The days of Newgrounds seem almost mythical now. So many great animators got their start there, and some game developers cut their teeth with the flash games on the site. One of these developers was The Behemoth who went on to create games like the excellent Castle Crashers, a beat em up that helped with the revival of the genre. Another title the developer worked on was Alien Hominid, which started as a flash game and become a full title for consoles and handhelds. Recently, Alien Hominid returned with an HD remaster and now a new title has been released in the form of Alien Hominid Invasion.
Alien Hominid was a tough as nails run’n’gun game, but its sequel takes a slightly different direction and it works surprisingly well. Alien Hominid Invasion moves from being a straight forward run’n’gun game, into being a multiplayer roguelike game. There are two modes to choose from, one that is a roguelite mode, and one with more traditional roguelike elements and both work well for the game.
As mentioned, this is a multiplayer game, but you can play this solo as well, and still have a good time. In Alien Hominid Invasion, there are objective to complete in each stage, such as obtaining files, following people and so on, and all the while you are being attacked by swarms of enemies. As you fight off enemies, you will get currency that will let you acquire new weapons, abilities and equipment, but dying will start you over again unless you make it to a safehouse where you can store your stash for another run.
As with the original Alien Hominid, the game gets very difficult as it progresses and the challenge may surprise you, but it is manageable whether playing with friends or alone and there is a lot of fun to be had. If you have a good team though, and the right weapons, then Alien Hominid Invasion becomes something truly magical. Some of the weapons will help you move about the environment a lot better, by using them to maneuver yourself, and the tutorial teaches you well, but you can also just figure a lot of the stuff out on your own.
I do have to say that some more variety in the mission objectives would have been nice, and the tweaks to the art style do take a bit of getting used to, but this is not a bad thing per se. Just something to keep in mind when you are playing is all. I will also note that the roguelike/roguelite elements may throw you off when first playing, but it does help Alien Hominid Invasion stand out much better from its predecessor by giving it a different identity.
In terms of performance, Alien Hominid Invasion runs excellent and the sound design in the game is second to none. The Behemoth understands how important sound is to a game and Alien Hominid Invasion, while not doing anything groundbreaking, manages to create a truly memorable experience. When playing in multiplayer, the sound can get very intense but that just feels right for the frantic pace the game wants to set, and thankfully the game’s performance does not suffer when things get excessive.
I was going in to Alien Hominid Invasion not sure what to expect, but the game has shown itself to be a worthy followup to Alien Hominid. The behemoth did not simply retreat its earlier work but built on it in interesting ways and tried a different direction. This is an easy game to recommend to all.
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
