Off the Wall

"Addictive... simple... fun..."

Atari 2600 - Off the Wall

Let me start off by saying that Off the Wall has nothing spectacular about it; no new graphics, nothing new conceptually, not even unique controls. Off the Wall has absolutely nothing new to offer the gaming industry - not even when it first came around. Nothing new at all. Now that I have got that off my chest....

For most people this game appears to be the classic ''block breaker'' game that everyone knows. That is because, well it is. There are some subtle things about this game that just make it really fun. The more I play this game, the harder it seems to get to stop --- it is a sad addiction really.

Gameplay
You begin the game as a the only playable character, Kung Fu Lu. He has trained his whole life so that he could one day slay the dragon that has been taunting his village for years. So one day Lu goes over to the dragon's wall and destroy the dragon. This task isn't as simple as it seems for the dragon throws balls at our little friend Lu. Lu comes prepared for this; he brought his staff to knock the ball out of the way and back up towards the dragon. During this process the wall gets slowly destroyed and Lu gets certain special powers that will help him along the way.
Be careful though, not all of the powers help Lu, and a new enemy will eventually come into the picture.

Off the Wall is the basic block breaker game put to a story line (if that can honestly be counted as a story line). It is more challenging than most games of the same nature due to the speed of the ball movement, and more fun than most due to the power-ups and the ease at which the wall is taken out. For some reason, unlike most games, when the ball hits the wall, it will take out quite a few blocks at the same time, allowing you to clear the screen quickly and get to the dragon - with certain power-ups you will be able to take out nearly half of the screen before the ball comes back down and get a few hits on the evil dragon. I am not going to lie, most Atari games can not keep me playing them after I have beat them, Off the Wall has kept me playing for hours upon hours. I feel oddly ashamed of this....

Controls
If nothing else Off the Wall can claim that it has the most ridiculously frustrating controls known to mankind. In your efforts to control Kung Fu Lu you will find that he randomly gets bursts of adrenaline or will feel the need to take a nap in the middle of the game. These effects are not due to power-ups that can be picked up, just a really distracting glitch in the programming that makes for a frustrating game at times.

For what it causes in frustration, it makes up for in simplicity. Simple movements left and right of the joystick will make Lu go left and right, respectively. This is all that makes up the entire controls for Off the Wall outside of the main Title screen. Anyone can pick up this game and play it.

Graphics
The graphical designs are in some ways really good. This includes the detail that makes up Lu. The shape and movements of the evil blackbird, and the design of the wall. However, there are some let downs also. The biggest and most obvious is the ''dragon'' that is atop the wall. It may claim to be a dragon, but it is really nothing more than a glorified two-dimensional worm. Secondly, most of the power-up really do not look that good... they do not look that bad either, but it doesn't live up to the overall composition of the display.

Sound
I could certainly do without the far too common sounds of the Atari 2600. But games had to work with what they had available. They didn't have the technology to do what they can today, that fact is pretty obvious. However, they should have at least tried to do new things with what they had, and unfortunately that was not done with Off the Wall, or at least not done well.

Challenge
While playing you may find nothing spectacular about the game, you may not feel like this game is worth playing. You may feel like you have played this game far too much in the past and that you do not need to play it anymore. None of these things are likely to be true, simply because they are not. Even if they are your opinion, it is undeniable that this game is challenging (or as you may see it, this version of the game). Even the best of the best players will not be able to get past Master Mode their first, second, or even tenth time through. If a challenging Atari game is what you are looking for, look no further than this well hidden gem.

Options
Atari games tend to leave out many options for their players. Generally one or two will suffice for most games made at the era. Off the Wall has twelve different modes of play, including three different skill levels that are accessible in both one and two player modes. Certainly this game will keep you occupied for hours and hours... even if you are ashamed to admit it.

Overall
If you are plunging through a yard sale or bargain bin and happen to find this game, or if you already have it and is long forgotten behind better, newer games... please put Off the Wall in again for one last go around (or maybe the first time), because I promise you - once you do, it won't be your last.

9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/28/04