Alleyway
Encyclopedia
is a video game developed by Nintendo
and Intelligent Systems
and published by Nintendo as a global launch title
for the Game Boy
. It is a Breakout clone
and one of the first four games developed and released for the system. The game was released first in Japan
in 1989, in North America
later that year, and in Europe
in 1990. It was later re-released via online distribution for the Nintendo 3DS
Virtual Console
on June 6, 2011.
The name Alleyway references the in-game gateway that the player's spaceship (represented as a paddle) must pass through. While Alleyway is a portable clone of Breakout
, it adds several new features, including alternating stages, bonus rounds, and hazards for the player at later levels. While the game's original box art featured an unidentifiable protagonist, later international releases of the game replaced the character with Mario
. Alleyway was released with limited advertising, receiving moderate to low scores from reviewers who compared it to games like Arkanoid
.
The player's objective in Alleyway is to destroy all breakable bricks in each stage using a ball and paddle while keeping the ball from falling into the pit below, similar to that of Breakout. The paddle's speed can be adjusted by holding either the B or A button on the controller while moving the paddle, which can move only horizontally at a fixed height. At the start of each life, the player can reposition the paddle before releasing the ball and commencing gameplay. When released, the ball will always begin at a 45° angle above the paddle aimed toward its center. The player starts the game with five paddles; each time the ball falls into the pit below the paddle, a paddle is removed and the ball is reset.
The game ends when all the player's paddles are depleted. An additional paddle is granted for each 1000 points scored, until the player has over 10,000 points. The player may have up to nine paddles at once. The game lacks a continue feature
, though the high score will be retained until the game is reset
or turned off. As there is no battery-backed SaveRAM or password
feature, Alleyway can only be completed in one sitting on the Game Boy. This was later changed with the re-release of the game for the Nintendo 3DS's Virtual Console
system, which allowed for in-game progress to be recorded to a single save state accessible at any time while playing the game.
s in a different direction at the same angle. The ball's speed depends on the type of brick that it hits: gray and black bricks increase its speed, while white and square, indestructible bricks have no effect. A sound effect is also played when the ball collides with an object or wall, with walls producing the lowest pitch
and black bricks the highest.
The ball's direction and speed can be controlled by the paddle's velocity and point of contact. Changing direction the moment the ball comes into contact with the paddle, called a snap technique, will bounce the ball upward with increased speed. Moving the paddle quickly in the opposite direction than the ball is headed will result in the ball bouncing in the same horizontal direction as the paddle at a 15° angle. If the player contacts the ball with the body of the paddle before it falls into the pit below, it will bounce back into the playing field. However, if instead either corner of the paddle collides with the ball at that moment, it will be knocked directly into the pit.
Alleyways ball cannot be locked in an infinite loop
of ricochets. Whenever the ball starts to loop between objects such as the ceiling, indestructible blocks and/or the paddle itself, its velocity will change at a random point after the second cycle on its next collision. As a result, the ball will travel at a slightly raised or lowered angle depending on its current trajectory
, and will break out of the loop.
The game features 24 levels, based on eight block patterns in groups of three. After every three regular stages, the player proceeds to a bonus stage
, giving the game a total of 32 levels. Most levels follow a generic design, though one group is modeled after Mario
's head as it appears next to the remaining paddles icon. The player progresses to the next level once all bricks are destroyed, where the same pattern of bricks appears but behaves differently. Every second stage is a Scrolling Block Screen, featuring bricks that move from left to right; every third is an Advancing Block Screen, where the bricks move downward the height of one regular brick in short bursts, increasing in speed as the ball bounces off the paddle. Any part of a brick below a height of ten bricks above the paddle is automatically removed; thus they cannot impede the player's movement but cannot contribute towards the player's score either.
As the player progresses through patterns, new elements are added to the gameplay. After the fourth stage, the paddle's size is halved until the stage is cleared or a life is lost if the ball comes into contact with the top of the area. From this point on, the third stage variant features hidden bricks above the ceiling that descend progressively, using a similar—or same—layout that must also be cleared, meaning the pattern must be cleared twice. In later levels, bricks in the second stage variant may not move at the same speed or in the same direction. After the twelfth stage, indestructible bricks are incorporated into the brick patterns.
