Arkanoid Returns and a sequel, Arkanoid Returns 2000, were released in Japan for the PlayStation. A Super NES version called " Arkanoid: Doh it Again" was released in 1997. A Macintosh version was released in 1987 and a port was released for the TRS-80 Color Computer in 1989. A console port on the NES was also popular, and the game was also ported for 16-bit computers Amiga, Atari ST, Apple II GS and IBM PC. Many of the 8-bit computer ports ( ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC 464, Commodore 64, BBC Micro, MSX, Atari 8-bit, Apple II) were very popular in Europe in the 1980s. The reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars. The game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon #144 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column.
The Japanese DS version features an optional paddle controller that connects in the Game Boy Advance slot, but the paddle controller is not being released in America.
Latter-day MAME arcade cabinet developers have created customized spinner controls to further simulate the arcade experience, although the Arkanoid controller had quirks which have made it difficult to achieve 100% reproduction. While the game may be played with the standard digital NES control pad, optimum gameplay is achieved with the Vaus Controller. The NES version of Arkanoid was originally packaged with what's considered one of the rarest of all NES controllers, the Vaus Controller: a small gray controller featuring one button, a small spinner (with limited turn radius), an adjustment port, and the Taito logo. Digital controls (many joysticks and control pads, and keyboards) are considered less desirable than analog controls (most mice, trackballs, and paddles) while digital controls limit the player to single-speed control, analog controls allow the player to move the Vaus at nearly any desired speed across the screen. The two basic control methods are digital and analog. The controls used by various conversions differ from machine to machine, and some conversions allow for multiple control methods. This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.īecause of the game's popularity, five other versions of the game were developed for the market: Tournament Arkanoid and Revenge of Doh ( Arkanoid II) both in 1987, Arkanoid - Doh It Again and Arkanoid Returns both in 1997, Arkanoid DS in 2007, Arkanoid Live, and, most recently, Arkanoid Plus! on WiiWare. BUT THE REAL VOYAGE OF "ARKANOID" IN THE GALAXY HAS ONLY STARTED." Legacy "VAUS" MANAGED TO ESCAPE FROM THE DISTORTED SPACE. BUT ONLY TO BE TRAPPED IN SPACE WARPED BY SOMEONE."Ī second monologue is at the end of the game, after destroying the "dimension-controlling fort" that looks like a red wire-frame Moai.ĭIMENSION-CONTROLLING FORT "DOH" HAS NOW BEEN DEMOLISHED, AND TIME STARTED FLOWING REVERSELY. AFTER THE MOTHERSHIP "ARKANOID" WAS DESTROYED, A SPACECRAFT "VAUS" SCRAMBLED AWAY FROM IT. "THE TIME AND ERA OF THIS STORY IS UNKNOWN. The game opens with a monologue stating the following: Once a player reaches round 33, he must defeat DOH with his remaining extra lives because there are no continues on the final round. There are a number of variations (bricks that have to be hit multiple times, flying enemy ships, etc.) and power-up capsules to enhance the Vaus (expand the Vaus, multiply the number of balls, equip a laser cannon, break directly to the next level, etc.), but the gameplay remains the same.Īt round 33, the final stage, the player will take on the game's boss, "DOH", a head resembling moai. When all the bricks are gone, the player goes to the next level, where another pattern of bricks appears. The ball striking a brick causes the brick to disappear.
Much like the game Breakout, the player controls the "Vaus", a space vessel that acts as the game's "paddle" which prevents a ball from falling from the playing field, attempting to bounce it against a number of bricks.