Space race

One of the biggest criticisms of Xbox Live Arcade has been that much of the content is either repackaged shareware games or half-assed ports of 20-year-old games at ridiculous prices.\nThose are valid criticisms, too. My ass still hurts from the realization I plopped down five bucks apiece for the whiz-bang high-definition versions of "Frogger" and "Pac-Man," especially in light of the proper remake treatment given to Rare's "Jetpac Refueled."\nReleased on home computers in the '80s, the original "Jetpac" was a simple one-screen game where an astronaut dodged aliens to gather the pieces of his spaceship and then fuel for it to blast off to another planet (that looked exactly the same) and repeat the process.\nIt was simple fun back then, and not a bad bonus game when it was included in 1999's "Donkey Kong 64," but asking gamers today to pay $5 for just that on Xbox Live would be a little much.\nLuckily, Rare wisely-decided to completely remake "Jetpac Refueled" from the ground up with 128 all-new levels and some truly awesome graphics that, while 2-D, show off the power of the 360. \nDevilishly intelligent enemies and the inclusion of power-ups absent from the original almost make this feel more like Xbox Live Arcade favorite "Geometry Wars" than the old "Jetpac," which is included in the download.\nAnd just like "Geometry Wars," this is one very tough game. There are checkpoints you can restart from every few levels, but don't expect to see the last level or get an easy 200 achievement points here unless you seriously brush up on your skills.\nA basic two-player mode where you and another player race against each other to get off each planet rounds out the package. It's decent fun, and runs without lag, but I almost prefer the more in-depth single-player game.\n"Jetpac Refueled" is everything an Xbox Live Arcade game should be. It's got a great nostalgic game here, as well as an awesome remake that stands up well against its competitors, all for the low price of 400 Microsoft Points ($5). Its gameplay stands up well in small doses and in marathon sessions. There's no reason not download this one.