Protector must be seen to be believed. Author Alex Herbert has done what many other Vectrex game developers before him have failed to do. That is bundle a magnificant game with an equally magnificant looking overlay and packaging. The packaging is professional right down to the robust black box and the etched Protector symbol proclaiming the games individuality. Inside an original Sean Kelly Vectrex cartridge, and is brand new thanks to Sean's ingenuity of supplying game developers with near exact replicas of the original Vectrex GCE cartridges from the 80's.

Everything is so exquisite to the highest calibre; the simple yet informative instructions, the individually numbered cartridge and the outrageous bright pink overlay proclaiming "Protector" in authentic 80's font. This is RETRO to the maximum and will take some beating as Herbert lays down the gauntlet for all future games to personify. There were only 100 of these babies ever released worldwide and I was lucky enough to get a hold of one to take for a spin.

Protector is based on the 1980 Williams Electronics "Defender" designed by Eugene Jarvis in which you pilot a craft and rescue "humanoids" from the savage and forbidding aliens. It's a case of zap or get zapped as you come up against "Baiters, Bombers, Pods and Swarmers" who will go out of their way to make sure the humanoids stay in their evil clutches. This side-scrolling shooter is fast, I'm talking off the dial fast, and at times you'll need every last weapon in your arsenal to combat the enemy and just stay alive for the few frenzied minutes of intense in-your-face gameplay.

Included on the Protector Limited Edition cart is another equally brilliant game called Spike Goes Down. This game is like a bonus hidden game and has some of the best music I have heard on a Vec. The graphics in this Spike game resemble no other Vectrex game and although simple, Spike Goes Down could have been released independently and would have been a very worthwhile purchase.

Going on the age of the Vectrex she is likely to have heart failure when you unleash the fury and grandiose of PROTECTOR upon her. The Vectrex community pays homage to Alex Herbert for his innovative and compelling programming techniques which push the humble Vec to it's limits. I can't recommend this game more highly. Be advised. 

Score 9.7/10

**Since the release of Limited Edition Protector, Alex Herbert has released another game called YASI (Yet Another Space Invaders). Together on the YASI cartridge he has included Protector. Though this time the hidden game 'Spike Goes Down is not included plus the packaging is not the same plus no overlay. Rumour has it that a Limited Edition Protector sold for around US$400.00 on ebay recently and it will become rarer as the years go by. Beg, borrow or steal a copy.

YASI/Protector is available from Mark Shaker at www.vectrexcarts.com at a very reasonable price.

Review written by Daniel Foot