This game is based on the long-running, French comic book series Asterix the Gaul. The characters Asterix and Obelix must rescue Getafix (Panoramix) and Dogmatix (Idéfix) from the Romans, who are in the process of taking over Gaul.
Gameplay
Asterix and the Great Rescue is a side-scrolling platform game. The startup screen offers a choice of difficulty level, as well as the ability to turn off the music and/or sound effects. The Master System and Game Gear versions allow changing characters during a level, whereas the Mega Drive/Genesis version removes this feature in favor of allowing choosing characters at the start of a level.
Reviewing the Genesis version, GamePro criticized the steep difficulty slope and poor controls, but they ultimately recommended the game to players who like tough puzzles.[5]
Mean Machines gave a positive review of the Master System version which was described as "particularly entertaining" and "compulsive". The graphics were praised including the characters' resemblance to the original comic versions. The game was found to be lacking originality as it was so similar to previous titles featuring Disney characters, and sometimes frustrating but was judged to be "a great game".[21]
The four reviewers of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the Game Gear version a 5 out of 10, saying that the graphics are well done, but the sounds are "a nuisance", and that the controls make the game excessively frustrating.[4]GamePro similarly wrote that the Game Gear version's graphics and animation are good but that controlling the character is extremely difficult.[6]