The year is 50 BC. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely… One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders. And life is not easy for the Roman legionaries who garrison the fortified camps of Totorum, Aquarium, Laudanum and Compendium.
Drinking a magic potion, bonking Romans, chasing down wild boars and then roasting said wild board over a flame. Sound familiar? Well, if your name is Asterix and your best friend is a Menhir maker by the name of Obelix, then this should be a no-brainer. The Adventures of Asterix follows Asterix & Obelix and a village of Gauls as they fight against Roman occupation in 50 BCE. Aiding their efforts is a magic potion that gives them superhuman strength brewed by their druid Getafix.
Asterix & Obelix going Digital
In addition to the comic books that were launched, Asterix and Obelix have also had their share in videogame spotlights. Kicking off with Asterix & Obelix XXL launched in 2003, the action-adventure video game brought together these two Gauls to once again fight off Romans. Players could take on the role of either Asterix or Obelix as they went about rescuing villagers, solving puzzles and defeating any Romans along the way. Depending on the situation, the player could switch between the two characters as one had speed and the other had strength.
A sequel, titled Asterix & Obelix XXL 2: Mission: Las Vegum was released in 2005. An HD Remaster was announced on July 6, 2018, by Anuman under their Microids brand label and developed by OSome Studio. It was released for the PS4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows and the Nintendo Switch. The game featured a number of cameos and spoofs such as GTA, Sonic the Hedgehog, Tomb Raider and even Super Mario.
Delving into the land of the Crystal Menhir with Asterix & Obelix
Most recently, Microids, the publisher of the original 2 games announced that Asterix & Obelix XXL 3 would soon be available. Titled The Crystal Menhir, the 3rd game in the saga would be available on the 21st of November 2019. According to Microids, the game would be made available in two special editions. They are Limited Edition and Collector’s Edition.
The former would consist of the copy of the game along with two figurines of Asterix and Obelix. The latter on the other hand would consist of a copy of the game, along with a 15CM tall resin figurine of Obelix and Dogmatix, and two small figurines of Asterix and Obelix.
In terms of gameplay, both the developers and publishers are keeping quiet and not revealing much. What they have said, however, is that the game would feature the famous duo going on a treasure hunt based on a letter that the druid Getafix receives. Players will be able to battle, explore, solve puzzles and add items to their collection along the way. A number of od side quests will also be available to those who are even more curious.
In addition, for the first time in the Asterix & Obelix XXL saga, a cooperative mode will be available. So you can play with your family or friends on the same screen. While existing characters such as Getafix, Cacofonix the Bard and Chief Vitalstatistix all make their appearance, there will also be a number of new characters created for the game as well.
If you’re as excited as we are to check out this brand new game, you can go ahead and add Asterix & Obelix XXL 3: The Crystal Menhir to your wishlist via Steam. We expect it will be made available for other platforms soon as well.
Have you played the Asterix & Obelix XXL Saga? Love it? Hate it? We would love to hear from you.