Bonus stages feature patterns based on various Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Mario Bros.
sprites
, such as a Piranha Plant, Goomba
or Bowser. Unlike regular levels, the ball will destroy blocks in these stages without ricocheting off them, and contact with the ceiling will not affect the paddle size. These stages are the only ones to feature background music during play, and cannot be paused
. A timer is present for each bonus stage; it starts at 95 for the first and is reduced by five for each subsequent bonus stage completed beforehand. If the timer ends, the ball falls into the pit (no life is lost in this case), or all bricks are destroyed, the bonus stage ends. Destroying all bricks before the timer expires yields additional bonus points, which vary depending on the level. Once cleared, the brick pattern changes and gameplay reverts to the normal cycle. After finishing the final bonus round, the player is given a congratulations screen using the Mario graphic from the original Mario Bros.
game. The game then loops back to the first stage, allowing for infinite play.
, with one point awarded for the lightest and three for the darkest. The player may earn additional points for completing the bonus stages, with the bonus starting at 500 for the first and reaching 1500 for the last five. The player's highest obtained score is recorded until the game is turned off.
The game only displays four digits of the player's score, yet it has a maximum value of 65,535. Scores of 10,000 and above are displayed as a combination of icons and the numerical display. For every 10,000 points, a sprite from the NES Super Mario Bros. game is shown below the numerical score. A fire flower is shown for 10,000 points, a mushroom for 20,000, and a starman for 30,000 points and above. The game stops changing the sprite after awarding the starman icon. As a result the highest score that can be displayed is 39,999; however, the maximum score of 65,535 is shown as 35,535. Once the maximum score has been reached, the score will roll over only if the player completes a bonus stage. A roll over does not affect the recorded high score.
, Baseball, and Tetris
, though only with the first two in Japan. The game's release predates Tetris by two months, due to legal battles between Nintendo and Tengen
over the Tetris property. On June 6, 2011, the game was re-released as a launch title for the Nintendo 3DS
Virtual Console
system via online distribution.
Alleyway marks one of the first appearances of Mario on the Game Boy system alongside Super Mario Land, although its original box and cartridge art showed an unidentified character in a spacesuit piloting the paddle. The artwork was changed to show Mario at the controls on the game's international release, but neither the manual nor the back of the box refer to the Nintendo mascot's presence in the game. Nintendo Power
s preview made no mention of Mario in the title other than note of the pattern of bricks in Mario's shape for the first bonus level. Official confirmation of the pilot being Mario only came about in 1990 with Club Nintendo
s preview of the game's European release.
The game was one of the first titles made by the Nintendo R&D1
development team, alongside Tetris and Radar Mission. Years later, the game's designer Gunpei Yokoi would reuse much of Alleyways source code
(such as paddle behavior and adapted physics engine
) for the Game Boy game Kirby's Block Ball
while working with Shigeru Miyamoto
's team. Alleyway was re-released for download onto the Nintendo Power cartridge
, occupying one memory block on the device.
Promotion of the title in Nintendo published material consisted of a segment taking up a third of the page the articles were on. Advertisements for Alleyway were grouped with those for the Game Boy itself and other titles for the system. Years after its initial release, a two-page section in the Super Game Boy
Nintendo Strategy Guide bundled with the Super Game Boy accessory appeared, which gave advice and color codes for the game.
title, and reviews of the game have been mostly negative. Mean Machines
gave the game a score of 33%, criticizing its repetitiveness and stating "this variant doesn't have much more to offer than the original [Breakout]". The magazine's staff added "once you've finished a couple of screens, you'll be bored stiff" and compared the game to its predecessor, Arkanoid, regarding the lack of power-up
s in Alleyway. Electronic Gaming Monthly
staff also reviewed the game, with four separate reviews giving the game scores of 6/10, 6/10, 5/10, and 3/10. All four reviewers compared it to Arkanoid, complaining about the lack of enhancement over the Breakout format. GamesRadar
shared the sentiment in their review of the 3DS re-release, with reviewer Nathan Meunier giving it a score of 5/10 and stating "Alleyway wasn’t so hot when it first came out, and it still pales when put it side-by-side to other similarly priced offerings". He further added at times the game appeared to "hate" the player with its difficulty, though acknowledged that the addition of save states "takes some of the sting out of losing". Retro Gamer
s Darran Jones called it "pretty piss-poor all the way back in 1989", noting the bland levels and lack of power-ups found in Arkanoid, and that many similar clones had outperformed it.
