Missile Command: Recharged is a reimagining of the 1980 arcade classic, giving it a new sense of enjoyment as well as a new appeal, including leveling up stats and chasing down leaderboards.
Pros:
+Little additions to the game make it fun, unique, and a loving nod to the original
+Feels just like the 1980 arcade classic regardless of the upgrade system
+Power-ups are fun to use and add a neat little twist
Cons:
-Only replay value is chasing leaderboards
When I was growing up, it wasn’t uncommon for my dad and me to visit the Atari classics that were available as a mid 80s baby. We would spend hours play simple games ranging from Dig Dug, Pong, and even Missile Command. In my childhood, these were classics, to this day, they are still classics. At almost 35, I’ll admit, I still love those games for just how simple and yet – somehow obscenely challenging – they could be.
Now, here I am, 32 almost 33 years later playing the exact same game I grew up to as a kid, but this time, on a Nintendo Switch versus my dad’s Atari 2400 and Atari Joystick. It’s a game that did things right back in the 1980s and now, in the 2020s and beyond, it’s doing the exact same thing once again.
This time, the game isn’t a quarter-muncher if you were to visit the arcades of yesteryear. Instead, it’s one that is more of a fake-quarter-muncher than anything else, which in some ways, I can appreciate it aside from the fact that it continues to show that it’s frantic, it’s challenging, and it will keep you on your feet with how aggressive it gets.
Missile Command: Recharged is an ode to the Atari Classics of yesteryear
Unlike Pong Quest, this title isn’t one that focuses on level-based challenges or an RPG format to drive the game forward, but rather, invokes what made the original as good as it was and continues using that driving force to aim for success. Missle Command: Recharged is exactly what you would hope it would be.
It adds in color, anti-air missile control, small power-ups to help make the game a bit more fun, and a minor upgrade system that doesn’t overwhelm or drastically change the game from what it’s intended to be. Nope, this is just a beautiful remastering of a classic with a few additional features.
The upgrades themselves are minor such as reload, power, rebuild, etc. These simple upgrades change the game, making it so you can do as much as you want as fast as you want, but only to a certain degree. It still takes a lot of skill and situational awareness in order to succeed where you might have failed before.
Touchscreen and Joy-Con playstyles are available in Missile Command: Recharged
There is one key difference worth mentioning. You do have two control methods at your disposal. The ability to play via touch screen is available alongside the standard Joy-Con option is there as well. The downside is clear though with either. One, you can adjust rather quickly on the fly by tapping the screen with your fingertips, the downside to this is that it’s not near as accurate as the Joy-Con and will leave room for a bit of frustration.
The drawback to Joy-Con control is that it also leaves a bit of an issue with targeting. It’s slower than you might need it can also come off as a bit sluggish when things really get going. Some of that could just be learning curve too.
The Conclusion – Missile’s Away!
One of the things that may come off as rather interesting with Missle Command: Recharged is that just like the original, it’s fun, it’s quirky, and it’s a good game to play just to burn some time or show off what kind of skills you have at the game. That’s including the use of temporary power-ups such as Fast, Mega, Shields, etc.
All of the power-ups are very temporary but useful, especially when you’re between a rock and a hard place, which is to say, will happen rather often. It is, however, worth noting that since this is very much a barebones experience, one that if you dove in for $2.99, you won’t be disappointed and go find an Atar and a copy of the original.
Missile Command: Recharged
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Android, and PC
Platform Reviewed: Nintendo Switch
Developer: Nickervision Studios
Publisher: Atari
Release Date: Available Now
Cost: $2.99
Fortunately, it’s worth saying this: It’s a fun game and it does just enough to compel us to keep playing from time to time, but it honestly, isn’t one that’s going to break the bank and force you to head into an arcade with a fistful of quarters in order to keep going. It’s honestly, awesome that Atari did this and it makes a timeless classic even more timeless.
Our review is based upon a retail version of the game provided to us by the publisher for the review. For information about our ethics policy please click here.
About the Writer(s):
Dustin is our native video game reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the borders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. You can find him over on Twitter or Facebook where he interacts with his followers quite a bit!