Space Ark Trailer Invokes Retro Classics

The press release announcing that Strawdog Studios’ upcoming creation, entitled “Space Ark,” called out three of my all time favorite Taito classics; “Rainbow Islands,” “Bubble Bobble” and “Arkanoid.” When you drop a heavy hitting list of names like that, you better have something to show for it, and based on the tiny bit of gameplay showed off in “Space Ark” trailer it looks like there is actually some addictive potential here. We’ll just have to wait and see…

Space Invaders Extreme 2 Review: Like Shooting Fish In A Barrel

In recent years two of video games’ longest standing arcade franchises have made attempts to completely reinvent themselves. While other games have tried with XBLA and PSN rereleases of slightly updated versions of games that have been around for 20 plus years, “Pac-Man” and “Space Invaders” have gone the extra mile to truly update their experience for an entirely different generation of gamers. Up until the release of “Space Invaders Extreme 2” I would have said that “Pac-Man C.E.” was at the head of this particular pack, but this little DS game packs such an astounding punch it edges out our little yellow friend by just a hair. On the surface, “Space Invaders Extreme 2” is a very close follow-up to the original DS, PSP, and XBLA release, but upon digging deeper, you notice that virtually every aspect of the game has been polished and then turned up to hyper speed in this release. [Continue Reading]

Arkanoid Live Review: They Don’t Make ‘Em Like This Anymore

It’s undeniable that “Arkanoid” is a longstanding video game classic. It’s been around for 13 years, and although it is a take on Atari’s “Breakout,” it’s Taito’s “Arkanoid” that is still around, and it’s their version that is the quintessential take on the brick breaker “genre.” The fact that it has been around for so long, makes it hard to say that the franchise is “back” with a new release for Xbox Live Arcade, because the franchise has seen releases as recently as last year’s DS version, so it may be more appropriate to say that “Arkanoid” is here, again. [Continue Reading]

Space Invaders Extreme Review: Here Come The Little Green Men

“Space Invaders Extreme” for the DS (and to a lesser extent the PSP) was virtually a perfect game. It took the classic game of “Space Invaders,” something that desperately needed to be updated, and changed it so that an entirely new generation of gamers could appreciate it. Sure, it wasn’t perfect, but it offered a great gaming experience, mixed with a level of nostalgia that very few games released today can accomplish (“Pac-Man C.E.” being the exception). Soon, its sequel, aptly titled “Space Invaders Extreme 2” will be hitting handhelds in the United States, and driving fans mad as they try to put an end to those damn aliens, but first, the original “Extreme” has made its way to the Xbox Live Arcade, offering a similar, but somehow superior experience to its portable predecessor. [Continue Reading]

Live Retro Play Theater: Twin Cobra for the Sega Genesis

Another Thursday, another Retro Play Theater.

This time we will be stepping back from the old grey NES and marching towards the 16-bit era. It was at this time when arcade games slowly transitioned from smoke-filled bars populated by misfits to households being maintained by the mythical nuclear family.

Sega jumped onto the whole “arcade at your home” marketing mentality when they were close to launching the Genesis. Besides the memorable phrase “Sega does what Nintendon’t”, they also boasted about how they would be bringing 16-bit “arcade graphics” home for all to play. And what was their launch title? “Altered Beast”!

But I’m not going to try to beat “Altered Beast” today. Instead, my eyes are set on “Twin Cobra,” a vertical arcade shooter by Taito that saw multiple ports, with the best one being on the Genesis. Like many arcade shooters, this one is extremely difficult with enemies popping up from the left, right, top, and bottom of the screen. Unlike many arcade shooters, the only power-ups you received were the ones for your weapon; things like shields and speed boosts don’t exist here. If you got shot, you die and you lose everything.

I won’t touch the settings of the game, which gives me 17 credits, 3 lives, and a somewhat harder difficulty. I start playing at 1 PM EST and finish when I beat the game, or give up. Watch me live below, or live on Mogolus. [Continue Reading]

Review – Space Invaders Extreme (JP/USA)

After I heard about this remake, I couldn’t resist getting an early copy via my Import store. This game, and perhaps one other (Pacman) has a deep root in gaming history for me. Also, like Pacman and Tetris, it started an obsession that has yet abated after all these years.

Since this was being made for the DS, I was overjoyed but also discouraged since I forwarded my DS Lite to my younger brother who longed for one of his own. Let it be known, DW is merciful. Then news of a PSP version scorched my ears. Taito could not have made this old gamer any happier.

Everything about this game reeks retro, but, with a dash of psychedelic mayhem. The female announcer, a nice touch, that reminds you of the female host for Lumines, gives the menu system a slick feel. The inclusion of a wider color scheme, and the onslaught of an insane scrolling-parallax-effect-filled-backgrounds, and its techno music are great additions to this old shooters’ overall experience.

The game doesn’t go into any of these avenues heavily to break the original presentation of Space Invaders, but adds to it. It’s a common thing to take an old game like this one and turn it into something so new, that it takes away from its original visual appeal. In short, it looks damn good, regardless of the fact that the title is 30 years old!

Let me say this: I love fever time, JackPot, and bonus rounds. Fever time occurs ever so often during gameplay and gives you the chance to rake in the points. JackPots occur when you best all the foes on the screen as soon as possible. Bonus rounds seem to occur randomly giving you new objectives throughout the stage and levels. This includes taking out everything on the screen or something more specific.

Shooterfans will rejoice because SIE remains cautious where additions like these do not break the experience in any way. The remixed soundtracks updates the classic theme and gives the in-game sounds, and soundtrack, a fresh but familiar feel. Power-ups, though cheap at first, turn out to be a much needed asset in the later stages. Fever time, bonus rounds, and boss battles will have you wanting these more and more. If you can’t keep up stage after stage with the alien onslaught, you have the option to continue from your last stage after a system shutdown. Nothing new, but for Space Invaders, it’s like the holy grail.

Should I explain what needs to be done: destroy everything in sight, as fast as possible, without letting anyone escape. Sounds easy right? This is why games like these shine. The simplicity of their gameplay make you realize – “what the hell is all the graphics in the world for anyways?”

After all my years of gaming, I was hoping that I would way more skilled at this title but it can still put up a challenge. If you miss your foes, they swipe again, but the real object is to get them on the first swipe, and in most cases to gain insane bonus points. Killing a column of the same foes yields your power-ups where each set of the same colored aliens derives a different type of power-up. Among the power-ups include a bomb like upgrade, a laser beam that expands to to the top of the screen, an extra ship that shadows you, and others. Each power-up will last for a given amount of time but you take it a step further by homing in on the red glowing foes. Once hit, these guys blow up, taking out any near by buddies.

Then there are the speeding space ships that lay above the alien hordes. I was half expecting the game to allow me to fly all over the screen to catch these guys, but was shocked that you could only move on its classic one line axis. “This is how the game is played” I reminded myself. I later realized it is also a pivotal element of space invaders. Other modes included Versus, which has match play, and practice (you’ll need it, trust me), and Stage Mode. Also, if you don’t like the scrolling backgrounds, you can turn it off with the Movie Mode setting option.

What more can be said? If you were a fan of this title all those years ago, or if you’re just curious to see what the big deal is, then this game is worth it. Newer gamers may find this title very frustrating given the high levels of endurance it expects from you. Especially if you want to achieve insane points. Classic gamers, like myself, are just happy that Taito decided to update the game.