"So There Are Aliens At Area 51"

I have wasted so many quarters in an Area 51 machine that it is unbelieveable. Me and my friends would always crowd the machines and put endless amounts of quarters in it for hours at the arcade. Hell, our theatre and arcade still to this day have Area 51: Site 4. Good thing too because we, and a lot of other people in my area, are hooked on it.

Area 51: Site 4 is the ''sequel'' to the original, you guessed it, Area 51. It is kind of like an expansion pack from the first, but not. You see, it features the same old levels from the first with a few new ones. Sure it isn't a true sequel, but it is still slightly better than the first.

Area 51: Site 4 is a light gun game. You just point and shoot so there is really no real control. All you have is a gun that is hooked to the machine and you just aim and shoot. Very simple. You are part of the S.T.A.R. Team and some aliens have infiltrated Area 51 or something and you need to cap their asses. There really is no story considering there are no cut scenes throughout the whole game. You just go from area to area (the game is on rails so you have to go where it takes you) and blast some alien scum. Overall, the controls couldn't be easier.

The gameplay is good. You basically just shoot whenever the game takes you somewhere. The only real problem with the gameplay is that your fellow S.T.A.R. team mates or whatever seem to always get in your line of fire. Now when you shoot them, you will lose health. Overall, the game is pretty easy and the gameplay is pretty average for a light gun game. There is really no replayability besides playing the game over and over. Average replayability.

The graphics are average. Everything looks pretty good, but by no means shows what an arcade game can really do. There is a little graphical problem with the movement of the aliens because they seem to move very slow and sluggish. This wasn't a big problem, but it could be fixed. The sound is ok. The aliens sound kind of good and so do the guns. Overall, good graphics and sound.

To spend fifty quarters or to spend no quarters, you ask? This is definitely a game that I would waste my wallet in. Very fun to play on both single player and multiplayer. Go play it!

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 02/22/03, Updated 02/22/03