Not all comments about the game have been negative. The two Electronic Gaming Monthly reviewers that gave the highest scores did state they felt the design was perfect for the Game Boy, one adding "It's also a very good game that combines some new features ... with the original Break-Out theme" and concluding "Alleyway is good—but a bit long". German magazine Power Play gave the game a rating of 48%, but also praised the game's level variety. The book Rules of Play
discusses the game as an example of improved design
over a base core mechanic, citing the inclusion of distinct sound effects for ball collision as a means to praise the player for destroying bricks, and the varied level designs as "well done" and giving the player "an element of discovery to the overall experience." Allgame
noted that despite the simplicity and variety, "Alleyway is fun to play", further adding that games of its kind "always play well on the Game Boy".
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
and Intelligent Systems
Intelligent Systems
is a Japanese first-party video game developer and internal team of Nintendo Co., Ltd. It has its headquarters in the Nintendo Kyoto Research Center in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture....
and published by Nintendo as a global launch title
Launch title
A launch game, or launch title, is a video game released to consumers synchronously with the release of its respective video game console, meaning they are the only available games at the time of the console's launch. Several of these games are also packaged with the console...
for the Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
. It is a Breakout clone
Breakout clone
A Breakout clone is a sub-class of the "bat-and-ball" genre introduced with the Magnavox Odyssey's Tennis and Atari's Pong...
and one of the first four games developed and released for the system. The game was released first in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1989, in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
later that year, and in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1990. It was later re-released via online distribution for the Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
on June 6, 2011.
The name Alleyway references the in-game gateway that the player's spaceship (represented as a paddle) must pass through. While Alleyway is a portable clone of Breakout
Breakout (video game)
Breakout is an arcade game developed by Atari, Inc and introduced on May 13, 1976. It was conceptualized by Nolan Bushnell and Steve Bristow, and influenced by the 1972 arcade game Pong, also by Atari. The game was ported to video game consoles and upgraded to video games such as Super Breakout...
, it adds several new features, including alternating stages, bonus rounds, and hazards for the player at later levels. While the game's original box art featured an unidentifiable protagonist, later international releases of the game replaced the character with Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
. Alleyway was released with limited advertising, receiving moderate to low scores from reviewers who compared it to games like Arkanoid
Arkanoid
is an arcade game developed by Taito in 1986. It is based upon Atari's Breakout games of the 1970s. The title refers to a doomed "mothership" from which the player's ship, the Vaus, escapes.-Overview:...
.
Gameplay
The game ends when all the player's paddles are depleted. An additional paddle is granted for each 1000 points scored, until the player has over 10,000 points. The player may have up to nine paddles at once. The game lacks a continue feature
Continue (video gaming)
Continue is a common term in video games for the option to continue the game after all of the player's lives have been lost, rather than ending the game and restarting from the very beginning.-Arcade games:...
, though the high score will be retained until the game is reset
Reset (Computing)
In a computer or data transmission system, to reset means to clear any pending errors or events and bring a system to normal condition or initial state usually in a controlled manner. It is usually done in response to an error condition when it is impossible or undesirable for a processing activity...
or turned off. As there is no battery-backed SaveRAM or password
Password
A password is a secret word or string of characters that is used for authentication, to prove identity or gain access to a resource . The password should be kept secret from those not allowed access....
feature, Alleyway can only be completed in one sitting on the Game Boy. This was later changed with the re-release of the game for the Nintendo 3DS's Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
system, which allowed for in-game progress to be recorded to a single save state accessible at any time while playing the game.
Ball behavior
The ball will only travel at 15°, 30°, or 45° angles. If the ball hits a brick, the brick disappears and the ball ricochetRicochet
A ricochet is a rebound, bounce or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. The possibility of ricochet is one of the reasons for the common firearms safety rule "Never shoot at a flat, hard surface."-Variables:...
s in a different direction at the same angle. The ball's speed depends on the type of brick that it hits: gray and black bricks increase its speed, while white and square, indestructible bricks have no effect. A sound effect is also played when the ball collides with an object or wall, with walls producing the lowest pitch
Pitch (music)
Pitch is an auditory perceptual property that allows the ordering of sounds on a frequency-related scale.Pitches are compared as "higher" and "lower" in the sense associated with musical melodies,...
and black bricks the highest.
