What’s the first game that jumps into your head when you hear the word ‘classic’? If you go back to the PC heyday of the early and mid ‘90s, Civilization, SimCity, Fallout, Doom, and Myst might be some of the names that come to mind. Over the last decade or so, Skyrim, Cyberpunk 2077, and Baldur’s Gate 3 have become some of the biggest contemporary hits. The legacies of some games last forever. Others are lost to time. And then there’s a middle-ground third category, games you perhaps haven’t thought about in many, many years, but should they resurface, spark a sudden wave of nostalgia. Originally launched all the way back in 1982, and followed by an underplayed sequel in 2005, one erstwhile classic is making a comeback, in a new Metroidvania game you can play soon.
Now, depending who’s reading this, the following words are going to generate extremely varied reactions: Yars’ Revenge. If you’re a lifelong videogame fan and maybe a bit of a historian, the mention of Howard Scott Warshaw’s 1982 shoot-em-up will likely awaken vivid memories of a fast-paced, highly difficult, galactic fight to the death. For the uninitiated, Yars was one of the games of the ‘80s, popular enough that it earned a sequel some 23 years later with Yars’ Return. And now, Yars is making a huge new comeback, refined into a Metroidvania game with a terrific art style, bundles of energy, and totally overhauled mechanics and level design. This is Yars Rising, the superb-looking return of a gaming legend.
Developed by WayForward, Yars Rising is a complete reimagining of the series and its world. You play a young hacker, Emi Kimura, who is hired to infiltrate and bring down a shadowy corporation. Sneak, fight, run, jump, and gradually earn upgrades as you take on a challenging, modern-feeling platformer with serious retro flair. This is the legacy Yars universe, but with an entirely new approach. We’re still waiting on the full release date for Yars Rising, but it’s expected to launch in 2024. For now, you can wishlist Yars Rising on Steam right here.
In the meantime, feed your nostalgia with the best old games you can still play today, or maybe check out the best roguelike games, if you want something that neatly complements the Metroidvania.
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