Gravitar: Recharged review

Gravitar: Recharged makes some changes to series formula. That’s a good thing, since the original was overdue for an update that softened some of the game’s pricky design decisions.

Adamvision and SneakyBox Studios’ Recharged series has reinvigorated a number of notable Atari classics. From Missile Command, Centipede, Black Widow, Asteroids, to Breakout, the developers ensured that the gameplay mechanics stayed true to the source material. But just as important, these weren’t half-hearted rehashes. With additions of power-ups and rebalancing to accommodate a single life, fundamental changes were also made.

With most of Atari’s big names accounted for, things are starting to get quite interesting. 1983’s Gravitar doesn’t have the name recognition of Atari’s heavy-hitters, despite a 2600 port and an appearance in at least three different more modern anthologies. Much of that might be because of the difficulty of the game. Gravitar required a fighter pilot’s reflexes and sense of composure.

Less Grueling Gravitar

Here’s the good news: Gravitar: Recharged is difficulty has been relaxed. The new game is no pushover but threading the needle through craggy canyons against an exceptionally merciless timer isn’t as stressful as it once was. Piloting your craft adopts the control scheme as Asteroids. You’re able to freely rotate your ship, while tapping the thrusters generates a bit of momentum. The difference here is that gravity is usually pushing you downward and you have a limited supply of fuel to power your ship. Like Atari’s Lunar Lander, you’re always tweaking your trajectory. Navigation isn’t instant and requires anticipation. That can get tough when cannons are firing projectiles and homing missiles at you.

Tackle the game’s Arcade Mode and you’ll notice another deviation from the original game. Instead of a single-screen solar system, Gravitar: Recharged places you on the fringes of a large star, rendered in a top-down perspective.  Here, you’ll dodge asteroids which won’t kill you on impact but will steal some of your fuel supply. The goal here is matching the trajectory of one of the planets rotating around the sun. Luckily, you don’t have to be too exactly. Stay within their vicinity and you’ll automatically drop down after two seconds.

Seek and Destroy

When you descend on a planet, the point-of-view shifts to a side view of the landscape. Here, you’ll face a variety of requirements. Enemies comes in two types: stationary turrets and exploding mines as well as floating saucers. Occasionally, you’ll have to eliminate all opposition before getting back into orbit. Other times, beacons need to be activated by hovering near them for a few seconds. Sometimes, you’ll have to grab intelligence that stored in the middle of a precarious space labyrinth.

Pleasingly, there’s variation across planets. Some stages have a gravity field that propels you toward the middle of the screen while others might not have gravity. But after a few sessions, you’ll definitely become familiar with the different planets, knowing the layout and where foes are positioned. You’ll likely struggle to complete a single mission during your first game. But without an hour, you’ll be a crackshot pilot, eliminating some opponents before they appear onscreen.

Please Don’t Launch the Power-Ups into Space

Your ship’s standard guns fire a three-round burst. Learn to fire while gliding or when rotating and you’ll release a devastating field of fire. Occasionally, you can pick up powerups that provide perks like three-way firing or homing missiles. Woefully, they’re bound to a short timer and you’ll lose any extra abilities once your leave a planet. Much like the original game, players also have a tractor beam that is invaluable for picking up fuel canisters. Just don’t make your down overfill your tank or Recharged will penalize you.

The Recharged series has habitually allowed only a single mistake before players are met with the ‘game over’ screen. Mercifully, Gravitar changes that. Beyond starting each new game with a fleet of three ships, there’s even shielding so a single bullet won’t undermine your momentum. Of course, you can select options such as a single life, no power-ups, or a lack of shielding to increase the difficulty. Each sacrifice adds a 2.5% score multiplier, which carries over to the online leaderboard. There are rankings for single player and the game’s cooperative mode, where allies are rubber-banded together. But there’s no indication of which handicaps a user has selected.

Conclusion

Beyond Arcade Mode, Gravitar: Recharged’s Mission Mode provides a succession of 24 standalone challenges. While these might lack the expositional motivation of a traditional campaign, they are a demanding series of tests that give the game a bit of longevity. While Megan McDuffee offers another met of minimalistic melodies, Gravitar abandons the vector graphics-style look of its predecessors. It’s eye pleasing, but seeing enemies gradually disappear instead of exploding into a shower of particle effects is the rare misstep. While my love for gravity-based shooters like Bangai-O and Gravity Crash might make me a bit biased, Gravitar: Recharged is my favorite series entry so far.

Gravitar: Recharged was played on Switch
with review code provided by the publisher.