Hands on Impressions; Titan Attacks! for 3DSBy Chris Murray
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Editors note: Well this is awkward. I seem to have fallen into the same situation Jon found himself when reviewing the Sony versions of this game. Only, I cant make it past the second bloody stage!… As a result, I may have to get back to you with a post game article when I eventually finish the game. ok? good. Lets go!
Space invaders is among some of the most iconic games in gaming history. Although it has been around far longer than I have, it is one of those games, like Mario, that everyone (most people) are familiar with in some form or another. Titan Attacks! invades its way onto the 3DS platform this week, so I thought I'd give it a bash and see just what exactly Jon means by saying It’s a “rum-and-raisin-ice-cream-stirred-into-an-ermine-lined-pint-glass-of-champagne-with-Scarlet-Johanson-swimming-around-in-it-curling-her-finger-at-me-with-a-‘come hither’-look" kinda game. Developed originally for PC by Puppygames, Titan Attacks! Was ported shortly after on to the Sony platform’s, PS3, PS4 and the Vita by Curve Studios. You can read Jon's review of these version's here. |
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It is easy to see where the inspiration for Titan Attacks! came from. Looking at it in a glance you'd just think it was just another Space Invaders clone. Only, it is a little more than that. It sports the same classic style of gameplay we all know and love but also offers a slight twist on the action. Challenge stages and power ups are among some of these twists. Move left to right with the control stick and press A to shoot the oncoming lines of aliens and saucers. Simple right? Not exactly. It can actually be quite difficult. Especially when you get to the later levels. To increase your chances of winning, however, the game offers an upgrade store where you can increase your shield capacity, increase firepower and speed, among other things, with the money gained during the levels. |
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Do you spend money on your levelling up your shield? Do you use it to power up your blaster? Do you save your hard earned money shooting aliens from each level to buy smart bombs? These are just some of the predicaments I found myself in a number of times. Choosing shooting power over shields when you should have, perhaps, spent the money on a smart bomb or increased your fire power can get you into trouble a frustrating amount of times. The wrong choice could be fatal. That’s part of the beauty of this game, though. Having that “Risk/Reward” element of play really adds something to the game, making it stand out from just being a “clone” of the original.
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Being on the 3DS, you might think there would be some extra 3D elements to the game that makes it stand out from the Playstation versions. Unfortunately there is no such thing. The only 3D feature is the home screen logo that seems to be a standard thing for games on the 3DS. Does it need it though? Probably not. It might have been nice to, perhaps, use it in a way that make the aliens comes towards the screen a bit more and give it a more dynamic effect, something to raise the port above the Sony versions. The 3DS version doesn't make much use of the second screen either. Other than showing the stats of the current game, like shield capacity, points and smart bombs etc. that’s about it. I suppose you could argue it frees up more more space on the top screen for the game. |
Summary
Overall, Titan Attacks! is a fun little game. It’s easy to get the hang of but it can get quite frustrating. It's goddamn addictive, though. I’m starting to understand what Jon meant. I do want more. You'd better watch your back, aliens!
Code and Images provided by Publisher
