Astro Force

Proof that an old console needn't be a dead console — Astro Force is a modern homebrew shooter for the SEGA Master System, a game written by enthusiasts for hardware long abandoned by official developers. And it's exactly this wave of homemade creativity that keeps eight-bit platforms remarkably alive even today.

As a vertically or horizontally oriented shmup, Astro Force offers what you expect from the genre: waves of enemies, evasive manoeuvres, gunfire and mounting pressure that tests your reflexes. The magic of homebrew titles lies in the fact that their creators know the hardware intimately and can often squeeze out effects that period commercial games never dreamed of.

The homebrew scene is a fascinating chapter of retro culture in its own right. Enthusiasts write new games in assembly, release them on real cartridges in limited editions and thereby revive the communities around machines like the Master System. For collectors it's a new, living catalogue of titles that is still growing today.

With games of this kind it's fair to judge them by what they offer as a gaming experience on the given platform, not by period sales figures — which don't exist. Astro Force benefits from being created with a full understanding of what the eight-bit SEGA can do, and it aims squarely at fans who crave such experiences.

If you have a soft spot for classic shooters and are at the same time delighted by the idea that an old hardware generation still gets new games, this is exactly the kind of title worth your attention. It's a hobby and an act of love for the platform rolled into one.

Why play it: For fans of shooters and the homebrew scene who want fresh blood in the veins of the eight-bit Master System.