Akka Arrh

Akka Arrh is worth investigating for hardcore shooter fans of course – it has a lot of visual appeal and is certainly something different. Everyone else may want to consider if they can truly handle this eclectic neon fever dream.

There are fifty levels to play through, and each one presents a different shape and a different challenge to overcome. If you get into what it’s laying down, Akka Arrh will keep you busy for a while. Not just in beating the levels, but also in improving your scores. The tricky thing is whether or not you will get into it, as it’s a lot more demanding than the likes of Tempest 2000 without really being more fun. Atari and Minter fans will probably enjoy it well enough, and those who want to play a very unconventional shooter might dig it too. Others may find its complicated gameplay mechanics just a little too much for a little too little.

As irreverent and disruptive as one has come to expect from the mind of Jeff Minter, Akka Arrh is a game that, rather than based around all-out cattle space warfare, requires a certain level of restraint to wring the most from its scoring potential. Learning to dally with its diverse and ever-changing threats is almost mathematical, but still liberating and rewarding to overcome. It may struggle to appeal in the long-term in the same way as Tempest or his recent Polybius, owing to its slightly less absorbing construction; and those uninitiated in Minter’s unusual thought processes may find it altogether abstruse. Nevertheless, it certainly earns a rightful place in his catalogue of psychedelic, slightly barmy, and altogether addictive score-based challenges.

Akka Arrh is an interesting experiment. Despite its shortcomings, Atari fans can still find some fun in this blaster from the past – the game just comes with a big asterisk. As much as I’m excited to see a lost piece of gaming history revitalized and brought to modern consoles, overwhelming visuals and confusing, abstract game mechanics bring the experience down.