How to play Desert Falcon online
- Climb and fly: down arrow (pulling the joystick back)
- Descend to land, hop or swim: up arrow (pushing the joystick forward)
- Move left and right: left and right arrow keys. Let go of the keys to hold your height, or to stand still on the ground.
- Fire arrows: Z (left button)
- Use a super power: X (right button)
- Options screen: F2 (Select). Left and right choose the skill level, up and down choose one or two players.
- Start a new game: F3 (Reset)
- Pause: F4
There are four skill levels: Novice, Standard, Advanced and Expert. Both the USA (NTSC) and Europe (PAL) releases are on the site; use the switch above the emulator to change between them.
Gameplay
The landscape scrolls diagonally in an isometric view, and your falcon’s shadow shows where you are above the ground. You are hunting for the lost treasures of the pharaohs: gems, golden eggs and silver ingots lie on the sand. Each time you pick up a treasure of one kind, that kind becomes worth more, because its multiplier goes up by one. Shooting a treasure by mistake resets its multiplier to one.
Hieroglyphs are scattered among the treasures. Collecting them earns super powers, which you then trigger with the second button. The manual lists ten, including Invincibility, Omnicide (which wipes out every enemy), Warp (which takes you straight to the Sphinx), Hold Sphinx, Decoy and Air Bomb. At the end of each stage waits the Howling Sphinx. Destroy it and you enter a bonus round, where you collect as much treasure as you can before time runs out.
| Enemy | Points |
|---|---|
| Mini-Sphinx | 1,000 |
| Warrior Phlea | 500 |
| Scarab | 300 |
| Flying Fish | 200 |
| Vulture | 200 |
| Burrowing Uwe | 150 |
| Phantom Glider | 100 |
You begin with five lives and earn another every 10,000 points, up to a maximum of six in reserve.
Tips
- Watch the shadow. Height is hard to judge in the isometric view. Your shadow tells you where you will land and whether you are lined up with an enemy.
- Stick to one kind of treasure. The multiplier rewards collecting the same type again and again.
- Be careful where you shoot. Hitting a treasure throws away the multiplier you have built up.
- Save a power for the Sphinx. Powers such as Invincibility or Hold Sphinx are most useful in the boss fight.
The story behind Desert Falcon
Desert Falcon was developed by General Computer Corporation and designed by Bob Polaro, loosely based on ancient Egyptian mythology. During development it was known as Sphinx and as Nile Flyer, and under the name Nile Flyer it was one of the thirteen games announced for the 7800’s planned launch in 1984. That launch was cancelled when Atari’s consumer business was sold, and the game finally came out as Desert Falcon several years later. Polaro also programmed the Atari 2600 version, and a version for Atari’s 8-bit computers followed.
Reviewers at the time were quick to compare it with Sega’s Zaxxon because of the diagonal, isometric scrolling. Most liked the graphics, but several felt the action itself was familiar rather than new.
