Atari Announces Yars: Recharged, a Visually Stunning Remake of Atari’s Best-Selling 2600 Title

Atari® – one of the world’s most iconic consumer brands and interactive entertainment producers – brings us the next exciting entry in the Atari Recharged series: Yars: Recharged. Coming to PC via Steam and Epic Games, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, Switch, Stadia, and Atari VCS later this year, Yars: Recharged features indie-style gameplay infused with elements of classic arcade gaming and shoot-em-up punctuated by moments of chaotic bullet hell.  A visually stunning remake of the cult classic, take command of a Yar warrior and battle through scores of enemy Qotile in an effort to defeat them once and for all!

Yars: Recharged thrusts players to the center of a daring attack against the enemy homeworld, guarded by mechanical hives that pulse deadly cannons and emit flurries of swirling missiles. Find pockets of safety amongst the hail of incoming fire, and then dart forward in daring forays to chip away at the enemy’s defenses. Gather enough energy by destroying enemy shields to power up the massively destructive Zorlon cannon, pulsing searing blasts of cosmic energy and annihilating enemies. Yars: Recharged challenges players to remain acutely aware of visual and audio cues that hint at impending danger and master the smooth flying controls as they navigate increasingly complex levels.

The new game marks Atari’s return to the Yars universe, originally based on Howard Scott Warshaw’s cult classic Yars’ Revenge. Released in 1982, Yars’ Revenge made gaming history by becoming the best-selling original Atari title on the Atari 2600. Yars: Recharged extends the legacy of this iconic franchise and gives fans an opportunity to experience an expanded, modern take on the concepts introduced by the original.

Yars: Recharged Key Features:  

  • Boss Rush: Experience a nearly endless barrage of enemies. Three hits and you die, but don’t worry! The hit-count resets when moving to the next round.
  • Mission Mayhem: Mission mode features 30 unique, challenging bosses and only one life to beat each. Take bosses head-on with a barrage of bullets or opt for a different strategy and start with the smaller, Minor Cores first.
  • Juiced-Up Power-Ups: Minor Cores will drop power-ups when destroyed. Shoot in all directions at once, utilize rapid-fire, blast with explosive shots, or fire a railgun – the nature of the power-up is tied to the nature of the core that dropped it.
  • Co-op with a Co-Pilot: Featuring local co-op in both arcade and mission mode, partner up with a pal and take on the hordes of enemy fighters

Yars: Recharged and the entirety of the Atari Recharged series is made in collaboration with developers Adamvision Studios and SneakyBox. Award-winning artist and composer Megan McDuffee created the beat-heavy, pulsing original soundtrack. Yars: Recharged will be available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, Switch, Atari VCS, and PC via Steam and the Epic store.

Author: Mark Smith
I've been an avid gamer since I stumbled upon ZORK running in my local Radio Shack in 1980. Ten years later I was working for Sierra Online. Since then I've owned nearly every game system and most of the games to go with them. Not sure if 40+ years of gaming qualifies me to write reviews, but I do it anyway.

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