Atari has released a new Asteroids game into Early Access on Steam, but it’s not the Asteroids game many will remember.

Asteroids: Outpost is a sandbox multiplayer shooter that Atari says is a “dramatic reboot” of the 1979 arcade classic.

Set in the distant future, Outpost puts players in the role of deep-space miners, harvesting rare ore and expanding their bases, while protecting themselves from deadly asteroid showers and claim jumpers.

The speil:

In Asteroids: Outpost, mankind has expanded its reach into the distant corners of the solar system. Near-space vessels, heavy industry on the moon and thriving colonies on Mars extend humanity's empire into the great blackness of space. Our solar system's massive Asteroid Belt is a mother lode of resources, just waiting to be torn free and shipped home.

“The Belt" is humanity’s newest frontier, as wild and untamed as any that man has faced. Ambitious prospectors blast off with little more than an Outpost Module and a Mining Tool to break open fallen asteroids to find their fortunes. This bonanza doesn't come without risks and mere survival is a daily struggle. Asteroid storms bombard the surface, destroying Outposts, and hostile claim jumpers can appear at any moment. For the brave, there is a fortune to be made. For the foolish - there is only death. Welcome to the new Gold Rush.

According to Atari, Outpost features tool and weapon crafting, base-building and degradation, resource gathering, exploration, and attacking and looting.

“Asteroids: Outpost is bringing a completely new premise to the world-renowned Asteroids arcade shooter by combining survival and crafting gameplay mechanics in a multiplayer intergalactic setting,” said Atari CEO Fred Chesnais

“During the Early Access period, Asteroids: Outpost will build on the current gameplay while adding compelling new elements and expanding on the open world.”

Other Atari games could be overhauled in a similar way in the future, said Atari COO Todd Shallbetter.

“This is part of our new strategy. We are going to be teaming up with young and innovative studios to take a refreshing look at each game from our extensive portfolio,” he said.

“Asteroids is the first of a long series of rebirths, and we are considering doing the same for our other iconic games such as Warlords, Adventure, Tempest, Missile Command, and many more.”

Asteroids: Outpost is in development at indie studio Salty Games. You can pick it up on Early Access for NZ$23.75.