Scrapyard Dog (Atari 7800 review)

Developer: BlueSky Software
Publisher: Atari Corporation
Released: 1990

Scrapyard Dog is a platformer that was also released on the Atari Lynx (1991).

+ Deeper gameplay than you might expect, as while exploration isn't necessary it is rewarded with mini-games / items.

+ Lots of opportunities to visit shops that arm you with Special Items that are useful against packs of enemies.

+ Action is more enjoyable when approached as a resource management game and stocking up on items as early as possible.

- Difficulty curve is terrible, as Stage 1-3's sewer demands pixel-perfect jumps to platforms that are located off-screen.

- Doesn't do enough to progress the core concept, as there's very little difference in enemies / hazards after the first world.

-  No bosses except an awful sliding puzzle for the finale, and there's frame-rate dips and jerky scrolling in later levels.

- Manual does an awful job of explaining (or even visually demonstrating) what the huge row of icons are in the HUD.