Driller
1987 · Puzzle · ZX Spectrum / Multiple
Overview
Driller (1987) is Incentive Software's first-person 3D puzzle game, the first built on the Freescape engine, in which a probe must place eighteen drilling rigs to stop a moon from exploding.
Deep Dive
The moon Mitral is filling with gas and will explode, destroying the colony on Evath, unless eighteen drilling rigs are placed to release it. The player guides the probe "Last Hope" through eighteen regions in first person, working out where the rigs should go from clues in the landscape and by trial and error, and disabling or avoiding security systems. The probe cannot fly, so driving off a platform strands it on the surface.
Developer Story
Chris and Ian Andrew of Major Developments designed the game, and Incentive released it in 1987, with versions for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Amstrad CPC, Amiga, Atari ST and MS-DOS. CRASH gave it 97%. The Freescape engine, offering filled-polygon 3D and free looking, went on to power Dark Side, Total Eclipse and Castle Master.
Did You Know?
- In the US it was called Space Station Oblivion.
- Orson Scott Card called its story a "thinly veiled excuse" for the 3D graphics, but still praised the game.
Sources & further reading
- Driller (video game) — Wikipedia
