Retron

Another take on the space-shooter

Reviewed by Shawn from afro-ninja.com

In a world where top down shooters have had more than their fair share of enhancements, modifications, and sequels over the years, Retron simplifies the formula but adds a new element that keeps the idea original.

In Retron all you have to do avoid the enemies coming at you and blast them for points. Pick up occasional health and clear-screen bonuses, and last as long as you can for a high score. Sound familiar? That’s not all though. After a couple seconds of playing Retron, the screen shifts on you. And after a few more seconds it shifts again… and again, and again, and again. The challenge to Retron is that during the course of the entire game the screen is constantly shifting to new positions and angles while you play. The simple concept of ‘shoot stuff’ is taken to a new level of complexity when you’re trying to follow a flipping screen. The screen has many different positions and picks a random one each time (or so it appears, but it might follow a set order, I wasn’t sure)- it can go from normal to skewed, from horizontal to vertical and even completely upside down. It’s not so much that it’s hard to follow, but it will be a chore keeping the left and right arrow keys straight in your mind.

As simple as it is, I love the graphical style of Retron. Everything is composed of a simple outline, but they all have slight glows to them, reminiscent of old asteroids arcade machine. It’s a necessary part of the 80’s oldschool flair, and I think the game would have suffered without it. The overall presentation and interface are noteworthy, and I really like the song that plays during the game. And yes, you can turn it off.

However, as nice as Retron is, it’s still overly simple. There’s only two powerups to collect and once the novelty of the ‘shifting screen’ wears off you’re pretty much down to a very basic shooter. Also, the game tends to lag as you go farther along, which confuses me. Sure there are more enemies being added but that seems to be fine for a while, until eventually the screen transitions start making things chug. Maybe it was just my computer. Either way, be sure to give Retron a shot and get yourself on the high-score list.

Click here to play Retron






Comments (10) [view all]

  Latest comment left by Cema:

Dude, it does have powerups though. Not very good ones, but they are still there. Admittedly it is a simple game, but this is because of it's 'minigame' nature. This is what it pulls off the best. It's simple in design, but effectively can last you a long time with it's limitless replayability. The UI is very well done for a game of it's caliber, and it maintains its simple nature quite well because of that. The fact that it has highscores is a neat add on to an already neat game. It doesn't do much wrong, and just about everything it does do wrong is asthetic, but even then it isn't lacking much. Sure, we would like to see more powerups, but then it wouldn't pertain its 'minigame' status. Highly enjoyable, and probably ranks a 7.9 in my book. (Rereading your review again spread some light on it's original design that I enjoyed so much. I must say, your reviews are getting better every time.)

Click here to leave a comment