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Atari XEGS

Blue Max

1986 1 Players 71% Not Rated

The storyline is based on a fictional pilot, Max Chatsworth, being (in-game) one of Britain's Flying Aces. Chatsworth's fame began in battle, when he was out on a reconnaissance mission, and his squadron was decimated by enemy planes. The pilot survived, and in the process shot down seven enemy fighters. He shot down thirteen more the next month. For these actions, Germany offered their Blue Max medal to anyone who could shoot Chatsworth down—and Chatsworth got a new nickname—Blue Max. As Blue Max, you go out on sorties—flying missions—attacking assigned targets. Targets include bridges, buildings, enemy planes, tanks, bridges, anti-aircraft batteries, vehicles and ships. You progress to new missions as you take out your targets. Various settings can be adjusted before beginning play including control type (normal or pilot), skill level and whether gravity will affect the plane. You must drop bombs to take out the ground targets, and this action also represents a key danger for you. Unlike the modern bombers that drop bombs on targets far below, early aircraft engaged in semi-suicidal bombing runs. The pilots started at high altitude, then tipped the planes nose downward towards their ground-based target, and pulled up before they hit the ground. In the middle of the dive and pull up process, they released the bomb. There were problems of coordination, found in the game as well—if you time it wrong, or start too low, you will crash. You only have one life in this game. If your plane is destroyed or you complete a mission a ranking is given which ranges from Kamikaze Trainee to Squadron Leader. This game has aroused some controversy too, which supposedly caused it to be banned in Germany. In the course of your missions, you end up bombing houses. (The actual Blue Max/Blauer Max, is a nickname for the Prussian medal 'Pour le Mérite', first given to the pilots Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke. It required downing 8-20 enemy planes, with requirements increasing as the war progressed.)

Release date
December 31, 1986
Developer
Bob Polin
Publisher
Atari
Players
1

About this game

Blue Max

The storyline is based on a fictional pilot, Max Chatsworth, being (in-game) one of Britain's Flying Aces. Chatsworth's fame began in battle, when he was out on a reconnaissance mission, and his squadron was decimated by enemy planes. The pilot survived, and in the process shot down seven enemy fighters. He shot down thirteen more the next month. For these actions, Germany offered their Blue Max medal to anyone who could shoot Chatsworth down—and Chatsworth got a new nickname—Blue Max.

As Blue Max, you go out on sorties—flying missions—attacking assigned targets. Targets include bridges, buildings, enemy planes, tanks, bridges, anti-aircraft batteries, vehicles and ships. You progress to new missions as you take out your targets. Various settings can be adjusted before beginning play including control type (normal or pilot), skill level and whether gravity will affect the plane.

You must drop bombs to take out the ground targets, and this action also represents a key danger for you. Unlike the modern bombers that drop bombs on targets far below, early aircraft engaged in semi-suicidal bombing runs. The pilots started at high altitude, then tipped the planes nose downward towards their ground-based target, and pulled up before they hit the ground. In the middle of the dive and pull up process, they released the bomb. There were problems of coordination, found in the game as well—if you time it wrong, or start too low, you will crash. You only have one life in this game.

If your plane is destroyed or you complete a mission a ranking is given which ranges from Kamikaze Trainee to Squadron Leader.

This game has aroused some controversy too, which supposedly caused it to be banned in Germany. In the course of your missions, you end up bombing houses.

(The actual Blue Max/Blauer Max, is a nickname for the Prussian medal 'Pour le Mérite', first given to the pilots Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke. It required downing 8-20 enemy planes, with requirements increasing as the war progressed.)

Genres

Shooter

Modes

Single Player

Studios and credits

Developer
Bob Polin
Publisher
Atari

Regional releases

Release date

WorldwideDecember 31, 1986 · Not Rated

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