Genre: Arcade
Developer: Williams Electronics
Publisher: Shadowsoft

Unlike the phenomenal ports on other systems like the Atari ST, the developers-- all two of them!-- of this rendition had to make do with the Lynx's tiny handheld resolution. And "make do" they did, as every aspect of the characters, the little flicks of animated lava, and even the shading of the various platforms is captured in spirit with essential perfection. The framerate is also positively unflappable, which is very important in a game like this.

This reviewer was a little disappointed in the iconic "bloop-bloop-bloop-blaaaaah" player spawn sound in this rendition, which is sort of underwhelming-- but aside from that, the bird flaps and hit sounds are absolutely perfect. The programmers even reproduced the stage ambient noises, really going above and beyond the call of duty.

Joust is up there with "Pac-Man" or "Mario Bros." when it comes to water tight, mechanically-driven 80's arcade perfection, and the action in this port is just about perfect: the flapping physics "feel" right, and this reviewer found himself nailing all of the basic maneuvers with ease-- other than the "scootch under the ledge" slide, which is a little bit difficult here. There are even ten selectable difficulties, and a-- non-saving, of course-- high score table!

By the time 1992 rolled around, playing something like Joust probably felt a bit anachronistic: "why are they bothering porting this ancient game?" But one can tell it was a labor of love for the two developers, who obviously put a ton of effort into reproducing even the title screen and "how to play" demo animations! The game also supports two-player via the "ComLynx" cable, making this one of the best ways to play this classic title-- and on a handheld to boot!