The best Asteroids clone ever is free.

Asteroids hasn't aged well over the years, despite repeated re-releases.  The idea is sound and the original will always be a classic, but each new execution feels a little too unadventurous to be all that interesting.  Fortunately, Asteroids has clones, and that's where Spheres of Chaos comes in.

Spheres of Chaos is basically the best version of Asteroids ever made.  It came out several years ago as shareware, but just recently went through a price-drop to free.  More than just a trippy psychedelic clone, it's got a huge variety of enemies and hazards to fear, not to mention power-ups to exploit, all of which combine to turn each level into a free-form challenge that requires both fast reflexes and careful planning to defeat.  Each enemy also has its own musical sound effect when destroyed, and the combination of insane amounts of color and slightly chaotic but still ambient sound combines with the hectic action to become both soothing and tense at the same time.

For those not into visual overload, it's worth nothing that the trippy graphic effects can be turned off completely, or enhanced beyond all possible reason for those wanting to know just how many colors at once can squeeze into a pair of eyeballs.  Oddly enough, my high score was gotten while experimenting with the Liquid graphics setting.  I honestly have no idea how.

If free excellence isn't good enough news, the game's creator, Iain McLeod, has announced a sequel.  Spheres of Chaos 2008 is on the way, although there's no target month yet, and hopefully won't be renamed Spheres of Chaos 2009.  There's also a little note hiding all the way at the bottom of the front page of the web site asking if anyone is interested in helping with an Live Arcade port.  I'd love to play this on my tv, so if anyone's listening, drop Iain a line.  

Spheres of Chaos is available on PC, Linux, PS2 Linux, and even Risc OS.  Check it out, it will make your life better.