The ball's direction and speed can be controlled by the paddle's velocity and point of contact. Changing direction the moment the ball comes into contact with the paddle, called a snap technique, will bounce the ball upward with increased speed. Moving the paddle quickly in the opposite direction than the ball is headed will result in the ball bouncing in the same horizontal direction as the paddle at a 15° angle. If the player contacts the ball with the body of the paddle before it falls into the pit below, it will bounce back into the playing field. However, if instead either corner of the paddle collides with the ball at that moment, it will be knocked directly into the pit.
Alleyways ball cannot be locked in an infinite loop
Infinite loop
An infinite loop is a sequence of instructions in a computer program which loops endlessly, either due to the loop having no terminating condition, having one that can never be met, or one that causes the loop to start over...
of ricochets. Whenever the ball starts to loop between objects such as the ceiling, indestructible blocks and/or the paddle itself, its velocity will change at a random point after the second cycle on its next collision. As a result, the ball will travel at a slightly raised or lowered angle depending on its current trajectory
Trajectory
A trajectory is the path that a moving object follows through space as a function of time. The object might be a projectile or a satellite, for example. It thus includes the meaning of orbit—the path of a planet, an asteroid or a comet as it travels around a central mass...
, and will break out of the loop.
Levels
Bonus stage
A bonus stage is a special level within a video game designed to reward the player or players, and typically allows the player to collect extra points or power-ups. Often a bonus stage will have no enemies or hazards, or may contain them but the player character is invulnerable to attack from them...
, giving the game a total of 32 levels. Most levels follow a generic design, though one group is modeled after Mario
Mario
is a fictional character in his video game series, created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Serving as Nintendo's mascot and the main protagonist of the series, Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creation...
's head as it appears next to the remaining paddles icon. The player progresses to the next level once all bricks are destroyed, where the same pattern of bricks appears but behaves differently. Every second stage is a Scrolling Block Screen, featuring bricks that move from left to right; every third is an Advancing Block Screen, where the bricks move downward the height of one regular brick in short bursts, increasing in speed as the ball bounces off the paddle. Any part of a brick below a height of ten bricks above the paddle is automatically removed; thus they cannot impede the player's movement but cannot contribute towards the player's score either.
As the player progresses through patterns, new elements are added to the gameplay. After the fourth stage, the paddle's size is halved until the stage is cleared or a life is lost if the ball comes into contact with the top of the area. From this point on, the third stage variant features hidden bricks above the ceiling that descend progressively, using a similar—or same—layout that must also be cleared, meaning the pattern must be cleared twice. In later levels, bricks in the second stage variant may not move at the same speed or in the same direction. After the twelfth stage, indestructible bricks are incorporated into the brick patterns.
Bonus stages feature patterns based on various Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
sprites
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
, such as a Piranha Plant, Goomba
Goomba
Goombas, known in Japan as , are fictional species from Nintendo's series of Mario video games. They first appeared in the NES video game Super Mario Bros. as the first enemy players encounter. They have appeared outside of video games, including in film, television, and other media...
or Bowser. Unlike regular levels, the ball will destroy blocks in these stages without ricocheting off them, and contact with the ceiling will not affect the paddle size. These stages are the only ones to feature background music during play, and cannot be paused
Breakpoint
In software development, a breakpoint is an intentional stopping or pausing place in a program, put in place for debugging purposes. It is also sometimes simply referred to as a pause....
. A timer is present for each bonus stage; it starts at 95 for the first and is reduced by five for each subsequent bonus stage completed beforehand. If the timer ends, the ball falls into the pit (no life is lost in this case), or all bricks are destroyed, the bonus stage ends. Destroying all bricks before the timer expires yields additional bonus points, which vary depending on the level. Once cleared, the brick pattern changes and gameplay reverts to the normal cycle. After finishing the final bonus round, the player is given a congratulations screen using the Mario graphic from the original Mario Bros.
