Star Fighter or Star Fighter 3000 is a 3D
flight-based shoot-em-up.
The gameplay is mission based and involves
elements of strategy and planning.
The player can order wingmen to fly in formation
and attack specific targets.
== RISC OS ==
=== 
Acorn Archimedes ===
Star Fighter 3000 was first released for the
Acorn Archimedes, in November 1994, by Fednet
Software.
Fednet Software was a company created by Tim
Parry and Andrew Hutchings to publish the
game.
Earlier games the pair developed were Chocks
Away and Stunt Racer 2000, which were published
by The Fourth Dimension.Version 3.20, of this
branch of the game, was released in January
2016.
Later versions improve compatibility across
RISC OS machines and are free to any owner
of a previous release.
=== Microdigital Omega ===
In 2002, a second branch for RISC OS was developed
for newer machines.
It was a back-port of the 3DO code.
Development was done under the software label
FlaYmz; headed by Nathan Atkinson (formerly
of Visions of the Impossible) and coded by
Lee Noar.
Paul Thomson (VOTI and DFI) and Lee Johnston
(VOTI) worked on the new introduction.
The conversion was extremely difficult because
little paperwork was available to explain
how the 3DO handled some of the graphics routines.
Lee Noar had the difficult task unpicking
this code.
This version featured the graphical and gameplay
enhancements of the 3DO version.
FlaYmz worked with MicroDigital to produce
a killer game for release of the Omega computer,
showing off the power of a dedicated graphics
card in a RISC OS computer.
The port was developed on StrongARM RISC PCs
which, for most of the development, were too
slow to run the game at a decent fps.
However, the deal fell through when MicroDigital
started showing financial difficulties.
Optimisations were done to the code to make
it playable on the StrongARM.
Later, in April 2008, this version was made
available for through RiscWorld magazine,
the full version being bundled free with Volume
8, Issue 6.
FlaYmz had no involvement in the release in
2008, having disbanded shortly after Microdigital
failed due to the market decline.
== 3DO ==
The 3DO version was developed by Tim Parry
and Andrew Hutchings.
It was developed after the original Acorn
version was released.
This version is slightly different from the
original RISC OS game.
The map screen is in 3D, not 2D as in the
Acorn RISC OS version.
Also, to upgrade the ship the player must
collect a series of 3D shapes after blowing
up certain objects.
In the Acorn RISC OS version, the player collects
and spends money on ship upgrades.
Another difference is that the player can
blast pathways through mountain ranges with
the laser.
== PC, PlayStation and Saturn ==
Star Fighter 3000 was also released for the
PC, Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn in North
America by Acclaim Entertainment and in Europe
by Telstar.
These versions were ports of the 3DO version.
Unlike the original Acorn version and 3DO
version, Tim Parry and Andrew Hutchings had
no involvement in their development.
These versions make heavy use of distance
fog to significantly decrease the draw distance.
Detail levels on the buildings, texture mapped
ground, and other objects were also decreased.
== Reception ==
Reviews for the 3DO version varied widely.
Electronic Gaming Monthly criticized the controls
for being too loose but praised the huge number
of missions, the addictive gameplay, and most
of all the ability to fly freely in any direction.
GamePro summarized that "Star Fighter doesn't
quite soar with the eagles, but it doesn't
flop with the turkeys, either."
They noted the ability to fly in any direction
and the large number of missions as positive
elements, and the slow game speed, undetailed
graphics, and pronounced pop up as negative
elements.
A reviewer for Next Generation also found
the game uneven and cited the large number
of missions, slow game speed, and "ridiculous"
pop up.
However, he additionally commented that the
ability to deform the landscape with weapons
fire is fun, and that "enemy installations
tend to be designed as if someone were really
trying to defend themselves".
Maximum panned it for its "dreadful control
system", pronounced slowdown, and grating
music, as well as the simplicity of the early
missions.
They did praise the game's visuals, but concluded
that "when inevitably compared to Air Combat,
this ultimately fails to present a credible
alternative."Reviewing the Saturn version,
Rob Allsetter of Sega Saturn Magazine said
that while the game is technically proficient,
the controls are oversensitive, the graphics
blocky, and the action so lacking in variety
that it soon becomes predictable and dull.
He added, "As a shoot 'em up it lacks pace
and easy accessibility to make it great, and
as a flight sim it lacks depth.
As a result, Starfighter 3000 floats about
tepidly in between."
Next Generation's brief reviews of the Saturn
and PlayStation versions opined that they
were not bad, but somewhat lackluster.Stephen
Poole of GameSpot gave the PC version a 4.4
out of 10, saying that flight simulators are
much better suited for PC than console, and
as a straight conversion of a 3DO game, Star
Fighter retains the shortcomings of its console
origins.
He especially criticised the poor graphics,
story and controls.
== Space Fighter 4000 ==
In 2011, Andrew Hutching entered a new game,
inspired by Star Fighter, in the 2011 'Dream
Build Play' contest.
Written for the XNA platform, it was released
for Xbox 360 and Windows PC
