Wow, I could not contain my excitement when I saw this so I had to write up a quick one for you.

SPACE ACE for the iPhone!

Now, I apologize to anyone that may not have an iPhone, but just perhaps this is the tipping point for you go out and splurge! For those with the iPhone and have no clue what Space Ace is…here is a quick rundown.

Space Ace was a laserdisc video game produced by Don Bluth. It was unveiled in October 1983 and then released in Spring 1984, and featured film-quality animation played back from a set of Pioneer laserdisc players. The game play was quite simple, but the timing was the tricky part. When I was a kid, it was always a gamble to go to the arcade with the hopes of playing Space Ace and only to find that it was out of order. This was common due to the laserdisc player format being very new and unpredictable. Obviously, with the iPhone…this is not a concern anymore. The iPhone version is actually the third incarnation of the game. The game was revamped in the late 90’s in a DVD format where you used your remote as the controller; also available on Blue Ray and HD DVD if you care.

The game required the player to move the joystick or press the fire button at key moments in the animated sequences to govern the Ace’s/Dexter’s (the hero) actions. In the case of the iPhone app, your joystick and button are just points on the game screen that highlight when you have to time your hero’s movements.

The great thing about this game was the film-quality animation, it was like watching a very fast paced cartoon that you were dictating. The interesting thing about this version on the iPhone, is that the company that released it (Dragon’s Lair LLC.) captured the essence of the original laserdisc version. So when the game loads scenes where Dexter or Ace perish on their mission to save Kimberly…it pauses, the screen goes black for a second, then is loads and starts again. I thought that was a great touch to the overall game.

The story behind the game is very basic as well. Space Ace’s woman, Kimberly, is kidnapped by the evil Commander Borf! Ace is not really stable thought, he was struck by Borf’s Infanto Ray transforming him into a kid version, Dexter. Only when Dexter is energized does he return to himself, Space Ace. So while Ace/Dexter are in pursuit of Kimberly and to destroy the Infanto Ray, they fight off Borf’s hordes of robots and monsters by maneuvering through space and mazes by foot and vehicle.

The entire game is very short, probably just short of ten minutes if you don’t die a bunch of times along the way. The control is very basic as well, just wait and watch for the button to highlight and get your reaction time in check. So, overall…I rate this game with an easy A and despite its $4.99 purchase price, this is a very low hurdle for me to relive this classic anytime and anywhere I have my phone.

And just so you know, and know you are curious…Dragon’s Lair is scheduled for release on the iPhone very soon…