Make Trax
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| Make Trax | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Alpha Denshi |
| Publisher(s) | |
| Platform(s) | Arcade (original), Famicom, Neo Geo Pocket Color |
| Release | 1981 |
| Genre(s) | Maze game |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players, alternating turns |
Make Trax, known in Japan as Crush Roller (クラッシュローラー, Kurasshu Rōrā), is a Template:Vgy arcade game developed by Alpha Denshi and published by Kural Samno in Japan. It was later licensed for North American release to Williams, and in Europe to both Karateco and Exidy.
Gameplay
Make Trax is a maze game in which the player controls a paintbrush and must paint the entire layout in order to advance to the next stage. Two fish – one yellow, the other light-blue – emerge from separate aquariums to pursue the paintbrush around the board, and if either of the fish succeeds in making contact with the paintbrush, the player loses one of three lives.
The player may use two "rollers" to attack the fish. The rollers are located on two overpasses, one vertical in its orientation, the other horizontal. To use a roller, the player positions the paintbrush on the forward end of the roller, waits for either or both of the fish to approach, then pushes the paintbrush along the roller, attacking the fish. The fish is removed from the maze for a few seconds, then returns to one of the aquariums and resumes its pursuit of the paintbrush. Killing fish in this manner scores bonus points.
The fish initially are dumb, but as time goes on they get "smarter." They learn to avoid the roller when the paint brush nears it, and develop strategies to trap the player between them.
A third character, appearing to be an animal, rolling tire, or invisible man depending on the level, may enter the maze and leave tracks that must be painted over in order for the board to be completed. The player can limit the damage by running over the figure, which not only stops further tracks from being left but also awards the player a score, which progressively increases as more boards are cleared.
Some time after its release, was added a "speedup chip" allowing to move faster the paintbrush (but not the fish). This variant was accorded the name Make Trax Turbo.[1]
Ports
A Neo Geo Pocket Color remake of the game was always developed by ADK, and released worldwide by SNK under its Japanese name Crush Roller in 1999.[citation needed] Additionally, the title was ported for Famicom in 1990 by Taiwanese programmer Hwang Shinwei as Brush Roller, although it wasn't licensed by either Nintendo or the game creators;[citation needed] the same version has been hacked by NTDEC as Bookyman in 1991, and then included in their 1992 multicart Caltron 6-in-1. Finally, a Pelican VG Pocket port was cloned by JungleTac under the name Paint Master.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "Make Trax Turbo". Arcadecollecting.com. Retrieved 2012-03-16.