Xbox Live Arcade Roundup

Discs of Tron

• Microsoft Points: 400
• In Real Money: GBP 3.40 / EUR 4.80

Two weeks after Rez HD provided enough pulsing red and blue circuit-board visuals to last us until the computers rise to power, a Tron spin-off light-cycles its way onto Xbox Live Arcade to join it. Originally released in 1983, Discs of Tron is one of the oldest arcade classics to receive a re-release and graphical update on the service. But while the game's as straightforward and simple as one might expect for a movie licence more mature than many of its players will be, it's also surprisingly enjoyable in 2008's UV-richer light.

The original Tron videogame, released a year earlier than this title, is composed of four game elements based on scenes in the film including Lightcycles, Tanks, and Grid Bugs. The original plan was to include a fifth element, based upon the scene in which Tron faces off against the Master Control Program's chief henchmen, Sark, as a kind of futuristic air-hockey match. The aim of the game was to bounce discs off the wall in an attempt to corner and strike Sark (thereby 'de-rezzing' him), while simultaneously dodging his attacks. What Wikipedia won't tell you is that because the Tron videogame needed to be ready for release at the same time as the movie, this unfinished 'discs' level was pulled, before being completed at a later date following the film's release and eventually promoted as a standalone sequel with multiple levels and its own super-awesome cabinet.

The sit-in cabinet was full of bright neon tubes and angry red backlights that blared every time one of Sark's discs hit you. Control was handled by a trackball in conjunction with a gigantic transparent blue trigger joystick with a red LED thumb button used to deflect Sark's attacks. This control scheme provided perfect precision, something not replicated in the port to analogue stick. Indeed, without all of the physical paraphernalia of lights the Xbox Live experience of the game is certainly diminished, although the revitalised widescreen visuals in this update do a fairly good job of making things interesting.

The core game mechanic is successful. You can launch up to three boomerang-esque discs at any one time (each one must return to you before you can throw it again) at Sark, who will do his best to dodge your shots. Aim is handled by moving a target along a fixed line in the environment, a marker that indicates where exactly your shot will bounce off the wall. As in air-hockey, you must calculate the angles that will most effectively wrong-foot your opponent and, as the game increases in difficulty, use your three discs to pincer him in so that he cannot help but be hit. You soon get a feel for how the projectiles will physically react to different surfaces and multi-tasking the placement of three discs, as well as the deflection of enemy disc is an enjoyable if occasionally overwhelming challenge.

As levels increase in difficulty the area over which both characters can dodge and run increases, giving the game a carefully controlled difficulty. In much later levels these platforms move in the Z-axis too, adding considerable difficulty to what is already a challenging game - especially considering the relative imprecision of the controls. Despite the lacking port, the game is one of the more enjoyable super-vintage titles to appear on XBLA and it's a testament to the core design that its fun hasn't dulled too dramatically in the past twenty-five years. However, even with the updated visuals and some online head-to-head modes, without the impact of a futuristic cabinet the sparse, functional graphics will likely be too great of a disappointment for many younger players to overcome.

5/10