ right to turn. The latter
is the more difficult to learn by far, but won't result in as much "thumb
soreness". "Thumb soreness" is major problem with this game.
There's very few negative things about Galaxy 5000. One is the fact
that a few of the later racetracks have absolutely ridiculous designs
(the Neptune course has so many pitfalls and strips of track that are
so narrow that falling off is all to frequent). Another is the "Two-player
Mode" which only gives you access to the Mercury track, and is designed
so that both players have to be on the screen together. If one player gets
more than a screen ahead of the other, then the trailing player will
receive a "push" to keep up. It probably would have been much more
difficult to create a split-screen mode, but the two-player race is not
one of the game's strong points. This is primarily a one-player game.
What a GREAT game it is though! It's certainly among the top NES racers.
It's the high playability factor and action-based game play that make it
stand out. It may not be a "racing game" in the purest sense of the term,
but it still puts the emphasis on winning the race other than just a
destruction derby.
If you enjoyed R.C. Pro-Am, then you would definitely enjoy Galaxy 5000.
It's Pro-Am of the future!
GRAPHICS= 6
SOUND= 8
MUSIC= 3
CONTROL= 9
PLAYABILITY= 9
THEME/ FUN= 7
BEST FEATURE- Competitive edge, fair game play
WORST FEATURE- Two-player mode
OVERALL RATING= 8