The alien abductors are back. Their henchbeings are back. And fortunately for the hapless humans on the planet's surface, you're back too, in a fully armed warship with a belly full of smart bombs. But the aliens have brought new and unusual reinforcements, and now the ultimate X-factor is seen visibly floating in the night sky - a stargate which could deposit your space fighter anywhere, delivering you to safety...or a rendezvous with a swarm of aliens. (Williams Electronics, 1981)

This sequel to Defender was a game I positively hated way back when. Why? Because I just flat-out sucked at the controls of Defender, so Stargate showed me no mercy whatsoever. With an even more complicated control scheme than its ancestor, I didn't stand a chance at Stargate. But watching the people who had learned how to really make the game theirs? That was something else.

Stargate was adapted into Atari 2600 form - as both Stargate and Defender II - very nicely, the way the original Atari version of Defender should have looked.

This game is available in theLogBook.com's Classic Game Store.

Rating:  Three quarters - worth repeat play, but with some annoying features that might alienate less patient arcade veterans.

Reviewed by Earl Green
theLogBook.com editor/webmaster