Some classics never die, often times rightfully so. They are classics after all, and dabbling in the well of gaming history, there is a lot of fundamental staples that helped shape gaming to what it is today. In the instance for arcade gaming, Atari was certainly one of the pioneers and has an extensive library of great games for their time, but perhaps could use a bit of a face lift for today’s gamers. This is exactly what happened with Gravitar: Recharged, a special arcade game that has been updated to be even better while still holding onto its arcade roots. Based on the original Gravitar that was released in arcades back in 1982 and onto the Atari 2600 shortly after, this recharge does exactly that. Bringing this unique little arcade game up out of the grave and giving it new life.
The whole Recharged label is actually a series of new games that originated from old Atari titles (“Asteroids” and “Centipede” are among them). All of which seemed to have been designed for Atari’s novelty console the “Atari VCS” that came out last year. Fortunately, these classics are no longer restrained from staying on that console, as in the case of Gravitar: Recharged, it will be making its debut to modern consoles at the beginning of June. So, what is “Gravitar?” In this arcade game you are a little space craft where the lack of gravity in space is your biggest obstacle for good and bad. You can point the ship whatever direction you like and use the thrusters to get you moving in that direction, the trick is that even when you aren’t using your thrusters any longer you will still be floating in that general direction. Seems easy enough, but the act of actually doing it, especially on challenging maps is much easier said than done, driving in space is tough!
While there is the usual arcade mode where you are trying to get the best score possible, this version also offers you to play missions and there is a small varying degree of mission types. I didn’t get a chance to explore it, but there is also a multiplayer mode, I can’t help but be curious if that will make the experience easier or even more difficult. The look and overall graphics are obviously improved, but still left very simplistic, with a cool, sleek design and with a little bit of a retrowave esthetic thrown in which I love. My biggest issue with the game is probably myself and my lack of patience being able to master it. The controls are actually really tough (at least for me) and the game knows it’s tough. There are even good ways to learn and practice inside the game. Apparently, I was never good at “Gravitar” even back on the original Atari and some things never change.
For fans of the franchise, there is a lot to love here, from the good amount of variety in the types of planets/levels to enter to the options of missions to unlock. For newcomers though, expect a very hard learning curve and you will either hate or welcome the challenge. While my brain is programmed to see to want a campaign in almost every game I play and wish there was one here, I understand why there wasn’t. All in all, this is a fine addition to the series of “Recharged” games bringing new sets of eyes this generation to something created decades ago.
7/10
For more information, visit: HERE
Related: Nick Navarro’s Reviews
Gaming since I was given an original Nintendo as a kid. I love great storytelling and unique ingenuity. When both collide in a single game, I'm a happy gamer. Twitter/IG @NickNavarro87
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