Rocketeer

Ever heard of Harrison Schmitt? I hadn’t, until recently.

It turns out he’s one of only 12 men to have ever landed on the moon. Most people only remember Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin as having achieved this feat and for a very simple reason: they were the first.

Rocketeer launches into the realm of the space-bound physics puzzler, but because we’ve seen it all before it’s unlikely to make much of a lasting impression

Astrophysics

The idea is to launch as few rocketeers (astronauts strapped to rockets) as possible towards each level’s exit point. Once you’ve hit the target, you get to move onto the next stage.

This launching process is achieved by dragging a target into position and releasing to fire. The farther away from the launcher you drag, the more powerful the shot.

In your way are various configurations of planets and space debris, each of which exhibits a degree of gravitational pull directly proportional to its size. You must use these forces to divert rocketeers along an indirect path to the exit.

If that sounds at all familiar, it’s because it’s been done before – and done better. The most recent example is No, Human, which paired straightforward physics puzzle play with a sense of style.

Rocketeer lacks the same charm, variety, polish, and sheer sense of fun. As you launch rocketeer after rocketeer, it feels less like you’re skilfully refining your aim and more like dull trial-and-error.

The graphics are at best functional, with the only hint of personality coming from the rocketeers themselves as they cling on to their mounts for dear life.

There’s little inherently wrong with Rocketeer - it’s a playable physics-based puzzler. Yet with nothing new to bring to the table, it’s likely to be forgotten in favour of earlier and better examples.