Geekscape Games Reviews Space Invaders Infinity Gene

Decades have passed since the release of the original Space Invaders, but much like the best games of its time, the iconic franchise has managed to stay relevant in the hearts, minds and thumbs of gamers past and present. Long gone are the days where people would spend their hard earned quarters blasting pixilated aliens, so how does one manage so stay relevant so long? By adapting and evolving. Space Invaders Infinity Gene takes this idea to the max by taking what’s familiar about the classic coin-op with a more modern flair.

 

Infinity Gene features three modes of play, Normal, Challenge and Music modes. Normal mode is the standard level progression against increasingly difficult waves of enemies and challenge mode is a series of mission based stages. While I’m sure you’re excited to play these modes for the 1000th time, the stand out mode was easily music, where the game generates stages based off of the music on your hard drive. It’s a bit of a pain to set it up since it only reads playlists instead of individual songs, but it’s worth the wait to be able to blast pixilated aliens to the sultry sounds of the High School Musical soundtrack, (don’t judge me!)

 

 

So one thing becomes completely obvious after booting up this title… the aliens technology has advanced so much since the original that they can now move in more directions than left, right and down! I know, it’s pretty groundbreaking stuff. New enemy types, fearsome ships and the loathsome killer rectangles stand in your way, but the aliens aren’t the only ones with a few surprises. As you continue playing, your ship will also become stronger, using the in game points system as a type of experience meter that helps your ship “evolve.” Suddenly, your ship can gain new upgrades like homing shots, rapid fire and the ability to fly through enemy fire, which are essential to fight off the wire frame armadas sent by this alien threat.



 

 

Speaking of the wire frame armadas, the visual style is unique for the series, comparable to something along the lines of Rez. As the stages progress, the backgrounds become more vibrant, with a slick presentation that modernizes this classic without compromising the sprite based style we’ve come to expect. If I may ask though, is it possible to create backgrounds that don’t obstruct my vision? About a dozen little space ships would have been thankful for that before I flew them into a wire frame wall. 

 

 

While the feature set might seem thin on paper and it might have its fair share of flaws, Infinity Gene has a way of pulling you in and never letting go. Outside of the achievements and trophies rewarded for playing on harder difficulties, playing each mode unlocks evolutions that carry over to every other mode. Finding out what new ways your ship can perform is part of the appeal to Infinity Gene, not to mention the typical online leaderboards where you can show off your high score. The music mode keeps the stages fresh while normal and challenge can really crank up the difficulty for those looking for a hardcore fix. All in all, Space Invaders Infinity Gene is a worthy download for fans of vertical shooters, and gamers will be happy that these aliens have landed.