I mean seriously, it’s Asteroids. Everything you need is right there in the Atari 2600 version. Hell, the arcade game was concurrent with the VCS. What could a game from twenty years later on a vastly superior system possible add to something that was clearly a classic in its own time? Nothing, Asteroids was perfect as it was. Read no further.Well….
I really have no idea how Asteroids for the Gameboy Color ended up in my collection. My best guess is that I got it in a lot of games from a yard sale or the like. Maybe I got it cheap at a convention. Who knows, but that really isn’t the point. Due to an overwhelming sense of obligation to make sure that every game in my collection actually works, I was duty bound to pop this thing into my GBC just to be sure it wasn’t a clunker. Shouldn’t take too long, I mean, it’s Asteroids, nothing to see here…
Wait a minute…select a ship? You can’t pick your ship in Asteroids; you get the little triangle.
But here you can. What could possibly be the difference? Hmmm…
Needless to say, from there the differences began to multiply and become increasingly evident, and gasp, dare I say enjoyable? If you have already played this particular version of the arcade classic, you know that it isn’t your father’s (can you, the humble reader, be so young…sigh) Asteroids. Could it possibly be better? Let’s not get hasty.
Asteroids for the Gameboy Color is much like the Asteroids you may know and love, but with some very interesting updates. The gameplay is exactly what you remember from the original: you pilot a ship in space and asteroids come drifting near you. It is your job to blow them all into harmless space dust before they do likewise to you. However, this version of Asteroids takes that basic concept a few steps further. First of all, there is an attempt at a story. The opening cut scenes (yes cut scenes!) introduce you to the fact that there is a method to your asteroid smashing. You’ll even get a mission briefing before the first level! The story doesn’t really change anything about the basic game, but it does add some really nice flavor and back story. The only disappointment is that the story stops after the second zone. I was looking forward to mission briefings and story updates throughout, but for no apparent reason there is nothing beyond the second zone.
The second advancement is the aforementioned ability to select the ship you wish to do your asteroid smashing in. There are three varieties, each with different designs and secondary abilities, an interesting take on the old game variations which imbued your craft with various upgrades. While this doesn’t fundamentally change the gameplay it does allow you to tweak your experience a little bit and provide different kinds of challenges. To that extent you are also able to select the difficulty level you wish to play with. The main difference in difficulty level resides in the number of continues you are granted and what secondary weapons are made available (although I am sure there are deeper distinctions, I have yet to find a manual to explain such things to me).
Continues are another nice feature. Since the game is finite, unlike its predecessor, you’ll probably want to reach the end of the adventure. Doing so with three reserve ships is not going to be easy, so having a few extra chances doesn’t hurt. You can also obtain passwords for each level so that you can pick back up at the start of a level if you get obliterated or you just really want to replay that level again. Fortunately, the game has the kind of appeal that makes this feature more than just an endless continue.
The biggest impact on gameplay comes in the form of alien spaceships, weird hunks of space junk, some kind of metal space tube and various other intergalactic brik-a-brak that also clutter the cosmos in addition to the familiar asteroids of yore. In this game you’ll be shooting and dodging lots more than hunks of rock. You’ll also have to get out of that rut where you just sit in the middle of the screen and rotate 360 degrees firing indiscriminately--you know, classic Asteroids strategy! Level innovations include black holes, giant space worms and stars going supernova. These features create dynamic new gameplay situations and add depth to the overall Asteroids experience. This is the kind of game for people who think Asteroids is a good idea, but wish there was a little more to it. Honestly, for all my histrionics at the start of this article, that’s me.
The game is rather short, only five levels, but there is sufficient challenge and enough varieties of gaming experience that you’ll probably spend a lot more time with it than you might expect from an Asteroids game. As an added bonus, you can unlock a version of “Classic Asteroids” which you can select and play from the main menu screen. This game has tremendous pick-up-and-play appeal and doesn’t require much personal investment, a sometimes refreshing break from much larger more immersive games of this era.
The Final Look
Asteroids for the Gameboy Color is a successful adaptation and evolution of a true classic! All of the elements that make Asteroids a great game are here, and they are supplemented by features that take that basic concept to the next level. Furthermore, the game is ideal for a handheld system like the GBC, because this is the kind of game that can salvage a long road trip, a visit to Aunt Helen’s house (you know there is nothing to do there, why do YOU have to go?), or just kill 15-20 while waiting for that Overture at the beginning of 2001: A Space Odyssey to end. I strongly recommend anyone who likes Asteroids to give this game a look. I never would have if it hadn’t fallen to my collection by accident, but I am glad it did.
Asteroid-Smashin’ Stan
Join me next time when I’ll get my board game on and take a Closer Look at Sonic Shuffle for the Dreamcast.
Tips follow after the jump!
