Platform: PlayStation 3

Genre: Shooter

Number of Players: 1 or 2

Gaming has gone from cartridge to CD, then to DVD, now to Blu-Ray, but somewhere in-between exists the world of downloadable games. Some platforms are big on revisiting the past, and while that’s not necessarily a bad thing, some of us do crave games beyond the glory days of yesteryear. Sony has been doing a decent job with the PlayStation 3 of bordering somewhere in the middle of old school familiarity and new content that has never been seen before. I’ve actually avoided the temptation of downloading any of the titles available on the PlayStation Store, at least until now, and in many ways, I wish I would have continued to avoid that temptation.

Super Stardust HD comes from the Finnish development team of Housemarque, and if these guys know anything, it’s how to make a game that not only has a modernized old school feeling, but how to give gamers a title that’s highly addictive in nature. Super Stardust however is a remake of the Amiga game, Stardust, which was released back in 1993. The idea behind Super Stardust HD is incredibly simple. You are the pilot of a space craft hovering above exotic worlds, but each of these worlds is being assaulted. There are incoming meteorites large enough to wipe out all life on the planet, invading alien forces, and other hazards. Your job is a simple one; blast anything and everything out of the exosphere before it can cause serious damage, thwart alien invaders, and simply try and stay alive.

By now, you’re probably thinking that Super Stardust sounds a heck of a lot like Asteroids, and as a matter of fact, it is quite a bit like that, but with a number of differences. Instead of a screen where you can disappear off one side and magically warp to the other, you can circumnavigate the planet itself thus keeping you above the world itself and rotating the playing field. The left analog stick moves your craft while the right analog fires in every direction and you’ll definitely need the option. It’s easy enough to see where asteroids and enemies are incoming as it is marked by red spheres. However, avoiding them can be the biggest hazard of all.

As the asteroids break apart, they become smaller and smaller chucks, harder to hit and if there is enough action on the screen, harder to see. You have three primary weapons you can use to destroy these. There is the rock crusher, a red laser which acts like a flame thrower, and an ice laser. In the process of your massive destruction, some of the asteroids will reveal glowing green rocks which, when destroy, will provide a variety of icons. The colored ones, green, red, and blue, are used to improve the capability of your weaponry. The white ones are simply points while purple gives you a temporary shield, orange are bombs, and gold are extra ships.

The bombs are another asset to be used, only sparingly. There can vaporize everything in your immediate vicinity often times. You can gain these back by destroying supply ships that appear from time to time. Another method that can be employed is your thrusters. Hit these and you will smash through nearby rocks or enemies, but you’ll have to wait for it to charge up again before another usage. You will also gain multipliers for your score which will be factored in at the end of every stage, but should you lose a ship, the multiplier will drop back to one, but weaponry stays at whatever level you’ve built it up to.

Each of the worlds is comprised of a number of stages. These are completed by destroying the enemy craft when they appear and you will also be shown how many are remaining before you finish. The faster you can complete the stage, the better your time bonus will be. Each world is concluded when you defeat the boss craft that appears and if you thought the rest of the game was tough, the final stages of each of the worlds can be the most difficult of all. Once you’ve completed a world you will move on to the next planet and once these are unlocked, they can be played at any point in Super Stardust’s arcade or planet mode. There is also a co-op mode so you can a friend can attempt planetary salvation together, or at least die trying. Like many of the PlayStation 3 games, Super Stardust also features leaderboards so you can see where you rank, who holds the number one position, and where your friends rank.

Super Stardust has never made blowing up rocks, or alien for that matter, quite so addictive or pretty. Part of the excitement isn’t just the gameplay, it is watching things blow up with a cascade of colors swirling around. While this can often times lead to a bit of confusion and disorientation, that’s really part of the challenge. Watching asteroids break away into smaller and smaller chunks becomes a pleasure to watch, and even seeing your own demise can be something of a treat, unless of course you’re trying desperately to defeat that final boss that will take you to the next world. For being such a small file, Super Stardust HD is big on graphics.

If you’re looking for something that will provide you with a great deal of addiction, Super Stardust HD is a must download title. At only $10, you really can’t beat what it has to offer, and playing this game brings back some of those fond memories of the first time you played Asteroids, or any other games that are similar. This is a game that has all the right qualities to make it an immediate classic.

 -mike-