In gaming there will always be the inevitable clone of a very popular/iconic game, more in this era than in the past. Assets are much easier to procure and copy, and the bar of entry has been lowered thanks to mobile devices. Some clones are just that, clones of popular game with nothing new to offer. Other clones on the other hand actually try to add their own spin to the original. One of the most cloned games that I’ve seen is the iconic Space Invaders. The gameplay remains the same while the art assists are changed and that’s about it. These clones don’t really bring anything new to game and are seen as waste of time and precious memory space. With that in mind, is Curve Digital and Puppy Game’s Titan Attacks more than just a clone of a classic arcade game of the past?
Modern looks, Retro roots
Retro inspired graphics- Most Space Invader clones ditch the retro look of the the game in favor of their own art assists. While this might not seem that bad, I see it as being lazy and not paying tribute to the classic game that it was inspired by.Titan Attacks takes the retro look of Space Invaders and gives it a retro stylish modern look. I actually like how the graphics look. It has enough of its own flare that it doesn’t completely lift the spirits from Space Invaders yet one look at them and you can make the connection to it.
Level selection- The original Space Invaders didn’t really have levels other than a bump up in the speed and difficulty. Most clones would have done the same and call it a day. With Titan Attacks there are five worlds that players are able to play through. As players go through the game, aliens from the previous world will show up as well as new aliens from the current world that is being played. There are five levels and range from fighting for the Earth to taking the fight to the aliens on Mars and beyond.
Customize play style with power ups- While I don’t have anything against cloned games, I just wish that sometimes that they would put at least more effort and work into their game. Like customizing play styles with power ups for example. Titan Attacks adds power ups to its gameplay that players can use. These power ups range from extra shields, bullet power and extra bullets to screen clearing bombs and adding helpers.
Cross buy/cross play- For a couple of years now the cross buy/cross play features have been a big part of the Vita experience. Being able to play a game on the go and then being able to pick up where you left of when you get home on your PS3 was an innovative feature. Now with the PS4 able to play cross buy games, developers can reach a greater audience. Puppy Games takes this to heart and has Titan Attacks available on the PS3, Vita and the PS4 if you buy one version of the game. Sure there is the risk of cannibalizing sales on the other platforms, but when you can reach so many gamers across three platforms, the risk is worth it.
Does not compute
Epileptics need not apply- For the most part Titan Attacks is a pretty solid game. However there is a small problem that will affect a small percentage of gamers and that is the flashing lights and effects in the game. I’m sure I’ve mentioned this in the past but with most shmups will try to fill the screen as much as they possibly can will all kinds of enemies and neon bullets. This usually will cause the screen to flash all sorts of bright lights. And as we all know, this kind of flashing light can cause minor headaches and eye strain for some players for others it is much severe to the point that they go into epileptic shock. So if you have epilepsy or are prone to seizures when viewing bright rapidly flashing lights, you might want to skip out.
