In this age of Pixel Shaders, MMOs and DirectX 10, "Aces of the Galaxy" comes as a blast from the past, to remind us that arcade games are still out there, alive and kicking. Do you have what it takes to fly your spaceship through the numerous meteor belts while destroying every single enemy ship on screen?

Arcade games are somewhat of a rarity nowadays since everything seems to revolve around huge skill trees, moral choices, higher Fps or resource hoarding. What happened to those games that we used to play when we were growing up? Yes, I`m talking about the platform games that would keep us up at night trying to make that final, difficult jump and to those easy, yet challenging arcade games.

"Aces of the Galaxy" not only brings back memories of those games, but also manages to do what others have failed: to become a good game by its own, and not depend on nostalgia to keep its fan base.

Three difficulty options are there to make sure the game is playable by everyone, regardless of skill. I recommend at least the medium difficulty, if you don`t want to yawn through the game, and the hard difficulty for a challenge. You also have the option of choosing which ship you`ll be flying, but this has no influence on the outcome of the game.

I didn`t notice anything different between the models available, related to maneuverability or firepower, so feel free to choose based on looks. As soon as the first mission starts, and the first waves of enemies make their appearance, you`ll know "Aces of the Galaxy" means business.

The action is fast paced, with almost no time to breathe in between waves, and there`s the occasional "boss" tossed into the fight. These are a little harder to kill, but usually provide a big score boost, and what reason is there to play an arcade if not to brag to your friends about your score?

The ship is very maneuverable and the mouse is an excellent control choice. Coming to your help are also a few keys on the keyboard, mainly the space bar, Shift, Ctrl and Alt, and the Z key. The Space Bar activates one of the games` innovations, mainly the "Slow Time". While not overly helpful, this ability does have its use in boss fights or when you`re trying to avoid mines. Also the graphical effects are amazing for such a small game. The Shift key allows you to shoot a torpedo that either goes straight ahead, or follows what you had targeted at the time.

You also have a number of other missiles that can be shot by holding the right mouse button and aiming for 3 or more ships before you let go. The number of missiles that you can shoot using this technique can be increased by picking up certain power ups along the way, but you`ll have to choose between missile damage upgrade, number of missiles shot upgrade or laser upgrade. Picking up two power ups of different nature will cancel the previous one and return you to level one, whereas picking up more upgrades of the same nature will provide an even greater increase.

The Ctrl and Alt keys allow you to do some quick dodging maneuvers that will save you on more than one occasion. The Z key is used to activate your scanner which will un-cloak hidden enemies. Other than that, all you need is good reflexes and keen eye sight.

You can also pick a "Warp Selector" thingie on every mission which allows you which way you want to progress. There are 3 choices for each mission, with three different planets. I didn`t exactly notice a lot of differences between them, but hey, choice is always good. You also get a star rating for each level, and unlock achievements based on your performance, so you`ll have several things to make you play the game more than once.

Be advised that there is no save feature in the game and if you quit on the final level, that`s that, you have to start from the beginning. That means that you either have to finish the game in one go, or get seriously frustrated. I finished it on normal difficulty in about 40 minutes, so don`t worry too much about it and just enjoy it. Also, there are levels where you can pick up an extra life, to make your journey easier.

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Conclusion:

There isn`t much more to say about the game, other than the fact that I seriously enjoyed it and it reminded me of the good old days (and games). The game will attract just about anyone with its colorful graphics and high speed action. One the rare occasion that you actually have time to admire your surroundings, I`m sure you`ll be as impressed as I was. I got a kick out of it, and I`m sure you will too ;)

Gameplay: 85

Fast and furious, that about sums it up, and while keeping things simple, there is a lot of diversity in the game. You`ll never get bored with the long asteroid belts that can destroy your ship in two hits and neither will you yawn at the sight of the huge, mine laying mother ships. Besides, the levels are short enough to be played on a cigarette break.

Graphics: 86

Unlike other space games, you never have the feeling of being alone in "Aces of Galaxy" and that`s because of the graphics mainly. There are huge spaceships around you, distant planets, comets, meteor belts, and of course, burning ships. Be warned that this can sometimes get distracting, especially when you`re trying to avoid space mines.

Sound: 80

Nothing special here, apart from the satisfying sound of lasers hitting their target and the missile system loading up for another volley, while you`re trying to avoid those last remaining ships.

Multiplayer: n\a

Hardware: 83

While the system requirements are somewhat low, there were occasional slowdowns even on a modern computer.