Hyperball

Hyperball is a computer game created for the Acorn Electron and BBC Micro. The game is a Breakout clone, with many added elements making it closer to the 1986 arcade game Arkanoid. The game was released as part of the compilation Play It Again Sam 13 in 1990.

Gameplay

Hyperball follows the traditional Breakout style of a controllable bat used to keep a bouncing ball on screen and destroying blocks. As with most games of its type since Arkanoid, it has additional strategy and features. When blocks are hit, an assortment of capsules occasionally drop, providing a variety of options. These include an infrared view which allowed the player to see otherwise "invisible" blocks, a laser cannon, a ball detonator which splits the ball into eight separate balls and a diamond cutter which allows the ball to travel through anything. An alien also sometimes falls, with detrimental effects including biting a hole in the bat, magnetizing the bat (making control difficult) or speeding up the ball.