Astérix is one of the most beloved comics in the world, on par with Disney comics in many places. The creation of René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo, the French comic tells the story of a village in Gaul (modern-day France) who endlessly resist the Roman empire, and follows the adventures of two Gauls in particular, Asterix and Obelix. Asterix gains great strength from a magic potion he drinks, while Obelix fell into a cauldron of the potion as a baby and is always very strong.
The Astérix series has been running since 1959 and has spanned multiple comic albums and has been adapted into multiple games over the years. One of these games was a 1992 arcade beat em’ up by Konami that stands as one of the finest adaptations of the comic, with deep combat and full of references to the franchise history. While that game is unlikely to be re-released, Microids and Mr. Nutz studios have done the next best thing and released a new Astérix beat em’ up in the form of Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All.
Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All is a brilliant adaptation of the Astérix comics, with each act being based on a different Astérix album such as Astérix in Britain, Astérix in Spain and so on. Even those who are not familiar with the Astérix franchise can enjoy this game as an introduction to the world of Astérix, as each of the acts is essentially a retelling of the comic albums. The stories are an abridged version of the comic versions, with details left out of course, but they still serve the purpose well.
Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All is a great beat em’ up with a large variety of moves. Asterix and Obelix do not function exactly the same, with each of the characters having their own sets of moves and abilities, such as their grabs functioning differently. Learning the combat may take a bit of time though, as the game does not make everything clear at first but does reveal some details during loading screens.
Visually Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All is a gorgeous game and looks like a cartoon that players are controlling. Asterix and Obelix are rendered in perfect detail, and the animation is exquisite. However, as good as the art is, there was something special about the Konami arcade game’s visuals that just cannot be matched, as it felt closer to the comic’s art style.
In terms of audio, Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All is decent and has some good tunes, but also some forgettable ones. The characters talk a lot also and this is both good and bad because at first, the sound bites are nice, but they repeat often and get annoying. The sound effects are all great though, and that is a must for an Astérix game.
One area that Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All falls short in is enemy variety. Many enemies are repeated over and over, even in areas where it would make sense for new enemies to appear, yet the same bandits and Romans show up. The inclusion of the Barbe-Rouge pirates is a nice inclusion though, even if their areas also repeat.
Multiplayer works well in Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All, although it is local only. While online play would have been welcome, the local multiplayer does work well when tested, and perhaps online can come later. One aspect of the game that does need to be mentioned is that when playing in single-player, Asterix and Obelix can be switched between at the press of a button and do not share a life bar, essentially giving players much needed help should they be overwhelmed.
While Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All doesn’t quite match up to the legendary Konami arcade game, it is still a very good brawler in its own right. Asterix and Obelix: Slap Them All is highly recommended, because not only is it a real treat for fans of Astérix, but non-fans will get a lot of enjoyment out of it as well. Make sure to check this one out, as it is truly amazing.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
Available on Nintendo Switch (Reviewed), PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series via BC, PS4, and PS5 Via BC
Images were taken from Nintendo.co.uk