Hydrosub:2021 (WOW ActionMax)

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Hydrosub:2021 was made in 1987 by Bruce Cohn productions for the Worlds of Wonder ActionMax. I have covered the system in episode 13. Video on VHS is stored in a s-video like fashion but with much more compression using a color under technique. As such the video quality is not very high.

The game's story takes place in the future. A submarine ship travels the ground of the ocean where it gets suddenly attacked by mechanical creatures. The captain realizes that the ship has accessed the so-called lost world. The player is sent to the defense system in order to protect the ship.

This game stands apart from the other ActionMax games, as enemies often explode. This is of course a brave choice, as the enemies on the video track will explode no matter the player hits them or even shoots the gun. Nevertheless I felt very pleased when a hit coincidented with an explosion, giving me the illusion of involvement.

At some point the submarine goes up to the sea surface and the player continues shooting flying creatures of the lost world. After a while the ship dives back to the ground. Many enemies will shoot back at the player if they are not hit within a certain timeframe.

Personally I like the game. The 80ies sci-fi charm appeals to me and the catchy synthesizer music matches the scene perfectly. As with the other ActionMax games the replay value lies in the difficulty of the game.

The cover is held in the same style as the other ActionMax games showing someone playing the system. The screen shows the moment when the submarine is on the surface and the flying creatures are fought. In my opinion this is probably not the best choice for a game about a submarine adventure.