They Want Their Planet Back is an old school vertical shooter through and through. It offers a substantial challenge and some decent bullet candy.

Gameplay: 8

TWTPB’s strongest design choice is the use of the mouse. While this might put off some of the retro hardcore players, it adds an ease of playability to the game and makes your ship incredibly agile. The upgrade system and new power moves every weapon keeps the gameplay interesting and above average. My biggest complaint about the gameplay is that the first boss is too hard and that it is very hard to tell when you get hit/damaged since there is no special effect or explosion.

Graphics: 6.5

The enemies in TWTPB are nameless geometric shapes. These shapes feel a little lazy, espeically in light of the 3D rendered ship that the player controls. The presentation of the graphics makes up for some of this monotony with excellent bullet effects and explosions. More variety in enemies and explosions would have been nice, but the package still comes together well.

Sound/Music: 6

There’s really nothing to say about the sound effects and music. They’re perfectly sufficient, yet instantly forgettable. The music is a pulsing rock/techno type soundtrack and the sound effects are minimal. The enemies apparently are made of glass or crystal, because that’s what all the impacts sound like. That’s a shame since I would like to think that all the bullets flying out of my ship had some power to them.

Lasting Appeal: 5

Earning new moves (especially the slo-mo move) each mission keeps things fresh, but it’s absurd to think that this game’s 10 missions should be valued at $20. TWTPB is a good but short vertical shooter with limited lasting appeal. I hate to recommend down-pricing in Indie Gaming, but this game is clearly overpriced.

Ultimately, TWTPB is a good shooter which shines because of it’s special moves and upgrades. It’s ridiculously overpriced and a nuisance to download since the developer requires the install of a “Steam”-like Game hub.