Asteroids Overview
Asteroids for the Game Boy is a space shooter where the player controls a ship to clear fields of drifting asteroids. The ship can rotate, thrust forward, and fire a photon cannon in its facing direction. Destroyed asteroids fragment into smaller pieces, with large and medium types splitting into two smaller ones, while small asteroids are eliminated completely.
Beyond the asteroid threat, players encounter Alien Robot Saucers that fire across the screen. These come in two sizes and do not appear on the easy Novice difficulty setting. The game offers three other difficulty levels: Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert. A player has three reserve ships, which are lost upon collision with an asteroid or a saucer's shot. A risky hyperspace warp can be used to evade danger, though it may also destroy the ship.
Three distinct game variations are available. Standard Play is for one or two players taking turns. Competition Asteroids pits two simultaneous players against each other with friendly fire enabled. Team Asteroids also features two concurrent players, but disables friendly fire and combines their ship reserves.
Points are awarded for destroying objects, with scores displayed on the upper corners of the screen. A new reserve ship is granted for every 10,000 points. Point values vary, with small saucers worth the most at 1,000 points, followed by other player's ships, large saucers, and the three asteroid sizes.
