We open at the peak of the 1980s. You are home from school, and your parents are about to head out of town. You hear the door slam, dash over to your hidden drawer, and pull out the item you’ve been hiding from your parents—something you know is taboo, something that should be locked away and never seen again—the glorious VHS!

As you inject the future technology into your tape player, Max (that’s you!) grabs the remotes to begin enjoying the ways of the future… only to suddenly have the tv come alive, sucking Max into a synth-wave, 80s regalia world!

Welcome to Beta MAX!

Beta MAX is a heavily 80s synth-wave-inspired platformer that adds its quirky twist: the power to manipulate time, with a VHS remote! Another heavy inspiration for this game is Portal, with many shared in-game mechanics, such as pressure plates, switches, and triggers – oh my! The goal of Beta MAX is simple: Get outta the future and return to the past, man! (But seriously, who would EVER want to LEAVE a synth-wave 80s paradise?!)

But it isn’t all discmans and leather jeans, some dangerous retro traps await you. Throughout the increasing difficulty of Beta MAX, the levels chop and change by adding such perils as crushing walls (THAT ARE STYLED LIKE RUBIX CUBES!!), lasers (neon pink, of course), collapsing bridges (which are styled and shaped as Tetris pieces) and shifting walls (that are floppy disks!!).

But with such perils come its rewards, Beta MAX also includes jump pads aka velocity accelerators (awesome name for a band) that will shoot you a far enough distance that it doesn’t feel like you’re cheating your way through the map, but also just under the right amount of speed to reach that hidden object! Oh yes, there are hidden objects in every level of Beta MAX too, which adds to the wonder, and frustration, of how to both conquer the level and reach the hidden reward!

Beta MAX’s strongest player, outside of its funky graphics, has to be the time manipulation. Gone are the days of platformers sending you back to the starting point every time you happen to die or overuse the “the controller froze I swear” excuse. If you happen to die in-game, Beta MAX does seemingly freeze at the point of your demise, allowing you to whip out the remote, rewind time to a perfect placement and tell all your friends that “Nah, I didn’t die.

Far out man, that never happened ya narc!”. Okay, maybe not that much, but you get the idea! The only options that would be helpful, whilst traversing the world of yesteryear, would be that of a hint option. Look, some obstacles and outcomes are hard, okay?!

Beta MAX graphics are so incredibly designed, implemented and executed that, hand on heart, it’s the perfect gaming tribute to the 1980s I’ve ever played. I put it up there with Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, that’s how much developer Nexcide and publisher TheGamePublisher.com have nailed this era!

But what is an 80s game without its soundtrack? Have no fear, the Beta MAX soundtrack keeps you simulated and immersed in the radical decade by providing you with all the synth-heavy jams you’ll ever need. Every level and moment in the game is presented on such a high audio level, that you’d

question if this was a long-lost beta from the 80s that has had one of those ‘remake’ treatments. Just to be clear, it hasn’t, it’s all original and it’s very much worth your time (and puzzle-solving frustration).

Beta MAX is a fantastic, heartfelt tribute to the 1980s with a strong contender in the platforming genre. With its time-rewind mechanics, quick-to-change worlds, nostalgic graphics, and a killer soundtrack, Beta MAX will keep you puzzle-solving, platforming and throwing shapes for hours!

Written by: Brutaleo