Asterix & Obelix

Year 1996, I'm sitting at the computer, Dad asks what we're playing now, and I tell him: Asterix. He knows exactly what I'm talking about — everyone who grew up before the internet era knew the comics. Infogrames bet on the safest card they had.

Asterix & Obelix for MS-DOS is a beat 'em up for one or two players. The setting comes straight from the world of the famous Gallic comic — a small village, Romans everywhere, magic potion. The duo of heroes travels through various locations across antiquity, beating up everything that moves. Don't look for much of a story here. It's an excuse, not a plot.

The gameplay is so straightforward that even someone holding a joystick for the first time will get it. You go right, you bash stuff, occasionally you jump. Obelix is slower and stronger, Asterix is faster. Each has his own style — in single-player you choose, in two-player you split and suddenly realize your buddy is stealing all your enemies while you just watch. Classic genre stuff. The controls respond decently, enemies are varied and visually match the source material, so the first hour is reliably fun.

What can't be overlooked: the game is short and repetitive. After you get through the first locations, you realize the gameplay loop doesn't change much. Enemies have different names, backgrounds look different, the mechanics are identical. In 1996 that was acceptable — these games sold on licensing and speed from store to monitor. Today you see it differently. It hasn't aged badly, but simply has its limits.

The graphics have charm — characters resemble the comic source, animations are snappy, colors are vibrant. By the standards of DOS-era PC it was a nice result. Music and sound effects are functional, forgettable, but unobtrusive. Sound Blaster handled them without complaint.

Today you can play it most easily in a browser via DOSBox emulators and it works for anyone who knew Asterix from comics or cartoons and wants ten minutes of nostalgia. Or for parents with kids — it's simple enough to sit beside. But it shouldn't aim for more than that.