Alien Flux PC Game Review

Alien Flux is an all out shoot em up and by far Puppy Games best offer. For one, it’s not a direct remake of a classic arcade game, feels newer, and has superior graphics, sound, etc. compared to Ultratron and Titan Attacks. I would describe it as an action packed hybrid of Robotron and Asteroids. You fly around as in asteroids, but safe fluffies like you save humans in Robotron. If you like shooters, you’ll love this. There are some quirks and misfires, but the game is a lot fresher and more fun to play.

Gameplay: 8.5/10
Pros: Classic type gameplay, with newer FPS control scheme (use of mouse/keyboard). A lot of options to change the controls to best fit your style. Gameplay is action packed, challenging, and exciting. Easy to pick up and play.
Cons: The camera is really wonky…it’s awful and nauseating if you don’t turn on the fixed mode which is a godsend, but still not perfect. As with most Arcade games, the driving force to keep playing is a higher score and the fun frantic gameplay…no real story etc. to carry you through all 100 levels minus facing 1 of the 4 bosses.

Graphics: 7/10
Pros: Definitely the slickest and most vibrant game by Puppy Games so far. There are a ton of cool explosion and particle effects. Your ship is well animated, and there is a good variety of enemies with different looks.
Cons: Background is some type of Brain or Generic background that just changes hues/colors from level to level, so there is no real level variety. Many baddies are bubbles, triangles, or other geometry inspired derivatives.

Sound/Music: 8.5/10
Pros: B!tching soundtrack that has a retro feel but also a modern and scifi element to it that works really well. Again, far superior to other Puppy Games offerings.
Cons: Somewhat stereotypical music, and can be way too loud! I had to adjust my speakers and ingame options to get it right. Bass tones were somewhat distorted.

Lasting Appeal: 6/10
Pros: There are 12 different power-ups, 16 different baddies, 8 fluffies to save, 100 levels, 4 bosses and an online high score table. The gameplay is fun and will keep you interested in the game far longer than you might first expect.
Cons: High scores are not a good enough motivation to play 100 levels of the same gameplay for most these days. It’s fun seeing the bosses and new baddies, but once you blast all the different things to blast, the static/same backgrounds will start to wear on you.

Average: 75.00%
Tilt: -2.00

I think Alien Flux is a good purchase if you try the demo and find yourself wanting more. I think $19.95 is a little steep, but the title is up to Indie standards and that’s what people charge for their games online so I guess it’s ok. My big thing is that for $20 you can get an Xbox, PS2 game, or even newer games on eBay and the like, so shouldn’t arcade games like this be about the same price as Xbox Live Arcade games ($10)? Alien Flux for $10 would be a steal…at $20, it seems like it may be for some and not for others.

Verdict: 73%


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