Developed by Stainless Games
Published by Atari SA
Backwards Compatible on Xbox One
Asteroids was originally released in arcades way back in 1979, so with this in mind it's understandable that the gameplay is incredibly simple. You control a little ship that you can rotate using the stick and movement is initiated with a throttle button. You also have a button to fire and a "hyper space" button that will randomly teleport your ship to another spot on the screen. Using hyper space is risky as you could teleport in right on top of an asteroid. The goal of the game is to clear each screen of asteroids, which break down into smaller chunks each time you shoot them. Occasionally a UFO will appear on the screen and will try to eliminate you with projectiles which when shot down will net you a nice point bonus. Shooting anything in Asteroids gives you points and at every 10,000 points you'll receive an extra ship. You start off with three ships and once you lose those, it's game over and you start from zero again (this is before games offered continues remember). The game offers a two-player mode, but this is only alternating and not simultaneous play.
Asteroids was an absolute smash success in the arcades in its time and really helped solidify the Atari brand. While the game is about as old as they come, the gameplay is timeless and its simplicity makes it easy to enjoy in quick bursts by anybody really. One thing that never transfers to any home port is the brightness of the arcades vector monitor display. You really have to experience it firsthand but the monitors were really something else on these vector arcade games, featuring an image that shines so brightly it almost feels like its burning into your retinas.
Asteroids Deluxe was originally released in arcades in 1981. It's very similar to the original but with a few new features to justify the "deluxe" in the title. You now have a shield button which can save you in a pinch but wears out with extended use. In addition to the saucers from the original title, there are now killer satellites that break apart when shot and come flying at your ship like a kamikaze. It's a decent sequel that definitely ramps up the challenge level if the first one wasn't hard enough for you. Again, the game was displayed on a vector monitor on the original dedicated arcade machines, and this of course never transfers over to home ports.
The Xbox 360 port combines both Asteroids and Asteroids Deluxe into one package. Each game can be played in their original arcade form or the "evolved" version with new graphics but familiar gameplay. Both the arcade and evolved modes also offer the "throttle monkey mode" which ramps up the difficulty and speed of the game if you want an extreme challenge. Unfortunately, in evolved mode the explosions that occur when the asteroids are shot is way too flashy, making it hard to see the trajectory of the smaller rocks. This unwelcome effect definitely has an impact on the gameplay, and for this reason I found the original arcade versions much more enjoyable on both iterations of the game. If you just want a nice home port of Asteroids I'd recommend this game, just beware that the "evolved" versions aren't all that great. If you're just looking for easy achievements stay away from this one, as only the most dedicated Atari fans will likely unlock the full set.
Final Verdict: The arcade ports of both Asteroids & Deluxe games are solid, though the "evolved" versions feel like more of a downgrade than anything else. Worth checking out if you dig the original or just want some old-school arcade action.
Related Links:
Buy Asteroids & Deluxe - Xbox Marketplace
Asteroids & Deluxe - GameFAQs
Asteroids & Deluxe - True Achievements
Asteroids & Deluxe Achievement Guide - Xbox Achievements
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