Tempest 4000

If you are not a fan of simple arcade games, which it most undoubtedly is, you probably won't find much in Tempest 4000 to win you over. But for those who have any love for the series, and appreciation for the era of the arcade, you absolutely can't go wrong with this one. I prolonged this review longer than necessary because I just wasn't done playing it – and I'm still not. It's a winner.

Look, it's a fun game, filled with flashing lights and so much digital detritus you'll need a shower after one run. But the thing is, you've played this before – not in this form in 4K on this particular format, but Tempest is Tempest and Tempest 4000 doesn't really try to be anything else.

Unfortunately, there won't be much to keep you blasting through the game once you've had a few longer sessions.

Jeff Minter's latest interpretation of this arcade classic still holds up as one of the best versions of Tempest to date, although the price and lack of changes from TxK both make it a difficult purchase to recommend at $30.

Tempest 4000 is the final Llamasoft Tempest and an incredibly strong game to go out on.

Tempest 4000 brings back all those awesome memories from arcades. Its presentation, visuals and soundtrack are still great. But the game is too similar to TxK and it is a bit pricey.

Tempest 4000 isn't doing anything new or different - but this is an eminently playable, intuitive arcade reimagining that is well worth sinking some time into.

Tempest 4000 is perceptibly held back by a clunky UI, missing two-player modes, and a gimped AI Droid. But it's still recommended, thanks to its superb audio/visual package and "one more time" gameplay. Especially for series fans, getting "in the zone" will ensure this entry has high replay value. Being able to enjoy this in handheld mode on the Switch is a big plus also.

Though I wouldn’t say that it was among my favorite arcade games back in the day, there’s no question that the original Tempest is an absolute classic...

Tempest 4000 is a fun and fast-paced game that does everything previous entries in the series did, and then some. It will certainly appeal to fans of the previous releases from ages past, but it's not going to appeal to all players due to its considerable challenge, as well as its art style and very colorful presentation, since it might make some of you feel a bit overwhelmed.