When I was growing up during the infancy of the personal computer age, one of my favorite games was a single-screen, turn-based shooter game called, "Scorched Earth."  Game play was fairly simple, each player controlled a stationary tank with a small arsenal of weapons.  By adjusting the power and trajectory of your cannon’s shot, you attempted to destroy your opponent’s cannon before he destroyed yours.  Now, fast forward over 20 years, and imagine my shock and pleasure at learning that this phoenix from my youth had been reborn, returned from the ashes of a long gone operating system.  This, then, is Isotope 244 Graphic’s "Atomic Cannon."  

Installation: Installation is fairly easy.  There are two different versions available for download: a demo version and the full version.  The demo version can be downloaded for free and consists of 90 minutes of game play, with a limited arsenal of weapons and options.  The full version, which can be downloaded only after your order has been processed, consists of the full game, with unlimited play, a full arsenal of weapons and a myriad of background locals and other options.  To install either version, simply download the file and click on the desktop icon.  The full version will ask for a registration code (you must be connected to the Internet to process the code).  Within minutes, you will be ready to play.

Game Play: Remaining true to its roots, Atomic Cannon is a single-screen, turn-based shooter game.  Each player controls a tank or a team of tanks.  The idea is to destroy your opponent’s tank (or get the most points depending upon the mode you select) before he destroys yours.  That’s it.  Sounds simple?  It is.  Simply point and click.  Aim your cannon by selecting an angle for the turret, select the power level, choose your weapon and fire.  Hopefully, you will hit something.  If not, pay careful attention to where your shot landed, you’ll need that information to adjust your shot in the next round.  But, be forewarned, however, each form of ammunition behaves differently.  Oh, and don’t forget about the wind.  Thus, while one shot may have landed short, a lighter, smaller shell, might fire long.  So, while learning the controls is easy, mastering the technique may take some practice. 

Your arsenal consists of over 85 weapons, ranging from simple shells, to plutonium nuclear weapons and plasma bombs.  Each weapon has its own individual characteristics.  Some may induce a secondary explosion after they hit the ground, others may leave poison or radiation on the ground which can continue to induce damage to your opponent after your turn has ended.  Additionally, you may also choose to use your turn defensively by burying your opponent with dirt, moving your tank to a new location, or outfitting your tank with shields.

You start each game with a small cache of weapons.  Fighting battles successfully earns you money which can be spent on additional, stronger weapons to increase your arsenal.  Weapons can be purchased automatically by the computer as you earn money, or manually by visiting the in-game store (or both).

Graphics: One of the most impressive features of the game, however, is the amazingly visually stimulating graphics.  Isotope 244 is best known for making "3-D screen savers," and their reputation in this area is on full display in the intricate detail found in the 25 unparalleled background locations.  These three dimensional paintings pop out of the screen.  My eyes just kept getting wider as I noticed more of the minute detail in the mountain scene, or tried counting individual grains of sand in the desert scene (I do not recommend trying this during game play.)

In addition to the amazing backgrounds the screen also contains the foreground terrain where the battling tanks are located.  The terrain is drawn in one of five different basic patterns (flat, hill, gully, plateau, and slope).  By default, the terrain is randomly drawn, however, in the gameplay options, you may select to use any of the five basic terrain types.  The terrain is completely destructible as it is struck by the various weapons.  As such, the location of the tanks during a single game may shift from a hill, to a gully and then to flat ground; making "Atomic Cannon" unique and unpredictable every time you start a new game.

Another exciting feature (or bonus) included in the game is the detail menu.  This menu allows you to control the level of detail in the graphics, in order to optimize the game for your device and screen.  Included within this menu, however, are a few surprises to show that the creators of the game have a sense of humor and history.  First is the "War Games" detail.  Based upon the classic movie, War Games, this mode consists of no background and terrain built from a single monochromatic green line.  Additionally, Atomic Cannon offers the "Old School" detail.  Selecting this detail causes the game to emulate the classic "Scorched Earth" game, upon which it was based.

Finally, "Atomic Cannon" is fully customizable.  You can control everything from the land type (terrain) to the background, to the available weapons, to how the tanks interact, and virtually everything else you can see on the screen.  Which leads to the only fault I found with this game, and it is an admittedly small one.  For all of its customizability, the game did not include a custom terrain generator.  It would be a nice feature to allow the user to draw his own custom terrain, on which to place the battling tanks.  Like I said, though, this is a fairly minor point in an otherwise amazing game.

Conclusion: I went into this game with extremely high expectations.   I am pleased to say that not only was I not disappointed, but my expectations were literally blown away.  Although this is a simple game to learn, the customization and constantly changing  terrain ensure that you will never play the same game twice.

Atomic Cannon is published by Isotope 244 Graphics, and is also available at the clickgamer store.  There are three versions of the game: Pocket PC, Windows desktop, and Smartphone. The full version costs $19.95.

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