Alien Syndrome

"Gauntlet Legends in space!!"

There's a lot of talk about whether this is an under or over-rated game. Let's try to clear this up as much as possible.

Before you even begin playing, you might try using your thumbstick to scroll the main menu, and then notice it's not working. The game actually uses a PC type interface with it's menus, or maybe it's more the the true wii type interface. You debate that, I don't care. This interface will be brought up again though.

One more step before you can jump in and blast aliens is to pick your character's class type. You can excel in demolition, melee, fire, and other various professions. This is really only the start of what your class will be like. One thing that you can't pick is the gender of your character. Yes, you are stuck being a girl. It didn't ruin Metroid, don't expect it to ruin this game. With the graphics and helmet you'll be wearing, you won't be able to tell anyhow.

The game actually starts with a cut scene that explains that the heroine is returning to duty after some sort of tragic accident, and with a certain amount of reserve. A space station has been invaded, and someone needs to explore it.

Here is what I believe to be the most accurate description of what the gameplay is actually like. Think Gauntlet Legends, but with aliens and mechanical weapons. When considering the graphics, you can still think about that game if you'd like.

You will spend 90% of your time blasting aliens with your favorite weapon. You will spend another 10% of your time upgrading and dealing with armor and weapons. Here's where that interface comes back into play. It might start annoying you when you can't quite get the feel of that remote's pointer down quite right, and you're accidentally upgrading things that you didn't really mean to. I prefer to think of it as an element that makes an otherwise simple game more difficult.

In the style of Morrowind or Oblivion, you have a weight limit of the items that you can carry. You have to decide what you really need and what you don't. That which you need to obviously keep, and that which you don't you scrap.

By scrap I don't literally mean throw away. Similar to Phantasy Star Universe you have a robot that is your companion throughout the game. By taking items that you don't need and scraping them you can earn resource points. Resource points are used to build new items, weapons and armor. Resource points can also be obtained through enemy drops too.

The weapon and armor system is very much like that in Diablo. For instance, a piece of armor titled "Hermes helmet MK II insulated" would tell you that it's upgraded from the standard Hermes helmet. The MK II would tell you that there's a defense bonus, and the insulated would tell you that it's resistant to electricity.

Let me tell you first off, the graphics are something that you can get over quite easy as you get emerged into the fast paced game play. However, expect that game play to be repetitive and monotonous. That's not to say it outright gets boring. Finding items and upgrading weapons and armor keeps you in the game most the time. This definitely is a game best played in multi-player. It's definitely a good way to pass the time, or to bond with that little brother that you otherwise couldn't stand to be around.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/30/07