Happy Anniversary, Missile Command

Believe it or not, the venerable arcade game Missile Command has turned 30 and to celebrate, Atari is relaunching a new version of the game.

In a press release late last week, Atari announced that the game has been "reimagined" by OMGPOP, with the new version free to play at the official Missile Command site, Atari's website and the OMGPOP site.

The new game features aliens, powerups, upgrades and yes, even co-op online play. From the news release, we get the obligatory rhetoric from the Atari and OMGPOP CEOs:

"Missile Command is a pop culture phenomenon that millions upon millions of fans have enjoyed throughout the years," says Jim Wilson, President and CEO of Atari, Inc. "The new Missile Command maintains the appeal of the original while bringing it to today's casual and social game players. It is an example of how Atari's games portfolio is well positioned for today's growing online games market."

"Working with Atari was terrific," says OMGPOP CEO Dan Porter. "To be able to work on a classic that many of us grew up playing and add the social and multiplayer features was a great way to bring the game to the millions of teens on omgpop.com."

I was never very good at the original game, but the updated version has all the bells and whistles you may need for a quick gaming fix and a bit of nostalgia.