Parents' Guide to
Asteroids: Recharged
Common Sense Media Review
By David Chapman
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Nostalgic remake is fun but still shows its age.
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Why Age 8+?
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Asteroids: Recharged
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's It About?
Take a nostalgia fueled trip back into reaches of deep space with ASTEROIDS: RECHARGED. Atari's classic '80s arcade hit Asteroids has been revamped and remixed with a modern-day vibe, as players once again navigate the hazards of an asteroid field, blasting apart the giant space rocks while destroying and dodging any debris left in their wake. This updated version of the original game features classic gameplay mixed with bright new visual effects, a funky new musical score, new power-up options to aid the player's chances of survival, and a new Challenge mode to test the skills of even the most diehard Asteroids fan. Finally, there's no need to face the dangers of space alone. Asteroids: Recharged has added a local cooperative to every mode, giving fans a chance to join with a friend and survive everything space can throw at them together as a team.
Is It Any Good?
Oh how the time flies with this refresh of a classic, but it's also showing its age with this title. Asteroids: Recharded highlights that it's hard to believe it's been more than forty years since the original Asteroids game first debuted in arcades, gobbling up the quarters of kids and adults alike in those early days of gaming. Flash forward to the present day, where everything old is new again and Atari has decided to give the classic game a new lease on life.
You might think there's not a lot that could be done with the original Asteroids that would bring it up to date without losing its nostalgic appeal, and you'd be right. The simple truth is that there's just not a lot of framework to build on. The game adds some new sounds and neon visuals, immediately bringing to mind games like the Geometry Wars series. It also adds new power-up mechanics and even couch co-op play, but at its core it's still a budget remake of a four-decade old game that's already seen a re-release time and time again. That's not to say the trip down memory lane isn't a fun place to visit, but like a lot modern day reboots, be it games, TV shows, or movies, it just doesn't feel the same.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about nostalgia and entertainment. What is the appeal of revisiting past franchises (games, TV shows, etc.) and rebooting or remaking them? How can this help to introduce a new generation to the original classics?
How did games from the past help to lay the foundation for the games of today? How do classic games continue to influence modern pop culture?
Game Details
- Platforms: Nintendo Switch , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , Windows , Xbox One , Xbox Series X/S
- Pricing structure: Paid
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Atari
- Release date: December 14, 2021
- Genre: Arcade
- Topics: Science and Nature , Space and Aliens
- ESRB rating: E
- Last updated: December 15, 2021
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