Burning retrograde
Atari has announced that the latest of their property revivals will be coming from the makers of Cris Tales, Dreams Uncorporated. This time, it’s Lunar Lander: Beyond, which will take the classic gravity arcade game in some new directions.
Okay, so here’s something fun. Watch the reveal trailer for Lunar Lander: Beyond, and then try to guess the synopsis I got in the press release. Ready?
Looks cool, right? Okay, here’s the synopsis.
“As a newly appointed captain of the Pegasus Corporation, you must guide a vibrant crew of intrepid explorers, eclectic advisors, and state-of-the-art landers through a series of demanding missions. Brace yourself as you soar through the cosmos, delivering crucial cargo, extracting valuable resources, and conducting daring rescues across a celestial tapestry of enigmatic moons and captivating planets. When mysterious portals appear you will find you are on a collision course with sinister truths that lie unseen behind the universe.”
Totally different vibes. You can sort of see how they might both be talking about the same thing, but the trailer is like, “Everything is fucked. How will you survive?” Meanwhile, the brief synopsis basically says, “You’re a delivery boy in the unknowable expanse of space.”
Lunar Legacy
To be serious, though, 1979’s Lunar Lander is a great arcade game. It’s a simple concept that managed to pack a tonne of depth, something rare for video games at the time. The concept has been explored in a tonne of different ways since then, not just under the Lunar Lander name but also through the games it inspired.
However, because the “fight against gravity” gameplay has never really fallen out of fashion, I have to wonder what Lunar Lander: Beyond will do to stand out. The trailer is stylish, but it doesn’t really tell us anything. I guess what I’m saying is that, personally, I’m not convinced, but I’m looking forward to seeing more.
Lunar Lander: Beyond will launch in the first half of 2024. It is coming to Switch, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
