Menace (video game)

Menace
Menace cover art, designed by Ian Craig
Developer(s)	DMA Design
Publisher(s)	Psygnosis
Designer(s)	David Jones
Programmer(s)	Russell Kay
Artist(s)	Tony Smith
Composer(s)	David Whittaker
Platform(s)	Amiga Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS
Release date(s)	Amiga 1988 Atari ST, C64, MS-DOS 1989
Genre(s)	Side-scrolling shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player

Menace is a side-scrolling shooter video game developed by DMA Design and published by Psygnosis. It was originally released for the Amiga in 1988, and was ported for the Atari ST, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS in 1989. The game is set on the planet of Draconia, where players are tasked with destroying the planet's defence mechanisms in order to kill the harmful creatures.

The game was designed by David Jones, and was the first game developed by his company DMA Design. First developed in his bedroom at his parents' house, Jones began seeking an official development studio and publisher when the game was nearing completion. He eventually settled upon a publishing deal with Psygnosis, who first published the game in 1988 to positive reviews; praise was given to the game's graphics, sound and gameplay, while criticism was directed at its ports to inferior hardware. The game was commercially successful, selling over 20,000 copies.

Menace is a horizontal side-scrolling shooter that uses 2D computer graphics. Players control a powerful alien space fighter, moving through six stages on the planet of Draconia to advance through the game. Players use the ship's weaponry—lasers and cannons—to attack all advancing enemies, and defeat the level's boss: a guardian of Draconia. The six bosses act as Draconia's living defence mechanisms—the planet was created to habituate gruesome and harmful creatures, of which there are over sixty, participating in unlawful tasks. In the game's levels, players discover space debris, which can be converted into upgrades for the ship. The debris appears as tokens, and grants players additional weapons and upgrades, such as lasers, cannons, and improved ship and weapon power. The ship also has a shield, which provides temporary protection from enemies; contact with enemies and walls depletes the shields, increasing players' vulnerability to death.

DMA Design was founded in 1987 by David Jones, Russell Kay, Steve Hammond and Mike Dailly, in Dundee, Scotland. Originally working under the name Acme Software, they began developing games for the Commodore 64 and Amiga. Jones began developing Menace under the working title CopperCon1, in his bedroom at his parents' house. He was attending the Dundee Institute of Technology at the time. To publish the game in 1988, Jones first approached Hewson Consultants, where Andrew Braybrook played the game and recommended it to Hewson. When Jones was informed that Hewson wanted the game to be the "Amiga version of Zynaps", he realised that sales would be limited, and refused to sign the contract; despite this, Hewson had already promoted the game in Popular Computing Weekly, before the deal was officially dropped. After signing a publishing deal with Psygnosis, Acme Software was renamed DMA Design.