POSTED 25/8/12


RETRO/GRADE

24 Caret Games
PS3/PSN

Turn me on, dead man... Turn me on, dead man... Turn me on, dead man...

In the tradition of space klutzes such as Zapp Brannigan and others that we’re thinking of but can’t remember the names of, say “hello” to Rick Rocket. Actually you’re probably better off saying “olleh”.

Yep, Rick’s done gone and saved the universe, but he’s left such a trail of massively-massive mass destruction in his wake that he’s caused some sort of amono... anomonopol... animal... umm, fuck-up that’s reversed time. Yeah, good one hero dacks! So, it’s down to you as a hopefully non-klutzy entity to wrest control of his shippy-whippy and regress through his shooty-wooty mess to get time sorted.
 
What unfolds is a trippy Rock Band/Guitar Hero mash-up, whereby you’ve up to five space lanes depending upon the level (ooh, that’s the same backwards or forwards!) that you’ve opted to tackle, in which enemies unfire all manner of laserbeamy space crud from you that requires avoidance while you unfire bullety thangs in beat with the thumptastical 8-bitty chip-choons that pump away – mercifully not in reverse.

You can go the classic DualShock, or employ that placcy geetaw that’s invariably kicking about somewhere, as it’s all designed and stuff to do so. Hence the five lanes that are magically colour-matched to match the fretboard buttons, matchily.

Seriously, this’d even fuck with Inspector Spacetime’s noggin. Doctor Who’s already upside down in the corner of a round room mumbling Nickelback lyrics in Gallifreyan. Even in complete mental breakdown he’s a smartarse! We’d repeat some here, but lack such cruelty.

Retro/Grade’s quite the kcufdnim. But if you dig classic arcadesque shooters quite literally turned on their head, plugged into a Marshall stack, then unplugged again as all the sound emanates from something old and Moogy – but with a guitar as the intermediary - then you’re in the right place.

CLICK THIS!



CLICK THIS!