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Asteroids (2007) Review
Written by Justin Davis on Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Lots of new modes of play. Adjustable difficulty.
No online leaderboards. Some power-ups & modes lack balance.
Asteroids from Glu Mobile reminds me a lot of Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved Mobile, which I also recently reviewed. Both games feature 2D 360-degree top-down shooting action, both games steadily increase in difficulty and lack a real "end point," and both games add new modes of play to spice up an otherwise overly simplistic formula.
What's even more interesting is that the two titles also share some of the same faults. They're both slightly unbalanced, which makes obtaining high scores more of a reflection of patience than skill.
I enjoy both shooters, despite their flaws.
Asteroids follows the same "retro mobile remake" formula that Glu used with Centipede earlier this year - the game includes the retro classic, ported to mobile (near as I can tell) very faithfully. What sets the title apart from other retro mobile ports is the extra effort put into expanding the gameplay. In addition to adjustable difficulty levels, the game includes four brand new modes of play - three "theme" modes, and one power-up mode.
The theme modes are the most interesting additions. Each one skins the game in a new style, so instead of shooting asteroids in space you might be shooting viruses inside a body. But they also add a new gameplay wrinkle, as well.
The "Modern" theme adds black holes to the playing field. These don't affect your ship, but asteroids get caught in them, causing their trajectory to change. The Techno theme introduces asteroids of different colors, and shooting consecutive asteroids of the same color will introduce a score multipliers. The Virus theme is probably the most radical - the viruses don't fly around the level randomly like the asteroids do in other modes. Instead, they're actually drawn to your ship, and attach themselves to it, draining your life bar. You'll have to teleport (by hitting down) to unstick them.
Power-up Mode would be more enjoyable, if it were more balanced. Instead of the normal one-hit-you're-dead Asteroids gameplay, your ship is given a health bar that'll drain anytime you collide with an object. Luckily destroyed asteroids will sometimes leave behind health-restoring orbs. They also leave behind power-ups, including a ricochet shot that will bounce off the stage's edge instead of passing through it, and a spread shot that allows your ship to shoot up to four consecutive bullets, instead of one.
It's a great idea, but the execution is a little questionable. Even on Hard, Power-up more is too easy, as long as you have the right power-up. I made it to wave 75 and eventually just quit. On the flipside, other "power-ups" seem nearly useless and I would go out of my way to avoid them.
Ultimately, the package is a winning one. Gamers expecting "Asteroids" will absolutely get "Asteroids," along with a bunch of bonuses that they'll probably also enjoy. The game is still ahead of the pack compared to all the straight-up classic ports that can be found on phones. But that being said, this release isn't exactly going to set the world on fire.
