Somewhere along the line, gamers have come to expect video games to carry a certain level of depth and sophistication, along with the enjoyment of the game itself. But not all games adhere to that mould, and Alien Zombie Megadeath is an example of that. Despite being a very minimalist-looking game with a simple concept, it offers satisfying gameplay and a health supply of game modes. Even with the levels designed around quick plays and short game sessions, you’re more than likely to lose yourself in Alien Zombie Megadeath playing “just 1 more levelâ€.
As a sequel to Alien Zombie Death, a Playstation Portable title as part of the Minis collections, Alien Zombie Megadeath is as self-explanatory a game as they come. Like the name suggests, you’ll be fending off hordes of zombified aliens as an astronaut, in the form of a 2D shooter. Time in-game will be spent playing through the 70 stages, which all consists of a rectangular arena filled with horizontal platforms. The space man that you control can traverse along these platforms at will, dodging projectiles fired by alien zombies as they spawn all over the place. To defend against these extraterrestrial menaces, you’re equipped with a trusty blaster and a small arsenal of power-ups. Power-ups gives you’re a boost in fire power for a few precious seconds and contain the usual suspects: rockets, lasers, 3-way shot, time lapse, and the occasional health pack. The score is the ultimate objective here as medals will be earned based on your performance in each stage, which is required to unlock subsequent stages.
Besides throwing waves of enemies at you to mow down, Alien Zombie Megadeath mixes things up with different objectives to keep things interesting. There are stages where the arena will be littered with hazards that you’ll have to navigate around, on top of the alien zombies you’ll have to contend with. Survival stages involves endless waves of enemies that becomes more numerous and increasingly difficult over time. Bosses will make a few appearances on some stages where you’ll have to fight a much stronger alien zombie in addition to its minions. Escort stage is surely a fan favorite among those who’s tried Alien Zombie Megadeath, where the goal is to protect space babies (?) waddling from one end of the stage to the other. A variation of the escort mission involves bombs that have to be disposed, but while carrying them leaves you unable to fire your weapon. The amount of variety in the game is almost surprised, but surely enough there’s more than enough there to keep you constantly engaged.
As fun as Alien Zombie Megadeath is, there are a few complaints to be had with the game. Graphically it is serviceable but far from impressive, featuring bare-bones menu options and colorful yet bland interfaces. There’s not much to look at, but thankfully there’s rarely a need for that when the focus is centered on the action.
The inclusion of a multiplayer option is a nice touch, if only there was somebody, anybody, to play with. Any multiplayer experience with the game will have to be done exclusively in offline mode, for better or worse, with a friend in your living room. Lastly, as you progress through the game, the stages become more and more difficult. Since unlocking stages requires earning medals from the previous ones, at some point in the game you’ll be forced to replay stages and perfect them before moving on. Most of these are minor annoyances, and is a result of a game more suitable for portable gaming spreading itself to thin.
Available for $7.99, Alien Zombie Megadeath is an easy sell to anyone who enjoys simple games along the veins of Angry Birds or Pac-Man. It would have been a perfect game to play on-the-go on the Playstation Portable as its predecessor was, but has found a nice home on the Playstation 3 via PSN.