''Astro Blaster'' is a space-themed
fixed shooter
Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs
) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of charac ...
released in arcades by
Sega in 1981. It was designed and programmed by Gary Shannon and Barbara Michalec.
[ The game uses speech synthesis and during ]attract mode
This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players.
0–9
A
...
a voice says "Fighter pilots needed in sector wars...play ''Astro Blaster''!" It is the first video game to have a copyright registered in Japan.
Gameplay
The player controls a ship which can fire and move left or right. The player must continuously monitor the onscreen temperature
Temperature is a physical quantity that expresses quantitatively the perceptions of hotness and coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer.
Thermometers are calibrated in various Conversion of units of temperature, temp ...
and fuel gauges. If the ship's laser overheats, it is disabled until it cools; and if fuel is depleted, the game ends regardless of how many lives the player has left. The player must battle through waves of enemies, which attack with varied formations and flight patterns. When a wave is destroyed, a new one appears. The Warp function is usable once per sector or life, temporarily slowing all enemy vessels and making them easier to shoot.
At the end of each sector, the player flies through an asteroid belt and can obtain extra fuel by shooting fireballs. Then the mother ship is met, where the player docks and refuels for the next sector.
The player is rewarded for completing each of 25 undisclosed tasks or "secret bonuses", such as shooting all enemies in a specific order or shooting all enemies without missing.[
]
Reception
Legacy
The 1981 Apple II game '' Threshold'' was inspired by seeing an ''Astro Blaster'' machine.Shenmue
is an action-adventure game series created, produced and directed by Yu Suzuki. '' Shenmue'' (1999) and ''Shenmue II'' (2001) were developed by Sega AM2 and published by Sega for Dreamcast. '' Shenmue III,'' developed by Suzuki's company Y ...
.''
''Astro Blaster'' is one of five unlockable games in the PlayStation Portable version of ''Sega Genesis Collection
''Sega Genesis Collection '' (''Sega Mega Drive Collection'' in PAL regions) is a compilation of video games developed by Digital Eclipse and published by Sega for PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable. The collection includes twenty-eight Sega ...
''.
The world record
A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...
high score was set in 1982 and is held by Gus Pappas with 299,100 points.
References
External links
*{{KLOV game, id=6943
''Astro Blaster''
at Arcade History
Score rankings
at Twin Galaxies
1981 video games
Arcade video games
Arcade-only video games
Fixed shooters
Sega arcade games
Gremlin Industries games
Video games developed in the United States