Mario Bros.
is an arcade game published and developed by Nintendo in 1983. It was developed by Shigeru Miyamoto. It has been commonly featured as a minigame in the Super Mario Advance series and other games...
game. The game then loops back to the first stage, allowing for infinite play.
Scoring
Points are awarded for destroying bricks based on their shadeTints and shades
In color theory, a tint is the mixture of a color with white, which increases lightness, and a shade is the mixture of a color with black, which reduces lightness...
, with one point awarded for the lightest and three for the darkest. The player may earn additional points for completing the bonus stages, with the bonus starting at 500 for the first and reaching 1500 for the last five. The player's highest obtained score is recorded until the game is turned off.
The game only displays four digits of the player's score, yet it has a maximum value of 65,535. Scores of 10,000 and above are displayed as a combination of icons and the numerical display. For every 10,000 points, a sprite from the NES Super Mario Bros. game is shown below the numerical score. A fire flower is shown for 10,000 points, a mushroom for 20,000, and a starman for 30,000 points and above. The game stops changing the sprite after awarding the starman icon. As a result the highest score that can be displayed is 39,999; however, the maximum score of 65,535 is shown as 35,535. Once the maximum score has been reached, the score will roll over only if the player completes a bonus stage. A roll over does not affect the recorded high score.
Development
Based on classic ball-and-paddle arcade games such as Breakout and Arkanoid, Alleyway was a launch title for the Game Boy in 1989 for Japan and North America, alongside Super Mario LandSuper Mario Land
is a platforming video game developed by Nintendo for the Game Boy handheld game console. It and the Game Boy debuted in Japan on April 21, 1989, in the United States on July 31, 1989, and in Europe on September 28, 1990...
, Baseball, and Tetris
Tetris (Game Boy)
Tetris is a puzzle video game that was included as a pack-in title with the Game Boy at the handheld's release in 1989. It is a portable version of Alexey Pajitnov's Tetris. It was the first game compatible with the Game Boy Game Link Cable, a pack-in accessory that allowed two Game Boys to link...
, though only with the first two in Japan. The game's release predates Tetris by two months, due to legal battles between Nintendo and Tengen
Tengen (company)
Tengen was a video game publisher and developer that was created by arcade game manufacturer Atari Games.-History:Atari had been split into two distinct companies. Atari Corporation was responsible for computer and console games and hardware and owned the rights to the Atari brand for these domains...
over the Tetris property. On June 6, 2011, the game was re-released as a launch title for the Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo 3DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
system via online distribution.
Alleyway marks one of the first appearances of Mario on the Game Boy system alongside Super Mario Land, although its original box and cartridge art showed an unidentified character in a spacesuit piloting the paddle. The artwork was changed to show Mario at the controls on the game's international release, but neither the manual nor the back of the box refer to the Nintendo mascot's presence in the game. Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
s preview made no mention of Mario in the title other than note of the pattern of bricks in Mario's shape for the first bonus level. Official confirmation of the pilot being Mario only came about in 1990 with Club Nintendo
Club Nintendo
Club Nintendo is the name of several publications and a more well-known customer loyalty program provided by Nintendo. The loyalty program is free to join and is committed to providing rewards in exchange for consumer feedback and loyalty to purchasing official Nintendo products...
s preview of the game's European release.
The game was one of the first titles made by the Nintendo R&D1
Nintendo Research & Development 1
was Nintendo's oldest development team. Its creation coincided with Nintendo's entry into the video games industry, and the original R&D1 was headed by Gunpei Yokoi...
development team, alongside Tetris and Radar Mission. Years later, the game's designer Gunpei Yokoi would reuse much of Alleyways source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
(such as paddle behavior and adapted physics engine
Physics engine
A physics engine is computer software that provides an approximate simulation of certain physical systems, such as rigid body dynamics , soft body dynamics, and fluid dynamics, of use in the domains of computer graphics, video games and film. Their main uses are in video games , in which case the...
