The original Breakout concept involves controlling a bat at the bottom of the screen and using it to catch and direct a ball so as to hit all the bricks which are arranged at the top of the screen. It was unpopular for over a decade, before Taito revived it with some new ideas in this arcade game.

The game's plot redefines the bat as a Vaus spaceship, the ball as an energy bolt, and the bricks form a mysterious wall stopping the ship from progressing to safety.

By the mid-80s, power-ups were popular in most types of arcade games, and Arkanoid features them. They are caught by positioning the bat below them as they fall (meaning that you risk missing the ball if you go for them at the wrong time). The power-ups include lasers (which are mounted to each side of the ship and allow you to shoot out the blocks), a catching device (so as to be able to fire the ball off at a different angle every time you hit it) and one that slows the ball.... sorry, bolt.... down. Needless to say, the game inspired tonnes of clones, few of which added anything else.

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Part of the Following Groups

Merchant	Title	Platform	Price
	Arkanoid	NES	$3.01
	Arkanoid
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User Reviews

Only the Japanese could invent something like this	Amiga	Katakis (37454)
A fine, if tricky conversion	Amstrad CPC	Liam McGuigan (8)
Best breakout clone ever.	DOS	Tomer Gabel (4418)

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The Press Says

Computer and Video Games (CVG)	Commodore 64	May, 1990	87 out of 100	87
Pixel-Heroes.de	Amiga	Nov, 2003	8 out of 10	80
Tilt	Commodore 64	May, 1987	16 out of 20	80
Commodore User	Commodore 64	Mar, 1987	8 out of 10	80
All Game Guide	NES	1998		70
CU Amiga	Amiga	Mar, 1988	7 out of 10	70
Game Freaks 365	NES	2005	5.4 out of 10	54
The DOS Spirit	DOS	Dec 04, 2008	3 out of 6	50
Just Games Retro	NES	Jul 04, 2003		50
Amiga Joker	Amiga	Dec, 1990	29 out of 100	29

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Trivia

NES controller

The NES version of Arkanoid includes its own controller in the package (a smaller version of the spinner used in the arcade version). The game can also be played with the regular Nintendo controllers, but it is much harder this way since the paddle can't be moved as fast as with the spinner controller.

Other platforms

In the 1990's a series of ARGO TV system console variants were produced each containing multiple games. Arkanoid is part of the 84-in-1 game set. See here for pictures.