Atari reborn Acre Deposit, a 1982 arcade game canceled because test audiences found it too difficult. For the remake of the wave-shooter, the publisher is teaming up with developer Jeff Minter, whose psychedelic, synthwave style seems to suit what Atari describes as “a fever dream in the best way possible.” The remake will be released on PC, PS5 and PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and Atari VCS in early 2023.
the original Acre Deposit cabinet used a trackball to target enemies, as the player controls the Sentinel attached to the center of the screen to fend off waves of incoming attackers. Around the Sentinel is an octagonal field, which you must keep clear; if enemies creep in, you can zoom in to fend them off before backing up to fend off the rest of the wave. Given the simplicity of most games in the early 1980s, it’s no surprise that this relative complexity led to poor test group selections.
Since Atari pulled the plug on the arcade version before release, only three Acre Deposit cabinets are known to exist. But the Minter collaboration isn’t the game’s first public availability. After an arcade ROM was leaked online in 2019, Atari released the original this fall as part of its Atari 50: the anniversary celebration collection.
Atari and Minter worked together in the 1990s, when his company Llamasoft created games like Storm 2000 for the Atari Jaguar. Unfortunately, the two fell out in 2015 when Atari blocked the release of Minter’s spiritual successor to that title. However, both parties patched things up in 2018 when they released Storm 4000a sequel to Minter’s helm with the blessing of the intellectual property holder.
Atari says the remake has two modes, 50 levels, and saves, so you don’t have to start over from the beginning when enemies inevitably invade your Sentinel. Additionally, the company says it offers accessibility settings to mitigate trippy visuals for those sensitive to intense light, color, and animations.
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