Conquest of Mars - Atari 2600

This game is very challenging. It kinda reminds me of Scramble except vertical. Still, it's an excellent game. Very hard NOT to give Conquest of Mars five stars!

It is neat looking, but it reminds me a bit of a Outer Space version of Activision's River Raid.

Very good game, pretty challenging but it's the right amount of difficulty. It's a little bit simple in some ways and a bit sophisticated as well. One of my favorite games on the 2600 and it's up there with other homebrews such as Galactopus or Prehistoric Times or Zippy.

I already did a review of this game some years back, but I just threw it on again and DAMN, this game is so great.

So great.

This is one the games you must own when you own an VCS. I like this game very much, and the "continue" feature is great.
Even in the first level this vertical shooter is hard to beat.
So here is a REAL challenge for all shooting game fans.

Conquest of Mars is a vertical shooter in which you descend deep into caverns to destroy Martian Destructo-Bombs before they can be used against Earth. As you careen through the caverns, you have to blast enemy cannons and fuel tanks, avoid laser gates and enemy missiles, and then escape back to the surface before the bomb goes off. Conquest of Mars is fiercely challenging, but not unfairly so. With patience (and a mercifully included "continue" feature) you can learn the enemies\' patterns and weaknesses, and work your way through the game. The game is a lot of fun to play, with plenty of action, huge caverns to explore, and great flicker-free graphics. The game requires skill, quick reflexes, and the ability to develop different strategies for each level that you encounter. If that doesn\'t sound like enough of a challenge, you can also choose to have the enemies fire back at you while all of this is going on.Originally written to replace the dreadful version of Caverns of Mars on Atari\'s Flashback 2 console, Conquest of Mars was left unreleased when Atari canceled plans for an update to that product. Fortunately, AtariAge and programmer John Champeau were able to release the game for us to enjoy, and it\'s one of the best games available for the Atari 2600. Not for wimps, to be sure. But anyone who likes a good shoot \'em up will love Conquest of Mars.

This game RULES! If you are a stage freak like me, you will love this joint. I\'m really into beating stages rather than racking up points, so this game really kills it. On top of the very fun and challenging levels, this game has a beautiful, campy sci-fi vibe to it. Your descending ship sounds like the old Martian movies from the 50\'s, and the Martian ultimate weapon is even called a "Destructo Bomb"! The controls are crisp, the sprite detection is super-honest, and you will be happy for the continue option, you\'ll need it! One possible turn-off for shoot-em-up fans: there is NO WAY on God\'s green Earth (or red Mars) that anyone could beat this game the first time. There are so many things you have to do! In many cases you will have to study the Martian defenses and strategize before you can beat \'em. You will lose lives in so doing because the action kinda jumps on you. It\'s really hard! This game is a perfect example of how good a 2600 game can be! MAD PROPS!

Excellent game, everything is very impressive. Top shelf game. You will play over and over. Great replay value with the different difficulty settings. Wish we had it 25 years ago. A must buy for arcade style game fans.

A far better version than the insperational Cavernes Of Mars from the Atari 800 computer, Caverns Of Mars takes the concept to the next level with fast game play, more agressive enemies and thrust engines on your ship for the escape levels. completing this game is quite difficult but very much worth the time to see the fantastic ending.

Among the greatest of homebrews and of VCS games in general (in my opinion). While not a port of an arcade game Conquest of Mars has an arcade feel to it that is rarely felt in games for the VCS and has a "continue" feature to boot! I highly suggest this game.