Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars

While on a trip to Mars, aliens have stolen vital parts of Commander Keen's starship, and hidden them. In order to safely return to Earth, he must find the missing parts.

Overview

Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars is a side-scrolling action game developed by id Software. It is first game in the Commander Keen franchise and the first part of the Invasion of the Vorticons episode (which spans the first three Commander Keen games). It was published by Apogee Software and released on December 14, 1990 as shareware.

Story

Aliens from the planet Vorticon VI has found out about Billy Blaze—aka Commander Keen—and are planning his destruction. While the unsuspecting child genius is out exploring the mountains of Mars, the evil Vorticons steal vital parts of his ship, taking them to distant Martian cities. Can Commander Keen find all the missing parts, and stop the Vorticon invasion?

Missing Parts

The star ship was constructed from various objects Billy found around the house, which he modified into star ship parts. The Vorticons have hidden the objects at the far reaches of March, and Billy—with your help—must find them. The objects that need to be retrieved are:

Joystick
Function: Manual flight control
Origin: From Billy’s brother’s video game
Car Battery
Function: Electrical systems power
Origin: From Billy’s mother’s car
Vacuum Cleaner
Function: Ion propulsion unit, with carpet height adjustment
Origin: From the kitchen, heavily modified
Everclear
Function: Fuel
Origin: From Billy’s dad’s liquor cabinet