) for the Game Boy game Kirby's Block Ball
Kirby's Block Ball
Kirby's Block Ball is a Breakout-style Game Boy game developed by HAL Laboratory. It was released in Japan on December 14, 1995, in North America on May 1996, and in the PAL region on December 25, 1995.-Gameplay:...
while working with Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
's team. Alleyway was re-released for download onto the Nintendo Power cartridge
Nintendo Power (cartridge)
The flash RAM cartridge was a Japan-only peripheral produced by Nintendo for the Super Famicom and the Game Boy, which allowed owners to download Super Famicom/Game Boy games onto a special flash memory cartridge for less than what the full cartridge would have cost.During the days of the Family...
, occupying one memory block on the device.
Promotion of the title in Nintendo published material consisted of a segment taking up a third of the page the articles were on. Advertisements for Alleyway were grouped with those for the Game Boy itself and other titles for the system. Years after its initial release, a two-page section in the Super Game Boy
Super Game Boy
The is a 16-bit adapter cartridge for Nintendo's Super Nintendo Entertainment System, as well as the Super Famicom in Japan. The Super Game Boy allows game cartridges designed for use on the Game Boy to be played on a TV display using the SNES/Super Famicom controllers. When it was released in...
Nintendo Strategy Guide bundled with the Super Game Boy accessory appeared, which gave advice and color codes for the game.
Reception
Although Alleyway sold well enough during its production run, it has not been re-released as a Nintendo Player's ChoicePlayer's Choice
Nintendo Selects is a marketing label used by Nintendo to promote video games on Nintendo game consoles which have sold well; Nintendo Selects titles are sold at a lower price point than other games...
title, and reviews of the game have been mostly negative. Mean Machines
Mean Machines
Mean Machines was a market-leading multi-format gaming magazine released between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom. Its style was popular with gamers of the time for its irreverent humor, anarchic editorial tone and style, and its sometimes outrageously outspoken reviews.- Origins :In the late...
gave the game a score of 33%, criticizing its repetitiveness and stating "this variant doesn't have much more to offer than the original [Breakout]". The magazine's staff added "once you've finished a couple of screens, you'll be bored stiff" and compared the game to its predecessor, Arkanoid, regarding the lack of power-up
Power-up
In computer and video games, power-ups are objects that instantly benefit or add extra abilities to the game character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a benefit and can be used at a time chosen by the player...
s in Alleyway. Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly is a bimonthly American video game magazine. It has been published by EGM Media, LLC. since relaunching in April of 2010. Its previous run, which ended in January 2009, was published by Ziff Davis...
staff also reviewed the game, with four separate reviews giving the game scores of 6/10, 6/10, 5/10, and 3/10. All four reviewers compared it to Arkanoid, complaining about the lack of enhancement over the Breakout format. GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
shared the sentiment in their review of the 3DS re-release, with reviewer Nathan Meunier giving it a score of 5/10 and stating "Alleyway wasn’t so hot when it first came out, and it still pales when put it side-by-side to other similarly priced offerings". He further added at times the game appeared to "hate" the player with its difficulty, though acknowledged that the addition of save states "takes some of the sting out of losing". Retro Gamer
Retro Gamer
Retro Gamer is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Although launched as a quarterly publication, Retro Gamers soon became a monthly...
s Darran Jones called it "pretty piss-poor all the way back in 1989", noting the bland levels and lack of power-ups found in Arkanoid, and that many similar clones had outperformed it.
Not all comments about the game have been negative. The two Electronic Gaming Monthly reviewers that gave the highest scores did state they felt the design was perfect for the Game Boy, one adding "It's also a very good game that combines some new features ... with the original Break-Out theme" and concluding "Alleyway is good—but a bit long". German magazine Power Play gave the game a rating of 48%, but also praised the game's level variety. The book Rules of Play
Rules of Play
Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals is a book on game design by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman, published by MIT Press.-Structure:The book is divided into four units, first introducing core concepts, then expanding on these with a detailed discussion of rules, play and culture.-Unit 1: Core...
discusses the game as an example of improved design
Design
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
over a base core mechanic, citing the inclusion of distinct sound effects for ball collision as a means to praise the player for destroying bricks, and the varied level designs as "well done" and giving the player "an element of discovery to the overall experience." Allgame
Allgame
Allgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
noted that despite the simplicity and variety, "Alleyway is fun to play", further adding that games of its kind "always play well on the Game Boy".
External links
- Official Nintendo Japan website
- Alleyway GameFAQs section (full pattern diagrams and information)