Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening revives an 80s icon — here’s what matters for players

Why This Announcement Hit My Radar

I didn’t expect 2025 to be the year Cobra swaggered back into gaming, but here we are. Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening lands on August 26, 2025 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, and PC, and it’s the first modern adaptation of Buichi Terasawa’s cult space pirate in decades. The hook is strong: a 2D side-scrolling action-platformer that revisits the anime’s first 12 episodes, complete with the Psychogun, the Colt Python 77, a grappling hook, and even that ever-present cigar. As someone who grew up on Dezaki’s bold “postcard memories” frames and Cobra’s Belmondo-inspired grin, this caught my attention because it’s not just a nostalgia play – it’s a tough tone to nail in gameplay.

Key Takeaways

• Side-scrolling action-platformer adapting the anime’s first 12 episodes, including the Captain Nelson treasure arc.
• Two-player co-op and multiple difficulty levels – a welcome swing at modern accessibility while staying faithful.
• Magic Pockets (dev) and Microids (publisher) have history with licensed IP; execution quality will make or break it.
• The real test is capturing Cobra’s pulp swagger and Dezaki’s style without sanding off the series’ edge.

Breaking Down the Announcement

The Awakening is playing it smart by focusing on the anime’s opening stretch. Early arcs are iconic and self-contained, which lends itself to punchy level design: exotic planets, sleek space casinos, pirate hideouts, and boss encounters that should lean into spectacle as much as combat. The arsenal reads like a greatest hits compilation – Psychogun for energy blasts, the hefty Colt as a sidearm, a grappling hook for traversal, and the ever-stylish cigar that’s as much a character detail as anything else. On paper, that’s a great recipe for readable 2D combat and movement variety.

What makes me cautiously optimistic is the format. Licensed 2D action games can shine when devs keep scope focused and animation snappy — think how hand-drawn brawlers and retro-inspired shooters have staged a comeback. Microids has been on a mission to revive classic European and anime-adjacent IP (Tintin, Grendizer, Asterix). Results have been mixed, but when the art direction carries the day, nostalgia hits hard. Magic Pockets is a long-running French studio with deep experience shipping side-scrollers and handheld-friendly projects, which suggests they know how to make responsive controls and readable enemy patterns — exactly what a Cobra adaptation needs.

The Real Challenge: Capture Cobra’s Vibe, Not Just His Silhouette

Cobra isn’t just a design sheet with a red bodysuit and a laser arm; he’s attitude. Terasawa modeled him after Jean‑Paul Belmondo’s effortless charm, and director Osamu Dezaki baked that into the anime with stylized freezes, dramatic lighting, and a playful mix of pulp sci‑fi and adult cool. If this game just recreates key locations but forgets the swagger — the one‑liners after a Psychogun blast, the smirk before a desperate gambit — it’ll feel like cosplay. The good news is the feature list reads reverent, right down to the gadgets. The open question is presentation: will we get bold, painterly stills echoing Dezaki’s “postcard memories”? Will the soundtrack lean into smoky space‑disco rather than generic orchestral swells?

There’s also the matter of tone. Cobra’s world is flirtatious, violent, and a bit dangerous. Modern ratings sometimes declaw older pulp — cigars get censored, sensuality gets implied rather than shown. Faithfulness doesn’t have to mean edginess for edginess’ sake, but The Awakening needs a confident aesthetic if it wants to feel like Cobra and not just “space guy with laser arm.”

Co-op and Game Feel: A Smart Addition or a Tone Clash?

Two-player co-op is the curveball. The anime often treats Cobra as a lone operator with Lady Armaroid as his steady counterbalance — which actually could make for a great co-op pairing. If Player 2 is Lady with defensive tools and support abilities while Cobra is the glass‑cannon showman, that’s thematic and mechanically interesting. But co-op in 2D sidescrollers lives or dies on camera design and enemy readability. Tethered screens that yank players into pits, messy particle spam that hides bullets, and desynced difficulty tuning can turn a stylish romp into chaos. 60 fps and tight input response are non‑negotiables here, especially on Switch.

Difficulty options are a good sign. Cobra stories swing from breezy capers to desperate last stands, so a tiered challenge curve can invite newcomers while letting veterans chase no‑hit runs and boss rushes. If the team is really embracing the anime structure, I’d love to see set‑piece variations — stealthy infiltration in one episode, a jet‑bike chase in another, maybe even a sports detour if the Rugball arc makes the cut.

Industry Context: Microids’ Nostalgia Gambit

Microids has carved a niche reviving beloved IP for a modern audience. Sometimes that yields stylish, faithful throwbacks; sometimes it exposes how hard it is to translate 70s/80s pacing into contemporary game loops. The Awakening feels like a better fit than most: a focused 2D framework, episodic source material, and a hero whose kit naturally maps to gameplay verbs (aim, blast, grapple, quip). The risk isn’t “can they adapt it?” It’s “can they keep it fresh across a dozen episodes without padding or repetition?” If level design keeps introducing new enemy gimmicks — say, a crystalline miniboss echoing the Glass Man or a late‑game escalation with Salamandar — this could sing.

What Gamers Should Watch For

• Art direction that evokes Dezaki’s dramatic stills and bold lighting rather than safe, flat shading.
• Combat clarity: distinct telegraphs for enemy attacks and a Psychogun that feels powerful without trivializing fights.
• Co-op identity: who’s Player 2, how camera and difficulty scale, and whether friendly fire is an option.
• Episode variety: heists, space dogfights, or a Rugball homage to break up the run-and-gun flow.
• Performance parity: locked frame rate on consoles, especially Switch, and responsive controls.
• Localization and VO that carry Cobra’s smirking charisma and punchlines.

TL;DR

Space Adventure Cobra: The Awakening has the right format and the right focus to do justice to an 80s legend. If Magic Pockets and Microids capture the series’ swagger, keep the action crisp, and make co-op more than a gimmick, this could be the rare licensed revival that actually rules the galaxy.