''AstroPop'' is a real-time
puzzle video game
Puzzle video games make up a broad genre of video games that emphasize puzzle solving. The types of puzzles can test problem-solving skills, including logic, pattern recognition, sequence solving, spatial recognition, and word completion.
H ...
developed and published by
PopCap Games. The
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash (formerly Macromedia Flash and FutureSplash) is a multimedia software platform used for production of animations, rich web applications, desktop applications, mobile apps, mobile games, and embedded web browser video players. Fla ...
version can be played online for free at several different websites, or a deluxe version can be downloaded and unlocked for a fee. The game is available for Xbox and Xbox 360 through
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) is a digital video game download service available through the Xbox Games Store, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360. It focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent ...
. ''AstroPop'' was ported over to the
PlayStation 2 in 2007 alongside another PopCap game, ''
Bejeweled 2
''Bejeweled 2'' (also referred as ''Bejeweled 2 Deluxe'' in some releases) is a Tile-matching video game, tile-matching puzzle video game developed and published by PopCap Games. Released as a sequel to ''Bejeweled'', ''Bejeweled 2'' introduces ...
'' which was released as a two-game compilation pack as ''PopCap Hits! Volume 1''. The game has also been ported to cell phones.
Gameplay
The object of the game is to clear a certain number of bricks in each level in order to fill up the ''Brick-O-Meter''. Players control a ship which moves horizontally along the bottom of the screen. The ship can grab and release bricks (up to 6 of the same-colored bricks at a time), moving them from one column to another. If the player releases bricks such that 4 of more bricks of the same color are touching, the bricks explode. As bricks explode, the bricks below move up to fill in the gaps. If this causes 4 or more bricks of the same color to meet, they too will automatically explode (referred to as a ''combo'').
New rows of bricks continuously arrive from the top of the screen, at a rate directly proportional to the level of play. The game ends when any column of bricks touches the bottom.
Reception
Most reviews of the game indicated that, while somewhat similar to existing offerings, it offered enough new elements to be worth playing. In a review of the Xbox 360 version,
TeamXbox
''TeamXbox'' was a gaming media web site dedicated to Microsoft's Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One platforms. While the majority of content was Xbox and Xbox 360 related, the site occasionally covered general technology and other video game news.
...
concluded that "''AstroPop'' offers enough fun in its gameplay and design to warrant the purchase."
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
, reviewing the
mobile
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* Mobile, Alabama, a U.S. port city
* Mobile County, Alabama
* Mobile, Arizona, a small town near Phoenix, U.S.
* Mobile, Newfoundland and Labrador
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels
* Mobile ( ...
version of the title, felt that it played well and that it "should appeal to virtually every mobile gamer out there", resulting in a score of 8.5 out of 10.
References
External links
Official ''AstroPop'' website at PopCap GamesXbox.com ''AstroPop'' game details page*
2004 video games
PlayStation 2 games
Flash games
Mobile games
Original Xbox Live Arcade games
Puzzle video games
PopCap games
Video games developed in the United States
Windows games
Xbox 360 Live Arcade games
Xbox 360 games
{{puzzle-game-stub
Single-player video games