Global Intellect

This is slightly embarrassing to admit, but I’m addicted to … Space Invaders.

Not the 1978-issue game, mind you. No, I’m talking about Space Invaders Extreme — a re-visioning of the original game, released this week for the Nintendo DS and PSP by Square Enix (which now owns Taito, creator of the original thud-thud-thudding arcade classic). The game is enormously fun, gorgeously rendered and — other than the horrid use of extreme in the title — a loving tribute to the Precambrian title that birthed the entire videogame industry.

But here’s the really interesting thing. I think the new Space Invaders is the first “reissue” of a videogame that is completely successful.

This really has never been done before. This subgenre of gaming — the classic remake — is littered with failure. Defender, Asteroids, Galaga: You name the old-school game, and it’s been ruined by some designer’s misbegotten attempt to improve it. It’s […]

Original post by Clive Thompson