2004 Arkanoid Game of the Year

It is no secret that I'm a big fan of Arkanoid/Breakout games.  I could probably come up with a 100 or so off of the top of my head.  They are the one game type that I almost always try out when a new one is released, and it was DXBall2 and Break Ball that really first got me into indie gaming.  This year has been a spectacular year for Arkanoid fans with some great Arkanoid games, including what I believe to be the best Arkanoid ever made...read on!

5th Place - Super DXBall

I think most everyone who has played an Indie game is familiar with DXBall2. in fact that game has been so successful that I'll bet that many people who have played that game are not even familiar with the term Indie game and have no idea as to the story behind it. DXBall 2 was a sequel to the popular DXBall. That game was by Mike Welch, with some help from Seamus McNally. Seamus worked out a deal with Mike and released DXBall2. Now, years after Seamus has sadly passed on, and after years of work, Mike has released his much updated sequel to DXBall, Super DXBall.

Super DXBall is wonderful in many ways. The game play is still the strong game play from DXBall that set the standard for all other arkanoid games to follow. What is different here from the original are the graphics. The levels in Super DXBall build off of a wide variety of well-drawn bricks. While I say bricks, the design of these bricks is anything but the normal rectangular blocks that you are used to seeing. Instead the graphics build on many odd-shaped blocks to create images and designs in the levels that are quite interesting to look at and are improved further by some special effects, such as bubbles moving through them. While the graphics and level design are quite strong, the one thing holding this game back was the lack of new power-ups and innovative features. With the number of really innovative Arkanoid games this year, that means this great title was regulated to fifth place.

Our Review:
None available at this time

4th Place - Ricochet Lost Worlds

By putting the fan favorite Ricochet here I already know I'll hear it from fans of the game, and there are many. Ricochet may be the best selling Arkanoid franchise ever, and there is a good reason for that. The graphics and general in-your-face attitude of the game leads to the game appealing to a different fan base than the typical Arkanoid game. I think that there is little doubt that Ricochet is the best looking of the Arkanoid games. In addition to good looks, the developers over at Reflexive went through great lengths to ensure that the level design presented many challenges.

The moving bricks that were so eloquently put in motion in last year's Arkanoid Game of the Year Break Ball, were taken a step further in Ricochet with specific mini-routes that they ran, creating areas of motion, such as the wheels on a train. There are also a lot of interesting bricks introduced in the game, which lead to the levels requiring a high amount of precision to pass them.  They also introduced an extra challenge through rings that you can collect during each boards to obtain extra-men. The only thing holding the game back has been the game play, which limits the angles at which you can hit the ball off the paddle and in my mind that is a major issue. With a couple more fixes Ricochet would have finished 2nd overall.

Our Review:
"The fact is there are so many inventive levels awaiting you that if you are enjoying the ride there is no reason to get off."

3rd Place - Rival Ball Tournament

One of the most interesting features that has been introduced into the Arkanoid genre in the last few years has been the ability to play versus. Last year's GOTY winner took that one step further by introducing multiple paddle types with different special abilities to increase the challenge and fun of these versus matches. This year's Rival Ball takes some of those concepts and adds to it true Internet play to provide a great challenge for those who felt that the pong concept of getting a ball past someone else while also knocking out bricks was a great idea. Rival Ball Tournament comes from the same family that created DXBall2, which provides a somewhat strange connection between it and the number five finisher Super DXBall. While this game doesn't offer the strength in graphics of that title, it does offer the thing that is missing in that title in having lots of cool and innovative power-ups. For those looking for more than just your typical brick-breaking action, you should definitely give Rival Ball Tournament a try, it might just be right up your alley.

Our Review:
"...a large number of power-ups and fairly well polished graphics to go along with a solid sound track."

