Space Taxi

Space Taxi is an unofficial conversion of the Commodore 64 classic of the same name. It was developed and released into the public domain by Italian coder Andrea Cucchetto in 2023.

Game Description:

Space Taxi is a gravity-based action game in which the player pilots a flying taxi through a twenty-third-century city. Passengers appear on numbered landing pads and hail the taxi, then announce the pad to which they want to travel after being picked up. The player must deliver them while avoiding the scenery and other hazards. Successful trips award a fixed fare plus a tip that decreases over time and can be reduced further by poor driving.

The taxi is controlled with directional thrusters and, on most screens, is continually pulled downward by gravity. Momentum must be managed when manoeuvring through confined areas, and the landing gear must be extended before touching down. Landing too quickly or unevenly, colliding with an obstacle, or running out of fuel destroys the taxi. Fuel is consumed while flying and can be replenished at designated fuel pads in exchange for some of the player's earnings. Later screens introduce different layouts and hazards, including moving objects, force fields, magnets and changes to the normal flight conditions.

The game contains 24 regular screens divided into three eight-screen shifts of increasing difficulty. Players can attempt an individual shift or a full 24-screen run, with the latter available in either sequential or randomized order. Up to four players can participate by taking alternating turns. Passengers also use sampled speech to hail the taxi, state their destinations and acknowledge completed trips.