Platform: Arcade
Region: NTSC-U
Country: United States of America
Developer(s): Taito Corporation
Publishers(s): Romstar Incorporated
ReleaseDate: 1986-08-01
Players: 2
Co-op: No
Arkanoid
Arkanoid is a 1986 arcade block breaker action video game developed by Taito and released by Romstar in the USA on August 1, 1986. The plot involves the starship Arkanoid being attacked by a mysterious entity from space named DOH. A small paddle-shaped craft, the Vaus, is ejected from the Arkanoid. The player controls the Vaus, moving it from side to side in order to hit a ball into an pattern of bricks and destroy them. After all bricks have been destroyed, the player advances to the next level and faces a new pattern. Most bricks can be destroyed in one hit; some require multiple hits, and others cannot be destroyed at all. Some bricks release capsules that bestow various power-ups when caught, such as increasing the length of the Vaus, temporarily slowing the ball down, or granting an extra life. Floating enemies/obstacles emerge onto the screen at times and can be hit for bonus points. On the final stage, the player takes on the game's boss, "DOH". Once this point is reached, the player no longer has the option to continue after running out of lives, making this segment more difficult. The game is over regardless of the outcome. If the player succeeds in defeating "DOH", the game rewards them by showing the ending, in which time starts to flow backwards, and Vaus escapes the distorted space just in time to return to the Arkanoid, which has also reversed back to perfect condition. The game's text warns, however, that the journey has only started, and that the player has not seen the last of "DOH".
Trailer: YouTube
ESRB Rating: E - Everyone
Genre(s): Action
