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An anime legend for decades, Osamu Tezuka’s Astro Boy captured hearts in the sixties and eighties with a charming theme of tolerance in the world of tomorrow. In what has become a popular trend, Astro Boy was recently brought back in a modern anime series for a whole new generation (along with Cyborg 009 and Kikaider). And while that means more questionable kid robot voice dubs here in America, it also means new licensed games. Don’t cower, though—thanks to talented developers with reverence for the series, Omega Factor is quite possibly the best thing to come from franchise resurrections since Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law.

Omega Factor is instantly approachable. Although any gamer over six could figure out the intuitive controls, it kindly starts off with an optional training level to cover all the bases. Besides walking and jumping, Astro can dash with his jet boots either on the ground or in mid-air for extra distance and a precious spurt of invincibility. On offense, Astro can punch, kick, and shoot laser beams, performing combos with these weaker attacks to multiply score values.

Successfully damaging enemies will charge his EX gauge and eventually gain EX points, which can be spent on Astro’s three EX attacks: a laser cannon, an offensive jet-dash, and a screen-showering machine gun (conveniently located in his butt). These attacks also function as counters. The machine gun and cannon absorb enemy projectiles, and kicking or EX dashing into an enemy will send it careening into its buddies for a very satisfying domino effect.

Astro’s talents are put to good use in side-scrolling action stages, which come in two flavors. The larger portion of the game pays homage to classic beat-‘em-ups such as Sega’s Streets of Rage or Treasure’s Gunstar Heroes. The formula is simple: destroy all of the enemies, move forward, and repeat. It may sound repetitive, but the fantastic handling and variety keeps the game moving at a brisk pace. The other third of the game retains the same spirit, but repackages it as an aerial shooter. Astro trades in his punches for a more maneuverable finger gun attack, resulting in a pleasurable Gradius scenario full of evasion and counters. In perfect Treasure form, each scene’s brevity ensures finely-tuned enemy placement and level design that never outstays its welcome.

Then, of course, there are the boss battles. Each of the eight chapters features anywhere from one to five unique boss battles. Many take place on the ground, and some take place in mid-air, but each boss has its own patterns to learn. Treasure is famous for its bosses, and anyone hoping to conquer hard mode will have to train for over twenty of them, including a giant Artificial Sun, an air tank, and a robotic mantis. Many of the bosses are admittedly straightforward, but most provide an entertaining challenge and well-placed breaks from the lesser goons.

Omega Factor’s gameplay is super-simple, but there is more to its design than meets the eye. Treasure and Hitmaker made sure not to exclude anyone from the fun. Inexperienced gamers will enjoy easy mode, which weakens enemy offense and defense while providing an almost limitless supply of EX energy. Normal mode is plenty difficult and the recommended starting point for anyone reading. The authentic Treasure “ass-handing” hard mode makes enemies even stauncher, caps Astro’s EX to three points, and prevents him from charging his EX gauge (which already fills at a reduced rate) when using EX attacks.

As the game progresses on normal difficulty, more is demanded of the player. Gamers will learn to better manage their EX points and to master Astro’s evasive dash as the boss battles grow in caliber. No matter how difficult the game gets, though, death is not defeat, and you can continue from the start of the stage as many times as it takes. And while simply clearing the level may be enough for the masses, skilled hardcore fans of the genre(s) can focus on grander scores, which are recorded for each stage and per life on all three difficulty settings.

Surprisingly, even the plot adds to the experience. At first the story will seem like the standard hodgepodge script we’ve come to expect from licensed titles and 2D action games in general. Various characters from Astro Boy and other Tezuka series are scattered through the levels to create an original story borrowing heavily from the source materials. Some cameos double as boss battles, while hidden characters must be found to eventually unlock the game’s final ending (details in the spoiler ahead). As Astro learns about the people in his world, they are added to his Omega Factor, or human essence, and the player may power-up one ability. For those undeterred by spoilers, the plot takes a surprise twist after chapter seven. When a robot-human war destroys the world, Astro is granted the chance to relive his adventure in a second quest featuring more challenging enemy patterns and an altered history. Astro must then transcend time (and replay levels) at will to talk with characters, uncover how seemingly unrelated threads tie together, and use the information to resolve conflicts and ultimately defeat the manipulative villain of the game.

Omega Factor’s character list, which is filled whenever Astro fully understands a character, is also worth praising. What one would expect to be a throwaway feature is actually quite informative: the profiles include details on such things as a character’s origin, roles (Tezuka’s characters were often recast, much like classic Disney personalities), popularity, and associated innovations in animation. The quality of this Easter Egg is indicative of the sincere effort Hitmaker and Treasure put into Omega Factor.

Although I was completely unfamiliar with the series before researching and playing Omega Factor, I appreciate the franchise now after playing Hitmaker’s treasure. Astro Boy: Omega Factor is an intelligent game brewed from years of experience. It caught my interest the moment I started playing and maintains its stranglehold as I write this review. That is saying a lot for a licensed game.