2nd Place - Acky's XP Breakout

Some people may be surprised when they see this game near the top of the list. I think most of that confusion comes from people who either play few Arkanoid games, or they are easily sidetracked and take glitz over game play. The biggest flaw in this game is actually the title, which just isn't memorable. Beyond that you'll find a game that does a very good job at getting back to the roots of breakout game play. Acky's is actually a sequel to another great game called Electrobalz. I mention that game only because it is very similar in game play and did most of the work of restoring breakout-like game play in my mind.

Back in the day a big point of breakout games was to get the ball to the top of the bricks and then let it quickly knock out the bricks at the top. However, we've moved away from that to scattered bricks that appear in pretty patterns, which are nonetheless fun, but there is little reward for getting the ball above the bricks. Acky's provides a challenge with the associated feeling of satisfaction if you get the ball above the bricks, or between the bricks, in addition to adding a series of interesting power meters that track the different combos you do. The combos include things such as catching specific power-up types in a row or hitting a specific number of bricks without hitting a wall or your paddle. Once you fill all five combo meters, you will unlock XP mode, which is definitely worth playing for and I'll leave it at that. To add to that there are a good number of cool power-ups and some great graphical effects, like when the ball goes through the text that sometimes pops up on the screen.  With a really cool combo system and of course a good group of cool power-ups, Acky's is a solid breakout game.

Our Review:
"I think that true arkanoid fans will embrace this game as being easily one of the better titles available."

2004 Arkanoid Game of the Year - BreakQuest

Let me just start by saying that BreakQuest would have won the Arkanoid of the year award had it come out any year. I do believe that this is the best Arkanoid game in existence, and honestly it is innovative enough that everyone must immediately buy this game.  So where do we start?  BreakQuest is built mostly around a very strong physics engine that allows the designer to do a lot of cool things.  In fact there are so many interesting and different features in the game that you cannot even come close to appreciating a tenth of them in this game's demo. 

The boards offer a wide variety of bricks to hit, many of which use the games physics engine to create what feels, when combined with the graphics that are designed for each board, like a totally different game with each level that you play.  For example, in the screenshot you'll see that there are rectangular bricks connected by a line.  By hitting the bricks, the entire line will move, making the bricks move about in interesting ways that provides a lot of coolness for your eyes.  There are many different interactions like this that make the game exciting, but that isn't all.  In fact there are 100 levels in the game, and nearly each one is completely different than any other one.  For example there is an asteroids board complete with bouncing vector drawn asteroids and alien spacecraft that come across the board.  There are levels that are somewhat typical with bricks, and atypical, like the bowling alley level, and then other levels with very small brick sizes that are formed into a picture.  Honestly you should check out the page of screenshots to get just an idea of how much variety there really is. 

The reality is that this game pretty much takes every board type and idea from every Arkanoid game ever made and makes it better.  If the levels weren't enough there are a host of interesting "power-ups" that make the game play quite differently than anything else on the market.  You can get power-ups that change the shape of your ball into a tear shape or square, which makes the game play very fun and challenging.  The shape of your paddle also changes from the typical semi-circle, to a flat or wavy surface, and there more.  Of course the game also includes a variety of weapon-type power-ups including the missile that is somewhat guided by your paddle in the screenshot above.  The interaction between you and the board is honestly enough to make this the most amazing breakout game every, but there is so much more in this game and so much more than you'll ever come to appreciate in the demo that I hope everyone will get the full-version and get a chance to experience it.  The graphics are solid and the music reminds me very much of the Falcom titles of the early 90's, which is quite amazing as those games were all RPGs, and somehow that feel has carried over to this game and leads it to feeling very much like it is an actual 'Quest.'  BreakQuest has totally succeeded in the Quest for perfection and in recognition of that it is awarded the 2004 Arkanoid Game of the Year Award.

Our Review:
None available at this time (check back in the near future)

Spread The Word:    Del.icio.us  |   Digg  |   Slashdot  |   Reddit

By: Russell Carroll
Posted: Saturday December 11, 2004