"A unique, fast paced and addicting puzzle game."

No game has even come close to being similar to this game. It's a safe bet that no game ever will, either. Before Tetris, this was one of the few fast paced puzzle games in existence. While Tetris is addicting because of its simplicity, Vectron is addicting because of its complexity.

Story: 5
Yes, this puzzle game actually has a story. You are trying to survive in a strange dimension and you have to raise a shield to fend off radiation and creatures native to the dimension. You have to make each move count because you don't have that much energy to throw around.

Gameplay: 9
You are in a small space station equipped with an energy beam. This energy beam is mainly used to fill your shield with energy, but can also be used to fend off creatures. At the beginning of each level, you have managed to etch where your shield will be erected. You must use your laser to fire energy into the grooves etched in the space in front of you to fill them with energy. If you manage to fill each groove, the shield will become invincible and you will have won the level.

Small creatures that are common to the dimension unfortunately feed off of the type of energy you are using to build the shield and can damage it by knawing on it little by little while it's still incomplete. There are also rarer, more powerful creatures that can blow away huge sections of the shield. You can fire at them to destroy them, but if you focus on killing all the monsters, chances are you will run out of energy and die...unless you are lucky enough to find a power up floating around. Your space station can tap into small energy tanks flying around the dimension and add their energy to your supply. First, you must fire on the energy tank to break it open, then fire at the energy that is released from the tank (which looks like a colored cloud). One type of tank will fill your supply by 25%, the other fills you up completely.

Collecting energy isn't as easy as it sounds, however. If an enemy gets in the way of your blasts, you will end up wasting energy just to get the tank, and if it's only a 25% refill tank, it may not have been worth it. Also, while all this is happening, your space station slowly consumes energy to maintain life support, so you must think quick.

There are a whopping 99 levels in the game. In each level, the enemies get faster and you have a higher chance of having to deal with more powerful enemies.

Graphics: 10
For an Intellivision game, the graphics are surprisingly good! Like many Intellivision games, this game actually has a title screen and a main menu. Unlike most games on this system, this game has it's own text font, which is a neat, space agey looking font. Upon getting to the main menu, the letters are energized by a bolt of electricity that dances across each letter. When the bolt gets to the last letter, there is a twinkle as it fades out.

The in game graphics are pretty good, also. Everything takes place on one screen, but your laser and your enemies are all quite well animated and detailed.

Sound/Music: 4
There is no music, but the sound effects are standard and fitting for the theme of the game. The creatures emit yelps of joy when they start eating your shield. Your laser sounds like a laser.

Control: 10
All you have to worry about are the five directions you can shoot your laser: straight down, down and a little to the left or right and diagonally left and right.

Replay Value: 5
Like most fast paced puzzle games, you will want to play it non stop when you first try it, but after a while you'll wanna take a break.

This is one of the first games to actually have an ending! The manual says that if you ''...actually manage to beat all 99 levels, you will get a special little visual treat.'' I myself haven't seen it, but I'm sure it takes many, many hours of play and many, many gallons of coffee to pull it off. :)

Bottom Line?
This game is so innovative and fun that it deserves to be reborn on a more modern system. At the very least, the Blue Sky Rangers should put it high on their list of games to emulate. All people who like fast paced puzzle games should give this a try. The fact that this game actually has some form of story gives it a bit of depth and having to worry about so many things at once will give your brain a challenging workout, which is why I give it a 9.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 08/15/01, Updated 08/15/01