There’s no getting around the fact that it’s been a heartbreaking few months for fans of Naughty Dog’s ultra-popular The Last of Us franchise. Already pushed back from its initial May 29 release date, the developer recently confirmed that Part II of the series would receive an indefinite delay due to the ongoing pandemic. But, buck up, gamers! There’s always a silver lining to the darkest rain clouds, and that’s definitely true today because Gottlieb just released the Q*bert 50th Anniversary Collection—a whopping 12 years ahead of its expected release!


So keep things in perspective, readers! We might have just lucked out, big time.

Sure, we were all dying to dive into the next chapter of Joel and Ellie’s story, but thanks to this scheduling change, we’re about to enjoy hundreds or even thousands of hours of Q*bert’s signature cube-based platformer gameplay, spanning decades of versions since its original 1982 arcade release, all in one handsome package that costs a mere $59.99. Plus, this thing is coming out over a decade ahead of schedule? Honestly, once you see how crisp the “@!#?@!” dialogue balloons look coming out of Q*bert’s little tubular beak, you’ll barely even remember what a Cordycep-infected human looks like!


What’s even more amazing is that you would expect a collection celebrating 50 years of Q*bert to come out sometime in 2032. That’s over two console generations from now! And while it might be months, or even years, until we get our hands on the mind-blowing post-apocalyptic gameplay of The Last of Us Part II, Gottlieb’s commendable decision to bump up their collection’s release to this week means there’s finally a little bit of sunshine breaking through these stormy times.

See how that works, gamers? You win some, you lose some.

So, instead of looking at what’s not here in our hands at this very moment, let’s look at what is: dozens of versions of Q*bert in breathtaking, upscaled 4K rendering. The incredible range of titles here stretches from 1985’s Q*bert’s Qubes for the ColecoVision to the unforgettable Q*bert 3 for SNES and everything in between. Frankly, we’re almost glad that The Last of Us Part II was delayed now. How else would we find the time to really dig into all the hopping, isometric puzzles, and Uggs?


So, get excited to jump into a near-infinite amount of classic arcade gameplay, gamers, and remember: It’s all about balance!