August 11th, 2012 | By Petey A.M.
Tagged in: arcade | Invader Eliminator | Underground Pixel
There is something extremely gratifying about watching a high score meter rise, either beating a personal best, or finally topping that friend who has been rubbing it in your face that you could not best their miracle run. It gives classic gamers an undeniable sense of satisfaction. That satisfaction is an integral principle of the upcoming arcade-style game Invader Eliminator from developer Underground Pixel, creators of Holiday Havoc and Pastry Panic.
The idea of Invader Eliminator sounds simple at first, but the concept is pretty original. You control a genetically engineered mutant which was created on a secret U.S. government space station located on the moon. When the station is suddenly threatened by an alien invasion, the super-strong, fast, and agile mutant needs to jump into action to save both the space station and eventually the Earth. It is and idea as beautiful as it is ridiculous.
The gameplay is a classic combination of simple and addictive. As they say it takes “a minute to learn, a lifetime to master.” But cliches aside, the gameplay structure is novel. Your character travels counter-clockwise around the screen and attempts to avoid the aliens which constantly pop out of the ground. Gravity appears to be a non-issue, as the incredibly powerful mutant walks on walls and ceilings. The player can jump from wall to wall or ceiling to ceiling to avoid the aliens or crush them to rid the space station of them. By crushing them the player no longer has to deal with their lingering threat and picks up points, but if he or she misses, the aliens may counter with much greater accuracy. Players can score more points by smashing multiple aliens in rapid succession. The key to mastering Invader Eliminator is timing; and, as we all know, timing is key to defeating the alien menace.
Destroying the alien menace continues to raise your high score, but Invader Eliminator offers more. Along with multiple locations, enemy types, and power ups there are planned to be a plethora of additional aspects to unravel. As you complete rounds you gain access to power ups and unlockable characters from classic indie games much like Super Meat Boy’s bevy of unlockable characters. Also, the developers are planning on offering character upgrades which will be earned either through coins or EXP received in game. These unlockables promise to give added motivation and replayability, and also separate it from simple Temple Run type games. It is difficult to deny that we all love a little added incentive. All of it is backed up by a retro chiptune soundtrack, which oozes 80′s gaming and is one of the highlights of initial alpha videos.
With its easy to pickup and quickly habit-forming “beat the high score” style gameplay, Invader Eliminator is due out Q1 of 2013 for PC, Mac, and iOS. For more info and to check out Underground Pixel, hit them up on their official website or on Twitter.
Petey A.M. (62 posts)
A gamer with a weakness for the philosophy of games and what they mean. In love with RPGs and Puzzle games, as well as anything innovative. On the side of gaming, Petey is a sports enthusiast and statistician. Follow Petey @IndiePeteyIGM on Twitter.